G2 Forum 2: Group Submission
G Forum : Group Summary
Morris
Graduate School of Business, Liberty University
BMAL 501 – B07: Strategic Leadership & Management
September 6
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G2 Forum 2: Group Submission
Introduction to the topic
The first four chapters of Organizational Management and Leadership: A Christian
Perspective, by Anita Satterlee, discuss an introduction to organizational management and
leadership, the history of management, the functions of management, and the functions of
leadership. This group discussion board post synthesizes the information further in order to
summarize the three key concepts discussed in these first few chapters as well as the additional
assigned course readings from weeks one and two.
Group Consensus
Thus far, the course readings have argued that in the pursuit of innovation and corporate
success – keys to business sustainability, profitability, and growth – organizations should seek to
cultivate engagement and learning through effective management and leadership practices.
While not synonymous, management and leadership are interconnected within organizational
structure and collectively impact corporate success. As such, collectively our group identified
the following three topics as the most important concepts covered in the course thus far: first,
the importance of effective management to organizational success, second, the distinction of
leadership from the other managerial functions, and third, trust as a foundation to the leader-
follower relationship.
Impact of Effective Management
First, according to Satterlee, management consists of four essential functions: planning,
organizing, leading ,and controlling (2018, p. 2). As one article argues, “[a] manager relies on
position, power and authority to direct the actions and/or conduct of subordinate employees.
The manager is better at telling his/her employees what tasks to do with little time spent on the
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G2 Forum 2: Group Submission
why” (Marker, 2010, p. 32). Overall, there are several characteristics that successful managers
will embody: the ability to build trust-based relationships with subordinates, the ability to
motivate employees, the ability to adapt to change, and the ability to communicate effectively.
Furthermore, effective managers often also exhibit high self-esteem and self-efficacy (Satterlee,
2018, p. 10 – 11). As one author suggests, “If all personnel always did what was best for the
organization, … management would not be needed. But obviously individuals are sometimes
unable or unwilling to act in the organization’s best interest” which is why successful
organizations rely on effective management (Merchant, 1986, p. 43).
Distinguishing Leadership from Management
In comparison, leadership is defined as “the art of mobilizing others to want to struggle
for shared aspirations” (Satterlee, 2018, p. 90). Leading is a function of management, but as
another author notes, “[a] leader … utilizes a totally different set of skills including persuasion,
communication, shared vision, values, logic and even, at times, emotion. The leader is great at
explaining why something needs to be accomplished and then empowers those responsible to
get it done” (Marker, 2010, p. 32). The primary functions of leadership are to define and
embrace a clear vision and exercise power and influence in order to generate cohesion and
collaboration toward a shared corporate goal. Overall, leadership is typically defined as either
transactional or transformational and “both positively correlated to trust” (Cai et al., 2018, p.
1063). This trust then “mediates the relationships between both types of leadership and
acceptance of change” (Cai et al., 2018, p. 1064). Moreover, successful leaders often
demonstrate a strong desire to lead, drive, honesty and integrity, self-confidence, intelligence,
and job-related knowledge (Satterlee, 2018, p. 92 – 98).
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G2 Forum 2: Group Submission
The Role of Trust in the Leader-Follower Relationship
However, as important as effective management and leadership are to organizations,
much of long-term business success is dependent upon the idea of trust in the leader-follower
relationship. Ethical leadership “has been found to significantly influence employees’ trust in
their leader” (Javed, et al, 2018, p. 296). Ultimately, effective and sustainable followership will
not exist without trust at the center of the leader-follower relationship. As one author notes:
“[t]he defining word for leaders is trust … and as “Aristotle said, …leaders [must have] three
critical elements to be trustworthy: good character, good sense, [and] good will” (Gladis, 2010,
p. 14). The course textbook quotes The bases of social power by J.R.P French & B. Raven in
defining trust as the “willingness of a party to be vulnerable to the actions of another party
based on the expectations that the other will perform a particular action important to the
trustor, irrespective of the ability to monitor or control that other part as a positive expectation
that another will not act opportunistically” (Satterlee, 2018, p. 5). Ultimately, “[t]he elevation of
trust among employees (as a result of the effective leadership) contributes positively to the
successful implementation of knowledge management processes … [which then] contributes
positively to the enhanced organizational performance” (Koohang et al., 2017, p. 529).
Biblical Integration
From a biblical perspective, there is abundant support for the idea of ethical leadership.
First, the Bible charges that all business dealings – which includes the leader-follower
relationship within organizations – should be done in “good faith” and “fair dealings” (Numbers
30:2 & Proverbs 20:20). Second, Christians are reminded to always seek to conduct themselves
in such a way that models Christ-like principles “in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, and in
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G2 Forum 2: Group Submission
purity” (1 Timothy 4:12). And finally, as Proverbs notes: “[t]he integrity of the upright guides
them, but the unfaithful are destroyed by their duplicity” (Proverbs 11:3).
Strategies for Concept Implementation
Impact of Effective Management
First, to promote effective management an organization must seek to clearly define the
functions, duties, and characteristics of successful managers. There are four basic functions of
management: planning, organizing, leading, and controlling. The duties of managers are often
three-fold: general, functional, and executive. Lastly, the six key characteristics possessed by
successful managers are: (1) build trust, (2) motivate workers, (3) adapt to change, (4) build
relationships with internal and/or external customers, (5) communicate effectively, and (6) have
high self-efficiency (Satterlee, 2018, p. 10).
Distinguishing Leadership from Management
Second, in regard to formulating strategies for distinguishing leadership from other
managerial functions, “a manager must develop an understanding of the nature of leadership
along with an understanding of the importance of vision, power, influence, and ethics”
(Satterlee, 2018, p. 90). Furthermore, an organization must understand that not all managers
possess the necessary traits to an effective – or more importantly, and ethical – leader.
Successful leaders often demonstrate drive, a desire to lead, honesty and integrity, self-
confidence, intelligence, and job-related knowledge (Satterlee, 2018, p. 92).
The Role of Trust in the Leader-Follower Relationship
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G2 Forum 2: Group Submission
Lastly, to encourage ethical leadership and trust, an organization must seek to challenge
leaders to understand and practice the five dimensions of trust: (1) integrity, (2) competence,
(3) consistency, (4) loyalty, and (5) openness (Satterlee, 2018, p. 5). Integrity “is the most critical
because employees assess a leader’s trustworthiness;” competence does not require leaders to
know everything, just a level of proficiency that encourages respect; consistency “is the
correlation between what a leader says and what a leader does and the uniformity of those
actions;” loyalty “is a willingness to remain faithful to the interests of others and a concern for
followers;” and openness involves effective and honest communication (Satterlee, 2018, p. 5).
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G2 Forum 2: Group Submission
References:
Cai, W. J., Loon, M., & Wpng, P. H. K. (2018). Leadership, trust in management and acceptance of
change in Hong Kong’s Civil Service Bureau. Journal of Organizational Change
Management, 31(5), 1054 – 1070. https://www-emerald-
com.ezproxy.liberty.edu/insight/content/doi/10.1108/JOCM-10-2016-0215/full/html
Gladis, S. (2010). The trusted leader. T + D, 64(11), 14. https://search-proquest-
com.ezproxy.liberty.edu/docview/804213951/fulltextPDF/263F3FC34DCE426EPQ/1?
accountid=12085
Javed, B., Rawwas, M. Y. A., Khandai, S., Shahid, K., & Hafiz, H. T. (2018). Ethical leadership, trust
in leader and creativity: The mediated mechanism and an interacting effect. Journal of
Management and Organization, 24(3), 388-405.
doi:http://dx.doi.org.ezproxy.liberty.edu/10.1017/jmo.2017.56
Koohang, A., Paliszkiewicz, J., & Goluchowski, J. (2017). The impact of leadership on trust,
knowledge management, and organizational performance: A research model. Industrial
Management & Data Systems, 117(3), 521 – 537. https://www-emerald-
com.ezproxy.liberty.edu/insight/content/doi/10.1108/IMDS-02-2016-0072/full/html
Marker, D. (2010). Leadership or management? Why being a “good manager” might not be the
best career goal. Management Quarterly, 51(2), 31 – 34. https://search-proquest-
com.ezproxy.liberty.edu/docview/527842268/fulltextPDF/A674B8D3386F4F37PQ/1?
accountid=12085
Merchant, K. A. (1982). The control function of management. Sloan Management Review, 23(4),
43 – 55. https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy.liberty.edu/docview/206766218
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