Week two reflection post

Week2ReflectionDiscussionPostHM.docx

Week 2: Reflection Discussion Post

After viewing the materials from this Module, reflect on the following questions: 

· How does the new information impact you?

· How will you use the new information?

· What value does this have for you?

Your response should demonstrate thoughtful consideration of the ideas and concepts presented in this module.

Post an initial 250+ word discussion by Day 4 (Thursday) and a 125+ word response to a colleague by Day 7 (Sunday).

Use theme sentences and paragraphs. Edit your work.

Your posts must be in accordance with the University's Threaded Discussion Guidelines.

Post your discussion by clicking on Start a New Thread and then click the Post button when you have completed your response.

LED602_M2_Lecture3_VISIONANDTRUST2.pptx

Developing Groups and Teams

Module 2 – Lecture 3

Role of Vision and Trust

in Team Leadership

Welcome to the third lecture for Week two of LED602, Developing Groups and Teams.

This lecture will examine the role of vision and trust in team leadership, as well as analyze the impact of ethical perspectives on practices within groups and teams.

1

Visionary Leadership

Requires ability to create and articulate a realistic, credible, attractive vision that grows out of and improves upon the present

Vision does not equal Mission

Three visionary leadership qualities:

Communicate vision to others

Express vision in behavior

Extend visions to other contexts

Visionary leadership requires the ability to create and articulate a realistic, credible, attractive vision that grows out of and improves upon the present. This vision almost “jump-starts the future by calling forth the skills, talents, and resources to make it happen.” A vision is not a dream. It is a reality that has not come to pass. Unlike a mission statement that conveys purpose but not direction, a vision offers means as well as ends. While goals point to a desired end, they are often value-neutral. A vision contains values and the actions needed to achieve the desired result.

These leaders have three qualities. First, they can communicate the vision to others. Second, they express the vision not only verbally but also by their behavior. Third, they can extend the vision to different leadership contexts. The key properties of a vision are inspirational possibilities that are value-centered, realizable, and conveyed with superior imagery and articulation. A vision that does not propose a future that is clearly better for the organization is likely to fail.

In a survey of 1,500 senior leaders, 870 of the CEOs from twenty different countries chose a “strong sense of vision” as the dominant characteristic for a CEO in the year 2000. But not everyone is so enthusiastic. Robert Eaton, CEO of Chrysler, believes that the concept is vague and wants Chrysler people to focus of quantifiable short-term results. The debate can be reconciled by recognizing that visionary leadership must be supported by detailed plans.

2

Team Leadership

Roles of team leaders:

Liaisons with external constituencies

Trouble-shooters

Conflict managers

Coaches

The team-leadership role differs from the traditional leadership role performed by first-line supervisors. The following section considers the challenge of being a team leader, reviews the new roles that team leaders adopt, and offers tips on how team leaders can perform effectively.

The following skills are critical to effective team leadership: trusting others, sharing information, giving up authority, and knowing when to intervene. The team leader’s job involves two priorities: managing the team’s external boundary and facilitating the team process. These priorities require four specific roles. First, team leaders are liaisons with external constituencies: management, other internal teams, customers, and suppliers. Second, team leaders are trouble-shooters. They ask penetrating questions, help the team overcome obstacles, and obtain resources as needed. Third, they are conflict managers who help process conflict as needed. Fourth, they are coaches who clarify expectations and roles, and do what it takes to help team members improve their on-the-job performance.

Effective team leaders have cultivated the following skills: coaching, conflict resolution, listening, feedback, and verbal persuasion. Furthermore, they have accepted that they do not have the level of technical skills held by team members. So, they concentrate on their job: empowering team members, getting them to focus on goals, providing motivation, and minimizing barriers.

Certain individual, job, and organizational variables can substitute for formal leaders or neutralize the leader’s influence. Neutralizers negate the leader’s behavior and obviate its influence on a subordinate’s outcomes. Substitutes replace the leader’s behavior and make it redundant. Even though formal leaders can be replaced, leadership cannot. So, leadership will happen, either through informal leaders or organizational channels.

3

Trust -Definition

Positive Expectation & Opportunistic Behavior

Dimensions of Trust:

Integrity

Competence

Consistency

Loyalty

Openness

Trust is a positive expectation that another will not act opportunistically. The phrase positive expectation assumes knowledge and familiarity about the other party. Trust, therefore, is a history-dependent process based on relevant but limited samples of evidence. Trust takes time to form, building incrementally and accumulating. The term opportunistically refers to risk and vulnerability in any trusting relationship. Trust is not actually taking risks; rather, it is the willingness to do so. An absence of trust does not imply distrust; so you can have neutral situations where there is an absence of trust but no expectations of opportunistic behavior.

The key dimensions of trust are as follows:

Integrity refers to honesty and truthfulness. This dimension seems to be the most critical when someone assesses the trustworthiness of another.

Competence encompasses an individual’s technical and interpersonal skills and knowledge.

Consistency relates to an individual’s reliability, predictability, and judgment in handling situations.

Loyalty is the willingness to protect and save face for another person.

Openness is the final dimension of trust. Can you rely on the person to give you the full truth?

4

Trust -Types

Deterrence-Based Trust

Knowledge-Based Trust

Identification-Based Trust

The most fragile relationships are contained in deterrence-based trust. This type of trust is based on fear of reprisal and will only work to the degree that punishment is possible, consequences are clear, and punishment is actually imposed if trust is violated. This type of trust is characterized by protections such as contracts and other legal arrangements. An example is the relationship between a new manager and an employee. The bond that creates this trust lies in the authority held by the boss and the punishment he or she can impose.

Most organizational relationships are rooted in knowledge-based trust. So, trust of this kind is based on a history of interaction. It relies on information rather than deterrence. The knowledge of the other party and the predictability of his or her behavior replace contracts, penalties, and legal arrangements. At this level, trust is not necessarily broken by inconsistent behavior, if that behavior can be adequately explained or understood.

The highest level of trust, identification-based trust, is based on an emotional connection between the parties. Trust exists because the parties understand each other’s intentions, wants, and desires. So one party can act as an agent for the other and substitute for that person in interpersonal transactions. Controls are minimal at this level. In the current workplace, most large corporations have broken the bonds of identification-based trust that may have existed with long-term employees. It is likely to have been replaced by knowledge-based trust.

5

Implications for Practice

Practice openness

Be fair

Speak your feelings

Tell the truth

Show consistency

Fulfill your promises

Be discreet

Demonstrate competence

Implication for Practice:

Leaders should practice openness by keeping people informed, making decision criteria overtly clear, explaining the rationale for decisions, being candid about problems, and disclosing relevant information.

Leaders should be fair by giving credit where it is due, being impartial in performance appraisals, and distributing rewards equitably.

Leaders should speak their feelings because doing so will let others know that they are human beings, not automatons.

Leaders should tell the truth because honesty is essential to credibility.

Leaders should show consistency by knowing their values and beliefs and acting upon them.

Leaders should fulfill their promises because trust requires that people believe that you are dependable.

Leaders should be discreet. If someone tells a leader something in confidence, then he or she should not betray that confidence.

Leaders should demonstrate competence to develop the admiration and respect of others.

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LED602_M2_Lecture3_VISIONANDTRUST.pptx