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Abstract:
The tragic loss of 343 firefighters on 9/11 monumentally illustrates that firefighters now stand on the front line in the war against terrorism. The ramifications of 9/11 forced fire service leaders to incorporate newly recognized strategies of terrorism management and mitigation into traditional firefighting roles. Blue-collared manual laborers are no longer the archetype of modern firefighters. Instead, firefighters now command with an expanded leadership role within society and the desire to achieve increased levels of local, regional, and national preparedness. This thesis explores the various aspects of fire service culture that negatively impact organizational leadership, cultural transformation, and the fire service's current mission within the homeland security domain. The thesis begins by providing a detailed description of the elements epitomized by fire service culture. It then examines how both internal and external sociological factors contribute to the perpetuation of fire service culture. Finally, the thesis presents an implementation strategy that leaders can utilize when attempting to administer organizational change processes. The author concludes that while leaders might provide a guiding organizational vision, they are only one factor influencing organizational culture. Changes occur when both formal and informal leaders agree upon reasonable organizational goals and orchestrate small cultural shifts when attempting to achieve those goals.
| Limitations: |
 APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE |
| Description: |
Master's thesis |
| Pages: |
155 |
| Report Date: |
Mar 2012 |
| Report Number: |
A585065 |
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