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SUMMATION PAPER
BMAL501: STRATEGIC LEADERERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT
SUMMATION PAPER ASSIGNMENT
LIBERTY UNIVERSITY
DR. SHELLY ZALDIVAR
12 AUG 2022
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Introduction
Every organization needs both leaders and followers in order to function properly.
Everyone has their own personality, values, and ethics, so it’s important to communicate
effectively so that there is synergy. In our personal workplaces, everyone has a testimony of what
is working and what is not working. There are times when we are tested with pressure to
perform, and pressure in a crisis leads to poor and unethical decisions. The purpose of this paper
is to discuss a few concepts of what has affected the workplace, concepts that have affected my
leadership, and recommendations of change that would be helpful. The three concepts that will
be discussed include: transformational leadership, performance management, and
communication.
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Three Concepts Affecting My Company
Transformational Leadership
Transformational leaders are critical in an organization so it can maintain productivity of
the vision. This type of leader demonstrates key attributes that contribute to success such as:
strong influence, service for others, and inspiring. Transformational leaders need high emotional
intelligence and influence employees to think outside the box (Yang, et al., 2020). According to
Satterlee (2018), transformational leaders are servant leaders, self-aware, and have a vision to
inspire and propel employees. Transformational leaders are charismatic and confident when
going through crisis; they plan instead of panic (Satterlee, 2018).
In my workplace currently, it is more of a laissez-faire leadership where there is minimal
guidance and supervision. Employees are left to take care of their own problems. The so-called
“leader” does not make decisions or intervene when there is a problem. This type of leadership is
detrimental to team success, team synchronization, communication, and efficiency.
Since the team is lost and disorganized, it is important to have transformational
leadership to take a U-turn and build upon a more solid foundation. Yang et al. (2020) suggests
that transformational leaders have four behaviors which are: influence, motivation,
encouragement, and focusing on needs of individuals. Adding value improves job performance, a
sense of purpose, and makes employees work environment more meaningful (Yang et al., 2020).
Change is needed sometimes to propel employees to new heights and to get out of a lazy
way of thinking. Some recommendations that would be helpful for the current team would be:
have the training team come in and sit down with the leader to develop a transformational
leadership style approach. Have the leader attend workshops and seminars that dig deep into a
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transformational mindset. Moreover, have the leader sit down with the employees and have
cross-talk filled with feedback on what is working and what is not; every problem has a solution.
Performance Management
The next concept that will be discussed is performance management. Performance
management gauges where an employee stands on their work performance. It is important for
leaders to have a clear understanding on who is working with excellence and who is a weak link
on the team. Monitoring performance provides feedback on whether or not more training needs
to be accomplished, and finding the root cause of poor performance. According to Van
Waeyenberg et al. (2022) performance management is a key concept for evaluating and
monitoring an employee’s individual performance. The key here is that those that are doing the
training must stay committed to their task or else performance will become unsatisfactory.
My current team does not practice performance management like it should be. There is a
snowball affect starting at the leadership style of laissez-faire, then performance management
struggles. Currently, the vision is merely the Ostridge treatment of putting heads down in the
sand hoping that people will train themselves, fix problems themselves and that’s that. Quite the
contrary, this is not a sustainable practice and the team quickly deteriorates. Because
performance management is so important, the following recommendations are highly suggested
so that change can happen: first, trainers should come out and train the leader on how to create
and manage expectations, so that they are easy to understand and attainable. Second, stay
committed to the process by regular engagement and keep a strict process so that employees
know exactly what is expected. Van Waeyenberg et al. (2022) reveals that a well though out plan
for performance management will initiate optimistic effects. Finally, follow-up with the
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employees even after you feel confident the person is full equipped with the tools needed to
performance their job.
Communication
The final concept that will be discussed is communication. In order for a team to run
smoothly, it must have a strong communication strategy. Shulga (2021) explored how
communication, especially through change, is critical for employees to be receptive because
most of the time employees are resistant to change.
My team currently suffers from lack of communication. Laissez-faire leadership includes
lack of communication so this has been a roadblock for team growth. The leader’s neglectful
communication never gives that call for action or creative wisdom (Shulga, 2022). That said, the
recommendations that I would like to present are: making time useful so that meetings can be
held to discuss, distribute information in a timely concise manner, and lastly immediately stifle
any gossip so that information stays relevant.
Biblical Integration
There are wonderful biblical truths that come out of the three concepts that were
discussed. Spiritual gifts are mentioned in 1 Peter, and Peter encourages us to use our gifts to
serve others and glorify God. “As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good
stewards of the manifold grace of God” (King James Bible, 2005, 1 Peter 4:10). This verse is one
that inspires and encourages like the transformational leadership.
Taking a biblical perspective on performance management helps promote creativity,
getting knowledge, and wisdom. Paul expresses that the more you sow the more you reap when it
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comes to performance management. He compares it to farming and how a farmer looks at a seed
and how it grows.
And herein I give my advice: for this is expedient for you, who have begun before, not
only to do, but also to be forward a year ago. Now therefore perform the doing of it; that
as there was a readiness to will, so there may be a performance also out of that which ye
have (King James Bible, 2005, 1 Corinthians 8: 10-11).
Finally, the concept of communication is all through scripture. The Bible talks about to be
quick to listen, but slow to speak. “A wicked messenger falls into trouble, but a faithful
ambassador brings health” (King James Bible, 2005, Proverbs 13:17). When communication fails
in an organization, the team fails and gets into trouble as the scriptures says.
Concepts Affecting My Leadership
The factors or concepts that are affecting my leadership are: crisis, stress, and
accountability. Three months ago, I lost my sister to suicide, so this crisis crushed my leadership
capabilities for a while. Due to lack of supervision, this crisis turned into stress because I had to
do double work for someone that didn’t do their job. Accountability was then compromised
because this employee that wasn’t doing his job was not being held accountable.
Conclusion
This paper covered some great concepts and what to learn from them in my current
situation. I discussed how transformation leadership provides a multitude of positive attributes
and how it can multiply value to the employees. Additionally, how the effects of a laissez-faire
leadership can be detrimental to a team’s success. Moreover, this paper covered how
performance management is a foundation to employees adding value to a company, being
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productive, and having job satisfaction toward a common goal. The final concept discussed was
communication and how this is the back-bone to success in an organization. This paper also
included concepts that has affected my own personal leadership and those were: crisis, stress,
and accountability. With biblical perspective, I can use my crisis and turn it into growth,
creativity, and innovation.
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REFERENCES
King James Bible. (2005). Expositor’s Study Bible.
Satterlee, A. (2018). Principles of management and leadership: A Christian perspective.
https://prod.reader-ui.prod.mheducation.com/epub/satterle_sn/data-uuid-
c5071462f4ee4aa1bee5670c6ffa357a.
Shulga, L. V. (2021). Change management communication: The role of meaningfulness,
leadership brand authenticity, and gender. Cornell Hospitality Quarterly, 62(4), 498-515.
https://doi.org/10.1177/1938965520929022.
Van Waeyenberg, T., Peccei, R., & Decramer, A. (2022). Performance management and teacher
performance: The role of affective organizational commitment and exhaustion.
International Journal of Human Resource Management, 33(4), 623-646.
https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2020.1754881.
Yang, C., Chen, Y., Zhao, X. & Hua, N. (2020). Transformational leadership, proactive
personality and service performance: The mediating role of organizational
embeddedness. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 32(1),
267-287. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJCHM-03-2019-0244.
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