The phrase “baptism by fire” originates from the Bible in Matthew 3:11. In Christianity, the phrase was associated with personal trials and tribulations and was also used to describe the martyrdom of an individual. Many years later, it was associated with a soldier going to war for the first time. Here, the baptism was the battle itself. “Baptism by fire” is a phrase used to describe the process of an employee learning something the hard way with great difficulty.
Understanding baptism by fire
In business, baptism by fire refers to an employee being thrown into a difficult situation with little to no preparation.
To emerge from the other side victorious, the employee must rely on sheer determination alone.
Starting a new job is the most obvious example, with the individual required to learn multiple new skills or deal with several challenging situations.
Many organizations favor this approach because it is a useful way to train a new employee quickly.
They also believe there is no time like the present to prepare the individual for complicated future situations which are inevitable.
Examples of baptism by fire in organizations
It is important to note that baptism by fire can impact seasoned executives as well as new employees.
In fact, those with rank or seniority are often thrown into extremely difficult situations with little to no preparation.
Consider the example of Michael McCain, President and CEO of Canadian meat company Maple Leaf Foods. In 2009, McCain suddenly had to deal with the company’s cured meat products causing a listeria outbreak that resulted in 22 deaths.
In a video apology message, McCain noted that the outbreak was “the toughest situation we’ve faced in 100 years as a company. We know this has shaken your confidence in us. I commit to you that our actions are guided by putting your interest first.”
McCain is still CEO of the company to this day and, while emotionally impacted by the deaths, emerged from the crisis a stronger leader.
McCain’s transparent and ethical response to the outbreak was met with praise, with the media suggesting he was a beacon for crisis management.
Emergency response
Baptism by fire is also commonplace in most emergency first response organizations.
Police officers and firefighters must learn on the job, which necessarily exposes them to high-stress situations where time is of the essence.
Disaster management
Incoming governments and political leaders are often forced to deal with challenging circumstances immediately after taking office or being appointed.
During May 2015 in Alberta, Canada, incoming Premier Rachel Notley had to manage the most severe natural disaster in the province for years.
Over 70 wildfires burned across Alberta, with thousands of residents forced to flee their homes.
Many U.S. Presidents have also inherited crises after assuming office. Abraham Lincoln inherited a divided nation on the brink of war, while Thomas Jefferson had to deal with a nation bitterly divided by a two-party schism.
Key takeaways
“Baptism by fire” is a phrase used to describe the process of an employee learning something the hard way with great difficulty. The origins of the phrase come from Christianity where it was associated with personal ordeals.
Baptism by fire is favored by many organizations because it allows the employee to learn quickly. The sooner they develop the skills necessary to face challenging stations, the better they will be prepared.
Baptism by fire situations can affect any individual – regardless of rank or superiority level. Company CEOs are often faced with leading their organizations through difficult situations. The same can also be said for governmental leaders and emergency first responders.
In a functional organizational structure, groups and teams are organized based on function. Therefore, this organization follows a top-down structure, where most decision flows from top management to bottom. Thus, the bottom of the organization mostly follows the strategy detailed by the top of the organization.
In a flat organizational structure, there is little to no middle management between employees and executives. Therefore it reduces the space between employees and executives to enable an effective communication flow within the organization, thus being faster and leaner.
Project portfolio management (PPM) is a systematic approach to selecting and managing a collection of projects aligned with organizational objectives. That is a business process of managing multiple projects which can be identified, prioritized, and managed within the organization. PPM helps organizations optimize their investments by allocating resources efficiently across all initiatives.
Harvard Business School professor Dr. John Kotter has been a thought-leader on organizational change, and he developed Kotter’s 8-step change model, which helps business managers deal with organizational change. Kotter created the 8-step model to drive organizational transformation.
The Nadler-Tushman Congruence Model was created by David Nadler and Michael Tushman at Columbia University. The Nadler-Tushman Congruence Model is a diagnostic tool that identifies problem areas within a company. In the context of business, congruence occurs when the goals of different people or interest groups coincide.
McKinsey’s Seven Degrees of Freedom for Growth is a strategy tool. Developed by partners at McKinsey and Company, the tool helps businesses understand which opportunities will contribute to expansion, and therefore it helps to prioritize those initiatives.
Mintzberg’s 5Ps of Strategy is a strategy development model that examines five different perspectives (plan, ploy, pattern, position, perspective) to develop a successful business strategy. A sixth perspective has been developed over the years, called Practice, which was created to help businesses execute their strategies.
The COSO framework is a means of designing, implementing, and evaluating control within an organization. The COSO framework’s five components are control environment, risk assessment, control activities, information and communication, and monitoring activities. As a fraud risk management tool, businesses can design, implement, and evaluate internal control procedures.
The TOWS Matrix is an acronym for Threats, Opportunities, Weaknesses, and Strengths. The matrix is a variation on the SWOT Analysis, and it seeks to address criticisms of the SWOT Analysis regarding its inability to show relationships between the various categories.
Lewin’s change managementmodel helps businesses manage the uncertainty and resistance associated with change. Kurt Lewin, one of the first academics to focus his research on group dynamics, developed a three-stage model. He proposed that the behavior of individuals happened as a function of group behavior.
Airbnb follows a holacracy model, or a sort of flat organizational structure, where teams are organized for projects, to move quickly and iterate fast, thus keeping a lean and flexible approach. Airbnb also moved to a hybrid model where employees can work from anywhere and meet on a quarterly basis to plan ahead, and connect to each other.
eBay was until recently a multi-divisional (M-form) organization with semi-autonomous units grouped according to the services they provided. Today, eBay has a single division called Marketplace, which includes eBay and its international iterations.
IBM has an organizational structure characterized by product-based divisions, enabling its strategy to develop innovative and competitive products in multiple markets. IBM is also characterized by function-based segments that support product development and innovation for each product-based division, which include Global Markets, Integrated Supply Chain, Research, Development, and Intellectual Property.
Sony has a matrix organizational structure primarily based on function-based groups and product/business divisions. The structure also incorporates geographical divisions. In 2021, Sony announced the overhauling of its organizational structure, changing its name from Sony Corporation to Sony Group Corporation to better identify itself as the headquarters of the Sony group of companies skewing the company toward product divisions.
Facebook is characterized by a multi-faceted matrix organizational structure. The company utilizes a flat organizational structure in combination with corporate function-based teams and product-based or geographic divisions. The flat organization structure is organized around the leadership of Mark Zuckerberg, and the key executives around him. On the other hand, the function-based teams based on the main corporate functions (like HR, product management, investor relations, and so on).
Google (Alphabet) has a cross-functional (team-based) organizational structure known as a matrix structure with some degree of flatness. Over the years, as the company scaled and it became a tech giant, its organizational structure is morphing more into a centralized organization.
Tesla is characterized by a functional organizational structure with aspects of a hierarchical structure. Tesla does employ functional centers that cover all business activities, including finance, sales, marketing, technology, engineering, design, and the offices of the CEO and chairperson. Tesla’s headquarters in Austin, Texas, decide the strategic direction of the company, with international operations given little autonomy.
McDonald’s has a divisional organizational structure where each division – based on geographical location – is assigned operational responsibilities and strategic objectives. The main geographical divisions are the US, internationally operated markets, and international developmental licensed markets. And on the other hand, the hierarchical leadership structure is organized around regional and functional divisions.
Walmart has a hybrid hierarchical-functional organizational structure, otherwise referred to as a matrix structure that combines multiple approaches. On the one hand, Walmart follows a hierarchical structure, where the current CEO Doug McMillon is the only employee without a direct superior, and directives are sent from top-level management. On the other hand, the function-based structure of Walmart is used to categorize employees according to their particular skills and experience.
Microsoft has a product-type divisional organizational structure based on functions and engineering groups. As the company scaled over time it also became more hierarchical, however still keeping its hybrid approach between functions, engineering groups, and management.
Gennaro is the creator of FourWeekMBA, which reached about four million business people, comprising C-level executives, investors, analysts, product managers, and aspiring digital entrepreneurs in 2022 alone | He is also Director of Sales for a high-tech scaleup in the AI Industry | In 2012, Gennaro earned an International MBA with emphasis on Corporate Finance and Business Strategy.
