1. Fire & Emergency Services Administration Chapter 3 Leading Change

2. Fire & Emergency Services Administration What Is Change? Change is essential in business in order to survive, prosper, and stay competitive.

3. Fire & Emergency Services Administration Resistance to Change In many cases, change does not create permanent results. –Members may revert to old practices. Change is very difficult to institutionalize; this is the challenge of leadership.

4. Fire & Emergency Services Administration Doomed Change Initiatives Failure to properly influence, motivate, or educate members and supervisors Status quo often lacks any outward indication that change is needed Public unaware that quality and efficiency can be increased with changes Difficult to drive people out of their comfort zones Failure to lead by example

5. Fire & Emergency Services Administration Vision Plays a very important role in directing, aligning, and inspiring members. Vision must be clear once it is explained. Most will require many explanations of the new vision and its rationalization. There will always be people who do not believe in your vision.

6. Fire & Emergency Services Administration Role of SOPs in Change Common method for implementing change –Many SOPs are in response to safety issues. –They provide more effective methods in handling emergency incidents. –They reduce liability.

7. Fire & Emergency Services Administration Step 1: Identifying the Problem and Creating a Sense of Urgency Always the toughest step. About 10% to15% of members must be convinced that the change is necessary.

8. Fire & Emergency Services Administration Sources of Complacency The appearance of no visible crises Tax revenues on target Blind loyalty by staff members Charismatic leader Public happy with available service

9. Fire & Emergency Services Administration Increasing the Urgency Level Change would often not have occurred if it had not been for major catastrophes that occurred either locally or nationally.

10. Fire & Emergency Services Administration Raising the Urgency Level In Good Times Classic problem in FES administration –There is no competition. Constantly be on the lookout for opportunities.

11. Fire & Emergency Services Administration Creating a Crisis Progressive leaders often create artificial crises rather than waiting for something to happen. Help people see the urgency before experiencing loss.

12. Fire & Emergency Services Administration Step 2: Create a Guiding Coalition Help identify the problem, define solutions, and monitor progress. Choose members with the following traits –Optimistic –Confident –Problem solvers –Results-oriented –Committed to quality public service –Able to voice opinions intelligently

13. Fire & Emergency Services Administration Step 3: Develop a Vision and Strategy Great leaders all have a clear vision of needed changes. –Vision helps convince members that change is necessary. –Vision identifies the benefits. A leader’s strategy is to use his or her power to set the agenda.

14. Fire & Emergency Services Administration Step 4: Communicate the Change Vision Develop a simplified explanation of the vision and goals. Be able to describe the vision in 5 to10 minutes. Use both written and verbal methods. If not done properly, you can quickly turn people off to your idea.

15. Fire & Emergency Services Administration Step 5: Jump Over Barriers Tradition can become a barrier. To understand barriers, they must first be identified. An important first step is admitting that a barrier is a problem. Try to identify solutions in other organizations.

16. Fire & Emergency Services Administration Step 6: Create Short-Term Wins Needed to carry the momentum and urgency for a long-term goal They must be –visible to the entire organization. –clear and unambiguous. –a direct consequence of the change.

17. Fire & Emergency Services Administration Step 7: Be Prepared for Resistance Tradition and irrational resistance to change never fully disappear. –In the beginning, change can be very fragile. Significant change takes time and patience.

18. Fire & Emergency Services Administration Step 8: Finalize and Institutionalize the Change Underlying culture may have to change. Assure that hiring and promotion are only given to those who support the new change. Lead by example.