REVIEW AND APPLICATIONS
CHAPTER SUMMARY
12-1 Define leader and leadership. A leader is someone who can influence others and who
has managerial authority. Leadership is a process of leading a group and influencing that
12-2 Compare and contrast early leadership theories. Early attempts to define leader traits
were unsuccessful although later attempts found seven traits associated with leadership.
The University of Iowa studies explored three leadership styles. The only conclusion was
that group members were more satisfied under a democratic leader than under an
12-3 Describe the four major contingency leadership theories. Fiedler’s model attempted to
define the best style to use in particular situations. He measured leader style—
relationship oriented or task oriented— using the least-preferred co-worker questionnaire.
Fiedler also assumed a leader’s style was fixed. He measured three contingency
dimensions: leader-member-relations, task structure, and position power. The model
12-4 Describe modern views of leadership and the issues facing today’s leaders.
Leader-member exchange (LMX) theory says that leaders create in-groups and
out-groups and those in the in-group will have higher performance ratings, less turnover,
and greater job satisfaction. A transactional leader exchanges rewards for productivity
where a transformational leader stimulates and inspires followers to achieve goals. A
charismatic leader is an enthusiastic and self-confident leader whose personality and
12-5 Discuss trust as the essence of leadership. The five dimensions of trust include
integrity, competence, consistency, loyalty, and truthfulness. Integrity refers to one’s
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
12-1 Define leader and leadership and discuss why managers should be leaders.
Answer: Students should be able to provide the definitions in the text—which is a leader is
12-2 Discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the trait theory.
Answer: The average person’s definition of leadership is essentially a trait approach. If the
concept of traits were to prove valid, all leaders would have to possess specific
Explanations based solely on traits ignore situational factors. Possessing the appropriate
12-3 What does each of the four behavioral leadership theories say about leadership?
Answer: The University of Iowa Studies explored three styles of leadership: autocratic,
democratic, and laissez-faire. Initial results found that a democratic style leader was more
effective. However, later studies had mixed results. When group member satisfaction was
examined, it was found that a democratic style was more effective than an autocratic one.
12-4 What would a manager need to know to use Fiedler’s contingency model? Be specific.
12-5 Do you think that most managers in real life use a contingency approach to increase
their leadership effectiveness? Discuss.
Answer: Yes, theories like Path Goal, which states that the leader’s job is to assist
followers in attaining their goals and to provide direction or support needed to ensure that
their goals are compatible with the goals of the group or organization and can be used by
12-6 “All managers should be leaders, but not all leaders should be managers.” Do you
agree or disagree with this statement? Support your position.
Answer: The ability to influence others outside of one’s own authority and to perform
beyond expectations are essential to high performing organizations and are characteristic of
12-7 Do you think trust evolves out of an individual’s personal characteristics or out of
specific situations? Explain.
12-8 Do followers make a difference in whether a leader is effective? Discuss.
12-9 How can organizations develop effective leaders?
Answer: From the early stages of recruiting to training and development, organizations
12-10 When might leaders be irrelevant?
Answer: Data from numerous studies demonstrate that, in many situations, any behaviors a
leader exhibits are irrelevant. Certain individual, job, and organizational variables can act
as “substitutes for leadership,” negating the influence of the leader. Characteristics of
MyManagementLab
Students can find the following assisted-graded writing questions at
mymanagementlab.com. Answers to these questions are graded against rubrics in the
MyLab.
12-11 What is the difference between trait theories and behavioral theories of leadership?
12-12 Why is trust the essence of leadership?
12-13 Differentiate between transactional and transformational leaders and between charismatic
and visionary leaders?
Management Skill Builder: Leadership Style Indicator
The terms management and leadership are frequently used interchangeably. That’s a misnomer.
The two aren’t the same but they are related. Although you don’t need to hold a management
position to be a leader, you’re unlikely to be an effective manager if you can’t be an effective
leader.
Personal Inventory Assessment: Being a Good Leader
What’s your leadership style? Take this PIA and find out!
Skill Basics
Although a number of situational variables influence the choice of an effective leadership
style, four variables seem most relevant:
1. Task structure.
2. Level of stress.
3. Level of group support.
4. Follower characteristics.
Practicing the Skill
In this scenario, you are fresh out of college and a new manager at CMI. Your
predecessor, who was with the company for 37 years, is retiring and you are the
replacement. Your team is made up of employees from 19-62 years of age. You also have
a vocal critic, Lillian, an older employee whose opinion carries a lot of weight with group
members. Have students discuss which leadership style you should choose in this
situation.
Brainstorm with students which leadership style would be best. Guide students toward
applying House’s Path Goal model. Get them to think about both the situation and type of
followers involved. Once a strategy is developed, ask for volunteers to come forward and
“fish bowl” it. Role-play the manager and an employee in front of the class. After the
“fish bowl,” ask students how they felt, if there is some way they would improve the
process. Have the student(s) with ideas for improving the process come up front and
demonstrate.
Experiential Exercise
Preferred Bank Card Inc.
To: Pat Muenks, VP Employee Relations
From: Jan Plemmons, Customer Service Director
Subject: Leadership Training
The management of Preferred Bank Card, Inc. agrees they need a leadership training program for
the customer service team leaders. These leaders struggle with keeping customer service reps
focused on the goal of providing timely, accurate, and friendly service to bank card holders who
call in with questions or complaints.
It is your task to put together a one-page proposal that describes the leadership topics you think
should be covered. Also, give some suggestions for how they might present the information in a
way that would be interesting.
Teaching Tip: Students may use the Skills Basic section above and apply these options
to this case. Students can also search for information in the library and find examples of
books on leadership, such as The Leadership Challenge, by Kouzes and Posner or The 21
Irrefutable Laws of Leadership: Follow Them and People Will Follow You, by Maxwell.
Students can also find information on leadership the Website for Leadership Excellence,
and in popular periodicals such as Forbes, Fortune, INC, the Wall Street Journal, and
Fast Company.
Case Application 1: Developing Gen Y Leaders
Discussion Questions
12-14 Why do you think that there’s a huge gap in theory (what we know we should do) and
practice (what we’re actually doing) of leadership development?
12-15 What are some reasons that companies might not be addressing Gen Y leadership
development programs?
12-16 Take each of the six leadership attributes that 3M feels is important. Explain what you
think each one involves. Then discuss how those attributes might be developed and
measured.
12-17 Would any of those six leadership attributes be appropriate for any of the other
companies mentioned? Explain.
The six attributes are the ability to develop a plan and implement that plan, motivate and
rouse others, be ethical and trustworthy and abide by the rules, achieve outcomes, strive
for excellence and be a capable and creative innovator. Students will vary in their
12-18 Three different types of organizations are described here: 3M is primarily a
manufacturing organization. Ernst & Young and Deloitte are professional services
organizations. Facebook is a tech company. Compare and contrast their differing
approaches to Gen Y leadership development.
Case Application 2: Serving Up Leaders
Discussion Questions
12-19 Describe the leadership lessons you think Starbucks Leadership Lab provided store
managers.
12-20 What role do you think an organization’s culture plays in how its leaders lead? Relate
this to the story told above.
12-21 Using the behavioral theories as a guideline, what do you think would be more important
to a Starbucks store manager: focus on task, focus on people, or both? Explain.
12-22 How might a Starbucks store manager use situational leadership theory? Path-goal
theory? Transformational leadership?
Situational theory can be used to help managers understand the factors in the
environment that are effecting the situation so they can make the best decisions possible.
Case Application 3: Leadership Legacy
Discussion Questions
12-23 Think about what you thought you knew about Steve Jobs prior to reading
this Case Application. How would you have described his leadership style?
12-24 After reading this Case Application, how would you describe his leadership
style?
12-25 What were you most surprised about after reading this Case Application?
12-26 Would Steve Jobs’s leadership approach work for others? Discuss.