Ch. 6: Understanding People: Management Concepts Flashcards
Where would most fire officers find that their greatest challenge relates to?
managing people
What is built upon the concepts introduced by two generalized schools of management thought?
Human resourses management
What are the two generalized schools of management thought?
scientific management and humanistic management
What is based on the breaking down of work tasks into their constituent elements?
scientific management
What is the study that featured the use of a stopwatch to measure a worker’s sequence of motions, with the goal of determining the most efficient way to perform each task?
time studies
Taylor’s Four Principles of Scientific Management
- Replace “rule-of-thumb” work methods with methods based on a scientific study of the tasks.
- Scientifically select, train, and develop each worker, rather than passively leaving workers to train themselves.
- Cooperate with the workers to ensure that the scientifically developed methods are being followed.
- Divide work nearly equally between managers and workers so that the managers apply scientific management principles to planning the work and the workers actually perform the tasks.
What school of thought shifted the focus to pay more attention to the workers and to the working conditions that would make those workers more productive?
humanistic management
A phenomenon in which people improve their performance or behavior not because of any specific condition being tested, but simply because of the extra attention they receive as part of the study.
Hawthorne Effect
What type of manager believes that people do not like to work, so consequently they need to be closely watched and controlled?
Theory X manager
What type of manager believes that people do like to work and they need to be encouraged, rather than controlled?
Theory Y manager
What can concepts can be used effectively in many situations to encourage firefighter creativity?
Theory Y concepts
Which three situations must the fire officer temporarily behave as a Theory X manager?
Operating at a fire or other high-risk activity - must provide close and autocratic supervision; When fire officer must take control of a workplace conflict and issue specific directions to defuse the situation; When a fire officer is near the end of a series of negative disciplinary measures.
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Need
[PSSES] Level 1: Physiological Needs Level 2: Safety, Security, and Order Level 3: Social Needs and Affection Level 4: Level and Status Level 5: Self-Actualization
What level of needs is the most basic human needs, such as physical needs of air, water, food, and shelter?
Level 1: Physiological Needs
What level of needs are related to belonging to a group and feeling acceptance by the group?
Level 3: Social Needs and Affection
What level of needs is more closely associated with maintaining employment or status within the organization?
Level 2: Security
What level of needs does promotions, gold badges, special awards, and take-home FD vehicles symbols apply to?
Level 4: Esteem and Status
What level of needs are profound moments of love, understanding, happiness, or rapture, when a person feels more whole, alive, self-sufficient, and yet a part of the world?
Leval 5: Self-Actualization
What is the concept that was later adopted by the fire service to improve incident safety that was applied to crew management of aircraft and aerospace teams?
crew resource management
What theory assumes that every decision made and every action taken in the workplace is driven by people’s values, attitudes, and beliefs?
the grid theory
The grid theory assumes that every decision made and every action taken in the workplace is driven by people’s values, attitudes, and beliefs
At the individual level, these values are based on two fundamental concerns that influence behavior - a concern for people and a concern for results.
Blake and Mouton’s Managerial Grid
[ICASS] Indifferent Controlling Accomodating Status Quo Sound
Which behavioral model style represents the lowest level of concern for both results and people?
Indifferent: Evade and Elude
Carries on with the attitude that “This is not my problem.”
Which behavioral model does a person demonstrate a high concern for results, but a low concern for others?
Controlling: Direct and Dominate
Person expects everyone else to “keep up” with his or her efforts.
Which behavioral model does a person demonstrate a low concern for results and a high concern for other people?
Accomodating: Yield and Comply
Maintains heightened awareness of the personal feelings, goals, and ambitions of others, and always considers how proposed actions will affect them.
Which behavioral model does a person believe there is an indifferent contradiction between the concerns for results and for people, but does not value one concern over the other?
Status Quo: Balance and Compromise
Objective of this person is to play it safe and work toward acceptable solutions that follow proven methods.
Which behavioral model person sees no contradiction in demonstrating a high concern for both people and results at the same time?
Sound: Contribute and Commit
This attitude leads to more effective work relationships based on “what’s right” rather than “who’s right.”
What management focuses on the task of managing people using physical, financial, and time assets?
human resources management
What is known as the process of having the right number of people in the right place at the right time who can accomplish a task efficiently and effectively?
human resources planning
What is the process of attracting, selecting, and maintaining an adequate supply of labor?
staffing
What function includes all activities to train and educate the employees that is heavily dependent on the fire officer at the company level?
human resources development
What is a formal document that outlines the basic reason for the organization’s existence and states how it sees itself; designed to guide the actions of all employees?
mission statement
What is one of the best tools to improve time efficiency?
delegation
