Profiles Employee 1 : Micel works for a firm that manufactures luggage for luxur

Question

Profiles

Employee 1: Micel works for a firm that manufactures luggage for luxury travel, but he’s had precious little time for vacationing himself. During his last vacation with his family 3 years ago, he spent most of the time in his hotel room in a resort with his smart phone, while his wife Rabia chatted with other guests, hoping he’d finally finish with work. Rabia says that no meal or movie goes by without her husband being hunched over his smart phone. He is a star employee and he sets high standards for himself and others. He would typically see, employee requests like asking for time extensions for work completion as inexcusable and that every person has to manage his / her own life and should not let their personal life affect their performance in the work place

Employee 2: Waleed is a Health and Safety manager in a company that runs several hypermarkets. He earned a good name at work and is known to be highly reliable at work. He is home latest by 7p.m and spends most evenings with his family either indoors or taking them out. He helps his children with their school projects and believes that a good parent has to spend time with children and be involved in their lives. He helps his wife who is an HR consultant in a recruitment firm. Both of them believe that work and family are two pillars of life and they have to give equal time to both. Waleed empathizes with the personal problems of employees reporting to him and gives them support to do their best in their jobs as well.

Case

When people think of a typical leader, they often get the image of a dynamic public speaker, a forceful and dominant personality, and someone who can cultivate relationships with a broad number of people. These are all hallmarks of the extroverted personality type, so it’s often been the case that extroverts rise to leadership positions more readily than introverts. However, some question whether the social dominance and ability to command attention shown by extraverts might make them less effective leaders in certain ways. In particular, extroverts may be less likely to take advice from followers. One study investigated how quickly groups of college students could fold shirts in 10 minutes. Each group had a leader who was cued to be either extroverted or introverted. The introverted leaders took more advice

from their proactive followers, and this led the groups with introverted leaders to be more effective. Thus, even though there are cases where introverts are less successful as leaders, in some conditions they are more effective. Others note that introverted leaders can be better than extroverts at one-on-one interactions, empathy, and deliberate decision making.

Are there business executives who break the extroverted leader mold? One is Google co-founder Larry Page, well known for developing a small number of close relationships and being an excellent listener. Colgate-Palmolive chief Ian Cook might feel uncomfortable in front of large groups of people he doesn’t know, but he has learned to partner with more extroverted colleagues for presentations to offset his natural shyness. Wal-Mart Stores CEO Mike Duke is famously low-key and reserved, but he has utilized his natural introvert skills of managing details and engineering solutions to maintain the retail giant’s dominant market position. These examples show that although extroverts might get all the attention, introverts can still make effective leaders.

1- Are you more of an introverted or extraverted leader? What can you do to leverage your personality to be a more effective leader?

2- Under what conditions do you think extraverts make more effective leaders than introverts? What unique abilities of introverts could make them more effective in some situations?

3- The case describes some problems introverts might have in leadership situations. What techniques might they employ to help them overcome these?

4- What types of developmental experiences do you think would be especially valuable for introverted leaders?

5- in which kinds of situations do you think introverts make more effective leaders than extraverts? What unique extravert trait could make the introverts more effective in those same situations?

6- Are you more of an introverted or extraverted leader? What kind of changes can you make to take advantage of characteristics of the “other” style — whether it is extraversion or introversion? Which of your natural traits should you work to solidify and strengthen?

7- Who is your favorite business leader? How would you describe this person’s style? What elements from this person can you “borrow” to improve your own leadership abilities? Explain.

Note: Please answer from the case with using the relation in leadership with explanation

Employee 1: Micel works for a firm that manufactures luggage for luxury travel, but he’s had precious little time for vacationing himself. During his last vacation with his family 3 years ago, he spent most of the time in his hotel room in a resort with his smart phone, while his wife Rabia chatted with other guests, hoping he’d finally finish with work. Rabia says that no meal or movie goes by without her husband being hunched over his smart phone. He is a star employee and he sets high standards for himself and others. He would typically see, employee requests like asking for time extensions for work completion as inexcusable and that every person has to manage his / her own life and should not let their personal life affect their performance in the work place

Employee 2: Waleed is a Health and Safety manager in a company that runs several hypermarkets. He earned a good name at work and is known to be highly reliable at work. He is home latest by 7p.m and spends most evenings with his family either indoors or taking them out. He helps his children with their school projects and believes that a good parent has to spend time with children and be involved in their lives. He helps his wife who is an HR consultant in a recruitment firm. Both of them believe that work and family are two pillars of life and they have to give equal time to both. Waleed empathizes with the personal problems of employees reporting to him and gives them support to do their best in their jobs as well.

Explanation / Answer

1-    Are you more of an introverted or extraverted leader? What can you do to leverage your personality to be a more effective leader?

I am personally more introverted leader. Being an introvert has its advantages.

·         Introverts are thinkers, in fact they think too much. Introverts often think about multiple scenarios of how a particular problem may pan out. This gives them a unique advantage of being ready for any situation. And leaders are supposed to have insight into any problem situation.

·         Introverts listen when other talk. This makes other people more comfortable talking about problem or providing ideas for improving business.

·         Being a too much of thinker also often leads to introverts being more creative with their solutions to the problems. This could often set new standards. Introverts have to take risks in order to experiment with the problems by using their unconventional solutions. This earns reputation of being a leader.

2-    Under what conditions do you think extraverts make more effective leaders than introverts? What unique abilities of introverts could make them more effective in some situations?

Extraverts are good at taking a leap of faith. In the sense, they are the first ones to grab an opportunity even when they are unsure of the final benefits of it. For example, in case of making a marketing pitch to the customer, or better socialising with customers or public in general, extroverts gain the impression of being go getter immediately. This go getter attitude is also an important feature of a leader.

3-    The case describes some problems introverts might have in leadership situations. What techniques might they employ to help them overcome these?

-       Introverts have to try and come out of the comfort zone. This can be done my having more extravert people as colleagues or subordinates. Rub off effects can do the trick.

-       Introverts may be uncomfortable in front of large groups of people. Preparation is a must in such cases. Practicing lines for socializing would help in kick-starting a conversation.

4-    What types of developmental experiences do you think would be especially valuable for introverted leaders?

-       Introverts must be more inclined to taking risks in order to validate their ideas. It is to be noted that introverts better analyse any situation, hence their solutions are usually have higher probability of success.

-       Giving a one on one coaching would help the introverts deal with their shortcomings. The more the introverts know about themselves the better they can work on their strengths and weaknesses.

5-    In which kinds of situations do you think introverts make more effective leaders than extraverts? What unique extravert trait could make the introverts more effective in those same situations?

-       Introverts are better at analysing the risks and opportunities in any situation. Not only that, they have an eye for detail. So, extraverts may gain a project with their outgoing nature. But when it comes to effective execution phase, introvert leader excel.

-       Introverts are better at listening to people’s problems. Introverts provide a calm and this makes his subordinates more loyal to him/her.

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