Changing the Rotterdam-Rijnmond regional fire service: A multi-dimensional approach for analysing strategies of change

Purpose–The purpose of this paper is to identify critical success factors for the management of complex change processes in fire service organizations and to apply these in a case study of the Rotterdam-Rijnmond fire service.Design/methodology/approach–The paper provides review of literature on organizational change, casestudy of the Rotterdam-Rijnmond fire service supported by the analysis of policy documents and 30semi-structured interviews with key persons.Findings–Combining different theoretical approaches helps to get a more complete picture of important issues and dilemma’s in the management of change processes–which is a first step in the successful implementation of changes–whereas other approaches tend to emphasize only some and overlook others. Applied in a case study, this approach revealed serious weaknesses in the management of change within the Rotterdam-Rijnmond fire service and offered practical guides for solutions.Originality/value–This paper combines insights from different theoretical approaches into a more integrated perspective that aims to be helpful as a practical tool for designing and implementing complex changes in fire service organizations.The politics and administration of institutional chang