Communication Strategy for Adaptive Leadership Toolkit

Running Head: COMMUNICATION STRATEGY 1

9-1 Project Submission: Communication Strategy for Adaptive Leadership Toolkit

MBA 580

December 11,2021

SNHU

COMMUNICATION STRATEGY 2

Introduction

A communication strategy has been designed for an organization that is involved in

making prosthetics. The fundamental objective of the communication strategy is to help in the

rollout and implementation of the adaptive leadership toolkit. The communication is designed so

leadership has been identified and discussed. Then the leadership strengths and weaknesses that

have been identified from the employee engagement survey are examined. Their association with

the leadership skills and behaviour included in the adoptive leadership toolkit has been

ascertained. The importance of the personal development plan (PDP) in the toolkit is captured.

The role of the PDP and SMART goal setting to develop leadership skills in the organization is

explained. The following section gives an in-depth insight into the adaptive leadership toolkit,

the intended target audience, and the integrated leadership skills and behaviour. The details

relating to the rollout and implementation of the leadership approach are highlighted. The

metrics and deliverables that will be used for measuring its effectiveness have been identified. It

is followed by the methods of communication that will be used for gaining buy-in. ultimately,

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1. Business Problem

The business problem that the organization is currently facing revolves around its leadership

approach. According to the results of this year's employee engagement survey, some leadership

practices, such as the focus on recognition and praise, limited support by supervisors, etc., have

that exist in the leadership style in the organization so that the satisfaction of employees towards

the leadership can be increased (Gleeson, 2020).

The objective of designing the adaptive leadership toolkit is to identify and develop adaptive

leadership skills by reflecting on current strengths and weaknesses (Adaptive leadership toolkit.

Child Care Technical Assistance Network, 2020). In the highly dynamic and unpredictable

organizational setting, leaders need to function in an adaptable and flexible manner so that they

can bring about constructive and sustainable change. In the organization, the adaptive leadership

toolkit can be of high value as it can help in addressing the current leadership issue and help to

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2. Leadership Strengths

The evaluation of the employee engagement survey has helped to identify several leadership

strengths, such as the commitment to assist the organizational personnel in fulfilling their family

and other responsibilities and high commitment to providing value to the clients and the

The analysis that has been performed is extremely insightful as it has helped to identify the

leadership aspects that have a positive influence on the workforce and increase their satisfaction

level in the organization. Furthermore, it also helped to identify the leadership skills and

behaviour that need to be integrated into the adaptive leadership toolkit so that the existing issues

can be addressed. On the basis of the thorough analysis of the employee engagement survey

results, several leadership skills and behaviour, such as the ability to engage with the staff,

acknowledgment and appreciation of the efforts of the subordinates, etc., have been integrated

into the adaptive leadership toolkit. According to Sarti (2014), leaders play an indispensable role

to enhance work engagement and improve the management of human resources (Sarti, 2014).

3. Leadership Weaknesses

The analysis of the results of the employee engagement survey has helped to identify several

leadership weaknesses that are prevalent in the organization, such as a low level of engagement

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with the staff, poor focus on recognition and praise. These elements restrict the overall

effectiveness of the current leadership approach and negatively affect employee satisfaction and

motivation. The results of the survey show that due to the lack of recognition in the firm,

employees do not feel encouraged to come up with new and better ways of doing things.

Similarly, it also hampers their personal sense of accomplishment in the work setting. Clarke

and Mahadi (2017) have identified that recognition can strengthen the relationship between

main focus is on the current weaknesses, i.e., the areas in which low score is attained. For

example, there is scope for the organizational leaders to lay emphasis on recognition, praise, and

4. Personal Development Plan

The personal development plan has played an instrumental role in identifying the exact areas

of leadership that act as strengths and weaknesses in the organization. It has been used as the

action plan based on which individual leadership goals that individuals plan to achieve in the

future have been captured. The PDP supports the adaptive leadership toolkit by not only

identifying the leadership skills and behaviours that need to be improved but also capturing the

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steps or measures that can be taken for working on those areas. The plan has been designed by

taking into account the survey results, and some of the key skills that have been included in the

plan are communicating and engaging with the subordinates. According to Avadhani (2016), the

interpersonal skills of leaders play a pivotal role to shape their success as leaders (Avadhani,

2016).

5. Leadership Style

The personal development plan, along with the SMART goal setting approach, can help to

develop a suitable leadership style in the organization. Both of these elements can help the

leaders in the company to identify the exact leadership areas that need to be changed or improved

and implement a well-defined and systematic process to work towards an adaptive leadership

approach. As there exist certain leadership practices that the employees are not satisfied with, the

PDP could provide a roadmap and offer guidance to continuously grow in varying leadership

areas. It can support the adoption of a suitable leadership style in the organizational setting by

helping in analyzing the current skills and attributes, developing personal goals, and identifying

specific ways to accomplish the goals. The adoption of the SMART approach can further help to

develop a suitable leadership style by helping design 'smart, measurable, attainable, relevant, and

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timebound' goals that can add be of high value. In the organization, both the personal

development plan and SMART goal-setting have helped to identify communication and

engagement as the key improvement areas to improve the leadership style. By engaging with the

staff, the leaders can address the current leadership weaknesses and improve employee

satisfaction.

In the organization, the adaptive leadership toolkit will be used as a key instrument that will

of paramount importance in the organization is 'the establishing a culture of healthy and

courageous conversations.' It will help to address the current leadership weaknesses relating to

poor engagement and lack of recognition and praise.

All the members of the organization will be the target audience for the adaptive leadership

toolkit. This is because the leadership approach that is adopted in an entity influences each and

every member. It will target individuals in the managerial, supervisory and leadership positions

to cultivate necessary leadership skills so that the organizational climate can be improved and

employee satisfaction can get enhanced. Similarly, it will also target other professionals in the

work setting so that they can work on their leadership skills to be future leaders. Vries has argued

that adaptive leadership is valuable for an organization as it focuses on practices that develop

leadership throughout the entire entity (Clarke & Mahadi, 2017). The owners of the adaptive

leadership toolkit include the Director of Leadership and Learning, Vice President of Leadership

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and Learning. The contribution of the Director is immense as he has played a proactive role by

conducting a personal leadership self-assessment, creating a personal development plan and

creating an exemplar adaptive leadership toolkit.

7. Specific leadership skills and behaviours

considered imperative for a leader. The associated skills like listening, understanding the body

of recognition and praise can be addressed. By working in the specific leadership aspect, it will

also be possible to improve the existing working conditions and enhance employee satisfaction.

Similarly, the engaging skill of leaders is also vital as it can influence their ability to understand

the subordinates at a deeper level. By improving their engagement ability, they can identify

different needs of the employees, such as their training and development needs. If the leaders in

the organization will work on these areas, they will be able to establish trust in the work setting

and improve the overall quality of the work setting. Dirani (2020) has argued that leadership role

is defined by the skills, competencies and abilities of the leaders (Dirani et al., 2020). In the

specific organizational context, the leaders need to work on their skills so that they can add value

to the organization and the workforce.

8. Rollout and implementation

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In order to make the optimum use of the adaptive leadership toolkit in the organization, some

of the fundamental aspects that must be given high importance include rollout and

implementation process. A suitable timeframe within which the toolkit can be introduced and

executed in the organization is three months. Within the particular duration, the leaders,

managers and supervisors of the organization can work on their communication and engagement

ability to boost employee satisfaction. The strategy relating to communication and engagement

valuable information to employees that can improve their job performance and enhance working

conditions. Similarly, the skill will also play an instrumental role and ensure that the leaders

interact with the personnel and help them to determine their training and development goals in

the organizational setting.

9. Metrics and Deliverables

The identification of relevant metrics and deliverables is vital while rolling out and

implementing the adaptive leadership toolkit in the organizational setting. This is because these

elements will help to ascertain whether the purpose of introducing the toolkit has been met or