100 word response to each case study. 6 total responseCase 1 Alexandra Devries posted Jan 13,
2019 8:40 PMSubscribe Key Issues:Ashley, the new division president for Ultra Covers, is in charge
of turning a profit for the division as it has been losing money for several
years. Ashley has been using harsh language when talking to her employees about
having to change things or they could lose their jobs.Contributory Factors:·Ashley worked 4 years as a manufacturing
manager within the same company.·She was then given an opportunity to be the
division president of Ultra Covers. This division has been losing money for
several years.·After starting her new position, Ashley met
with workers and managers within the division as well as major customers of their
products.·Ashley told some of the staff in her division
that they would lose their jobs if things were not turned around.·She wants sales to increase by 15% to which a
sales manager responded it was unrealistic to think about achieving that.·She then ordered expenses to be cut by 10% by
adjusting thermostats, making double sided photocopies, and cutting back on the
number of employees.·After these discussions, Ashley heard that
some of her staff were thought “her turnaround efforts appeared to be a little
harsh” (Dubrin 2016).·Ashley believes there are a lot of untapped
customers to which their company can reach out to in order to increase sales.
She sent out a motivational video to the division about this opportunity to
inspire staff.The Root Cause:The root cause of Ashley being looked at as harsh is because she
has to put deadlines on changes in order to help the division last. If they are
not able to make a profit, the products will be outsourced, and the staff will
lose their jobs. However, some of the expenses that Ashley wants to decrease
seem to be unnecessary. Adjusting the thermostat may save some money, but it
can also decrease productivity and staff in the office if it is too hot or
cold. Ashley is worried about the future of her division and is willing to do
whatever is necessary to help it thrive.Solutions:To start off, Ashley needs to understand that turning the division
around will not happen overnight. Although she spent time meeting workers in
her company, she has to show her staff she can be a transformational leader.
She has to be candid about the company’s direction, but also encourage personal
development of the staff to keep a positive attitude among them. She should not
expect them to dramatically increase profits by “working harder”. This makes it
seem as if they have not been working hard enough. They should gear their
efforts towards more effective marketing strategies to try to gain more
customers as she is aware of billions of potential customers that do not use
their product, yet.Advantages:When you have a leader who has high expectations, it could
encourage staff to think outside-the-box to figure out how to accomplish what
needs to be done. Also, as a new boss it could give the staff motivation as she
has new ideas and a new vision as to how the company should progress.Disadvantages:The disadvantages of having a supervisor that puts deadlines to
accomplish tasks or risk being fired includes putting excess stress on the
staff of an already failing division. One of the managers believes the
task he was assigned is unrealistic, so it could cause a decrease in motivation
as he knows he will not complete it.Final Suggestions:I would suggest the following:1.Ashley needs to understand that transforming
her division is not going to happen overnight. She needs to keep positivity and
happiness among the staff even though their jobs may in jeopardy.2.Being able to tap into the customers that
could use their products to increase sales would be beneficial in the company
turning a profit. This could be completed through more effective marketing
instead of pushing the sales department to their limits.Questions:1.How successful do you think
Ashley will be as a transformational leader at Ultra Cover?I believe Ashley will be very successful as a transformational
leader at Ultra Cover. She has high expectations for the department and is
passionate in making sure it succeeds. She also has a vision already as to how
to improve customer sales. She needs to work on her communication skills and
being warmer with her staff, but it is a learning experience and I believe she
will adapt well.2. What might Ashley be doing right as a transformational
leader?As a transformational leader, Ashley is an innovative thinker and
has a vision for her department. She also practices empowerment. She trusts
different managers to control the sales and expenses of the department which
are the 2 major components that determine how well the company is performing.3. What suggestions might you offer Ashley to be more
successful as a transformational leader?I would suggest Ashley provides supportive leadership. She
threatened one of her managers to increase the sales or he could lose his job.
This also can be considered a lack of charisma. She is very blunt about what
she is thinking, and she has to be able to be more encouraging of the staff and
having emotional intelligence.lessCase 2 Antoinette Rucker posted Jan 15,
2019 11:46 PMSubscribe Key Issues:Tim is very enthusiastic about promoting motivational messages to
increase productivity within his staff. Though I fear his positive
outlook may come off a bit insincere; and to in your face. He posts
messages to his staff’s social media pages, but not all of the messages are
from the heart or genuine, some may even seem a bit overbearing. They're
not personalized so I think the messages may fall on deaf ears.Contributory Factors:·Tim inspirational messages are not personal to
each individual employee, there blanket messages that do not display inspiring
meaning to make the individual feel good about themselves.·Tim feels his employees have really reached
the plateau that he assumes they should be at, which is why he is going above
and beyond to inspire them.·Tim didn’t get the response he was hoping
because what he perceives as him not motivating and inspiring his employees
better, comes from him not putting his self out there enough to do so.The Root Cause:The root cause is Tim does not believe that his charisma is
working well enough to inspire his employees to perform better. He thinks
that he needs to motivate them more by posting inspirational messages to their
social media pages, but he is not taking into consideration that not everyone
responds the same to being motivated in particular ways.Solutions:First Tim needs to reconsider his approach and tailor his
inspiration to individuals specifically that are not performing how he foresees
they should be performing. If there is a staff member that looks as if
they could use a boost and you know they like inspirational messages, then
maybe he could send a few their way, but don’t bombard them with messages daily
because them it can become bothersome and it could feel ingenuine. Secondly
since he already checks on his employees by stopping by to see them and calling
them on the phone, he could talk to them about what’s going on in their life,
actually get to know his employees and learn ways they like to motivated, also
learn what their goals are regarding their career in the company.Advantages:Tim has all the qualities of a good leader, he cares and genuinely
wants his staff does well, he already is a leader who is approachable for his
employees, and he is very engaged on the job. These qualities will serve
him well because his employees know they can trust him and realize he actually
motivates them to become better performers on the job.Disadvantages:The disadvantages of being a charismatic person can sometimes seem
as if the reasoning behind the façade is fake. Tim’s message could come
off like they're just messages that are in place to get us to help the company
make more money through our sales. They can seem as if they are not
supportive messages, even though his heart is in the right place his message to
inspire may not be garnering the correct response.Final Suggestions:I would suggest the following:1.Tim needs to personalize his inspirational
messages and tailor them to fit each individual employee, for instance instead
of sending messages like if not you, who, perhaps he can say your added value
to the team will not only ensure the company is winning, but this will increase
your sales and put more money in your pocket.2.He needs to build a rapport where they seem
him as a leader who is not only engaging and mission-oriented but as a leader
who was there back and is rooting for them to succeed.Questions:1.How effective do you think
Tim’s posts are in terms of expressing his charisma?I think they are somewhat effective, some employees appreciated
his post on encouragement, but I think the others thought it may have been too
much whereas he didn’t connect with everyone he intended too. He did not
develop a synchrony with all the staff.2.How effective do you think
Tim’s post is for purposes of inspiring the sales representatives to sell more
auto parts and supplies?I do not think they were a very effective tool
to increase sales for the auto supplies, they could be a great motivational
tool if we were focused on life goals, but they did not raise people’s
awareness on how to increase sales, and how increasing sale would be beneficial
to the individuals.3.What else do you recommend that
Tim do to express his charisma via social networking websites?I think he should incorporate small 1 min
clips on YouTube where he can articulate where he foresees sales going, and
explains his vision for getting them to this goal.Reference:DuBrin, A. J. (2013). The nature and importance of
leadership. Leadership and Management in Criminal Justice (Custom
Version 7e ed.). Boston, MA: Cengage Learning.Case 3Key IssuesAshley has landed a new position as a division lead to a small and
troubled unit. The division manufactures stylish covers for cell phones,
smartphones, laptops, and tablet computers. Ultra Covers has been losing money
for several years, so Ashley decided to convert Ultra Covers into a proud and
profitable business unit (DuBrin, 2016).Contributory Factors*Ashley conducted a listening tour of the
company, interacting with workers and managers at all levels of the division*She also spoke with the major customers and
several kiosk operators *Ashley informed the manufacturing group that
if they could not reduce manufacturing costs by 10 percent within six months,
she might shut down domestic manufacturing and outsource all manufacturing to
China.*Ken was demanded by Ashley to produce a 15
percent jump in sales and if not he would jeopardize his job.*Ashley ordered managers and supervisors to
find ways to reduce division costs by 10 percent in the upcoming fiscal year.The Root CauseThe Root Cause of the problem that Ashley is having from her new
position stems from the downfall of the company before she took over this
position. Ashley is being very tough on her staff and not giving them a chance
to prove that they can do the adjustments needed to build the company to better
standards.Solutions:Considering the fact that Ashley is new on the job she has to sit
back and let the company run for a brief period so that she can see what is
wrong and know what to fix. The changes that she is making immediately is not
helping because she is diving head first without getting concise knowledge on
what is going on. Ashley needs relax and breath and not make so many drastic
choices that may affect her later.Advantages:The advantages of Ashley’s behavior are that she has set a plan on
what she wants to do with the company and she is completing this plan to meet
the company’s goal.Disadvantages:The disadvantages of this style of active proactive leadership can
deter her workers from wanting to work at this company. It is a constant
hardship to work somewhere and have so much pressure be administered to the
individuals for something they have no control over.Final Suggestions:1.Ashley needs to think again and closely about
her proactive engagement with her coworkers. 2.Secondly, she needs to sit back and let the
company run itself for a while, then make the necessary corrections.Questions1.How successful do you think
Ashley will be as a transformational leader at Ultra Cover?Ashley is going to be great as a transformational leader at Ultra
Cover she just needs to slow her pace down a little.2.What might Ashley be doing
right as a transformational leader?Ashley has a game plan and is executing it
effectively. 3.What suggestion might you offer Ashley to be more successful
as a transformational leader?To be a more successful transformational she must first examine
the problem before you try to fix it.Case 4 Carlisha Russell posted Jan 17, 2019
6:08 PMSubscribe Key Issues: Frank is the business development manager at a small firm that
provides business process improvement solutions to federal, state, and local
governments. Up until last year, the company had enough contracts to be
profitable. (DuBrin, 2013) Frank hasn’t heard about any new contracts
from his project managers in a year.Contributory Factors: ·Big contracts have expired and have not yet
been renewed.·The company could lose money and be forced to
lay off employees.·The firm needs $1 million worth of new contract
to stay afloat.·Government spending is tight and there is no
budget.·Frank does not want to hear excuses as to why
there are no new contracts.The Root Cause:Project manager Jennifer and Oliver are trying to explain to Frank
the real reason why there are no new contract. The project managers know
just like Frank that they need new contracts or their jobs can be at
risk. Frank is worried at the possible risk of downsizing. He has
communicated with his project managers, but is refusing to accept the reasoning
for why it is hard to get new contracts. Frank is telling his project
managers to make some new contracts happen, but he does not believe it is his
responsibility to help.Solution:The firm needs to work on obtaining contracts from businesses outside
of the government. They need to reach out to the state and federal
agencies and work on starting new updated contracts with those businesses, so
that they will not lose out. Frank needs to be a better listener and work
on being a problem solver. If Frank wants to really help the firm, he
will be a team player and help to obtain contracts or lead his managers to the
new business. Advantages:The firm has other businesses they can do contracts with outside
of the government. Frank as the development manager might have insight on
new contracts. Everyone at the firm is willing to help the firm, they
just don’t know where to start.Disadvantages:Frank is worried and discouraged about the future of the
firm. His negative attitude is not helping with encouraging the project
managers to obtain new contracts. He gave them a deadline that might not
be obtained. Frank does not appear to want to help the project managers.Final Suggestions:I would suggest the following:1.That the project managers focus on contracts
with the state and federal businesses. The firm needs to come up with
some incentives that would persuade companies to do business with them.2.If Frank really cares about not having to
downsize then he should be more of a team player. He needs to take his
frustration and use it as an opportunity to help the firm. This could
also be a training moment, by Frank helping he is showing his staff how to
support in a time of need regardless of you title.Questions:1.Based on the limited evidence, how would you
characterize Frank’s leadership style?Frank appears to have an autocratic leadership style. Frank
has told the managers what he expects of them and wants them to get in done
within his set time frame.1.What leadership behaviors and attitudes is
Frank displaying?Frank has high performance standards. He knows that its
tough times right now, but he still expects his managers to get the job
done. He knows that at the current time the task is tough, but he knows
it still needs to be done.1.How else might Frank approach his project
managers about developing new business?Frank needs to adapt to the situation, if he was better at
adapting then I doubt he’d be as worried and frustrated about what’s to
come. By adapting he will be able to set the direction for change and
communicate what achievements he wants his staff to accomplish. ReferencesDuBrin, A. J. (2013). Leadership: Research Findings,
Practice, and Skills. Mason: South Western, Cengage Learning.lessCase 5 Nancy McCurdy posted Jan 17, 2019 8:50 PMSubscribe Key Issues:Tricia works in a regional headquarters of an International Bank,
as a human resource team leader. Tricia is a little too much business like and
task oriented in her leadership position and wants to become more Facebook
friendly with her staff of five. Tricia starts out posting about work related
issues and is doing great. She starts to become more friendly and personal
about her post and her staff members became feeling uncomfortable with her
post. Contributory Factor:·Tricia is a human resource team leader for an
International bank, with five staff members. ·Tricia states one of her post “I feel good
about the response we are getting to our proposed wellness program” (DuBrin,
140). ·She starts to post more personal messages,
which were making her staff feel uncomfortable. ·Tricia wants to improve her leadership skills
to become a better human resource team leader. The Root Cause:The root cause of Tricia’s low response to her Facebook post was,
Tricia as a team leader of a company was trying to build a relationship with
her staff members but became too personal with them. Tricia needs to keep a
work related relationship with her staff and kept it as that. Solutions:Keep her post work related, and post about their various task they
are responsible for. As a team leader her bosses could see that she takes
a possible refresher course on leadership and continue it every six months.
Tricia could also do research herself on becoming a better team leader. Advantages:Everyone likes Tricia and works well with her. The new hires for
the office is working out great and turning out above average performances.
Good responses about the proposed wellness program. Disadvantages:Personal posts Tricia has been posting to her staff members are
making them feel uncomfortable with her personal content in them. Tricia wanted
to build a more relationship with her staff but with her personal post she
began to push them away with them feeling uncomfortable. Final Suggestions: I would suggest the following:1.There needs to be more group meetings with a
suggesting time to open up for new ideas and issues. Topics that were work
related could be brought up and talked about how to better the company and if
there are any problems that need to be dealt with instead of Tricia getting on
Facebook and announcing it in a post. If there is any personal issues that need
to be addressed then they should be in person and in Tricia’s office to be
addressed. There could be more office events scheduled between Tricia and
her staff members to build a closer relationship so the office does not become
impersonal and low morale. Questions: 1.What would you advise Tricia to
do about future posts of a personal nature to the team? As a team leader Tricia should limit what she post with her team
of workers. Once the line is crossed with bass and team workers it can become
uncomfortable for all involved. If issues arise with the team worker/friend it
can be very awkward if you have to reprimand or fire them. With building a
close personal relationship with a worker, others may look at it as they may be
getting special treatment, which can lower self-esteem and morale in the work
place. Tricia’s post should remain work related. It is ok to post pictures and
commits if they are from the workplace and work related. 1.Which one or two
relationship-oriented behaviors does Tricia appear to be exaggerating? Tricia wants to improve her leadership skills so she can try to
pull everyone in the same direction in applying the “Aligning people” behavior.
Tricia is also displaying the “Openness” behavior and the “Opinion” behavior to
her staff members, displaying in her post about her boyfriend and their issues.
Also she could be displaying a “Servant behavior” with her wanting to help
others in the workplace. 1.If your team leader sent you a
post about his or her team leadership role and your potential friendship, how
would you respond?I would graciously decline a personal outing with my boss, as not
to look unprofessional in other coworkers’ eyes. I would want to keep it on a
professional standing as not to feel uncomfortable with other staff members.
Usually bosses and workers cannot form a true friendship like as the same
coworkers with same states in work. Some may expect special treatment from the
boss who is their friend.Case 6 Tisha Arther posted Jan 17, 2019
9:12 PMSubscribe Frank Won’t Accept “We Can’t” for an AnswerLeadership
Case Problem AKey
Issues:Frank,
business development manager at a small firm, is running out of government
contracts to stay afloat. Up until last year, the company was profitable with
contracts (DuBrin, 2013). Frank is concerned that his four project managers are
not putting forth the effort to gain more contracts. Frank has also grown
inpatient causing him to be very authoritative and assertive with the project
managers without offering real solutions to the problem.Contributory
Factors:·
Government spending has tightened up.·
The government agency does not have money in the budget.·
Project managers need help for a new direction for ascertaining contracts.·
Project managers are full of excuses.·
Project managers need to work harder.·
There must be a deadline for project managers to negotiate a contract within 6
months.The
Root Cause:The
root cause of Frank’s dilemma is the fact that his project managers are full of
excuses. It was easy to report to Frank reasons why they could not ascertain a
government contract than it was to provide Frank with innovative ideas to earn
a new contract. Perhaps, Frank is too stressed to think rationally about
gaining a new contract. Frank is not a participative leader; however, he is an
autocratic leader who retains most of the authority (DuBrin, 2013). Frank makes
demands and assume that project managers would comply and appears to be not
overly concerned with their excuses about rectifying their situation.Solutions:A
sanguine approach to Frank’s financial crisis would be: sharing decision making
with project managers and working with group members side by side like a
participative leader would do (DuBrin, 2013). Frank’s project managers asked
for assistance in pointing them in a new direction for ascertaining contracts.
Frank’s response was in discouragement. Given that a major responsibility of
leadership is to produce change, Frank must set the direction of that change
because direction setting is part of creating a vision and a component of
strategy (DuBrin, 2013). The project managers did not receive that support from
Frank.Advantages:Having
an autocratic leader such as Frank is beneficial because he is task-oriented.
These types of leaders also place heavy emphasis on getting the mission
accomplished. DuBrin (2013) posits typical autocratic leaders include directing
employees, asserting authority, and serving as a model for team members to
emulate. Frank offered to assist with solutions, but made it very clear that he
did not want to do the project manager’s jobs.Disadvantages:The
disadvantages of having an autocratic leader like Frank is that the
motivational style is negative. Conflict arises easily when there is autocratic
leadership due to added pressure and frustration in the atmosphere. Sometimes
managers such as Frank are poor motivators, and employees like the project
managers under Frank, would exemplify a lack of creativity and judgment in
return.Final
Suggestions:I
would suggest the following:Frank
must become a participative leader. He must also empower his project managers.
DuBrin (2013) highlights the participative leadership style encompasses the
teamwork approach. It appears as if Frank is just barking out orders with no
real guidance for the solution to their million-dollar problem. My final
suggestion for Frank is to work on being a servant leader during difficult
times. He should listen first to project managers to express confidence in
them. DuBrin (2013) posits the servant leader makes a deep commitment to
listening in order to get to know the concerns, requirements, and problems of
project managers. I felt that Frank was not trying to listen thoroughly to the
project managers due to his frustration and a low tolerance level.Questions:1.
Based on the limited evidence, how would you characterize Frank’s leadership
style?I
would characterize Frank’s leadership style as autocratic because he is very
authoritative and assertive. Frank offers no insight; Frank only makes demands.2.
What leadership behaviors and attitudes is Frank displaying?Frank
is displaying a controlling leadership grid. Frank expect results and take
control by stating a course of action, “I don’t care which one pulls it off,
but I want one new pending contract for my approval within six months”. Frank
enforces rules that sustain high results and do not permit deviation, “I’ve
heard enough excuses”.3.
How else might Frank approach his project managers about developing new
business?Frank
should approach his project managers about developing new business by giving
emotional support and encouragement to his project managers because they did
ask for guidance. Frank should also exemplify the ability to ask tough
questions. According to DuBrin (2013) leaders an be effective by asking tough
questions rather than providing answers because a tough question is one that
makes a person or group stop and think about why they are doing or not doing
something.Reference:DuBrin,
A. J. (2013). Leadership: Research findings, practice and skills (7th ed.).
Mason,
OH: South-Western, Cengage Learning.
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