Course Learning Outcomes for Unit VI

Upon completion of this unit, students should be able to:

1. Propose leadership theories that could advance employee motivation.

1.1           Assess leadership styles and characteristics.

1.2           Evaluate how motivational theories factor into leading employees.

1.3           Predict how leadership styles impact employee motivation.

Required Unit Resources

In order to access the following video resources, click the links below.

Gregg Learning. (2018, January 19). Theories of leadership [Video file]. Retrieved from https://c24.page/2pqsj7phq8wyws6cxnhgs9jjh5

Tutor2u. (2016, May 18). Leadership styles: Blake Mouton managerial grid [Video file]. Retrieved from https://c24.page/jz9xam9256dubjpjcd3n2gv7d9

and Organizational Excellence, 32(6). Retrieved from https://libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direc t=true&db=bsu&AN=89989512&site=ehost-live&scope=site

Zareen, M., Razzaq, K., & Mujtaba, B. G. (2015). Impact of transactional, transformational and laissez-faire leadership styles on motivation: A quantitative study of banking employees in Pakistan. Public Organization Review, 15(4), 531–549. Retrieved from https://libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direc t=true&db=bsu&AN=110861179&site=ehost-live&scope=site

Unit Lesson

Since you have accepted the director of human resources (HR) position, you understand the importance of leadership style and the impact it has on maintaining communication, building morale, motivating employees, and more. You also understand that you must first be aware of who you are as a leader, and you must become aware of who your employees are as leaders. You realize you need to do some research about leadership theories, leadership styles, and their connections to employee motivation.

The Impact and Importance of Leaders

The actions, ethics, values, and behaviors of leaders in a position of power have a direct effect on the attitudes and behaviors of those they lead. We have read about leaders who have acted in an ethical manner, and we have read about leaders, such as Bernie Madoff, whose unethical behavior with a Ponzi scheme cost customers their life savings. Shafique and Beh (2017) believe that leaders who do not have leadership skills have a negative impact on an organization.

It is important to remember that there are ethical leaders. Leaders who support the mission and the vision of an organization inspire employees to perform at their highest level. While doing your research, you are thinking about leaders for whom you have worked. The leaders who had the greatest impact were those who did not lead from behind their desks; rather, they led by walking around, which allowed them to connect with employees. The leaders were approachable and were able to get to know their employees. This leads to increased communication and trust. Every year, Fortune Magazine updates the list of what they deem to be the 50 greatest leaders. You start reviewing the list from this year and previous years and find one to two leaders who you identify with. You are curious about their leadership styles and relevant leadership theories.

Leadership Theories

The 21st-century leadership model has evolved into different leadership models than that of the 20th century. In the 1800s, the great man theory evolved, which is the concept that great leaders were born great leaders. Theories continued to emerge, such as the trait theory, which is based on the premise that leaders are born with certain qualities that will make them effective. Behavioral theories focused on the behaviors of leaders while the contingency theories supported the belief that no single way of leading is effective. Situational theories focused on different styles of leadership that are effective based on the situation. Leader-follower

authentic leadership. You do your research, and start making the connection between theories and the supervisors who work in your organization.

Assessing Your Supervisors

Let’s examine what you know about your supervisors.

Supervisor A (Allen T. Rait) believes that he is an effective leader because of his traits. He reports that he is intelligent, he is confident, he is an extrovert, everyone likes him, and he is unbelievably trustworthy. He knows that he was born with these traits. This is an example of the trait leadership theory.

Supervisor B (Brooke B. Haven) believes that she is effective because of her behaviors and the action that she takes when faced with decisions. She is a good listener and encourages employees to do their best. She believes that she can learn to become an effective leader. This is an example of the behavioral theory of leadership (Uslu, 2019). This reminds you of Blake and Moulton’s managerial grid where the concern for people is on the Y-axis and the concern for production is on the X-axis. Visit "The Blake Mouton Managerial Grid" web page to review Blake and Moulton’s framework for thinking about a leader’s task versus person orientation.

Supervisor C (Curtis Contingent) evaluates the situation and matches his leadership style to the situation. The style used is based on the relationship between the employee and the leader. Contingency theories focus on three areas: the leader’s style, the situation, and the style with the situation. Uslu (2019) found that the Fidler contingency theory focuses on the leader-follower relationships and the impact it has on the situation.

Supervisor D (Deryl “The Situation” Davis) knows that one leadership model does not work in all situations. Shafique & Beh (2017) report that there is not one best leadership style. At times, the supervisor will tell employees what to do or will sell ideas by sharing suggestions and encouraging employees to accept the suggestions. The supervisor believes in participation by including employees in the decision-making process. The supervisor also, when relevant, will delegate decisions to the team. This is an example of the situational theory of leadership or, more specifically, the Hershey-Blanchard situational leadership theory.

Supervisor E (Ellie T. Action) likes to direct her employees and believes in the importance of rewarding her staff when they complete a task on time. She knows the importance of external rewards and the impact on performance. This is why this transactional leader continually rewards employees with movie tickets and lunches when projects are completed.

Supervisor F (Fatima T. Formation) believes in the importance of motivating employees and appreciating their contributions to the organization. She knows and cares about the employees. She is a role model, and she is the type of leader who can increase organizational effectiveness and productivity, thus giving the organization a competitive advantage. This is an example of a transformational leader. You now know that Bass introduced the theory of transformational leadership in 1978 and was further developed by Bass in 1985 and Bass and Avolio in 1995 (Shafique & Beh, 2017).This theory continues to be relevant in today’s complex environment.

supervisor leaves staff alone because he strongly believes that employees know how to do their jobs. You are concerned because this department has the lowest productivity. This is an example of the laissez-faire leadership theory.

Supervisor H (Harry B. Servin) considers himself to be a servant leader—one who serves others by listening to and understanding employees’ needs. The supervisor believes he is there for the employees and wants the employees to do the best that they can. Greenleaf (as cited in Heyler & Martin, 2018) believes that servant leaders have 10 qualities that have been expanded upon by other researchers. These qualities are listed below.

• Listening


• Awareness


• Healing


• Conceptualization


• Persuasiveness


• Empathy


• Stewardship


• Foresight


• Community-building


• Developing others

Supervisor I (Irene B. Genuine) is self-aware, self-regulated, and works to develop transparent relationships. The supervisor is genuine and sincere. She encourages positive relationships between leaders and employees, resulting in higher employee engagement and work satisfaction. This is an example of the authentic leadership theory (Covelli, 2018).

After assessing the supervisors and reviewing their performance evaluations, you realize that some supervisors are more effective at motivating staff than others. This causes you to wonder about motivational theories. When developing your compensation plan earlier, you did some research on other theories, such as the equity theory, the expectancy theory, and the reinforcement theory. There are so many! You now wonder what other motivational theories are really important. Is true leadership a mix of several styles and theories?

Motivational Theories

Ferguson (n.d.) posits that without motivation, employees often fail to perform to the best of their abilities. If used effectively, leadership and motivational theories enable you to lead employees and the company toward success. Knowing this, you dig in and start your review of four motivational theories.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

According to this theory, there is a hierarchy of needs where needs must be meet in the previous level before moving on to the next. The first level is physiological. An example would be having food and water. The second level is safety. This can include not only physical safety but emotional safety. The third level is love/belonging. The importance of family and friends cannot be understated. The fourth level is esteem, which means there is self-esteem and respect for yourself and others. The final level—the tip of the pyramid—is

self-actualization. When you reach this level, you fulfil your full potential.

and the need for affiliation. The need for achievement inspires a person to excel based on established standards. The need for power is related to gaining influence over others while affiliation is the need to have relationships with others.

Herzberg Two-Factor Theory

The two-factor theory (also known as Herzberg's motivation-hygiene theory) postulates that there are certain factors in the workplace that cause job satisfaction while an entirely different set of factors cause dissatisfaction. For example, hygiene factors are those which are essential for motivation in a work environment and, if absent, lead to dissatisfaction. These include factors like pay, working conditions, and job security. Motivational factors, also known as satisfiers, are factors that the employees find intrinsically rewarding. These include recognition, growth, responsibility and meaningfulness of the work performed to the employee.

McGregor’s Theory X and Theory Y

McGregor’s theory X was based on two assumptions—that people value money over security and that employees are motivated by lower-order needs. The foundation of theory Y is that employees search for their own self-fulfillment, and as such, organizational goals can be connected to personal goals (Ehiobuche, 2013). These are higher-order needs.

Applying What You Now Know

Now that you have a better understanding of leadership and motivational theories and realize the value in doing your research to help you better identify your leadership style and the styles of your managers, you will apply this knowledge in the Unit VI Reflection Paper. Let’s get a firm understanding of the leadership in your organization, as your organization is about to go through some major changes. To make things even more challenging from an HR perspective, rumor has it that in the next unit, employees will be in the process of deciding if they should or should not unionize.

References

Covelli, B. J. (2018). Training authentic leaders: Research-based application. Global Journal of Management & Marketing, 2(1), 28–37. Retrieved from https://libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direc t=true&db=bsu&AN=133778101&site=eds-live&scope=site

Ehiobuche, C. (2013). Reading through motivational theories. International Journal of Research in Commerce & Management, 4(11), 23–27. Retrieved from https://libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direc t=true&db=bsu&AN=119728011&site=eds-live&scope=site

Ferguson, G. (n.d.). Key elements of leadership and motivational theory. The Houston Chronicle. Retrieved from https://smallbusiness.chron.com/key-elements-leadership-motivational-theory-35182.html

Heyler, S. G., & Martin, J. A. (2018). Servant leadership theory: Opportunities for additional theoretical integration. Journal of Managerial Issues, 30(2), 230–243. Retrieved from https://libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direc t=true&db=edsbig&AN=edsbig.A545892003&site=eds-live&scope=site

Shafique, I., & Beh, L. (2017). Shifting organizational leadership perspectives: An overview of leadership theories. International Journal of Economic Perspectives, 11(4), 134–143. Retrieved from https://libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direc t=true&db=bsu&AN=135858980&site=eds-live&scope=site