6-1/7-1 Discussion: Adaptive Leadership Toolkit Competency Selection

Leading PPL 6-1/7-1 Discussion

This discussion topic will span two weeks to Module Seven.

For this discussion, refer to the adaptive leadership toolkit. Effective leaders collaborate with others, as multiple inputs result in better outcomes. For your initial post, share the leadership skills and behaviors you have identified and provide a brief rationale for your selections. During this discussion, you will also receive feedback and possibly questions from your peers that you may evaluate and use to modify the leadership skills and behaviors you have chosen, if desired.

Consider the following during the ongoing discussion:

· Do the leadership skills and behaviors identified for improvement align with a specific question in the engagement survey?

· How will improvement in the leadership skills and behaviors you have identified positively impact the results in the next employee engagement survey?

You will post your initial response by Sunday evening of Module Six.

In Module Seven, review other learners’ posts and add comments to their selections of leadership skills and behaviors. Similarly, other learners will review your list of skills and behaviors and provide their feedback for the same. On completion of this review, you are to read the feedback given by your fellow classmates and make your final selection of leadership skills and behaviors.

Consider the following during the ongoing discussion:

· Are you actively listening to the feedback from your peers, remaining open to modifying the leadership skills and behaviors you have identified based on their comments and input?

· Compare and contrast skills and behaviors selected by your peers with those you have selected. As you review their rationale that justifies their selections, provide feedback to your peers on additional points they should consider.

· Provide your rationale for keeping the skills and behaviors you have selected that your fellow peer(s) have not, explaining why you believe the competencies you have selected provide better opportunity for organizational improvement. If, however, you believe another learner's skills and behavior selection is more viable then your own, then provide the rationale for changing your initial selection to one recommended by another learner. 

Malani Persaud

Hello my fellow leaders,

As we have progressed through this semester, we've come across a lot of reading material that give great insight on the perspective of being a great leader. All of the examples of a good leader definitely hold valuable information, however the one that stands out the most to me is training and development and Job satisfaction. After we finish this MBA program and graduate with this achievement diploma that doesn't mean we are going to be deemed perfect leaders, we will be intelligent leaders. I've learned a lot already from of all of the material given to me but one thing that stand outs in every reading is improvement. There is always room for improvement. "Great leaders are not born; rather, they develop and grow the necessary skillset by constant improvement and self-examination."(Hawkinson, N., & Moore, A. L.,2020) Learning is a never-ending journey, we can never learn enough as a leader. Every day in the working field will be another day of learning as we will come across many different obstacles and different characters. As leaders, it's important to continue educating ourselves in order to serve as positive models for our employees. Incentives was another great tool that stood out to me as a leader. Not that I didn't know this already but I learned that gifts and prizes are not the only way of offering incentives but gratitude is the ultimate gift. Little kind offerings just make gratitude so much more encouraging. I've heard too many time people say "I hate my job", "OMG tomorrow is Monday" or "Work is so tiring" just to name a few. Think about it, our employees give up countless hours in the week devoted to work when they would prefer to be spending time doing things they love, so why make work something they hate? Work is challenging on its own with the endless tasks that need to be completed in a timely manner. Offering praises of please and thank you will bring much delight to the staff's'' efforts in completing their tasks. However, as leaders we need to put much effort in offering incentives that will just get the staff through the day. Most workplaces have a lounge where the employees can go unwind for a few minutes, grab a cup of coffee/tea, so why not make the room a delightfully soothing room. I'm not necessarily referring to foods as an incentive (although it should be available) but make the break room entertaining. For example, make it holiday or season themed with respects to everyone. Have a bulletin board where games and fun information can be displayed. Monthly gatherings will not only boost morale of the workplace but also give the employees a chance to engage in conversations other than how they will complete that upcoming work task.

In the WileyPLUS reading Chapter 12: this stood out to me "Charlie regularly encourages members of the department by letting them know that he believes in them and has confidence that they will be successful. Charlie also does crazy, spur-of-the-moment things to celebrate the team's accomplishments, like going to the local grocery store and buying boxes of popsicles and ice cream bars. He'll return to the office with his booty of icy goodness, empty the mail cart, load it up with treats, and then play ice cream truck music on his smartphone while cruising through the office giving everyone their pick of a cool delight." (Kouzes, J. M., & Posner, B. Z.,2021) As a leader, it's important to have some fun with the staff to take the edge off of the workload.

On the employee survey the behaviors they were identified as need for improvement was Training and Development and Job Satisfaction. Leaders and Employees should both receive the training needed to complete their job and it should be a onetime ordeal, periodically offering refresher courses will boost skills. Job Satisfaction, employees should be offered the tools requires to get the job done. Employees also need to feel appreciated, that shouldn't just come through a paycheck. When you find someone that is willing to brag about their job then you know this is a company where Leaders provide Job Satisfaction.

The skills discussed in the employee survey that already made positive efforts for a better survey in the future is Recognition and Praise and Working Condition. This brings us back to incentives. “You want to have a work experience that allows you to engage with others, share a laugh, see the humor in a situation, and thank people for doing a good job.” (Kouzes, J. M., & Posner, B. Z., 2021) this sums up both leadership tool in one. Like I mentioned earlier, the work environment should not be a place of hate, this will just make employees miserable.

Another leadership tool that is important to mention is Collaborating and Networking, as a leader it is important to not make yourself a dictator but a team player. Working with the employees to figure out how the workload can become less challenging or be done faster. They're the core of task completion so their opinion is what matters the most. As a leader, you should always make it a duty to be available to assist and getting your hands dirty in a task. We will come across many different characters and sometimes we won't see eye to eye and agree with our employees’ suggestions but there has to be a common ground where both parties can collaborate and idea and satisfy both sides.

Reference:

Kouzes, J. M., & Posner, B. Z. (2021). Leadership Challenge for Southern New Hampshire University (6th Edition). Wiley Global Education US. https://wileyplus.vitalsource.com/books/9781119850717

Hawkinson, N., & Moore, A. L. (2020). Your Leadership Toolkit: How to Build Successful Teams. Physician Leadership Journal, 7(5), 74–76.

Response –

Maureen Dionne

Based on the employee survey results it is clear that the company has an issue with overall employee satisfaction, with positive responses in nearly all categories declining over four years. To improve in several areas the following leadership skills should be addressed:

1. Communication

2. Team-Building and Team Development

One of the areas that saw a significant decline in employee satisfaction was related to a lack of reward in recognition. In particular, each of the following questions saw significant decline in four years.

· My supervisor shows appreciation for the work that I do: Favorable responses dropped from 55 percent to 38 percent during the four-year period.

· When people work extra hard to meet our goals they are rewarded accordingly: Favorable responses decreased from 40% to 31% over four years.

· My supervisor takes the time to praise those who do an excellent job: Employees reported a 35% favorable response in the current year as compared to 44% four years ago.

By addressing the team building and team development skills the company would in turn be able to address the lack of recognition. Teams that work well together are more likely to recognize one another as individuals. One recent article noted “Team building encourages team members not only to work harder but to work smarter. When people understand how to use their individual skills to the group’s advantage, teams find the best ways to co-operate and succeed at job tasks” (2021). Teams that work well together are likely to be more efficient, creative, and productive. I also think that addressing team building and team development skills would lead to higher rates of supervisor recognition, which in turn would leader to higher levels of employee satisfaction.

I think that communication is an important leadership skill to be addressed as it is the critical tool that is used to provide information and to receive it. Given the responses related to supervisor interactions I think it is clear that the company has an issue with a lack of clear communication and active listening. “Good communicators are also good listeners. When you listen well, you gain a clear understanding of another’s perspective and knowledge. Listening fosters trust, respect, openness, and alignment. Active listening is a key part of coaching others “(2022). Communication is a key leadership skill as it is critical in all other processes, in the case of the organization’s employee satisfaction results addressing communication skill gaps would resolve issues and low positive responses in a number of categories.

References:

Team building is an essential leadership quality (& here's why). Strayboots. (2021, May 18). Retrieved February 13, 2022, from https://www.strayboots.com/blog/team-building-is-essential-for-leadership/#:~:text=In%20fact%2C%20the%20ability%20to,to%20do%20their%20best%20work.

Why communication is so important for leaders. CCL. (2022, January 7). Retrieved February 13, 2022, from https://www.ccl.org/articles/leading-effectively-articles/communication-1-idea-3-facts-5-tips/

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