Leadership and Change Management
Team C
John Blauvelt, Frank Czajka, John Gustafson, Jason Miller, Patrick Simpson, Cathy Wess
University of Phoenix
MBA 520 *ƒ²*ƒ”€š Transformational Leadership
Mr. Leonard Shelton
April 7, 2008
Leadership and Change Management
Summary of Key Concepts
The Intersect Investments simulation is not unfamiliar territory to big business there have
been many organizations that have gone through or are going through a similar
reorganization structure and culture. The CEO, Frank Jeffers, has made it clear to his team
what the vision is for the company and how to go about getting to the end result. Mr.
Jeffers wants to implement a trusted advisor model into his organization. A program that
will help increases the customer base and their credibility with Wall Street.
The plan includes growing a customer base by 25% and increasing the product line for
consumers and small businesses. The program will add trust and value to the company
services. He believes this is the way to reach the objectives and goal the organization.
Frank Jeffers is an agent of change for the company and sees this plan and direction as the
new future for the company. He will need to be able to communicate this vision to the
team if he wants to be successful. He will need to get support from upper management
staff to get the message out about this new direction he has chosen.
Both Merrill Lynch and Tata Motors recognize change is necessary if each organization is
to realize the mutual goal of customer satisfaction and therefore the growth of its business.
Both companies also demonstrate an understanding of the techniques available to build
consensus amongst its stakeholders. One of these techniques employed by both companies
is creating urgency for change, which is driven by the customer perspective. In the case of
Merrill Lynch, communicating to its employees how the customer views Merrill Lynch
creates a sense of urgency and therefore a better chance employees will support the
organizations vision for the future. Tata Motors took the concept of creating urgency for
change by having its employees communicate with its customers to better understand their
point-of-view. Additionally, both Merrill Lynch and Tata Motors use transformational
leadership as a means to formulate, communicate, and initiate the organizations vision.
According to McShane and Von Glinow (2004), “Transformational leaders do make a
difference, according to organizational behavior studies. Subordinates are more satisfied
and have higher affective organizational commitment under transformational leaders.”“ (p.
431).
The financial services company “Intersect” has been adversely affected with volatility and
apprehension since September 11, 2001. Furthermore, since the industry as a whole is
struggling with maintaining trustworthiness with Wall Street, paramount thinking has
shifted from customer acquisition to customer intimacy. In order for Intersect Investment
Company to survive the fiscal year, radical changes within the organization are vital. Chief
Executive Officer, Fran Jeffers, has assembled his top executives within the company to
illicit change.
Any successful leader in todays business world must be able to embrace change and
transition from one leadership style to the next as needed. The Target Corporation,
formerly Dayton Hudsons Target Stores, has been critically acclaimed for their ability to
adopt and adapt different leadership styles. In fact, according to Greg Steinhaffel, president
of Target Stores, “Some leaders become over dependent on one particular type of
leadership style and that wont work.” (Kusy and Essex, 2005) Since 1987, Chief Executive
Officer Robert Ulrich has built upon Targets success by motivating and empowering his
employees. His plans for the company were contingent upon employee acceptance of his
vision. Prior to Ulrichs promotion, Target had more of a leadership style, which was
directive, a style, which emphasized micro management and negative reinforcement.
Leadership versus management has often aroused the interest of scholars in defining what
particular role was more suited for creating change. According to Bernard Bass an expert
leader, “managers typically perform functions associated with planning, investigating,
organizing, and control, and leaders deal with the interpersonal aspects of a manager job.
Leaders inspire others, provide emotional support, and try to get employees to rally around
a common goal.” (Kreitner & Kinicki, 2005) Robert Ulrich is the epitome of a true leader a
leader that has the attributes, which have been defined as “Charismatic.” According to
researchers Kreitner and Kinicki, “The first set of charismatic leader behaviors involves
establishing a common vision of the future. A vision is “a realistic, credible, attractive
future for your organization”. (Kreitner & Kinicki, 2005) Furthermore, according to Burt
Nanus leadership expert, a leadership expert, the “right”“ vision unleashes human potential
because it serves as a beacon of hope and common purpose. It does this by attracting
commitment, energizing workers, creating meaning in employees lives, establishing a
standard of excellence, promoting high ideals, and bridging the gap between an
organization present problems and its future goals and aspirations. In contrast, the
“wrong”“ vision can be very damaging to an organization. (Kreitner & Kinicki, 2005)
Intersect Investment Company is at a pivotal time within the companys history and unless
leadership can invoke and implement its new strategic vision, additional setbacks and
investor instability are perceived to be inevitable.
Compare and Contrast
Though Merrill Lynch and Tata Motors are clearly different industries they share similar
challenges, not the least of which is organizational change and managing the resistance to
these changes. The way in which each company address issues related to change is slightly
different, but the end goal remains the same *ƒ²*ƒ”€š create an environment in which
employees understand and appreciate the needs of the customer, and hence create an
organization designed to promote customer-centric initiatives. The way in which
organizational change is realized is accomplished through techniques prescribed in the
field of study known as organizational development. In this context, Kinicki & Kreitner
(2003) point out the way in which organizational change is developed should always be
customer focused, “This approach implies that organizational interventions should be
aimed at helping to satisfy customer needs and thereby provide enhanced value of an
organizations products and services.”“ (p. 683). Merrill Lynch and Tata Motors concluded
that exposing its employees to problems and challenges external to the company, and
sharing the consequences if these issues were unresolved, would motivate the workforce to
understand and embrace organizational change.
References
AT&T. (2008). About Us: Corporate Profile. Retrieved April 4, 2008, from
www.att.com
Beckford, J. (2002). Quality. London, England: Routledge, 266, 274.
Caren Sax, Douglas Fisher. (2001). using qualitative action research to effect change:
Implications for professional education. Teacher Education Quarterly, 28(2), 71. Retrieved
April 3, 2008, from ProQuest Education Journals database. (Document ID: 73157739).
CIS Security Org. 11 April 2003. RDA Security Systems. 2 April 2008.
<http://www.cisecurity.org/Documents/CaseStudyinBusinessInformationSecurity>
Discount Store News (1993). Discount Store News, Supplier Performance by Retail
Category *ƒ²*ƒ”€š Cover Story. Retrieved on April 1, 2008 from BNET.COM website.
Eiler, C. (2008, Feb 2008). New Line Cinema to merge into Warner Brothers. Los Angeles
Times, 2008 Feb, pp.30.
Farrow, D. (2006, June 2006). Waves of changes over at Disney. Variety, 2006, pp.13-14.
Forbes.com (2008) Target to Open 26 More Stores, Forbes.com, March 2008. Business
Wire *ƒ²*ƒ”€š Press Release. Retrieved on April 1, 2008 from Forbes.Com Website.
Garrity, B. (2008, Feb 29, 2008). Warner absorbs New Line Studio. New York Post, 2008,
Feb, pp.32.
Himmelberg, M. (2005, October 18, 2005). Putting employees, not customers, first.
Knight–Ridder Tribune Business News.
Kinicki, A., & Kreitner, R. (2003). Organizational behavior (6th Ed.). [Electronic version].
New York: McGraw-Hill. Retrieved April 2008 from University of Phoenix, Resource, and
MBA520 *ƒ²*ƒ”€š Transformational Leadership Course Web site.
Kumra, G. (2006). Leading change: An interview with the managing director of Tata
Motors. [Electronic version]. Retrieved April 4, 2008 from The McKinsey Quarterly
database.
La Franco, R. (2006, June 2006). Disney-Pixar merger. Hollywood Reporter, 2006 June,
pp.1-5.
Markoff, J. (2001, January). William Hewlett a Pioneer of Silicone Valley Dies at 87. New
York Times, 2001 January, pp. 1-6
McNary, D., & Snyder, G. (2008, Feb 2008). Merger maneuvers. Variety, 2008 Feb, PP. 6.
McShane, S. L., & Von Glinow, M. A. (2004). Organization behavior 3e. [Electronic
version]. New York”“ McGraw-Hill. Retrieved April 4, 2008 from University of Phoenix,
Resource, and MBA520 *ƒ²*ƒ”€š Transformational Leadership Course Web site.
Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. (2008). About us. Retrieved April 4, 2008 from
http://www.ml.com/index.asp?id=7695_8134
RDA Corporation. 2 April 2008. RDA Security Systems. 2 April 2008.
<http://www.rdacorp.com/about.htm>
Roberts, A., & Gold, J. (2006, May 2006). Pixar Box-office Smash. Box-office Magazine,
fall, pp.4-5.
Target.Com (2008) About our History, Retrieved April 1, 2008 from
http://www.target.com/aboutus.html
Tata Motors (n.d.). Profile. Retrieved April 4, 2008 from
http://www.tatamotors.com/our_world
Thompson, A. (2008, Feb 2008). Rough Transition for New Line. The Hollywood
Reporter, 2008 Feb, pp.9.
Weinberg, A. L. (2007). Focusing on the customer: An interview with the head of Merrill
Lynch operations and IT. [Electronic version]. Retrieved April 4, 2008 from The
McKinsey Quarterly database.
Verizon Wireless. (2008). About Us. Retrieved April 4, 2008, from
www.verizonwireless.com
Appendix A *ƒ²*ƒ”€š Company Analyses
Merrill Lynch Company Analysis *ƒ²*ƒ”€š John Blauvelt
Merrill Lynch is considered one of the top investment banks in the world with offices in
over 40 countries and assets of approximately $2 trillion. Founded in 1914 as Charles E.
Merrill & Co., Merrill Lynch employs over 64,000 people and in 2007 realized net revenue
of $11.3 billion with total stockholders equity of approximately $32 billion. (About us,
n.d.). As technology has advanced, financial institutions have taken advantage of the latest
