Organizational Behaviour

Spring semester 2013/2014

Joo Rainha aluno n 11675

Individual Assignment- Leadership Case Study

Leadership is still a highly discussed topic and a consensus on its definition does not
exist yet. We have people that argue that it uniquely depends of innate characteristics
others that support it can be improved and trained. Some say a good leader is good
everywhere while others think it is required to have good followers. In this assignment,
the leadership issue will be analysed with the Traditional theories and the Normative
Model.
The case presented, Right Boss, Wrong Company concerns a leader Betty Kesner an
excellent student chosen by her uncles company Fancy Footwear, to have a top
managerial position.
When the time came to apply her knowledge from MBA School, she decided to have a
participative management. This way getting closer to the workers and organizing
within groups goal-setting objectives and plans to achieve those goals. She wanted to
distinguish herself from the previous leader as she considered him an absentee
autocrat. Bearing this in mind, she changed her office to the second floor, from the top
of the building, started having lunch with her subordinates and made everyone call her
by her first name. Although these can be considered great decisions to strengthen the
relationship Leader-member, they were not effective as workers said it made them
uneasy and they wanted everything the way it was before.
According to the traditional theory, more specifically the traits theory Betty Kesner
solved the selection problem having then a good supervision. She had the desired traits,
high intelligence she graduated at top of her class, great personality the one with best
attendance concerned with others avoiding to be a young family member (...) with an
iron fist and abilities as she was singled out as the most productive employee.
In the traits theory model she was an ideal leader with good supervision skills as she
detected well the problems Kesmer knew the pitfalls of being suddenly catapulted to a
leadership position.

Organizational Behaviour
Spring semester 2013/2014
Joo Rainha aluno n 11675


However, with all this conditions, we have here an example that a good leader cannot
perform always as a good leader. This proofs that this theory has its limitations and
problems, since here the problem is exclusively from the personnel who doesnt commit
to change when youve been in a place doing one thing for so long
one worker concluded the last thing you want to do is have a new way of doing it. We
can conclude this change was good and productive but it turned out to have a bad result
in which workers considered it the last thing most employees wanted demonstrating
this way the only problem was set by the workers that even with the right incentives and
motivation She promised any support that was within her power to give were against
implementing great leadership decisions, revealing inconsistency of results.
Regarding the Normative Model, proposed in 1973, we can see different decision
procedures, autocratic and consultative. Analysed in two ways its quality (the effect it
will have in the company) and acceptance (the commitment from the workers to
proceed to the implementation of new decisions. We have Kesmers first move was to
change all that. and her predecessor, Max Worthy actions as autocratic AI where they
solve the problem only with the information that is readily available to them. The first
though, has a more consultative approach since she starts to involve employees in the
management of the company for example, she spent a reasonable time organizing
groups and even organized a Suggestion of the Week committee which is a decision
procedure G2 where the Leader meets with group to discuss situations and Leader
focuses, directs discussion, but does not impose will. Group makes final decision as
they are responsible for the plan to implement and achieve their own goals She
encouraged each group to set up goals in its particular focus area and develop plans for
reaching those goals.