Free Essay

Case Study: Epic of Survival

In:

Submitted By rbinasoy
Words 1464
Pages 6
Case Study of “EPIC OF SURVIVAL – Ernest Shackleton’s Voyage to the South Pole”
By Reuben Q. Binasoy, SILVER Group, UB EMBA Intake 17

I.

Most Compelling Facts / Main Learning Points a. The Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition started out on August 8, 1914. The last of the crew members were rescued on August 30, 1916. More than 2 years after they had set out – in the face of the many dangers they faced during the failed expedition – Shackleton mustered together the courage, willpower, wit, & leadership and brought each and every member back home alive. b. Shackleton assembled a group of men that were willing to go with him on a hazardous journey. They were paid little, there were long months of complete darkness, and constant danger. Safe return was doubtful. The only thing they would have gotten out of it was honor and recognition. Other people would have thought them desperate or crazy. Yet it’s most likely the allure of being in a Shackleton expedition that made them go anyway. Such was the power that Shackleton wielded over them. c. Ernest Shackleton provides a very good contrast vs. Rob Hall and Steve Fischer – group leaders of the 1996 Mt. Everest tragedy. While all 3 can be said to have both formal and personal power, Shackleton was able to harness his power effectively to rally the crew to survival. His crew had well-defined roles and responsibilities. They were a team with a common overriding goal – that of survival. d. Shackleton put his people first. Yes, he was after fame & fortune but his sense of responsibility for his men was stronger. Shackleton knew that the expedition will be fraught with danger, but he also acknowledged that how the crew would behave could prove to be the most unpredictable element in the situation. His people-centered approach allowed him to know and acknowledged the abilities and personality of his crew. He was able to capitalize on these strengths (and mitigate weaknesses) as the crisis deepened. e. Shackleton led by example. When he gave instructions to travel light, he tore 2 pages of the Bible and leaving the rest in the snow. He also tossed away his gold coins. These actions amplified his instruction. “Talk the talk, walk the walk” is an overused but rarely practiced term. In the case of the Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition, this was on full display. f. It is interesting to note that after months & months of despair, there was no mutiny whatsoever (at least based on the article) that undermined Shackleton’s power. It can be said that Shackleton’s crew had faith in him. g. Shackleton also had trust in his men. Even though they had to break up into smaller teams, he knew that he had other leaders that could lead the other teams. He left a big group in Elephant Island, then a smaller one in South Georgia beach while he led 2 of his men to over 22 miles of unchartered territory to the Stromness Bay whaling station.

RB Binasoy / Epic of Survival / UB EMBA Intake 17

While he was indeed the overall leader, he also knew that he had to recruit and cultivated other leaders that would take his place if needed. h. As a leader, Shackleton demonstrated quick thinking and strategic agility. He was able to adjust his targets and his tactics as the situation dictated. He kept his options open and not despaired over trying to stick to one target destination. Once he knew that a target island will not be realistically within reach, he quickly made up his mind on secondary options. There was quick thinking in the face of much danger. II. Consequences of Learning Points to Me and My Organization a. A leader is only as good as his team. A great leader needs to be able to transform his followers into leaders in their own right. In his book “5 Levels of Leadership”, John Maxwell states that the highest leadership accomplishment is developing other leaders. Being an effective leader means being able to inculcate a system or mentality that allows the team to function even if it has to break up in sub-teams. The team should have an overriding goal that dictates the members’ and/or the sub-teams’ actions. b. Leadership can be situation-specific. Leadership could also mean taking a backseat when the other members of the team have the better capabilities and competencies to get the team through certain situations. c. Strive to be both a transactional leader AND a transformational leader. A company in crisis or undergoing major changes needs a full-range leader rather than just a transactional one. A company aiming to grow in the regions where they have traditionally been weak in needs leaders that can map out strategies and helm a fledgling organization through the many bumps and bruises that it’s sure to encounter. A leader must remain – or at least maintain the appearance of – calm and control in the face of unrelenting pressure. d. Strategic agility is a key competency for any leader. In the corporate world of key competencies, it is touted to be one of the most important ones. Shackleton provides a very good example of what to emulate. A great manager must be agile to be both proactive and reactive. He must have his finger on the pulse of the situation – not be stubborn to the point that he does not adjust even if the business environment requires him to make an adjustment. e. Effective management involves developing trust with peers, subordinates, and superiors. In companies which operate and aim to grow globally, corporate HQ and the regional units should operate in such a way that the regional units can trust that corporate HQ will give them support for growth. Similarly, corporate HQ should trust that their regional units know what they are doing. Trust is especially important in times of crisis and major flux. f. People matter. Any would-be leader should take this to heart. He can set the loftiest goals, have the best strategies, and have vast resources at his disposal. But at the end of the day, it’s his people that will determine his success. It will all be about how he keeps them focused on the goal, how he keeps them motivated, how he harnesses the

RB Binasoy / Epic of Survival / UB EMBA Intake 17

talent at his disposal, and how he holds the team together. Choose your “crew” for character, not just competence. III. Topic Mapping a. Bases of Power Shackleton had both formal power and personal power. He had legitimacy – being the leader of the expedition. He had expert and referent power – given that he had extensive experience for such journeys. b. Transformational Leadership It can be argued that Ernest Shackleton exhibited both transactional and transformational leadership. He acknowledged that there was a crisis and had the strategic agility to be able to change plans based on their conditions. He did not waver on his resolve to get everybody home alive and remained positive about their chances. Focusing on the aspects of transformational leadership – Individualized Consideration Shackleton treated everyone fairly. Everybody had his share of work to do, and Shackleton himself was not above to doing the grunt work. Intellectual Stimulation The team remained rational despite all their ordeals. They were not desperately grasping at straw but rather taking their cue from how Shackleton was weighing options and deciding on a course of action. Inspirational Motivation Shackleton embodied what he wanted his men to feel. His actions served as examples to inspire. He acknowledged that his men were looking to him for morale and direction. He disguised his emotions and gave the appearance of being confident and relaxed. Idealized Influence “The Boss” – as Shackleton was called by his men – had charisma. His actions inspired his men’s actions. He had their utmost respect and trust. c. The Fiedler Model The success that “The Boss” had in leading his men can also be explained by this more traditional contingency model. The situation they were in was perfect for task-oriented leaders. d. Authentic Leadership: Ethics and Trust are the Foundation of Leadership The most precious commodity that Shackleton had was trust. He had the complete trust of his men, and he had trust in them. This allowed him to change strategies and plans. This gave him the leeway to convince some to go with him on the James Caird for another perilous sea crossing, and convinced the rest to stay in Elephant Island and that he would come back for them. His decisions remained ethical, always using the objective – that of getting everybody home alive – as his compass for making decisions. Shackleton had authentic leadership.

RB Binasoy / Epic of Survival / UB EMBA Intake 17

Similar Documents

Free Essay

Religion

...Alex Nieves 11-11-13 Professor Hannon History 318 Book Review The Bible Unearthed The departure is the subject of ''The Bible Unearthed,'' a fascinating book written by two Jewish archaeologists, Israel Finkelstein and Neil Asher Silberman. With an irenic spirit they join the debate, at times ugly and vicious, about the historicity of the Bible (by which they mean the Hebrew Scriptures, also known as the Old Testament). To this battle they bring an arsenal of scholarly research, field experience and well-chosen words artfully used. They also claim a ''new'' archaeological perspective, but it may be somewhat less than new. Parts of the proposal have been available for decades. Yet their particular thesis, as well as the impressive development of it, can only lead the reader to think anew. Near the end of the seventh century B.C. a young prince named Josiah, descendant of King David, acceded to the throne of Judah after his father's assassination. Described in the Bible as the most righteous of all the kings, he in time renovated the Temple in Jerusalem. The renovations turned up a scroll (perhaps the world's first archaeological discovery) that began a religious reformation. Called ''the book of the law'' in II Kings, it was probably an early version of Deuteronomy. How it came to be, and to be in the Temple, remains a disputed topic, though Finkelstein and Silberman believe it was written in the seventh century B.C. Obeying the commandments of the scroll, Josiah ordered...

Words: 2151 - Pages: 9

Premium Essay

Dave Eggers, What Is the What

...Name Course Professor Date Critical Analysis: ‘What is the What’ by Dave Eggers. “What is what” is a tale of a young Sudanese boy and the tribulations and challenges that he experiences as he flees from his war torn country of southern Sudan. The book paints a vivid picture of the epic journey that the main character in the story, Valentino faces from the time that he flees the country to the time that he finally reaches what he thought would be the “Promised Land” in Atlanta, United States of America. He was soon to realize that even in America, life would not be a bed of roses but it would be marred by unexpected acts of violence and racial discrimination (Dave 28). One striking thing in the narrative is that the author brings out the culture of the Dinka people. For instance, polygamous nature of the Dinka people is clearly illustrated. The myth regarding the origin of the Dinka people is as well demonstrated (Bess). In regards to this origin, the Dinka people are given a choice by God to choose between the cattle and the “What is the What”. They choose the cattle which they understood better rather than “What is the What” which they did not as demonstrated in the line, "—you didn't tell us the answer: What is the What? My father shrugged. —We don't know. No one knows” (Dave 64). Through the narrative, a reader is informed on the historical background of the south Sudanese people. The relative geographical locations of the three African countries...

Words: 2210 - Pages: 9

Premium Essay

Historical Log

...with his five senses, man explores the universe around him and calls the adventure Science.” Curiosity has and always will flow through human bodies. It explains why a four-year old asks a jillion questions. People always look to expand their understanding of the world around them, even from a young age. Without people being curious, we would still think that if a boat sails far enough it will fall off the side of the Earth or that the sun revolved around the Earth. Adventures start when someone steps outside of the box and searches to find something new about the world in which they live. In fact, a group of scientists decided to look into the phenomenon of curiosity. In 2008, they set up a fMRI- functioning magnetic resonance imaging- study, where they discovered that when the subject’s interest was piqued by a question, special regions of the brain lit up. These regions are the basal ganglia and they correspond to the reward centers of the brain (Ransom). So scientifically, mankind came born with the natural need to explore and yet they have not yet fully explored the huge vacuum of unknown knowledge. President George W. Bush stated, “Mankind is drawn to the heavens for the same reason we were once drawn into unknown lands and across the open sea. We choose to explore space because doing so improves our lives and lifts our national spirit” (“Mars Exploration”). Coincidentally, NASA has sent a probe named “Curiosity” into the void of wonderment: outer space (“Mars”). “One small...

Words: 2159 - Pages: 9

Premium Essay

Comparing Beowulf And Grendel: A Symbol For The

...to survive. It can be argued that animalistic and blood-thirsty nature of Grendel as Vanir’s god was conditioned by the dominance of archetypical instincts of tribes of that time. Thus, Grigsby’s Grendel reflected what the tribe worshiped the most – it was an animalistic strength and the blood-driven cycle of life. Although from the contemporary perspective, sacrifices and blood-driven cults seem barbaric and animalistic in their very nature, placed in the context of time, the character of Grendel as a deity of the Vanir, is the god they needed and he is beyond goodness or evil. He is what was crucial for survival at that time – the dominance of animalistic instincts. Gardner describes the character of Grendel in an entirely different way than Grigsby. The author does not only tell the story from Grendel’s perspective but also demonstrates his intellectual growth as he studies the world around him. The fact that Gardner gave his character a voice and a strong rational conscious made him closer not only to the audience, but also to the human world he interacts with. Joseph Milosh argues: “Gardner’s Grendel, on the other hand, is anything but a static character. He grows, passing through several initiations, evolving more than many a modern hero. Grendel begins as an unseen observer of men, reporting their actions and difficulties and threats. He comes into contact with them because he is forced to, and he then seeks to proceed from observation to communication and understanding”...

Words: 3526 - Pages: 15

Premium Essay

Old Testament Survey

...Introduction OBST 510 May 4, 2014 Part 1 – Comparative Studies Chapter 1: History and Methods History: Walton begins the chapter with the “rediscovery of Egypt which began in the eighteenth century AD and of Mesopotamia in the mid nineteenth century AD.” There were discoveries of tens of thousands of texts that were excavated, translated and studied. Many of these tablets and texts did coincide with the Bible. Walton outlines comparative study which is the study that attempts to understand things when compared to their broader cultural context. The goal in this case is to understand the Old Testament compared to the ANE. There have been many debates on comparative study and the way in which is executed. Comparative studies deal with the cultures, myths, religions, worldviews and literature of all the people living in the ANE. A comparative study acknowledges that cultures are separate, but that these separate cultures are aware of and understand the religions and rituals of the other surrounding cultures and at times even engages in those rituals. Many of the Scholars were so biased that they tended to argue for the importance of the Old Testament, or vice-versa defended the mythology concept of scripture so vehemently that the cultural comparison was lost. Not until Friedrich Delitzsch, who was the son of the famous biblical commentator Franz Delitzsch, did a more focused and unbiased approach to comparative study begin to take place. Delitzsch created controversy with the...

Words: 9880 - Pages: 40

Free Essay

Sepsis Prevalnce in Jimma

...Background: Sepsis is a final pathway of infectious disease in critically ill patients. It is highly fatal condition. Though many researches are undertake in pathophysiology, epidemiology and management of sepsis in developed nation ,very limited information is available in low incomes countries where infections are prevalent. Objective: The objective of the study was to determine the prevalence and outcome of sepsis and its prognostic factors in patients admitted to Jimma University Specialized Hospital. Method: Patients with systemic inflammatory response due to infections were studied using prospective cohort study design for four month period in Jimma University hospital. A structured questioner was used to collect data on socio demographic feature of the patient and clinical feature, outcome and prognostic factors . Data was cleaned, edited and entered to SPSS window for analysis. The survival analysis and determination of prognostic factors was done using Cox regression model. The value of p < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Result: The prevalence of sepsis, severe sepsis, septic and refractory shock in the study population was 14%.7.8%,2.1% and 1.4% with their associated all cause mortality of at the end of 28 days are 35.8%,44.1%,68.8% and 88.9% respectively. The clinical variables that...

Words: 10476 - Pages: 42

Premium Essay

Book Summary: the Bible Among the Myths

...Introduction: The Bible Among The Myths by John N. Oswalt The author Oswalt spent much time studying the subject of the ANE (Ancient Near East). This book will investigate the Idealism, history, culture and how they related to the relevance of the critical worldview of the Old Testament and the Hebrew belief as compared to the surrounding ANE. Oswalt’s views, thinking and direction have changed completely over his 50 years studying the ANE and the Bible. This book will show the similarities and differences in thought between the Hebrew Old Testament and the ANE. Oswalt will define what a myth is and argue why the Old Testament is not and cannot be considered a myth. The Bible, when compared to ANE literature, has a completely different understanding of creation and how the spiritual and natural realms interact and exist. There is not a continuous existence that just repeats itself over and over, but rather a series of single events that lead to a greater purpose. It is Oswalt’s position that the Bible is an accurate historical account of a people who received their relevance of belief from a single living transcendent God. The historical basis is important as God reveals himself through humans, in non-recurring human-historical events, to impose God’s will and direction to affect the will of humans. Chapter 1: The Bible In Its World In this chapter Oswalt addresses different beliefs on the existence of the world. Specifically how the Israelites and Greeks viewed the...

Words: 10327 - Pages: 42

Premium Essay

Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA)

...Senior Project 88% of Sudden Cardiac Arrest (SCA) cases occur in the victim's home. Roughly 70% of Americans do not know how to administer Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR), or have not kept up on the required training. 326,000 people in the United States are hospitalized due to SCA. In order to gain a better understanding of Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation one must know where it originated. The ten year period from 1950-1960 was a decade of improvement for resuscitation measures. Peter Safar, James Elam, and The United States Military were all contributors to the development of all forms of resuscitative revival. Elam and Safar were the first people to discover mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. Soon after CPR was developed. Over the last few...

Words: 1656 - Pages: 7

Free Essay

International Humanitarian Law

...I. INTRODUCTION The main instruments of International Humanitarian Law (hereafter referred to as IHL) are the four Geneva Conventions of 12 August 19491 for the protection of war victims. These treaties which are universally accepted, protect the wounded, the sick, prisoners of war and civilians in enemy hands. They also protect medical services personnel such as medical personnel, medical units and establishments, and medical means of transport. As a matter of fact this kind of concern for the humanitarian aspect can be found in our ancient epics like the Mahabharata, where the rules of conduct of war as to the timing of attack and the prohibition attacking the unarmed were strictly laid down. The laws of Manu, a compilation of encyclopedic scope, which the British Professor Duncan M. Derrett a known authority on Hindu Law describes as a text "which constitutes India's greatest achievement in the field of jurisprudence" and regards this work as one of the world's premier compositions in ancient law, more valuable in every sense than Hammurabi and able to hold its own in comparison to the covenant and Priestly codes of Moses2 . Manu, while describing the duties of a King, warns against unusual cruelty even against an enemy in warfare, and has this to say, "fighting in a battle, he should not kill his enemies with weapons that are concealed, barbed, or smeared with poison or whose points blaze with fire. He should not kill anyone who has climbed on a...

Words: 3960 - Pages: 16

Premium Essay

Dying Spirits

...Dying Spirits: Conditions for the survival of Igbo Masquerade Tradition in a Post Modern Era. A paper presented at the third edition of the monthly lecture series of Mbari Literary Society, Owerri, Imo State Nigeria. 1st August 2009. Greetings to my veritable ancestors. Greetings to the progenies and prodigies whose unequalled prodigy and genius produced this sacred art that is now singing an extinction dirge. All the Ancestral Spirits hovering unackno-wledged around this atmosphere, accept my unworthy salutations. Ndi Mbari Ibem, Welunu Ekene m, Onye m kporo ya kpoba ibe ya Onye na nke ya, onye na nke ya Nke onye chiri ya zere. If at the end of this intellectual discourse, the contents of this paper are merely seen as mere academic exercises, it would have failed. This point is made at the background of our realization that it is only practical dialectics that would save the African Viz a Viz. Igbo cosmology in its mortal struggle with the nihilating forces of globalization. By practical dialectics we mean a dialectics whose spine and pedagogy will bother on practice rather than theory. The guest lecturers of the first and second editions of this lecture series dwelt on topics that bothered on the preservation of our cultural heritage and language respectively. This paper shall not depart from that line. The difficulty in presenting this type of lecture is that a topic which hitherto is not discussed amongst women, particularly those that have not attained the...

Words: 5238 - Pages: 21

Premium Essay

Management Information System

...Ch.6 Telecommunications, the internet and wireless technologies Components of a simple network: • NIC (Network Interface Card): to incorporate any laptop to an existing network. • NOS (Network Operating System): to share network resources & route communications on a LAN. • Hubs & switches help route traffic on a network to the right computing device. • Router: when 2 or more networks are connected to each other, it sends data transmissions to the correct device from the internet. Digital Networking Technologies: 3 types, 1. Client/server computing: servers connect to many clients. 2. Packet switching: method of delivering data across a local or a long distance connection, it packages data in units (packets) which identifies intended recipient. 3. TCP(Transmission Control Protocol)/IP(Internet Protocol): a set of protocols to get data from one network device to another. Signal is the transmission of data. Analog signals can be converted into digital signals by using a modem. Analog signals are replicas of sound waves that can be distorted with the noise and drop the quality of transmission. Digital signals have a faster rate of transmission. LAN (Local Area Network): the topology (place) of a LAN can vary greatly, - Star: if the host computer goes down the whole network goes down. - Bus: all computers in the network are linked with cables and treated equally. - Ring: no central host PC, if one PC goes down the rest can still process data & transactions. WAN...

Words: 2473 - Pages: 10

Premium Essay

Feminism

...Development and variations of western feminist ideas Chapter one: Introduction Prior to the 20th century, women in China were regarded essentially different from men. Despite the association of women with yin and men with yang, two qualities considered equally important by Daoism, women were believed to occupy a lower position than men in the hierarchical order of the universe. The I Ching stated that "'Great Righteousness is shown in that man and woman occupy their correct places; the relative positions of Heaven and Earth.'" Women were to be submissive and obedient to men. Women were not allowed to participate in government or community institutions. A number of women, and some men, spoke out against these conditions in the early 20th century, but to little avail. As a result of government approval, women's rights groups became increasingly active in China: "One of the most striking manifestations of social change and awakening which has accompanied the Revolution in China has been the emergence of a vigorous and active Woman's Movement." Beginning in the 70s and continuing in the 80s, however, many Chinese feminists began arguing that the Communist government had been "consistently willing to treat women's liberation as something to be achieved later, after class inequalities had been taken care of."[9] Some feminists claim that part of the problem is a tendency on the government's part to interpret "equality" as sameness, and then to treat women according to an unexamined...

Words: 2859 - Pages: 12

Premium Essay

Dtjui

...For other uses, see Fiction (disambiguation). An illustration from Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, depicting the fictional protagonist, Alice, playing afantastical game of croquet. Fiction is the form of any narrative or informative work that deals, in part or in whole, with information or events that are not factual, but rather, imaginary—that is, invented by the author. Although fiction describes a major branch of literary work, it may also refer to theatrical, cinematic or musical work. Fiction contrasts with non-fiction, which deals exclusively with factual (or, at least, assumed factual) events, descriptions, observations, etc. (e.g.,biographies, histories). Contents  [hide]  * 1 Types of fiction * 1.1 Realistic fiction * 1.2 Non-realistic fiction * 1.3 Semi-Fiction * 2 Elements of fiction * 2.1 Plot * 2.2 Exposition * 2.3 Foreshadowing * 2.4 Rising action * 2.5 Climax * 2.6 Falling action * 2.7 Resolution * 2.8 Conflict * 2.8.1 Types of conflict * 2.8.1.1 Person vs. self * 2.8.1.2 Person vs. person * 2.8.1.3 Person vs. society * 2.8.1.4 Person vs. nature * 2.8.1.5 Person vs. supernatural * 2.8.1.6 Person vs. machine/technology * 2.9 Character * 2.10 Methods of developing characters * 2.11 Symbolism * 2.12 Metaphor * 3 Types of plots * 3.1 Chronological order * 3.2 Flashback * 3.3 Setting...

Words: 4052 - Pages: 17

Premium Essay

Chanakya

...political treatise called Arthasastra. As such, he is considered as the pioneer of the field of economics and political science in India, and his work is thought of as an important precursor to Classical Economics. Chanakya is often called the "Indian Machiavelli", although his works predate Machiavelli's by about 1,800 years. His works were lost near the end of the Gupta dynasty and not rediscovered until 1915. Chanakya’s Education Rishi Canak named his son as “Chanakya”. Being a teacher himself, he knew the importance of education. Taxila was one of the world centres for education. At a very early age little Chanakya started studying Vedas. The Vedas; considered to be the toughest scriptures to study were completely studied and memorized by Chanakya in his infancy. He was attracted to studies in politics. In politics Chanakya’s acumen and shrewdness was visible right from childhood. He was a student of politics right from child hood. Known as a masterful political strategist, He knew how to put his own people in the opposite camp and spy the enemy without his knowledge before destroying him forever. Chanakya was an ace in turning tables in his favour irrespective of the circumstances. He never budged to pressure tactics by the...

Words: 4347 - Pages: 18

Premium Essay

Culture Identity and Organization

...Section 1 Organizational Culture: set of artifacts, values and assumption that emerge from the interaction of organizational members Open social system operating a dynamic environment. CRITERIA to identify something as culture: 1. Deeply felt or held 2. Commonly intelligible 1. Accessible to a cultural group  Organization = Ordered and purposeful interaction among people. Purposeful, because its members produce (supero-rdinative) goal-directed activities. Organizational communication is a continuous process through which organizational members create, maintain and change the organization. (it includes business communication) N.B. All organizational members take place in it; messages are produced to create a shared meaning of messages, but it is not always achieved. Those messages vary in form according to various factors (power distances, roles, goal, method, non-verbal), and to be fully understood have to be considered in their contexts   Culture: "the collective programming if the mind that DISTINGUISHES the members of one group tor category of people from another" (Hofstede 2001) Is both a process and a product; is confining (imitates groups) and facilitating (gives us a way to better understand what is happening) Cultural Symbol = physical indicators of organizational life (Rafaeli & Worline 2000)   ARTIFACTS: visible/tangible, are also part of them norms, standards, customs and social convention. Norms: pattern of behaviors or communication...

Words: 18112 - Pages: 73