The leader-member exchange theory focuses on the interactions between leaders and followers and is based primarily on the relationship that develops (PSU WC, 2016). Unfortunately, some leaders have biases and other reasons that they do not treat everyone equally. This unequal treatment will push people into the out-group, which is a less effective, less devoted group. These individuals will just come to work, do their job, and then go home. They will not go above and beyond for their leader or do any favors, just as the leader will not go above and beyond for them or do any favors (Northouse, 2016).
Growing up I have experienced what it is like to be part of an in-group and an out-group as far back as elementary school. Being a member of the in-group was a very fulfilling position to be in, as opposed to the out-group where I was unhappy and just went through the motions. I am going to share a story about what it was like working for a company where I was a member of the in-group one year and a member of the out group the next year.
I managed a store for a company in retail sales, where mangers who were selling and high-performing received special treatment. My leader at the time and I had a very positive relationship with high-quality leader-member exchanges. He would empower me to make decisions because he knew that I knew what I was doing, given my high-performing track record. In turn, I would come in early and stay late. I would go above and beyond for my leader and my company because I know that they believed in me to do the right thing. There were many times where my leader took me to lunch or bought lunch for my team. These lunches were an added favor or value that was given to me since I was part of the in-group. Besides me, the was a group of other managers who received the same treatment (the in-group) and a group that did not (the out-group).
However, some time passed and this leader moved on to another position in the company and I got a new leader. In the meantime, there were some mergers and acquisitions that happened that directly affected the performance of my particular store. This new leader came in and did not look at past history or want to get to know me as a person. This leader made the decision to separate their in-groups and out-groups based upon who was performing and who was not performing. All this did was discourage me. I no longer came in early and stayed late. I was unhappy at work and just came to work to do the bare minimum in my job description. This new leader barely interacted with the managers who were not high performing at the time. According to Northouse (2016) the LMX Theory gives the appearance of discrimination and discrimination is what I felt. I would have much rather if this leader treated everyone fairly and not have treated the two groups differently based on their performance. According to Northouse (2016) p. 142 “leaders should have high-quality exchanges with all of their followers rather than just a few”.
In conclusion, I think that a lesson can be learned from my experience both from a leader and a follower point of view. First, as a leader we should take the advice given to us in Northouse (2016) regarding the equal treatment of all of followers as well as encouraging out-group members to become part of the in-group. As a follower, there is also some advice that we can take from Northouse (2016). This advice is that if we are interested in becoming part of the in-group, we should negotiate with the leader what we can do for the group (Northouse, 2016). We could negotiate with them to do tasks that are outside of our normal job descriptions and in turn, the leader will do more for us. In my case, If I would have negotiated with the leader to do certain tasks that were above and beyond my normal job description, my leader may have brought me into the in-group even though my sales performance was down. As a follower, I could have influenced my leader to change his behavior by interacting with him and building my relationship with him. This is what makes the leader-member exchange theory valuable. Jut as leaders can affect followers, followers can also affect leaders (Northouse, 2016).
Reference:
Northouse, P. G. (2016). Leadership: Theory and practice (7th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.
Penn State World Campus (2016). PSYCH 485: Leadership in Work Settings. Lesson 8: Leader-Member Exchange. Retrieved from: https://courses.worldcampus.psu.edu/canvas/fa16/21681–13148/content/08_lesson/printlesson.html