Wouldn’t it be nice if there were one way to do it right? No matter where you are or who it is–there’s only one way to direct, encourage and discipline? Recently, I advised a friend on his sales team. In effort to enhance the productivity of his team, he debriefed me on each personality, their role and what’s been happening at the office. Obviously, I’m not an expert, or I would be pursuing a master’s instead of summing up my bachelor’s. However, all things considered, I still understand people and have a stronger background in organization than my friend does. So I advised…
The first note I mention
ed was that he had to stop treating everyone the same. We all demand different types of leadership, and sometimes the same person can require multiple forms of guidance. He thought I was crazy. In an ideal world, maybe…He said, “I’ve never had a boss that changed for me before. As the boss, it’s my way or the highway.” He was right for the most part. I needed further support for my argument.
Though the lesson on the Situational Approach to leadership was a little too delayed for the above experience, I was flooded with confidence and reassurance when I read the chapter. This approach provides invaluable insight into the interaction side of leadership. With the model explaining the four types of leadership and the corresponding model detailing a subordinate’s development, it is easy to see the relationship and to visualize how we, as leaders or as subordinates, can fluctuate between the various phases (Northouse, 2010).
The next time I talk to my friend, I’ll let him know that I believe he naturally possesses a delegating leadership style. This works well for his manager, who after two years on the job appreciates autonomy, but the next time he hires, he should try to spend more time directing and praising during the early stages of development (Northouse, 2010). Even if he’s never had an adaptable boss, it doesn’t mean that he can’t be one–and reap the benefits of being the leader his followers need.
References
Northouse, P.G. (2010). Leadership: Theory and Practice. Los Angeles: Sage Publications.
New employees definitely do need more attention from the manager. While searching the Internet, I ran across an article related to this topic that I thought proved this point. In the article, the author told of his own personal experience, when he was the new employee. The author started a new job and was not provided any direction by the manager. In fact on his first day in the job, the manager said he would be leaving for a two week trip. He was left with no guidance, and he felt lost and unsure of himself. He was positive he was not doing a good job. The manager didn’t offer any more guidance even upon his return ¬- they would pass in the hall (Cherry). The manager never sat down with him or asked him how things were going. Finally, because he didn’t feel he was performing very well in the new job, he quit. He was astonished when he told the manager; there were tears in the manager’s eyes. The manager said he understood and was sorry to see him go (Cherry).
This leader seemed to operate entirely with the delegating style – offering no direction and no support. Effective leadership occurs when the leader can determine what style of leadership is needed and apply that style (Northouse, 2013). The manager lost a perfectly good employee because of his leadership style. The coaching style would have been more appropriate. Directing and praising during the early stages of development are important and can have an impact on retention.
Cherry, P. (2012) And a Manager Shall Lead Them: How Guidance Motivated Employees. Performance Based Results. http://www.pbresults.com/sales-article/manager-shall-lead-them-how-guidance-motivates-employees.html
Northouse, P. (2013). Leadership: Theory and Practice (Sixth Edition). Thousand Oaks, California: Sage Publications, Inc.
Hi Carley,
I enjoyed your entry as I too have worked with someone of the “my way or the highway” attitude. Leaders have to be able to give up some control; to have tolerance for mistakes; to be realistic. They have to be able to assign responsibility to others while taking into consideration the extent to which people are capable of handling said assignment. What people dont usually realize about the “my way or the highway” philosophy is that it makes followers feel like their best is not good enough; like their leader doesnt trust them to do the work that needs to be done. We know how important trust is in successful leadership and it has to be a two way street. I came across this quote that I thought was pretty relevant to your entry: “Leadership is the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it.”- Dwight Eisenhower
When a leader assigns responsibility to his followers according to their abilities, strengths and weaknesses, he shows that he can give up some control; that he is interested in not just the success of the organization, but also in that of his followers. He shows them that he believes in them and their abilities, and that makes them believe in themselves; it makes them feel as though they can contribute something important; they can help meet goals. It makes them want to do their job and do it well.
Your title caught me right away as it reminds me of many work situations that my wife has described to me recently. She has a boss that still believes in “It’s my way or the highway.” This individual does not take into consideration the different talents and weaknesses of all of her team members. I think it is very proactive of your friend to come for advise of others in his leadership style. I think that it would be more beneficial for large companies that need to find something to spend their money on to do it in ways that would teach better leadership and HR skills.
My wife works in a rehabilitation department and beginning October 1 there are many changes taking place to how therapy gets paid for their services. Her boss has devised a system which seems to have many flaws, but she will not accept any suggestions, even if it would make to process less painful. It sounds like her boss would benefit from being more of a delegating leader than a “MYway” leader.
I think that it is great you were able to relate this to a recent experience and the book validated what you said. Question regarding your one comment on the reading, ” With the model explaining the four types of leadership and the corresponding model detailing a subordinate’s development, it is easy to see the relationship and to visualize how we, as leaders or as subordinates, can fluctuate between the various phases” While Northouse states that we can fluctuate, what is your take? Can leaders be in different levels for different employees? Or do you believe that whatever level one is on, that is the level they interact with all of their employees on? You said you plan to further your talk with your friend, how will you approach it? What leadership level will you be in regarding this topic?