LEADERSHIP AND DECISION-MAKING - Total 25 marks ALL QUESTIONS IN THIS SECTION MU
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Question
LEADERSHIP AND DECISION-MAKING - Total 25 marks ALL QUESTIONS IN THIS SECTION MUST BE ANSWERED IN RELATION TO CASE STUDY 3.
You are a business consultant who is preparing to give a seminar to first-line managers from Z Energy (aka `Zed`), one of New Zealand’s leading transport energy retailers. These junior managers are being prepared for advancement within the company, with a view to them becoming Site Managers, and possibly moving further up the corporate hierarchy. As part of their training they need to develop a deeper understanding of leadership and how it can be practiced within their own service station sites. It has been made clear to them by the company’s senior retail and training managers before your seminar that the quality of on-site leadership is a major positive point of difference between them and their competitors in the industry.
Question 7(A) Leadership and leadership decision making (15 marks) Using the normative leadership model (Pages 461-462 in the recommended textbook), show how each of the different decision styles could be used by a Zed manager with their followers and explain what you believe the likely results would be for each, and why. (3 marks for each type x 5 = 15 marks)
Question 7(B) Transactional and Transformational leadership (10 marks) I. What would you tell these managers if you had to comment, with reference to appropriate theory, on three (3) disadvantages of using a transactional leadership style with their followers at Zed? (3 x 1 mark = 3 marks) II. What would you tell these managers if you had to comment, with reference to appropriate theory, on three (3) advantages of using a transformational leadership style with their followers at Zed? (3 x 1 mark = 3 marks) III. What advice would you give these managers to help their followers at Zed develop a transformational leadership style of their own? Your answer, with reference to appropriate theory, should cover four (4) different points. (4 x 1 mark = 4 marks)
Explanation / Answer
7 A)The following Normative leadership models could be used for Zed Energy managers:
1. Autocratic Type 1, or AI. In this strategy, the manager makes the decision alone, relying on her own expertise. this can only be practised by Zed managers who have extensive experience in the transport enery retail e.g. for more than 5 years.
2. The next strategy is to consult individually, also known as Autocratic Type 2, or AII. Here, the manager presents the problem to the individual team members, collects individual feedback, and makes the decision. This can be practised by Zed managers who are new or have only couple of years of expeirence of this domain and who have subbordinates who are typically oder than them in the system.
3. The third strategy is to consult the group, or Consultative Type 1, or CI. This is where the manager presents the problem in a team meeting, collects group feedback, and makes the decision. This is most suitable for all managers and can be tried by them irrespective of how experienced they are in teh system. This allows for newer ideas to emerge while giving the last word to the line manager.
4. Consultative Type 2, or CII. In this strategy, the manager presents the problem in a team meeting, acting as a facilitator, with the goal of reaching a unified decision as a team. This strategy is less likely to be useful at Zed energy as it is likely to lead to chaos and waste of time.
5. The final strategy is delegate, or Group-based Type 2, or GII. Here, the manager allows the team to make the decision, while her main role becomes to provide resources. This method again will lead to wastage of time and is likely to lead to chaos .
7 B)
I)The following the the 3 disadvantages of Transactional Leadership:
1. Unyielding Leadership
Transactional leadership is a style of leadership that not only has a clear structure. It also has unbendable policies and rules. Despite the rewards members of organizations can expect and the kind of autonomy or independence they have in doing their tasks, they have to work within the rules of the management. Because of this inflexibility,the leader of Zed Energy will find it difficult to adjust to certain situations and somehow limits creativity.
2. Does not Encourage Creativity
Since this leadership style is rigid and not into bending principles and rules as well as listening to suggestions from people under the management, this hampers creativity from members of the team who might have sound and effective recommendations for the betterment of the organization. The short-term goals and structured policies make it hard for transactional leaders to make changes and be open to ideas from others that do not go with their existing goals. Zed Energy if it relies on a transactional leader, if this person leaves, it can affect the business because most of the employees are have not been given the opportunity to become leaders but merely followers.
3. Accountability of Employees
Another disadvantage of transactional leadership is its practice of providing the tasks to employees, along with their policies and principles to be strictly followed. If and when something goes wrong in the process, employees are the ones to be blamed and who are responsible for the outcome. Critics find this to be a reason for the dissatisfaction and unhappiness of employees. This is because these people know that the organization does not really put their welfare first. Also, this type of management at Zed Energy will make them feel like they are not really members of the organization but merely people paid to do their jobs.
II) Three advantages of transformational leadership:
1. Exceptional People Skills
A transformational leader recognizes and exploits an existing need or demand of a potential follower and looks for potential motives in followers, seeks to satisfy higher needs, and engages the full person of the follower. A Transformational leader is heroic, vigorous, decisive -- even charismatic -- because the transformational leader so skillfully motivates employees. A leader within Zed Energy with these exceptional people skills will bring an advantage to any endeavor one undertakes.
2. Lower Employee and Customer Turnover Costs
One advantage of the transformational leadership style is the manager's ability to retain employees and customers. The transformational leader fully engages with people and seeks to satisfy their needs right along with the organization's needs. Less turnover means less hiring and less training -- a big savings for the business. When a transformational leader at Zed Energy interacts with customers in the same, effective manner, he retains your customers, potentially limiting the cost of constantly marketing for and selling new customers.
3. New Initiatives
Placing managers with transformational leadership skills in roles where you need to manage change and improvement will bring some of your best returns, according to the website Transformational Leadership. Ask a transformational leader to oversee special projects in the form of new initiatives. As she responds to the ever-changing needs of both the organization and the team, the transformational leader empowers employees of Zed Energy to makes changes in themselves and realize their full potential. This obviously provides the business the advantage of superior employee performance.
3) How Zed Managers can help build transformational leadership style amongst ther employees:
Zed Energy transformational Leaders must train employees if it expects effective outcomes. Put transformational leaders in charge of corporate learning, and they tend to improve the outcomes of existing employees and equip new employees for productive work. A transformational leader brings increased effectiveness to Zedstaff when he engages in corporate learning -- a definite advantage for their business. Transformational leaders are particularly good at culture building, providing intellectual stimulation and individual support, modeling positive behaviors, vision-building and holding high performance expectations for Zed employees.
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