Unit 4: Leadership, Innovation & Change Flashcards
(15 cards)
Leadership Concepts
Q: What are the two major leadership styles discussed in Unit 4?
Task- vs Relationship-oriented Leadership
A: Task-oriented and Relationship-oriented leadership styles.
➔ Task-oriented leaders focus on setting structure, goals, deadlines, and accountability.
➔ Relationship-oriented leaders focus on building trust, morale, and positive team dynamics.
➔ Key Tip: Most effective leaders flex between both styles based on the team’s needs and situation.
Psychological Safety
Q: What is psychological safety in teams?
Psychological Safety
A: Feeling safe to speak up & take risks
➔ Psychological safety means people aren’t afraid to ask questions, admit mistakes, or offer new ideas.
➔ Teams with high psychological safety innovate faster and solve problems better.
➔ Key Tip: Psychological safety is a foundation for thriving and creativity.
Empowerment in Leadership
Q: Why is empowerment critical for thriving teams?
Role of Empowerment
A: It gives employees autonomy and ownership & boosting motivation and engagement.
➔ Empowered employees feel trusted and motivated, leading to higher engagement and innovation.
➔ Empowerment involves delegating authority, sharing decision-making, and providing needed resources.
➔ Key Tip: Empowerment fuels both vitality and learning — the two components of thriving.
Emotional Intelligence Basics
Q: What are the two components of Emotional Intelligence?
Emotional Intelligence (basic idea)
A: Awareness and management of own and others’ emotions.
➔ Self-awareness: Recognizing your emotions.
➔ Self-management: Controlling your emotions.
➔ Social awareness: Recognizing others’ emotions.
➔ Relationship management: Influencing others’ emotions positively.
➔ Key Tip: Emotional intelligence strengthens leadership trust and psychological safety.
Organizational Culture and Subculture
Q: What does the iceberg model of organizational culture explain?
Cultures and Subcultures (Iceberg)
A: Surface artifacts are visible, but deeper values and assumptions are hidden.
➔ Visible culture = symbols, dress code, office layout (tip of the iceberg).
➔ Invisible culture = shared values, assumptions, beliefs (below the surface).
➔ Key Tip: Real cultural change requires shifting underlying values, not just surface behaviors.
Creativity vs Innovation
Q: What is the difference between creativity and innovation?
Creativity and Innovation
A: Creativity is idea generation; innovation is implementing those ideas.
➔ Creativity = Coming up with original and useful ideas.
➔ Innovation = Turning creative ideas into real-world products, processes, or improvements.
➔ Key Tip: Thriving teams need both creativity and innovation — psychological safety boosts both.
Organizational Change Theories
Q: What does Lewin’s Force Field Model suggest about change?
Lewin’s Force Field Model
A: Change is driven by forces pushing for it and resisted by forces opposing it.
➔ Change happens when the forces driving change outweigh the forces resisting change.
➔ Driving forces: motivations pushing for change (e.g., competition, innovation needs).
➔ Restraining forces: fears, habits, uncertainty that resist change.
➔ Key Tip: Successful change strengthens driving forces and reduces restraining forces at the same time.
Downsizing and Organizational Change
Q: Why are layoffs usually ineffective for organizational change?
Why Layoffs Are Ineffective
A: They damage morale and often fail to achieve long-term improvement.
➔ Layoffs create fear, reduce trust, lower morale, and increase survivor guilt among remaining employees.
➔ Layoffs often fail to address the real root problems in organizations (like poor leadership or outdated systems).
➔ Key Tip: Sustainable change focuses on learning, empowerment, and adaptation — not cost-cutting alone.
Resistance to Change
Why do people resist change in organizations?
Resistance to Change
People resist change due to fear of the unknown, habit, loss of control, uncertainty about outcomes, mistrust in leadership, and previous bad experiences with change.
➔ People resist change due to fear of the unknown, habit, loss of control, and uncertainty about benefits.
➔ Other reasons: mistrust in leadership, bad communication, previous failed changes.
➔ Key Tip: Leaders must reduce fear by involving employees early, explaining reasons, and building small wins.
Thriving vs Surviving Change
What is the difference between thriving and surviving during change?
Thriving vs Surviving Change
Surviving change means coping with difficulty and risking burnout, while thriving means adapting, learning, and maintaining energy, optimism, and resilience through change.
➔ Surviving change = minimal coping, resistance, burnout.
➔ Thriving during change = adapting, learning, maintaining energy and optimism.
➔ Key Tip: Thriving organizations treat change as growth opportunities, not threats.
Building Trust in Teams
What is the role of trust in leadership and thriving teams?
Role of Trust
Trust is the foundation for psychological safety, collaboration, innovation, and thriving; without trust, teams disengage and resist change.
➔ Trust allows team members to speak honestly, take risks, and admit mistakes without fear.
➔ Trust builds loyalty, creativity, and resilience during organizational challenges.
➔ Key Tip: Trust is the invisible fuel that powers psychological safety and empowerment.
Servant Leadership Principles
How does servant leadership support thriving in organizations?
Servant Leadership and Thriving
Servant leadership prioritizes employee growth, psychological safety, and empowerment, creating conditions where employees thrive.
➔ Servant leaders focus on serving others rather than asserting authority.
➔ They build trust, promote autonomy, and foster a strong sense of belonging.
➔ Key Tip: Servant leadership boosts vitality and learning — the two pillars of thriving.
Culture and Organizational Thriving
How does a healthy organizational culture promote employee thriving?
Culture’s Role in Thriving
Relationship between Culture and Thriving
A healthy culture based on trust, learning, and inclusion fosters psychological safety, vitality, and growth — all essential for thriving.
➔ Positive cultures promote open communication, support innovation, and align employees around a clear purpose.
➔ Toxic cultures drive fear, disengagement, and turnover.
➔ Key Tip: Thriving cultures show alignment between stated values and everyday behavior.
Understanding Organizational Purpose
What is organizational purpose and why is it important?
Organizational Purpose: What and Why
Organizational Purpose (What and Why)
Organizational purpose is the organization’s core reason for existence beyond making money; it gives direction, builds identity, and fosters resilience.
➔ Purpose gives employees a sense of meaning, motivates performance, and aligns decision-making.
➔ Companies with strong purpose are more adaptable during crises.
➔ Key Tip: Purpose connects individual thriving with organizational success.
Keys to Successful Change
What strategies help organizations avoid failure during change efforts?
Avoiding Organizational Change Failures
Why Organizational Change Often Fails
Organizations can avoid change failure by building trust, communicating a clear vision, empowering employees, and generating small wins to build momentum.
