Culture

Introduction

According to anthropologists, a culture is a group of people that identify themselves as a group, and which have a shared system of beliefs, values, ethics, mores, and principles. These shared systems may be informal or formal, explicit or implicit, but they are understood by all. An organization of any size will have its own culture, with a strong probability that sub-cultures may exist within the organization. This is more likely to be true in complex organizations that are co-located on differing sites or working at differing times, where a single leader may have difficulty engaging with everyone. As a leader, to change an organization in a lasting, meaningful manner, one will often have to change the culture. As a scholar, to fully understand an organization, one must understand the underlying cultures and sub-cultures in which the employees engage. Mastering the concept of organizational culture can be a critical tool in success for both the practitioner and the academic in all of you.

Objectives

To successfully complete this learning unit, you will be expected to:

1. Analyze how a leader’s actions are influenced by ethical considerations.

2. Analyze leadership styles and attributes that should be used during crisis.

3. Apply leadership theories and practices to situations.

4. Assess how new theories and knowledge influence practice and decision making in the field.

5. Communicate in a manner that is scholarly, professional, and consistent with expectations for members of the public safety professions.

6. Conduct research to support findings and conclusions.

7. Compare and contrast the positive and negative aspects of a specific model of leadership theory in day-to-day operations and large scale situation management.

8. Compare and contrast the effectiveness of a specific model of leadership theory in mechanistic and organic functioning entities.

9. Describe new ideas to improve decision making in a crisis management setting.

10. Evaluate decisions made by a leader in terms of communication strategies, ethical behavior, and outcomes.

11. Identify the actions and characteristics of an effective public safety leader.

12. Illustrate why evidence-based decision making and ethical thinking should be practiced by a leader.