Chapter 2: Don't Neglect the Culture

Question 1

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Normative behaviors

Answer 1

The behaviors that society (and subsets of society) believe are correct, the behaviors that follow the rules. Normative behaviors in the fire department organization, or in a subculture of that organization sometimes deviate radically from society’s normative behaviors. Sometimes these behaviors are truly wrong and unjustifiable.

When firehouse behaviors deviate from normal society behavior, the chief – and other members of the organization – end up in the news or a courtroom defending their actions. Never forget that the rule of law and the normative behaviors of the taxpaying public trump firehouse behavior in rituals every time.

Question 2

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To begin to understand what motivates and instigates the behaviors of firefighters you need to ask if the behavior of the firefighter is the result of …

Answer 2

The organizational culture or climate
the firehouse environment
past experiences
upbringing
genetics

The author believes that a firefighters behavior is certainly determined to some degree by the culture of the organization and by the firehouse environment, two things that can be regulated if committed.

Question 3

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The behavior of ____ firefighters can positively or negatively influence a small group or company

Answer 3

One member

Question 4

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How do you develop an environment that supports fire company excellence?

Answer 4

You have to scrutinize the past behavior of individuals as you evaluate them for membership for your organization. This is why conducting thorough and complete background checks on each prospective new team member is so important. Past behaviors are often indications of future behaviors.

Question 5

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What is often a common cause of firehouse drama?

Answer 5

Ineffective supervision, surrounded by either unmotivated or overly ambitious senior members.

The unmotivated don’t want to do anything, and the overly ambitious individuals with the wrong intentions (bullies) often set new members up for failure by establishing unrealistic expectations.

Question 6

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What can the cause of dysfunctional firehouse behavior usually be tracked back to?

Answer 6

The cost for dysfunctional firehouse behaviors can usually be tracked back to bigger organizational issues. These issues are almost always a result of inadequate supervisor preparation and lack of clear expectations and accountability at each level of the organization.

Question 7

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What are indicators that fired apartment morale is good or high?

Answer 7

• Minimal turnout times to calls
• Active, enthusiastic participation in daily activities and special projects
• Willingness to work overtime
• Shifting company cohesiveness
• Members who enjoy being at work
• Rumors kept to a minimum
• Firefighters putting in the extra effort to leave the station better than that found it

Question 8

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What are indicators that a fire department morale is bad

Answer 8

When morale is low is not uncommon to hear things like “morale is the lowest it’s ever been” or “I have never seen morale this low”

• disagreement with leadership
• lack of confidence in the equipment, or operational or leadership philosophy
• disagreements or arguments occur more than usual
• lack of participation or spiking sick time use
• when a degree of separation exists between the goals, objectives, and the values of the organization, and what is actually occurring in subcultures

Question 9

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Which is the easiest to fix morale, climate, or culture?

Answer 9

Morale

Question 10

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What is climate?

Answer 10

Climate is collective mood of the group. The climate of the fire department, battalion, or company is the attitude that is expressed when members interact with one another and the citizens and businesses they protect.

Question 11

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The author feels that climate surveys are valuable, but the success of the survey is determined by what?

How is that accomplished?

Answer 11

The success of the climate surveys determined by the follow-up.

For a climate survey to achieve his intended purpose, the follow-up should include well thought out actions assigned to the appropriate level of the organization. It’s very important that she stays engaged during the follow-up phase

The worst thing that a chief could do is administer a climate survey, review it at a staff meeting, and tell leadership to fix it.

Question 12

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The climate is synonymous with ____.

Answer 12

The climate is synonymous with the attitude of the group. You feel it when you walk into a firehouse. Keep in mind that it may vary from shift to shift, house to house, and company to company.

Question 13

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Difference between morale and climate

Answer 13

Morale is felt by the individual, climate is felt by the company.

Question 14

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If you need to discern whether the problem is with morale or climate, what two questions should you ask yourself?

Answer 14

1. Have I been neglecting the culture?
2. Have I made a decision or displayed an action that contradicts the core values of our organization?

If it doesn’t involve one of the above it’s likely a morale issue easily addressed with transparency, communication, and timely follow-up.

Question 15

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How is morale addressed?

Answer 15

Transparency
Communication
Timely follow-up

Question 16

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What is the advantage of managing culture?

Answer 16

Once the chosen culture is in place and embraced by the members, a lot of behavior issues take care of themselves. Peer pressure in the firehouse can be an effective tool when aimed towards development and not destruction.

Question 17

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Why doesn’t the military’s approach to breaking down the individual and then rebuilding them work for the fire service?

Answer 17

Because the fire service doesn’t have the resources necessary for building them back up.

Question 18

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When fire departments neglect culture and have unclear leadership philosophy what do they rely on to control behaviors?

Answer 18

They rely slowly on directives to control the behaviors. The normative behaviors in the firehouse do one of two things.
(A) position each member and team for success and survival.
(B) allow them to drift towards failure

Question 19

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How much of on-duty behavior is influenced by the culture of the organization?

What makes up the remainder of the behavior?

Answer 19

75%

5% shift commanders influence
5% peer pressure
3% maturity of each member
12% company officers influence

Question 20

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Schein holds “if leaders don’t become conscious of the culture in which they are embedded, those cultures will manage them”. What he is suggesting is that as a fire officer you have two choices:

Answer 20

1. You can embed yourself in a culture of choice, or

2. You can surrender to the culture that exists.

Question 21

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Occupational macroculture

Answer 21

The artifacts shared among suburban fire department organizations are the most obvious sign of this macro culture influence, including paramilitary rank structures, titles, the insignia used today and denote rank.

Question 22

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First whips

Answer 22

Senior firefighters are the company officers go to person in the house. Title refers back to horse drawn fire apparatus.

Question 23

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If you think of the climate as the attitude of the organization, and morale as the mood, then culture is…

Answer 23

Culture is the collective personality of the organization. Every fire department has unique culture that develops over time and is a very powerful force that will directly influence the performance of small units or groups- fire companies.

Question 24

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What two elements reflect whether the organization is thriving or just surviving, and whether members are committed or just content?

Answer 24

Climate and culture reflect whether the organization is thriving or just surviving.

Question 25

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How does Samuel Chand explained the importance of culture in his book “cracking your churches culture code”

Answer 25

“Culture, not vision or strategy, is the most powerful factor in any organization.”

Question 26

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When it comes to culture what are the two choices?

Answer 26

1. Except the culture that has developed by chance and hope for the best.
2. Choose a culture and thrive.

Question 27

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What is it that Generation X, Millennials, and Generation Z want out of the work environment?

Answer 27

• They want to learn continuously

- They expected department to value, support, and provide training that challenges them physically and mentally.

Question 28

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Those who understand culture, and know how to interpret it and influence it…

Answer 28

…hold the keys to the assumptions and beliefs of the organization

Question 29

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Why is attempting to manage the culture not manipulation of members?

Answer 29

Recognizing and positively influencing the culture as a leader in an organization is quite the opposite. By cultivating a chosen culture that is based on core values, fire chiefs are assuring an environment in which members can see, understand, predict, and contribute to their own success and survival.

Question 30

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How does TCFD foster a learning culture?

Answer 30

By making it perfectly clear that training and mentoring are a priority in a critical component of mental and physical preparedness.

The expectation throughout the organization is for quality daily training that focuses on the how and the why.

Question 31

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Why does TCFD maintain a 60:40 balance and new hires between experienced and inexperienced firefighters

Answer 31

As to not overload an inexperienced firefighter paramedics.

Question 32

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Firehouse verse fire station

Answer 32

Fire stations refer to those work environments that are more sterile and businesslike.
Firehouses have a certain atmosphere – they are unique and each one has its own personality

Question 33

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what is the culture responsibility breakdown

Answer 33

The fire chief and leadership are responsible for managing the organizational culture.

Company officers and first whips need to manage their firehouse subcultures.

Question 34

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How does TCFD prevent harassment or hazing of new hires a.k.a. toxic subcultures?

Answer 34

He promises each new member that he offers position that their dignity will not be compromised. And expects each member to keep his promise. Doing so he feels he takes a strong position against the sorts of actions.

Question 35

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Of the departments interviewed how many admitted having a problem with toxic subcultures?

Answer 35

68%

Question 36

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How do shift commanders and company officers have shared assumptions from the perspective of the organization?

Answer 36

They share supervisor subculture, and in doing so, they shared assumptions about how things should get done, how decisions should be made, and how certain problems should be solved.

Question 37

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What makes the position of a company officer so challenging?

Answer 37

• Few supervisors share the amount of time together that officer shares with his crew.
• Company officers are constantly being evaluated, and their leadership abilities judged.
• Regardless of their quality of supervision they have a major influence on the company and the responsibility for their success and survival inside and outside the firehouse.
• They received direction from above and often brutal honesty feedback from below.

Question 38

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How do subcultures in departments with strong chosen organizational culture differ from departments with neglected cultures?

Answer 38

In department with neglected culture each subculture will do what it needs to survive, and may develop an entirely different assumptions than the organization, other shifts, other battalions, and even stations within the battalion.

In organizations with a chosen subculture should align with the chosen culture of the organization. They line on all the big stuff service delivery, core values, leadership, operational philosophy etc. – then chances are good things are running smoothly because the subculture reflects the organizational culture.

Question 39

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Microculture

Answer 39

Company artifacts, logos, etc. that set that unit apart from others can happen in specialty teams as well.

Difference between subcultures and micro-cultures are the shared assumptions, symbols, and daily rituals …

Question 40

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How did TCFD go about changing the organizational culture to a chosen culture?

Answer 40

They understood that culture belongs to each member. So command sold the need for change by telling stories that supported the chosen culture. Stories that reinforce values, beliefs, and best practices about providing frequent departmentwide communications. Allowing two-way communication and giving supervisors leadership tools and total transparency.

Question 41

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What is the culture modification process?

Answer 41

1. Find out what the problem areas are and what must change.
2. Articulate vision for the future and identify core values that are easily communicated and understood by all. The transition team solicit buy-in and participation from influential members. Communicate and reinforce chosen culture.
3. Introduce the organization to the vision and core values and define the chosen culture. Educate the organization on need for change. Culture modification involves breakthrough change so everyone is impacted. Always look for ways to support the chosen culture
4. Align all policies, guidelines, hiring and promotional processes, mentoring processes, discipline processes, and best practices so they reflect the culture.
5. Hold members responsible and accountable for performance., If the chosen culture values excellence.
6. Provide supervisors with the tools they need to help sell and leave the culture modification process. Communication and feedback loop.
7. Reinforcing coach the desired performance and behavior standards

Question 42

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Malcolm Gladwell in the tipping point defined these terms:

1. Mavens
2. Connectors
3. Salesman

Answer 42

1. Mavens are those with a deep understanding of the subject.
2. Connectors are people who know lots of people including the people who will inspire other people to spread the message.
3. Salesman had the gift of gab instead of inspiring people they persuade them.

Question 43

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Stephen Denning explains in his book the leaders guide to storytelling the impact that storytelling can have on change implementation

Answer 43

A study of 40 companies involved with major changes revealed that one of the keys to their success was the ability to tell a simple, clear, and compelling story – no mixed messages.

Story should have a purpose and it should support the chosen culture. Don’t have look what I did stories

Question 44

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Tips for success: managing the chosen culture

Answer 44

1. Continually ensure that the organization is prepared and positioned for success and survival. Don’t allow parts to drift towards failure.
2. Continually educate the organization about the changes – keep them up-to-date
3. Tell stories that reinforce the chosen culture
4. Involve and empower members
5. Sell the change, don’t just mandate it
6. Delegate instead of dumping – delegating is handing off a responsibility to a less senior person with the intentions of developing their knowledge and skills. Dumping this during the task to someone because you don’t want to do it.
7. Continually update and communicate your success is imminent message-pep talk
8. Keep directives, guidelines, best practices up-to-date support chosen culture
9. Reinforce and reward desired performance/behaviors
10. Don’t say things that damage the chosen culture
11. Don’t neglect the culture