CHAPTER 1 The Nature and Importance of Leadership

The introductory chapter has several important purposes. Readers are given a detailed description of the meaning of leadership. Although most readers have studied something about leadership, most can benefit from a refresher and an update. Another important purpose of the chapter is to explain the various leadership (not management) roles and the various rewards and frustrations contained in those roles. Finally, this chapter presents a framework and model for understanding leadership and explains how leadership skills are developed.

CHAPTER OUTLINE AND LECTURE NOTES

I.THE MEANING OF LEADERSHIP To be a leader, one has to make a difference and facilitate positive changes. Leaders inspire and stimulate others to achieve worthwhile goals. A useful definition of leadership is the ability to inspire confidence and support among the people who are needed to achieve organizational goals. A. Leadership as a Partnership

A current perspective on leadership is that it constitutes a partnership, being connected to another in such a way that the power between the two is approximately balanced. Partnership occurs when control shifts from the leader to the group member. According to Peter Block, a partnership involves (a) an exchange of purpose, (b) the right to say no, (c) joint accountability, and (d) absolute accountability. A closely related idea is stewardship theory that depicts group members (or followers) as being collectivists, proorganizational, and trustworthy. B. Leadership Versus Management

Leadership is but one of the four major functions of management (planning, organizing, controlling, and leading). Current thinking emphasizes that leadership deals with change, inspiration, motivation, and influence. In contrast, management deals more with maintaining equilibrium and the status quo. Table 11 summarizes these differences. Locke simplifies matters by stating that the leader creates a vision, and the manager implements it. Despite these distinctions, organizational leaders must still be good managers, and effective managers must also carry out leadership activities.

II.

THE IMPACT OF LEADERSHIP ON ORGANIZATIONAL PERFORMANCE An important justification for studying leadership is that leaders affect organizational performance. Many faltering business firms and athletic teams bring in a new top leader to spearhead a turnaround. A. Research and Opinion: Leadership Does Make a Difference

A smattering of evidence supports the contention that leadership affects organizational performance. A team of researchers investigated the impact of transactional (routine) and charismatic (inspirational) leadership on financial performance, as measured by net profit margin. They found that transactional leadership was not related to performance, and that charismatic leadership was most strongly related to performance in an uncertain environment. A case example is that Allen Questrom achieved some good results in attempting to turn around a poorly performing J.C. Penney. Whether or not leaders do make a difference, organization members perceive that they do, as suggested by attribution theory, the process of attributing causality to events. B. Difference According to the antileadership argument, leadership has a smaller impact on organizational outcomes than do situational forces. 1. Substitutes for Leadership. One viewpoint is that many organizations contain substitutes for leadership, factors in the work environment that provide guidance and incentives to perform, making the leaders role almost superfluous. These substitutes for the leader and the leadership function include closely knit teams of highly trained individuals, intrinsic satisfaction, computer technology (monitoring of work by computer), and professional norms. Jim Collins, author of Good to Great, believes that corporate leaders are slaves of much larger forces. He concludes that Jack Welch was the product rather than the producer of General Electrics success during his long reign. 2. Leader Irrelevance. Pfeffer argues that leadership is irrelevant to most organizational outcomes because factors outside the leaders control are important. Part of the argument is that leaders have limited control over resources, and that top leaders whose values are compatible with those of the firm are chosen. We believe strongly that despite these constraints leaders still have key roles. 3. Complexity Theory. This theory holds that organizations are complex systems that cannot be explained by the usual rules of nature. Leaders and managers can do little to alter the course of the complex organizational system. III. LEADERSHIP ROLES Research and Opinion: Formal Leadership Does Not Make a

Understanding leadership roles helps explain leadership. A role is an expected set of activities or behaviors stemming from the job. The nine leadership roles covered here are: 1. Figurehead (ceremonial activities). 2. Spokesperson (keeping key groups informed about the activities of the organization or organizational unit). 3. Negotiator (making deals with others for needed resources).

4. Coach and motivator (recognizing achievement, giving feedback, and giving suggestions for performance improvement). 5. Team builder (building an effective team). 6. Team player (being a good team member oneself). 7. Technical problem solver (advising others on solving problems and being an individual contributor). 8. Entrepreneur (suggesting innovative ideas and furthering the business). 9. Strategic planner (setting a direction for the organization, helping the firm deal with the external environment, and policy setting). An important implication of these roles is that managers at all levels can and should exert leadership. IV. THE SATISFACTIONS AND FRUSTRATIONS OF BEING A LEADER

Being a leader offers many joys but also some frustrations. Because most readers of this book aspire toward leadership positions or currently occupy such a position, this information allows for meaningful class discussion. A. Satisfactions of Leaders

The specific satisfactions of leaders are somewhat a function of the leadership position. Nevertheless, here is a list of satisfactions that may be present in varying degrees in many leadership situations: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. B. A feeling of power and prestige. A chance to help others grow and develop. High income. Respect and status. Good opportunities for advancement. A feeling of being in on things. An opportunity to control money and other resources.

Dissatisfactions and Frustrations of Leaders

Despite the glory of being a leader, occupying a leadership or management role has many built-in potential frustrations: 1. 2. 3. 4. can confide in). 5. Too many problems involving people. 6. Too much organizational politics. 7. The pursuit of conflicting goals (the central theme of these dilemmas is attempting to grant others the authority to act independently, yet still get them aligned). V. A FRAMEWORK FOR UNDERSTANDING LEADERSHIP Too much uncompensated overtime. Too many headaches. Not enough authority to carry out responsibility. Loneliness (being a leader limits the number of people one

Certain major sets of variables influence leadership effectiveness. The basic assumption underlying the framework is as follows: L = f (l, gm, s)

This formula means that the leadership process is a function of the leader, the group members, and other situational variables. The model presented in Figure 12 extends the situational perspective. The model states that leadership effectiveness can best be understood by examining its key variables: leader characteristics and traits, leader behavior and style, group member characteristics, and the internal and external environment. The four sets of variables are interrelated, with some linkages stronger than others. An example of a strong link is that leader characteristics and traits affect leader behavior and styles. VI. SKILL DEVELOPMENT IN LEADERSHIP

Leadership skills are in high demand. Developing leadership skills is more complex than developing a structured skill, yet these skills can be developed by following a general learning model: 1. 2. descriptions 3. quizzes 4. Implementing 5. times mode of operation. VII. GUIDELINES FOR ACTION AND SKILL DEVELOPMENT Conceptual knowledge and behavioral guidelines. Conceptual information demonstrated by examples and brief of leaders in action. Experiential exercises. Cases, role plays, and self-assessment are included here. Feedback on skill utilization, or performance, from others. some of the skills outside the classroom will provide opportunities for feedback. Practice in natural settings. A given skill has to be practiced many in natural settings before it becomes integrated comfortably into a leaders

Although the thousands of leadership studies published often conflict, the discipline of leadership offers much useful information. The approach recommended here for applying leadership information is to choose the formulation that seems to best fit the leadership situation at hand. For example, a leader might need to combine creative problem solving and emotional support to members to help the team rebound from a crisis.

COMMENTS ON EXPERIENTIAL EXERCISES

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 1-1: Readiness for the Leadership Role
The first self-examination exercise in the text has considerable face validity. The student reflects on a series of attitudes and behaviors that are part of the leadership role. An intended byproduct of this exercise is that people may have to develop a more positive attitude toward key aspects of a leaders job if they are to become effective leaders. Like most of the instruments in the text, the Readiness for the Leadership Role quiz is intended for self-reflection and possibly for research. Such quizzes should not be interpreted as validated psychological instruments.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 1-1: Identifying Leadership Roles

Students usually cover the full gamut of roles in this type of exercise, thus prompting a practical view of leadership roles. Several examples of this role analysis follow: (1) Questrom repeats vision, indicating the strategic planner role; (2) A business isnt run by one person. Its run by teams, suggesting the team builder and team player roles; (3) the veteran retailer has been charming employees, customers, and creditors for years, perhaps indicating the coach and motivator roles; (4) trying to get back to Penneys roots as a department store of choice for middle-income Americans, indicating the strategic planner role; (5) plan to centralize purchasing could be classified as the direction-setting aspect of the strategic planner role; and (6) the only way to boost morale is to start making money again, suggesting the coach and motivator role.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 1-2: What It Takes to Be a Leader

An insight to be gleaned from this exercise and similar ones in the text is that an important part of leadership skill building is to try out new ideas one at a time, and then observe any difference in impact.

COMMENTS ON DISCUSSION QUESTIONS AND ACTIVITIES

1. What would be several practical problems stemming from the idea that the leader creates a vision, whereas the manager implements it? One practical problem with this dichotomy is that the leader would appear to be making a contribution only when he or she spells out a vision. At other times the leader should be spending time gathering information to formulate a vision. 2. In recent years there have been dozens of financial scandals involving business executives (such as the problems at Enron and Global Crossing). What impact has this information had on your interest in becoming, or remaining, a leader in a business setting? Many students may still be interested in pursuing a leadership career in business for such varied reasons as (a) just a handful of crooked CEOs have been involved in the scandals, (b) good opportunities await an honest leader, and (c) I never realized you could make so much money as an executive, so deal me in. 3. Give an example of how you have exerted leadership on or off the job in a situation in which you did not have a formal leadership position. Explain why you describe your activity as leadership. Relevant examples here center on taking the initiative to accomplish something important, and involving others in the activity. Examples include starting an employee network group, a recycling campaign, an employee or student study group, or organizing a field trip. Both the initiative aspect and influencing others indicate the exercise of leadership. 4. What would a boss of yours have to do to demonstrate that he or she is an effective leader and an effective manager? To demonstrate effectiveness as a leader and manager, the boss should engage in such activities as inspiring group members, creating a useful vision, bringing about constructive change, and maintaining a well-organized department.

5. Identify a business or sports leader who you think is highly effective. Present your observations to the class. Leaders are usually classified as effective on the basis of the results they achieve. Students will therefore probably choose leaders with highly visible accomplishments. Effective sports leaders would include Phil Jackson (now the Los Angeles Lakers head coach) and Pat Summit (the Tennessee Lady Vols basketball coach). Despite mixed reactions to his personality, many students will nominate Bill Gates of Microsoft. Jeff Bezos of Amazon.com might also receive several nominations because of his key position in launching ecommerce. 6. Based on an informal survey, many people who were voted the most likely to succeed in their high school yearbooks became leaders later on in their career. How can you explain this finding? Many basic leadership traits and behaviors are formed early in life and persist throughout adulthood. Among these characteristics are extroversion, enthusiasm, drive, and a willingness to assume responsibility. 7. Martha Stewart is an inspiration to millions of people, yet at the same time she is criticized by many for her strong ambition and her controlling, perfectionist tendencies. She is even the subject of many jokes. What does this contradictory information tell you about leadership? The mixed reactions visible leaders receive indicates the concept of leadership polarity (see Chapter 3) whereby leaders are adored by some constituents and disliked by others. Or, simply put, being a disliked leader comes with the territory. The variety of attitudes toward Martha Stewart also suggest that being exceptionally successful triggers envy and resentment. 8. After reading this chapter, do you believe that a person who is not a born leader still has a good chance of becoming an effective leader? Explain. We hope that all potential leaders would realize that many of the characteristics, attitudes, behaviors, and skills of leaders can be learned. Even without great inherited talent, a person could therefore accomplish many of the things that effective leaders accomplish. 9. Top-level leaders of major business corporations received some of the highest compensation packages in the workforce. Why are business leaders paid so much? One reason for the higher pay of leaders is that their work affects so many people, thus giving their job greater scope. Another factor is that leadership is a rare talent, and takes longer to develop than technical skill. For example, a highly talented teenager may learn how to install a web site in several days but could not learn how to be a top-level corporate leader in such a short time period. (Many critics think top executives are vastly overpaid in comparison to lower-ranking workers who also make an important contribution to corporate performance.) 10. Which of the nine leadership roles do you think you are the most suited for at this stage in your career? Explain your reasoning. During early career stages most people are best suited for the technical problem-solver role. The reason is that most careers begin by engaging in a technical specialty. Another possible leadership role for many career beginners is the team player role, also based on experience. Many students taking a leadership course may have enough leadership and management experience to be well suited for other leadership roles.

PLAUSIBLE RESPONSES TO CASE QUESTIONS

Leadership Case Problem A: Big Jeff Immelt Faces the Future at GE
A major theme of this introductory case is the complexity and demanding nature of a top-level executive position. 1. What leadership challenges does Immelt face? First, Immelt must establish a strong presence to think of himself primarily as Jeff Immelt rather than as the replacement for Jack Welch. The public criticism that surfaced in 2002 about Welchs hidden forms of compensation during both his reign and his retirement may have helped Immelt. Replacing a tarnished image beats replacing a superhero. Another major challenge is maintaining growth in profits more through operations than acquisitions and creative forms of accounting. Another challenge is to spearhead a drive for efficiency in an already efficient company. 2. What can Immelt and the rest of the executive team do to convince financial analysts that GE is truthful about its earnings? A key antidote would be more disclosure of how earnings were obtained, and to become more of a transparent organization. Immelt might make the dramatic move of inviting an audit of GEs books by an auditor chosen by financial analysts or journalists. A complete audit would be prohibitive in cost, but perhaps the auditors report could be audited. 3. Which leadership roles does Immelt appear to be emphasizing? Immelt was somewhat of a figurehead in his early days, as he crisscrossed the globe to meet stakeholders and transfer relationships to himself. He occupied the strategic planner role when he pushed the firm more into services. Immelt was somewhat of a technical problem solver as he explained to outsiders that he is not an earnings cheat. In dealing with outsiders over the accounting issues, Immelt was a spokesperson.

Leadership Case Problem B: Jen Lee Wants the Fast Track

The case history of the young business analyst illustrates that rising into a formal leadership position in a complex organization can be challenging. 1. Who has the problem here? Jen or the consulting firm in question? Jen has more of a problem than does the consulting firm because she appears to believe that she is entitled to becoming a formal leader, based on her assessment of her credentials. 2. What advice can you offer Jen to help her increase her chances of occupying a formal leadership position in the company? Jen must continue to take the initiative on important work issues, and look for ways to demonstrate that she can influence people. In dealing with clients, she might look for ways to

increase the services of the firm because developing business is a major success factor in a consulting firm. She might also volunteer to serve on committees and task forces within the firm. 3. What is your evaluation of the advice Ken offered Jen? Kens advice is sound. In a competitive situation when leadership positions are scarce, a person has to demonstrate her leadership capability before being promoted.

CHAPTER 2 Traits, Motives, and Characteristics of Leaders

The purpose of this chapter is to present a comprehensive description of the personal qualities of leaders. Such a presentation does not imply that the great person theory is more valid or important than other explanations of leadership. Nevertheless, having the right stuff contributes to leadership effectiveness in many situations.

CHAPTER OUTLINE AND LECTURE NOTES

The belief that certain personal characteristics and skills contribute to leadership effectiveness in many situations is the universal theory of leadership. Old as well as new research concludes convincingly that effective leaders are made of the right stuff. A current presentation of this research is The Essence of Leadership by Locke. I. PERSONALITY TRAITS OF EFFECTIVE LEADERS

Possessing certain characteristics contributes to leadership effectiveness in many situations as long as the leaders style fits the situation reasonably well. A. General Personality Traits

A general personality trait in the context used here is a trait that would be observable within or outside the context of work. The same general traits are related to success and satisfaction in both work and personal life. 1. Self-Confidence. In almost every leadership setting, it is important for the leader to be realistically self-confident. Self-confidence is akin to being cool under pressure. 2. Humility. Being humble at the right times also contributes to leadership effectiveness. Part of humility is admitting that you dont know everything, and admitting your mistakes to team members and outsiders. According to Jim Collins, Level 5 Leaders are modest, yet determined to achieve their objectives. Trustworthiness. Group members consistently believe that leaders must display honesty, integrity, and credibility, thus engendering trust. Leaders themselves believe that honesty makes a difference in their effectiveness. The popular clich, Leaders must walk the talk, holds true. Also helpful is telling the truth and conducting yourself in the way that you ask others to conduct themselves. 4. Extroversion. Being extroverted contributes to leadership effectiveness, and extroverts are more likely to want to assume a leadership role and participate in group activities.

5. Assertiveness. Assertiveness refers to being forthright in expressing demands, opinions, feelings, and attitudes. Being assertive helps leaders perform tasks such as confronting group members, demanding higher performance, and making legitimate demands on higher management. 6. Emotional Stability. Emotional stability refers to the ability to control ones emotions sufficiently that ones emotional responses are appropriate to the occasion. Stability helps because group members expect and need consistency in the way they are treated. 7. Enthusiasm. Group members respond positively to enthusiasm, partly because enthusiasm may be perceived as a reward for constructive behavior. Enthusiasm also helps build good relationships with team members. 8. Sense of Humor. The effective use of humor is considered an important part of a leaders role. Humor helps dissolve tension and defuse conflict. Selfeffacing humor is the choice of comedians and organizational members alike. 9. Warmth. Warmth, which facilitates the establishment of rapport with group members, is a key component of charisma, and it facilitates providing emotional support. 10. High Tolerance for Frustration. Leaders encounter so many frustrations that they need high tolerance for frustration, or the ability to cope with the blocking of goal attainment. B. Task-Related Personality Traits

Certain personality traits of effective leaders are closely associated with task accomplishment even though they appear to be more accurately classified as traits than as behavior. 1. Passion for the Work and the People. A dominant characteristic of effective leaders is their passion for their work, and to some extent for the people who help them accomplish the work. Passion for the work is especially evident in entrepreneurial leaders and small-business owners who are preoccupied with growing their business. Being passionate about the nature of the business can be a major success factor in its survival. 2. Emotional Intelligence. How well a person manages his or her emotions and those of others influences leadership effectiveness. Emotional intelligence refers to qualities such as understanding ones feelings, empathy for others, and the regulation of emotions to enhance living. Four key factors are included in emotional intelligence, according to a recent conception: (1) self-awareness helps you understand your impact on others; (2) self-management is the ability to control ones emotions and act with honesty and integrity in a consistent and adaptable manner; (3) social awareness includes having empathy for others and having intuition about organizational problems; (4) relationship management includes the interpersonal skills of communicating clearly and convincingly, disarming conflicts, and building strong personal bonds. New research suggests that a leaders moods and associated behaviors greatly influence bottom-line performance. A sense of humor is the most contagious mood.

3. Flexibility and Adaptability. A leader must be flexible and adaptable enough to cope with change, especially because a leader is someone who facilitates change. Flexibility, or adjusting to situations, has long been recognized as an important leadership characteristic. 4. Internal Locus of Control. People with an internal locus of control believe that they are the primary cause of events happening to them. A leader with an internal locus is perceived as more powerful than one with an external locus because he or she assumes responsibility for events. 5. Courage. Leaders need the courage to take risks and to take the initiative. Courage in the present context refers to behaviors such as prudent risk taking, facing responsibility, and a willingness to put ones reputation on the line. II. LEADERSHIP MOTIVES

Leaders can be differentiated from nonleaders and ineffective leaders in terms of their motives and needs. The motives described here are task-related. A. The Power Motive

Effective leaders have a strong need to control resources. They vigorously exert power, think about how to alter the behavior of others, and care about status. 1. Personalized Power Motive. Leaders with a personalized power motive seek power mostly to further their own interests, and enjoy dominating others. Donald Trump is an extreme example. 2. Socialized Power Motive. Leaders with a socialized power motive use power primarily to achieve organizational goals or a vision. These leaders are less defensive than those with a personalized power motive, and they are more willing to accept expert advice. B. Drive and Achievement Motive. Leaders are known for the strong effort they invest in achieving work goals. Drive refers to a propensity to put high energy into achieving goals. Achievement motivation refers to finding joy in accomplishment for its own sake. C. Strong Work Ethic. Effective leaders typically have a strong work ethic, a firm belief in the dignity of work. A strong work ethic helps the organizational leader believe that the group task is worthwhile. D. Tenacity. Leaders are better than nonleaders at overcoming obstacles. Tenacity multiplies in importance for organizational leaders because it can take so long to implement a new program. As Bennis contends, the central ingredient of power is purpose. III. COGNITIVE FACTORS AND LEADERSHIP

Mental ability as well as personality is important for leadership success. Problem-solving and intellectual skills are referred to collectively as cognitive factors. A. Knowledge of the Business or Group Task

An effective leader has to be technically or professionally competent in some discipline, particularly when leading a group of specialists. Knowledge of the business is

critically important for strategy formulation. An analysis of CEO leadership concluded that one of the basic ways in which top executives lead is through the expertise approachthe belief that the leaders most important responsibility is providing an area of expertise that will be a source of competitive advantage. B. Creativity

Many effective leaders are creative in the sense that they arrive at imaginative and original solutions to complex problems. Creative ability lies on a continuum, with one end being represented by business leaders who think of innovative products and services. At the other end of the continuum are leaders who rely on standard solutions to problems. C. Insight into People and Situations

Another important cognitive trait of effective leaders is insight, a depth of understanding that requires considerable intuition and common sense. A manager with keen insight is able to make good choices in selecting people for key assignments. Insight also facilitates the leaders adapting his or her style to the situation. D. Farsightedness and Conceptual Thinking

To develop visions and incorporate strategy, a leader needs farsightedness, the ability to understand the long-range implications of actions and policies. Many of todays business leaders are accused of having a shortsighted emphasis on quick profits. Conceptual thinking refers to the ability to see the overall perspective and makes farsightedness possible. A conceptual thinker is also a systems thinker. E. Openness to Experience

A positive orientation toward learning is another cognitive characteristic that is important for leaders. IV. THE INFLUENCE OF HEREDITY AND ENVIRONMENT ON LEADERSHIP

The traits, motives, and characteristics required for leadership effectiveness are a combination of heredity and environment. Personality traits and mental ability are based on certain inherited predispositions and aptitudes, which, however, require the right opportunity to develop. For example, a person may inherit high mental ability but needs the right experiences to learn to develop innovative solutions to problems facing the group. The outermost areas of the brain govern analytical thinking and technical skills, whereas the innermost areas of the brain govern emotions. A person therefore has the genes that influence the emotional intelligence necessary for leadership. However, experience is important for emotional intelligence because it increases with age. The case histories of six sets of brothers who all achieved the rank of president or higher at different companies highlight the complexity of sorting out the influences of heredity versus the environment on leadership. V. THE STRENGTHS AND LIMITATIONS OF THE TRAIT APPROACH

The evidence is convincing that leaders possess different personal characteristics from those of nonleaders. A knowledge of the traits associated with leadership effectiveness helps in the selection of leaders. Awareness of these characteristics can also point a person toward the right developmental experiences, such as learning to become more assertive. The current emphasis on emotional intelligence, which is really a group of traits and behaviors, reinforces the importance of the trait approach. The trait approach is limited because it does not specify which

traits are absolutely needed in which leadership situations and how much of each trait is needed. For example, when does ambition cross the line and become greed and gluttony? Certain traits increase the probability of a persons becoming an effective leader, but the situation often influences which traits will be the most important. Drucker believes that a leader cannot be categorized by a particular personality type, style, or set of traits. Instead, a leader should be understood in terms of his or her constituents, results, example setting, and responsibilities. VI. GUIDELINES FOR ACTION AND SKILL DEVELOPMENT

Considering that emotional intelligence is so important for leadership success, many organizations sponsor emotional intelligence training for managers. A realistic starting point in improving emotional intelligence by yourself is to work with one of its five components at a time, such as empathy. You would first obtain feedback about your empathy, and then work diligently on any deficiency. After the attempted improvements in empathy, solicit more feedback.

COMMENTS ON EXPERIENTIAL EXERCISES

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 2-1: Behaviors and Attitudes of a Trustworthy Leader
Behavioral specifics of being trustworthy are particularly important because of the renewed emphasis on trustworthiness for leaders in recent years.

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 22: The Assertiveness Scale

Although we do not have normative data, the assertiveness scale has been used with thousands of students. The consensus is that the scale yields a sensible score. People who are concerned about their level of assertiveness may be prompted to take action after taking this self-assessment quiz. The Guidelines for Action and Skill Development section on pages 5758 provides practical suggestions for becoming more assertive.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 2-1: A Sense of Humor on the Job

Asking students to develop situational humor serves two important purposes. Students quickly learn that making appropriate humorous comments requires skill, and the exercise raises their awareness of the importance of humor in leadership.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 2-2: Developing an Internal Locus of Control

An important potential contribution of this exercise is that it helps students examine concrete ways in which they might become self-directing, or develop an internal locus of control. Clichs about taking control of ones life are widely mentioned, but here is an opportunity to actualize the concept.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 2-3: Group Feedback on Leadership Traits

A cursory look at this exercise suggests that it is a form of sensitivity training. This exercise, however, requires all positive feedback, thus decreasing the chances of emotional damage. We believe there is

little risk of a participants being judged as having no leadership traits or characteristics. (This would constitute very negative feedback.)

COMMENTS ON DISCUSSION QUESTIONS AND ACTIVITIES

1. How much faith do voters place in the trait theory of leadership when they elect public officials? Most voters place high implicit faith in the trait theory of leadership because many of their judgments about candidates are based on perceived traits. Television appearances by candidates serve as a major source of information about the candidates traits. An example is that many people regarded presidential aspirant Al Gore as too emotionally flat. Gore then attempted to improve his emotional responsiveness and was able to express emotion more forcibly. However, some critics believed that Gore still needed more work to appear less stiff. 2. Suppose a college student graduates with a major for which he or she lacks enthusiasm. What might this person do about becoming a passionate leader? The bold approach would be for this person to make an early career switch into a field he or she cared about, such as a management major shifting to social work. A less bold approach would be to search for an activity in his or her field that is intrinsically exciting. For example, some people are passionate about preparing PowerPoint slides even though they are neutral or negative toward other aspects of the job. The person could then focus on these slides as a source of passion in his or her work. 3. What would a manager to whom you report have to do to convince you that he or she has high self-confidence? The answer to this question is a function of what self-confidence means to the individual. Typical indicators of self-confidence in a manager would be speaking with conviction, withstanding criticism, and handling pressure well. 4. What would a manager have to do to convince you that he or she has humility? For many workers, a sure-fire indicator of a manager having humility would be for the manager to admit mistakes, ask for help, and sometimes say, I dont know. 5. Describe any leader or manager, whom you know personally or have watched on television, who is unenthusiastic. What effect did the lack of enthusiasm have on group members? The presumed effect of low enthusiasm by the leader or manager would be low enthusiasm by group members. However, enthusiastic group members who are highly self-reliant, or have a strong internal locus of control, would not be dampened by the unenthusiastic manager. One student said that the universitys president was so unenthusiastic that she thought he was not interested in students. As a consequence, she felt less positively about the university. 6. Why is emotional intelligence considered more important than technical skill at high-level leadership positions? Emotional intelligence is more important than technical skill for high-level leadership positions because high-level leaders spend more time dealing with people than technical issues. An activity such as selling constituents on a vision deals more heavily with the emotions of people than with technical considerations.

7. A CEO made the following comment about leadership and intelligence: Sometimes a less than top IQ is an advantage because that person doesnt see all the problems. He or she sees the big problem and gets on and gets it solved. But the extremely bright person can see so many problems that he or she never gets around to solving any of them. What is your reaction to his comment? What the company president implies about intelligence and problem solving is partially true. Some people with extremely high intelligence suffer from analysis paralysis. Nevertheless, with proper coaching and self-discipline, a very intelligent person can learn to become more decisive. 8. A disproportionate number of people who received an M.B.A. at Harvard Business School are top executives in Fortune 500 business firms. How does this fact fit into the evidence about the roles of heredity and environment in creating leaders? The fact that so many Harvard Business School graduates become top business executives presents a cogent argument for both sides of the heredity versus environment debate. The majority of Harvard M.B.A.s come from families with intelligent, energetic members, thereby emphasizing the importance of heredity. At the same time many Harvard M.B.A.s come from culturally enriched environments, have great contacts from the past, and develop new ones at Harvardunderlining the importance of environment. Another interpretation is that heredity and environment combine to help along the Harvard M.B.A.s. 9. Visualize the least effective leader you know. Identify the traits, motives, and personal characteristics in which that person might be deficient. Students will rise high to this occasion because so many people feel they have had leaders who are ineffective. Typically the perceived negative traits will fall within the realm of interpersonal relations, such as being suspicious or verbally abusive, or having an uneven temper. 10. Many people who disagree with the trait approach to leadership nevertheless still conduct interviews when hiring a person for a leadership position. Why is conducting such interviews inconsistent with their attitude toward the trait approach? Conducting interviews is consistent with an anti-trait approach because a major purpose of the interview is to assess personal characteristics that would be related to job effectiveness. Another purpose of the interview is to assess interpersonal skills, which are closely related to traits. If the interview were simply used to discuss the terms of employment and to assess experience, then the interview would not be inconsistent with a trait approach.

PLAUSIBLE RESPONSES TO CASE QUESTIONS

Leadership Case Problem A: What Leadership Characteristics Does Reuben Mark Possess?
Reuben Mark is a good case study because he is a quiet success (see BusinessWeek, September 23, 2002, pp. 8384). 1. Which leadership traits, characteristics, and motives does Mark (and his executive team) appear to possess? Support your answer with specific statements in the case history. a. Relentless focus on developing new products and getting them into markets around the world at high speed. This suggests good knowledge of the business.

b. Mark has been unwilling to bask in the glory so many other CEOs savor. This is a strong indicator of humility. c. . . . Mark and Colgate president Bill Shanahan have run a tight ship, with few defections. . . . Low turnover could suggest that Colgate managers are trustworthy, and that Mark and Shanahan are trusted. d. The senior management . . . are deeply involved in the details. The statement strongly indicates the cognitive trait of knowledge of the business. e. Says Dolan, Reuben Mark is very smart, very demanding, and very, very, funny. This shows cognitive intelligence and sense of humor. f. Mark avoids media interviews because he does not like to draw too much attention to himself. This remark shows humility again. 2. Which traits, motives, and characteristics do you perceive to be Marks strongest? Mark is so successfully involved with product development that knowledge of the business is a key strength. His humility also assists his leadership stature in an important way. 3. What suggestions can you offer Reuben Mark to improve as a leader or to improve the company? If Mark were less low key in terms of gathering publicity he might attract more investors to the company, thereby driving up the stock price. However, Colgate is already doing well with investors, so our suggestion is speculative.

Leadership Case Problem B: The Urban Improvement Guys

This case illustrates entrepreneurial leadership in a low-technology field. 1. Explain whether or not Glazer and Samloff qualify as leaders. Glazer and Samloff qualify as leaders because they are entrepreneurial leaders and have brought about constructive change in their city. 2. In what ways do the traits and characteristics of Glazer and Samloff complement each other? Glazer focuses more on new prospects for the company, suggesting that he is best at direction setting and visioning. Samloff focuses more on the day-by-day intricacies of managing properties, suggesting that his leadership is directed within the company, and that he is a strong manager. 3. What evidence do you find that Glazer and Samloff are farsighted? Both see the possibilities in neglected properties and can visualize a better future. Samloffs comment that urban improvement spreads too is certainly farsighted. 4. What cognitive skills are reflected in the leadership of Buckingham Properties? Both Glazer and Samloff are actively involved in the details of the business such as sizing up properties and later inspecting them. This type of activity reflects knowledge of the business.

Farsightedness, a cognitive skill, is demonstrated in Samloffs statement, We take something and say, this is pretty raw, but is there a gem in this ore we can extract?

CHAPTER 3 Charismatic and Transformational Leadership

The purpose of this chapter is to help the reader understand the nature of charismatic and transformational leadership. Although the two forms of leadership overlap, they are treated separately in this edition of the text. The legitimacy of either of these forms of leadership as a separate entity has been challenged. Nevertheless, studying charismatic and transformational leadership represents an important current thrust in understanding the leaders role.

CHAPTER OUTLINE AND LECTURE NOTES

Charismatic leaders are so exciting, so appealing, so magnetic, and so visionary that their constituents eagerly accept their leadership. I. THE MEANINGS OF CHARISMA

Charisma is a special quality of leaders whose purposes, powers, and extraordinary determination differentiate them from others. The various definitions of charisma presented in Table 31 have a unifying theme. Charisma is a positive and compelling quality in a person that creates a desire in many others to be led by him or her. The attributes of charisma are important because they lead to behavioral outcomes such as commitment to the leader, self-sacrifice, and high performance. A study with law enforcement workers and business students showed that network members influence our attributions of charisma. A. Charisma: A Relationship Between the Leader and Group Members

According to John Gardner, charisma applies to leader-constituent relationships in which the leader has an exceptional gift for inspiration and nonrational communication. Charismatic leaders work deliberately at cultivating the relationship with group members through impression management. These leaders recognize that the perceptions of constituents determine whether they function as charismatics. Charismatic leaders are skillful actors in presenting a charismatic face to the world. B. The Effects of Charisma

House developed a theory of charismatic leadership that defines charisma in terms of its effects. A charismatic person brings about these effects to a high degree. Halpern has factor analyzed these nine effects into three dimensions: referent power, expert power, and job involvement. Referent power is the ability to influence others and stems from the leaders desirable traits and characteristics. Expert power is the ability to influence others because of ones specialized knowledge, skills, or abilities. Job involvement is the feeling of being heavily committed to the job.

II.

TYPES OF CHARISMATIC LEADERS

Charismatic leaders have been categorized into five types: (1) socialized charismaticuses power to benefit others; (2) personalized charismaticuses power to serve own interests; (3) office-holder charismaticmuch of the charisma stems from the glitter of the office the leader holds; (4) personal charismaticpower stems from the faith people have in the leader; (5) divine charismaticleader is endowed with a gift of divine grace. III. CHARACTERISTICS OF CHARISMATIC LEADERS

Charismatic leaders have unique characteristics, and many of these characteristics also apply to a transformational leaderone who brings about positive, major changes in an organization. In contrast, a transactional leader is a manager who mostly carries on transactions with people, such as taking care of administrative work and offering rewards for good performance. In addition to the characteristics described in Chapter 2, charismatic leaders have other attributes: (1) they are visionary; (2) they have masterful communication skills; (3) they have the ability to inspire trust; (4) they are able to make group members feel capable; (5) they have energy and an action orientation; (6) they have emotional expressiveness and warmth; (7) they romanticize risk; (8) they use unconventional strategies; (9) they have a self-promoting personality; (10) they challenge, prod, and poke; and (11) they are dramatic and unique. The last tactic is an amalgam of many others. IV. THE VISION COMPONENT OF CHARISMATIC LEADERSHIP

Vision is the ability to imagine different and better conditions and the ways to achieve them. Effective leaders have clear visions, and vision is an important part of strategy implementation and bringing about change. Charismatic leaders inspire others with their vision, because a vision uplifts and attracts others. The charismatic leader also helps implement the vision. To create a vision, it is helpful to obtain information from many sources, including (1) personal intuition, (2) the work of futurists, (3) group discussions with group members, (4) other vision statements, (5) the hopes and dreams of constituents, and (6) the larger organizations vision. Visions can be inspiring but they need to be supported by managers who are strong at implementation. V. THE COMMUNICATION STYLE OF CHARISMATIC LEADERS

Charismatic and transformational leaders communicate their visions, goals, and directives in a colorful, imaginative, and expressive manner. They also communicate openly and encourage feedback. A. Management by Inspiration

An important factor in inspiring others is the ability to craft and articulate a highly emotional message. Two such rhetorical techniques follow: 1. Using Metaphors and Analogies. A well-chosen analogy or metaphor appeals to the intellect, imagination, and values. 2. Gearing Language to Different Audiences. Metaphors and analogies are inspiring, but to be effective, leaders must also choose the level of language to suit the audience. Conger has observed that an executives ability to speak colloquially contributes heavily to creating appeal. B. Management by Anecdote

Management by anecdote is the technique of inspiring and instructing group members by telling fascinating stories. The technique is a major contributor to building a strong company culture. VI. THE DEVELOPMENT OF CHARISMA

By developing some of the traits, characteristics, and behaviors of charismatic people, a person can increase his or her charisma. Suggestions for developing charisma include the following: (1) Create visions for others and connect the visions to their dreams; (2) be enthusiastic, optimistic, and energetic; (3) be sensibly persistent; (4) remember the names of people; (5) make an impressive appearance; (6) be candid; and (7) display an in-your-face attitude. VII. TRANSFORMATIONAL LEADERSHIP

The focus of transformational leadership is on what the leader accomplishes rather than on the leaders personal characteristics and relationships with group members. The transformational leader helps bring about major, positive changes. In contrast, the transactional leader focuses on more routine transactions, with an emphasis on rewarding group members for meeting standards. A. How Transformations Take Place

To accomplish his or her lofty purposes, the transformational leader attempts to overhaul the organizational culture or subculture. Seven ways in which the leader brings about such transformations are: (1) raising peoples awareness; (2) helping people look beyond self-interest; (3) helping people search for self-fulfillment; (4) helping people understand the need for change; (5) investing managers with a sense of urgency; (6) committing to greatness; (7) adopting a long-range perspective and at the same time observing organizational issues from a broad rather than a narrow perspective; and (8) building trust. B. Attributes of Transformational Leaders

Seven qualities are particularly helpful in bringing about transformations: (1) charisma including agreeableness and extroversion; (2) vision creation; (3) encouraging the personal development of staff members; (4) supportive leadership; (5) empowerment; (6) innovative thinking; and (7) leading by example. One study showed that maximum performance of transformational leaders was associated with openness to experience and extroversion.

C.

The Impact of Transformational and Charismatic Leadership on Performance

57 Several empirical studies have been conducted on the effects of charismatic and transformational leadership in work settings. 1. Business Unit Performance. Howard and Avolio conducted a study with financial managers about transformational leadership and business unit performance. Leaders who displayed more individualized consideration, intellectual stimulation, and charisma contributed positively to business unit performance. Leaders who used management by exception and positive reinforcement were less likely to increase unit performance. 2. Charismatic Leader Behavior in Military Units. Charismatic leadership behavior was studied with fifty field companies in the Israel Defense Forces. The data indicated that the performance appraisal by a leaders superior was strongly related to two of the charismatic behaviors studied: ideological emphasis and exemplary behavior. VIII. CONCERNS ABOUT CHARISMATIC LEADERSHIP

The topic of charisma and transformational leadership has been challenged from two major standpoints: the validity of the concept and the misdeeds of charismatic leaders. A. Challenges to the Validity of Charismatic Leadership

Most leadership researchers doubt that charisma can be accurately defined and measured. Also, charismatic leaders are not liked by everyone. According to the concept of leadership polarity, leaders are often either revered or vastly unpopular. People rarely feel neutral about them. Also, charisma may not be required for leadership effectiveness. Bennis and Nanus hypothesize that people who are outstanding leaders are perceived as charismatic by their constituents as a result of their success. B. The Dark Side of Charismatic Leadership

Some people are concerned that charisma can be exercised for evil purposes. Some charismatic leaders are unethical and lead their organizations toward illegal and immoral ends. People are willing to follow the charismatic leader down a quasi-legal path because of his or her referent power. Some charismatic leaders thus neglect their social responsibility, the idea that organizations have an obligation to groups in society other than owners or stockholders and beyond that prescribed by law or union contract. IX. GUIDELINES FOR ACTION AND SKILL DEVELOPMENT

To create charismatic appeal, make everyone you meet feel that he or she is quite important, use a firm handshake and good eye contact, and give sincere compliments. Thank people frequently, smile frequently, and maintain a childlike fascination with your world.

COMMENTS ON EXPERIENTIAL EXERCISES

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 3-1: The Emotional Expressiveness Scale
Given that emotional expressiveness is such an important part of being perceived as charismatic, it is worthwhile for students of leadership to reflect on their expressiveness.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 3-1: Formulating a Vision

Our experience is that students take readily to vision formulation. As one student said after completing this exercise, I do visions. The visions that students construct in thirty minutes sound remarkably like those it takes some organizations six months to formulate. If the completed visions are presented to the rest of the class, feedback can be invited.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 3-2: Charismatic Leadership by Anecdote

This exercise requires both analytical and imaginative thinking. An example that fits here is the Domino Pizza emphasis on customer service. Supposedly, pizza dough was flown by airplane to a Domino store to cover a shortage and maintain good service. The description of moments of truth in The Leadership Challenge by Kouzes and Posner provides several relevant anecdotes.

Manager Assessment Quiz 3-2: The MLQ Charismatic Leadership Scale

A productive perspective here is that the behaviors indicated by the items are as important as calculating a score. The MLQ scale appears to be the most widely used instrument in research on charisma.

COMMENTS ON DISCUSSION QUESTIONS AND ACTIVITIES

1. Identify a business, government, education, or sports leader whom you perceive to be charismatic. Explain the basis for your judgment. The particular leader singled out as charismatic is not as important as how the choice is justified, such as pointing to the leaders colorful communication style. Bill Gates and Steve Jobs often come to students minds when they are asked to identify a charismatic business leader. 2. Identify a well-known leader who is not charismatic. Explain what other qualities might have helped this leader succeed. Because the perception of charisma is often a function of emotional expressiveness and nonverbal communication, students will frequently designate a bland-appearing leader as noncharismatic. Former vice president Al Gore was often labeled as noncharismatic by the press and comedians. After intensive coaching he began to appear more charismatic to some people, mainly because of increased emotional expressiveness. Gore, nevertheless, still makes an impressive physical appearance, and his well-developed intellect and exceptional connections have helped him succeed. President George W. Bush receives mixed reactions in terms of charisma, with his speaking skills detracting from his charismatic image. 3. Steven Jobs of Apple Computer, Inc., and many fashion designers wear the same outfit most of the time, even for press interviews and trade shows or fashion shows. The outfit consists of a

long-sleeve or short-sleeve T-shirt and blue jeans without a belt. How does this costume affect their projection of charisma? The T-shirt and jeans outfits enhance charisma because the outfits are cool. Of course, the reason these outfits are cool is that many of the other people present are wearing expensive business attire or high-fashion costumes. 4. Describe how a person might write email messages to give an impression of being charismatic. To appear more charismatic, the person might follow the suggestions for persuasive communication presented in Chapter 12. Any constructive way of appearing dramatic and unique, such as colorful phrases, will help an email message appear to have been sent by a charismatic person. Emoticons, such as a smiley, are so widely used they might not contribute to a charismatic image. Choosing an interesting font and background color or picture will sometimes enhance charisma, but the written message is more important. 5. Aside from contributing to leadership effectiveness, for what other types of jobs might charisma be an asset? Charisma is a major asset in selling, and sales representatives are the most likely to enroll in seminars and read books about becoming more charismatic. Charisma would also be an asset in any position that involves considerable negotiation, such as a labor-relations specialist. 6. Explain why the presence of a charismatic leader tends to enhance the job satisfaction of group members. A charismatic leader often enhances group members job satisfaction because people enjoy associating with a person they perceive as having an outstanding personality. Furthermore, many charismatic leaders are perceived as winners, and most people like to associate with winners. 7. What opportunities might a first-level supervisor or team leader have to be a transformational leader? A first-level supervisor or team leader will sometimes have the opportunity to improve greatly the performance of an underperforming and/or demoralized organizational unit. A supervisor or team leader is often assigned to such a unit as a developmental experience. 8. In what way is a transactional leader functioning more as a manager than a leader? A transactional leader is involved primarily with interactions between people that are characterized as management rather than leadership. Among them are administering rewards and punishments, giving performance evaluations, and discussing work assignments. 9. A concern has been expressed that leaders who are charismatic are often incompetent. They simply get placed into key positions because they create such a good impression. What do you think of this argument? Many instances probably do exist of counterfeit executives. They are smooth and polished but not very analytical. Our impression is that more of these all form, no substance managers are weeded out in todays thinned-out organizations. 10. Design a research study or survey to determine if you are perceived as being charismatic. Be prepared to share your observations with other group members.

The survey might list all the characteristics of a charismatic leader. It then might ask respondents who knew the person well to rate the person on a 1-to-5 scale. Write-in comments to this anonymous survey about the persons charismatic appeal might also be solicited.

PLAUSIBLE RESPONSES TO CASE QUESTIONS

Leadership Case Problem A: Pat Russo Wants to Rescue Lucent
This case provides some insights into the work of a leader attempting to bring about transformations. 1. In what ways might Russo be classified as a transformational leader? First, Russo was recruited back to Lucent to complete a turnaround. The company had shrunk considerably in size and revenues. Second, she had previously turned around the AT&T Business Communications Division. 2. Based on the evidence presented, how would you rate Russos charisma? A few threads of evidence suggest that Russo is moderately charismatic. Her physical appearance is positive, her speech is careful, and she inspires considerable loyalty. 3. What suggestions might you offer Patricia Russo to help accelerate the turnaround at Lucent? Russo is focusing on selling more of the existing product line. She may need to do something more dramatic, such as selling a new product or service. Possibly the famous research lab at Lucent might offer its services to other companies, providing they are not competitive with Lucent. 4. How ethical was Russo in leaving Lucent, taking a top job at Eastman Kodak Company, and then returning to Lucent in nine months? Russos leaving was obviously an embarrassment to Kodak, since they never would have hired her for a nine-month stint. Many students see no ethical problems in leaving an employer after a brief stay, yet few people would want their own company to experience the same problem. Jumping ship so quickly probably would not fare well when seen through an ethical screen.

Leadership Case Problem B: Charismatically Challenged Chad

The theme of this case is one faced by thousands of ambitious people: they want to get ahead but not enough people think they have the charisma to merit being promoted. Former GE executive Robert Nardelli (now chief exec at Home Depot Inc.) was floored when he was turned down for the top job, even though he had achieved his financial targets. Perhaps Jack Welch thought he was not charismatic enough. 1. What career advice can you offer Chad McAllister? Accept the feedback from his two managers, and begin a program of becoming more noticeable and charismatic. 2. What might Chad do to develop more charisma?

He should take some of the steps in the section about developing charisma. A good starting point would be to express his opinions and feelings more frequently. 3. What is your opinion of the fairness of the ValuTracker program? As long as the people placed in the ValuTracker group are not chosen arbitrarily or through favoritism, the program is fair. Many large organizations identify potential leaders early in their careers because the long-range success of the organization depends on having a strong cadre of leaders.

CHAPTER4

Leadership Behaviors, Attitudes, and Styles

The purpose of this chapter is to provide the reader with an understanding of basic leadership behavior and attitudes, as well as styles. Some of the information goes back to classic studies conducted in the 1950s and 1960s, and some is recent. Two other topics are featured: servant leadership, and how leaders use 360-degree feedback to fine-tune their behaviors.

CHAPTER OUTLINE AND LECTURE NOTES

This chapter covers pioneering information about leadership behaviors and attitudes that served as the basis for studies of leadership styles and contingency theories of leadership. A sampling of these styles is presented as well as current information about behaviors, attitudes, and styles. An effective leader is one who facilitates group members attaining productivity, quality, and satisfaction. I. THE CLASSIC DIMENSIONS OF INITIATING STRUCTURE AND CONSIDERATION

The Ohio State studies developed questionnaires about leaders that included selfassessments and assessments by subordinates. This research became the foundation for most of the future research about leadership behavior, attitudes, and styles. Two dimensions (as identified by factor analysis) accounted for 85 percent of the variance in descriptions of leadership behavior. Initiating structure is the degree to which the leader organizes and defines relationships in the group by activities such as assigning specific tasks, specifying procedures to be followed, scheduling work, and clarifying expectations. Consideration is the degree to which the leader creates an environment of emotional support, warmth, friendliness, and trust. Leaders who score high on the consideration factor typically are friendly, trustful, earn respect, and have a warm relationship with team members. An important output of the research on initiating structure and consideration was to categorize leaders with respect to how much emphasis they place on the two dimensions. As implied by Figure 41, the two dimensions are not mutually exclusive. II. TASK-RELATED ATTITUDES AND BEHAVIOR

Task-related means that the behavior, attitude, or skill focuses more on the task to be performed than on the interpersonal aspects of leadership. 1. Adaptability to the situation . Effective leaders adapt to the situation by choosing a tactic based on the unique circumstances at hand (the contingency approach). 2. Direction setting. The leader must set the direction of change. According to Kotter, leaders gather voluminous data and search for patterns, relationships, and linkages that help create events. Direction setting creates vision and strategies. A new buzzword to signify direction setting is the northbound train.

3. High performance standards. Effective leaders consistently hold group members to high standards of performance. Setting such standards increases productivity, partly because of the Pygmalion effect. 4. Risk taking and bias for action . To bring about constructive change, the leader must take risks and be willing to implement these risky decisions. 5. Hands-on guidance and feedback. The leader who provides hands-on guidance helps the group accomplish important tasks, and at the same time group members learn important skills. Too much guidance, however, can lead to poor delegation and micromanagement. The leader can rarely influence the actions of group members without appropriate performance feedback. 6. Stability of performance. Effective leaders are steady performers, even under heavy workloads and uncertain conditions. Remaining steady helps team members cope with the situation. 7. Ability to ask tough questions. Many times leaders can be effective by asking tough questions rather than providing answers. A tough question is one that makes a person or group stop and think about why they are doing or not doing something. III. RELATIONSHIP-ORIENTED ATTITUDES AND BEHAVIORS

Leadership involves influencing people, so it follows that many effective leadership attitudes, behaviors, and practices deal with interpersonal relationships. A. Aligning and Mobilizing People. Many people have to be aligned (a state of pulling together) to create significant change toward a higher purpose. Alignment enables people to have a clear sense of direction because they are pursuing a vision. Aligning people takes place at almost a spiritual level, whereas mobilizing people is closer to getting the group working together smoothly. One mobilizing practice is to demonstrate care for team members. B. Concert Building. A new conception of the leaders role, concert building, involves both aligning and mobilizing. The goal of the concert builder is to produce a system that is self-evaluating, self-correcting, self-renewing, and ongoing. C. Creating Inspiration and Visibility. Inspiring others is an essential leadership practice. An example of an inspiring practice is building enthusiasm about projects and assignments. Being visible and available facilitates inspiration. D. Satisfying Higher-Level Needs. Motivation and inspiration energize people by satisfying needs for achievement, a sense of belonging, recognition, self-esteem, and a feeling of control over ones life. E. Giving Emotional Support and Encouragement. Supportive behavior toward team members usually increases leadership effectiveness. F. Promoting Principles and Values. A major part of a top leaders role is to help promote values and principles that contribute to the welfare of individuals and the organization. Covey advises that an organizations mission statement must be for all good causes.

G. Being a Servant Leader. Wanting to serve others as a leader is a relationship behavior that encompasses several other key behaviors. A servant leader serves constituents by working on their behalf to help them achieve their goals, not the leaders own goals. A servant leader is a moral leader. Key aspects of servant leadership include the following: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. IV. Place service before self-interest. Listen first to express confidence in others. Inspire trust by being trustworthy. Focus on what is feasible to accomplish. Lend a hand. Provide tools.

360-DEGREE FEEDBACK FOR FINE-TUNING A LEADERSHIP APPROACH

Many leaders solicit systematic feedback to improve their leadership behavior and attitudes. 360-degree feedback is a formal evaluation of superiors based on input from people who work for and with them, sometimes including customers and suppliers. 360-degree feedback is more frequently used for leadership and management development than for performance evaluation. Such feedback can help detect barriers to success, such as a leaders being perceived as using an inappropriate leadership style. 360-degree feedback is a key component of the leadership training program called Benchmarks. Approaches to implementing 360-degree feedback for performance evaluation and development continue to emerge. One variation of the method is to build a 360-degree survey accessed via the Internet and the companys intranet. A review of over 600 studies of 360-degree feedback found that only one-third reported performance improvement, and one-third reported performance decreases. To make better use of 360-degree surveys focus on business goals and strategy, deal with important aspects of leadership, train for giving and receiving feedback, and create action plans. V. LEADERSHIP STYLES

A leaders combination of attitudes and behaviors leads to a certain regularity and predictability in dealing with group members. Leadership style is the relatively consistent pattern of behavior that characterizes a leader. Most classifications of leadership style are based on the dimensions of initiating structure and consideration. A. Participative Leadership Style Sharing decision making with group members, and working with them side-byside, has become the generally accepted leadership approach. Participative leaders share decision making with group members. The style encompasses three subtypes: (1) consultative leaders confer with group members before making a decision, but retain the final authority; (2) consensus leaders strive for consensus; and (3) democratic leaders confer final authority on the group. The participative style has also been referred to as trickle-up leadership because the leader accepts suggestions for managing the operation group members. The participative style is well suited to managing competent people who want to get involved in making decisions and giving feedback to management. However, the style often results in extensive and time-consuming team meetings and committee work.

B.

Leadership Grid Styles

The Leadership Grid is a framework for simultaneously specifying concern for production and concern for the people dimensions of leadership. Grid styles are based on the extent of a persons concern for production and people: Authority-Compliance (9,1); Country Club Management (1,9); Impoverished Management (1,1); Middle-of-the-Road Management (5,5); and Team Management (9,9). The ideal position is the 9,9 orientation, which integrates concern for production and concern for people. This team management style usually results in improved performance, low absenteeism and turnover, and high employee satisfaction. The manager should use principles of human behavior to size up the situation. C. Entrepreneurial Leadership

Many entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs use a similar leadership style that stems from their key personality characteristics and circumstances. A general picture emerges of a task-oriented and charismatic leader. Even if it is not a true leadership style, at least there are some traits and behaviors characteristic of entrepreneurs and intrapreneurs: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. D. Strong achievement drive and sensible risk taking. High degree of enthusiasm and creativity. Tendency to act quickly when opportunity arises. Constant hurry combined with impatience. Visionary perspective. Dislike of hierarchy and bureaucracy. Preference for dealing with external customers. Eye on the future.

Gender Differences in Leadership Style

Several researchers and observers argue that women have certain acquired traits and behaviors that suit them for relations-oriented leadership. Consequently, women leaders frequently exhibit a cooperative, empowering style that includes the nurturing of team members. The other facet of this stereotype is that men are inclined toward a command-and-control, militaristic leadership style. 1. The Argument for Male-Female Differences in Leadership Style

Based on self-reports, Rosener found that men tended toward a command-and-control style. In contrast, women tended toward a transformational style, relying heavily on interpersonal skills. Bass found that women are less likely to practice management-by-exception and are slightly more likely to be described as charismatic. Another perspective on gender differences in leadership is whether men or women are more effective leaders. In combined studies of 425 executives, each by approximately twenty-five people, women leaders achieved higher ratings on forty-two of the fifty-two skills measured. Most of the gender differences were small. One interpretation of these findings is that the women had to be outstanding performers to hold the executive positions, so it was a biased sample. This study could make for emotional, yet thoughtful, class discussion.

2.

The Argument Against Gender Differences in Leadership Style

Based on a literature review, Grant concluded that there are apparently few, if any, personality differences between men and women managers. As women move up the corporate ladder, they identify more with the male model of managerial success. An important point is that both men and women differ among themselves in leadership style. As the research studies put it, The within-group variance is greater than the across-group variance. Also of importance, many women believe that women managers can be more hostile and vindictive than male managers. More important than searching for differences is to capitalize on both male and female leadership tendencies. Connie Glaser sees a new management style that blends the male and female sides. E. Selecting the Best Leadership Style

A recent study with 3,000 executives revealed that leaders who get the best results do not rely on one style. Instead, they use several different styles in one week, such as being autocratic in some situations and democratic in others. The cultural setting must also be considered, such as using a strong task orientation with German workers. Stogdill made a statement about selecting a leadership style that still holds today: The most effective leaders appear to exhibit a degree of versatility and flexibility that enable them to adapt their behavior to the changing and contradictory demands made on them. Table 43 summarizes some useful ideas about the conditional variables for choosing between the participative and autocratic styles. VI. GUIDELINES FOR ACTION AND SKILL DEVELOPMENT

In choosing between a task orientation and a relationship orientation, several additional factors are also relevant. Among them are (a) the structure of the organization and the nature of the leaders work, (b) the leaders personality, (c) the bosss style, and (d) the potential for conflict. A nondirective style is safer.

COMMENTS ON EXPERIENTIAL EXERCISES

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 4-1: How Effective Are You as a Leader?
This exercise focuses on leadership behaviors and attitudes that represent two ends of a continuum. On one end of the continuum is the manager who values the status quo and stability. At the other end is an adventuresome manager who is more of a leader. Such a manager takes risks and has an action orientation. We think this scale makes a contribution because it measures an important aspect of leadership other than the task and people dimensions.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 4-1: Feedback Skills

An important feature of this exercise is that it provides an opportunity to practice giving feedback about performance rather than feedback about personal characteristics. A possible positive byproduct of this exercise is that the feedback results might encourage participants to perform better.

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 4-2: Task-Oriented Attitudes and Behaviors

An interesting twist to this scale is that it does not assume that a low task orientation is equivalent to a high relationship orientation. The scale treats task orientation as an independent dimension of leadership behavior.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 4-2: Clarifying Your Work Values

The importance of this instrument centers around its focus on values. Many observers of leadership heavily emphasize the contribution of values to leadership effectiveness.

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 4-3: What Style of Leader Are You or Would You Be?
This leadership style quiz focuses on behaviors particularly relevant in the modern workplace. The quiz can also be used as a skill-development exercise if the statements are interpreted as implied suggestions for engaging in a participative style.

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 4-4: What Is Your Propensity for Taking Risks?
Reflecting on risk-taking tendencies is an important activity for leaders and prospective leaders. Most organizations today value a sensible degree of risk taking. A fruitful class discussion is why some of these items might reflect risk taking, such as Question 10 about flying a single-engine airplane.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 4-3: Entrepreneurial Leadership

The key feature of this exercise is that it gets the role players involved in a high-impact business activityselling others on the merits of their business. Our informal research has shown that at least one-third of business students aspire to entrepreneurship or self-employment at some point in their careers, thus increasing the relevance of this exercise. A suggestion for this exercise is to caution the role players (or skill builders) to project passion and enthusiasm into the exercise.

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 4-5: How Flexible Are You?

Self-reflection about flexibility is helpful because a leader needs flexibility to adapt to situations and to change. An important goal of this exercise is to highlight the importance of flexibility.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 4-4: Contrasting Leadership Styles

Field testing indicates that this role-play is effective in illustrating basic leadership styles. Many students who understand these styles intellectually have difficulty translating them into behavior acts. Feedback by class members not participating in the role-play is quite beneficial.

COMMENTS ON DISCUSSION QUESTIONS AND ACTIVITIES

1. How is initiating structure related to planning, organizing, and controlling? Initiating structure is an important component of organizing, planning, and controlling. Much of planning, organizing, and controlling involves activities included under initiating structure. 2. Give an example of high consideration behavior that a supervisor of yours showed on your behalf. What was your reaction to his or her behavior? Examples of high consideration behavior include giving a worker time off to deal with a personal problem, or giving the worker encouragement. Most people react very positively to high consideration behavior on the part of the supervisor. 3. Why is direction setting still an important leadership behavior in an era of empowerment? Empowered teams still need direction regarding what activities they should be pursuing. They might then be empowered to figure out how to achieve these goals. Few teams or individual employees are empowered to pursue whatever direction they think is appropriate. 4. Ask an experienced leader how he or she gives emotional support to team members. Be prepared to discuss your findings in class. Emotional support will often take the form of encouraging workers when they have problems and listening to their problems. Other specific forms of emotional support will be worth noting. 5. In what way might a personalized charismatic leader have quite different motives from a servant leader? The personalized charismatic is seeking power and glory to enhance his or her career. In contrast, the primary motive of the servant leader is to help other people by helping them achieve worthwhile goals. 6. How might a manager use email to help carry out both task-oriented and relationship-oriented behaviors? Task-oriented behaviors can be executed via email by sending messages containing directions, work schedules, and goals. Relationship-oriented behaviors can be executed through email by such means as sending notes of encouragement and giving compliments. The leader can give recognition by praising the worker and include a long distribution list. 7. How would you characterize the leadership style of your favorite executive, athletic coach, or television character who plays a boss? To answer this question effectively, the student must choose a style categorization presented in this chapter. The student should also provide meaningful documentation, such as When Coach Summitt sees that one of the players is feeling bad about a major mistake, Summitt puts her arm around the player. That shows shes relationship-oriented. 8. Why is the consensus leadership style widely recommended for providing leadership to Generation X and Generation Y workers?

Generation X and Generation Y workers have a preference for being consulted extensively about key decisions. Part of the explanation is that many Gen X and Gen Y members have studied team leadership in school, and they have also worked as teams for many school projects. 9. Find a printed or Internet article on a business entrepreneur (or think of one from your personal experience). How well does that person fits the entrepreneurial leadership style? In-depth portraits of entrepreneurial leaders will usually include descriptive information on several characteristics of the entrepreneurial leadership style. Entrepreneurs are often described as individualistic (if not eccentric) and impatient. People who have worked for entrepreneurs report frequently that the entrepreneur worked unusually long hours and often expected the same of his or her employees. 10. What are the practical implications of knowing that men and women typically have different leadership styles? One practical implication of knowing that men and women typically have different leadership styles is that it might be possible to assign men and women to situations where their leadership style is the most effective. For example, if a command-and-control-style leader were needed, a man might be assigned. Another implication is that the gender of ones boss would give a person clues about the style of leadership that boss would most likely practice. A person working for a woman, for example, might adapt to her style by participating frequently in decision making and giving her the opportunity to be supportive and caring.

PLAUSIBLE RESPONSES TO CASE QUESTIONS

Leadership Case Problem A: The Confusing 360-Degree Feedback
The theme of this case is that the findings of a 360-degree survey can be difficult to interpret and should take into account the needs and perspectives of the people giving the feedback. 1. What changes in leadership attitudes and behaviors do you think Haskins should make? Haskins may need to give more structure, set a direction more clearly, and work harder at being a helpful coach. 2. How might you explain the differences of opinion that Haskins found in the written feedback and in the ratings shown in Exhibit 1? Feedback on any multirater form is to some extent a function of the needs of the people giving the feedback. For example, a self-confident individual might appreciate Haskins candid feedback, whereas a less confident person might think he is heavy handed. Another explanation for the discrepancy is that Haskins may be generally inspiring but still does not give workers a clear understanding of where they should direct their efforts. 3. In what leadership behavior described in this chapter might Haskins particularly need improvement? A good hypothesis here is that Haskins needs to become more adaptable to the situation particularly being more flexible in responding to the leadership needs of group members. He may need to lead people differently, such as giving some people more structure than others.

Leadership Case Problem B: Getting Northstar in the Winning Mode

This case illustrates the impact that various leadership styles might have on productivity and morale. 1. Which person best demonstrated effective leadership? Explain the reason for your answer. Kim appears to be the most effective leader, particularly in terms of her interaction with group members. She motivates and energizes her employees to achieve their goals and creates change that can help the company. For example, in the meeting she shared with the group the importance of winning the bid. Kim also described Northstars long-term strategic goal of diversifying its client base. 2. Which person least demonstrated effective leadership? Explain the reason for your answer. David is an ineffective leader, with a stiff, impersonal approach to leadership. He does not energize or inspire people to reach organizational goals. In contrast, he focuses on achieving orderly results. The talk he had with Robert showed his inattentiveness and lack of interest in Roberts ideas and concerns. 3. Where on the Leadership Grid would you place Kim, David, Robert, and Sarah? Explain the basis for your answer. Kim appears to be a 9,9 team manager. She places a strong emphasis on both the employee and the task that needs to be completed. David appears to be a 9,1 authority compliance manager. He shows little concern for the people working in his department and demands compliance to his requests. Robert appears to be a 5,5 middle-of-the-road manager. He chooses to concentrate on accomplishing the job and recognizes that he has approximately average skill in working with people. To compensate, he asks Sarah for help in dealing with people. Sarah appears to be a 1,9 country club leader, with her strong emphasis on working with people. It was Sarahs idea to send employees to the concert to learn about the client. If we knew more about Sarahs work approach, she might receive a higher rating than 1 for production concern.

CHAPTER5

Contingency and Situational Leadership

After studying this chapter, the reader should have an accurate understanding of contingency theories of leadership. Although the array of contingency and situational theories may baffle the reader at first, a closer look shows that all but the executive suite theories are related. For example, the familiar tasks versus relationships dimensions run through several of the theories.

CHAPTER OUTLINE AND LECTURE NOTES

Contingency theories specify the factors that determine which style of leadership will achieve the best results in a given situation. The four best-known contingency theories are described in this chapter, along with a concept of contingency leadership for CEOs. I. SITUATIONAL INFLUENCES ON EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP BEHAVIOR

The essence of the contingency approach to leadership is that leaders are most effective when they make their behavior contingent upon situational forces, including group member characteristics. Both the internal and external environments have a significant impact on leader effectiveness. A study compared the psychological profiles of thirty-five CEOs from large and small companies. The skills of small-company CEOs appeared to be centered primarily on production-oriented areas. The large-company CEOs had a significantly better developed subset of interpersonal skills. One interpretation of these findings is that the heavy pressures and understaffing faced by small-company CEOs compel them to emphasize task-related attitudes and behaviors. II. FIEDLERS CONTINGENCY THEORY OF LEADERSHIP EFFECTIVENESS

Fiedlers theory states that the best style of leadership is determined by the situation in which the leader works. A. Measuring Leadership Style: The Least Preferred Coworker (LPC) Scale

A managers leadership style is classified as relationship-motivated or taskmotivated. Ones style is considered relatively fixed. The least preferred coworker (LPC) scale measures the degree to which a leader describes favorably or unfavorably his or her least preferred coworker. One who describes the least preferred coworker in favorable terms is relationship-motivated. In contrast, a person who describes his or her least preferred coworker unfavorably tends to be task-motivated.

B.

Measuring the Leadership Situation

Leadership situations are divided into high control, moderate control, and low control. A high-control situation is the most favorable. Amount of control is determined by rating the situation on three dimensions: 1. Leader-member relations measure how well the group and the leader get along. 2. Task structure measures how clearly the procedures, goals, and evaluation of the job are defined. 3. Position power measures the leaders authority to hire, fire, discipline, and grant salary increases to group members. Leader-member relations contribute as much to the favorability of the leadership situation as do task structure and position power combined. C. Overall Findings

Leadership effectiveness depends on matching leaders to situations in which they can exercise more control. Task-motivated leaders perform the best in situations of high control and low control. Relationship-motivated leaders perform the best in situations of low control. Figure 51 summarizes these findings. D. Making the Situation More Favorable for the Leader

A practical implication of the contingency theory is that leaders should modify situations to match their leadership style best, thereby enhancing their chances of being effective. To increase control over the situation, the leader can do one or more of the following: (a) improve leader-member relations, (b) increase task structure, and (c) exercise more position power. E. Evaluation of Fiedlers Contingency Theory

Fiedlers theory has prompted extensive research. The model has also alerted leaders to the importance of sizing up the situation to gain control. Yet the contingency theory is too complicated to have much of an impact on most leaders. A major problem centers on matching the situation to the leader. III. THE PATH-GOAL THEORY OF LEADERSHIP EFFECTIVENESS

The path-goal theory of leadership effectiveness specifies what the leader must do to achieve high productivity and morale in a given situation. A leader attempts to clarify the path to a goal for a group member so that the latter receives personal payoffs. At the same time, job satisfaction and performance increase. Path-goal theory is based on expectancy theory. The major proposition of path-goal theory is that the manager should choose a leadership style that takes into account group member characteristics and task demands.

A.

Matching the Leadership Style to the Situation

The leader should choose among four leadership styles to achieve optimum results in a given situation. Two key sets of contingency factors are the type of subordinates and the type of work they perform. Key subordinate characteristics include their locus of control and perception of their ability with respect to the assigned task. Environmental contingency factors are (1) the group members tasks, (2) the authority system within the organization, and (3) the work group. The following describes the four styles and their appropriate circumstances. 1. Directive style. The directive leader emphasizes formal activities, such as planning, organizing, and controlling. The directive style improves morale when the task is unclear. 2. Supportive style. The supportive leader displays concern for the wellbeing of group members and creates an emotionally supportive climate. The leader also emphasizes developing mutually satisfying relationships among group members. The supportive leader enhances morale when group members work on dissatisfying, stressful, or frustrating tasks. 3. Participative style. The participative leader uses group input when making decisions. He or she is best suited for improving the morale of well-motivated employees who perform nonrepetitive tasks. 4. Achievement-oriented style. The achievement-oriented leader sets challenging goals, pushes for work improvement, and sets high expectations for group members. This style works well with achievement-oriented team members and with those working on ambiguous and nonrepetitive tasks. B. How the Leader Influences Performance

The path-goal theory offers many specific suggestions to leaders. Three representative suggestions are: 1. has control. 2. goals. 3. Help group members clarify their expectations of how effort will lead to good performance, and how performance will lead to a reward. Leaders can benefit from following the specific suggestions of path-goal theory. Unfortunately, path-goal theory has so many nuances and complexities that it has attracted little interest from managers. IV. THE HERSEYBLANCHARD SITUATIONAL LEADERSHIP MODEL Increase the personal payoffs to team members for attaining work Recognize or activate group members needs over which the leader

The situational leadership model explains how to match the leadership style to the readiness of group members. The key contingency factors are thus group member characteristics.

A.

Basics of the Model

Task behavior is the extent to which the leader spells out the duties and responsibilities of an individual or group. Relationship behavior is the extent to which the leader engages in two-way or multiway communication. As shown in Figure 53, combinations of task and relationship behaviors are placed into four quadrants: Style 1High task and low relationship. The telling style is directive. Style 2High task and high relationship . The selling style is also directive but in a more persuasive, guiding manner. Style 3High relationship and low task . In the participating leadership style, there is less direction and more collaboration between leader and group members. Style 4Low relationship and low task. In the delegating style, the leader delegates and is kept informed of progress. The most effective style depends on the readiness level of group members. Readiness is the extent to which a group member is able and willing to accomplish a specific task. Ability is the knowledge, experience, and skill an individual or group brings to a particular activity. Willingness is the extent to which an individual or group has the confidence, commitment, and motivation to accomplish a specific task. The key point in situational leadership theory is that as group member readiness increases, a leader should rely more on relationship behavior and less on task behavior. Guidelines for the leader are outlined in Figure 53. In Situation R4, for example, team members are willing or confident. The leader can therefore grant them considerable autonomy, using a delegating style. B. Evaluation of the Situational Model

The model is based on a fundamental truth about leadership and management: Competent people require the least specific direction. The situational model has proved useful in training, and it alerts leaders to the importance of diagnosing the readiness of group members. One concern about the model is that it gives the false impression that situations are clear-cut. Another concern is that the prescriptions from situational leadership work only part of the time. A major research-based concern is that there are few leadership situations in which a high-task, high-relationship orientation does not produce the best results. V. THE NORMATIVE DECISION MODEL

Another contingency viewpoint is that leaders must choose a style that elicits the correct degree of group participation when making decisions. The normative decision model views leadership as a decision-making process in which the leader examines certain factors in the situation to determine which decision-making style will be the most effective. A. Decision-Making Styles

The five decision-making styles in the model are based on the amount of authority retained by the leader; from most to least they are Decide, Consult (Individually), Consult (Group), Facilitate, and Delegate.

B.

Contingency Factors and Application of the Model

The manager diagnoses the situation in terms of seven variables for either making a decision under pressure, or with the desire to develop group members. Based on those variables, the manager follows the path through a matrix to choose one of the five decision-making styles. Figure 5 4 depicts the decision tree for time-driven group problems. Working through the model is self-explanatory. Accurate answers to the seven situational variables can be challenging to obtain. Different people giving different answers to the situational factors will arrive at different conclusions about the recommended decision style. Nevertheless, the normative model is valuable because it prompts managers to ask questions about contingency variables in decision-making situations. VI. COGNITIVE RESOURCE THEORY: HOW INTELLIGENCE, EXPERIENCE, AND STRESS INFLUENCE LEADERSHIP The general thrust of cognitive resource theory is that stress plays a key role in determining how a leaders intelligence is related to group performance. The same theory describes the link between directive behavior and intelligence. Several of the predictions in the theory are as follows: 1. Leaders with greater experience but lower intelligence are likely to have higher performing groups under high-stress conditions. Under low-stress conditions, leader experience is less necessary. 2. Highly experienced leaders will often use old solutions to problems when creativity is necessary. Leaders with high intelligence are more valuable than experienced leaders when innovation is needed and stress levels are low. 3. If a leader is experiencing stress, his or her intellectual abilities will be diverted from the task at hand. 4. The intellectual abilities of directive leaders will correlate more highly with group performance than will the intellectual abilities of nondirective leaders. 5. A leaders intellectual abilities will be related to group performance to the degree that the task requires the use of intellectual ability. VII. CONTINGENCY LEADERSHIP IN THE EXECUTIVE SUITE An interview analysis of 163 top executives revealed five distinct approaches, all of which are based on contingency factors. The study concluded that successful CEOs assess their companies needs, then adapt their leadership style to fit the particular situation. Table 51 provides an outline of the approaches and accompanying contingency factors. 1. The strategic approach is a systematic, dispassionate, and structured analysis of a companys strengths and weaknesses, and its mission. Key contingency factors are an unstable environment, a high rate of change, and complexity. 2. The human assets approach adds value to the organization through its hiring, retention, and development programs. The key contingency factor is a case in which business units are better positioned than headquarters to make strategy. 3. The expertise approach means that the CEOs key responsibility is selecting and disseminating throughout the organization an area of expertise that will give the firm a competitive advantage. The key contingency factor is a case in which expertise can be a source of significant competitive advantage.

4. The box approach occurs when the corporate group adds value by creating, communicating, and overseeing an explicit set of controls. The key contingency factor is the presence of government examiners who insist on strict controls to protect consumer and company. 5. The change agent approach is used by CEOs who believe that their most critical role is to create an environment of continual reinvention, even if such an emphasis on change creates short-term disturbances such as poorer financial results. A key contingency factor is that the company wants to remain a leader in the field, and the status quo is unacceptable. VIII. LEADERSHIP DURING A CRISIS

Leading during a crisis can be regarded as contingency leadership because the situation demands that the leader emphasize certain behaviors, attitudes, and traits. Crisis leadership is the process of leading group members through a sudden, largely unanticipated, intensely negative, and emotionally draining circumstance. Attributes and behavior for effective crisis management are as follows: 1. Be Decisive. The leader should take decisive action to remedy the situation. 2. Lead with Compassion. Displaying compassion toward the concerns, anxieties, and frustrations of the group is a key interpersonal skill for crisis leadership. 3. Reestablish the Usual Work Routine. An effective way of helping people deal with a workplace crisis is to influence them to return to their regular work. However, workers should first express their feelings about the crisis. 4. Avoid a Circle-the-Wagons Mentality. To strongly defend yourself against your critics or deny wrongdoing is a mistake. 5. Display Optimism. Pessimists abound in every crisis, so optimism by the leader can help energize the group members to overcome the bad times. 6. Be a Transformational Leader. During times of large and enduring crisis transformational leadership may be the intervention of choice. IX. GUIDELINES FOR ACTION AND SKILL DEVELOPMENT

To apply contingency theory, the leader must achieve the right balance between task and relationship orientation. The leader must also choose a decision style at some place on the leadership continuum from autocratic to democratic. A consultative decision-making style is called for when a decision is complex, technical accuracy is important, and group acceptance is necessary.

COMMENTS ON EXPERIENTIAL EXERCISES

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 5-1: The Least Preferred Coworker (LPC) Scale for Measuring Leadership Style
The LPC scale arouses controversy. Some people find their leadership style diagnosis to be sensible, whereas others find it to be completely opposite to their expectations. Students should compare their LPC style with the one provided by the leadership style test in Chapter 4.

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 5-2: Measuring Your Situational Perspective

A potential of this exercise is that it gives present and prospective leaders a rare opportunity to reflect on the extent of their situational or contingency perspective. The number of people who adapt their tactics to meet the demands of a given situation may be lower than most people think.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 5-1: Applying the Situational Leadership Model

It takes a person who is highly skilled in interviewing and steeped in knowledge about individual differences to make accurate assessments of readiness, ability, and willingness to perform a task. The exercise illustrates the challenges involved in being an effective situational leader. An important consideration is that a manager would have more data to work with because a group member can be observed over time rather than only during an interview.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 5-2: Applying the Time-Driven Model

Although some students and researchers are skeptical about the reliability of the matrix for applying the normative decision model, this exercise will often show consistency across several class groups. The students will arrive at the same decision style. We recommend that individual students, or group leaders, explain their reasoning for each of the seven situational variables, such as decision significance and team competence.

COMMENTS ON DISCUSSION QUESTIONS AND ACTIVITIES

1. Ed Whitacre, an executive at SBC Communications Inc., said that sometimes he is a strategic manager and at other times a hands-on manager. In what way does his comment reflect the contingency approach to leadership? A leader who is sometimes a strategic manager and at other times a hands-on manager is using two different approaches. A strategist deals with long-range and abstract ideas, whereas a hands-on manager deals with everyday problems. Whitacre is implying that he varies between being a strategist and a hands-on manager, depending on the dictates of the situation. 2. In what ways do contingency theories go beyond stating that the best leadership approach depends on the situation? Contingency theory goes beyond simply stating that the best tactic depends on the situation because it urges the leader to examine the critical variables in the situation and then make the appropriate decision. A leader must therefore be conversant with the right contingency variables. 3. How would a manager know which variables in a given situation should influence which approach to leadership he or she should take? Knowledge of management and organizational behavior, combined with intuition, are helpful in figuring out which are the relevant variables. For example, knowledge of individual differences is always a good starting point. In many situations, factors such as motivation and the problemsolving ability of group members are key situational variables. The leader/manager should also investigate if the organizational culture is a relevant variable.

4. What difference in leadership approach have you noticed between top-level managers and firstlevel supervisors? A major difference is that top-level leaders are more likely to lead from a distance. They are much less involved in the face-to-face coaching and motivating that first-level supervisors may employ. 5. Which of the four path-goal styles do you think would be the best for managing a professional football or professional soccer team? Justify your answer. Most professional football players would respond well to an achievement-oriented leadership style because they are achievement oriented. The leader would thus set challenging goals, push for improvement, and set high expectations. However, some players are so emotionally immature they would require a directive style to help keep them out of trouble. 6. According to the situational model of leadership, which style is likely to be the most effective for leading a strongly motivated group of ecommerce specialists? The key variable here is that the group probably has high readiness. The specialists are probably self-sufficient and competent. Thus the leader can grant them considerable autonomy, using a delegating style. 7. Suppose a company has been rocked with financial scandal, and a new CEO is brought in from the outside. Which of the five approaches to contingency leadership in the executive suite should this new CEO implement? Explain your reasoning. A company rocked with financial scandal faces an unstable environment. With this key contingency factor in mind, the strategic approach might be used. The CEO would probably have to work toward reorienting the company, including developing a new long-term business strategy. 8. Why might a transformational leader be helpful in a crisis? A transformational leader would be helpful in a crisis because he or she might be able to lead the firm out of its present misery. Such a leader might be able to guide constituents toward taking the steps necessary to turn around the firm. 9. Identify a business leader whose organization is facing a crisis today. Explain why you consider his or her situation to be a crisis. At any given time, many well-known firms are facing a crisis. One example would be the Kmart Corporation CEO in 2003. Kmart was approaching bankruptcy, it was losing market share rapidly to Wal-Mart, and it was struggling to identify its core customer base. 10. Show the normative decision model to an experienced leader. Obtain his or her opinion on its practicality, and be ready to discuss your findings in class. Experienced leaders and managers typically like using the normative decision model because it asks relevant questions and leads to sensible suggestions about individual versus group decision making.

PLAUSIBLE RESPONSES TO CASE QUESTIONS

Leadership Case Problem A: Hector Alvarez, the Multifaceted Team Leader
This case illustrates how a team leader will often have to change his leadership and management approach quickly to deal with different kinds of problems. 1. In what way does the above case illustrate contingency leadership and management? The case illustrates the contingency approach because the team leader has to shift his approach quite dramatically in the same day. At one time he is dealing with an achievement-oriented group member who wants to develop a new business model; at another time he is dealing with the nittygritty of allegations of sexual harassment. 2. How effective was Alvarez in dealing with Cohen? Alvarez is dealing effectively with Cohen, encouraging her initiative without making commitments to her that the company may not keep. 3. How effective was Alvarez in dealing with Mary, Jill, and Bill? Alvarez responded well to the emotional needs of Mary by immediately beginning an investigation of the alleged sexual harassment. He accepted Jills comments at face value, so she is probably satisfied. However, Alvarez may have been too heavy-handed in dealing with Bill, whom he suspended after only a cursory investigation of the problem. Another party, such as the human resources department, should be involved before temporarily suspending Bill.

Leadership Case Problem B: Excite@Home Goes Down the Tubes

The Excite@Home case history is a dramatic example of an organization in crisis and a leaders attempt to rescue the firm. 1. What crisis is Patti Hart facing? The key crisis is that the company is going out of business because it is burning cash at too rapid a rate in terms of revenues. 2. What else might Hart have done from a leadership standpoint to rescue Excite@Home? The facts on which this case is based give no evidence that Hart solicited ideas from company employees on how to save the company. She may have tried to work too independently. 3. Which business strategies might have salvaged Excite@Home? A remote possibility is to have sold the company to a similar firm such as Yahoo! Inc., or to a group of investors who wanted to get into the Internet business. A drastic slash-and-burn approach would have been necessary to get Excite@Home ready for sale. Another strategy would have been to diversify into a potentially profitable business, such as video games. Diversification, however, would have been very difficult because Excite@Home would not have been able to borrow money.

CHAPTER 6 Leadership Ethics and Social Responsibility

The purpose of this chapter is to examine important issues about leadership ethics and social responsibility. The focus is on leaders rather than on a general treatment of business ethics, and includes a summary of the theory of ethics. Skill building is also incorporated into this chapter.

CHAPTER OUTLINE AND LECTURE NOTES

Being ethical and socially responsible is part of being an effective leader even if many financially successful executives are unethical and socially irresponsible. I. PRINCIPLES OF ETHICAL AND MORAL LEADERSHIP

Ethics is the study of moral obligations, or separating right from wrong. Also, ethics are the accepted guidelines of behavior for groups or institutions. Morals are an individuals determination of what is right or wrong and is influenced by his or her values. A moral leader will practice good ethics. A. Five Ethical Leadership Behaviors 1. Be Honest and Trustworthy and Have Integrity in Dealing with Others. Trustworthiness contributes to leadership effectiveness. Integrity refers to loyalty to rational principles, thereby practicing what one preaches regardless of emotional or social pressure. (A criminal can have integrity by consistently engaging in criminal behavior.) 2. Pay Attention to All Stakeholders. Maximizing shareholder wealth is not a sufficient role for a leader. 3. Build Community. The leader helps people achieve a common goal, and searches for goals compatible to all. 4. Respect the Individual. Respecting individuals is a principle of ethical and moral leadership that incorporates other aspects of morality. For example, if you tell the truth, you respect others well enough to be honest.

5. Accomplish Silent Victories. Joseph Badaracco, Jr. observes that modesty and restraint are largely responsible for the achievement of the most effective moral leaders in business. B. Factors Contributing to Ethical Differences

One key factor is the leaders level of greed, gluttony, and avarice. Another key factor is the leaders level of moral development: preconventional (intent of receiving rewards and avoiding punishment); conventional (conform to societal norms); and postconventional (internalized set of principles that may go beyond laws of a society). A third factor is the situation, particularly the organizational culture. II. GUIDELINES FOR EVALUATING THE ETHICS OF A DECISION

The Center for Business Ethics at Bentley College has developed six questions to evaluate the ethics of a specific decision: 1. Is it right? 2. Is it fair? 3. Who gets hurt? 4. Would you be comfortable if the details of your decision or actions were made public in the media or through email? 5. What would you tell your child, sibling, or young relative to do? 6. How does it smell? A Job Seekers Ethics Audit, presented in Table 61, presents an ethical screen from the standpoint of an individual screening a potential employer. III. A SAMPLING OF UNETHICAL LEADERSHIP BEHAVIORS

Table 62 presents a sample of the type of unethical, immoral, and often illegal behavior engaged in by business leaders whose acts have been publicly reported. Some of these cases may not have been settled by the time of publication of this edition. A quick Internet search will bring the table entries up to date. IV. LEADERSHIP AND SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

Good deeds are important for leaders. Social responsibility is the idea that firms have obligations to society beyond their economic obligations to owners or stockholders and also beyond those prescribed by law or contract. Social responsibility involves a firms impact on society. Here we look at a few socially responsible actions. A. Creating a Pleasant Workplace A social responsibility initiative that directly affects the well-being of people is the creation of a comfortable, pleasant, and intellectually stimulating work environment. The Fortune designation of best company to work for fits directly here, as measured by the Great Place to Work Institute. B. Guarding the Environment

Socially responsible leaders influence others to preserve the external environment through a variety of actions that go beyond mandatory environmental controls. A study with executives in the metal finishing business found that the magnitude of the

environmental consequences influenced the leaders attitude toward disposal of hazardous wastewater. Cost considerations were also important. C. Being Involved in Political Causes

A leader can exercise social responsibility by getting involved in a political cause that benefits people, such as advocating just treatment of child labor. D. Engaging In Philanthropy

A standard organizational leadership approach to social responsibility is to donate money to charity and various causes. A recent development is for corporate leaders to demand a good return on investment for their donated money, such as obtaining evidence that literacy rates improved when money was donated to a reading program. V. INITIATIVES FOR ACHIEVING AN ETHICAL AND SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE ORGANIZATION Here we look at five initiatives executive leadership can take to help create an ethical and socially responsible organizational culture (versus a focus on social responsibility). 1. Leading by Example. A high-powered approach to enhancing ethics and social responsibility is for corporate leaders to behave in such a manner. 2. Establishing Written Codes of Ethical Conduct. Written codes of conduct are widely used as guidelines for ethical and socially responsible behavior. 3. Developing Formal Mechanisms for Dealing with Ethical Problems. Forty-five percent of companies with 500 or more employees have ethics programs of various types. An ethics committee to establish policy and conduct audits is typical. 4. Accepting Whistleblowers. A whistleblower is an employee who discloses organizational wrongdoing to parties who can take action. Whistleblowers are often ostracized and humiliated by the companies they hope to improve, and half the time they are ignored. The Enron Corporation case was originally exposed by a whistleblower who was a vice president at the firm. 5. Providing for Training in Ethics and Social Responsibility. Many companies train managerial workers about ethics, using such techniques as Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 6-2. VI. ETHICAL BEHAVIOR AND ORGANIZATIONAL PERFORMANCE

Recent evidence suggests that high ethics and social responsibility are related to good financial performance. The overall financial performance of the 2001 list of the 100 Best Firms was significantly better than the remaining companies in the S&P 500. The relationship between social responsibility and profits can also work in two directions. More profitable firms can better afford to invest in social responsibility initiatives, and these initiatives can in turn lead to more profits. The virtuous circle means that corporate social performance and corporate financial performance feed and reinforce each other.

VII.

GUIDELINES FOR ACTION AND SKILL DEVELOPMENT

Being ethical is an effective interpersonal skill. If you develop close relationships with people you are more likely to be ethical in your dealings with them. The stronger the relationship between people, the more likely they will behave ethically toward each other. It is essential to build close relationships with work associates.

COMMENTS ON EXPERIENTIAL EXERCISES

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 6-1: The Leader Integrity Scale
A curious aspect about this scale is that it provides clues as to what actually constitutes unethical behavior for leaders. An activity of potential merit would be to compare these scores with the organizational politics questionnaire (Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 7-3) in the next chapter. People who score very high as a political player should tend to have high scores on the integrity scale (high score reflecting low integrity).

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 6-1: Dialing for Dollars

We suspect that most students will conclude that renting rotary phones to customers is an unsavory activity unless the consumer deliberately makes the choice. It may be illuminating to students to know that a company as well known as AT&T or Lucent Technologies would have such low ethics. Another ethical wrinkle here is that most renters of rotary telephones are probably senior citizens who never thought to stop the service.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 6-2: Dealing with Defining Moments

Dealing with defining moments is a helpful vehicle for understanding the complexity of ethical decision making. Students will be divided on these issues, with some taking the position that a hard-nosed business decision is best because it is fairest to all concerned. Other students will go out of their way to be humanistic, such as giving an average-performing employee an above-average salary increase so he can better care for his ill mother.

COMMENTS ON DISCUSSION QUESTIONS AND ACTIVITIES

1. If the president of the United States, George W. Bush, engaged in questionable ethical behavior while he was an energy company executive, why should you worry about being ethical? A major issue here is to think about why being ethical is important, particularly if some rich and famous people are unethical. Reasons for being ethical include the following: (a) the world would be a better place if more people in key positions were ethical; (b) ethical behavior is important based on universal rights such as fairness and justice, so possible positive consequences of being unethical are irrelevant; and (c) having high ethics is more important than fame and money. 2. The majority of business executives accused of unethical behavior have studied ethics either as a subject in a business course or as an entire course. So what do you think went wrong? For many business executives information about ethics remains cognitive knowledge, without being internalized (learned emotionally). When the temptations to become rich or to make the firm look good to shareholders present themselves, the emotion of greed preempts cognitive knowledge about ethics.

3. Companies that make and sell alcoholic or tobacco products are an easy target for individuals demanding social responsibility. Should leaders of companies that produce fattening food that can lead to cardiac problems and obesity also be targeted for being socially irresponsible? Most students will probably say that the individual has a choice about eating fatty foods, so servers of high-cholesterol food are not being socially irresponsible. However, an emerging trend is to target producers and servers of high-cholesterol food as being socially irresponsible. A major lawsuit was initiated against McDonalds in 2002, accusing the company of urging children to become obese. Ben & Jerrys has been cited as socially irresponsible because of the high fat content of its ice cream. The latter is a strange twist because so many management writers have cited Ben & Jerrys as a model of a socially responsible company. 4. Practically every job candidate describes himself or herself as being honest and trustworthy. What steps can a company take to increase the chances of hiring leaders who really are honest and trustworthyand therefore ethical? A standard approach to selecting honest and trustworthy leaders is to conduct a thorough background investigation, including questioning references. Job candidates at lower job levels are often required to take personality tests that measure honesty and integrity. Given that these tests have some validity, perhaps candidates for leadership positions should also take tests of honesty and integrity. 5. An increasing number of critics are demanding that no executive should receive a total compensation of $100 million or more in one year. What is your position on the ethics of a business leader receiving so much compensation? We have all heard the arguments that top-level executives are paid so much because of competition, as well as supply and demand. These are the same reasons given to justify awarding a $100 million contract to a football quarterback. One of the many ethical issues here is Who gets hurt? when an executive is paid over $100 million per year. A plausible answer is that without such excessive pay to one person, many jobs could be saved, many employees could be given a raise, and bigger dividends could be paid to shareholders. 6. Teenagers from poor neighborhoods purchase a disproportionate number of basketball-style shoes costing over $125 a pair. In your opinion, are companies that target their athletic-shoe advertising to these teenagers being socially responsible? Explain your answer. Many people have strong attitudes toward the issue of encouraging poor youths to purchase high-priced athletic footwear. Some people believe that such behavior on the part of companies is socially irresponsible because the teenagers could make better use of the money they invest in athletic shoes. Furthermore, crimes are sometimes committed to obtain the money for these shoes, and some young people are beaten and robbed by others who want their shoes. The other side of the argument is that high-priced athletic shoes bring happiness and status to their owners. As a consequence, the shoe manufacturers are being socially responsible. 7. What is the explanation for the fact that many profitable business corporations are also socially responsible? The virtuous circle concept is relevant here. Profitable business corporations have the money to invest in social initiatives, so profitability leads to social responsibility such as a wealthy company building a park in a poor neighborhood. The socially responsible initiatives, in turn, lead to favorable publicity and more revenues to invest in socially responsible initiatives.

8. Based on what you have read, heard, or seen, at which level (or levels) in the organization are highly ethical leaders the most likely to be found? As will be mentioned in the final section of Chapter 15, it appears that leaders in middlemanagement positions are more ethical than CEOs. Part of the problem is that CEOs are pressured to report good earnings and to profit directly from these earnings. So far, not much mention has been made of ethically challenged, first-level managers. 9. How can consumers use the Internet to help control the ethical behavior of business leaders? Consumers are already using the Internet to help control the ethical behavior of business leaders. A primary tactic is to widely distribute information about unethical practices of business leaders. A problem with complaint web sites is that the sponsors of these sites are often perceived as malcontents and disgruntled workers or former workers. 10. In what ways are many retail customers quite unethical? Unethical and illegal behavior by retail customers has a substantial impact on the cost of conducting business. Among these unethical and illegal behaviors are: stealing merchandise; eating food without paying for it; purchasing expensive items, using then once, and returning them for a refund; and misusing a product so it breaks and demanding a full refund. Students can supply loads of interesting examples of unethical customers.

PLAUSIBLE RESPONSES TO CASE QUESTIONS

Leadership Case Problem A: Fast-Talking Fastow of Enron
This case illustrates how ethically challenged a major business executive can be even though he earns a good living based on his intelligence, education, and contacts. 1. Which specific behaviors of Fastow would you perceive as unethical? The following behaviors of Fastow might be considered unethical: (a) he helped formulate the offbalance sheet partnerships that hid some of the financial liabilities of Enron; (b) he used veiled threats to sell some of his deals to banks and institutional investors by hinting that they might lose Enrons business if they did not comply with his deals; (c) the huge earnings from his deals suggested that the deals involved some questionable manipulations; (d) he was emotionally explosive and vindictive; (e) he belittled his peers; and (f) he used performance appraisals to get even with people he did not like. 2. Does the fact that Fastow has not yet been charged with a crime influence your evaluation of his ethics? (During congressional inquiries, under legal counsel he chose to remain silent.) Explain your reasoning. Unethical acts are not necessarily illegal, so Fastow could still be highly unethical without having committed a crime. 3. In what ways was Fastow socially responsible? As indicated in the last paragraph of the case, Fastow was socially responsible during his time as an Enron executive. He was a major benefactor to the citys art museums, a fundraiser for the local Holocaust Museum, and a co-founder of a synagogue.

4. How would you rate Fastows emotional intelligence? Fastow rates low on emotional intelligence because he often expressed rage in the office, and he was vindictive toward people who disagreed with him. His cognitive intelligence appears quite high based on the complex financial deals he created.

Leadership Case Problem B: Bad Credit? No Credit? College Student? Providian Loves You.
A subtle theme to this case is that sometimes the most villainous-appearing company is helping somebody. In this case, Providian enabled poor people to obtain something very important to thema credit card. 1. In what ways has Providian been unethical and socially irresponsible? Charging low-income people exorbitant interest rates could be perceived as an act of social irresponsibility. Also, Providian actually wanted its customers to make low monthly minimum payments, thereby placing them in a long-term position of indebtedness. Charging customers a credit protection fee could be seen as unsavory. Deceptive advertising isnt too cool either. 2. What argument can you present that Providian has been socially responsible? As stated above, helping people with poor credit, or no credit, borrow money provides a service many people think is valuable. Providian is helping people neglected and ignored by many creditcard companies. 3. What could company leadership have done to guide Providian in a better direction? Leadership might have pointed Providian into moderate-risk lending segments with less controversy about exploiting people. How about providing financing for autos, boats, home appliances, mobile homes, and so forth by working with retailers who do not have their own lending wing? Heavy competition exists for making these types of loans, but Providian has the capacity to be a big player.

CHAPTER 7 Power, Politics, and Leadership

The purpose of this chapter is to provide readers with new insights into power and politics so that they can make better use of power and politics and thus lead others effectively. Chapter 8 is a continuation of this topic, but with a description of various influence tactics.

CHAPTER OUTLINE AND LECTURE NOTES

To function effectively, leaders must use power effectively, including applying political tactics to acquire and retain power. I. SOURCES AND TYPES OF POWER

To exercise influence, a leader must have power, the potential or ability to influence decisions and control resources. Zand considers power to be one of the three forces of the leadership triad, along with knowledge and trust. A. Position Power

A standard method of classifying power is based on whether the power stems from the organization or the individual. Legitimate Power. Power granted by the organization is referred to as legitimate power. This power increases as one moves up the organization ladder. Reward Power. The authority to give employees rewards for compliance is referred to as reward power. Coercive Power. The power to punish for noncompliance is referred to as coercive power. It is based on fear. Information Power. Having formal control over information that people need to do their work is referred to as information power. B. Personal Power

Three sources of power stem from characteristics or behaviors of the power actor. All are classified as personal power because they are derived from the person rather than the organization. Prestige power, the power stemming from ones status and reputation, is also important. C. Power Stemming from Ownership

The strength of ownership power depends on how closely the owner is linked to shareholders and board members. A leaders ownership power is also associated with how much money he or she has invested in the firm. The new breed of CEOs in ebusinesses escalates the importance of ownership power. The New Golden Rule applies: The person who holds the gold, rules. D. Power Stemming from Providing Resources

According to the resource dependence perspective , the organization requires a continuing flow of human resources, money, customers and clients, technological inputs, and materials if it is to continue to function. Organizational subunits, or individuals who can provide these key resources, accrue power from this ability. Losing power to control resources leads to a decline in power. E. Power Derived from Capitalizing on Opportunity

Power can be derived from being at the right place at the right time and taking appropriate action. You also need to have the right resources to capitalize on the opportunity. Go where the action is to capitalize on opportunity power. F. Power Stemming from Managing Critical Problems

The strategic contingency theory of power suggests that those units best able to cope with the firms critical problems and uncertainties acquire relatively large amounts of power. Also, a subunit acquires power by virtue of its centrality, how much its activities are linked into the system of organizational activities. G. Power Stemming from Being Close to Power

The closer a person is to power, the greater the power he or she exerts. Likewise, the higher a unit reports in a firms hierarchy, the more power it possesses. II. BASES OF POWER AND TRANSFORMATIONAL AND TRANSACTIONAL LEADERSHIP When 280 employees reporting to 118 supervisors in forty-five organizations of many different types were studied with respect to bases of power and transformational and transactional leadership, it was found that leaders who behave in a transformational manner are perceived to possess referent and expert power. Transformational leadership also showed a positive correlation with reward and legitimate power, yet was unrelated to coercive power. Perceptions of power were not clearly linked to transactional leadership. III. TACTICS FOR BECOMING AN EMPOWERING LEADER

It is paradoxically true that power and influence increase when the leader shares power with others. As team members receive more power, they can accomplish more. Because the

manager shares credit for their accomplishments, the manager becomes more powerful. To empower others is to be perceived as an influential person. In a competitive environment increasingly dependent on knowledge, the most successful organizations will be those that effectively use the talents of all players on the team. A. The Nature of Empowerment

Empowerment refers to passing decision-making responsibility from managers to group members. One study identified four components of empowerment. Meaning is the value of a work goal evaluated in relation to a persons ideals or standards. A person doing meaningful work is likely to feel empowered. Competence, or self-efficacy, is an individuals belief in his or her capability to perform a particular task well. Selfdetermination is an individuals feeling of having a choice in initiating and regulating actions. Choosing a method to solve a problem leads to a high level of self-determination. Impact is the degree to which the worker can influence strategic, administrative, or operating outcomes on the job. A fifth dimension is internal commitment toward work goals. B. Empowering Practices

The practices that foster empowerment supplement standard approaches to participative management such as conferring with group members before reaching a decision. Specific empowering practices are described below. 1. Foster Initiative and Responsibility. Encourage team members to take the initiative and give them broader responsibility. 2. Link Work Activities to the Goals of the Organization. Empowerment works better when the empowered activities are aligned with the strategic goals of the organization. 3. Provide Ample Information. Give employees ample information about everything that affects their work. This is the basis of open-book management. 4. Allow Group Members to Choose Methods. Explain to the individual or group what needs to be done and let the people involved choose the method. Also explain why the task needs to be done. 5. Encourage Self-Leadership. Encourage team members to practice self-leadership because it is the heart of empowerment. When employees lead themselves, they feel empowered. 6. Implement Team-Based Human Resource Policies. A study of 111 work teams in four organizations found that teams are more likely to feel empowered when the organization implements a variety of team-based human resources policies. Examples include basing part of pay on team performance, and allowing team members to participate in selection decisions. 7. Establish Limits to Empowerment. To prevent dysfunction, workers need a clear perception of the boundaries to empowerment. 8. Continue to Lead. Although the leader empowers group members, the leader should still provide guidance, emotional support, and recognition. C. Cultural Differences

Cross-cultural factors influence empowerment, such as a study of a single firm with operations in the United States, Mexico, Poland, and India. Among Indian workers, empowerment lowered job satisfaction. D. Effective Delegation and Empowerment

A major contributor to empowerment is delegation, the assignment to another person of formal authority and responsibility for accomplishing a specific task. Delegation is narrower than empowerment because it relates to a specific task. Guidelines for effective delegation are as follows: 1. Assign duties to the right people. 2. When feasible, delegate the whole task. 3. Give as much instruction as needed, depending upon the characteristics of the group member. 4. Allow the group member to choose the method. 5. Retain some important tasks for yourself. 6. Obtain feedback on the delegated task. 7. Delegate both pleasant and unpleasant tasks to group members. 8. Step back from the details. 9. Evaluate and reward performance. Delegation contributes to the practice of leadership because delegation is an excellent opportunity to coach the person accepting the delegated tasks. IV. FACTORS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO ORGANIZATIONAL POLITICS

Organizational politics refers to informal approaches to gaining power through means other than merit or luck. Views of organizational politics are becoming increasingly positive, such as Political skill is an interpersonal style that combines social awareness with the ability to communicate well. Organizational politics is an old subject that is still highly relevant in the Internet Age. Contributing factors to politics are as follows: A. The pyramid-shaped organization structure fosters a power chase because a pyramid concentrates power at the top and leads to competition for limited resources. B. Subjective standards of performance foster political behavior. People often resort to organizational politics because they do not believe that the organization has an objective and fair way of judging their performance and promotability. C. Environmental uncertainty and turbulence fosters politics because when people operate in an unstable and unpredictable environment, they tend to behave politically. It is difficult to specify what people should be doing in an uncertain situation. D. Emotional insecurity can lead to political behavior as people attempt to ingratiate themselves with superiors because they lack confidence in their talent and skills. E. Machiavellian tendencies represent a fundamental reason why people engage in politics. People who are Machiavellian have a propensity to behave politically.

F. Disagreement over major issues leads to political behavior because, unless strategy and goals are shared by key organizational members, political motivation is inevitable in organizational decision making. V. POLITICAL TACTICS AND STRATEGIES

To make effective use of organizational politics, leaders must be aware of specific political tactics and strategies. Here we offer a representative group of political tactics and strategies categorized as ethical versus unethical. Many of the influence tactics to be described in Chapter 8 can also be considered political. A. Ethical Political Tactics and Strategies

Ethical political methods are placed into three related groups: those aimed directly at gaining power, those aimed at building relationships with superiors and coworkers, and those aimed at avoiding political blunders. All of these tactics help the leader gain or retain power, and they help the leader succeed in and manage a stressful work environment. 1. Strategies and Tactics Aimed at Gaining Power. As Tom Peters notes, the slow and steady (and subtle) amassing of power is the surest road to success. The following seven techniques help a person gain power directly: (1) develop your power contacts, (2) control vital information, (3) keep informed, (4) control lines of communication, (5) bring in outside experts to support your position, (6) make a quick showinga quick display of dramatic results can lead to acceptance of future proposals, and (7) remember that everyone expects to be paid back. 2. Strategies and Tactics Aimed at Building Relationships. Much of organizational politics involves building positive relationships with network members who can be helpful now or later. Several representative strategies and tactics follow: (a) display loyalty; (b) manage your impression; (c) ask satisfied customers to contact your boss; (d) be courteous, pleasant, and positive; (e) ask adviceshow your trust in the other persons judgment; (f) send thank-you notes to large numbers of people; and (g) flatter others sensibly. 3. Strategies Aimed at Avoiding Political Blunders. A strategy for retaining power is to refrain from making power-eroding blunders. Some of these key blunders are criticizing the boss in a public forum, bypassing the boss, declining an offer from top management, and putting your foot in your mouth. B. Unethical Political Tactics and Strategies

Any political tactic might be considered unethical if it is carried to extremes. These approaches, however, are unequivocally unethical: (a) back stabbing; (b) embrace or demolish (take no prisoners); (c) set a person up for failure; (d) divide and rule (have subordinates fight among themselves, therefore giving you the balance of power); and (e) playing territorial games. VI. EXERCISING CONTROL OVER DYSFUNCTIONAL POLITICS

Carried to excess, organizational politics can hurt an organization and its members. A study showed that the presence of political behavior can lead to lowered commitment and a stronger turnover intention. Also, time can be wasted in fighting political squabbles, morale may suffer,

and stress may increase. Yet, a study showed that conscientious employees can perform well in a political environment. A comprehensive strategy to control politics is for leaders to be aware of its causes and techniques. Open communication can also help minimize politicking. Avoiding favoritism is a major way of reducing politics. Setting good examples at the top may reduce the frequency and intensity of politics. Politics can sometimes be constrained by threatening to discuss questionable information in a public forum. Hiring people with integrity helps reduce dysfunctional politics. VII. GUIDELINES FOR ACTION AND SKILL DEVELOPMENT

To enhance your interpersonal effectiveness at the outset of joining a firm, it is helpful to size up the political climate. Ask diagnostic questions such as (1) Which method do people use here to offer new ideas? (2) How much personal reference is tolerated? (3) Who gets heard? Promoted? Passed over?

COMMENTS ON EXPERIENTIAL EXERCISES

Manager Assessment Quiz 7-1: Rating a Managers Power
To conduct this power rating, students might rate a present or past immediate manager. An issue worth exploring is whether this issue is subject to the halo effect. There might be a tendency to rate a leader high on many characteristics just because he or she is well liked.

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 7-2: Becoming an Empowering Manager

This brief quiz offers the advantage of focusing the students attention on the importance of attitudes and behaviors tied to empowerment. The behaviors are also associated with good supervision and management in general.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 7-1: Conducting an Empowerment Session

A potential contribution of these role-plays is that they illustrate the importance of leadership input in the empowerment process. In both scenarios the leader will have to discuss mutual expectations. In the second scenario the task may be more difficult because the proprietors are looking more for directive leadership than to be empowered.

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 7-3: The Organizational Politics Questionnaire

An advantage of this questionnaire is that it provides normative data on political behavior tendencies. Students can therefore compare their scores to large-sample averages. The questionnaire has been completed by thousands of people.

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 7-4: The Manager Impression Survey

Although some scholars object to students studying about impression management, it remains a vital supplement to good work performance. Another reason the survey is important is that it is based on a study published in the Academy of Management Journal.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 7-2: Classroom Politics

We have found with surprise that many students will candidly discuss classroom political behaviors that they have observed in others. A phrase often used to denote such behavior is kissing up to the instructor.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 7-3: Controlling Office Politics

Although the subject is dealing with the control of impression management techniques, this exercise is also useful for practicing conflict-resolution skills. A subtle advantage of this exercise is that it reinforces the importance of controlling excessive politics.

COMMENTS ON DISCUSSION QUESTIONS AND ACTIVITIES

1. Why do so many people think possessing power is a good thing? Power in most cultures is something of inherent value like health, love, sex, and money. Power is also valued because it brings people status, along with many other desirable things such as money, friends, and leisure activities of choice. For many people, power is a natural reinforcer. 2. How can a leader occupy a top-level executive position and still have relatively little power? A low-power executive could be one who has so little expert power that his or her advice is not taken seriously. The person might also be a political appointment who is given very few formal responsibilities. 3. It is not unusual for a new CEO to receive a signing bonus of around $10 million. Which kind of power or powers do these executives have to command such a large signing bonus? Expert power is a major factor behind a large signing bonus for a CEO. The executive receiving this large bonus has usually demonstrated expertise (as well as leadership skills) in one or more settings, such as turning around a poorly performing company. A functional skill, such as improving operations or marketing, is usually involved. Prestige power, or having a great reputation, is frequently involved. 4. How might you use the Internet to acquire information power? A person with advanced Internet search skills can sometimes locate information that is so valuable it enhances his or her power and influence. An example would be a manufacturing specialist who uses the Internet to uncover leading-edge manufacturing processes that might give his or her firm a competitive edge. 5. Many business leaders say something to the effect, We practice empowerment because we dont expect our employees to leave their brains at the door. What are these leaders talking about? The expression, leave their brains at the door implies that after workers enter the workplace, they no longer think and follow procedures with any creative thought. In empowerment, workers are expected to find solutions to problems themselves. 6. Empowerment has been criticized because it leaves no one in particular accountable for results. What is your opinion of this criticism?

Elliot Jacques, who made this statement, is correct that empowerment can create a loose organization. A possible antidote is to hold the teamand the team leaderaccountable for results. In practice, the team leader often assumes many of the responsibilities formerly assumed by the unit manager. 7. How does participative leadership contribute to delegation? Participative leadership contributes naturally to delegation because participative leadership enables group members to conduct more work activities on their own, giving them more latitude in performing tasks and making decisions. For delegation to work, group members need such latitude. 8. Why are entrepreneurial leaders often poor delegators? Entrepreneurial leaders are often poor delegators because they have created their enterprise and are familiar with many of the details of the operation. It is difficult for them to let go and watch somebody else perform the same tasks. Also, entrepreneurs often have so much emotional and financial involvement in the company that they worry excessively about somebody else making a mistake. This attitude interferes with delegation. 9. Many people have asked the question Isnt office politics just for incompetents? What is your answer to this question? Many competent and talented people must use organizational politics to gain the resources, and make the contacts, they need to accomplish their mission. Good job performance alone is often not sufficient to acquire enough power to achieve laudable ends, such as getting a large enough budget to launch a meritorious project. 10. Ask an experienced worker to give you an example of back stabbing that he or she has personally witnessed. Find out what eventually happened to both the stabber and the person stabbed. Back stabbing is so widespread that most managers should be able to provide an example. A curious problem, however, is that many managers defend their organizations as meritocracies in which high-level cooperation and good-spiritedness prevail. In such a scenario, back stabbing does not exist. Such managers are probably blind to the realities of what takes place in their firm.

PLAUSIBLE RESPONSES TO CASE QUESTIONS

Leadership Case Problem A: The Powerful Mr. Trump
The case history of Donald Trump is useful in illustrating an extreme need for power, and a successful acquisition of power. 1. Which sources of power does Trump use? Trump exercises a full range of power sources. He has legitimate power by virtue of his position. He similarly exercises reward power and information power. Trumps personal power is substantial because he is so well known and has expert knowledge about real estate development. Trump has enormous power stemming from ownership because of his large stake in his enterprises. Also, Trumps charisma (in the eyes of many) brings him personal power.

2. What steps can Donald Trump take to be perceived more positively by outside observers such as reporters and business professors? For Trump to be perceived more positively by outside observers, he would need to become more subdued in his statements about his accomplishments. His flamboyant lifestyle would need to be toned down because of the envy and resentment it engenders. A more conservative (less inflated) statement of his holdings would also help his image among reporters and business professors. 3. If you were Trumps executive coach, what advice would you offer him? If Trump wanted to change his behavior a coach might help Trump become less of an egomaniac. The coach could help Trump engage in less puffery because he has already accomplished at an extraordinary level. 4. How would you describe Trumps interpersonal skills? Trump appears to relate particularly well to people in ordinary jobs such as the doorman mentioned in the case. He is also a hero among many blue-collar workers who fantasize about his lifestyle. Although not indicated directly in this case, Trump has a loyal following among his own team members, suggesting he relates effectively to them. On the negative side, Trumps flamboyance and strong ego create problems for him in terms of acceptance by outsiders such as reporters, business professors, and many investors.

Leadership Case Problem B: Empowerment at Seconds for You

This case about empowerment at a relatively small retailer illustrates some of the practical problems involved in empowerment. 1. How applicable is empowerment to Seconds for You? The empowerment model might work satisfactorily for Seconds for You, if the team leaders put a little more time into helping associates who have questions and problems. 2. How might Jenny Parsons become a more effective empowering leader? Parsons may need to provide more structure, such as emphasizing that team leaders should place more emphasis on the problems of inventory shrinkage and screening checks. 3. What is your evaluation of the business model (basic idea for a business) at Seconds for You? The business model at Seconds for You has proven to be an effective model on a limited scale in many markets, particularly where many homeowners at moderate income levels are found. Selfemployed handypersons are another market for a store like Seconds for You. A small competitive advantage for the model in question is that the outlet is usually much smaller than the competition, thereby reducing shopping time. A major obstacle facing this business model is that stores like Home Depot and Lowes are stiff competition because their prices are so low.

CHAPTER 8 Influence Tactics of Leaders

The purpose of this chapter is to familiarize the reader with a wide range of influence tactics that he or she may need to persuade others. A secondary purpose is to sensitize the reader to the difference between ethical and unethical influence tactics.

CHAPTER OUTLINE AND LECTURE NOTES

Influencing group members to achieve a worthwhile goal is a leaders quintessential responsibility. To become an effective leader, a person must be aware of the specific tactics leaders use to influence others. Although this chapter focuses on influence tactics, other aspects of leadership, such as projecting charisma and coaching, are also influence processes. Influence is defined here as the ability to affect the behavior of others in a particular direction. Power is the potential or capacity to influence. (Power can also be regarded as the ability to influence others.) I. A MODEL OF POWER AND INFLUENCE

The model shown in Figure 81 illustrates that the end results of a leaders influence outcomes are a function of the influence tactics he or she uses. The influence tactics are in turn moderated, or affected by, the leaders traits and behaviors and the situation. The three possible outcomes are commitment, compliance, and resistance. Commitment represents the highest degree of success; the target of the influence attempt is enthusiastic about carrying out the request and makes it a full effort. Compliance means that the influence attempt is partially successful. The target person is apathetic (not overjoyed) and makes only a modest effort to carry out the request. Resistance is an unsuccessful influence attempt. The target person is opposed to carrying out the request and finds ways to either not comply or do a poor job. Traits, including personality and intelligence, impact the effectiveness of influence tactics. The leaders behaviors affect influence tactics in a variety of ways. Also, the situation, such as the organizational culture, can help decide which influence tactic will be effective. For example, in a high-technology environment, rational persuasion and expertise may be more effective than an emotional appeal.

II.

DESCRIPTION AND EXPLANATION OF INFLUENCE TACTICS

Influence tactics are classified here as those that are essentially ethical and honest versus those that are essentially manipulative and devious. Several of the tactics, however, fall into a gray area. A. Essentially Ethical and Honest Tactics

Used with tact, diplomacy, and good intent, the tactics described in this section can facilitate getting others to join you in accomplishing a worthwhile objective. These tactics vary in complexity and the time required to develop them. 1. Leading by Example. A simple but effective way of influencing group members is leading by example, or leading by acting as a positive role model. 2. Using Rational Persuasion. To implement this tactic, the leader uses logical arguments and factual evidence to convince another person that a proposal or request is workable and likely to result in goal attainment. Rational persuasion is likely to be the most effective with people who are intelligent and rational. A major intervening variable in rational persuasion is the credibility of the influence agent. A subtle factor is that credible people are perceived as having higher social power. 3. Developing a Reputation as a Subject Matter Expert . Becoming a subject matter expert (SME) on a topic of importance to the organization is an effective strategy for gaining influence. Being an SME is a subset of rational persuasion. 4. Exchanging Favors and Bargaining. Offering to exchange favors if another person will help you achieve a work goal is another standard influence tactic. This tactic is sometimes referred to as building a favor bank. 5. Getting Network Members to Support Your Position. The ability to establish a network and to call on support when needed helps a manager or professional exert influence. 6. Legitimating a Request. A legitimate request falls into ones scope of authority and fits organizational policy. Making legitimate requests is an effective influence tactic because most workers are willing to comply with regulations. 7. Making an Inspirational Appeal and Emotional Display . To inspire others a leader must obviously make inspirational appeals. Such an appeal is reinforced by an emotional display. For an emotional appeal to be effective, the influence agent must understand the values, motives, and goals of the influence target. 8. Displaying Personal Magnetism. Personal magnetism refers to a captivating, inspiring personality with charm and charismatic-like qualities. The magnetic individual literally draws other people to him or her, and those people are influenced by the magnetic person. 9. Consulting. Consultation with others before making a decision is both a leadership style and an influence technique. The influence target becomes more motivated to follow the agents request because the target is involved in the decisionmaking process.

10. Forming Coalitions. A coalition is a specific arrangement of parties working together to combine their power. Coalition formation works as an influence tactic because there is power in numbers. The more people you get on your side, the better. The more powerful the leader, the less the need for coalition formation. 11. Being a Team Player. Influencing others by being a good team player is an important strategy for getting work accomplished. Our research indicates that men and women endorsed team play as an influence tactic more frequently than the other tactics studied. 12. Practicing Hands-on Leadership. A hands-on leader is one who gets directly involved in the details and processes of operations. The hands-on approach influences subordinates to follow the beliefs, procedures, and processes of the leader. B. Essentially Dishonest and Unethical Tactics

The tactics described in this section are less than forthright and ethical, yet they vary in intensity with respect to dishonesty. The first four would be considered unethical and devious by most people; the last five might be within the bounds of acceptable ethics. Deliberate Machiavellianism. Machiavellians are people in the workplace who ruthlessly manipulate others. They regularly practice deception, bluff, and other manipulative tactics. Gentle Manipulation of People and Situations . By making untrue statements or faking certain behaviors, gentle manipulators get another person to comply. A widely used manipulative approach is the bandwagon technique. A manager informs her vice president that she wants an enlarged budget for attendance at a quality seminar because all the other companies are doing it. Undue Pressure. When rewards become bribes for compliance, and threats of punishment become severe, the target person is subjected to undue pressure or coercion. Game Playing. A game is a repeated series of exchanges between people that appears different on the surface from its true substance. Influence is exerted in a game because the person whom the game is played against is made to feel humble. Blemish is a simple game used to keep group members in line. The leader finds some flaw in every assignment completed by team members. Another gamelike influence tactic is the door-in-the-face technique, in which the influence agent makes a major request the first time that will probably be rejected. Next comes a more modest request the one really intendedwhich may not be rejected because the target feels guilty about the first rejection. Debasement. A subtle manipulative tactic is debasement, demeaning or insulting oneself to control the behavior of another person. Upward Appeal. In upward appeal, the leader exerts influence on a team member by getting a person with more formal authority to carry out the influence act. Silent Treatment. The silent treatment involves the leaders saying nothing, sulking, or engaging in other forms of passivity until the influence target complies.

Ingratiation. Getting somebody to like you can be considered a mildly manipulative influence tacticparticularly if you do not like the other person. Ingratiation includes such basic human relations techniques as asking for something in a polite way. Joking and Kidding. Good-natured kidding by the leader is especially effective when a straightforward statement might be interpreted as harsh criticism. In studying the most severely unethical influence (and political) tactics, recognize that the use of these influence approaches can bring about human suffering. For example, bullying and intimidating tactics may not be illegal, but they are unethical. III. RELATIVE EFFECTIVENESS AND SEQUENCING OF INFLUENCE TACTICS

Influence tactics have been studied here separately, but they must also be understood in relation to one another. A. A Study of the Relative Effectiveness of Influence Tactics

Yukl and Tracey studied the relative effectiveness of influence tactics. Included in the survey were 120 managers, 526 subordinates, 543 peers, and 128 superiors, all of whom also rated the managers use of influence tactics. Respondents were asked which of nine influence tactics were used by the manager, and how many tactics resulted in complete commitment. Respondents also rated the managers effectiveness. The most effective tactics were rational persuasion, inspirational appeal, and consultation. The least effective were pressure, coalition, and appealing to legitimate authority. Inspirational appeal, ingratiation, and pressure were used primarily in a downward direction. Personal appeal, exchange, and legitimating were used primarily in a lateral direction. The authors caution that any tactic can trigger target resistance if it is not appropriate for the situation or is applied unskillfully. A study by Wells and Kipnis indicated that both managers and employees used strong influence tactics when they distrusted the other partyeither a manager or a subordinate. The strong influence tactics studied were appeals to higher authority, assertiveness, coalition, and sanctions. B. The Sequencing of Influence Tactics

In general, begin with the most positive, or least abrasive, tactic. Use stronger tactics only as needed. A sensible approach is to begin with low-cost, low-risk tactics. If the outcome is important enough, the influence agent can then proceed to higher cost and higher risk influence tactics. Some research supports the importance of sequencing. For example, rational persuasion is used more for an initial request, and undue pressure is used most for delayed follow-up. The direction of influence tactics is also important. In general, the more position power an individual exerts over another, the less the need for being cautious in exerting influence tactics.

IV.

GUIDELINES FOR ACTION AND SKILL DEVELOPMENT

First, find an influence tactic that fits your ethical code. Be careful to choose the right combination of influence tactics. For example, ingratiation combined with joking and kidding might not work well with superiors. Begin with a gentle influence tactic, and then strengthen your approach as needed. Choose influence tactics to fit the influence objectives. The same tactic might not work well for achieving organizational and personal objectives. You might insist that your boss be mindful of cost overruns, but do not be assertive about asking for time off to play golf with network members. Good communication skills, including a sense of humor, are required to implement influence tactics.

COMMENTS ON EXPERIENTIAL EXERCISES

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 8-1: Survey of Influence Tactics
Here is an opportunity for students to compare the frequency of their use of influence tactics with a sample of managers and professionals. An intended byproduct of completing this questionnaire is to remind the reader of the existence of certain influence tactics that might be added to their repertoire. A worthy discussion topic is whether normative data serve as a guide to effectiveness. For example, just because threat of appeal receives a low frequency rating, does it mean that the tactic is ineffective?

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 8-2: Measure of Ingratiating Behavior in Organizational Settings (MIBOS)
This listing of ingratiating behaviors can also be classified as political tactics. As such, the instrument might be regarded as twenty-four suggestions for forming a positive relationship with the boss. Many people at various stages of their career can benefit from heightened awareness of the importance of pleasing the boss.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 8-1: Identifying Influence Tactics

This straightforward test helps the student review his or her understanding of influence tactics. The test is more difficult than asking students to define and give an example of the various influence tactics. Diagnostic skill is needed to answer these questions correctly.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 8-2: Applying Influence Tactics

Applying a leadership skill in field situations can be valuable experience. At a minimum, such practice illustrates the point that a combination of study and practice is important for leadership skill development.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 8-3: Inspiring the Team

One reason a group role play of this nature works well is because more than two people are involved, thereby lowering the discomfort level some people have about role playing. An important feature of the role play is that it helps operationalize the meaning of inspiring otherscertainly a challenging task.

COMMENTS ON DISCUSSION QUESTIONS AND ACTIVITIES

1. Which influence tactic described in this chapter do you think would work the best for you? Why? A students choice of influence tactic will frequently be a function of past experience with the tactic and his or her personality and skills. For example, knowledgeable people and expert people are likely to choose the technique of being a subject matter expert. 2. Which influence tactic do you think would work the most poorly for you? Why? A student will similarly think that a particular tactic will not work for him or her based on experience, personality, and skills. A person who is rarely able to make others laugh, for example, might believe that joking and kidding would not work for him or her. 3. What differences have you observed among the influence tactics used by technically oriented versus people-oriented people? Technically oriented people tend to use influence tactics that are more cognitively based such as rational persuasion, developing a reputation as a subject matter expert, and consultation. Peopleoriented workers will tend toward more emotionally based influence tactics such as inspirational appeal, emotional display, and personal magnetism. 4. Which of the tactics described in this chapter help explain the widespread use by leaders of person-to-person meetings when they want to accomplish a major objective? Several of the influence tactics studied here are implemented better face-to-face than by electronic or paper transmission. These tactics include inspirational appeal, Machiavellianism, ingratiation, personal magnetism, and joking and kidding. 5. How can email be used to implement any of the influence tactics described in this chapter? Email can be used to implement most of the influence tactics in this chapter by simply delivering the influence attempt electronically rather than in person. To illustrate, a manager might joke and kid using email as a medium. Also, coalitions can be formed by creating allies through email messages, and a person could also debase oneself in an email message. 6. Identify two exchanges of favor you have seen or can envision on the job. One exchange is to offer future compensatory time off to a worker on the exempt payroll if he or she will put in extra time on an urgent project now. Another common exchange is to get somebody to expedite a project for you with a promise of reciprocating in the future. In one company a service technician helped another worker prepare a spreadsheet in exchange for having a letter translated from English into Spanish. 7. In what way is being a subject matter expert (SME) a source of power as well as an influence tactic? Being a subject matter expert helps a person exert power because others come to rely on that person for his or her expertise. Being a subject matter expert also helps the person exert influence because others will follow the persons advice, based on his or her expertise. 8. Which of the influence tactics described in this chapter is a charismatic leader the most likely to use? Explain your answer.

A charismatic leader emphasizes influence tactics that are more transformational than transactional. The tactics most suited for a charismatic leader are leading by example, inspirational appeal, personal magnetism, and emotional display. 9. Which influence tactics have been the most effective in influencing you? Support your answer with an anecdote. Here is a representative answer: If another person is a subject matter expert, I will be influenced by him or her. When someone is smart, that carries a lot of weight with me. One time I was debating whether to spend a few days a week as a telecommuter. My team leader, who was very knowledgeable about career management, convinced me that it was too early in my career to work at home. She warned me about being out of sight, out of mind so I junked my plans. 10. Get the opinion of an experienced leader as to the most effective influence tactics. Share your findings with class members. One approach to gather information for this question is to present the leader with a list of the tactics described in this chapter. Another approach is to be less structured, which will probably result in the mention of various emotional tactics.

PLAUSIBLE RESPONSES TO CASE QUESTIONS

Leadership Case Problem A: Boeing Companys Chief Rides the Tiger
This case illustrates the complexity of a CEOs job, as well as the many tactics an executive might use to influence people. 1. Which influence tactics does Phil Condit appear to use? The fact that Condit is an engineering whiz suggests that he uses being a subject matter expert to influence people. He is a good team player, mixing it up with the troops by visiting the company cafeteria. His controversial decision to relocate Boeing to Chicago shows he can be assertive. Condits tactic of switching clothing to adapt to his audience hints at manipulation, or simply emotional intelligence. His ability to bargain successfully suggests that he uses the technique of exchange. 2. In what ways does Condit appear to be politically skillful? Ethical? Condits success at negotiation suggests political skill, as does his quick changes of clothing, and his delegating the nasty work of firing employees. 3. What should Condit include in the next vision he creates for Boeing? Boeing is such a great brand name that the vision could include expanding into other modes of transportation such as subways and recreational vehiclesfollowing the lead of Bombardier of Quebec. 4. What is your evaluation of the leadership effectiveness of Phil Condit? Condit is a well-respected leader, and he emphasizes human resources. Nevertheless, he has not been effective at maintaining job security for workers. He may be effective at labor relations, yet Boeing has had its share of strikes and threats of strikes. So maybe Condit is not the totally effective CEO.

Leadership Case Problem B: How Can I Inspire My Team?

This case illustrates some of the realities and challenges of a team leader attempting to influence team members. 1. What can Jacques Renfert do to influence his team to perform better? Renfert might make more use of motivational techniques such as goal setting, and formal recognition of team accomplishments. For example, he might hold a victory lunch if the team accomplishes an important goal. 2. Which influence tactics (if any) is Renfert using to achieve better results with his team? When Renfert explained to the group that they had moved into the modern era of teams, he was using the tactic of legitimating, because he suggested that teams were now required by a higher authority. He also says, The company has decided this is the way to go. 3. Based on whatever information you have found in the case, how would you rate Renferts charisma? Renfert appears to be a transactional leader, as tipped off by his statement, I do everything Im supposed to. I hold meetings. I take care of the paperwork and email. I try to settle problems. I say thank you when somebody does a good job. A charismatic leader is usually more transformational than transactional. The fact that Renfert is not inspiring the team also suggests that he is low in charisma.

CHAPTER 9 Developing Teamwork

The purpose of this chapter is to provide the reader with specific information about how to develop teamwork. Such information is vital in an era that glorifies the importance of teamwork.

CHAPTER OUTLINE AND LECTURE NOTES

Developing teamwork is such an important leadership role that team building is said to differentiate successful from unsuccessful leaders. A team is a work group that must rely on collaboration if each member is to experience the optimum success and achievement. Teamwork is an understanding and commitment to group goals on the part of all team members. All teams are groups, but not all groups are teams. A team accomplishes many collective work products, whereas group members sometimes work slightly more independently. I. TEAM LEADERSHIP VERSUS SOLO LEADERSHIP

Team leaders share power and deemphasize individual glory. They are flexible and adaptable, welcoming change. The solo-style leader is the traditional autocratic leader in a bureaucracy. The solo leader may not recognize how dependent he or she is on the team. II. ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF GROUP WORK AND TEAMWORK

Groups and teams have grown in importance as a fundamental unit of organization structure. A. Advantages of Group Work and Teamwork

Collective thinking can enhance decision making and lead to synergy. Major errors are likely to be avoided. Job satisfaction may also increase. Another key advantage of teams is that they can contribute well to continuous improvement and innovation. At the executive level, team structures have streamlined management to some extent. Top executive teams often execute strategy themselves, eliminating the need for a chief operating officer. B. Disadvantages of Group Activity

Pressures to conform may lower productivity, including ostracizing a productive group member. Social loafing, or shirking individual responsibility, is a widespread problem. A major potential problem with groups and teams is that they can waste considerable time through too many meetings and striving for consensus. Groupthink is a well-publicized disadvantage of group activity. Another concern is that groups are an unstable arrangement because team leaders revert to retaining most of the authority. An effective tactic for capitalizing on the advantages of teams and minimizing their disadvantages is to rely on teams only when the task is suited to their use. III. THE LEADERS ROLE IN THE TEAM-BASED ORGANIZATION

Instead of the leaders job disappearing, leaders learn to lead in new ways. The new leaders need to understand team processes. Leaders are often facilitators who lead two or three teams. Teams need effective leadership to stay on course, especially when they are forming. Some of the key roles of a leader in a team-based organization include: IV. Building trust and inspiring teamwork Coaching toward higher levels of performance Anticipating and influencing change Enabling and empowering group members to accomplish their work Encouraging team members to eliminate low-value work

LEADER ACTIONS THAT FOSTER TEAMWORK

Inspirational leaders, as well as less charismatic ones, can encourage teamwork through certain actions and attitudes. The actions can be divided into those leaders can take using their own resources (informal techniques) and those actions that generally require organization structure or policy (formal techniques). A. Actions Leaders Can Take Using Their Own Resources

1. Defining the Teams Mission. A starting point in developing teamwork is to specify the teams mission. The mission should contain a specific goal, purpose, and philosophical tone. An example: To plan and implement new manufacturing approaches to enhance our performance image and bolster our competitive edge. 2. Developing a Norm of Teamwork and Emotional Intelligence. A major strategy for teamwork development is to promote the attitude among group members that working together is an expected standard of conduct. The leader can also communicate the norm of teamwork by frequently using words and phrases that support teamwork. A belief in cooperation and collaboration rather than competitiveness as a strategy for building teamwork is called cooperation theory. The leaders role in developing a norm of teamwork can also be framed as the leader helping the group develop emotional intelligence. The leader creates norms that establish mutual trust among members. A group identity and group efficacy (feelings of competence) also help build emotional intelligence. Bringing emotions to the surface also helps. 3. Emphasizing Pride in Being Outstanding . A standard way of building team spirit, if not teamwork, is to help the group realize why it should be proud of its accomplishments.

4. Holding a Powwow. A powwow is an informal, friendly, and unstructured meeting intended to lay the groundwork for a cooperative working relationship among team members assigned to a new project. Each powwow consists of a skills inventory, an interest inventory, and a data dump (an expression of feelings about the project). 5. Serving as a Model of Teamwork. A powerful method of fostering teamwork is for the leader to be a positive model of team play. One way of exemplifying teamwork is for the leader to reveal important information about ideas and attitudes relevant to the groups work. Frequent interaction with the team also helps. 6. Using a Consensus Leadership Style. Consensus decision making enhances teamwork. Contributing input to important decisions helps foster the feeling among group members that they are valuable team members. The consensus leadership style reflects a belief in shared governance and partnership instead of patriarchal caretaking. Generation X managers are likely to practice consensus leadership because they are good at collaboration and consensus building. 7. Establishing Urgency, Demanding Performance Standards, and Providing Direction. Team members need to believe that the team has urgent, constructive purposes. The more urgent and relevant the rationale for the teams purpose, the more likely it is that the team will achieve its potential. To help establish urgency, it is helpful for the leader to challenge the group regularly. 8. Encouraging Competition with Another Group. One of the best-known methods of encouraging teamwork is to rally the group against a real or imagined threat from the outside. 9. Encouraging the Use of Jargon . The symbolic and ritualistic framework of a group contributes heavily to teamwork. An important part of this framework is a specialized language that fosters cohesion and commitment. 10. Soliciting Feedback on Team Effectiveness. Mechanisms should be established for obtaining self-feedback and feedback from others. When the feedback is positive, the team may experience a spurt of energy to continue working together well. Negative feedback might bring the team together to develop action plans for improvement. 11. Minimizing Micromanagement. A strategic perspective on encouraging teamwork is for the leader to minimize micromanagement, the close monitoring of most aspects of group members activities. Avoiding micromanagement facilitates empowerment. B. Actions Generally Requiring Organization Structure or Policy

1. Designing Physical Structures That Facilitate Communication. Group cohesiveness, and therefore teamwork, is enhanced when team members are located close together and can interact frequently and easily. A shared physical facility also helps. 2. Emphasizing Group Recognition and Rewards. Giving rewards for group accomplishment reinforces teamwork because people receive rewards for what they have accomplished collaboratively. Methods of group recognition include celebrations of milestones and painting equipment in team colors. A study showed that

financial rewards for teams should be pay for skills, team performance pay, gainsharing, and profit sharing. 3. Initiating Ritual and Ceremony. Ritual and ceremony afford opportunities for reinforcing values, revitalizing spirit, and bonding workers to one another and the teams. 4. Practicing Open-Book Management. In open-book management every employee is trained, empowered, and motivated to understand and pursue the companys business goals. In this way the employees become business partners, and they perceive themselves to be members of the same team. 5. Selecting Team-Oriented Members. A heavy-impact method of building teamwork is to select team members who are interested in and capable of teamwork. A starting point is self-selection. Many managers believe that individuals who participate in team sports, now, or in the past, are likely to be good team players on the job. 6. Using Technology That Enhances Teamwork. Workers can collaborate better when they use information technology that fosters collaboration, often referred to as groupware. Frequent email messages and electronic brainstorming also assist teamwork. V. OUTDOOR TRAINING AND TEAM DEVELOPMENT

Outdoor training is a well-known experiential approach to building teamwork and leadership skills. Wilderness training is closely associated with outdoor training except that the setting is likely to be much rougher. In both outdoor training and wilderness training, participants are supposed to acquire leadership and teamwork skills by confronting physical challenges and exceeding their self-imposed limitations. The goals of outdoor training include (1) discovering your strengths and weaknesses, (2) testing your limits, and (3) having the opportunity to break through barriers between yourself and others. A. Features of Outdoor and Offsite Training Programs

Participants are placed in a demanding outdoor environment. They have to rely on skills they did not realize they had and on each other to complete the program. Emphasis is placed on building self-confidence, leadership, and teamwork. The list of teambuilding activities continues to grow and now includes tightrope walking, adventure racing, and cooking. Outward Bound is the best-known and largest provider of outdoor training programs. Courses typically run from three days to four weeks. The Outward Bound Professional Development Program is geared toward organizational leaders because it emphasizes teamwork, leadership, and risk taking. Frequent activities include jumping from high places while attached to a rope pulley and falling backward into the arms of other participants (trust falls). Outdoor training enhances teamwork by helping participants examine the process of getting things done through working with people. In going through the exercises, they have to communicate well and trust one another. B. Evaluation of Outdoor Training for Team Development

Outdoor trainers claim that their programs improve self-confidence, help people appreciate their strengths, and teach people to work better with one another. Many training directors also speak positively of outdoor training. Reservations about outdoor

training include the fact that it is physically dangerous and that the teamwork training does not carry over to the job. Also, real workplace teams change membership rapidly, thus negating some of the team building that the group experienced during the training. Another problem with outdoor and offsite training is that some participants perceive the experience as wasting time and sometimes distasteful. The case example about the Entrepreneur magazine staff that attended outdoor training illustrates the pros and cons of the process. VI. THE LEADER-MEMBER EXCHANGE MODEL AND TEAMWORK

The leader-member exchange model developed by George Graen and associates helps explain why one subgroup in a unit is part of a cohesive team and another group is excluded. The leader-member exchange model (LMX) proposes that leaders develop unique working relationships with group members. One subset of employees, the in-group, is given additional rewards, responsibility, and trust in exchange for their loyalty and performance. The in-group becomes part of a smoothly functioning team headed by the formal leader. Out-group members are less likely to experience good teamwork. A. Different-Quality Relationships Leaders treat each member somewhat differently, with the links that exist between the leader and each individual team member differing in quality. When the quality of the relationship is high, the member is in with the leader. Leaders and group members liking each other is a major contributor to the quality of the relationship. A study found that when the leader-member exchange is high, group members are more strongly committed to company goals. A study in a hospital setting showed that positive exchanges were associated with group members engaging in increased good citizenship behavior and also in-role behaviors such as extra effort. An industrial study found that high-quality exchanges between managers and employees contribute to employees engaging in extra-role behavior, or being cooperative in ways not expected of them. A study with sixty-four group leaders found that positive leader-member exchanges were associated with more communication about safety, leading to more commitment to safety, and fewer accidents on the job. B. First Impressions The leaders first impression of a group members competency plays an important role in placing the member into the in-group or out-group. Another key linking factor is whether the leader and team member have positive or negative chemistry. A study showed that the initial leader expectations of group members and member expectations of the leader were good predictors of the leader-member exchanges at two weeks and six weeks. VII. GUIDELINES FOR ACTION AND SKILL DEVELOPMENT

Improving teamwork through office design is receiving considerable attention. Here is how the leader/manager can customize space to promote teamwork: (1) create common areas, (2) put yourself in the center, (3) set up multipurpose rooms, and (4) insert activity generators such as a coffee pot or reception desk to draw traffic.

COMMENTS ON EXPERIENTIAL EXERCISES

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 9-1: The Teamwork Checklist
An advantage of this teamwork checklist is that it reflects the observations of a teamwork consultant. The items do not duplicate the suggestions for teamwork made in this chapter and therefore provide additional insights into teamwork.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 9-1: Shelters for the Homeless

This exercise offers yet another opportunity for practicing teamwork. Our experience with the previous editions of the text is that the content of this exercise has high intrinsic interest and thus leads to enjoyable student interactions.

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 9-2: Overcoming Micromanagement

Given that this quiz has only four questions, the score may not have high reliability. However, the author of the quiz provides the quiz-taker with some useful ideas about overcoming tendencies toward micromanagement. My impression is that students enjoy discussing micromanagement. Also, bring up the topic of macromanagement (a manager who does not provide enough structure) because it is a new concept for most students.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 9-2: The Trust Fall

We emphasize strongly that the trust fall should be a voluntary exercise. To begin, a vote might be taken on whether the class should do the trust fall. If the vote is affirmative, team members should be given the option of not being a person who falls or helps catch another person.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 9-3: Trust Me

The Trust Me exercise is more complicated than the Trust Fall, therefore offering the possibility of greater student involvement. The exercise also gives students more data to work with in terms of making observations about teamwork.

COMMENTS ON DISCUSSION QUESTIONS AND ACTIVITIES

1. What would be the potential disadvantages of selecting a team leader who is highly charismatic and visionary? A highly charismatic leader will often set himself or herself off from the group, and group members might rely heavily on his or her judgment. As a consequence, leadership will not be distributed to the extent it should be in a true team. 2. Identify several collective work products from any group in which you have worked. Collective work products often take the form of useful suggestions stemming from brainstorming sessions. Many software developments stem from group problem solving, as do ideas for new products and product development. A good answer here is to identify the output from group problem solving.

3. Identify and describe any team you have been a member of, or know about otherwise, that has a strong norm of teamwork. A sterling example is the teamwork shown by teams of consultants who work together relentlessly both on and off the premises to solve problems. Product development teams also frequently reflect a gung ho spirit. Surgical teams and astronauts represent equally strong examples of teamwork. 4. Is there a role for independent-thinking, decisive, and creative leaders in a team-based organization? Explain. Despite all the favorable press about team-based organizations, decisive, creative, and independent-thinking leaders are still in demand. Independent leaders of this type are particularly in demand for key corporate positions, such as a CEO hired with the assist of an executive recruiter. 5. What forces for and against being a good team player are embedded in American culture? Among the forces for being a good team player embedded in the American culture are the American obsession with team sports and the extensive use of cooperative (team) learning throughout the school system. A major force against teamwork is the glory Americans attach to individual achievement like that of superstars in sports and other forms of entertainment, and the attention paid to successful business executiveseven after all the scandals. 6. You have probably been told many times to minimize jargon in speech and writing in order to enhance communication, yet this chapter advocated using jargon to encourage teamwork. How do you reconcile the difference between the two pieces of advice? Jargon may confuse people, especially those outside the group. Nevertheless, jargon is a withingroup team builder. 7. How might open-book management be helpful in reducing dishonest and unethical financial reporting by business executives? With open-book management in operation, a wide range of employees has the opportunity to examine the books. The risk of a whistleblower telling the outside world of dishonest accounting would multiply considerably. Employees outside the auditing staff play an auditing role under open-book management. 8. What is your opinion of the value of experience in team sports for becoming a good team player in the workplace? Most people see a carryover from team play in sports to team play in the workplace. When polled on the subject, the majority of executives think that team sports help prepare a person for being a team member on the job. So people who oppose this idea would face a lot of opposition. 9. What should be done about the team members who refuse to participate in team-building activities they perceive to be physically dangerous? One alternative is for the more cautious members to play physically safe roles such as timekeeper or observer. Another possibility is to develop backup activities for team development that are not physically dangerous. Brainstorming is a good possibility, as is the Trust Me exercise described in this chapter.

10. How can political skill help a person avoid being adversely affected by the leader-member exchange model? By using political skill, the group member can get on the good side of the leader and thus avoid becoming an out-group member.

PLAUSIBLE RESPONSES TO CASE QUESTIONS

Leadership Case Problem A: Radius Cooks Up Teamwork
An important feature of this case is that it illustrates that a small business, such as a restaurant, attributes some of its success to teamwork. 1. What actions is chef Michael Schlow taking to develop teamwork at Radius? Schlow has created teams in the kitchen, rather than using the task specialization typical of restaurant kitchens. Each station, such as the meat station, is composed of a small team. The rotating experience develops teamwork because workers learn about other types of work in the restaurant, thereby developing empathy for other groupsa form of cooperation across teams. The in-restaurant meetings are a key mechanism for reinforcing teamwork. The daily service meetings facilitate the entire restaurant working as a team. 2. In what way does the continuous learning activity at Radius contribute to teamwork? The continuous learning facilitates loyalty because the activity motivates the young cooks to stay with the restaurant. The presence of loyal employees in the restaurant enhances teamwork because loyalty to the firm facilitates the cooperation necessary for teamwork. 3. In what way are the co-owners of Radius showing a balanced concern for task and people? The co-owners give considerable structure to the group in terms of precise instructions about such matters as how to capitalize on surplus food, reflecting a task orientation. At the same time, the emphasis on teamwork and a concern for the personal growth needs of the chefs reflects a people orientation. 4. Is this any way to run a deluxe restaurant? The strategy of combining high-level expertise, including creativity, with a concern for teamwork is a winning combination.

Leadership Case Problem B: Showboat Brent

This case illustrates the dynamics of what happens when one team member pushes hard for individual recognition at the expense of the welfare of the group. 1. What steps should Mary Tarkington take to develop better teamwork among the members of her task force? From the evidence presented in this case history, it appears that the teamwork is relatively good except for Brent, who is attempting to carve out an emergent leadership role for himself.

Tarkington might give the group feedback about how she perceives them interacting, including the concerns about Brent. 2. What actions, if any, should the other task force members take to make Brent a better team player? During their next team meeting, the group might share their perceptions about Brents showboatingbut not in a hostile way that will alienate him from the group. At the same time, the task force members might compliment Brent on what he has done well. 3. What kind of power is Brent attempting to establish for himself? Brent is attempting to gain expert power for himself in a hurry through his intensive research into wellness programs. At the same time he is attempting to use the influence tactic of being a subject matter expert. Because team member Kristine is a human resources professional it is somewhat awkward for him to take over this role.

CHAPTER 10 Motivation and Coaching Skills

The purpose of this chapter is to provide the reader with specific ideas for motivating and coaching group members. A leader is supposed to be able to inspire people. Nevertheless, influencing others through specific motivation techniques and coaching is also necessary.

CHAPTER OUTLINE AND LECTURE NOTES

Effective leaders are outstanding motivators and coaches. Motivation and coaching techniques are important because not all leaders can influence others through formal authority or charisma and inspirational leadership alone. Face-to-face, day-by-day motivational skills are also important. I. EXPECTANCY THEORY AND MOTIVATIONAL SKILLS

Expectancy theory incorporates features of other motivation theories and offers the leader many guidelines for triggering and sustaining constructive effort from group members. The expectancy theory of motivation is based on the premise that how much effort people expend depends on how much reward they expect to get in return. Expectancy theory as applied to work has recently been recast as motivation management. The theory assumes that people choose among alternatives by selecting the one they think they have the best chance of attaining. Furthermore, they choose the alternative that appears to have the biggest personal payoff. A. Basic Components of Expectancy Theory All versions of expectancy theory have three major components. 1. Valence is the worth or attractiveness of an outcome. Each outcome in a work situation has a valence of its own. Valences range from 100 to +100 in the version shown here. A valence of 100 reflects intense desire to escape an outcome, whereas +100 indicates intense desire for an outcome. A zero valence reflects indifference. 2. Instrumentality is the probability assigned by the individual that performance will lead to certain outcomes. An outcome is anything that might stem

from performance, such as a reward. An instrumentality is also referred to as a performance-to-outcome expectancy because it reflects the link between performance and outcomes. Each outcome has a valence of its own. And each outcome can lead to other outcomes or consequences, referred to as second-level outcomes. Expectancy is the probability assigned by the individual that effort will lead to performing the task correctly. It is also referred to as effort-to-performance expectancy. If you have high self-efficacy (the confidence in your ability to carry out a specific task), your motivation will be high. For motivation to occur, the sum of all the valences must deviate from neutral, so that the person will work hard to attain or avoid the outcome. The expectancy and instrumentality must also be high. A seeming contradiction in expectancy theory requires explanation: People will engage in low-probability behaviors provided that the valence is extraordinarily high. 4. A Brief Look at the Evidence. Two researchers performed a metaanalysis of seventy-seven studies of how well various aspects of expectancy theory were related to workplace criteria such as performance and effort. Despite mixed evidence, the general conclusion reached was that the three components of expectancy theory are positively related to workplace criteria. Another finding was that effort expended on the job was positively correlated with valence. B. Leadership Skills and Behaviors Associated with Expectancy Theory

Expectancy theory has many implications for leaders and managers with respect to motivating others. Some of these implications would also stem from other motivational theories and would fit good management practice in general. 1. Determine what levels and kinds of performance are needed to achieve organizational goals. 2. motivated. 3. 4. 5. 6. reward. 7. 8. II. Explain the meaning and implications of second-level outcomes. Understand individual differences in valences. Make the performance level attainable by the individuals being Train and encourage people. Make explicit the link between rewards and performance. Make sure the rewards are large enough. Analyze what factors work in opposition to the effectiveness of the

GOAL THEORY

The core finding of goal theory is as follows: Individuals who are provided with specific, hard goals perform better than those who are given easy, nonspecific, do your best goals or no goals. At the same time, however, the individual must have sufficient ability, accept the goal,

and receive feedback related to the task. A goal is what a person is trying to accomplish. Following are consistent findings from goal theory: 1. Specific goals lead to higher performance than do generalized goals. 2. Performance generally improves in direct proportion to goal difficulty. Goals that are too difficult can be frustrating, yet powerful goals can be inspirational. These powerful goals can be divided into subgoals to facilitate attainment. 3. For goals to improve performance, the worker must accept them. (Recent experiments suggest, however, that the importance of commitment may be overrated.) 4. Goals are more effective when they are used to evaluate performance.

5. Goals should be linked to feedback and rewards. Rewarding people for reaching goals is perhaps the best-accepted principle of management. 6. Group goal setting is as important as individual goal setting.

7. A learning-goal orientation (wanting to learn) improves performance more than does a performance-goal orientation (wanting to look good). One explanation of the value of goals is that they establish a discrepancy between the real and the ideal. The accompanying arousal prompts the person to achieve the goal. III. BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION AND MOTIVATIONAL SKILLS

Behavior modification is an attempt to change behavior by manipulating rewards and punishments. An underlying principle is the law of effect: Behavior that leads to a positive consequence is repeated, and behavior that leads to a negative consequence tends not to be repeated. A. Behavior Modification Strategies

Behavior modification applies to both learning and motivation. The four key strategies are positive reinforcement, avoidance motivation (negative reinforcement), punishment, and extinction. A guiding principle for motivating workers through behavior modification is that you get what you reinforce. B. Rules for the Use of Behavior Modification Leaders can use behavior modification effectively by following certain rules: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. time. 8. 9. Change the reward periodically. Make the rewards visible and the punishments known. Target the desired behavior. Choose an appropriate reward or punishment. Supply ample feedback. Do not give everyone the same-sized reward. Find some constructive behavior to reinforce (behavior shaping). Schedule rewards intermittently. Ensure that rewards and punishments follow the behavior closely in

Substantial research indicates that behavior modification leads to important outcomes such as productivity improvement. An experiment in the operations division of a credit-card processing company found that monetary rewards based on the principles of behavior modification outperformed routine pay for performance (37 percent versus 11 percent). IV. USING RECOGNITION TO MOTIVATE OTHERS

Motivating others by giving them recognition and praise can be considered a direct application of positive reinforcement. Recognition programs to reward and motivate employees are standard practice. Recognition is a strong motivator because it is a normal human need to crave recognition, and many workers feel recognition-deprived. To appeal to the recognition need of others, identify a meritorious behavior and then recognize the behavior with an oral, written, or material reward. Also, apply the rules for behavior modification. Because recognition is low cost or no cost, it has an enormous return on investment in comparison to a cash bonus. However, not everybody (particularly highly technical workers) responds well to recognition. An effective recognition award possesses at least one of the following qualities: (1) it has symbolic meaning, (2) it inspires pride of ownership, or (3) it helps to reinforce the philosophy or identity of the giver. V. COACHING AS A LEADERSHIP PHILOSOPHY

Effective leaders who deal directly with other employees are good coaches. The quality of the relationship between the coach and the person coached distinguishes coaching from other forms of leader-member interactions. Coaching is a way of enabling others to act and build on their strengths. Coaching often increases productivity. A. Key Characteristics of Coaching Evered and Selman regard coaching as a paradigm shift from traditional management, which focuses heavily on control, order, and compliance. Coaching, in contrast, focuses on uncovering actions that enable people to contribute more fully and productively. Coaching is also seen as a partnership for achieving results. The link between leadership and coaching is explained using the following characteristics of coaching. 1. Coaching is a comprehensive and distinctive way of being linked to others in the organization. 2. Coaching is a way of being and relating that might ordinarily be explained away as the art of management. 3. Coaching is a two-way process, suggesting that a great coach needs great people to coach. 4. Coaching communication. 5. produces results only through the process of

Coaching is a dyad, like leader/group member or director/actor.

6. Coaching requires a high degree of interpersonal risk and trust on the part of both people in the relationship.

7. Coaching generates new possibilities for action and facilitates breakthroughs in performance. Coaching also offers concrete advantages, such as higher motivation and the personal development of the people who are coached. B. Fallacies About Coaching Misperceptions about coaching are relevant to understanding the process. 1. Coaching only applies in one-to-one work. (In reality, the group can also be coached.) 2. Coaching is mostly about providing new knowledge and skills. (In truth, people often need more help with underlying habits.) 3. If coaches go beyond giving instruction in knowledge and skills, they are in danger of getting into psychotherapy. (In truth, coaches should simply follow the model of effective parents.) Note that most mental health professionals would take strong exception to this fallacy. 4. Coaches need to be experts in something in order to coach. (In truth, a great coach does not have to be a great player.) 5. Coaching has to be done face-to-face. (In truth, telephone and email can be effective substitutes.) VI. COACHING SKILLS AND TECHNIQUES

Coaching skills are important because coaching is a direct way of influencing group members. If implemented with skill, the following suggestions will improve the chances that coaching will lead to improved performance. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Communicate clear expectations to group members. Build relationships. Give feedback on specific areas that require improvement. Listen actively. Help remove obstacles.

6. Give emotional support. One facet of giving emotional support is for the leader/ manager to be a toxic handler, a person who helps others deal with sadness and despair. 7. 8. 9. 10. Reflect content or meaning. Give some gentle advice and guidance. Allow for modeling of desired performance and behavior.

Gain a commitment to change.

11. VII.

Applaud good results.

EXECUTIVE COACHING AND LEADERSHIP EFFECTIVENESS

An executive coach (or business coach) is an outside or inside specialist who advises a person about personal improvement and behavioral change. Executive coaches provide such a variety of services that they have been described as a combination of a counselor, adviser, mentor, cheerleader, and best friend. Three examples of assistance offered by executive coaches are: Counseling the leader about weaknesses, such as being too hostile and impatient, that could interfere with effectiveness. Serving as a sounding board when the leader faces a complex decision about strategy, operations, or human resource issues. Helping the leader uncover personal assets and strengths he or she may not have known existed. (An example would be discovering that the leader has untapped creativity and imagination.) A refinement of individual coaching is for the coach to work with both the individual and his or her work associates. The coach will solicit feedback from the group members, as well as involve them in helping the manager improve. Company evidence about the contribution of business coaching is sometimes impressive. In one study of 127 senior managers, the coached executives scored higher than a contrast group on a long list of measures including results obtained, and building relationships. A potential drawback of executive coaching is that advice and suggestions may backfire because they do not fit the culture. Also, the coach may not recognize a mental health problem. VIII. GUIDELINES FOR ACTION AND SKILL DEVELOPMENT

The leader/manager should keep in mind available forms of recognition because recognition can be such a relatively low cost yet highly effective motivator. For the recognition technique to work well, it should have high valence for the person or group under consideration. Forms of recognition include (a) compliments, (b) encouragement for a job well done, (c) employee-ofthe-month award, and (d) wall plaque indicating accomplishment.

COMMENTS ON EXPERIENTIAL EXERCISES

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 10-1: Estimating Valences for Applying Expectancy Theory
Many people have never thought of attempting to quantify the motivational value of rewards and punishments (or outcomes). As a consequence, this exercise can be thought-provoking. Variability in the ratings will reinforce the idea of managing for individual differences in valences. The outcome rating scale offers good possibilities for student research projects, such as looking for significant differences in ratings among various groups.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 10-2: The Application of Goal Theory

This modest exercise in goal theory gives students an opportunity to implement one of the leader/ managers most important taskshelping group members establish effective goals. The most challenging part of this assignment is to set goals that fit the basics of goal theory, such as clarifying how the group members will be rewarded for attaining goals.

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 10-1: My Approach to Motivating Others

Many students will have studied motivation before taking a leadership course, so whatever information they retain from the past plus the information from this course should help them perform well on this quiz. It might be worth discussing why several of the items are keyed in a particular direction. An example would be number 18: I make it a policy not to thank somebody for doing a job they are paid to do.

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 10-2: Characteristics of an Effective Coach

An important purpose of this activity is to emphasize the importance of having the right characteristics to be an effective coach. Some students will recognize the importance of developing certain personal characteristics in order to become an effective coach.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 10-3: Coaching for Improved Performance

As in all role plays, students need encouragement to use some of the ideas in the text rather than simply using their present skills and knowledge. Students usually enjoy this type of role-play because it reflects the day-by-day reality of being a manager or a leader.

COMMENTS ON DISCUSSION QUESTIONS AND ACTIVITIES

1. Andrew Pearson, one of the two top executives at Tricon Global Restaurants, Inc. (described in the chapter opener), was 76 at the time of the story. Yet the clientele of KFC, Pizza Hut, and Taco Bell tend to be young. Explain whether you think Pearsons age is an asset or a liability for the position. Pearsons accumulated knowledge, wisdom, and common sense about operating a food business are distinct assets, along with his leadership skill. All of these assets build with experience. One possible age liability factor would be that Pearson might not readily identify with the tastes of his adolescent customers. Tricon workers other than Pearson, however, probably make product decisions. 2. Identify several outcomes you expect from occupying a leadership position. What valences do you attach to them? The discussion in Chapter 1 about the satisfactions and frustrations of being a leader might help jog the students thinking about both positive and negative outcomes associated with being a leader. Valences are a personal matter, but outcomes with high positive valence include power, status, and high income. Outcomes with negative valence might include long hours, time away from family and friends, and receiving so much criticism. 3. How can the influence exercised by a charismatic leader tie in with expectancy theory?

One possibility here is that charismatic and transformational leaders point the way toward very desirable outcomes, such as a much stronger organization. These outcomes will have high valence for many people. 4. Explain how valence, instrumentality, and expectancy could relate to job performance. Valence can relate to job performance because people will work harder to achieve rewards to which they attach high valences. Instrumentality relates to job performance because people will expend more effort when they have reasonable assurance that hard work will lead to a worthwhile reward. Expectancy relates to job performance because workers will be more motivated when they believe they can achieve the required performance. 5. What is a potential second-level outcome a person could gain from receiving an A grade in the course for which you are reading this text? From receiving an F grade? Potential second-level outcomes from achieving an A grade would include self-satisfaction, a higher grade point average, and perhaps a better job offer. Second-level outcomes from an F grade could be self-dissatisfaction, withdrawal of a scholarship, being placed on academic probation, and not receiving a valued job offer. 6. What does goal theory tell managers that they probably dont already know about using goals to motivate people? The emphasis on specific and difficult but realistic goals might add value for many managers. Some managers may not realize that overambitious goals may lead to frustration because they will be attained so infrequently. 7. Which forms of recognition are likely to be the most effective in motivating professional-level workers? The forms of recognition most likely to motivate professional-level workers tend to be more sophisticated, less hokey, and less trivial. For example, a public announcement about a workers fine performance would be more effective than an employee-of-the-month plaque or free movie passes. 8. In what way is coaching related to hands-on leadership? Hands-on leadership, if not practiced in the extreme, contributes to coaching. The hands-on leader works closely with the details of the operation, and is therefore in a good position to coach. He or she has a keen understanding of what group members are doing. 9. How might a leader use coaching to help increase ethical behavior among group members? Coaching is a powerful vehicle for enhancing ethical behavior among group members. As the coach observes behavior reflecting questionable ethics, the group member can be coached on the spot. Similarly, when the coach observes ethical behavior in a situation with ethical temptations (such as overcharging a customer), the coach can give the individual special recognition. 10. Ask a manager to describe the amount of coaching he or she does on the job. Be prepared to bring your findings back to class.

Managers will probably report a heavy incidence of coaching because managers realize that they should be coaching. Also, many managers perceive themselves to be doing a lot of coaching because it is socially desirable.

PLAUSIBLE RESPONSES TO CASE QUESTIONS

Leadership Case Problem A: Rewards and Recognition at Tel-Service
This case illustrates a positive application of reinforcement in the form of a reward and recognition program. The case also demonstrates that management should use a diagnostic approach before starting a motivational program. 1. Identify the motivational techniques used by Samuels to enhance performance of the customer service reps. Above all, Samuels used positive reinforcement to reward good performance, including a Disney World trip and public presentation of rewards. Considerable recognition was given. Rewards given later were smaller and more personal such as watches and sporting equipment. 2. What can Samuels do to keep the customer service staff motivated in the future? The reward and recognition program should continue, yet it will probably be necessary to periodically change the rewards and the program to prevent staleness. 3. Use expectancy theory to analyze why the reward and recognition program is working. To begin, it appears that the employees believe that the performance is within their capability, satisfying the effort performance requirement. Apparently the employees believe that management will deliver the rewards, satisfying the performance outcome requirement. Also, the rewards including the Disney trip have high valence for the employees.

Leadership Case Problem B: The Reality Coach

This case history illustrates one of the ways in which an executive coach might help a leader by providing hard-hitting feedback on the leaders behaviors and attitudes. 1. What do you think of Lorie LeBruns coaching techniques? Lorie LeBrun is a little bit like Dr. Laura in her confrontational style of feedback. So long as the recipient of this feedback has the emotional stability to absorb such shocks, the feedback should work well. 2. How literally should Steve Randall accept LeBruns advice? LeBrun appears to be offering valid feedback about Randall being less self-centered as a leader, and acting more as a servant leader. LeBrun is confrontational herself, and she wants Randall to be confrontational in dealing with his boss. Before plunging ahead, Randall should think through whether his boss would respond positively to a direct attack on his alleged backstabbing.

3. What would you advise Randall about the Botox treatments? Advice about cosmetic treatments must be thought through carefully. Does Randall want to look younger for personal life as well? Or does he want to look younger just so he can create a stronger leadership impression? It appears that looking younger is important to Randall, so he might as well try Botox. The treatments are reversible providing the initial applications do not result in permanent nerve damage.

CHAPTER 11 Creativity, Innovation, and Leadership

The purpose of this chapter is to assist readers in developing the creative problem-solving approach required to be an effective leader.

CHAPTER OUTLINE AND LECTURE NOTES

Creative problem solving is an important requirement for effective leadership at every organizational level. The role of a creative leader is to bring into existence ideas and things that did not exist previously, or that existed in a different form. Innovation refers to creating new ideas and putting them into action. I.STEPS IN THE CREATIVE PROCESS An important part of becoming more creative involves understanding the stages involved in creativity, the production of novel and useful ideas. Step one is opportunity or problem recognition, in which the person discovers that a new opportunity exists or a problem needs resolution. Step two is immersion, in which the individual concentrates on the problem and becomes immersed in it. Step three is incubation, in which the person keeps the assembled information in the back of the mind for a while. Step four is insight, when the problemconquering solution flashes into the mind at an unexpected time. Step five is verification and application, when the individual sets out to prove that the creative solution has merit. II. CHARACTERISTICS OF CREATIVE LEADERS

Creative leaders, like creative workers of all types, are different in many ways from their less creative counterparts. Creative leaders challenge the status quo and are flexible enough to overcome the traditional way of looking at problems. A. Knowledge. Creative problem solving requires a broad background of information, including facts and observations. Being creative often involves combining two or more things in a new and different way. B. Intellectual Abilities. Creative problem solvers tend to be bright rather than brilliant. They maintain a youthful curiosity throughout their lives, within and outside their fields. Creative people are also open and responsive to the feelings and emotions of others. C. Personality. Creative people tend to have a positive self-image without being blindly self-confident. They also have the ability to tolerate the isolation necessary for developing ideas. Creative people are frequently nonconformists, not needing strong group approval. Nonconformity can also mean being a maverick. Creative people are also

intellectual thrill seekers, they are persistent, and they enjoy dealing with ambiguity and chaos. Creative people also tend to have an internal locus of control. D. Passion for the Task and the Experience of Flow. A dominant characteristic of creative people is a passion for their work, or high intrinsic motivation. Passion for the task and high intrinsic motivation contribute to a total absorption in the work and intense concentration, the experience of flow. The formula B = f (P E) is relevant here. Certain personal characteristics may facilitate a leaders being creative, but the right environment is necessary to trigger creative behavior. Oldham and Cummings found that study participants produced the most creative work when they had creativity-relevant characteristics such as self-confidence and tolerance of ambiguity. It was also important, however, for employees to work on complex, challenging jobs and to be supervised in a supportive, noncontrolling fashion. E. The Componential Theory of Individual Creativity. This theory integrates the information already presented. Creativity takes place when three components join together: expertise, creative-thinking skills, and task motivation. The combined forces of the three factors lead to individual creativity as follows: expertise x creative-thinking skills x task motivation = creativity. III. OVERCOMING TRADITIONAL THINKING AS A CREATIVITY STRATEGY

Creative problem solving requires an ability to overcome traditional thinking. The creative person often looks at problems in a new light and transcends conventional thinking about them. The central task in becoming creative is to break down rigid thinking that blocks new ideas. The process of overcoming traditional thinking has been characterized in several ways. 1. 2. 3. A creative person thinks outside the box. People who are not creative suffer from hardening of the categories. To be creative, one must develop new paradigms (models or frameworks).

4. Creativity requires overcoming traditional mental sets. A traditional mental set is a conventional way of looking at things and placing them in familiar categories. 5. Creative people engage in lateral thinking in addition to vertical thinking. Vertical thinking is an analytical, logical process that results in few answers. Lateral thinking spreads out to find many different alternative solutions to a problem.

IV.

ORGANIZATIONAL METHODS TO ENHANCE CREATIVITY

Here we describe several creativity-enhancing methods, including a review of brainstorming. The leader plays a dual role in implementing creative problem-solving techniques: facilitating group interaction and providing a fair share of creative output. A. Systematically Collecting Fresh Ideas The more ideas you try, the greater the probability of finding one that works. A notable way of collecting fresh ideas is for employees to furnish them to a company database, so when somebody needs a fresh idea it can be assessed through a company search engine. Google uses an internal web site to collect and retrieve ideas. To facilitate having fresh ideas, the leader/manager can establish idea quotas, such as asking staff members to bring one new idea to each meeting. Thomas Edison set idea quotas for staff members and himself. B. Brainstorming Brainstorming is the best-known method for creativity improvement (as well as for creative problem solving). To encourage creativity during the idea-generating part of brainstorming potential solutions are not criticized or evaluated in any way. Two recent variations of brainstorming are the 6-3-5 method and brainstorming by email. Under the 6-35 method, people exchange ideas written on index cards and build on the ideas of others. In brainstorming by email, group members enter their suggestions into a computer simultaneously, and the ideas are distributed to the monitors of other members. Group members do not talk to each other, yet they are still able to build on each others ideas and to combine ideas. Fewer interpersonal distractions occur in brainstorming by email. C. Using the Pet-Peeve Technique

The pet-peeve technique is a group method of identifying all the possible complaints others might have about ones organizational unit, thus improving service. Through brainstorming, group members develop a list of complaints from anyone who interacts with their group. No holds are barred in throwing in imaginary and some humorous complaints. The humorous complaints are especially important for creative problem solving. After all the complaints have been aired, action plans are drawn to remedy the most serious problems. D. Using the Forced-Association Technique

A widely used way of releasing creativity is to make forced associations between the properties of two objects to solve a problem. Working independently or within a group, the individual randomly selects a word from a dictionary. The person next lists all the properties and attributes of this word. Next, the attributes are force-fitted to a problem facing the individual. A link is found between the properties of the random object and the properties of the problem object. E. Equipping a Kitchen for the Mind

A kitchen for the mind is a space designed to nurture creativity. The room contains art supplies and perhaps toys, but what is more important is that it is a communal meeting place where people get together to think creatively. According to Mike Vance, when peoples resources are limited, they can still use their ingenuity to produce creative ideas.

F.

Engaging in Playful Physical Activities

Another creativity training technique is to engage participants in playful physical activities that are intended to rejuvenate the spirit and encourage uninhibited thinking. Riding a childs tricycle is one such activity. The Project Platypus at Mattel combines mental exercises with playful physical activities to enhance ideas for toys. V. SELF-HELP TECHNIQUES TO ENHANCE CREATIVE PROBLEM SOLVING

All creative problem-solving techniques aim to increase mental flexibility. The seven strategies and techniques reported here supplement the organizational programs described previously. A. Practicing Creativity-Enhancing Exercises

An established way of sharpening creative thinking is to engage regularly in activities that encourage flexible thinking. Among such activities are creative photography, puzzles, joke writing, and learning a second language. B. Staying Alert to Opportunities

The ability to spot opportunities that other people overlook characterizes creative leaders. Opportunity seeking is associated with entrepreneurial leadership because the entrepreneur might build an organization around an unmet consumer need. C. Using Multiple Senses When Seeking Solutions

Using multiple senses while searching for alternative solutions to a problem aids mental flexibility. People should think in terms of the five sensessight, sound, taste, touch, and smellas well as any combination of the five. D. Maintaining an Enthusiastic Attitude

Creative thinking calls for a positive attitude. Yet a leader must sometimes be judicial (or judgmental) rather than imaginative. The leader is advised to attempt to think positively even about judicial tasks. E. Speaking to Lead Users

An advanced tactic to obtain an idea is to speak to a lead user, an organization or individual that is well ahead of market trends. Another application of the lead-user technique is to look for someone who does what you do (or intends to do what you do) for a larger stake. For example, airplane manufacturers have a big stake in tires that do not explode under pressure. F. Maintaining and Using an Idea Notebook or Computer File

Creative ideas can lead to breakthroughs for your group and your career, so they deserve the dignity of a separate notebook or computer file. G. Playing the Roles of Explorer, Artist, Judge, and Lawyer Be an explorer by getting ideas from people in different fields. Be an artist by stretching your imagination, which includes asking what-if questions. Be a judge by critically

evaluating ideas. Play the role of a lawyer by negotiating and finding ways to implement your ideas within your field or place of work. VI. ESTABLISHING A CLIMATE FOR CREATIVE THINKING

In addition to being a creative individual, a leader must establish a climate conducive to creative problem solving. A foundation step for fostering organizational creativity is to establish a vision and mission that include creativity. The most influential step a leader can take to bring about creative problem solving is to develop a permissive atmosphere that encourages people to think freely. A. Leadership Practices for Enhancing Creativity Amabiles long-term research supports the thinking of many others about leadership and management practices that foster a work environment for creativity. 1. Intellectual challenge. Stretch people intellectually without overwhelming them. When survival is at stake, time pressures can stimulate creative thinking. High time-pressure days with a clear, urgent focus usually dampen creativity. 2. Freedom to choose the method. Workers tend to be more creative when they are granted the freedom to choose which method is best for attaining a work goal. 3. Ample supply of the right resources. Time and money are the most important resources for enhancing creativity. 4. Effective design of work groups. Work groups are most likely to be creative when they are mutually supportive and when they have a diversity of backgrounds and perspectives. 5. Supervisory encouragement. Developing a permissive atmosphere that encourages people to think freely is the most important step for bringing about creative problem solving. 6. Organizational support. The entire organization as well as the immediate manager should support creativity, including a reward system with recognition and financial incentives. Other ways to create an environment for creativity include loose-tight leadership (being permissive yet taking action on good ideas), and allowing workers to pursue absurd ideas without penalty for wasting resources. Favorable leader-member exchanges (as in LMX theory) are associated with high supervisory ratings of creativity. B. Methods of Managing Creative Workers

Choosing effective methods for managing creative workers is also important. Suggestions are as follows: 1. Give creative people tools and resources that allow their work to stand out. 2. Give creative people flexibility and a minimum amount of structure. 3. Employ creative people to manage and evaluate creative workers.

VII.

ADDITIONAL LEADERSHIP PRACTICES THAT ENHANCE INNOVATION

All leadership and management practices that enhance creative problem solving enhance innovation. Consider also the following: 1. 2. 3. 4. VIII. Continually pursue innovation. Take risks and encourage risk taking. Acquire innovative companies. Avoid innovation for its own sake. GUIDELINES FOR ACTION AND SKILL DEVELOPMENT

To encourage creative problem solving, the leaders should avoid creativity dampeners. Expressing attitudes that preserve the status quo by using such clichs as Dont rock the boat, Dont make waves, and If it aint broke, dont fix it, are creativity dampeners. Responding to most suggestions for change with a pained look and saying, But that will cost money and being free and open with criticism but stingy with praise will also discourage creativity.

COMMENTS ON EXPERIENTIAL EXERCISES

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 11-1: The Creative Personality Test
Based on experience with thousands of students, we believe that this quiz contributes to assessing a persons current level of mental flexibility and creative attitudes. We doubt that a person with good selfobjectivity who scored high on this test would fail to have strong creative tendencies.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 11-1: Brainstorming and www.GetRich.com

Group leaders who report their teams brainstorming solutions are often disappointed to find that other class teams arrived at many similar solutions. It is worth explaining that such normative information is helpful in evaluating whether a solution is novel. Groups might be asked to comment on the brainstorming process. For example, some students observe a lull in idea production after an initial outpouring. A few minutes later another surge of ideas typically surfaces. The results with www.GetRich.com have been fabulous, with students often arriving at ideas that haveunknown to themalready been commercially successful.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 11-2: The Pet-Peeve Technique

The pet-peeve technique is both an exercise in creative problem solving and an opportunity to use a technique of quality management. Students may require some prodding to come forth with humorous or exaggerated criticisms of their organizational unit.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 11-3: Word Hints to Creativity

Although the original word-hints test is thirty-nine years old, we have updated it with a few more modern terms. Raudsepp is an established creativity expert, which lends face validity to this test. We think the practice in making remote associations is a valuable feature of this device, which can also be used for self-assessment.

Leadership Diagnostic Activity 11-1: Assessing the Climate for Innovation

Students with significant work experience will find this questionnaire the most meaningful. However, relating the questionnaire to school experience can also be enlightening.

COMMENTS ON DISCUSSION QUESTIONS AND ACTIVITIES

1. Give an example of creativity in business that does not relate to the development or marketing of a product or service. Most students will have to stretch to find a suitable answer to this question, because products receive the most publicity. Other areas for creative thinking include manufacturing processes, cost savings, and organization structure. The classic example described in the text about Henry Ford and the assembly line qualifies as creativity aimed at other than product development or marketing. Another creative idea in the auto industry was to demand that suppliers do more of the assembling of components, leading to cost savings for the auto manufacturers. 2. At its height of prosperity many business strategy experts praised Enron Corporation as a model of an innovative organization. What cautions about innovation does the preceding statement suggest? A major lesson from the Enron debacle is that innovative business practices that generate revenue must also be considered within the context of traditional business judgment and ethics. Some of the ways in which Enron made money used creative (and wacky) schemes, such as having a subsidiary without any physical or financial assets. Several of the Enron innovations also threw aside generally accepted accounting principles. 3. How might you use information about the five stages of creative thought to become a more creative problem solver? A person is more likely to improve his or her creativity if he or she remembers to go through all the conscious stages of creative thought. A person may not be able to control insight, which is almost unconscious, but he or she can deliberately engage in the other stages. For example, it is possible to immerse oneself in a topic and go through verification and application. 4. Find an example in print or on the Internet of creative problem solving by a leader. Be prepared to share your findings with classmates. If a person operationally defines creativity as finding an imaginative solution to a problem, many examples can be found of organizational leaders using creative problem solving. Regular business activities such as improving quality or customer service often reflect creative problem solving. 5. In many companies, it is expected for managerial and professional workers to wear formal business attire to work (such as suits and high heels). What effect do you think this dress code has on creativity? The opinion is frequently expressed among creativity specialists that most people are more creative when they wear comfortable, informal clothing. If this were true, we can expect creativity to diminish among managers and professionals during working hours. Perhaps these same people will now do most of their creative thinking on work-at-home days, and after working hours.

It is also possible that many people can learn to be creative while wearing formal business attire. Maybe they can remove their shoes for a little comfort. 6. In what way does your present program of study contribute to your ability to solve problems creatively? Almost any program of study facilitates the students amassing a base of useful facts that might later serve as the database for creative thought. In addition, some programs of study offer ample opportunity for creative thought, such as studying the problem-solving process. Still other programs give students a chance to solve unstructured field problems, such as analyzing live business opportunities. 7. The opinion has often been expressed that too much emphasis on teamwork inhibits creativity. What do you think of this argument? The argument that too much teamwork inhibits creativity is sometimes true. Attempting to satisfy the demands of teammates can often mean not pushing forward with an idea of ones own. A good team member will often build on the ideas of others rather than push for acceptance of his or her own idea. Another relevant point is that the Japanese emphasis on teamwork and group harmony often results in workers who are better at imitation than at innovation. There are many counterarguments to these two points. 8. What is the underlying process by which creativity-building exercises, such as the forcedassociation technique, are supposed to increase creativity? Forced-association techniques and the like help a person develop mental flexibility by forcing the person to think in new and different ways. The argument is that as you engage in these mental workouts, you will develop your ability to think more flexibly. 9. How might a manager physically lay out an office to improve the chances that creative problem solving will take place? The manager might hedge here by creating the two types of physical structures associated with improved creative thinking, as does Microsoft Corp. Open work areas would be important because increased possibilities for physical interaction would lead to more exchange of ideas. However, creative workers still need private space so that they may develop some ideas in solitude. 10. Speak to the most creative person you know in any field, and find out if he or she uses any specific creativity-enhancing technique. Be prepared to bring your findings back to class. Brainstorming is used so frequently that most of the people polled for answers to these questions are likely to say they use brainstorming. Mention of techniques other than brainstorming would be particularly valuable.

PLAUSIBLE RESPONSES TO CASE QUESTIONS

Leadership Case Problem A: Will Innovation Survive at 3M?
The 3M case gets at perhaps the most crucial issue in the leadership of innovation: Can a disciplined and well-managed business firm still be creative and innovative? 1. To what extent might McNerneys leadership and management approach damage the culture of innovation that has been characteristic of 3M? If creative workers perceive McNerney as being too heavy-handed and controlling he will most likely damage the culture of innovation at 3M. A mitigating factor, however, is that McNerney expresses respect for the talent of 3M workers. 2. How well does McNerney appear to be managing the delicate balance between the companys center and its peripherybetween efficiency and innovation? On the surface McNerney is managing the delicate balance well. If he begins to be perceived as a penny pincher, and creative people have to struggle to make small purchases, innovation will suffer. 3. The observation was made in the case that GE gave its managers a toolbox; 3M functioned more like a sandbox. How does this statement relate to creativity and innovation? A toolbox most likely refers to a set of explicit methods that managers could use to achieve productivity and efficiency. The sandbox refers to an arena in which managers would be given the freedom to play around with ideas and products, in an uninhibited and unrestrained manner. A sandbox is thought to enhance innovation.

Leadership Case Problem B: The Food Company Skunk Works

Skunk Works gets at a central issue in the leadership of innovation: Does innovation prosper under time deadlines combined with a harsh evaluation of creative output? 1. How effective is Appelbys leadership approach for enhancing innovation at Melrose Foods? Appelby can be applauded for establishing the skunk works, but he is damaging his initiative by being impatient for results and rushing to judgment so quickly about the first output from the skunk works. 2. What suggestions can you offer Appelby for getting a better return on investment from the company skunk works? Appelby could be more permissive and accepting. He should be more patient for results, and not be so critical about the progress of the skunk works staff members. He needs to give his investment a chance. 3. What do you think of Sedas request to review the mission of the skunk works with the executive office? Sedas desire to review the mission of the skunk works with the executive office is meritorious. A big issue is timelines for producing results. Another key issue is how much authority the skunk works will have for launching new product ideas.

4. What is your hunch about the potential success of Sudden Seafood and Razzle Razzberry? The seafood idea sounds fishy and would probably bomb as a product. Yet the sarcastic comment about converting Sudden Seafood to cat food does suggest a small market. Products like Razzle Razzberry are emerging despite the movement away from cola drinks and toward healthier drinks. A good example is the moderate success of Jolt, a high-caffeine cola drink that has led to a few spin-off beverages.

CHAPTER 12 Communication and Conflict Resolution Skills

The purpose of this chapter is to provide readers with the knowledge to develop many of the communication skills necessary for effective leadership. A secondary purpose is to explain the basics of how leaders resolve conflict. Although all aspects of communication contribute to managerial and leadership effectiveness, we focus on the communication topics that are most relevant for leaders.

CHAPTER OUTLINE AND LECTURE NOTES

In this chapter we expand on the importance of communication in leadership. We also include the contribution of nonverbal, written, and supportive communication. In addition, we provide suggestions for dealing with an important communication challengeresolving conflict and bargaining. I.EVIDENCE ABOUT COMMUNICATION AND LEADERSHIP Research evidence supports the conventional wisdom that effective leaders are also effective communicators. An interview study of 200 successful organizational leaders indicated that they expanded their thinking regularly by actively soliciting new ideas and feedback from others. They also sought new information continuously, and they had good persuasive skills. Another example of relevant research is a study showing that effective leaders synchronize verbal and nonverbal behavior. Despite the importance of effective communication, a recent American Management Association study suggests that companies are not communicating their mission, vision, and values well. Less than one-third of respondents sought feedback on whether their messages were received as intended. Information technology can facilitate communication. For example, managers can be part of a virtual office in which employees work together as if they were in a single office despite being physically separated. A high-tech leader is never away from the officeeven if he or she would like to be! II. INSPIRATIONAL AND POWERFUL COMMUNICATION

Both formal and informal leaders must be persuasive and dynamic communicators. Two key domains are speaking and writing, and nonverbal communication.

A.

Speaking and Writing

The majority of effective leaders have an extra snap or panache to their communication style. The same energy and excitement are reflected in both speaking and writing. 1. Be Credible. If the speaker is perceived as highly credible, the attempt at persuasive communication is more likely to be successful. 2. Use the Persuade Package of Influence Tactics. The persuade package is a small, standard set of influence tactics that leads the target to behave in a particular way. Using a persuade package gives the influence agent a preference order for influence tactics. In one study, for all three situations, the same persuade package was preferred: ingratiation rationality assertiveness exchange. 3. Gear Your Message to the Listener. A message must be adapted to the interests and motivations of the listener. People with high intelligence tend to be more influenced by messages based on strong, logical arguments. 4. Sell Group Members on the Benefits of Your Suggestions. Leaders are constrained by the willingness of group members to take actions on their suggestions and initiatives. As a consequence, the leader must explain to group members how much they can benefit from what he or she proposes. Selling group members is quite often done more effectively when the persuader takes the time to build consensus. Instead of inspiring the group in a flash, the leader wins it over gradually. 5. Use Heavy-Impact and Emotion-Provoking Words. Certain words used in the proper context give power and force to your speech. Using powerful, upbeat language can enhance a persons leadership image. Closely related to using heavyimpact language is the use of emotion-provoking words. Examples of emotionprovoking and powerful words include outclassing the competition, bonding with customers, and rebounding from a downturn. 6. Use Anecdotes to Communicate Meaning. A carefully chosen anecdote is useful in persuading group members about the importance of organizational values. So long as the anecdote is not repeated too frequently, it can communicate an important message. 7. Back Up Conclusions with Data. Persuasiveness increases when spoken and written presentations are supported with solid data. Being too dependent on data, however, could suggest that you have little faith in your intuition. 8. Minimize Language Errors, Junk Words, and Vocalized Pauses. Minimizing common language errors increases persuasiveness because you appear more articulate and informed. An example: Just between you and I is wrong. Just between you and me is correct. 9. Write Crisp, Clear Memos and Reports, Including a Front-Loaded Message. According to Mercer, high achievers write more effective reports than do their less highly achieving counterparts. For example, the high achievers used more active than passive verbs and used more subhead and subtitles. A persuasive speaker or writer places key ideas at the beginning of a conversation, memo, paragraph, or sentence. Using the active voice facilitates front-loading messages.

10. Use a Power-Oriented Linguistic Style. A major part of being persuasive involves choosing the right linguistic style, a persons characteristic speaking pattern. Several components of a linguistic style give power and authority to the message sender in many situations. Several examples follow: (a) downplay uncertainty, (b) use the pronoun I frequently, (c) apologize infrequently, (d) know exactly what you want, and (e) frame your comments in a way that increases your listeners receptivity. B. The Six Basic Principles of Persuasion

An advanced method of being persuasive is to capitalize on scientific evidence about how to persuade people. The six principles listed here have accompanying tactics that can be used to supplement the other approaches to persuasion described in this chapter. 1. Liking. People like those who like them. 2. Reciprocity. People repay in kind (the leader should be a model of desired behavior). 3. Social proof. People follow the lead of similar others. 4. Consistency. People align with their clear commitments. 5. Authority. People defer to experts. 6. Scarcity. People want more of what they can have less of. These principles should be applied in combination to multiply their impact. C. Nonverbal Communication

Effective leaders are masterful nonverbal and verbal communicators. Nonverbal communication is important because leadership involves emotion, which cannot be communicated convincingly enough through words alone. Mentioned here are nonverbal signals that are likely to connote power, being in control, and forcefulness: 1. 2. confrontation. 3. 4. Using erect posture when walking, standing, or sitting. Exhibiting dominant behavior, such as standing up straight during Smiling frequently, in a relaxed, natural-appearing manner. Gesturing in a relaxed, nonmechanical way.

Clothing, dress, and appearance represent another mode of nonverbal communication. Even on dress-down days, the majority of effective leaders will choose clothing that gives them an edge over others. Appearance includes more than the choice of clothing. For example, freshly shined shoes and good-looking teeth contribute to a leadership image. What constitutes a powerful and self-confident image is influenced not only by the organizational culture but by the culture in general. A subtle mode of nonverbal communication is the use of time. Guarding time as a precious resource will help you project an image of self-confidence and leadership. Recent attention has been paid to nonverbal communication to enhance airport security, although this is not a new idea. Students will be eager to contribute ideas of what they perceive to be suspicious nonverbal behavior with respect to airport passengers.

III.

SUPPORTIVE COMMUNICATION

A leader who uses supportive communication nurtures group members and brings out their best. Instead of dazzling them with a power presence, the leader is low-key and interested in the other persons agenda. Supportive communication is a communication style that delivers the message accurately and supports or enhances the relationship between the two parties. Eight points cover the essentials of supportive communication. 1. 2. Problem oriented, not person oriented. Descriptive, not evaluative.

3. Based on congruence, not incongruence. ( Congruence is the matching of verbal and nonverbal communication to what the sender is thinking and feeling.) 4. 5. Validates rather than invalidates people. Specific, not global.

6. Conjunctive, not disjunctive. (Conjunctive communication is linked logically to previous messages, thus enhancing communication. Disjunctive communication is not linked to preceding messages, resulting in impaired communication.) 7. they say.) 8. IV. Owned, not disowned. (Effective communicators take responsibility for what Requires listening as well as sending messages.

OVERCOMING CROSS-CULTURAL COMMUNICATION BARRIERS

In todays workplace, leaders communicate with people from other countries and with a more diverse group of people from their own country. Cross-cultural communication can be improved by understanding attributions and following guidelines. A. Attributions and Cross-Cultural Communication

A major underlying factor in overcoming cross-cultural communication barriers is to understand attributions, the judgments we make about the behavior and attitudes of others. Three key factors affect attributions: perceptions, stereotyping, and ethnocentrism. Ethnocentrism is the assumption that the ways of ones culture are the best ways of doing things. B. Guidelines for Overcoming and Preventing Communication Barriers

Implementing the type of guidelines presented here will assist leaders in overcoming and preventing many communication barriers. 1. Be sensitive to the fact that cross-cultural communication barriers exist. (Awareness will lead to asking for feedback.) 2. stereotypes.) Challenge your cultural assumptions. (Assumptions work like

3. 4.

Show respect for all workers. Use straightforward language, and speak slowly and clearly.

5. When the situation is appropriate, speak in the language of the people from another culture. 6. Observe cross-cultural differences in etiquette. (For example, in many countries business people want to dine before conducting business.) 7. appearance. Do not be diverted by style, accent, grammar, or personal

8. Avoid racial or ethnic identification except when it is essential to communication. Using a persons race or ethnicity as an adjective or other descriptor often suggests a negative stereotype. 9. Be sensitive to differences in nonverbal communication. (For example, make sure you understand the acceptability of physical touching.) 10. Be attentive to individual differences in appearance. (Dont confuse the identity of people from the same racial or ethnic group.) V. THE LEADERS ROLE IN RESOLVING CONFLICT AND NEGOTIATING

Leaders and managers spend about 20 percent of their time resolving conflicts and negotiating. Conflict resolution is ordinarily studied in relation to management. We therefore focus on a basic framework for understanding conflict-resolution styles and a few suggestions for negotiating. A. Conflict Management Styles

The five basic styles of managing conflict are based on a combination of satisfying ones own concerns (assertiveness) and satisfying the concerns of others (cooperativeness). See Figure 121. 1. Competitive. The competitive style is a desire to win ones own concerns at the expense of the other party (win-lose). 2. Accommodative. The accommodative style favors appeasement, or satisfying the others concerns without taking care of ones own. 3. Sharing. Sharers prefer moderate but incomplete satisfaction for both parties, which results in a compromise such as splitting the difference. 4. Collaborative. The collaborative style reflects a desire to satisfy fully the desires of both parties. It is based on an underlying philosophy of win-win, the belief that after conflict has been resolved, both sides should gain something of value. When collaborative approaches to resolving conflict are used, the relationships among the parties are improved. The collaborative style of conflict management has many variations, one of which is to agree with the person criticizing you. 5. Avoidant. The avoider is a combination of uncooperative and unassertive. He or she is indifferent to the concerns of either party.

People engaged in conflict resolution typically combine several of the five resolution styles to accomplish their purpose. For example, a generally effective approach to resolving conflict is to use competition with regard to a cost that is important for oneself but unimportant to the opponent. At the same time, the person uses accommodation for a cost that is unimportant to oneself but important to the opponent. Table 12 4 presents tentative guidelines for matching conflict-handling modes with contingency factors. B. Negotiating and Bargaining

Conflicts can be considered situations calling for negotiating and bargaining or conferring with another person to resolve a problem. In distributive bargaining, the two opposite sides operate under zero-sum conditions. The purpose of bargaining is to distribute the resources. Integrative bargaining reflects the collaborative mode of managing conflict because it assumes that win-win solutions can be found. 1. Begin with a Plausible Demand or Offer . A plausible demand is better than a grossly inflated one because it shows that you are bargaining in good faith. Also, if a third party has to resolve the conflict, a plausible demand will receive more sympathy than an implausible one. 2. Focus on Interests, Not Position . Rather than clinging to specific negotiation points, keep your overall interests in mind and try to satisfy them. The true object of negotiation is to satisfy the underlying interests of both sides. 3. Search for the Value in Differences Between the Two Sides. Despite common wisdom, many sources of value in negotiation arise from differences among the parties. The differences may suggest useful ideas for breaking a deadlock and reaching a constructive agreement. 4. Be Sensitive to International Differences in Negotiating Style. Americans often have a no-nonsense approach to negotiation, such as frankness and impatience. This may be interpreted as rudeness by people from non-American cultures, and it can lead to failed negotiations. An experiment suggested that U.S. and Japanese negotiators relied on different negotiation tactics when negotiating intraculturally. One of the complex findings was that Japanese negotiators exchanged information indirectly and used influence tactics when negotiating intraculturally. With Americans, the Japanese were more likely to adapt their negotiation behaviors to the American approach. Roger Fishers overview of bargaining is noteworthy. Be firm and friendly. Hard on problems, soft on the people. Find out what the other side views as important and negotiate on that. Let the other side make the deal better from its point of view, at the same time that you gain what you are looking for. VI. GUIDELINES FOR ACTION AND SKILL DEVELOPMENT

Lumsden and Lumsden recommend a specific communications improvement program that supplements the suggestions already made in this chapter: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Seek congruity with your messages. Ask for feedback from family, friends, coworkers, and managers. Observe others responses. (Are your messages being received?) Observe a videotape of yourself. Decide what to change.

COMMENTS ON EXPERIENTIAL EXERCISES

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 12-1: A Self-Portrait of My Communication Effectiveness
A potential contribution of this self-portrait is that it points to behaviors likely to be characteristic of effective communicators.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 12-1: Feedback on Verbal and Nonverbal Behavior

Constructive feedback about the impact of ones verbal and nonverbal behavior is valuable. We suspect that some students will regard this exercise as the most valuable in the course. Watching videotapes of oneself makes some contribution, but the feedback is distorted by the persons own perception.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 12-2: Supportive Communication

Students typically enjoy participating in group role plays of this nature. The challenge, as usual, is for students to apply new knowledge rather than to conduct a group discussion following only the dictates of common sense. The role play demonstrates that being a supportive communicator requires skill.

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 12-2: Cross-Cultural Skills and Attitudes

This quiz has a bilingual bias, with four of the statements referring to competence in another language. Although this quiz is presented in the context of cross-cultural communications, it is also a good fit for Chapter 14 about cross-cultural leadership.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 12-3: Integrative Bargaining

This role-play about integrative bargaining illustrates how conducting a given task requires several leadership and managerial skills. To carry out integrative bargaining effectively, the group must also engage in group problem solving and brainstorming.

COMMENTS ON DISCUSSION QUESTIONS AND ACTIVITIES

1. Now that you have studied this chapter, what are you going to do differently to improve your communication effectiveness as a leader? We like this question because it serves as one more reminder for the student that skill development is required to become an effective leader. Many students will mention at least one aspect of developing a more power-oriented linguistic style. 2. Find an example of a powerful written or spoken message by a leader. Bring the information back to class to share with others.

One hint here is to search the Internet under specific company names. The company reports often contain messages from members of top management. The Wall Street Journal and Fortune are two good sources for statements by company leaders. 3. What would be an effective communication frame for telling group members that they will be expected to work about seventy hours per week for the next five weeks? The frame should respond to their needs, yet get the message across. A possible frame here is, You are all going to be inconvenienced for the next five weeks, but it will be for a very worthy cause. 4. Identify a leader who you think has a power-oriented linguistic style. How did you arrive at your conclusion? An effective way of completing this assignment is to watch CNBC or similar television shows that feature interviews with executives. The leader making many positive statements and being quite confident about the future of the company would suggest a power-oriented linguistic style. Being confident about the future would include overcoming present problems. 5. Why is persuasion considered one of the leaders essential tools? Persuasion is one of a leaders essential tools because exerting influence is the central part of a leaders role. Persuasion is a major influence tactic. 6. Given that people really do defer to experts, how might the leader establish his or her expertise? An important tactic for establishing expertise is to help the group solve a difficult problem. A less powerful approach is to mention job experiences, degrees, and awards that relate to the group task. An example, When I worked four years as an investment analyst. . . . 7. Give three examples of positive ethnic stereotypes. In a trial of this question, one student responded, I have been taught all my life that stereotypes are bad, so I cant answer this question. Here are three ethnic stereotypes related to work: (1) Chinese workers are meticulous, (2) Italian designers are the worlds best, and (3) Jews (and Asians) are achievement-oriented. 8. What concrete steps can a leader take to demonstrate that he or she respects a group member from another culture? Respect is generally best communicated in subtle and indirect ways. Listening carefully to the person speak about his or her native culture is a good starting point. Asking cross-cultural questions shows respect. An example would be: How much value do people in your culture attach to having material possessions? Expressing enthusiasm for cultural traditions in the other country is also effective. An example would be: I can understand now why reaching the World Cup finals was such a source of national pride and celebration. 9. In recent years, shareholders have verbally attacked CEOs for receiving so much compensation from the company. How should these CEOs approach resolving this type of conflict? The CEOs might begin by acknowledging that their compensation does appear excessive, thereby using a collaborative approach to conflict resolution. The leader might then present facts such as wages being based on supply and demand. Next, the leader could explain that highly paid CEOs often create shareholder value, and facilitate conditions that enable employees to

receive higher compensation. The win-win spin is to show that when the CEO is well compensated, other stakeholders benefit also. 10. Give two examples in which it would probably be effective for a leader to use the accommodative style of conflict handling. One situation favoring accommodation might be when a store manager wants to retain an important customer, and therefore submits to an unfair demand (such as accepting a return of damaged merchandise) to retain the customers long-term loyalty. Another situation would be submitting to unreasonable demands by an employee at the tail end of a key project. The project leader is concerned about upsetting the team members concentration. (After the project is completed, the leader can be much less accommodating. Be conciliatory for now, and get revenge later!)

PLAUSIBLE RESPONSES TO CASE QUESTIONS

Leadership Case Problem A: Infighting and Intrigue at Yahoo!
The Yahoo! case illustrates that conflict and politics can be part of a highly visible and successful business firm. However, all the conflict appeared to have some functional consequences because Yahoo! began a recovery soon after the date of this case. 1. Why was Koogles consensus style of leadership criticized so strongly? Koogles consensus leadership style was criticized so strongly because the style was perceived as creating inaction when the firm needed decisive action to work its way out of the doldrums. Another problem was that in an attempt to be agreeable, Koogle was allowing too many managers to have their way, getting Yahoo! into questionable deals. 2. What might the Yahoo! group have done differently to resolve their conflicts about purchasing a media company? The Yahoo! executive team intensely discussed the pros and cons of buying a media company among themselves, before deciding to stay the course. A supplementary approach to deciding the issue by themselves would have been to ask a consulting firm to do a feasibility study of acquiring a media company. Appealing to expertise is essentially an influence tactic that can also be used to resolve conflict. 3. What suggestions can you offer Yahoo! to increase its revenues (and thereby end a lot of squabbling about fixing the business)? A logical approach for Yahoo! is to stick to its knitting and keep looking for ways to increase its subscription and advertising revenues. An example of subscription income is Yahoo! Personals, an online introduction service. Yahoo! did apply this approach, and was showing profits again by the third quarter of 2002.

Leadership Case Problem B: Can He Be the Real Bill Gates?

Among the themes this anecdote illustrates is the extreme action executives will take as part of their conflict with another executive or company.

1. What messages is Oracle sending about itself by hiring the impersonator to encourage conference attendees to attend Larry Ellisons talk? Oracle is communicating the message that the company is willing to engage in unprofessional behavior to deal with its conflicts. Another message is the company, or more precisely its leaders, have a good sense of humor. 2. How would you rate the persuasive effectiveness of this method of encouraging people to listen to Ellisons talk? The joke aspect of using a Bill Gates impersonator most probably detracts from the seriousness of the message. 3. In what way does the incident about the Bill Gates impersonator illustrate conflict between Oracle and Microsoft? Larry Ellison, chief executive at Oracle, and Bill Gates are notorious enemies. The act of pretending that a rival has capitulated to your sideeven if an obvious jokereflects this intense competition that has turned into conflict. 4. What would you advise Bill Gates to do, if anything, about the Oracle stunt of hiring the impersonator? If Bill Gates says nothing, he will be denying Ellison the recognition he wants for having pulled this stunt. If Gates wants to enter into conflict, he might have an attorney contact Ellison and explain that he is making unauthorized use of a precious resourcea Microsoft symbol. However, why should Gates spend company money on behalf of Ellison?

CHAPTER 13 Strategic Leadership and Knowledge Management

The purpose of this chapter is to examine the leaders role in developing strategy, an organizations plan for achieving its mission and goals in the environment. We also focus on the leaders contribution to a current thrust in strategy, knowledge management, and developing a learning organization.

CHAPTER OUTLINE AND LECTURE NOTES

Strategic leadership deals primarily with leadership in the executive suite, yet leaders at all levels are expected to think strategically. For example, they should see the big picture, understand the longrange implications of their actions, and recognize how their daily activities support the firms strategy. I. THE NATURE OF STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP

Strategic leadership is considered by some to be synonymous with transformational leadership. For the present purposes, strategic leadership is the process of providing the direction and inspiration necessary to create, provide direction to, or sustain an organization. Strategic leadership is also the type of leadership necessary to carry out effectively strategic management, the process of ensuring a competitive fit between the organization and its environment. Key components of strategic leadership are described next. A. High-Level Cognitive Activity of the Leader

Thinking strategically requires high-level cognitive skill, such as the ability to think conceptually, absorb and make sense of a multitude of trends, and condense this information into a straightforward plan of action. In one analysis of the cognitive requirements of leadership, the work of management is divided into a system of seven levels within organizations. At each level there are qualitatively different task demands and skill requirements. The greater the time span incorporated into a managers job, the greater the intellectual demands. An organization will be successful when the cognitive abilities of its leaders are good for the nature of the work. Creative problem-solving skills are also important.

B.

Gathering Multiple Inputs to Formulate Strategy

Many strategic leaders arrive at their ideas for the organizations future by consulting with a wide range of parties with an interest, similar to the process of conducting research to create a vision. Gary Hamel has said, We have to involve hundreds, if not thousands, of new voices in the strategy process if we want to increase the odds of seeing the future. C. Anticipating and Creating a Future

A major component of leadership is direction setting, which involves anticipating and sometimes creating the future for the enterprise or organizational unit. To set a direction is also to tell the organization what it should be doing. To set a productive direction for the future, the leader must accurately forecast or anticipate the future. A truly visionary leader anticipates a future that many people do not think will come to pass. To create the future, senior management must develop a process for pulling together the collective wisdom of the organization. People from all levels can help define the future. Creating the future has also been conceptualized as reinventing an industry. D. Revolutionary Thinking

Hamel characterizes strategy as revolutionary. Incrementalism is not sufficient. To be an industry leader, a companys leaders must think in revolutionary terms. Any strategy that does not challenge the status quo should not even be considered a strategy. For strategic leadership to be revolutionary, it would have to redefine products and services, market space, and even the entire industry. Porter insists that a key component of strategy is choosing to be different. Nevertheless, the strategy of imitation has served many firms well. E. Creating a Vision

Visions are an integral part of strategic leadership, and a vision is really a multifaceted concept. Laurie Larwood factor-analyzed twenty-six descriptors of corporate visions into seven identifiable factors: (1) vision formulation, (2) implementation, (3) innovative realism, (4) general, (5) detailed, (6) risk taking, and (7) profit-oriented. The visions based on these factors extended over an average of sixty-four months. The factor results were thought to provide good support for what is known about visions. Executives with visions and operational realism or style were found to be the most successful in creating change. The components of a vision just described are important, but the final vision statement is relatively short. A carefully considered and articulated vision helps us know who we are and who we are not. At times a simple statement of intention can be an inspirational vision. Fiorina at Hewlett-Packard developed the World e-inclusion program to sell products to the poor of the Third World. II. CONDUCTING A SWOT ANALYSIS

Strategic planning encompasses those activities that lead to the statement of goals and objectives and the choice of strategy. Strategic planning often takes the form of a SWOT analysis, a method of considering strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats in a given situation. A SWOT analysis examines the interaction between the organization, or organizational unit, and the environment.

A.

Strengths What are your advantages and what do you do well?

B.

Weaknesses Consider the risks of pursuing a particular course of action.

C.

Opportunities

Think of the opportunities that welcome you if you choose a promising strategic alternative. D. Threats

Theres a downside to every alternative, so think ahead to allow for contingency planning. III. A SAMPLING OF BUSINESS STRATEGIES FORMULATED BY LEADERS

In addition to the process of making strategic decisions, the content of these decisions is important. Thirteen current strategies are described next. 1. Differentiation. A differentiation strategy attempts to offer a product or service that is perceived by the customer as different from available alternatives. 2. Cost leadership. A cost leadership strategy is to produce a product or service at a low price to lower price and gain market share. 3. Focus. Using a focus strategy, the organization concentrates on a specific regional market or buyer group. 4. High quality. Leaders continue to emphasize quality even if there is less explicit emphasis today on total quality management, a management system for improving performance throughout the firm by maximizing customer satisfaction and making continuous improvements based on extensive employee involvement. 5. Imitation. The imitation strategy consists of two key components: strategic followership and learning by watching. Benchmarking is a form of learning by watching. 6. Strategic alliances. An increasingly popular business strategy is to form alliances, or share resources, with other companies to exploit a market opportunity. 7. Growth through acquisition. A standard strategy for growth is for one company to purchase others. However, acquisitions are often made to acquire an important technology. 8. High speed and first-mover. High-speed managers focus on speed in all of their business activities, including production development, sales response, and customer service. Getting to market first is also referred to as the first-mover strategy. 9. Global diversification. A widely practiced business strategy is to diversify globally in an effort to expand business, especially with products.

10. Sticking to core competencies. Many firms of all sizes believe that they will prosper if they confine their efforts to the activities they perform besttheir core competencies. 11. Brand leadership. Succeeding through developing the reputation of your brand can be considered a business strategy. Many Internet-based companies perceive brand leadership as a key to their survival. 12. Conducting business on the Internet. Developing a presence on the Net has emerged as a strategy for survival and growth for both retailers and industrial companies. The struggle for competitive advantage may be waged along three dimensions: reach (number of customers and products), richness (depth and detail of information), and affiliation (representing the buyer or seller). 13. Peoplepalooza (competitive advantage through hiring talented people). To build great companies the most urgent business charge is to find and keep great people. Talented people may need some leadership, but they will think of new products and services and develop effective work processes. All of the impressive strategies just described have limited impact unless they are implemented properly, meaning that effective management must support strategic leadership. IV. KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT AND THE LEARNING ORGANIZATION

Another strategic thrust of leaders is to help their organizations better adapt to the environment by assisting workers and the organization to become better learners. Knowledge management (KM) is the systematic sharing of information to achieve such goals as innovation, nonduplication of effort, and competitive advantage. Sharing of information is a key aspect of knowledge information. Managing knowledge well helps an organization learn. A learning organization is one that is skilled at creating, acquiring, and transferring knowledge, and at modifying behavior to reflect new knowledge and insights. A. Knowledge Management

Managing knowledge is an important leadership role because so few organizations make systematic use of the collective wisdom of employees. As illustrated in Figure 132, most knowledge in the organization resides in the brains of employees or in documents not readily accessible to others. Encouraging and developing systems for knowledge sharing are a key part of knowledge management. Learning cannot take place effectively in companies where power is acquired by hoarding and controlling knowledge. Getting employees to document their knowledge is a management challenge. A recent advance in knowledge management is to deliver information just in time, or at the point when it is most needed. The idea is to bake specialized knowledge into the jobs of workers with advanced skills, such as Partners HealthCare has done. Advanced technology for knowledge management must be combined with a culture that values knowledge and encourages its dissemination.

B.

The Learning Organization

According to Peter Senge, a learning organization can be looked upon simply as a group of people working together to enhance their capacities to create results they value. To help create a learning organization, about 100 large firms have created a position such as Chief Knowledge Officer. A leader can help create a learning organization in many ways. First, the leader should create a strategic intent to learn thereby gaining competitive advantage. Creating a shared vision is important. Systems thinking is almost synonymous with organizational learning, whereby people see the interrelatedness of their work. Personal mastery of the job should be encouraged, as well as team learning that centers on collective problem solving. Action learning, or learning while working on real problems, is a fundamental part of a learning organization. Participants in action learning are asked to work in teams to attack a significant organizational problem. Learning from failure contributes to organizational learning, and so does encouraging continuous experimentation. Finally, the leader must encourage workers to think creatively. V. GUIDELINES FOR ACTION AND SKILL DEVELOPMENT

According to Mark Graham Brown, to ensure that all workers understand the companys vision of where it wants to go, the vision statement should be (a) brief, (b) verifiable, (c) focused on a major goal, (d) understandable, and (e) inspirational.

COMMENTS ON EXPERIENTIAL EXERCISES

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 13-1: Are You a Strategic Thinker?
If taken with a spirit of self-objectivity, this questionnaire can help many students realize that a key area for growth is the ability to think big. In general, people tend to think less strategically early in their careers.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 13-1: Conducting a SWOT Analysis

Conducting a SWOT analysis is a tangible leadership and management skill that most students enrolled in a business leadership class would enjoy. Students with an interest in the public sector or the nonprofit sector should also find a SWOT analysis to be valuable.

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 13-2: Do You Work for a Learning Organization?

It would be a stretch for most students to have knowledgeable responses to most of these statements. However, mulling over the characteristics of a learning organization may help provide new insights.

COMMENTS ON DISCUSSION QUESTIONS AND ACTIVITIES

1. Why is strategic leadership thought to have the same meaning as transformational leadership? The intent of strategic leadership is to point an organization in the right direction. Transformational leadership also attempts to lead an organization in the right directionone of substantial improvement. So both strategic leadership and transformational leadership attempt to make a substantial impact on the firm. 2. In what way can a business strategy motivate employees? A business strategy can be motivational because the right strategy can be inspirational, particularly if the strategy points the organization in a bold, new direction. For example, it might be inspiring to know that the company is embarking on a bold acquisition strategy that will make it a dominant player in the field. Under the leadership of Andrea Jung, Avon Products is expanding to have a bigger presence on the Web and in malls, and by offering a wider line of products. Many Avon ladies are inspired to work harder, as they are part of a greater enterprise. 3. How could you adapt a business strategy to guide you in your own career as a leader? Several business strategies can be applied personally to guide a persons leadership career. How about differentiating oneself to gain an edge on the competitionlike knowing enterprise software and speaking Russian? Sticking to core competencies is another winner for the leader who wants to build on strengths. 4. Many top-level managers say that they want lower-ranking managers to think strategically. How can a middle manager or a first-level manager think strategically? Middle managers can think strategically by looking at the long-range implications of their thinking, investigating how their activities interact with the outside environment, and attempting to ensure that their daily activities support corporate strategy. 5. What sources of information should a leader use to find helpful input for formulating strategy? Sources of input for formulating strategy overlap considerably with sources of information used in formulating a vision, such as those described in Chapter 3 about charismatic and transformational leadership. Among these input sources are intuition, the work of futurists, group discussions, and industry reports. 6. Working by yourself or with several team members, provide a recent example of revolutionary thinking by a company. For an idea dreamed up by company management to qualify as revolutionary thinking, it must go beyond a product or service that already exists. The palm-size, wireless computers that access the Internet might be considered revolutionary because the owner does not have to be at a fixed, wired location to gain Net access. The airplane communication satellites described in Chapter 11 might be called revolutionary. However, one could argue that satellite service already existed. 7. The average age of Cadillac owners, across the various models, was about 63 until the Escalade (a luxury SUV) was introduced into the market. The Cadillac Escalade had an immediate appeal to affluent rappers, professional athletes, and a variety of other young, wealthy entertainers. What is the business strategy lesson here?

The answer to this question is worth at least a Harvard Business School case. Cadillac had drifted into an unintended focus strategy, with customers clustered in one age bracket. We say clustered, because Cadillac always had some affluent, young buyers. The marketing people struggled to find a product that would appeal to a larger number of young people and they were successful. In addition, a little serendipity boosted their efforts. The Escalade also caught on with wealthy, hip people and created a loud buzz. 8. In what way might doing a good job of knowledge management give a company a competitive advantage? A company that manages knowledge well would gain a competitive advantage through such means as solving internal problems better, solving customer problems better, and, in general, having a continuing stream of useful ideas. 9. How might an organization that provides extensive training and development programs to employees still not be classified as a learning organization? Providing training programs to employees is a small part of being a learning organization. Among other activities, a learning organization must profit from its mistakes, and engage in team learning and action learning. 10. What steps might a leader take to help group members become systems thinkers? Helping group members become systems thinkers is tantamount to helping them think big, or think conceptually. The task is difficult, but frequent mention about the implications of actions, and how parts of the organization relate to each other, can sensitize people to systems thinking. A manager who hires a network member over another more qualified candidate might be told how small actions of this type will weaken an organization if done repeatedly. In contrast, a manager who hires an outstanding candidate might be reminded how such an activity strengthens the organization one important brick at a time.

PLAUSIBLE RESPONSES TO CASE QUESTIONS

Leadership Case Problem A: Samsung Sings a Different Tune
A key theme of the Samsung case is that company leadership can successfully change the strategy of an established firm, thereby bringing it to a new level of success. 1. Identify at least three business (or marketing) strategies Samsung uses now or used in the past. Samsung established itself with a cost leadership strategy, pricing its goods at the low end of the consumer electronics market. Later Samsung Electronics focused on a brand leadership strategy, as it developed the reputation of its brand. Being a components supplier for other companies is also a strategy, and helps form strategic alliances. 2. What suggestions can you offer Kim and other Samsung leaders so they can become even more successful in building the Samsung brand? The methods the company has chosen to build the Samsung brand are working so far. It would therefore be advisable to continue with this strategy, and market even more heavily. Perhaps hiring a name athlete to help promote the brand would be useful, as would getting Samsung products plugged in movies.

3. What is your opinion of Eric Kim as a strategic leader? The evidence so far indicates that Kim is a highly effective strategic leader. He identified a major potential problem for Samsungthat its products would become vulnerable to other companies that could produce the same goods at an even lower price. Kims solution was to point the company in a new direction that is working so far.

Leadership Case Problem B: The Reluctant Information Sharers

This case illustrates some of the challenges managers face when they attempt to manage knowledge and achieve information sharing among workers. 1. What suggestions can you offer Mike Basilio and Lindsay Taylor to improve knowledge sharing at Blueberry Capital? Basilo and Taylor need to work harder at selling the ultimate benefits of information sharing, such as a more profitable firm and more money available for bonuses. 2. How valid are the points made by the financial consultants for not doing a better job sharing information? All the points have some validity. Firms engaged in KM, such as Xerox Corp., have found that scientific employees worry about giving away their best ideas, and that asking for ideas from others could be interpreted as a sign of weakness. 3. What cultural changes might be needed at Blueberry to improve knowledge sharing? The obvious answer is that the culture must be moved in the direction of a sharing culture. Basilio and Taylor can set the pace by sharing vital information about the firm with the professional staff.

CHAPTER 14 International and Culturally Diverse Aspects of Leadership

The purpose of this chapter is to help the reader understand the leadership challenges stemming from working in international and culturally diverse environments. In addition, the reader is given many specific suggestions for leading effectively in such an environment.

CHAPTER OUTLINE AND LECTURE NOTES

Sensitivity to and an appreciation of cultural diversity improve working relationships. The modern leader must be multicultural because corporate success, profit, and growth depend increasingly on the management of a diverse workforce. For example, white males now constitute less than one-half of the American workforce. An increasing number of new entrants to the workforce are women and people of color. The leader must respond to the needs of diverse groups of people. In addition to the workforce becoming more diverse, business has become increasingly global. I.THE ADVANTAGES OF MANAGING FOR DIVERSITY The ethical and social responsibility goals of leaders and their organizations support the importance of providing adequately for members of the diverse workforce. Ethics is involved because treating people fairly is considered morally right from the deontological view of ethics. A firm that embraces diversity is also behaving in a socially responsible manner. Managing for diversity brings a competitive advantage to the firm in the following ways: 1. Reduction of turnover and absenteeism costs. 2. Managing diversity well offers a marketing advantage. For example, a multicultural group of decision makers may be at an advantage in reaching a multicultural market. Another marketing advantage is that many people from culturally diverse groups prefer to buy from a company that has a good reputation for managing diversity. 3. Companies with a favorable record in managing diversity are at a distinct advantage in recruiting and retaining talented people. 4. Managing diversity well unlocks the potential for excellence.

5. Heterogeneity in the workforce may offer the company a creativity advantage, plus improved problem solving and decision making. Research at the United States Postal Service substantiates many of the advantages of a culturally diverse workforce listed above. Workforce inclusiveness was measured in terms of the percentages of under-representation of ten different ethnic groups in comparison to the local civilian labor force. Inclusiveness was positively correlated with more favorable levels of eight performance dimensions, such as (a) customer satisfaction ratings, (b) employee ratings of feeling included, (c) less employee concern about being a victim of violence, and (d) corporate productivity rate. II. CULTURAL FACTORS INFLUENCING LEADERSHIP PRACTICE

A multicultural leader is a leader with the skills and attitudes to relate effectively to and motivate people across race, gender, age, social attitudes, and lifestyles. To influence, motivate, and inspire culturally diverse people, the leader must be aware of overt and subtle cultural differences. Such culturally based differences are generalizations and stereotypes that are starting points in attempting to lead a person from a particular culture. A. Key Dimensions of Differences in Cultural Values

One way of understanding how national cultures differ is to examine their standing on selected values, eight of which are described here. 1. Individualism/collectivism. At one end of this dimension is individualism, a mental set in which people see themselves first as individuals and believe their own interests and values take priority. (Examples of countries at this end of the dimension include the United States, Canada, and Great Britain.) Collectivism, at the other end of the continuum, is a feeling that the group and society receive top priority. (Examples include Japan, Hong Kong, and Greece.) 2. Power distance. The extent to which employees accept the idea that members of an organization have different levels of power is called power distance. In a high-power-distance culture, the boss has more power. Low-power-distance cultures include the United States, Israel, Germany, and Ireland. High-power-distance cultures include France, Spain, Japan, and Mexico. 3. Uncertainty avoidance. Countries in which many people accept the unknown and tolerate risk and unconventional behavior have low uncertainty avoidance. Low-uncertainty-avoidance cultures include the United States, Canada, and Australia. High-uncertainty-avoidance cultures include Israel, Japan, and Italy. 4. Materialism/concern for others. Here, materialism refers to an emphasis on assertiveness and the acquisition of money and material objects, and a deemphasis on caring for others. Concern for others is an emphasis on personal relationships and a high quality of life. Materialistic countries include the United States, Japan, and Italy, whereas concern for others cultures include Sweden and Denmark. 5. Long-term orientation/short-term orientation . Workers from a country with a long-term orientation maintain a long-range perspective. A short-term orientation is characterized by a demand for immediate results and a propensity not to save. Pacific Rim countries have a long-range orientation, whereas the United States and Canada have a short-term orientation.

6. Formality/informality. A country that values formality attaches considerable importance to tradition, ceremony, social rules, and rank. Informality refers to a casual attitude toward tradition, ceremony, social rules, and rank. Latin American workers are more formal, whereas Americans and Canadians are more informal. 7. Urgent time orientation/casual time orientation. People with an urgent time orientation perceive time as a scarce resource, leading them toward impatience. People with a casual time orientation view time as an unlimited and unending resource, leading them toward extreme patience. Americans have a more urgent time orientation than do Asians and Middle Easterners. 8. Work orientation/leisure orientation. A major cultural value difference is the number of hours per week people expect to invest in work versus leisure, or other non-work activities. Americans are more willing to work long hours than are Europeans. To use the above information, a leader should recognize that a persons national values might influence his or her behavior. For example, a person with a low power orientation would not immediately comply with a superiors suggestions. The leader might therefore have to sell the person on the request. B. Cultural Values and Leadership Style Relationships between people in a society are affected by the values programmed in the minds of these people. Because management deals heavily with interpersonal relationships, management and leadership are affected by cultural values. In France, which is a class society, French managers are part of an elite class and behave in a superior, authoritarian manner. In Germany, middle managers were studied as part of the GLOBE project. A strong performance orientation (combined with low compassion) was found to be the most pronounced German cultural value. 209 One study found that top-level European managers share some common management philosophies and practices, and that their style can be compared to stereotypes of American and Japanese managers. According to this study, the following are distinguishing characteristics of European managers. 1. A greater orientation toward people. European managers believe they are more committed to employees than are U.S. or Japanese managers. 2. A higher level of internal negotiation. European managers spend considerable time negotiating with various stockholders. 3. Greater skill in managing international diversity. It was found that European managers recognize, respect, and appreciate diversity. 4. Ability to manage between extremes. European managers tend to be more in the middle on most dimensions of leadership behavior than are U.S. or Japanese managers. Readers are cautioned that this study deals in stereotypes that gloss over within-culture differences. Also, as leadership and management knowledge continues to be disseminated widely, effective managers from different geographic regions may develop similar styles.

C.

Applying a Motivational Theory Across Cultural Groups

Expectancy theory can be used to illustrate the principle that some aspects of motivation theory apply across cultures, while other aspects must be modified. Environmental Control. The assumption in expectancy theory that workers believe they have control over their own fate may be culturally dependent. Where individualism predominates, employees may believe strongly that they can influence outcomes. In collectivistic societies, the ties between the individual and the organization have a moral component. Employees with an individualistic orientation want to know, Whats in it for me? before responding to a motivational thrust by the leader. Despite any cultural generalizations, the leader must be alert to individual and cultural differences. Appropriateness of Rewards. Leaders must analyze the type and level of rewards that have the highest valence for individuals. Which rewards are appropriate are most strongly tied to individual differences. Yet cultural differences are also important. A study with Russian textile workers found that American goods, pride, and recognition increased productivity. Participative management resulted in decreased productivity (probably because such activity clashed with the Russian value system). A mistake many American managers have made is to assume that a reward that receives a high valence among American workers will also have a high valence for workers from another culture. III. CULTURAL SENSITIVITY AND GLOBAL LEADERSHIP SKILLS

Cultural sensitivity and certain specific global leadership skills are essential for inspiring people from cultures other than ones own. Leadership attributes in general are also important. A. Cultural Sensitivity Cultural sensitivity is essential for inspiring people from cultures other than ones own. To influence others, leaders must be sensitive to cultural differences. A crosscultural leader must also be patient, adaptable, flexible, and willing to listen and learn. These characteristics are part of cultural sensitivity, an awareness of and a willingness to investigate the reasons why people of another culture act as they do. Cultural sensitivity is also important because it helps a person become a multicultural workerone who is convinced that all cultures are equally good and who enjoys learning about other cultures. Sensitivity is the most important characteristic for leading people from other cultures because cultural stereotypes rarely provide reliable guides. Another aspect of cultural sensitivity for cross-cultural leaders is to pay close attention to foreign business practices. Problems of cultural misunderstanding that leaders should be aware of cluster in five areas: (1) language differences; (2) religious differences; (3) different work habits, such as being willing to invest personal time in work; (4) differences in womens roles across cultures; and (5) differences in personal appearance and behavior. Cultural sensitivity is enhanced by diversity training as well as by simply listening carefully and observing. A key principle is to be flexible when dealing with people from other cultures.

B.

Global Leadership Skills

Global leadership skills improve a companys reputation and contribute to a sustainable competitive advantage. Excellent global leaders have a leadership style that generates superior corporate performance in terms of four criteria: (1) profitability and productivity, (2) continuity and efficiency, (3) commitment and morale, and (4) adaptability and innovation. Attaining all four criteria of organizational performance is called behavioral complexity. Global leadership skills also include stewardship of human and natural resources (being socially responsible). Another perspective on global leadership skills is that the leader must tap into a deep, universal layer of human motivation in order to build loyalty, trust, and teamwork in different cultures. To get at the needs (such as affiliation and exploration), the global leader must satisfy three meta-values: community (serving the common good), pleasure (intrinsic motivation), and meaning (meaningful work). Effective global leaders also exhibit leadership skills necessary for dealing with day-by-day interactions. As revealed by a study, two success factors are sensitivity to cultural differences and being culturally adventurous. A confusing skill issue for many international managers is the importance of having a good command of a second language. English is the standard language of business and science, but when trying to influence a person from another culture, speaking his or her language well gives you an advantage. IV. LEADERSHIP INITIATIVES FOR ACHIEVING CULTURAL DIVERSITY

For organizations to value diversity, top management must also be committed to embedding diversity in company strategy. Figure 143 lists the most frequent areas (such as race) in which diversity efforts are directed in large firms. A. Hold Managers Accountable for Achieving Diversity If managers are held accountable for behavior and business changes in the diversity arena, an organizational culture supportive of diversity will develop. Achieving diversity objectives can be included in performance appraisals and linked to compensation. Allstate measures the accomplishment of diversity with an employee survey that includes a diversity index. Coca-Cola ties 25 percent of each managers compensation to how well he or she achieves specific diversity goals. B. Establish Minority Recruitment, Retention, and Mentoring Programs

An essential initiative for building a diverse work force is to recruit and retain members of the targeted minority group. Because recruiting talented members of minority groups and women is competitive, careful human resources planning is required. Colleges and universities with high minority enrollments in key disciplines can be targeted. Employees can form network groups to attract minorities and women. Efforts at recruiting a culturally diverse work force must be supported by a leadership and management approach that leads to high retention, such as cultural training programs. Mentoring is a key initiative for retaining minority group members, as well as facilitating their advancement. Successful minorities with supportive managers and coworkers have faster compensation growth and progress more rapidly in their firms.

C.

Conduct Diversity Training

Diversity (or valuing differences) training has become a widely used, though controversial, method for enhancing diversity within organizations. The purpose of diversity training is to bring about workplace harmony by teaching people how to get along better with diverse work associates. Training sessions in valuing differences focus on the ways in which men and women and people of different races reflect different values, attitudes, and cultural backgrounds. Sometimes these programs are confrontational, sometimes not. An essential part of relating more effectively to diverse groups is to empathize with their point of view. A concern about diversity training is that it serves to reinforce stereotypes about groups. Leaders of diversity training are cautioned to guard against encouraging participants to be too confrontational and expressing too much hostility. Diversity training is most likely to bring about attitudinal and behavioral change when (1) participants are not locked into rigid opinions, (2) conflicting peer pressure is not present, and (3) the organizational culture supports multiculturalism. D. Encourage the Development of Employee Networks

An employee network group is composed of employees throughout the company who affiliate on the basis of a group characteristic such as race, ethnicity, sex, sexual orientation, or physical ability status. Group members typically have similar interests and look to the group as a way of sharing information about succeeding in the organization. Employee network groups can be divisive, but they can also play positive roles. At 3M Corporation, network groups serve as advisers to business units. E. Avoid Group Characteristics When Hiring for Person-Organization Fit

Person-organization fit centers around the extent to which a persons major work-related values and personality traits fit major elements of the organization culture. Selecting for person-organization fit can lead to a cohesive and strong organizational culture. The danger, however, is that when employers focus too sharply on cultural fit in the hiring process, they might inadvertently discriminate against protected classes of workers. Selecting candidates who look and act alike conflicts with a diversity strategy. The antidote is to focus on traits, behaviors, and values rather than group characteristics when hiring. V. DEVELOPING THE MULTICULTURAL ORGANIZATION

A multicultural organization values cultural diversity and is willing to utilize and encourage such diversity. The multicultural organization helps avoid problems stemming from diversity, such as increased turnover, interpersonal conflict, and communication breakdowns. The multicultural organization has the following characteristics: 1. Creating pluralism. In a pluralistic organization, both minority- and majoritygroup members are influential in creating the behavioral norms, values, and policies of the organization. 2. Achieving leadership diversity. To achieve a multicultural organization, firms must also practice leadership diversity, the presence of a culturally heterogeneous group of leaders. Mentoring has proved to be an effective vehicle for achieving leadership diversity. 3. Creating full structural integration. The objective of full structural integration is a zero correlation between culture-group identity and job status.

4. Creating full integration of informal networks. Minorities must be integrated into informal networks to achieve career advancement. Assists include company-sponsored mentoring programs, social events for minorities, and minority professional associations. 5. Creating a bias-free organization. Organizational efforts to reduce bias, such as bias-reduction training, help prevent discrimination. 6. Organizational identification. In a multicultural organization, there is a zero correlation between the cultural identity group and levels of organizational identification. 7. Minimizing intergroup conflict. The most effective approach to minimizing conflict among cultural groups is to collect and share data about sensitive issues. VI. GUIDELINES FOR ACTION AND SKILL DEVELOPMENT

Any manager starting a Diversity Program should be ready to walk the talk before embarking or the effort will backfire. The walk should be seen in communication, compensation, recruiting, committee membership, promotions, advertising, and work/life initiatives.

COMMENTS ON EXPERIENTIAL EXERCISES

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 14-1: Capitalizing on Diversity
An important feature of this exercise is that it helps illustrate the importance of leadership in bringing about the potential competitive advantage of diversity. The group might decide, for example, that it is not implementing the right mechanisms for obtaining the full contribution of diverse employees. One possibility is that the leaders have not created a climate permissive enough to encourage the contribution of ideas.

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 14-1: Charting Your Cultural Value Profile

In addition to plotting their own cultural profiles, students are asked to speculate on the impact of the profile on leading others. Students are asked to identify which type of profile would respond well or poorly to their leadership. We can assume in general that it is easier to lead a person with a cultural profile comparable to our own.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 14-2: The Diversity Circle

The diversity circle is a powerful exercise in demonstrating how some people feel about being diverse. Volunteerism is very important in this exercise. No person should feel compelled to participate. Selfselection helps avoid placing somebody in an uncomfortable position. Ask students to describe a perception of being different that they are willing to share with the rest of the class. Our experience using this exercise repeatedly has been a student participation rate of over 98 percent.

COMMENTS ON DISCUSSION QUESTIONS AND ACTIVITIES

1. Since the U.S. work force is becoming increasingly Latino (or Hispanic), should managers all be required to speak and read Spanish?

This policy might make considerable sense in American cities where a substantial portion of the work force is Spanish-speaking. However, it will mean that many otherwise capable managers will be excluded from managerial positions. 2. How does the concept of diversity in organizations relate to political correctness? Diversity in organizations ties directly to political correctness, because appreciating diversity is politically correct. Nevertheless, a genuine appreciation of valuing differences should not be dismissed as simply an act of political correctness. 3. An old refrain goes, Why cant the cowboys and Indians just be friends? Translate this line from a song into a diversity lesson for modern business leaders. The diversity lesson here for modern leaders is that they should strive to get diverse groups working together smoothly, even if these groups have experienced conflict in the past. Also, there is no valid reason that diverse groups cannot learn to work smoothly together. 4. What actions might a leader take to demonstrate that his or her interest in diversity goes beyond rhetoric? An obvious step to show that a leader has a genuine interest in diversity would be to promote diverse people into key positions. A related step would be for the leader to have diverse people as his or her closest advisers. 5. How does a culturally heterogeneous staff contribute to the leaders ability to make effective decisions? A heterogeneous staff will often introduce several viewpoints, thus helping to make more comprehensive decisions. At the same time the heterogeneous viewpoints contribute to finding creative solutions to problems. 6. In your own words, what is a multicultural leader? The general idea is that the multicultural leader can be a positive force in working with people from different cultures, from both within and outside the country. 7. Assume that an outstanding sales representative works for a company that considers it unethical to bribe officials to make a sale. The sales representative is about to close a deal in a foreign country where bribing is standard practice. Her commission will be $60,000 for a signed contract. What should the representative do if the official demands a $4,000 gift before closing the deal? The representative should consult with the home office to see if the no-bribe policy also applies to countries where greasing the palm is standard practice. If the home office executive says that bribes are still out of the question the representative will have to refuse to give the gift. Yet the representative might look to grant every consideration that still lies within company policy. 8. With so much business being conducted over the Internet, including email, why is it important to understand cross-cultural differences in values? Although a considerable amount of business is conducted electronically, values can be incorporated into electronically transmitted messages. For example, a person from a high-powerdistance culture might respond best to directive messages.

9. Suppose you are a team leader and one of your team members has a strong work ethic, based on his or her cultural values. Is it fair to assign this member much more work just because he or she is willing to work longer and harder than other team members? It might be helpful to use an ethical screen to answer this question. A significant ethical issue is whether the workhorse employee receives bigger rewards than coworkers with a weaker work ethic. 10. Find an article, book, or Internet reference, or interview a business leader to help answer the question How can I prepare myself to become a multicultural leader? Whatever advice the student uncovers, it will probably include developing cultural sensitivity, including learning about other cultures.

PLAUSIBLE RESPONSES TO CASE QUESTIONS

Leadership Case Problem A: Carlos Gutirrez Intends to Make Kellogg Company Special Again
This case illustrates both the importance of being a multicultural leader and how a leader must think strategically. 1. How will Gutirrezs cross-cultural background assist him in achieving the growth goals established for Kellogg? Given that Kellogg serves so many different cultures both within and outside the United States, Gutirrez needs a sensitivity to cultural differences to formulate marketing strategies for the various cultures. 2. How can Kellogg use cultural diversity within the organization to help with product innovation? The various cultural groups can help develop products that might provide an edge in specific cultures, such as iron-fortified Corn Flakes for Mexico. 3. Identify the business strategies that Gutirrez is using to improve the future of Kellogg Company. Gutirrez is emphasizing differentiation by attempting to develop innovative products that will stand out in the marketplace. His emphasis on marketing snack foods more heavily in the future suggests a brand-development strategy. 4. What other business strategies do you recommend that might help Gutirrez improve the future of the Kellogg Company? Branded, expensive food products like cereals do not appear to have a promising future. It might therefore be necessary for Kellogg to look to diversify into other businesses with bigger potential profit margins. Developing an Internet strategy might be another possibility. Forming strategic alliances with fast-food chains that sell breakfast food might be another possibility. 5. Is Kellogg discriminating against majority suppliers in its attempt to build good relations with minority suppliers?

By most perspectives Kellogg is discriminating against majority suppliers because they do not receive equal consideration for some contracts. The rationale for favorable treatment of minority suppliers is that many minority business owners have been discriminated against in the past, so the scales have to be balanced.

Leadership Case Problem B: Ralph Lauren Seeks Racial Harmony

This case illustrates the complexities involved in becoming a multicultural organization, and how incremental changes may not accomplish the job. 1. To what extent is Ralph Lauren on the right track to developing a multicultural organization? Ralph Lauren is moving in the right direction with Polos many diversity initiatives, including the hiring (and rehiring) of Lacey Moore, and the hiring of human resource manager Paul Campbell. The race relation seminars are also on the right track. 2. What further advice can you offer Lauren to achieve fuller workplace diversity at Polo? To achieve fuller workplace diversity at Polo, Lauren should hire several people of color into key operating positions, such as a merchandising manager or head designer. Polo can still retain the cool image, but look for cool people who are not Caucasians. 3. Is the Christmas party incident a symptom of an organizational problem? Or were the black and Hispanic employees just behaving as they chose? The holiday party incident is not a Polo-specific problem, and can even be found in college cafeterias. People tend to group themselves among people of the same racial or ethnic groups. However, Polo managers might take the initiative in a friendly way to encourage people from various demographic groups to intermingle. 4. Does Ralph Lauren get it as a leader with respect to diversity in the workplace? Ralph Lauren appears to fall short of completely getting it with respect to diversity in the workplace. For example, he thinks that featuring a black model is a major contribution to improved race relations. Lauren would also need to be more personally involved in promoting diversity in the workplace to demonstrate that he gets the concept entirely.

CHAPTER 15 Leadership Development, Succession, and Followership

The primary purpose of this chapter is to help readers understand the nature of leadership development and succession, including the need for continuous learning. Another is to alert the reader to the importance of being an effective follower.

CHAPTER OUTLINE AND LECTURE NOTES

This chapter describes the processes organizations use to develop present and future leaders. A description of one facet of leadership self-development is also included. I. DEVELOPMENT THROUGH SELF-AWARENESS AND SELF-DISCIPLINE

Self-help contributes heavily to developing leadership capabilities. Two major components of leadership self-development are self-awareness and self-discipline. A. Leadership Development Through Self-Awareness

An important mechanism underlying self-development is self-awareness, insightfully processing feedback about oneself to improve personal effectiveness. Selfawareness occurs at two levels. Single-loop learning occurs when learners seek minimum feedback that might substantially confront their basic ideas or actions. Single-loop learners think defensively. Double-loop learning is an in-depth type of learning that occurs when people use feedback to confront the validity of the goal or the values implicit in the situation. Double-loop learning enables the leader to learn and profit from setbacks. By interpreting the reason a setback occurred, the leader might do better the next time. B. Leadership Development Through Self-Discipline

Leadership development requires considerable self-discipline, mobilizing ones effort and energy to stay focused on attaining an important goal. Self-discipline plays an important role in the continuous monitoring of ones behavior to ensure that needed selfdevelopment occurs.

II.

DEVELOPMENT THROUGH EDUCATION, EXPERIENCE, AND MENTORING

Much of leadership development takes place through means other than self-awareness and self-discipline or leadership development programs. Almost any life activity can help people prepare for a leadership role. A. Education

Education generally refers to acquiring knowledge without concern about immediate application. The extent of formal education is positively correlated with achieving managerial and leadership positions and with the level of leadership position attained. Most high-level leaders are intelligent, well-informed people who gather knowledge throughout their career. B. Experience

Without experience, knowledge cannot readily be converted into skills. Leadership experience also helps build skills and insights that a person may not have formally studied. 1. Challenging Experiences. The best experiences for leadership development are those that challenge the manager realistically. The goal of leadership development is to provide meaningful development opportunities, not to push managers to the point where they are most likely to fail. Table 151 of the text lists powerful developmental experiences. An important part of capitalizing on challenging experiences is for the leader/manager to be given leeway in choosing how to resolve the problem. 2. Sources of Experience. The two major developmental factors in any work situation are work associates and the task itself. Work associates can serve as positive or negative models. Work-related tasks give the leader an opportunity to become an effective and innovative problem solver. Another way of obtaining experience helpful for development is to learn from the wisdom of leaders who have been through challenges. The CEO Academy represents a formal approach to experience sharing. 3. Broad Experience. Many aspects of leadership are situational. Gaining managerial experience in different settings is therefore advantageous. Multifunctional managerial development is an organizations intentional efforts to enhance the effectiveness of managers by giving them experience in multiple organizational functions. The lowest level of commitment would be for managers simply to study other functions. The highest level of commitment is complete mobility across functions, as exemplified by the career maze at Hewlett-Packard. Achieving broad experience fits well with the current emphasis on growth through learning new skills rather than a preoccupation with vertical mobility. 4. Pivotal Life Experiences. Certain pivotal or transformational life experiences can help develop leadership effectiveness. These events help people recognize their capacity to effect change and gain the support of others. The specific experience itself may varya positive or negative event, or even a relationshipbut it is always a learning process. The text mentions Jack Kahl, a former CEO, who at the age of seven started a newspaper route to help his family financially. Kahl cites this

early experience as a formative one, teaching him the importance of doing the job well and pleasing customers. C. Mentoring

Coaching often comes from a mentor, a more experienced person who develops a protgs abilities through tutoring, coaching, guidance, and emotional support. A mentor is often a persons manager, but he or she can also be a staff professional or a coworker. 1. Informal Versus Formal Mentoring. Mentoring is traditionally thought of as an informal relationship based on compatibility between two personalities; however, many firms offer formal mentoring programs. Ragins and Cotton studied the effectiveness of informal versus formal mentoring programs for men and women, across three occupations. Informal mentoring led to higher income. The human resources group is often involved with successful mentoring in setting goals, pairing mentors with protgs, and getting top management committed to the program. A new approach to mentoring is shadowing, or directly observing the work activities of the mentor by following the person around for a stated period of time. 2. Impact on Leadership. A survey of large companies found that 96 percent of executives credited mentoring as an important developmental method, and 75 percent said mentoring played a key role in career success. Mentoring was also seen as an effective method for helping minorities advance. The mentor can serve as a model of effective (or ineffective) leadership, and can coach the protg about handling leadership situations. III. LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMS

Leadership development programs typically focus on topics such as personal growth, leadership style, strategy formulation, influence, motivation, and persuasive communication. Management development programs include many more topics than do those programs focused on leadership. Corporate university is a term to cover company activities geared toward leadership and management development, as well as other forms of high-level training. A. Key Characteristics of a Leadership Development Program

A leadership development program has to be appropriately sponsored, carefully designed, and professionally executed. Characteristics of a successful leadership development program include the following: 1. Begin by carefully selecting participants for the program. 2. Involve executives and secure their sponsorship. 3. Gear the development program to the participants level of management. 4. Address current and future organizational needs. 5. Use an appropriate model or theory. 6. Give ongoing reinforcement and emotional support. 7. Support individual improvement with diagnostic tools. 8. Ensure practical and relevant content. 9. Emphasize interpersonal relationships and teamwork. 10. Conclude with individual action plans. B. Types of Leadership Development Programs

Although leadership development programs overlap, they can be divided into six types. 1. Feedback-Intensive Programs. A feedback-intensive development program helps leaders develop by seeing more clearly their patterns of behavior, the reasons for such behaviors, and the impact of these behaviors and attitudes on their effectiveness. These programs combine and balance three key elements of a developmental experience: assessment, challenge, and support. Emotional support helps participants work through the intensity of the feedback. 2. Skill-Based Programs. Skill training in leadership development involves acquiring abilities and techniques that can be converted into action. The emphasis is on learning how to apply knowledge. Five different methods are often used in skill-based leadership training: lecture, case study, role-play, behavioral role modeling, and simulations. Behavioral role modeling is an extension of role playing and is based on social learning theory. Simulations give participants an opportunity to work on a problem that simulates a real organization. 3. Conceptual Knowledge Programs. A standard approach to leadership development is to learn useful concepts about leadership. Conceptual knowledge is very important because it alerts the leader to information that will make a difference in leadership. 4. Personal Growth Programs. Leadership through personal growth involves getting in touch with ones inner desires and fulfilling them. The tacit assumption is that leadership is almost a calling. Learning who you need to be is one approach to leadership development through personal growth. 5. Socialization Programs. From the company standpoint, an essential type of leadership development program emphasizes socializing (becoming acclimated to and accepting) the company vision and values. Frequently, the chief executive makes a presentation of the company vision and values. 6. Action Learning Programs. In action learning, leaders and potential leaders work together in groups to solve organization problems outside of their usual sphere of influence. The process of leadership development continues to evolve. According to Fulmer, the kind of learning that results in competitive advantage will not be limited by time, space, or matter. IV. EVALUATION OF LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT EFFORTS

A comprehensive approach to leadership development would include a rigorous evaluation of the consequences of having participated in a developmental experience. The evaluation of training and development programs is a comprehensive topic that includes considerations such as the design of experiments and the development of accurate outcome measures.

A.

The Traditional Approach to Evaluation

A traditional evaluation approach would first specify the program objectives and later measure how well those objectives were met. Outcome measures include skill acquisition by participants and the degree of organizational improvement. A more rigorous approach to evaluation would include an experiment, as shown in Table 153. The traditional method of evaluation is best suited to evaluating structured, definable skills, such as performing a break-even analysis. HR specialists will often ask participants to evaluate the development program, and which aspects of the program led to better job performance. B. Evaluation Through Domains of Impact

A useful method of measuring the outcome of leadership development is to differentiate the types of learning and to measure them separately. Areas of possible changes are referred to as domains of impact. Perspective change is one such domain. V. LEADERSHIP SUCCESSION

In a well-managed organization, replacements for retiring and dismissed executives are chosen through leadership succession, an orderly process of identifying and grooming people to replace executives. Being groomed as a successor is part of a persons development, and fostering a successors development is part of a managers own development. A. How the Board Chooses a Successor

The board is likely to follow standard principles of human resources selection such as thoroughly screening candidates, including speaking to people who have worked with the candidate. It is recommended that board members have regular contact (both formal and informal) with potential candidates. B. Succession Planning at General Electric

Board members are closely involved in an ongoing evaluation of the companys highest ranking managers. Twice a year directors scrutinize about fifteen of these people. The process includes lengthy interviews with the managers, their managers, former associates, and group members. This system for identifying successors employs multiple inputs and tracks longitudinal performance. C. The Emotional Aspects of Leadership Succession

When executives are replaced, even if they are financially independent, they are likely to experience an emotional loss. Leadership succession in a family business is emotional for many reasons, such as family squabbles over the best-qualified successor. Another potential problem with leadership succession in a family business is conflict between or among siblings. Replacing a business founder is another emotional process. To ease the pain, a consultant recommends that (1) the new owner and the founder must both be flexible, (2) the new leader must clarify his or her role, and (3) both the founder and the new leader must maintain the perspective of wanting the firm to succeed.

D.

Developing a Pool of Successors Research suggests that a shortage of business leaders is becoming a major problem. The recommended solution to the shortage is to create pools of candidates with high leadership potential. Developing a pool of candidates combines evaluating potential with giving high-potential individuals the right type of developmental experiences. Another approach to developing a pool of successors is the leadership pipeline, a model of leadership development that tightly links leadership development with management responsibilities at each level of the organization. The pipeline feeds succession because managers are prepared to be leaders at the next level.

VI.

FOLLOWERSHIP: BEING AN EFFECTIVE GROUP MEMBER

To be an effective leader, one needs good followers (or group members). A. Essential Qualities of Effective Followers

Certain effective group member characteristics facilitate followership: (1) selfmanagement or thinking for oneself, and working well without close supervision; (2) commitment to something beyond oneself; (3) building competence and focusing effort for maximum impact; and (4) the courage to think independently, and to fight for what one believes is right. Another way of framing the qualities of effective followers is that they display the personal characteristics and qualities of effective leaders. Leadership SkillBuilding Exercise 152 has excellent information for studying effective followership. B. Collaboration Between Leaders and Followers

A key role for followers is to collaborate with leaders in achieving organizational goals. Bennis says that the post-bureaucratic organization requires a new kind of alliance between leaders and the led. The new leader and the led are close allies. VII. WHO WILL BE THE NEW TOP BUSINESS LEADERS?

The often-neglected middle managers have come back in style as being major contributors to the success of business firms. Middle managers may have more credibility and goodwill than executives. To advance, middle managers will need financial know-how and the ability to communicate with a wide range of constituents. Integrity is also key. Roger Ailes believes that people with dynamic personalities will rise to the top. VIII. GUIDELINES FOR ACTION AND SKILL DEVELOPMENT

An important method for enhancing both the acceptance and the effectiveness of leadership development is needs analysis, the diagnosis of needs for development. A needs analysis recognizes individual differences among leaders and future leaders. Sources of data for assessing leadership development needs include (1) self-perceptions of developmental needs, (2) perceptions by others in the workplace, (3) psychological evaluation, and (4) a statement of organizational needs for development.

COMMENTS ON EXPERIENTIAL EXERCISES

Leadership Self-Assessment Quiz 15-1: The Interpersonal Skills Checklist
The interpersonal skills checklist is an extraordinarily important development exercise. Most people have their developmental needs tapped by this straightforward questionnaire. Moving from need recognition to change requires an astute action plan and considerable self-development.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 15-1: Maintaining a Personal Leadership Journal

I thank the anonymous outside reviewer for suggesting that students maintain a personal leadership journal. Charting ones experiences and progress can lead to positive changes in behavior.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 15-2: The Followership Evaluation Form

There will be widespread agreement about the importance of most of the items in this checklist. A supplement to the assignment given in the exercise is for group members to furnish instances of good or poor examples they have seen of the checklist behaviors.

Leadership Skill-Building Exercise 15-3: Building for the Future

An important aspect of many leadership development programs is feedback from peers. The standard feedback method described in this exercise is well structured and usually quite effective. At this point in the course, many students will appreciate constructive suggestions for personal development.

COMMENTS ON DISCUSSION QUESTIONS AND ACTIVITIES

1. Many business executives believe that playing team sports helps a person develop as a leader. Based on your knowledge of leadership development, where do you stand on this issue? Playing team sports undoubtedly contributes to an awareness of the importance of team play. Many executives, however, overlook the possibility that a person can develop teamwork skills in other group activities, such as experience with a school newspaper, a club, or an orchestra. 2. How can a person increase self-awareness? In this context, self-awareness refers to processing feedback about oneself insightfully to improve personal effectiveness. One way of increasing this self-awareness is to process more critically any feedback that comes along. Another approach would be to discuss feedback a person might receive with an insightful person. The person attempting to develop self-awareness might ask a question such as, What is your interpretation of the feedback I received? 3. Give an example from your own life in which you engaged in double-loop learning, or in which you should have engaged in such learning. Assume that a student had business leadership experience and received a mild complaint that he or she was overdue with the last performance appraisal or salary review. Double-loop learning here would acknowledge the problem of not being prompt enough with performance appraisals or

salary reviews. In addition, the student might ask if his or her entire approach to managing the group was effective. For example, Could this feedback mean that I am getting so caught up in small details that I miss activities that are really important to my group? 4. Suppose you aspired to become a senior executive in a large company. How would working as an office supervisor, production supervisor, or manager in a fast-food restaurant help you achieve your goal? Supervisory experience is highly valuable for an executive position for many reasons. The future executive has an opportunity to practice basic management skills such as motivation and communication with career beginners. Furthermore, he or she learns firsthand about operations and is better able to empathize with line personnel. Also, the future executive learns how difficult it is to earn a profit. 5. Assume that you were responsible for selecting a leadership development program for your organization. What questions would you ask a potential provider of these services? Relevant questions to ask a provider of leadership development services include: (1) What outcomes can we expect? (2) Can we speak to other clients of yours? (3) On what leadership model is your program based? and (4) What is your professional background? 6. How will you know if the course for which you are reading this book will have helped you in your development as a leader or manager? One approach to evaluating the effectiveness of such a leadership course would be to implement a few leadership approaches described in the course, such as empowerment or management by anecdote, and observe the consequences. If these techniques improve productivity and satisfaction, the person can assume that he or she benefited. A rigorous experimental approach would be for the student to compare his or her career progress over time with others who did not take either this course or a similar one. 7. What are the advantages and disadvantages of having an outsider succeed the top executive in an organization? The advantages of having an outside successor include (a) a fresh perspective on the firm, (b) no emotional and political ties within the organization, and (c) the possible addition of other outsiders, thus adding more talent to the organization. 8. What can you as a parent, future parent, or close relative do to help a child under ten years old become a leader later in life? Assuming that the parent believes that traits and behaviors contribute to leadership effectiveness, the parent could take actions such as: (1) giving the child intellectual stimulation, (2) helping the child speak well and write well, and (3) encouraging self-confidence and initiative. A more speculative approach would be to read the child bedtime stories about business executives such as Bill Gates, Jack Welch, and Carly Fiorina! 9. Why are many CEOs who are planning to retire reluctant to identify a replacement a year or two in advance? Several CEOs have pointed out that if a replacement is identified too early the aspirants who were not identified as the replacement may leave the organization. The CEO also has the problem of dealing with potential conflict between the person designated as the successor and the one or two managers who were not selected.

10. Ask an experienced leader what he or she thinks is the most effective method of developing leadership skills. Bring your findings back to class. The most frequent response will probably be experience. At this point in the course it would be effective to review why guided experience, or the application of leadership concepts combined with experience, is probably an even better way to develop leadership skills.

PLAUSIBLE RESPONSES TO CASE QUESTIONS

Leadership Case Problem A: Len Riggio, Barnes & Nobles Baron of Books
This case illustrates how even a highly successful executive can find room for personal development. 1. Identify several of Len Riggios developmental needs. Riggio may need to be less abrasive toward people to soften his image. He needs to become more diplomatic, so as not to needlessly create enemies. 2. If you were Len Riggios executive coach, what would you advise him? A coach might encourage Riggio to keep plugging away at finding a strategy to differentiate Barnes & Noble from Amazon.com. The coach might also advise Riggio to work at being more of a statesperson and soften his rough edges in order to seem less combative. Riggio might also be advised to develop a grand strategy of increasing the market for books and music, not merely grabbing market share from other retailers and eretailers. Riggio has made some progress in this area with the forthcoming software developments. 3. Identify at least two business strategies that Riggio has already used. One strategy is to consolidate the book business as much as possible. Another is cost leadership, as reflected in Barnes & Noble being the first book discounter. Riggio has also successfully implemented geographic decentralization with hundreds of stores. Barnes & Noble is diversifying by selling a wider range of products such as Godiva Chocolates and digital books. 4. Recommend a business strategy to help Barnes & Noble be even more successful. Perhaps Barnes & Noble can enter into strategic alliances to help cross-sell its books and other products. You may have noticed Starbucks coffee shops in Barnes & Noble superstores. How about a Barnes & Noble shelf in selected Starbucks coffee shops? More seriously, how about Barnes & Noble managing the book departments in selected major retailers, given that the company already manages college bookstores? 5. Is there a particular leadership development program you would recommend for Riggio? Riggio might participate in a feedback-intensive leadership development program so he can better understand why he is so abrasive with people.

Leadership Case Problem B: Help! Im the New Boss.

A contribution of this case incident is that it represents a major challenge of many new leader/managers: how to assert authority with chronologically older and more experienced group members. 1. What type of leadership development program do you recommend for the person who wrote this case history? The person who wrote this case history should begin with the basics, such as a development program for first-time supervisors. A specialized leadership development program about influence tactics might also be helpful. 2. What specific traits and behaviors does the boss in question need to work on? The boss in question needs to become more assertive and self-confident. 3. How would you deal with the situation of a group member who refuses to act on your suggestions for improved performance? The scenario of a group member refusing to act on suggestions for improved performance is ego-threatening. One approach the leader/manager might take is to threaten to impose sanctions, such as a poor performance appraisal, if the person does not comply. A stronger leadership approach would be to help the person understand why cooperation with the boss is important for organizational performance, and for the group members reputation.