A633.9.3.RB - Polyarchy Reflections

The oligarchy leadership model, as much as I do not think it is right for most organizations today, may still prove to be effective for some organizations out there. I do not think that it is completely redundant and irrelevant yet, as some organizations are farther along in the process of handing over power and control to their employees and leaders, rather than a few key people in the organization having it. For example, an organization with few employees may have an easier time making the transition from oligarchy to polyarchy than a large organization would because of the dynamics involved in the process. This does not mean that the oligarchy leadership models are redundant, it simply means that they have yet to be phased out become they still may provide some value to the organizations that currently have them. They may use them because they are not ready for the transformation in leadership models, or because what they currently have it still useful and effective.

I am fortunate that I work for an organization that is making the transformation to the polyarchy leadership model where employees and lower level leaders have more control and responsibility of their daily job tasks and routines. However, this poses a challenge because the organization was not always like this, so there are still employees who are adapting to this new style of leadership. What this means for me and other managers is that we are having to bring employees along through this change because they have been subjected to a certain style for so long, and in some cases it is quite hard to do.

I do not foresee having to go back to the old leadership styles in the near future. However, there will be employees and managers alike that prefer that style over the new one, so it will be my job to ensure that they see the benefit of the new one and become accustomed to it. From a strategy standpoint, the old leadership style certainly makes it easier for leadership to control a situation and establish expectations because authority and power is very top down. I prefer the new way as it challenges me and forces me to think outside of the box to motivate employees, along with empowering them to own their development and success at work. I also believe the strategies involved with the new leadership model make employees happier as they feel as if they a part of something bigger because of their part in the processes at work. 

A633.8.3.RB - How do Coaches Help

Coaches in the workplace are focused on helping other find solutions to problems, development of their talents, and improvement in particular areas. The most effective way of doing this is by understanding the client and what their strengths and opportunities are, followed by asking open ended questions to allow the client to think critically about their development and how they can help themselves. These open ended questions, along with the approach of the coach, are what separate a coach from an ordinary leader or manager as they are focused more on helping the client through self-reflection and revelation. Coaches have a unique way of helping others understand what is lacking, what is needed, and the steps necessary to accomplish the goal.

Coaching is important in leadership because it helps both the coach and the person being coached in any situation. It allows the leader to hone skills needed to develop others, while the person being coached is benefiting from these conversations. In my experience, coaching is a much more effective tool for development and organizational growth than traditional disciplinary methods. If an employee is coached through an issue rather than just being told what they are doing wrong or being given the answer by a superior, it helps the employee improve in this area and equips them with additional knowledge that they did not have before, along with developing critical thinking skills through the coaching process. In addition, coaching helps to develop relationships between employees and their leaders as they feel more valued when they are invested in.

Throughout the Target network, coaching takes places on a daily basis and is engrained into the culture of the 350,000 team member strong organization. Leadership is taught the basics of coaching when they first start and are given the opportunity to improve on these skills throughout their career. Coaching dynamics are very interesting within Target, simply because not every employee is the same. For example, the way to coach a lower performing team member could be different than the approach taken with a high performing team member. The skill and will of an employee also affects the approach taken for a coaching conversation. It is all of these factors combined that make coaching a very fluid and trainable leadership skill. Having worked in an environment like this for nearly three years, I still have much to learn as the workforce is becoming more dynamic every day. Employee needs, wants, and motivational factors differ greatly in today’s workplace, which ultimately affect the coaching process. As organizations develop and the changing workforce becomes much more noticeable, I think coaching will become standard for large organizations.

A633.7.3.RB - Leader Follower Relationship

Overall, I feel that my relationship with my follower team is a strong one. The team that I manage has been open to change in the time that I have known them, even though there have been times where they were curious about the change and wanted to ask additional questions about it. The team also trusts me and my ability to lead them through change without impacting them beyond what they can handle, so that certainly helps my ability to get them bought in to change. I am still working on engaging them more and ensuring that they fully understand the process changes before they start, but I have been transparent about this and they understand it is an opportunity of mine.

My thinking has changed slightly, mostly in the area of identifying where my leadership style lies and my strategies surrounding change within my organization. After doing some of the activities that revolve around strategy, I came to the realization that I am more of a driver when it comes to change, focusing more on the end result than how people accept the change. This stems from my experience with my change and personal views toward it. I more very resilient and adaptable, so implementing and going through change in any capacity is not difficult. In fact, I enjoy it because change represents improvement for me. This course has helped me identify this and formulate ways to change it and improve upon it. In addition, this last module has helped me with my personal leadership style, as I believe myself to be involved in change. I am very results driven, and even though I have some opportunity with inspiring my team around change, I am very involved with processes and lead by example, as I have seen great success with showing others through visual interaction.

This is important to me in my developmental journey as a leader because it sheds some light on the opportunities within my leadership style, some opportunities that may not be as apparent in the workplace by those who are involved with me on a daily basis. The activities and assessments embedded this course, especially this module, have been helpful in my developmental. One of my short term goals in my organization is to get promoted to a senior level management position with our distribution network. Senior level managers deal more with the people side of the organization, coaching and mentoring, so being able to uncover these opportunities now will help me on my leadership journey in my professional life. 

A633.6.5.RB - Circle of Leadership

The “vicious circle for leaders” is something that is very familiar to me. I have seen it quite often in other organizations that I have worked for, not necessarily because employees were not skilled enough, it was because leadership was inconsistent with expectations and often had conflicting priorities. This forced employees to be unconfident in their decision making and competencies. In my current organization it has happened but with me in the leadership position. When I first arrived at the building I currently work in I found the skill and job knowledge levels of most managers as very low. Naturally, I found myself ‘in the weeds’ from day one at the building and have yet to come out. This may be acceptable for new managers, but the problem with this is that the managers have been in their positions for some time and they have false perceptions about their job knowledge and skills, so when I became heavily involved into their business they were not very open to it. Now, because of my involvement, they almost rely on me to help them with tasks they should be doing on their own. I started to re-educate all the managers, set expectations with them, and now I’m holding them accountable to be able to do their jobs without me interjecting.

The effects on an organization when this cycle takes place are negative. The intent of the manager may be good, but the employees loses confidence, loses empowerment and motivation, it hinders creativeness and ingenuity, and employees could lose respect for managers who micro manage too much. In addition, it could create a situation where employees become too dependent on a manager, so when they are not present for any reason the results are not the same. For example, if a team performs well when a manager is involved and does not produce the same results when they are gone, the employees become dependent on the manager and a sustainable plan is not present.

An ideal cycle for a leader and a follower could look like:

- Leader reiterates expectations (Recognition or feedback)

- Follower takes initiative to meet or exceed expectations

- Leader is afforded opportunity to give employee space

- Leader adopts a hands-off approach

- Follower’s confidence stays constant

I think that this cycle could last anywhere from a few months to a year. The expectations setting phase could serve as an annual or quarterly review where the employee is rewarded for performance or given feedback for not meeting expectation. This is assuming that if the employee does not meet expectations after that first phase, they will not be around to complete the other phases.