Instructor Resource
Rowe, Cases in Leadership 5e
SAGE Publications, Inc., 2019
How the leader should handle this conversation
• Probe to understand what is important for Michelle.
o Engage Michelle to get an understanding of how she views her role and
contributions at JS.
• Understand why she does not follow instructions.
• Does she understand why her role is important?
• Does she know job expectations?
o Ask her to evaluate her own performance and determine what she needs to succeed in
• How frequently does she receive feedback? And how is it delivered?
• Include Michelle in the conversation about how to improve the situation.
4. Sam Chan—Teaching Note
Diagnosis
• Sam is a “star performer and a flight risk.”
• Sam is eager to be promoted, but he does not realize he would benefit from staying as
How the leader should handle this conversation
• Probe to understand what is important for Sam—what he likes or dislikes.
o Engage Sam in the conversation to understand how he feels about the director
• What is his current state of mind?
• Does he understand why he has to stay for another four years?
o Take the time to engage Sam in a conversation to educate him on why “building
• Does he know the job’s expectations?
o Ask him to evaluate his own performance.
• How frequently does he receive feedback? And how is it delivered?
Instructor Resource
Rowe, Cases in Leadership 5e
• Include Sam in the conversation about how to improve the situation.
Instructor Resource
Rowe, Cases in Leadership 5e
SAGE Publications, Inc., 2019
Appendix TN-2
Role Play Notes
1. Cindy Chu: The Hidden Hem
Background and appearance
Cindy is 27 years old and was a sports star in university where she competed in volleyball and
played for the Hong Kong youth team. She joined JS right after graduating at the top of her class
with a degree in business and finance. She is tall, athletic and walks with confidence: she looks
Conduct
She was detail-oriented in her data entry work and seemed to enjoy learning about the various
projects at JS. In her first project auditing a warehouse, she proved herself to be detail-oriented
and was able to think outside of the box when it came to finding solutions. On her second project,
where she had to analyze the warehouse’s financials, document its financial processes and provide
a recommendation, she was quietly—and constructively—corrected on what she did wrong (she
Instructor Resource
Rowe, Cases in Leadership 5e
SAGE Publications, Inc., 2019
How Cindy will react
• Cindy is not expecting to have her work criticized, and she will express surprise that she
is not performing at a high level through her body language only (raised eyebrows,
What will shut Cindy down
• If she does not hear how well she is doing (praise for her work), she will less likely be
open to the “constructive” portion of her feedback.
What tactics might appeal to Cindy
• Beginning with her good work and then explaining to her what her role is in the larger
group.
Instructor Resource
Rowe, Cases in Leadership 5e
SAGE Publications, Inc., 2019
2. Jason Wong: A Sense of Entitlement and Lacking Initiative
Background and appearance
Jason is 24 years old, and this is his first job out of university. He studied visual arts because he
wanted to connect with his creative side. He had the marks for engineering but thought it would
be too difficult and would stop him from enjoying his life. After his four-year degree—from which
Conduct
Jason feels that he needs to be appreciated for being himself. He wants a manager who looks out
for him but does not know how to ask for this. Managers have assumed that Jason is
Instructor Resource
Rowe, Cases in Leadership 5e
SAGE Publications, Inc., 2019
How Jason will react
When confronted with the fact that he needs to change, he often just says “yes” and agrees to
anything the manager says, just to get out of the meeting so he can go back to relaxing. He is a
little ticked off that the JS work can be too detail-oriented and mundane for his liking. He thought
it would be a fast-paced environment where his team would look to him for solutions on how to
What will shut Jason down
• Implicit or explicit threats to give him a bad grade on his assessment. Jason does not take
negative feedback well, especially since he feels he has alternatives.
Instructor Resource
Rowe, Cases in Leadership 5e
SAGE Publications, Inc., 2019
What tactics might appeal to Jason
• Discussing his future with JS—what his short-term career path looks like—to show him
that he will be working on more creative, interesting projects in the future.
• It may be necessary to hint to Jason that even if he moves on to another firm, he will
likely have to start at the bottom again and put up with what seems like mundane work.
3. Michelle Kang: The Carefree, Creative Maverick
Background and appearance
Michelle was writing a popular blog in university. She applied to the marketing department at JS
after she was turned down for a few posts in the United States at media firms. She then graduated
with a business degree from a local university, graduating in the top quartile of her class. She is
26 years old, has retained a lot of her student mannerisms and is seemingly oblivious to the more
formal style at JS. As a result:
• Her email messages are peppered with short forms.
Instructor Resource
Rowe, Cases in Leadership 5e
SAGE Publications, Inc., 2019
Conduct
Michelle will use first names, type out messages with Gen Y short-form writing and pepper her
conversations with Gen Y speak: “awkward,” “honestly,” “I’m dying.” She slouches in her chair
and checks her messages on her phone even in mid-conversation. While it may seem that all Gen
How Michelle will react
While her manager tried to hint at the project’s greater significance (the data requested was
What will shut Michelle down
Instructor Resource
Rowe, Cases in Leadership 5e
SAGE Publications, Inc., 2019
What will appeal to Michelle
• Mirroring her behavior to her (checking phone while Michelle is talking) and using
overly expressive body language at key points in the conversation. While Michelle seems
to want to “be herself,” she expects others to treat her with respect and act like
4. Sam Chan: Star Performer and a Flight Risk
Background and appearance
Sam is 27 years old and was in leadership positions in secondary school and university. He
appears bookish, with glasses and short hair combed to the side in a conservative manner. At first
acquaintance, he seems to have a mild personality, but in reality he is determined to succeed. He
sits and stands with good posture; he does not slouch.
Sam took part in student government, serving as head prefect of his class. He has not
participated in any sporting activities, neither individual nor team sports. He is connected online,
Conduct
Sam does not speak a lot; he is a little bit of an introvert, but you can see that he is listening and
processing information. He does not display any body language cues when bad news or good
news is given. He looks ahead with no expression on his face (“poker face”), but he is
formulating a response.
How Sam will react
• Sam will not disagree openly with others’ statements, but you can see that he does not
agree and will not tolerate being pushed around. He will say, “I hear you and I can see
• He has one foot out of the door as he is already discouraged, having been told that he will
have to wait a couple of years before being promoted.
What will shut Sam down
• Being told that everyone else before him had to follow this path and this is the reason
why he is being held back.
What will appeal to Sam
• Knowing why he has to wait several years for promotion, that there are reasons why
skills have to be rounded out. For example, Sam has faced issues in fresh food, but there