Leadership

PSYCH 485 blog

Lessons of Culture: My Leadership Journey

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I grew up in a small town in central Pennsylvania, not far from Penn State’s main campus.  If/when you have traveled to University Park, you may have passed through my hometown, or you certainly have been in one like it.  For the pure fact of getting to the point, I did not grow up in a racially or culturally diverse community.   Growing up in the late 1980’s to 90’s, one would be hard-pressed to find an individual different from themselves in my sheltered town.   Current US Census data estimates my town to be made up of a 95% white population (QuickFacts 2020).  Those numbers were less diverse in my youth.  I, however, had one advantage over my peers regarding exposure to different cultures.  My father was born and raised in the Bronx, NY.  Half of my family resided there, and we would go visit them often.  Diverse cultural experiences were abundant in the late 80’s, early 90’s, in the projects of NYC for a sheltered white kid from Central PA.  These trips to the Big Apple opened my eyes to different cultures and experiences.   These are memories I still carry to this day.   Furthermore, attending Penn State in the early 2000’s as an undergrad, my exposure to other cultures was at a minimum.  The school itself had a student population of over 75% white students (Enrollment 2020).  My own ethnocentrism kept me from learning from the other 25%.  Ethnocentrism is the “tendency for individuals to place their own group at the center of their observations of others and the world” (Northouse, 2016, p.428).   I never allowed myself to recognize the perspectives of others.

How does this all relate to leadership?   Upon graduating from Penn State with a Turfgrass Science degree, my first job led me to New Jersey, just outside of NYC.  I accepted a low to middle manager position on a golf course maintenance team at a private country club.  My very first day on the job, I found myself managing a small crew that spoke little to no English.  The maintenance staff at this golf course was comprised mostly of Hispanic men from Central and South America.   In addition to the language barrier that I experienced, the cultural differences of managing people older than me and ones from different countries presented an immediate challenge.  Needless to say, based on my background this challenge proved to be difficult for me for the first few years of management.  I went on to manage multicultural teams for over 13 years and had to adjust my leadership style to match.

What important lessons did I take away from those 13 years?  This can be found in what Northouse describes as dimensions of culture, and more specifically, the Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness (GLOBE) research program discussed on pages 431-52 (2016).  GLOBE identified nine cultural dimensions in their studies.  Two of these were important for me while managing my multicultural team.  In-group collectivism and performance orientation were the two that affected my daily life.   In fact, it is the difference in the two that made my job difficult.  In-group collectivism refers to “the degree to which people express pride, loyalty, and cohesiveness in their organizations or families” (Northouse, 2016, p.432).  With my Hispanic employees the regard to which they loved their families and friends trump that of their love for work.   Performance orientation describes “the extent to which an organization or a society encourages and rewards group members for improved performance and excellence” (2016, p.434).  This was my cultural dimension.  I was a young manager, looking to make a name for myself, so I put performance above everything.  Why these contradicting dimensions challenged me can be found in GLOBE’s study of “cultural clusters” and cultural dimensions.  People from various regions around the world respond to different cultural dimensions (Northouse 2016).  It just so happens that Hispanic people from Latin America scored the opposite of those in the Anglo cluster of people from Canada, the US, Australia, England, etc.

Did my sheltered upbringing lead to a steep learning curve during my early career?   It definitely didn’t flatten that curve.  I am thankful for those early years, learning from my multicultural staff members.  Many of them are friends to this day.  They taught me more than I ever taught them.  I learned to open my mind and respect other people’s ways of life.   I am fortunate that I received that opportunity, and it has made me a better person because of it.  That experience helped me through the rest of my career in  leadership positions, where I can now adapt my leadership style to fit a specific follower’s needs or culture.

References:

“Enrollment by Race/Ethnicity”.  Penn State Fact Book.  Office of Planning and Assessment. Retrieved from: https://factbook.psu.edu/factbook/StudentDynamic/HistoricalMinorityEnrolByEthnicityPercent.aspx?YearCode=2019&FBPlusIndc=N

Northouse, Peter G. (2016). Leadership: Theory and Practice (7th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

“QuickFacts: Mifflin County, PA”.  U.S. Census Bureau website 2020.  Retrieved from: https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/mifflincountypennsylvania.

Southwest Airlines: Servant Leadership Creates Organizational Success

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There are many horror stories pertaining to the airline industry, but one success story is Southwest Airlines.  The airline, originally named Air Southwest, was founded in 1967 by Herb Kelleher, later changing its name to Southwest Airlines in 1971 (Southwest 2010).  They are headquartered in Dallas, TX and operate mostly in the US.   Today they operate 752 aircraft, serve 101 destinations, and employ more than 60,000 people (Southwest 2010).  Southwest’s major claim to fame in the airline industry is that, as of 2019, they had 46 consecutive years of profitability (O’Donnell 2019).  One may ask, how is this possible?  How have they gone that long?  Is it luck or is there something else going on?  Well, it should be known that it is the latter.  There is something else at play other than luck at Southwest Airlines.

It all starts at the top with Founder Herb Kelleher.  Mr. Kelleher would be described as a servant leader by definition.  Northouse defines servant leaders as those “who place the good of followers over their own self-interests and emphasize follower development.  They demonstrate strong moral behavior toward followers, the organization, and other stakeholders” (2016, p.226).  He is a lawyer by trade, so he always has had a passion for helping others (Modern SL Website 2017).  Furthermore, he truly believes that taking care of employees is a company’s top priority (Modern 2017).  Think about that for a minute.  He is not thinking of the bottom line or his customers, but the people who work for and with him are his first priority.  Mr. Kelleher has a reputation for not seeing employees as a “rung on a ladder”, rather views everyone in the organization as equals (Modern 2017).  One of his many traits as a leader is the ability to conceptualize and think creatively, but he also never embarrasses someone who may not be correct or have an idea like his (2017).  One of the key aspects of being a servant leader is developing your followers (Northouse 2016).  An example pertaining to Herb Kelleher of this concept can be found in former President of Southwest Airlines, Colleen Barrett.

Colleen Barrett has worked for Herb Kelleher since the inception of Southwest Airlines (Modern 2017).  So, how does a former legal secretary, with no formal management education, become the president of one of the world’s most successful business models?  The answer is simple, she was developed into a leader by Herb Kelleher.   It also helped that her passion was to lead and serve people.  Colleen maintained her position for over 30 years with the company by “co-leading” with Mr. Kelleher (Modern 2017).  The pairing of these two worked well for so many years because they both shared common values and morals.  As a team, these two displayed all of the seven listed behaviors in the Model of Servant Leadership described by Northouse (2016).  Mr. Kelleher was the idea man, or the conceptualizer.  They both helped people grow and succeed within the company.  The business model created by Kelleher was to put the employees first.  In fact, Ms. Barrett describes the company in a pyramid (image below), where employees are at the top.  Because these employees are treated well, and have job satisfaction, they in turn take care of the customers.  The happy customers affect the bottom-line, which influences the shareholders (Modern 2017).  Ms. Barrett estimates that 85% of her time is spent on employees and delivering proactive customer service to her followers or employees (Modern 2017).

Major corporations being led by servant leaders is not a new concept, but the long-term success of Southwest Airlines can directly be linked to the servant leadership of Herb Kelleher and long-time company president, Colleen Barrett.  Their ability to lead while allowing others to grow and succeed is the reason why this company can continually turn a profit in an industry where most do not.  By putting their employees first, they have empowered them to take that same mentality to the customer.  Southwest Airlines fits into the “Model of Servant Leadership” (Northouse 2016).  There is a culture of helping people while being the best in business.  The many attributes of the leaders were discussed earlier.  The employees certainly are receptive to this type of culture as well.  Also discussed earlier was the behaviors displayed by the company’s leadership, which in turn, has a positive outcome of follower performance (Colleen), organizational performance (profit), and societal impact.  Many countries today have an airline modeled after Southwest.  There are also numerous companies in other industries that carry Southwest’s business model (Modern 2017).  This makes society better in the long run.

References:

Modern Servant Leader Website. (2017, May 14). What is Servant Leadership? Retrieved from http://www.modernservantleader.com/servant-leadership/.

Northouse, Peter G. (2016). Leadership: Theory and Practice (7th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

O’Donnell, P. (2019, August 23). Southwest Airlines’ annual tradition: It’s sharing $544 million in profits with employees. Retrieved from https://www.dallasnews.com/business/local-companies/2019/02/13/southwest-airlines-annual-tradition-it-s-sharing-544-million-in-profits-with-employees/.

Southwest Airlines Website. (2010, August 18). We Weren’t Just Airborne Yesterday. Retrieved from https://web.archive.org/web/20100818010355/http://www.southwest.com/swamedia/swa_history.html.

Focus Pocus: What Type of Leader are You?

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This post will be directed at college graduates, who are heading into the working-world full time post-graduation.  This information is relevant whether you landed your dream job right away or need to take a job that is a steppingstone to your dream career.   Some of you will find yourselves in management or leadership roles quickly, while others can utilize this information to understand their boss or leader’s position.  Even though the following information is targeted at young professionals, there are lessons to be learned for leaders of any age or level.  Leadership topics are endless and have been studied for years.  In the interest of focusing in on a certain portion of team leadership, we will look a leader’s “mental model”, and how that is the building block for team effectiveness.

What is mental model?  Another way to define this term could be situational awareness.  Either way, The Hill Model for Team Leadership as described on page 366 of Northouse says that “effective team performance begins with how the leader sees the situation that the team is experiencing” (2016).  This is the first step in the process of determining team effectiveness or the desired outcomes of teamwork.  Going one step further with mental model, looking at a recent study funded by China National Science Fund, researchers Fan, Wang, Lui, and Cai determined teams effectiveness can be correlated to how a leader focuses their mental model with prevention focus or promotion focus (Fan 2020).  Leaders with prevention focus are described as having “high security and conversation needs and pursue the fulfillment of their duties by avoiding errors and mistakes” (Fan 2020).  Think back to times when you were in a team setting.  Did you have a leader like this?  One who always seemed to be scared or worried.  How did you team perform under this type of leadership?  It is my guess that the team adopted that mentality as well.  The researchers in China went on to define leaders with promotion focus as ones having “high growth and development needs and pursue the advancement and accomplishment by approaching ideals” (Fan 2020).  In other words, these types of leaders are more interested in how to improve themselves and their teams for the greater good of the group.   Which type of leader would you want to be or work for?

The intended target of that research in China was to determine why supervisors or leaders abuse subordinates.  The study found that prevention and promotion focus are together part of a term called regulatory focus (figure below), which in turn, is a function of the “Conservation of Resources Theory” (Fan 2020).  The study concludes when resources are limited, leaders tend to have a prevention focus which forces emotional exhaustion leading to abusive leadership traits.   This in turn, affects team effectiveness.  A leader who exhibits a promotion focus, will build their team up mentally, possibly even using shared leadership techniques to develop a more mentally resilient team who can handle stress and adapt to change for the betterment of the group.  Shared leadership is a newer viewpoint in the research of leadership.  This involves all members of the team contributing to parts of the leadership of the team.  Current research indicates “shared leadership contributed to team effectiveness beyond traditional leadership” (PSUWC, 2020, L9).  In today’s workforce, expect to see a lot more collaboration amongst teams in the workplace.

Type of focus influences team performance.

Again, ask yourself, what type of leader do I want to be?   Do you want to be remembered as the boss who yelled and screamed their way to emotion exhaustion, not being happy with their career?  Or do you want to be the leader who uplifted and empowered their team, creating a productive workplace to where tasks and goals are often accomplished?   Remember, it’s all about the mental model you create for yourself that will help guide you through this process.

 

References

Fan, X.‐L., Wang, Q.‐Q., Liu, J., Liu, C. and Cai, T. (2020), Why do supervisors abuse subordinates? Effects of team performance, regulatory focus, and emotional exhaustion. J Occup Organ Psychol. doi:10.1111/joop.12307.

Northouse, Peter G. (2016). Leadership: Theory and Practice (7th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Pennsylvania State University World Campus (2020). PSYCH 485 Lesson 9: Team Leadership. Retrieved from https://psu.instructure.com/courses/2040131/modules/items/28001787.

 

How Goal Setting Leads To Increased Sales

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As a regional sales manager overseeing a group of individuals responsible for selling in a seasonal-based market, we often utilize the “off-season” to recharge the proverbial battery, but more importantly, we take time in the off months to sets goals for the next season.  For my team members, setting detailed and specific sales goals is vital to their success both professionally and financially.  For the purpose of this blog, I will be specifically speaking from personal experience within my company, and how the path-goal theory of leadership translates to my situation.

Why is goal-setting important for members of my team?  Looking at the research findings of Edwin Locke and Gary Latham, who studied the Theory of Goal Setting over a 35-year period, we can determine there is a direct correlation to goal setting and performance/outcome.  According to Locke and Latham, “specific goals consistently led to higher performance than urging people to do their best” (2002, p.706).  So as the leader of the sales team, I often look at what am I doing to help my team build their goals and then go beyond that with actionable input to keep them on the right track.  With 11 different sales reps under my direction, I often must use different styles of leadership depending on each person’s personality.  By doing so, I’m following the path-goal theory which “emphasizes the relationship between the leader’s style and the characteristics of the followers and the organizational setting” (Northouse, 2016, p.115).

In sales, the goals of most reps are often linked to financial gain.  This is the incentive or reward that is often linked to follower satisfaction.  For my company, our reps are paid on 100% commission, so the bigger the goal, and the ability to achieve along the path to that goal means more financial gain for the person.  Not only do we set broad goals for each rep, but we also establish mini goals to be achieved along the path to the big goal.  The company’s success is based on financial growth.  So, each sales rep is responsible for helping the company’s overall goal, but they all have individual goals as well.  They often find many obstacles along their path.  My job as their leader is to “help remove these obstacles so that they can meet their goals” (PSU, 2020, L6).  My job is to give them the tools and environment necessary to achieve their personal goals, which in turn, meets the company’s overall goal.

What are the reasons for setting goals?  In the research conducted by Locke and Latham, they determined there are four mechanisms to which goals affect performance.  These mechanisms include: a directive function, an energizing function, create persistence, and induce discovery or arousal in the subject matter (Locke, 2002, p.706-07).  As their leader, I need to alter my behaviors based on the personality of each person.  Northouse describes four different leadership behaviors.   They are directive, supportive, participative, or achievement-oriented leadership behaviors (2016, p.117-18).   Depending on a sales rep’s experience, as Sales Manager, I often will use three of the 4 types described.  I use directive leadership with all members of my team.  I tell them what is expected and what timeline should be followed.   For employees with less experience I often utilize supportive leadership behavior because being in sales is often a lonely place, where you are told “no” much of the time.  This can be disheartening for a young sales rep, so to keep their motivation level elevated, a supportive leader is necessary.  Most of my time is spent being an achievement-oriented leader.  I often challenge the sales force to achieve the difficult goal of excessive growth year over year.  We expect our company sales figures to grow 8-10% year.  This burden falls on each rep individually.

To obtain “buy-in” from the team members, I have them establish their own goals in conjunction with goals that I set.  In some of the research that Locke and Latham investigated, they discovered that “employees who were allowed to participate in setting goals set higher goals and had higher performance than those were assigned goals by the supervisor (2002, p.709).  While setting these goals, I make sure the rep is setting specific and difficult goals.  Without detailed and difficult goals, I am not able to provide effective feedback along their path, nor can they perform to the highest standard.  The Goal-Setting Theory with the High-Performance Cycle detailed by Locke and Latham is seen below (2002, p.714): This illustration shows how leadership affects goal setting and performance of followers.

Goal setting and its relationship to leadership is not a clear-cut scenario.  There are different avenues for each individual situation.  In summary: “different situations and subordinates require different types of leadership” (PSU, 2020, L6).  A good leader will recognize the differences among their followers and adapt their style to help everyone achieve their goals, which in turn, helps the organization achieve its goal.

 

References:

Locke, E. A., & Latham, G. P. (2002).  Building a practically useful theory of goal setting and task motivation: A 35-year odyssey.  American Psychologist, 57(9), 705-717. doi. 10.1037/0003-066x.57.9.705.

Northouse, Peter G. (2016). Leadership: Theory and Practice (7th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Pennsylvania State University World Campus (2020). PSYCH 485 Lesson 6: Contingency & Path-Goal Theories. Retrieved from https://psu.instructure.com/courses/2040131/modules/items/28001746.

Study of Leadership in Athletics: How an Athletic Director’s Traits Affect Their Ability to Lead?

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When one thinks about leaders in sports, their mind almost instantly settles on the coach, or maybe even the team captain.  However, in college and high school athletics, the true leader of a team and/or a group of teams can be found in the school’s athletic director (AD).  According the website, learn.org, AD’s are defined as “administrators who supervise and oversee athletic programs at a college, high school or private institution. They are responsible for budgeting, promotion, and scheduling for sports teams. An AD may coordinate with student academic departments, though they rarely work directly with athletes. Instead, they act as athletic managers, organizing transportation, supervising coaches, and guiding sports teams to success indirectly. They are charged with the task of hiring and firing coaches, as well as other athletic staffers in their organization.”  In psychology terms, athletic directors fit the academic definition of a leader.  They are “individuals who influence a group of individuals to achieve a common goal” (Northouse, 2016, p.6).

Focusing in on the relationship between AD and coach is where we see the leadership styles of AD’s, especially the trait approach, weigh heavily on the success of the coaches, and in turn, the entire program.  Utilizing the “five major leadership traits” described in Northouse (2016, p.23) of intelligence, self-confidence, determination, integrity, and sociability, we can attribute these traits to the success of the leader of an athletic program.  The trait approach to leadership has been studied for decades, beginning in the early 20th century, and is “one of the first systematic attempts to study leadership” (Northouse, 2016, p.19)   In the interest of narrowing the emphasis for this post, we will look at the combination of intelligence and sociability, and how they are key traits in a successful AD.

Social intelligence is a relatively new area of study in the history of leadership trait theory and is part of the larger area of emotional intelligence research (PSU, WC, 2020, L2).  According to the lesson commentary (PSU, WC, L2), social intelligence is comprised of two factors:

  • Social awareness, which is basically being able to be empathetic to others situations.
  • Social facility, which is the ability to act on that empathy in ways that change the situation for the better.

A recent study by Robinson et al (2019) has described social intelligence as “political skill”, specifically in the area of an athletic director’s leadership skills.  The study went on to describe the impact of political skill and the influence that it had on leader influence.  Furthermore, the researchers evaluated how the effectiveness of the leader, lead to job satisfaction amongst the followers (coaches), as well as, the overall affect this had on the program.  The researchers were able to reach a conclusion by interviewing hundreds of AD’s across the United States and having them complete a Political Skill Inventory as part of a Qualtrics survey.  The corresponding coaches of the AD respondents were then given a survey to evaluate effectiveness of their leaders.  They answered based on a scale system regarding items such as job satisfaction and affective organizational commitment (Robinson et al, 2019).  Robinson was able to accurately conclude that political skill or social intelligence has a direct correlation to effective leadership based on job satisfaction and the positive affect this has on the followers (2019).  A diagram of this relationship can be seen here:

Source: Robinson et al (2019)

In conclusion, studies like the one above and the others through the history of leadership theory have proven that there is more to being successful leader than being “born” with the correct traits to lead.  There is a multi-pronged approach involving intelligence (social and emotional), as well as, traits such sociability and extraversion (Northouse, 2016).  Although some traits may be inherent, it is important to remember that some traits can be trained further for success.

 

References

Northouse, Peter G. (2016). Leadership: Theory and Practice (7th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Pennsylvania State University World Campus (2020). PSYCH 485 Lesson 2: Trait Approach. Retrieved from https://psu.instructure.com/courses/2040131/modules/items/28001674.

Robinson, G. M., Magnusen, M., & Kim, J. W. (2019). The socially effective leader: Exploring the relationship between athletic director political skill and coach commitment and job satisfaction. International Journal of Sports Science & Coaching, 14(2), 197-204. doi:http://dx.doi.org.ezaccess.libraries.psu.edu/10.1177/1747954119834118.

Website- Learn.org: https://learn.org/articles/What_is_an_Athletic_Director.html.

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