Unit 2 - Lesson #1 (Leadership)

Question 1

What is leadership?

Answer 1

Process of inspiring others to work hard to accomplish goals

Question 2

What are Contemporary Leadership Challenges?

Answer 2

• Shorter time frames, for accomplishing things
• Expectations for success on the first attempt

Question 3

What is leadership and vision?

Answer 3

leader who brings to the situation a clear and compelling sense of the future as well as an understanding of the action needed to get their successfully

Question 4

What is power?

Answer 4

• Power → ability to get someone else to do something you want done or make things happen the way you want
• Power should be used to influence and control others for common good rather seeking to exercise control for personal satisfaction

Question 5

What is Position Power?

Answer 5

• Based on manager’s official status in the organization hierarchy of authority

Sources of position power:
1. Reward power = capability to offer something of value

2. Coercive power = punish or withhold positive outcomes
3. Legitimate power = organizational position of status confers the right to control those in subordinate positions

Question 6

What is Personal Power?

Answer 6

• Based on unique personal qualities that a person brings to leadership
  sources:

1. Expert power = capacity to influence others because of one’s knowledge or skill
2. Referent power = capacity to influence others because they admire you and want to identify positively with you

Question 7

How to turn power into influence?

Answer 7

• Successful leadership relies on using all sources of power
• Use reward power produce temporary compliance
• Using coercive power, at best temporary compliance, often accompanied by resentment
• Use expert power has most enduring results and generates commitment

Question 8

What is managerial power?

Answer 8

• No substitute for expertise → likable personal qualities are important
• Effort and hard work breed respect
• Personal behaviour must support expressed values

Question 9

how does power and influence affect workplace?

Answer 9

1. Centrality - managers must avoid becoming isolated
2. Criticality - managers must take good care of others who are dependent on them
3. Visibility - managers should become known as influential people in organization - display their leadership talents and capabilities

Question 10

What is empowerment?

Answer 10

Process through which managers enable and help others to gain power and achieve influence

Question 11

What is empowerment and how leaders can empower others?

Answer 11

1. Involve others in selecting their work assignments and tasks methods
2. Create environment of cooperation, sharing ownership of goals
3. Encourage others to take initiative, make decisions and use their knowledge
4. Find out what others think and let them help design solutions
5. Give other the freedom to put ideas and solution into practice
6. Recognize successes and encourage high performance

Question 12

Important traits and behaviours?

Answer 12

• Leadership behaviour : focus on how leaders behave when working with followers
• Basic dimension of leadership behaviours

1. Concern for the task to be accomplished
2. Concerned for the people doing the work

Question 13

What is Fieldlers model?

Answer 13

1. Good leadership depends on a match between leadership and situational demands
2. Leadership is part of one’s personality and relatively enduring and difficult to change

3.Leadership style must fit the situation

4. Diagnosing situational control:
   a) Quality of leader-member relationships (good or poor)
   b) Degree of task structure (high or low)
   c) Amount of position power (strong or weak)

Question 14

Task-oriented leaders are most successful in:

Answer 14

1. Very favourable (high control) situations
2. Very unfavourable (low control) situations

Question 15

Relationship-oriented leaders (people-oriented) are most successful in:

Answer 15

Situations of moderate control

Question 16

What is Vroom-Jago Leadership Theory?

Answer 16

• Help leader choose best method of decision-making the best fits the nature of problem situation
• Basic decision-making choices:
  a) Authority decision
  b) Consultative decision
  c) Group decision

Question 17

What are classic leadership styles?

Answer 17

1. Autocratic (Authority Decision)
   - Emphasizes task over people, keeps authority and information within the leader’s tight control, and acts in a unilateral command-and-control fashion.
2. Democratic (Consultative Decision)
   - Committed to task and people, getting things done while sharing information, encouraging participation in decision- making, and helping people develop skills and competencies.
3. Laissez-faire (Group Decision)
   - Shows little concern for task, lets the group make decisions, and acts with a “do the best you can and don’t bother me” attitude.

Question 18

A leader should use authority-oriented decision methods when:

Answer 18

1. Leader has a greater expertise to solve problems
2. Leader is confident and can act alone
3. Others are likely to accept decision
4. Little or no time is available to discuss

Question 19

According to Vroom-Jago leader-participation theory, a leader should use group-oriented and participative decision methods when …

Answer 19

1. The leader lacks sufficient information to solve a problem by himself/herself.
2. The problem is unclear and help is needed to clarify the situation.
3. Acceptance of the decision and commitment by others is necessary for implementation.
4. Adequate time is available for true participation.

Question 20

Benefits of participative decision methods:

Answer 20

1. Help improve decision quality.
2. Help improve decision acceptance.
3. Helps develop leadership potential.

Question 21

Potential disadvantages of participative decision methods:

Answer 21

• Lost efficiency.
• Not particularly useful when problems must be solved immediately.

Question 22

Transformational vs. transactional leadership?

Answer 22

1. Transformational - someone who is truly inspirational as a leader and who gets people to seek good performance
2. Transactional - someone who directs the effort of others through tasks, rewards and structures

Question 23

What is transformational leadership?:

Answer 23

1. Superleaders - leaders whose vision, strength of personality, and contagious enthusiasm have an extraordinary impact on others
2. Charismatic leaders - develop special leader-follower relationships and inspire others in extraordinary ways

Question 24

What is transactional leadership?

Answer 24

• Leaders who are more methodical in keeping others focused on progress toward goal accomplishment.
• On its own, transactional leadership is acknowledged to be insufficient to meet the leadership challenges of today’s dynamic work environments.