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BUS209 Study Guide

Unit 4: Leadership, Influence, and Leveraging Power

4a. Assess the impact of various leadership approaches and how they compare to managerial styles

1. This unit has allowed you to consider the importance and influence of leadership in an organization.

  • Take a moment to think about someone that you believe is a leader. They can be in any organization, public or private, formal or informal. Make a list of attributes you identify with leadership, such as communication skills. See how many you can list.
  • At this point, you have identified many attributes that you associate with leadership. Take the list you just compiled and highlight the attribute you think is the most important one, which may not be easy to do. Write a sentence or two explaining why you selected this attribute.
  • Volumes have been written on leadership in courses, seminars, and training programs. In one or two paragraphs, explain whether you believe that leadership can be learned or that you can't teach someone how to be a leader. State the reasons for your position.

Being a leader can help you in both your career and your personal life. If one aspires to become a leader, consider the value of identifying people with the attributes you admire and try to learn from them. It is useful in business if you can identify an executive that exhibits these leadership traits and see if he/she will agree to be a mentor.

2. In any organization, there will be leaders and managers. These roles are not necessarily the same, and given any certain set of circumstances, there may be a need for one or the other…or both.

  • You have selected someone to lead your organization. In a paragraph, describe how you would define this role. What do you want this leader to accomplish? How would you define success?
  • It is time for you to fill a vacancy in your company for a department manager. You are working on creating a job description for this position. What skills are you looking for in a manager? What do you want this manager to accomplish? Summarize your thoughts in a paragraph.
  • Given your review of leaders and managers, do you think they are the same or different? Make a list of three to five items that describe what a leader does and a list of what a manager does. Are any of the items on your list the same, or are they different? In a short paragraph, explain the difference between the two roles.

When we think of leaders, we consider individuals who can create a vision, motivate others to support the vision, encourage employees to excel at what they do, and are the founders of the company culture. Managers are responsible for creating the necessary plans to achieve the vision and providing the day-to-day direction necessary for the business to operate efficiently.

 

4b. Explain modern theories of leadership and how these relate to influencing workers

1. As you can see from the material in this unit, there is more than one type of leader. Depending on the circumstances and the individual, there can be many outcomes from a specific leadership style. The text defines four leadership styles. Let's think about these a bit more. After each definition, complete the sentence provided and use more than one sentence if needed:

  • Directive leaders provide specific directions to their employees. An example of when this style would be most appropriate is…
  • Supportive leaders provide emotional support to employees. An example of when this style would be most appropriate is…
  • Participative leaders ensure that employees are involved in making important decisions. An example of when this style would be most appropriate is… 
  • Achievement-oriented leaders set goals for employees and encourage them to reach their goals. An example of when this style would be most appropriate is… 

Much can be learned from studying the different kinds of leadership, especially for those who aspire to lead. To continue your understanding of leadership styles, conduct a web search on the following leadership styles: charismatic, transformational, servant, and authentic.

2. Good leaders are required by any organization, public or private, to achieve all their goals and objectives, create a culture of respect, and develop a team of motivated people who truly want the organization to succeed.

  • After learning about the different leadership styles, which style would you most like to emulate? Write a short paragraph explaining the reasons for your selection.
  • Now, write a paragraph on which leadership style you put on the bottom of your list. Explain why.
  • Now that you have selected a style that you believe would be effective for you, list five or six things you can do to develop into that leadership style.

Remember, leaders can be made. You can identify the skills and attributes of leadership, conduct a personal inventory to see where you may have a skills gap, and plan to acquire what is needed.

 

4c. Define and differentiate the areas of power in leadership

1. Power is the ability to influence the behavior of others to get what you want. You have had someone exercise power over you at some time in your life, from parents and family, teachers and professors, and supervisors at work. You may have also experienced times when you had the power. While someone may have power, it may never be used or used too much. 

  • Take a moment to think about what you have read on power. Write a few sentences on how you would define power.
  • It is also possible to use influence to gain support or consensus. In a sentence or two, provide an example of when you have influenced someone to help achieve a goal.

2. There is more than one type of power. This unit identifies five different sources of power.

  • In one or two sentences, define each source.
  • Consider a scenario where you are the team leader for a group of associates working on a class project. Provide an example of how and why you might use each power source to help the team reach its goal.

In different circumstances, one type of power may be more appropriate than another. One attribute of leadership is applying the power most likely to achieve the desired outcome. This is one of the attributes of emotional intelligence (EI).

3. In an organization, politics influences others and their actions to accomplish something useful to the individual, team, or department. Organizational politics are informal, unofficial, and sometimes behind-the-scenes efforts to sell ideas, influence an organization, increase power, or achieve other targeted objectives.

Organizations are coalitions of individuals and interest groups because they need each other's support. There are enduring differences among individuals and groups in values, preferences, beliefs, information, and perception of reality. Most important decisions in organizations involve allocating scarce resources: decisions about who gets what. Because of scarce resources and enduring differences, conflict is central to organizational dynamics, and power is the most important resource. Organizational goals and decisions emerge from bargaining, negotiating, and jockeying for positions among members of different coalitions.

  • In your own words, write a short paragraph on what organizational politics means to you. If you can, provide an example of organizational politics that you have experienced.
  • In any organization, both public and private, organizational politics exist. Write one or two sentences on a positive impact on the political environment and a negative one.

 

Unit 4 Vocabulary

This vocabulary list includes terms that might help you answer some of the review items above and some terms you should be familiar with to be successful in completing the final exam for the course.

  • achievement-oriented leaders
  • authentic leadership
  • charismatic leadership
  • directive leaders
  • influence
  • leadership
  • organizational politics
  • participative leaders
  • power
  • servant leadership
  • supportive leaders
  • transformational leadership