Discussion #1
You will read the discussion below and follow the instructions provided. You will create the memorandum and submit in the discussion area. Post the entire memorandum into the discussion area rather than provide as an attachment.
Do not post in the discussion area until you have written the memorandum. If the seal is broken without posting, a zero for this assignment will be automatically assigned.
You will read the following scenario and provide the memorandum by Saturday, 11:59 p.m. eastern time. By Monday, 11:59 p.m. eastern time, you will read the memoranda of your classmates and will comment on at least three other classmates addressing the following
- Comment on the positive aspects of the memo posted by others.
- Comments on key leadership language that could be used to strengthen the memo.
- Would you change your response in the memo? If so, why? if not, why not?
By Tuesday, 11:59 p.m. eastern time, respond to the classmates who responded to your memorandum.
Note: No postings will accepted after Tuesday at 11:59 p.m.
Read the Following Case Scenario
A recent survey was taken among employees at Biotech Health and Life Products (Biotech). The results were alarming, as it appeared the leadership has been less effective than in the past. Some of the common complaints seemed to focus on the lack of vision, a breakdown in communication and a lack of connection with staff.
You have read the results and as Vice President of Biotech, you completely agree with employees. Leadership is the cornerstone to success in any organization and to permit poor leadership can only spell trouble. It occurred to you that the place to start change was staring you in the face – the new management hires planned for Warehouse Operations in Detroit and Brisbane. Mumbling to yourself “but what do I want them to look like?” you decide that you must write a memo to HR Director, Jennifer Dion to make sure the “right” description of a leader is asked for in the soon-to-be released job description. Scrambling around on the desk, you find the old job announcement so that you can make some changes. It reads, “Biotech is looking for experienced warehouse managers who focus on keeping the distribution speed high and shipping costs low. Manager must be able to motivate employees to keep distribution, packing, and shipping moving smoothly and efficiently. Must be someone who can handle a fast-paced environment, is used to meeting deadlines, is driven and results-oriented. Goal oriented and policy adherence critical to succeed in the department.”
Instructions
You will act as the Vice President of Biotech. Write a memorandum to the HR Director, Jennifer Dion that explains the need for a new job announcement for managers at Biotech. The memorandum will explain how the business environment has changed the view of the leader and defines the vision you have based on synthesizing the course material about leadership theory and definition of a leader in today’s business environment opposed to leaders hired in the past.
In writing the memorandum, use the course material from week 1 (you may also use course material from week 2) to support the reasoning and conclusions made. You will also use the Company Profile . Answer the following:
- Explain how the existing job announcement for new hires was effective in the past based on the theories and view of leadership through the 1990’s.
- Explain why the leader of today would no longer fit the definition set out in the old announcement.
- Describe what a leader looks like today and what theories and leadership definitions support this description.
Memorandum Set Up
Create a Word or Rich Text Format (RTF) document (no pdf files allowed) using 12-point font. A memo is left justified with no indentations of paragraphs. A memo is single-spaced with a double space between paragraphs to make the memo easy to read.
In business, writing must be concise, easy to read and free of writing and grammatical errors.
You are required to use in-text citations with an associated reference list.
Use headings for each element. It is suggested that you set up the memo with all of the required headings and then fill in each section of the memo.
Use a memo format:
To:
From:
Date:
Subject:
Remember, you are sending this memo to the HR Director so this is a formal memo. Proof the memo carefully for typos, grammatical errors and ensure the memo conveys the points you are to address. Why? Because your work products is a reflection of who you are – it is your brand! A good brand can lead to future opportunities in an organization such as a promotion.
Make sure the memo is audience appropriate, concise, coherent, readable, uses appropriate terminology, is professional, provides a factual tone (no opinion and no recommendations), and is visually appealing.
Memorandum Requirements
You are sending this memo to the HR Director, Jennifer Dion. Read the memo to ensure all required elements are present. You also need to use facts from the case scenario and course material to support the ideas and reasoning put forth.
The language in the announcement has to be just right so that Biotech attracts the best candidates. Therefore, it is important to help Jennifer capture the essence of a leader at Biotech.
- Make suggestions about language that should appear in the job announcement that supports the definition and characteristics you derived for the leader of today.
- Provide an explanation so Jennifer knows why the specified language is important to convey the definition and characteristics of a leader;
- Make suggestions about language that would not be in the job announcement for this leader;
- Provide an explanation why the specific language should not be in the job announcement.
- Not just anything is acceptable so make sure to read the course material and make wise selections in creating this memo.
The following items are required in writing the memo. Check off to ensure compliance to the following requirements.
- Use the grading rubric while completing the project to ensure all requirements are met that will lead to the highest possible grade.
- Third person writing is required. Third person means that there are no words such as “I, me, my, we, or us” (first person writing), nor is there use of “you or your” (second person writing).
- Contractions are not used in business writing, so do not use them.
- Students will not use direct quotation marks but will instead paraphrase. What this means is that you will put the ideas of an author or article into your own words rather than lifting directly from a source document. You may not use more than four consecutive words from a source document (including the case scenario) or change words in a passage as doing so would require direct quotation marks. Use a passage from a source document by putting into your own words (paraphrase) and attribute the passage to the source document. Changing words from a passage does not exclude the passage from having to have quotation marks. If direct quotes are presented, they will not be included in the grading.
- Use in-text citations and provide a reference list that contain a reference associated with each in-text citation.
- Provide the page or paragraph number in every in-text citation presented. Refer to this link for more guidance on how to do this:
In-Text Citations – Including Page or Paragraph Numbers
———————–
WEEK 1 References Below
Week 1: What is Meant by Leadership and Who are Leaders?
Theme 1: Understanding the nature of leadership helps to frame the viewpoint of a leader
Although many scholars have defined leadership, but the definition of leadership is dynamic. This week, we will discuss the definitions of leadership to understand the field of study upon which we are about to embark. The definition of leadership has significantly changed over the past generation to meet the needs of a contemporary business environment. In fact, many scholars have disagreed on the nature or essential characteristics of leadership but instead have offered a variety of perspectives as to what leadership is not. As we discuss the contemporary definitions of leadership, pay close attention to various definitions and compare them to those of prominent leaders today. Are they similar? If so how? If not, why not?
Read:
Simon Sinek on Leadership at TED
Satel, G. (2014, June 1). To Create Real Change, Leadership Is More Important Than Authority
Theme 2: The evolution of leadership theory can help to explain what makes a good leader today.
The second theme for week 1 details how the definition of leadership has adapted to fit the changing business environment. Changes in the definition of leadership are reflected in how leadership has been viewed by scholars. Leadership theory took root in the social science fields of sociology and psychology. People wanted to know what made a good leader and whether they could become a good leader by adapting the “good” traits. Debate still rages on in leadership research as to whether leadership is inborn or learned. By examining leadership theory this week, we will begin to define leadership in terms of answering the question of what should Biotech’s leaders look like for success today. The evolution of leadership theory illustrates how leaders have perceived the act of leading and how the psychology of leading people interfaces with the real job of leading others. How one views and defines leadership influences the beliefs, values and behaviors maintained while leading and relating to others.
As mentioned earlier, leadership experts have perspectives/ theories about leadership. It is important to understand the history of leadership theories, because it will help define the way leadership is today. The business environment controls the view of the leader as it controls the actions needed for a company to survive. By reviewing the chart below and the leadership theories from the attached readings, it should become clear to you how leadership has evolved. Understanding how leadership theory has evolved to meet the needs of the organization over time will help to define us as leaders today.
Decade(s) |
1950-60 |
1960-80 |
1980-2000 |
2000-Now |
Theories |
Great Man/Trait |
Behavior/ Contingency |
Influence |
Relational |
Organizational Structure |
Vertical/ Pre-bureaucratic |
Vertical Hierarchy/ Bureaucratic |
Horizontal/Cross-Teams |
Flat/ Functional |
Leader View |
Single Hero |
Command and Control |
Team/Change Leader |
Shared Vision/ Alignment/ Change Agent |
Environment |
Post-War Stable |
American Business Growth/ Stable |
MNC Dominance/Japanese Model/ Chaotic |
Technology Revolution/ Disrupted/ Chaotic |
Source: Adapted from Daft, R. L. (2010). The leadership experience (5th ed.). Boston, MA: Cengage Learning
TAKE AWAY POINT FROM LEADERSHIP THEORY EVOLUTION
The flow from “Great Man” views of leadership to “Learning Leader” illustrates that the view of good leadership is colored by the demands of the business landscape of its time. Leadership and its definition is dynamic and complex. Leadership changes in response to the needs of the organization.
Presently, many business leaders are continuing to transition from the “Calm Chaos” of the latter half of the 20th century to the “Turbulent Chaos” of the 21st. Leaders are focusing on change management, facilitating vision and values to encourage high performance and continuous adaptation. New theorists, such as Jacob Morgan, are modeling the organizations of today blending the vertical structures of the 80’s and 90’s with the flat structure of the 21st century. Morgan (2015b) maintains that it is costly and inefficient to dismantle the vertical structures that currently house many of the viable business organizations. Instead, Morgan (2015a) proposed a new structure known as a “flatarchy,” that can be relatively flat yet can create an ad hoc hierarchy to work on a project or function and then disband when finished. The organization can also have a loose hierarchy that can flatten when required and then return to a loose hierarchy when the need is over. The leader of today must find ways to transition quickly from the old to the new. Implementing fast change and getting people to accept and implement the change is the greatest task facing leaders.
The leader must combine the “soft” skills of leadership with the “hard” skills of management to effectively guide an organization.
Understanding the evolution of leadership theory helps a leader to define the contemporary concept of successful leadership by identifying strengths and weaknesses of scholarly perspectives from the past to the current time, and explore the relationship of leaders to the business environment.
References
Morgan, J. (2015a, July 20). The 5 Types of Organizational Structures: Part 2, ‘Flatter’ Organizations. Retrieved October 24, 2017, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/jacobmorgan/2015/07/0…
Morgan, J. (2015b, July 20). The 5 Types of Organizational Structures: Part 4, Flatarchies. Retrieved October 24, 2017, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/jacobmorgan/2015/07/1…
Read:
The Most Important Leadership Theories
The Hersey-Blanchard Situational Leadership Theory
The Relational Leadership Model
What Does Leadership Look Like in the Future of Work?