in relation to what will happen later. As a commander it is es-
pecially important to be able to envisage the effect of decisions
and actions taken, in both the short and long term. A commander
must be able to take in the big picture, with respect to both time
and space, and see the then, now and later aspects of the event as
dependent, linked occurrences. The need for being able to envi-
sage future developments varies depending on where the decision
maker is in time and space.
Generally speaking it can be said that rescue service organi-
sations are action oriented organisations. Action goes before
thought, and it is important that things happen as quickly as pos-
sible. This orientation influences the education and training of
personnel and also the recruiting process for commanders. There
is a tendency to engage energetic managers in action oriented or-
ganisations. Action – getting things done – is obviously important.
But it is more important that there is thought behind the action.
Taking the time necessary or available to reach a decision can be
of ultimate importance to the end result. First think through the
situation, the problems that need to be solved and how this can
best be done. Then take action. Thought prior to action also crea-
tes space for a long term approach – for actions to have a long
term effect, also, for a longer period or more extensively. Taking
that little extra time can also be significant in terms of safety. But
there must of course be a reasonable balance between thought
and action.
Delays
Delay is also a subject for discussion. Processes or work tasks suffer
from various types of delay. It takes time to carry out a process or
task and it may take time before the effects of the completed pro-
cess or task show themselves. We can compare this situation with
a means of transport which requires a certain amount of time to
travel a certain distance. This is questionable, however. Processes
and work tasks are often carried out in a context in which they
have to compete with other processes and tasks and also with the
resources that are available. So the time it takes to travel a cer-
tain distance does not only depend on the means of transport but
also on how other traffic and the road conditions affect the speed.
The effect of a particular action can depend upon other possible
actions that are being carried out at an incident site. The success
or failure of an action can depend on other actions also being suc-