Question 1, Case: Sales Engineering Division

Does John Terrill's leadership style fit the definition of leadership

in Exhibit 1.1. Explain.

Yes, Terrill is trying to influence top managers by showing them that

the reports are a waste of time. By allying himself with the

engineers and bringing about a change in reporting procedures,

Terrill is building a better relationship with them and establishing

trust. Together, Terrill, and the engineers can focus on the shared

purpose of increasing the productivity of the sales engineering

division. He is using empowerment to turn the division around.

The leadership style John Terrill use is relationship-oriented leader,

he is concerned with the people. John Terrill is a considerate leader

because he is “friendly, provide open communication, develops

teamwork, and are oriented toward their subordinates’ welfare”. He

can also been seen as an employee-centred leader because he is

very supportive of his subordinates. John Terrill’s primary power is

personal power because it comes from his personality

characteristics. More specifically, it is referent power because the

engineers admired the way John Terrill dealt with the senior

management because they cheered for him when the showdown

came. This kind of power would make the follower more committed

to the leader and would enthusiastically carry out instructions.

1

With respect to Exhibit 1.4, in what paradigm is Terrill? In what

paradigm is headquarters?

Today, one of the leader's most challenging jobs is to guide workers

in using their own power effectively and responsibly by creating and

developing a climate of respect and development. Power lies more

in the strength and quality of relationships rather than in titles,

policies, and procedures. Empowerment is an entirely new way of

looking at organizational behaviour. It takes much more skill to

delegate and make employees participate in decision-making than

to follow strict policies and procedures.

Moving from an Old Paradigm of Control to a New Paradigm of

Empowerment

Terrill is in the NEW Paradigm because he wishes to empower the

employees and build relationships with them. He is open to change

because he listens to the engineers and respects their desire to

work with customers.

Headquarters is in the OLD Paradigm because the triplicate reports

for top management represent a control mechanism to assure

stability and uniformity.

Today, one of the leader's most challenging jobs is to guide workers

in using their own power effectively and responsibly by creating and

developing a climate of respect and development. Power lies more

in the strength and quality of relationships rather than in titles,

policies, and procedures. Empowerment is an entirely new way of

looking at organizational behaviour. It takes much more skill to

delegate and make employees participate in decision-making than

to follow strict policies and procedures.

2

What approach would you have taken in this situation?

Leadership is defined as an influence relationship among leaders

and followers who intend real changes and outcomes that reflect

their shared purposes.

A less confrontational approach with the president would have been

more appropriate and helped Terrill build a good relationship with

both the engineers and top management. Human skills are

increasingly important for leaders in today’s economy. In the new

paradigm, leaders put people first and build relationships with all

members of the organization. Good leaders know how to follow and

set an example for others

Leadership is reciprocal, superiors influence subordinates and subordinates also influence superiors

3

Question 2, Case: Airstar Inc

What is your reaction to this conversation? What would you say

to Morgan to help him lead the organization?

Morgan has an outdated view. He is managing under the

assumptions of a stable, predicable environment. Explaining that

today's environment is changing and chaotic would help him rethink

his position as leader of the organization.

Morgan needs both leadership and management skills to provide

direction for Airstar. The “soft” skills of leadership complement the

“hard” skills of management, and both are needed to effectively

guide organizations. Although leadership is often equated with good

management, leadership and management are different processes.

Management focuses on establishing detailed plans and schedules

for achieving specific results, then allocating resources to

accomplish the plan. Leadership calls for creating a compelling

vision of the future for Airstar and developing farsighted strategies

for producing the changes needed to achieve that vision. A vision is

a picture of an ambitious, desirable future for the organization or

team. To be compelling for followers, the vision has to be one that

Airstar employees can relate to and share. Morgan needs to develop

his leadership skills.

4

It is important to remember that most people are not born with

natural leadership skills and qualities, but leadership can be learned

and developed.

To what extent do you rate both Morgan and Robinson as a good

manager versus a good leader according to the dimensions in

Exhibit 1.3?

Management Dimension

Overall Morgan and Robinson rank low in the dimensions of a good

manager.

Direction: Morgan and Robinson rank low on direction which

includes planning. The organization is under threat, and they

are not sure which direction to take. They have considered

potential acquisitions, imports and exports, more research,

and additional repair lines.

Alignment: Robinson ranks far higher than Morgan on

alignment which includes organizing and staffing. Robinson

believes in the “principles of good organization” that written

whereas Morgan assigned tasks informally.

Relationships: Morgan ranks low on relationships which

includes acting as boss. The employees write their own job

descriptions and there is a significant amount of conflict.

Personal qualities: Robinson ranks much higher on

personal qualities than Morgan because he has management

expertise and insight into the organization. He proposed that

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the group study the organizational chart and the various

corporate business tasks.

Outcomes: They rank low on the management dimension of

outcomes. They can’t maintain stability. The organization is

being increasingly chaotic, and instead of creating a culture of

efficiency, there is a duplication of work and poor

communication.

Leadership Dimension

Neither Robinson nor Morgan rank high in the dimensions of

leadership.

Direction: neither has created a vision and a strategy for the

company.

Alignment: neither has created a shared culture that helps

employees grow.

Relationships: Robinson includes others more than Morgan,

but neither really motivates followers.

Personal qualities: There is no emotional connection

between Robinson or Morgan and the employees of the

company.

Change: Robinson is trying to bring about change but

Morgan realizes that he is part of the problem.

6

If you were to take over as president of Airstar, what would you

do first? Second? Third?

First, the president should make sure that Morgan gains some

leadership skills. Leadership takes practice and hands-on

experience. Knowing about leadership research would help Morgan

analyze situations from a variety of perspectives and learn how to

be a more effective leader. Morgan should study leadership training

and develop a vision for the future of Airstar in a changing

environment.

Second, Morgan should align employees to carry out the vision for

Airstar. Leadership is a relational process that engages all

participants and enables each person to contribute to achieving the

vision. A vision is a picture of an ambitious, desirable future for the

organization or team. To be compelling for followers, the vision has

to be one that they can relate to and share. Leadership is shared

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among leaders and followers, with everyone fully engaged and

accepting higher levels of responsibility.

Third, Morgan must develop personal relationships to motivate and

energize others and to unlock the personal qualities of Airstar's

employees so they can work toward the fulfilment of Airstar's vision.

Leadership is defined as an influence relationship among leaders

and followers. Influence means that the relationship among people

is not passive, it is multidirectional and non- coercive.

Question 3, 360 reviews

Nedbank 360–DEGREE ASSESSMENT Tool

Typically, performance appraisal has been limited to a feedback

process between employees and management. However, with the

increased focus on teamwork, employee development, and

customer service, the emphasis has shifted to employee feedback

from the full circle of sources depicted in the diagram below. This

multiple-input approach to performance feedback is sometimes

called “360-degree assessment” to connote that full circle.

Research has shown assessment approaches with multiple rating

sources provide more accurate, reliable, and credible information.

For this reason, Nedbank Management supports the use of multiple

rating sources as an effective method of assessing performance

behaviours for formal review/appraisal and other evaluative and

developmental purposes.

8

The circle, or perhaps more accurately the sphere, of feedback

sources consists of manager’s, colleagues, subordinates, customers.

The organisational culture and mission must be considered, and the

purpose of feedback will differ with each source.

For example, subordinate assessments of a manager’s performance

can provide valuable developmental guidance, colleague feedback

can be the heart of excellence in teamwork, and customer service

feedback focuses on the quality of the team’s or business unit’s

results.

The objectives of performance reviews and the particular aspects of

performance that are to be assessed must be established before

determining which sources are appropriate.

Strengths of this tool

Break Down Barriers – Gain a more holistic view of your

company that reflects its true working environment by

incorporating feedback from outside individual employees'

hierarchies or departments.

Find Hidden Strengths and Weaknesses – Provide workers with

more candid insights about their abilities by allowing raters to

give anonymous feedback.

Help Mangers and their Teams Take Action – Get the

information you need to take action via calculated ratings and

graphical charts

Covers feedback on a wide range of competencies

Requires manager approval before rating request are sent

Weakness of this tool

9

Colleague feedback may not be 100% honest

Fear of intimidation for subordinates

Breach of confidentiality

Long and time consuming

Some concepts with the tool are not easy to understand

Process for conducting the 360 review

The Nedbank 360 review process is fully electronic and requires a

little manual intervention in the form of selecting raters and

management approval

A flowchart: overview of the 360 process:

10

360 Final scores - Serge Pather

The below tables express the 360 feedback for myself done by a

cross section of people that I interact with on daily basis. The needs

vary across the teams and reflect a different range of scores

The basis of the scoring is a range from 1 to 5

1 – Poor

3.5 – Doing the rights things – Good

5 – Exceptional

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Actual ratings by

Colleagues – 3.9

This area measures my relationships with my fellow colleagues and

seniors.

The scope of this measures covers the below areas

Collective Accountability

Communication /

Informing

Conflict Management

Knowledge Sharing

Relationship Building

In this category – I am doing more than what is expected yet have

room for improvements in my communication and I need to work

more effectively with Soraya

Cross Functional Teams – 4.1

These are teams that I interact with that provide support functions

or vise versa. Our interactions occur at meetings and email

communications.

Areas that are measured are

Alignment of individual objectives with cross-functional team

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objectives (Productive Work Habits)

Client Focus

Conflict Management

Contribution to the cross-functional team

Leveraging off Individual strengths to achieve Cross Functional

team Objectives (Team Leader or team members that lead in

own capacity)

Problem-solving

I need to focus on my conflict management and problem

sharing/solving abilities with other teams

Customer – 4.1

Only one respondent, not adequate to use or analyse

Areas Measured

Communication / Feedback

Delivery of Expectations

Knowledgeable

Quality of Service

Understanding Client Needs

Subordinates – 4

This rating covers my immediate subordinates and measures my

effectiveness towards them, providing me with indicators of

improvements areas

Areas measured

13

Approachability

Building Effective Teams

Developing Direct Reports

Leadership skills

Managing and measuring work

Maximises strength of others

Motivating Others

Work-life Balance

As a leader I am serving my direct reports effectively. I have room

for improvement on areas of team effective team and managing

reports

Overall rating – 4 – Performing effectively and with all segments.

Room for growth towards achieving exceptional results are still

available. But I honestly doubt that there is 100% accuracy in this,

as I personally understand my potential and my limitations. I feel

that I am at a 3.5 and have a great deal of self work to do…..

Detailed Ratings Below

Colleague 2009 Colleague

14

Collective Accountability 3.8

Communication / Informing 3.5

Conflict Management 4.0

Knowledge Sharing 4.0

Relationship Building 4.0

Overall for Colleague 2009 3.9

RaterRelationshi

p

Complet

e

Final

Ratin

g

Kesso

MekrajColleague Yes 4.0

Leon Brits Colleague Yes 4.0

Soraya

RasoolColleague Yes 3.7

Cross Functional Team 2009

Cross

functional

team

Alignment of individual objectives with cross-

functional team objectives (Productive Work Habits)4.3

Client Focus 3.9

Conflict Management 3.9

Contribution to the cross-functional team 4.3

Leveraging off Individual strengths to achieve Cross

Functional team Objectives (Team Leader or team

members that lead in own capacity)

4.3

Problem-solving 3.9

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Overall for Cross Functional Team 2009 4.1

Rater RelationshipComplet

e

Final

Ratin

g

Jenny

Wischnewski

Cross functional

teamYes 3.9

Valin ReddyCross functional

teamYes 4.3

Customer 2009 Customer

Communication / Feedback 4.3

Delivery of Expectations 4.3

Knowledgeable 4.3

Quality of Service 4.3

Understanding Client Needs 3.5

Overall for Customer 2009 4.1

RaterRelationshi

p

Complet

e

Final

Ratin

g

Johan

DeyselCustomer Yes 4.1

Subordinate 2009 Subordinat

16

e

Approachability 4.5

Building Effective Teams 3.8

Developing Direct Reports 4.0

Leadership skills 4.0

Managing and measuring work 3.8

Maximises strength of others 4.0

Motivating Others 4.0

Work-life Balance 4.3

Overall for Subordinate 2009 4.0

RaterRelationshi

p

Complet

e

Final

Ratin

g

Lyonel SoekoeSubordinat

eYes 3.9

Renaldo

Francis

Subordinat

eYes 4.0

Salim Hassan-

alli

Subordinat

eYes 4.3

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My Organization and My Role

I am currently employed at Nedbank Vehicle and asset finance. I

have been with this organization for two years. I was previously

employed by Discovery health.

My organization

Nedbank Vehicle finance is part of the greater Nedbank group. It is

currently a very highly beurocratic environment with a great deal of

paperwork and red tape. The culture in this environment is one of, “I

have been here for 15 years so I know what is best”. The

organization is change resistant and fears innovative thinking. It is

an 8 to 5 environment as well and accepts mediocrity. High

governance prevails and in certain areas a lack of ethics as

individuals is for self gain.

The good aspect of this organization is the financial perks and skills

development opportunities that are available at management level.

My role

Well what my role is currently, I am not sure of. I was employed as a

call centre manager and managed 30 staff and within 6 months I

found myself as a senior manager with 120 staff and till two months

I am now in a position whereby I am told to sit and think, produce

reports and help other senior managers.

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So if I had to assume what my real role is, I would say that I am

suppose to share skills and knowledge with my colleague and

seniors, help guide the business to high performance, set examples

for others to follow and be innovative

So if that is my role, then I am struggling as the mindset and the

cultural differences are huge. I am from a highly innovative, creative

leadership organization and find it difficult to work with the RED

tape environments. But it is there for a purpose and part of being in

a leadership role is to adapt and influence. So I have my job cut out

for me….

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References

D.C. Keyes, 2002, in Journal of Management Education, Vol.

26, No.3, p.307-321

Roussow, D. with van Vuuren.L. Business Ethics – 2009 edition

- Oxford

http://www.commondreams.org/views02/0216-01.htm , 16 Aug

2009

http://www.aicpa.org/pubs/jofa/apr2002/thomas.htm, 16 Aug

2009

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enron_scandal , 17 Aug 2009

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/infrastructure/power/

enron_time, 20 Aug 2009

http://money.cnn.com/news/specials/enron/ , 15 Aug 2009

http://www.ajschuler.com/enron_s_corporate_culture.html , 17

Aug 2009

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