A640.6.4.RB - Authentic Leadership

When I hear the word authentic I think of a person or object that I exactly as it appears, there are no surprises behind the exterior shell.  I believe the same is true of an authentic leader, what you see on the outside is the same as what is on the inside.  Yukl (2013) defined authentic leadership as consistency in the leader’s words, actions, and values.  Another word for authentic is true and an authentic leader is true to themselves and their followers.

In the following statement from Wong & Cummings (2009)  “authentic leadership is proposed as the core of effective leadership needed to build trust because of its clear focus on the positive role modeling of honesty, integrity, and high ethical standards in the development of leader-follower relationships” the process of leading authentically is laid out.  An authentic leader possesses certain qualities and uses those qualities to lead others.  Yukl (2013) stated that an authentic leader’s actions are determined by their values and beliefs, not by a desire to be liked and admired or to retain their position (p. 352).  To the authentic leader, the good of the followers and the company come before theirs.  They are committed to being transparent and open about themselves and the company. 

On the other hand, Martin and Sims (1956) and Bailey (1988) wrote that all leaders must be manipulative to succeed.  I would have to disagree with this idea, I do understand that there are times when a leader may not disclose situations to followers until better or more accurate information can be collected.  In other words, a leader often times has to investigate and explore situations before presenting them to followers.  This does not mean they are manipulating information but rather clarifying before presenting.  I would argue that any leader who feels the need to manipulate a person or situation is not a good leader.

A few things stood out to me in reading about authentic leadership.  Rowe and Guerrero (2012) referred to the idea that self-aware leaders understand their strengths and weaknesses, are tuned in to how their behavior affects others, and know who they are and what they stand for (p. 297).  In general, as in business, people with high self-awareness are more apt to act according to their own values and beliefs they are rarely swayed by others.  They are strong and confident in their situations and truly care about those around them; this is what makes them great leaders.  They are invested in their followers, and “will resist external pressures that are contrary to their moral standards” (Rowe and Guerrero, 2012, p. 297)

According to Yukl (2013), authentic leaders are less defensive and more open to learning from feedback and mistakes.  This may appear to some as a weakness in a leader, but I feel it is invaluable.  The idea that anyone, especially a leader, is without faults is unrealistic.  Leaders are human just like everyone else and they are going to make mistakes.  I would rather be following a leader who can accept their mistakes and learn from them than a person who believes they are flawless.  In fact, as a leader, I am most likely to surround myself with people who compliment my weaknesses, this way there is a person on my team who is able to fill a need that I am lacking. 

In authentic leadership, everything is transparent: goals, values, beliefs, and expectations.  Followers know what to expect from their leader and the leader understands what the followers need to excel.  This relationship is vital for success. 

One topic brought up by Rowe and Guerrero (2012), was that of authentic transformational leadership.  By literal definitions, it would seem these two theories would not combine successfully.  In authentic leadership, it is the leader’s morals, values, and beliefs that are the focus, however, in transformational leadership the leader is appealing to the follower’s morals, values, and beliefs.  According to Yukl (2013) transforming leadership appeals to the values of the followers in an attempt to raise their consciousness about ethical issues and to mobilize their energy and resources to reform institutions (p. 321).  The two theories would work well together when the follower’s morals, values, and beliefs are the same as the leader, but what happens when they are different?  This is a topic I am interested in researching further to achieve a better understanding.                        

Rowe, W. G., & Guerrero, L. (2012). Cases in Leadership (3rd ed.). SAGE Publications,

Inc.

Yukl, G. (2013). Leadership in organizations (8th ed.). Boston: Pearson

A640.5.2.RB - Leader-Member Exchange Theory of Leadership

As in life as well as business, when two people treat each other with respect and trust a stronger relationship will emerge.  This theory also applies to leaders and followers; the better an employee is treated the more willing they will be to go above and beyond.  This may not be true of all employees but certainly for the ones who are motivated to move up the success ladder.

The seems to always be two types of employees in every company, those who are looking to move up and those who are content on staying where they are.  Rowe and Guerrero (2012) used the terms “in-group” and “out-group” respectively to describe these two groups.  In-group members have a mutual respect, trust, and reciprocal influence that are driven by the desire to move ahead and gain respect and responsibility.  One the other hand, out-group member tend to only do what is necessary to keep their job and get by.  Rowe and Guerrero (2012) described the out-group members as being physically at the job but have mentally defected.  While I believe these types of employees exist, I have seen them first hand, I also believe that they are followers who have no desire to move up as they are assets exactly where they are and may not possess the ability to desire to lead.  The ones that only offer a minimal amount of work to keep their jobs can have a negative impact on the department and the company; however, those employees who possess great skill at the job they are assigned to but show no desire to lead can be a positive influence.   Not all people can lead from in front of a group; some can lead by example within the group and this is where certain member of the out-group can be helpful and deserve the same amount of energy from the leader. 

When a person invests time in fostering a high-quality relationship with another it shows that they believe in that person and that person tends to step up and meet those beliefs.  Obolensky (2014) described the five levels of followership, these are the steps a leader can take to bring a follower up the ladder and increase their ability to not only act on their own but also lead others.  It can be difficult at times for a leader to let go of control and empower employees, however, when it happens the leader is often surprised by the quality or work from the followers. 

I would, and have, worked harder for those leaders who invested time and energy into me and my advancement.  These leaders are the same ones who are interested in fostering a two-way street form of communication, trust, and respect.  There is a difference between these leaders and those that “assign” tasks to employees simply because they do not want to do themselves.  Often times it can be difficult to see the difference, especially in a clever and charismatic leader.  I have made that mistake once and learned a lot from the experience.  My leader would often assign me the jobs he was supposed to do, not because he necessarily thought I would do a good job or could handle the responsibility but because he did not want to deal with the stress.  Fortunately for me, our manager realized what was going on and reprimanded him and promoted me, as it turned out I was during a great job and she noticed.        

Obolensky, N. (2014). Complex adaptive leadership: Embracing paradox and

uncertainty (2nd ed.). Farnham, England: Gower Publishing Limited.

Rowe, W. G., & Guerrero, L. (2012). Cases in Leadership (3rd ed.). SAGE Publications,

Inc.

A640.4.4.RB - Developing a Case (Post event analysis)

After creating a case study in this module my thinking about analyzing and critical thinking has changed.  While I have always been very concrete and literal, I have tried to step out of these limitations in hopes to become a better thinker.  In the past, I have taken case studies at face value without seeing what may be lying underneath, which has cost me the ability to analyze what the real problem might be.   I see now that I may have missed some important information by only reading the surface information, which could result in making the wrong decisions in problem-solving. 

One part of my case study that I found to be helpful was to ask the reader to look at the situation from both the leader’s and the employee’s perspectives.  I think this can give the reader more insight into exactly what the issues are.  I also think it demonstrates how problems can be seen differently by each person, and it may open the reader up to multiple ways to solve the problems.  Often times only one side of the situation is seen, which can result in a skewed assessment of what is actually happening. 

It is not easy to write a case study without coming across as one sided, especially when it is a situation you have witnesses first hand.  We all have out biases and they tend to influence the way we see and respond to things.  When writing something like a case study it is important to not appear to favor one side or the other, because if that occurs the reader may not have the opportunity to make his or her own decisions regarding the case.

Writing this case brought me back to my teaching days where I had to be clear in my expectations as well as my directions.  I have found that when expectations are not labeled clearly the results obtained are not as expected.  I have learned a lot from my teaching days that apply to leadership as well.  A teacher is in many ways a leader and vice versa, they both have followers who look to them for direction and knowledge.  

After completing my case study I had a much more concise view on how to approach problem-solving in general.  The idea of looking at the issues from multiple perspectives is very helpful in finding the best solution for all involved.