Trident MGT401 Leadership and Change (NOV2015FT-1)

 

Module 1 – Case Due 16-Nov-15

 

LEADERSHIP TRAITS, BEHAVIORS, AND STYLES

 

Case Assignment

 

One of the most surprising recent success stories in the corporate world is the rapid turnaround of Chrysler under the leadership of CEO Sergio Marchionne.  Chrysler went bankrupt during the 2008-2009 automotive industry crisis and needed a large bailout loan from the government.  But Marchionne exceeded all expectations and not only returned Chrysler to profitability within two years but also managed to repay its loan from the government six years ahead of schedule. 

 

But Marchionne is not your typical CEO.  His approach to turning around Chrysler has been described as “tough love” and his habits of rapidly hiring and firing senior executives has raised some eyebrows.  Simultaneously serving as both the CEO of Chrysler and CEO of Italian automaker Fiat, he is known as a workaholic and micromanager. Marchionne’s leadership style makes for an ideal case study due to his unique personality, and because there is plenty of articles written about him available in the Trident library and on the internet.  

 

Review the background materials on leadership traits, behaviors, and styles.  Then do some research on Sergio Marchionne’s leadership style and personality.  Here are some articles to get you started: 

 

Wernle, B., & Ciferri, L. (2009). Life under Marchionne: New stars, hasty exits. Automotive News, 84(6381), 1-1,42. [Proquest]

 

2011 All-Stars: Sergio Marchionne. (2011). Automotive News, 86(6492), 28. [Proquest]

 

Flavelle, D. (2014, Mar 08). CEO aims to steer Chrysler back on track. Toronto Star, Toronto. [Proquest]

 

Wernle, B. (2010). Inside Chrysler’s Mind. Automotive News, 84(6396), 1-1,19. [Proquest] 

 

Once you are finished with your research on Marchionne and have thoroughly reviewed the background materials on leadership traits, behaviors, and styles write a four to five page paper addressing the following questions. For each answer, make sure to cite at least one of the Case Assignment articles listed on this page as well as one of the required textbook chapters from the background materials such as Avery (2011), Hiriyappa (2009), or Kumar (2009):

 

http://www.pearsoncustom.com/mct-comprehensive/asset.php?isbn=1269879944&id=11657

 

Avery, G. (2011). Chapter 4:  Micro-level leadership theories.  Understanding Leadership: Paradigms and Cases. SAGE Publications Ltd, London, pp. 67-75. [Ebrary.  Note: You only have to read the first nine pages in this chapter but the rest of the chapter will be covered in Module 2]

 

Hiriyappa, B. (2009). Chapter 10: Dynamics of managerial leadership. Organizational Behavior. New Age International, Delhi [Ebrary]

 

Kumar, N. (2009). Chapter 14: Leadership.  Organizational Behaviour: A New Look: Concept, Theory and Cases. Global Media, Mumbai, pp. 263-274. [Ebrary. Note: you don’t have to read the whole chapter just up to page 274 but the rest of the chapter will covered in Module 2] 

 

1.     1.  How would you describe Marchionne’s personality and leadership traits?  Refer to the traits discussed in Avery (2011) and Kumar (2009), and consider the common traits listed discussed in these book chapters such as drive, intelligence, integrity, and self-confidence.

 

2.     2.  Would you describe Marchionne’s behavior as being task-oriented, or people-centered/relationship-oriented?  Refer to Avery (2011) and the Pearson tutorial in your answer.

 

3.     3.  How would you describe Marchionne’s leadership style?  Consider the leadership styles discussed in the “Types of Leaders/Leadership Styles” section of Chapter 10 of Hiriyappa (2010)

 

Assignment Expectations

·       Follow the assignment instructions closely and follow all steps listed in the instructions

·       Stay focused on the precise assignment questions, don’t go off on tangents or devote a lot of space to summarizing general background materials

·       List supporting references and cite sources in proper format

·       Use appropriate writing style in essay form (organization, grammar, and spelling).

·       Include both a bibliography and in-text citations. See the Student Guide to Writing a High-Quality Academic Paper, including pages 13-14 on in-text citations. Another resource is the “Writing Style Guide”, which is found under “My Resources” in the TLC portal.

·       Submit an Originality Report using Turnitin.  

 

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Module 2 – Case Due 30-Nov-15

 

ONE SIZE DOESN’T FIT ALL: SITUATIONAL APPROACHES TO LEADERSHIP

 

Case Assignment

 

For this assignment, first review the background materials with a focus on Hersey and Blanchard’s Situational Leadership model.  Make sure you are familiar with  the four leadership styles covered in the situational approach including Directing, Coaching, Supporting, and Delegating and situations where you are supposed to use these four styles.  

 

Also, familiarize yourself with the more complex Path Goal model and Fiedler’s Contingency model. You don’t need to know these two models in as much detail as the Situational model to complete this assignment, but make sure you understand the main idea of these models as well as some of their main advantages and disadvantages.

 

http://www.pearsoncustom.com/mct-comprehensive/asset.php?isbn=1269879944&id=11603

 

Now pick up where you left off in Chapter 4 of Avery (2011) and read her perspective on contingency theories:

 

Avery, G. (2011). Contingency theories: Situations matter, from Chapter 4 of Understanding Leadership: Paradigms and Cases. SAGE Publications Ltd, London, pp. 78-86. [Ebrary]

 

Since this is a relatively complex topic, make sure to read up more on this topic with the following readings.  Most of these readings are pretty short but they are important:

 

Kumar, N. (2009). Chapter 14: Leadership.  Organizational Behaviour: A New Look : Concept, Theory and Cases.  Global Media, Mumbai, pp. 274-278. [Ebrary. Note: you don’t have to read the whole chapter just the last few pages]

 

Burke, R., & Barron, S. (2014). Chapter 6, Section 3: Situational leadership. Project Management Leadership: Building Creative Teams (2nd Edition). John Wiley & Sons, Incorporated. Somerset, NJ, USA, pp. 88-90. [Ebrary]

 

Williams, M. (2005). Chapter 2, Section 2: Paul Hersey and Kenneth Blanchard.  Leadership for Leaders. Thorogood, London. Pp. 33-35 [Ebrary]

 

How situational leadership works. (2012). Alanis Business Academy.  Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QbS3samTsOA

 

The Path-Goal theory of leadership. (2012). Alanis Business Academy.  Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRSio5j3Iy4

 

Yeakey, G. W. (2002). Situational leadership. Military Review, 82(1), 72-82. [Proquest]

 

Obolensky, N. (2010).  Chapter 8: What is leadership anyway? Complex Adaptive Leadership. Ashgate Publishing Ltd, Surrey, GBR. [Ebrary]

 

Vijayaragavan, I. (2008). Chapter 2: Leadership theories and styles. High Performance Leadership. Global Media, Mumbai, pp. 19-21. [Ebrary]

 

Once you have finished your reading and research, write a four to five page paper answering the following questions. Make sure to cite at least one of the required background readings in each answer, and to cite at least three of the required readings total in your paper:

 

1.     1.  For each of the following situations, explain which of the four leadership styles covered in the Situational model should be used and explain your reasoning with references to Chapter 4 of Avery (2011) and at least one other required reading from the background materials:

 

                        A.  You are in charge of a team of architects.  They are highly skilled but have strong opinions and do not necessarily follow instructions.  These architects are independent thinkers who are used to doing things their own way.

 

                        B.  You are in charge of a fast food restaurant.  The employees are all teenagers who have not yet graduated from high school, and for most of them this is their first job.

                         

                        C.  You are the supervisor for a team of software engineers.  They are all highly skilled and highly motivated, and are used to working independently.  All of them believe in the mission of the company.

 

2.     2.  For the above situations, how hard would it be to apply the Fielder Contingency model or the Path Goal model to choose a leadership style?  Would it be easy, or would you require a lot more information about each of the situations?  You don’t need to actually apply these two models, just discuss how difficult it might be to apply these models.

 

3.     3.  Of the three models (Situational, Fielder Contingency, Path Goal), which one do you think is the most useful for the real world?  Explain your reasoning.

 

Assignment Expectations

·       Follow the assignment instructions closely and follow all steps listed in the instructions

·       Stay focused on the precise assignment questions, don’t go off on tangents or devote a lot of space to summarizing general background materials

·       List supporting references and cite sources in proper format

·       Use appropriate writing style in essay form (organization, grammar, and spelling).

·       Include both a bibliography and in-text citations. See the Student Guide to Writing a High-Quality Academic Paper, including pages 13-14 on in-text citations. Another resource is the “Writing Style Guide”, which is found under “My Resources” in the TLC portal.

·       Submit an Originality Report using Turnitin.  

 

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Module 3 – Case Due 7-Dec-15

 

CHANGE-ORIENTED LEADERSHIP: TRANSFORMATIONAL AND CHARISMATIC LEADERS

 

Case Assignment

 

Yahoo was once a giant in the internet world, experiencing rapid growth and soaring stock prices after being founded in 1994.  But currently Yahoo is struggling against fierce competitors such as Google and Facebook.  It was clear to their Board of Directors and shareholders that radical change was necessary in order for Yahoo to remain competitive.  In 2012 former Google executive Marissa Mayer was named as the new CEO. 

 

Since joining Yahoo, Mayer has not been shy or hesitant about bringing about change.  This has included the purchase of over 20 companies, banning teleworking, strict new hiring policies, and clashes with other senior executives and shareholders.  The results so far have been mixed, with some observers saying her hard-nosed approach is what is needed for a struggling company like Yahoo and others saying that her style is overbearing and unnecessarily harsh.

 

First, carefully review the four background readings on change-oriented leadership with close attention to the definitions of transformational, transactional, and charismatic leadership. You need to apply these definitions when writing your paper. Then do some research on Marissa Mayer and her approach to managing change.  You will find a lot of articles about her as she is frequently in the news.  Here are a few articles to get you started:

 

Barine, A.  & Minja, D. (2012). Chapter 2: Definitions of transformational leadership. Transformational Corporate Leadership. Andrews LTD., Luton, Bedfordshire, GBR, pp. 32-47 [Ebrary]

 

Rainey, H. (2009). Chapter 11: Leadership, managerial roles, and organizational culture. Understanding and Managing Public Organizations (4th Edition). Jossey-Bass.

 

Hoboken, NJ, pp. 325-333. [Ebrary – you don’t have to read the whole chapter just the sections on transformational and charismatic leadership]

 

Avery, G. (2011). Chapter 4:  Emotion in leadership.  Understanding Leadership: Paradigms and Cases. SAGE Publications Ltd, London [Ebrary ]

 

Williams, M. (2006). Chapter 2: The transformational leader mindset. Mastering Leadership. Thorogood, London. [Ebrary]

 

Yahoo’s geek goddess. (January, 2014). Vanity Fair, 56, 68. [Proquest]

 

Quinn, M. (Jan. 22, 2014). Poof. Marissa Mayer’s honeymoon period at Yahoo ends. Oakland Tribune [Proquest]

 

Cook, J. (2013, Mar 15). Can a ‘hard reset’ give Yahoo a boost? The Globe and Mail [Proquest]

 

http://www.pearsoncustom.com/mct-comprehensive/asset.php?isbn=1269879944&id=11605

 

Vijayaragavan, I. (2008). Chapter 2: Leadership theories and styles. High Performance Leadership. Global Media, Mumbai [Ebrary]

 

Kendrick, J.  (2011). Transformational leadership. Professional Safety, 56(11), 14 [Proquest]

 

After you have reviewed the background materials on managing change and finished your research on Marissa Mayer, write a four to five page paper addressing the following issues. Make sure to cite both required background readings such as Barine and Minja (2012) as well as specific articles on Marissa Mayer such as Quinn (2014) or Cook (2013) in your paper:

 

1.     1.  Overall, how would you describe Marissa Mayer’s approach to leadership?  Discuss her leadership style the best you can in terms of being a charismatic leader, a transformational leader, and/or a transactional leader.  Draw upon the definitions of these types of leadership from Rainey (2009) and Avery (2011) and discuss them as they apply to Marissa Mayer.

 

2.     2.  What do you are the main benefits and drawbacks of Mayer’s approach to leadership and change?

 

3.     3.  How do you think Marissa Mayer should change her leadership style? 

 

Assignment Expectations

 

• Follow the assignment instructions closely and follow all steps listed in the instructions
• Stay focused on the precise assignment questions, don’t go off on tangents or devote a lot of   space to summarizing general background materials
• List supporting references and cite sources in proper format
• Use appropriate writing style in essay form (organization, grammar, and spelling).
• Include both a bibliography and in-text citations. See the Student Guide to Writing a High-Quality Academic Paper, including pages 13-14 on in-text citations. Another resource is the “Writing Style Guide”, which is found under “My Resources” in the TLC portal.
• Submit an Originality Report using Turnitin.  

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Module 4 – Case Due 14-Dec-15

 

MANAGING ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE

 

Case Assignment

 

A good place to start are the following tutorials and videos.  These resources will introduce you to the three change models covered in this module:

 

http://www.pearsoncustom.com/mct-comprehensive/asset.php?isbn=1269879944&id=12085

 

Hartzell, S. (2013). Lewin stage model of change: Unfreezing,  changing, refreezing Principles of Management. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kerDFvln7hU

 

Hartzell, S. (2013). Explaining Kotter’s 8 step change model. Principles of

Management. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJ3EGdZ3_pU

 

After reviewing the tutorial, take a look at the following readings for more detail about the three change models.  Note that you are required to cite these three readings in your assignments.  The videos and tutorials give you a broad overview of the models but you need to read up on them in more detail in order to complete the assignment.

 

This  short book chapter will give you an overview of Action Research as well as an overview of what it is like to be an organizational development consultant:

 

Lurey, J. & Griffin, M. (2012). Section 2: Chapter 4: Action Research: The anchor of OD practice. Handbook for Strategic HR : Best Practices in Organization Development from the OD Network. Saranac Lake, NY, USA: AMACOM Books, pp. 46-52. [Ebrary]

 

Note that the Lewin model is a very old model.  Here is an updated discussion of this model:

 

Schein, E. H. (2010). Chapter 17: A conceptual model for managed cultural change.  Jossey-Bass Business and Management : Organizational Culture and Leadership (4th Edition). Hoboken, NJ, USA: Jossey-Bass. [Ebrary]

 

Finally, read up on Kotter’s model from the classic original article by Kotter himself:

Kotter, J. P. (2007). Leading Change: Why Transformation Efforts Fail. Harvard Business Review, 85(1), 96-103. [EBSCOhost]

 

Optional Reading:

Those of you in the military should take a look at this article on an application of Kotter’s model in the Army:

 

Anson, J. H. (2011). Leaders are the critical element in the network: Applying the Kotter Change model in shaping future information systems. Army Communicator, 36(4), 20-27. [EBSCOhost]

 

For this assignment, first do a thorough review of the required background materials and read up on each author’s discussion about Kotter’s eight step model of change, Lewin’s three step model, and the five steps involved in action research.  All of the authors discuss at least one of these models. There are also some optional videos on some of these models that might help.

 

When you are done reviewing these models of organizational change, take a look at the scenarios described in Questions 1-3.  For each of these scenarios, explain which of the three models of change would be most appropriate for this situation. Finally, Question 4 is a summary question that you should also answer using the required readings. Explain your reasoning for each of your answers to the four assignment questions, and use at least one of the required readings to support each answer. You are required to cite at least one of the required videos or tutorials and two of required readings in your paper.  Your paper should be four to five pages in length:

 

1.     1.  Ten years ago the CEO of a company attempted to implement a major restructuring of her company.  However, this restructuring ended up being delayed repeatedly due to opposition from both the employee union as well as by several senior managers.  Now that ten years have passed, it has become clear to the CEO that the change should have been implemented as now the company is facing many of the problems that she predicted ten years ago.  Furthermore, the CEO believes the company will go out of business unless the restructuring is done.  Also, in the past ten years she has made peace with many union leaders and senior managers and believes she might be able to get their support for a restructuring if you she is able to convince them of the extreme necessity of making this change.

 

2.     2.  The Chief Financial Officer  (CFO) and the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) have a major disagreement.  The CFO wants to radically scale back expenditures on marketing and change the focus of the organization away from expensive advertising and instead rely on cheaper relationship marketing techniques.  The CMO instead wants to greatly expand advertising, and even wants the company to borrow money to finance a major new advertising campaign.  Both present detailed data to support their point of view, but the CEO cannot tell who is wrong or who is right as the data they present is confusing and contradictory.  Furthermore, the CEO does not want to anger the marketing department or the finance department by seeming to favor one side or the other.  However, the CEO does see the need to make major changes in marketing strategy and other areas in order to boost revenues.

 

3.     3.  A small town newspaper still has a loyal following in the town and in neighboring areas, especially among the older residents.  However, the publisher of the paper is concerned that nobody under the age of 30 seems to ever read the paper and instead they get all their news from the internet.  Furthermore, all of the employees at the newspaper have been working there for over 20 years and are very resistant to any type of change.  The publisher wants to publish a print version only once a week instead of every day, and instead focus on reporting the news through blogs and social media.  He is confident his well-qualified staff will be able do a good job in this new format, but since they have been doing the exact same type of work for the last 20 years he is concerned about rather extreme resistance to making any type of change in the workplace.

4.    

      4.  Conclude your paper with a discussion about which of the three change models you think is the most useful and which one you think is the least useful.  Support your answer with references to the required background materials.

 

Assignment Expectations

·       Follow the assignment instructions closely and follow all steps listed in the instructions

·       Stay focused on the precise assignment questions, don’t go off on tangents or devote a lot of space to summarizing general background materials

·       List supporting references and cite sources in proper format

·       Use appropriate writing style in essay form (organization, grammar, and spelling).

·       Include both a bibliography and in-text citations. See the Student Guide to Writing a High-Quality Academic Paper, including pages 13-14 on in-text citations. Another resource is the “Writing Style Guide”, which is found under “My Resources” in the TLC portal.

·       Submit an Originality Report using Turnitin.