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DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Compare and contrast the leader-member exchange and the Hersey and Blanchard models of
leadership.
Leader-Member Exchange theory suggests that leaders form unique independent relationships with
2. Are you now or have you ever been a member of an in-group? An out-group? Is so, in what
ways did your experience differ?
Answers will vary. Being a member of an in-group may confer status, prestige, power, tangible and
3. Which of the three traditional situational theories discussed in Chapter 12 is most similar to the
leader-member exchange model? To the Hersey and Blanchard model?
The LPC model, focusing on several aspects of the relationships between leader and followers, would
4. Identify an individual who could serve as an example of a transformational leader. How
successful or unsuccessful has this person been?
Answers will vary. Only a person with considerable influence over others could be a successful
5. Name the three people today whom you consider to be the most charismatic. How well do they
or might they function as leaders?
Answers will vary. It will be interesting to hear what qualities the students’ suggested individuals
possess that makes them so charismatic. Whoever is currently president of the United States is often
6. In your opinion, is it possible for someone with little or no charisma to become charismatic? If
so, how? If not, why?
Opinions will vary. The elements that seem to comprise charisma, such as self-confidence,
7. Have you ever made direct leadership attributions about someone based on the context in which
you observed them?
Responses will vary. As young people, observers often admire someone in various contexts—a
8. What are some of the substitutes and neutralizers to leadership that might exist in your
classroom?
Expertise and experience based on talent or competence as a learner might be examples in a
classroom setting. After all, your students may have had many years of experience being students, and
9. Do you believe that men and women differ in how they lead? Is so, what are some of the factors
that might account for the differences?
This may be a touchy subject. Responses will vary based on biases and experiences or a mixture of
10. In what ways does strategic leadership differ from “non-strategic” leadership?
Strategic leadership focuses on managing change in an organization and thinking and functioning
11. Some people have held that highly successful managers and leaders all face situations in which
they cannot be entirely truthful and still succeed. For instance, a politician who personally
believes that a tax increase is inevitable may feel that to fully disclose this belief will result in a
significant loss of votes. Do you agree or disagree with the idea that sometimes people cannot be
entirely truthful and still succeed?
How many votes will our hypothetical politician lose when his/her constituents find out he/she is a
liar and cannot be trusted? In the long run, honesty is always the best policy. If a person cannot
GROUP EXERCISE – Who Are the Leaders?
Learning Objective: This exercise offers you an opportunity to compare your concepts with those of
others in your class about who leaders are.
Task:
1. Make a list of ten very effective leaders – individuals whom most everyone would recognize as
leaders.
2. In small groups share and discuss your lists.
a. Were the same leaders on more than one student’s list?
b. What, if anything, do these individuals have in common – education, industry, type of
jobs held, family history, etc.?
3. Have each group agree on a list of ten leaders and share those group lists with the entire class.
What, if anything do the leaders on the various group lists have in common? If any leader
appears to be radically different from the others, discuss what sets that person apart from other
leaders and yet makes them one of the best-known leaders.
Try repeating the exercise with the possibilities narrowed: e.g., females, Native Americans, minorities,
managers/executives, politicians, religious leaders, international, or from a particular industry. What
additional information do you learn from this?
VIDEO EXERCISE
Numi Organic Tea: Danielle Oviedo
Summary: When Danielle Oviedo showed up for her first day as the manager of the Distribution Center
at Numi Organic Tea in Oakland, California, her new direct reports were not happy about the change.
They loved Oviedo’s predecessor, who was more like a friend than a boss to them. Danielle was hired
because of her effectiveness and success as a manager in previous positions. She also had experience
leading much big teams in similar departments. Prior to Danielle’s arrival, lead times for Numi’s
customer orders were not competitive. Upon her arrival at Numi, Danielle identified the problem:
employees were performing tasks in isolation with little attention to anything else. To solve the issue,
Danielle trained the Distribution Center employees in every critical task and process, explaining how all
the pieces fit together. Importantly, Danielle helped her team understand their jobs on a conceptual level
so they could see how their work linked directly to Numi’s larger goals. Unlike old-school managers who
hide in their offices and manage employees from afar, Danielle is out on the floor working with
teammates, ensuring they understand the process, and being supportive.
1. How would you describe Danielle Oviedo’s approach to leadership?
In this instance, Danielle was a transformational leader. When Danielle started her position, she
analyzed how employees currently performed their tasks. Everyone was working on their own tasks
2. What would you predict about Danielle’s future success as a leader? Why?
Danielle should be a successful manager in the future. Her ability to listen to her employees and her
3. In what ways, if any, does Danielle function as a coach?
Danielle acts as a coach by linking all the activities of shipping into one large team effort. She has
Now What?
Imagine that your boss is delegating parts of a project to you and to another team member. Because the
other team member has a longer work history with the boss and is highly trusted, you are assigned the
unchallenging portions of the project. What do you say or do? How can you improve your relationship
with your boss to get more challenging assignments and eventually earn a promotion? Go to this chapter’s
“Now What?” video, watch the challenge video, and choose a response. Be sure to also view the
outcomes of the two responses you didn’t choose.
OB Concepts Applied: leader-member exchange; in-group; empowerment; initiating structure;
consideration; leadership styles
Discussion Questions
1. In terms of LMX, what type of relationship is exhibited in the challenge video?
Amy uses a directive leadership style, letting subordinates know what she expects of them, giving
2. In the challenge video, according to the Hersey Blanchard model, how does Amy perceive Alex?
Amy appears to perceive Alex at low readiness as she is using the “telling” style of assigning tasks.
3. Which other aspects of leadership discussed in this chapter are illustrated in these videos?
Explain your answer.
Amy shows a bit of charisma by asking Alex to accompany her on a product demonstration run. The
4. If this were you, what would you do to improve your relationship with your boss to get
assignments that are more challenging and eventually earn a promotion?
I would be an effective follower because effective followers are important to effective leadership.
