...Participative Leadership: Strengths and Weaknesses The simple act of making decisions is an essential task leaders must perform effectively to succeed. Behavioral theories of leadership focus on how leaders approach a situation and whether they dictate orders or involve others to encourage support. Research into decision-making behavior has identified three broad categories of leaders: autocratic, democratic, and laissez-faire (Changing Minds, 2011). This paper will focus on these behavioral theories of leadership, primarily concentrating on participative leadership. An autocratic leader tells employees what to do and how to do it. On the opposite extreme, a laissez-faire leader allows employees to make their own decisions with little leader involvement. In the middle lies participative leadership where the leader includes employees in the decision-making process and lets them take part in determining what to do and how to do it (Big Dog & Little Dog's Performance Juxtaposition, 2010) . My preferred leadership style is participative leadership, confirmed by a 30-item leadership style self-assessment focused on leadership style beliefs (Big Dog & Little Dog's Performance Juxtaposition, 2010). I identify least with a laissez-faire leadership style as my organization expects leaders to be more intimately involved in most matters. In addition, I feel the need to be involved and am not comfortable completely relinquishing control, at least for important matters. I strongly...
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...Ford Motor Company Alan Mulally, CEO, Ford Motor Company Kwatila Ghanyen Prof. Mike Petty BUS 520: Leadership and Organizational Behavior Strayer University Wednesday November 16, 2011 Alan Mulally, CEO, Ford Motor Company Allan Roger Mulally is the present Chief Executive Officer of Ford Motor Company. Ford has been struggling to survive since the 2000s but has regained tremendous profitability under the leadership of Mulally. In this paper, we shall discuss the role of leadership and how it can impact organizational performance, Mulally’s leadership style at Ford and how goal setting has helped Ford improve performance. Ws shall also assess Mullaly on each element in communication openness and the effectiveness of his leadership style and conclude by making recommendations on whether Mullaly should continue with his leadership style or use a different style. The Role of Leadership and How it Can Impact Organizational Performance Leadership is very vital to any organization or business; it guides people towards productive results and aims at achieving the goals of an organization. An effective leader is able to motivate and influence followers when there is a proper alignment between the leader and subordinate. Leadership has been recognized as a major factor in project success and charismatic transformational leadership has a substantially positive effect on organizational performance. (Huang, Hsu & Chiau, 2011) Leaders induce change in organizations through...
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...Reaction to Stress and Change Management often has a deep reaction to changes that requires some flexibility and being able to adapt to overcome. This type of behavior that management puts forth will help enhance their employees to do the same. Cross-training is also very important for employees when a merger and acquisition is occurring. Control Issues Managers must create a blended culture. A good manager will focus on areas within their control which will make them more successful during the major transition so it is very important for the manager to control their emotions. For the implementation of a merger and acquisition, employee buy- in is very important. Focusing on the position changes “Leaders set the tone for the culture and for how relationships are going to unfold in the combined organization. Therefore, leaders need to be sensitive to cultural issues from the initial dialogue with the target organization. It is easy to get off on the wrong foot” (DiGeogrio, 2002). “Employees and managers are brought into a circle where the employees and managers from one organization pairs with employees and managers from their other organization. Using these best experience ideas from these positive interactions serve as seeds for new departmental formulations and organizational designs” (Morrison, 2000). Working Together Managers will have success by using communication, commitment and engagement with their employees. The manager's role is to interact...
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...Walking the Talk: an Article for Critical Eye Archie Norman, the former CEO and Chair of the supermarket chain ASDA, left a haunting image when he spoke at a conference last week. He compared the store visits he engineered with those of ASDA's previous CEO. In the latter, a fleet of large cars would arrive at the Supermarket door and out would step 5, 6 or more senior executives. The store manager would be waiting patiently at the door. Hands would be shaken and the entourage would sweep down the aisles of the store. 'Hi, what do you do? You enjoy working here?' and then off to the next visit with a passing: 'tidy up that main display' to the manager on the way out. By contrast, Archie would go alone, park in the far corner of the car park, leaving the near spaces to shoppers who were spending money. He left his jacket in the car and walked unannounced into the store. He'd chat to customers: 'what do you like?', 'what could we do better?', 'thanks for shopping here' and to the staff: 'What's the best thing about working here? And the worst?' and finally he would talk to the manager, maybe over a coffee in the canteen. 'What can I do to make your life easier?' 'How's business?' A final walk round the store, maybe with the manger, then off to the car park to write any action notes to himself before setting off for the next visit. The point was not about the need to 'press the flesh' or be visible: it was how you got a realistic picture of what was going on and actually do...
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...DuPont Leadership Influence DuPont problems relate to the organizations employee safety and the environment, Intersect Investments problems for the organizations relates to profit loss and customer dissatisfaction. The leadership of both originations has to find a solution to become more popular in the public eye. Leadership is defined as “a social influence process in which the leaders seek the voluntary participation of subordinates in an effect to reach organizational goals” (Kreitner & Kinicki, 2003, p. 595). DuPont’s leaders in the past have participated in the leadership roles of some unethical tactics regarding the safety of employees. DuPont in the past has had “a miserable environmental health and safety record, and in the past has frequently run afoul of occupational safety laws and has deliberately concealed medical records identifying that several workers were suffering from illness related to asbestos exposure” (Corporate Watch, 2002, p. 2.) Being fine thousands and thousands of dollars by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the company has implemented training programs for the leaders and managers to ensure the safety of employees. Unclear Goals and Miscommunication DuPont over the years have been fined for the pollution of the environment by the EPA and OSHA for chemical spills, lack of employee safety and pollution. DuPont has spent millions of dollars in campaign advertisements...
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...RENAISSANCE LEADERSHIP Transforming Leadership for the 21st Century J. Martin Hays and Choule Youn Kim THE AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY Key Words: |Leadership |Management Education |Future Trends | |Leadership Development |The New Millennium |Leadership Competencies | ABSTRACT Conventional leaders and leadership of the past are insufficient to meet the demands of the 21st Century. As we enter the new millennium, our world is characterised by unprecedented complexity, paradox, and unpredictability. Change is rapid and relentless. Today’s leaders face demands unlike any ever before faced. Standard leadership approaches that have served us well throughout much of history are quickly becoming liabilities. Conventional wisdom regarding leadership and many of its habits must be unlearned. The strong, decisive, charismatic, and independent leader and leadership we have idealised, strived to be, depended upon, and longed for may prove counter-productive in the new millennium and undermine a sustainable future. The challenges and opportunities of the 21st Century call for a new type of leader and leadership, indeed an entirely new and different way of thinking about leadership and of developing future leaders. This paper explores the nature of the nascent millennium and the leader and leadership qualities and capabilities...
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...Proposal Edward D. Williams HRM/531 – Human Capital Management August 16, 2010 Professor Susan Frear Submitted for your approval is a request for change in our present company structure. Our objective is to streamline cost, increase productivity and improve the quality of life of our present and future employees. Through this restructure we will evenly distribute work responsibilities thereby more effectively sharing the work load. This move is necessary if we are to expand and compete with other companies in our industry. Our present setup is too narrow in its focus and scope. It does not allow for the potential growth and expansion of our business. For us to grow we must plan and make changes to our existing management and leadership structure. The following changes are hereby requested: 1. The elimination of in-store Wine Stewards at each location. We will reduce that position down to one Wine Steward who will rotate from store to store. That individual will also train store management and general staff at each store on the basics of wine nuances and selection. They will hold wine information and training sessions held at our locations and open to the public. This will create the potential to attract new clients to our facility and gain new customers. 2. The elimination of the in-store specialist position. Each department will receive training on their particular specialty. For example, the meat department will be trained on preparation and cuts of all types...
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...The 21 Indispensable Qualities of a Leader: Becoming the Person Others Will Want to Follow John C. Maxwell “If you can become the leader you ought to be on the inside, you will be able to become the person you want on the outside. People will want to follow you. And when that happens, you’ll be able to tackle anything in this world.” 1 1. Character: Be a Piece of the Rock “Leadership is the capacity and will to rally men and women to a common purpose and the character which inspires confidence.” ~ Bernard Montgomery, British Field Marshal What must everyone know about character? Actions are the Real Indicator of Character n Talent is a Gift, but Character is a Choice n Character Brings Lasting Success with People n Strong Character is the Foundation on which to Build Success n 2 2. Charisma : The First Impression Can Seal the Deal “How can you have charisma? Be more concerned about making others feel good about themselves than you are making them feel good about you.” ~Dan Reiland, Vice President of Leadership Development, INJOY “When it comes to charisma, the bottom line is othermindedness. Leaders who think about others and their concerns before thinking of themselves exhibit charisma.” ~John C. Maxwell 3 3. Commitment: It separates Doers from Dreamers n n n n To the boxer, it’s getting off the mat one more time than you’ve been knocked down. To the marathoner, it’s running another ten miles when your strength is gone. To the...
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...main value propositions: Skills, Networks, and Brand. Skills These include the "hard skills" of economics, finance, marketing, operations, management, and accounting, as well as the "soft skills " of leadership, teamwork, ethics, and communication that are so critical for effective management. MBA students acquire these skills inside and outside the classroom. Since MBA programs attract people from very diverse industries and cultures, a program should be able to leverage these differences and translate them into learning opportunities. Networks An MBA degree program offers access to a network of MBA students, alumni, faculty, and business and community leaders. This network can be very useful when beginning a job search, developing a career path, building business relationships in your current career, or pursuing expertise outside your current field. For example, entrepreneurs need access to capital, business partners, vendors, and clients. Arts-related businesses need access to funding and strategic management in order to position themselves to be relevant in the marketplace. Global businesses need access to local business cultures as they expand their enterprises to new territories. Brand The MBA degree is a recognized brand that signifies management and leadership training. The particular school and type of MBA program you attend also have brand associations that can help open doors based on the school's reputation. The strength of a school's brand is based on the...
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...I. Problems A. Macro 1. Project team is not functioning fast enough and not turning out results 2. Team morale/Friction within the group 3. Communication B. Micro 1. Macho manager syndrome 2. No effective leadership qualities 3. Inability to learn from team-building exercises/Takes the retreat as a joke II. Causes 1. Leadership style of John 2. Wants to be ‘head hancho’/Has flippant attitude towards exercises 3. Jokes about serious matters/Points to reason for failure 4. Lack of respect for team members, their feelings and efforts III. Systems Affected 1. Structural – John is no longer with the team; Addition of Ryan to get the team motivated 2. Psychosocial – Team members feel non-important; Leadership style of John was non-motivating; Lack of respect for efforts and lack of recognition for when efforts are made 3. Technical – The inability of John to lead the team probably led to the misuse of current technology and missed opportunities for new technology 4. Managerial – Pressure from upper management to get results; John did not respond appropriately and joked about serious matters; Lack of leadership was causing problems in the group 5. Goals – Group has not met goals in the two years that John was project manager; Addition of Ryan to get team on the right track and moving at a faster pace IV. Alternatives 1. Remove John – This has already happened 2. Split the group and assign to other tasks – This will allow the members to function properly within a...
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...UNIVERSITI UTARA MALAYSIA [pic] MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION Individual Assignment Case Study on Turning Around a Failing Business Organisation Name : Kiritharan a/l Subramaniam Matric no. : 804610 Course Title : Leadership in Organization Course Code : PMN 6043 Lecturer : Dr. Fais Ahmad Semester: June 2009 Somedicians are not for sale Today, the SOMEDICIANS are all smiles as their financial year end is drawing near. They are more than sure to arrive beyond the financial destination set and agreed almost a year ago, in the light of a gloomy year faced with the global economic downturn and its effect on the pharmaceutical industry at home. Today, undoubtedly, they hold their heads high as they sail through the financially turmoiled year with extraordinary success in term of progress and profitability. This is the same group of people who were stressed to the limit when the company was at the verge of being sold two years ago. They were worried of a post acquisition merger which could lend them jobless as the pharmaceutical industry has witnessed time and again throughout the many years. The mere thought of being jobless while faced with family and financial commitment chilled them through their bones. Future seemed so bleak with the company and their financial livelihood was at stake. Well, it’s all over now, something resulted in the company being turned around and full throttled towards its vision to be the ‘Premier Specialty Healthcare...
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...Chapter 3 of Developing a Leader Within is about integrity. Integrity can be defined as the state of being complete, unified. When I think about integrity honesty comes to my mind. It is basically being truthful about the things you say and do no matter what the situation is. For instance, if you told someone that you value honesty in a person, but became upset when they told you their honest opinion of you that is lack of integrity not sticking to what said. Integrity is being honest to yourself in actions, beliefs, and values. When you do not have integrity, you are only hurting yourself. Everyone is faced with issues that are conflicting. Having integrity will be needed to endure the issues. Integrity determines who we are and how we will respond to the conflict before it appears. By showing integrity to others, the more confident they are in you. However, the lack of integrity will only prove that they are less confident in you. Integrity builds trust. Maxwell says “in order to be a leader a man must have followers. And to have followers, a man must have their confidence.” Also, integrity has high influence in value. Integrity is regarded as high on the list of those traits which enhance effectiveness and as the human quality most necessary to business and personal success. Integrity facilitates high standards. In order to be successful, leaders must live by higher standards than their followers. Therefore, leaders must exemplify integrity on a daily basis even when times...
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...1.1 Since the Freescale 24000 employees in 30 countries and regions of large institutions. Collection, re-arrange, and display statistical data for the evaluation of a large matrix line manager has been the best solution. This also helps them to retain staff In order to find their own core competencies, personnel needs required for the project. Large-scale data collection is difficult to maintain 1.2 The most important indicator of the main advantages is that it is a very decent way to organize large amounts of data, it is very easy analysis and interpretation. On the other hand, it also has some limitations, and, although it was originally described, and I, and many other factors, however, some differences can be avoided in the same column, if you only measure the relative standard 1.3 Yes, the indicators, I can be applied to other areas of management. For example, matrics service center employee performance, management urged him to take the number, the time required, he resolved customer inquiries, and his average idle time. A performance factor, you can rely on indicators to measure and manage. 3. Pavlov discovered classical conditioning. Learning conditions of the reaction, including the establishment of a conditioned stimulus and unconditional stimulus response association between the call of the conditions, it is the response to be unconditional performance. Stimulation, a striking and neutral, are paired, neutral conditioned stimulus, therefore, the reaction...
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...were demanding ever-greater performance and commitment from employees. Valencia, Spain (More) For companies, the challenge became a question of how to orchestrate transformational change while simultaneously building employee morale and commitment, a seemingly contradictory endeavour. In the view of Conger, these events had a direct impact on the study of leadership. It turned attention to the senior leaders in the belief that they possessed the power and resources to effectively implement significant organisational change. In the late 1970’s an approach to studies of leadership emerged which engaged a number of researchers in the USA and expanded to investigate the extent to which a new theory of leadership behaviour, based first on studies of politicians, could be applied internationally, was more valid in circumstances of crisis, applied to people at different levels and was true for both public and private organisations. Transformational Leadership Theory emerged from considerations by James McGregor Burns [3] of the histories of various political leaders. Burns identified two types of leadership style, transformational and transactional...
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...Running head: Project Delivery PROJECT DELIVERY AT AUTODESK, INC. Professor James Marion BUS 518: Project Management Leadership December 11, 2011 Table of Contents Executive Summary 3 Determine how you would manage the morale of the team related to the change management 4 Critique what steps must be taken to ensure that all team members learn of changes 5 Assess the timing of communication as critical to the success of the project 6 Assume that two (2) key members of the were replaced during the executing phase of the project due to family crisis situations. Explain the actions you would take to establish trust and credibility with the remaining project participants involved in the situation 7 References 10 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Design technology company Autodesk recently expanded its presence in New England with a new headquarters for its Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) Solutions Division. It is located in Waltham, Massachusetts and the new facility accommodates staff expansions and offers additional space for meeting with its customers, the press, and the community. Autodesk viewed the project as an opportunity to implement several new trends in the building industry, including integrated project delivery (IPD), sustainable design, digital design-to-fabrication, and the technical process underpinning all of them—building information modeling (BIM). According to Phil Bernstein, FAIA, vice president...
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