BUSINESS MANAGEMENT 400-500 Word DISCUSSION QUESTION

Theme One: There are various types of leadership roles in an organization. They extend from the executive leadership role to the project leader. Each has different sets of responsibilities to the organization and each leadership role utilizes skill sets which require influencing people to move the business towards the vision. This week’s theme focuses on those levels which are most visible to the students either because they are seen from afar as being on the top or because they seek to become involved personally: executive, managerial, and team leaders. We will examine the role of each and the skill sets associated with them.

Executive Leader: Is the leader that many of our students see from afar. They are the people at the top. Their role is to design the vision, mission, structure and culture of the organization. It is their ideas that provide the framework upon which the manager builds. The job of the executive leader is to be the social architect. An executive leader creates the vision, mission, structure and culture and is change agents.

Managerial Leadership: Leaders create followers through influence while managers lead people and manage things (overlap is the skills needed to lead people to do things)

Leading Teams: Many of our students may have this type of leadership job already. They may be team leaders with some leadership tools necessary.

Learning Activity

To complete this activity you will need to refer to the case of Protection Insurance

1. Your assigned role is Contributing Team Member (Contributes to the achievement of group objectives; works effectively with others in a group) (and its description); Describe how your assigned role would address the organizational leadership challenges presented in the Protection Insurance case.

2. Responses for your role must be between 400-500 words.

3. Use data and appropriate citations from the course materials to justify your actions.

 Executive Leadership

http://www.businessinsider.com/the-7-traits-of-executive-presence-2013-9

http://chiefexecutive.net/op-10-skills-needed-for-effective-leadership-bcl14/

http://www.fastcompany.com/3032828/the-one-personality-trait-to-look-out-for-when-hiring-your-next-executive

Managerial Leadership

http://www.forbes.com/sites/erikaandersen/2012/04/10/manage-or-lead-do-both/#195dce39373c

Leading Teams

http://smallbusiness.chron.com/team-leader-vs-supervisor-responsibilities-35723.html

http://www.forbes.com/sites/brentgleeson/2014/11/24/5-responsibilities-for-leading-elite-teams/#b8eb65632471

Contributing Team Member description: Contributes to the achievement of group objectives; works effectively with others in a group

CASE: Protection Insurance Stays Alive

At 7:30 A.M., Carlos Para hit the snooze alarm for the third time, but he knew he could never go back to sleep. Rubbing his eyes and shaking off a headache, Para first checked his IPHONE and read an urgent message from his boss, explaining that Jack Nixon, chief security analyst, had resigned last night and needed to be replaced immediately. Frustrated, Carlos lumbered toward the shower, hoping it would energize him to face another day. After last night’s management meeting, which had ended after midnight, he was reeling from the news that his employer, Protection Insurance, was spiraling toward a financial meltdown. Para scratched his head and wondered, “How could one of the world’s largest insurance companies plummet from being the gold standard in the industry to one struggling for survival?” At the end of 2007, Protection had $100 billion in annual revenues, 65 million customers, and 96,000 employees in 130 countries. One year later and staggered by losses stemming from the credit crisis, Protection teetered on the brink of failure and was in need of emergency government assistance. Protection had been a victim of the meltdown in the credit markets. The collapse of this respected financial institution sent shock waves throughout the world’s economy. Within Protection’s Manhattan office, Para and his coworkers felt growing pressure to respond to this crisis quickly and ethically. But morale was sagging and decision making was stalled. New projects were on hold, revenues weren’t coming in fast enough, and job cuts were imminent. Finger-pointing and resignations of key managers had become commonplace. Strong leadership was needed to guide employees to stay the course. Para knew his first priority was to replace Jack Nixon. When leaving the meeting last night, his boss had told him, “It’s critical that we keep key managers in place as we weather this storm. If we lose any, be sure you replace them with ones who can handle the stress and can make tough, maybe even unpopular, decisions.” Working up a sweat as he rushed into his office, Para began sorting through the day’s priorities. His first task would be to consider internal candidates to replace Nixon. He pondered the characteristics required of a chief securities analyst and scribbled them on a notepad: experienced in security and regulatory issues; strong decision-making skills; high ethical standards; able to make job cuts; comfortable slashing budgets; and respected for calm leadership. Para immediately thought of Jan Jacob, a senior analyst who had been vocal about her desire to move up and had recently shown steady leadership as the organization started to crumble. Jacob had worked her way up through the organization, becoming a respected expert in her field. She had developed a strong team of loyal employees and made training and job development a priority. She was likable, sensitive to her employees, and a consensus builder. While many managers within Protection had made questionable business decisions, Jan had held herself to a high ethical standard and created a culture of integrity. Jacob was focused on the future—a go-getter who knew how to get results. With the future of the company at stake, however, Para wondered if Jacob could handle the tough challenges ahead. Although he valued her team-building skills, she could be soft when it came to holding employees accountable. A large part of her motivation was to have people like her. When she reported a shortfall in earnings in the last company meeting and came under fire, she’d become defensive and didn’t want to point fingers at employees who were to blame. In fact, Para recalled another instance when Jacob recoiled at the thought of firing an employee who had developed a pattern of poor attendance while caring for her sick husband. She confessed a hesitation to confront poor performers and employees struggling to balance home and work life. Para stirred his morning coffee and wondered aloud, “Is Jan Jacob capable of balancing kindness and toughness during a crisis? Can I count on her to be decisive and focused on top- and bottom-line results? Is she too much of a people pleaser? Will it impact her ability to lead successfully?”