/IVSTRUCT-O-GRAMISFSI THE HANDS-ON TRAINING GUIDE

FOR THE FIRE INSTRUCTOR

Ensuring Fire Department QualityTASKSuccessful contemporary fire departments have recognizedthe importance of ensuring the quality of the services thatthey deliver to the communities that they protect. Developingan understanding of the importance of quality managementand the aspects of quality that must be addressed by thecontemporary fire department will enable the fire departmentto ensure its readiness to fully deliver professional, effective,and efficient services, in a safe manner, while ensuringnecessary community confidence and support.

OBJECTIVESUpon completion of this session, participants will:

1. Understand the role and importance of quality withinthe successful contemporary fire department.

2. Understand how customers define quality and thedimensions on which quality is judged.

3. Understand the characteristics of fire deoartmentservices.

4. Understand the expectations that stakeholders have fortheir fire departments.

5. Understand the challenges involved in delivery ofquality f ire department sewices.

6. Understand the essential elements and requirements fora successful fire department quality managementprogram.

7. Understand the benefits that can accrue from a firedepartment quality management program and the costsofnot addressing service quality.

Copyright @ 2003 Intemational Society ofFire Service Instructors

All rights reserved. No part of this document may be reproduced, in any form or by any means, without permission in writing from the publisher.

AUDIENCEThe nature of this subject matter makes it appropriate for alldisciplines of emergency responders. It is designed forpresentation to all fire department personnel, given theimportance of total involvement of fire department personnelin successful fire department quality management programs.

INSTRUCTIONAL AIDSAudiovisual materials and handouts may be prepared toillustrate the course content.

ESTIMATED TEACHING TIMETwo hours for classroom presentation and discussion. Oneadditional hour can be utilized for an application activityspecifically related to quality management within the firedepartment(s) represented.

MOTIVATING THE STUDENTThe future success of contemporary fre departments will inlarge measure be determined by their ability to ensure thequality of the services that they deliver to the stakeholderswho live in, work in, and travel through their jurisdictions. Inaddition to contributing to the effectiveness, efficiency andsafety of fire department operations, a quality managementprogram can ensure that the fire department is in actualityand perception meeting the expectations of its stakeholdersand thus receiving their continued confidence and support.

PRESENTATION PHASEI. Role and Importance of Quality

A. Contemporary Organizations - Contemporaryorganizations in all endeavors have recognized theimportance of ensuring the quality of theirproducts and/or services in the interest of ensuring

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customer loyalty and support thus contributing toorganizational success.

Customer Expectations - Members ofcontemporary society have developed expectationsregarding the quality ofproducts and/or servicesthat they will receive from contemporaryorganizations.Fire Departments -As organizations, firedepartments are held to the same high expectationsof quality as are other contemporary organizations.

The Quality Imperative - Quality has become anecessitv to orsanizational success and survival.

IL Evolution of QualityTraditional Approach - In the past someorganizations recognized the importance of qualityproducts and/or services; others did not. Thoseorganizations that did recognize the importance ofquality and commit to ensuring quality typicallydelegated the responsibility for quality to one ormore quality control inspectors.

Contemporary Approach * Most contemporaryorganizations, especially those that are successful,commit to a comprehensive quality managementprogram, wherein each and every member of theor-qanization is expected to be involved in theorganization's efforts to ensure the quality of itsproducts and/or services.

III. Definit ions of QualityProduct Definition - Quality can be definedaccording to the specific features or attributes of agiven product or service.

Relative Quality Definition * Quality can bedefined in terms of comparing a given product orservice to other like products or services.

Manufacturing Definition - Quality can be definedin terms of conformance to set specifications.

Value Definition - Quality can be defined in termsof the benefits that a product or service provides inrelationship to its cost.

User Definition - Quality can be defined in termsof what the customer expects. Thus quality isdefined based on the wants and needs of a givencustomer. In reality this is probably the mostimportant definition of quality for an organizationto consider.

IV. Dimensions of QualityAesthetics - The appearance of the product/servlce.

Conformance - Whether a product/serviceconforms to established specifications orrequirements.Durability - Whether the product/service is long-lasting or enduring.

Features - The features or attributes of theproduct/service.

E. Performance - The ability of the product/serviceto function properly.

F. Reliability - The stability of the product/servicedelivery over time.

G. Serviceability - The ease of servicing a product/servlce.

H. Perceived Quality - The overall perception ofproduct/service quality held by customers. Onceagain, this is probably the most important aspectfor an organization to focus its qualityimprovement efforts on.

V. Defining Your Customers

A. Intemal Customers * These are customers withinthe organization or system. This could includeother emergency responder groups, such as lawenforcement or emergency medical services whomay call upon the services of the fire department.

B. External Customers - lndividuals who live in,work in, or travel through the fire department'sjurisdiction would be considered externalcustomers.

VI. Identifying Customer Expectations

A. Customer Needs - Include products/services thatcustomers require.

B. Customer Wants * Include products/services thatcustomers desire.

C. Customer Expectations - Involve what customersexpect of an organization and the products/services that it provides.

D. Meeting and Exceeding Wants and Needs - Thesuccessful contemporary organization seeks toboth "meet and exceed" the expectations of itsexisting and potential customers.

VII. Characteristics of Fire Department Services

A. Customization of Services - The servicesdelivered by the fire department usually involvecustomized strategies, tactics and actions based onsizing up the needs of a given incident.

B. Labor Intensive - The services perfbrmed by thefire department, while utilizing cxpensive capitalequipment, tend to be fairly labor intensive.Emergency responders cleliver such scrvices asfirefighting and rescue activities.

C. Immediate Service Consumption - The servicesprovided by fire departmcnts are such that theyare delivered on demand in an emergencysituation and immediately serve to benefit thestakeholders in need of assistance at an incidentscene.

D. Intangible Delivery - By their vcry nature, thedeliverables of the fire department tend to consistof intangible services rather than traditionalproducts.

E. Transaction Volume Variations - There aresignificant variations in response transaction

B .

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D .

A .

B .

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volumes that must be addressed when ensurinsfire department readiness.

F. Unscheduled Service Delivery - Fire departmentresponses to emergency incidents are unscheduledand relatively unpredictable

VIII. Stakeholder Expectations for Fire Departments

Stakeholders are individuals, groups andlororganizations that have a vested interest in thesuccessful operation of the fire department.Stakeholders represent the fire department'scustomers.

A. Accessibility - Stakeholders expect that they willhave access to the services provided by the firedepartment at the time that they need them.

B. Completeness - Stakeholders expect that they willreceive complete and comprehensive servicesfrom their fire department.

C. Consistency - Stakeholders expect the servicesrendered by their fire department to notsignificantly vary based on time of day, day ofweek, or responding personnel.

D. Convenience - Fire department stakeholdersexpect that it will be easy to request and receivethe services of the fire department when they areneeded.

E. Courtesy - Stakeholders expect that firedepartment personnel will engage in courteousbehavior at all times.

F. Effectiveness - Stakeholders expect their firedepartment to be effective in fulfilling its missionof service to the community.

G. Efficiency - Stakeholders expect that their firedepartment will utilize resources in a manner thatcontributes to efficiency and cost effectiveness.

H. Image - Stakeholders expect their fire departmentto instill confidence and trust through maintainingan appropriate image.

I. Professionalism - Stakeholders expect that firedepartment personnel will act professionally underall circumstances and situations.

J. Responsiveness - Stakeholders expect that theirfire department will demonstrate readiness andresponsiveness to address any emergency to whichit responds.

K. Timeliness - Stakeholders expect that their firedepartment will arrive in a timely manner whencalled to an emergency situation.

IX. Challenges in Delivering Quality Fire Department

Services

A. Determining Service Levels - Service level is adefined acceptable level of service. It recognizesthe reality that to have sufficient fire departmentresources in readiness at all times to respond andarrive at every incident within a predefinedtimeframe would be both unrealistic and an

inappropriate and inefficient use of organizationalresources.

B. Determining Quality Indicators - Agreement mustbe reached on the quality indicators (benchmarks)that the fire department will use in measuring andevaluating quality.

C. Determining Quality Measures and Techniques *

Once the quality indicators have been established,the measures and techniques for measuringquality must be determined. In doing so, it isimportant to answer the following three questions:1. What should be controlled?2. Who should provide control?3. When should we control?

D. Role of Behavior in Quality - It is important tounderstand the role of individual behavior of firedepartment personnel in ensuring quality giventhe service nature of our business.

Essential Elements of a Quality ManagementProgram

A. Data Collection - Data must be collected inaccordance with the quality indicators, measuresand techniques that have been established.

B. Data Analysis - Appropriate statistical analysismust be performed on the data that has beencollected.

C. Data Interpretation - The results of data analysismust be reviewed and interpreted with respect toboth those fire department operations that areproducing high levels of quality as well as thoseareas in need of improvement.

D. Action Plan Development - An action plan mustbe developed that addresses the need to enhancequality through the active involvement of firedepartment personnel in the development andimplementation of the action plan.

E. Evaluation - Continual evaluation of the firedepartment's progress in enhancing and ensuringthe quality of its services must be an integralcomponent of a successful quality managementprogram.

Requirements for Successful Quality Management

A. Communication - Ef1'ective communicationswithin the organization and with organizationalstakeholders is a foundational aspect of ensuring asuccessful quality management program.

B. Information Access/Availability - The necessaryinformation for decision making related toenhancing and ensuring quality must be bothavailable and accessible bv oreanizationalpersonnel.

C. Leadership - Effective and visionary leadershipthroughout the organization enhances the successof a quality management program.

D. Measurement Systems - The necessarymeasurement systems must be in place and be

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utilized to acquire the necessary data on which tomake quality improvement decisions and evaluatequality.

E. Reporting Systems - Once data is collected it mustbe appropriately analyzed and reporled to thoseaddressing various aspects of organizationalquality.

F. Top Management Support - A crucial attribute of asuccessful quality management program is alwayscredible and visible top management support.

G. Total Involvement - The truly successful qualitymanagement program is based on full, total andenthusiastic involvement of all members of theorganization.

H. Training and Education - Thorough training andeducation, in technical, management and qualitymanagement topics, underpins the success of aquality management program.

XII.Benefits of Total Quality Management

A. Accomplishment of Mission - A comprehensivequality management program contributes tofulfillment of organizational mission.

B. Better Resource Utilization - Qualityimprovements contribute to a more efficientutilization of human resources as well as otherorganizational resources.

C. Enhanced Customer Satisfaction - A customer-focused quality management program contributesto increased customer satisfaction.

D. Improved Product/Service Delivery - A qualitymanagement program leads to improved deliveryof products and/or services.

E. Improved Product/Service Quality - Qualitymanagement programs can significantly improvethe quality of an organization's products and/orservices.

F. Increased Effectiveness - Increased organizationaleffectiveness is a typical result of qualitymanagemenI in i t ia t ives.

G. Increased Efficiency - Increased organizationalefficiency is a common outgrowth of a qualitymanagement program.

H. Increased Flexibility - Organizations with successfulcomprehensive quality management programsdevelop an enhanced ability to respond rapidly tochanging circumstances.

I. Reduced Costs - Quality management initiatives arealso known to contribute to reduced oroduction anddelivery costs.

XIII. Costs of Quality Deficiencies

A. Loss of Community Support/Funding -Actual orperceived quality deficiencies with respect to the firedepartment typically result in a corresponding loss ofcommunity support, including funding, to the firedepartment.

B. Loss of Organizational Reputation - Nothing cantake a greater toll on any organization than a loss ofits reputation. This is likely to be the case insituations where members of the community knowactual or perceived quality deficiencies.

C. Loss of Public Confidence/Trust - Those who live in,work in, and travel through communities will quicklylose confidence and trust in a fire department thatdelivers services of unacceptable quality and thusfails to "meet and exceed" stakeholder exoectations.

APPLICATIONEngage students in a discussion of how their fire department(s)and the communities that they serve could benefit from theestablishment of a fire department quality management program.

SUMMARYThe future success of your fire department will depend on itsability to "meet and exceed" the expectations of its stakeholders.As a fire department member, you have in integral role inenhancing and ensuring the quality ofthe services delivered byyour fire department.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTThe materials in this Instruct-O-Gram were developed by Dr.Robert S. Fleming, Professor of Management and MIS, RowanUniversitv. Glassboro. NJ.

The Instruct-O-Gram is the monthly training outline of the International

Society of Fire Service Instructors (ISFSD. The monthly Instruct-O-

Gram is provided as one of the benefits of membership in ISFSI.

Call 1-800-435-0005 for information

on other benefits of membership.

14 . THE VOICE January 2003