Fire-&-Safety-The-Capstone-Way

diminish the performance of highly motivated, self-starting individuals. From a motivational standpoint, it could insult the majority of the workforce or scare good employees away. This is not to say that some control is not needed, but carried to the extreme, it is not effective in the Capstone Fire Management. Leaders and supervisors must personify this philosophy. Positive motivation and coaching is much more effective in motivating members to be productive than simply identifying and punishing negative behavior or performance. Leadership is critical in maintaining the high standards of performance and the positive image of the Company within the community and the fire service in general. Leadership responsibility, whether formal or informal, is a determining factor in the overall effectiveness and well-being of the Company and our members. All of our leaders must share their expectations up front with people for whom they are responsible, in a success oriented manner and stress the individual accountability of each member. Those expectations need to be realistic and in concert with the overall expectations and philosophy of the Company. It is an inherent responsibility of all Capstone Fire Management leaders to develop and instruct a capable cadre of leaders for the future that live and practice the “Capstone Way”. The Supervisor's Role - Supervisors play an important role in the overall scheme of things in the Company. They are effective based solely upon the way they carry out their responsibilities and their style of managing others. The fire service began and evolved as a paramilitary company. This means that a great emphasis was placed on rank. It was designed in this fashion because the occupation is dangerous and someone had to be firmly in charge. The emergency scene is an appropriate arena for autocratic management, after all everyone can’t be in charge of a life-threatening emergency, decisions must be made quickly. Unfortunately the autocratic management style has been carried into the firehouse environment and used to manage day to day activities. That management method may have been effective in the past but history has demonstrated that autocratic ("boss-management") management limits quality and productivity. This style is characterized by a supervisor setting tasks and standards which members are expected to follow without consultation and compromise. Members are told how the work is to be done without being asked how it could be done better. If members resist or question, threats or punishment are used or privileges are withheld thereby creating an adversarial environment. All Supervisors, no matter what their level in the Company, are expected to carry out their duties in a considerate, respectful manner. Positive motivation is the preferred method of guiding members to be effective and more productive. Positive reinforcement, "catching members doing something right," and citing positive performance as an example for others to follow, has proven to be much more effective than identifying negative behavior or performance, punishing it, and expecting that to serve as the example from which others are to learn. Positive, or in some cases improved behavior and performance, should be rewarded in some way at every opportunity. Unacceptable behavior or performance should never be rewarded nor overlooked. This approach can be a powerful motivating force. It is much more powerful than simply guarding the workforce and punishing the perceived non-conformists. There is documented evidence that structured, positive programs designed to improve the performance of one or more members of the company are usually effective.

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