1. Strategy, Leadership & Culture Flashcards
Define leadership?
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What are the Qualities of a Good Effective Leader?
The process of influencing an organisation or group in its efforts towards achieving an aim or a goal (Johnson et al, 2017)
Qualities of Effective Leaders
- Visionary
- Ethical
- Charisma – ‘star quality’
- Good communication skills ability to influence, speak clearly and listen
- “Walk the talk”
- Expert in their field
- Risk-takers, including the risk of unpopularity
Briefly Explain the 5 perspectives on leadership? (Yukl 2013).
1 Trait Approach
Good leaders are “ Naturally born” with a base level of natural skills Confidence, Personable, Energy, Intuition, Persuasiveness.
2 Behaviour Approach
Rhat you learn how to manage given situations. i.e. seeing how others manage the industry and then following that approach.
3 Power Influence Approach
how much power a leader has and how they exercise it (autocratic vs. participative).
4 Situational Approach
Successful leadership skills and behaviours will depend on the circumstances of the situation
5 Integrative
Using more than one approach
What are the key roles in strategic leadership?
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What do these roles involve?
1. Top Manager ( C-Suite)
- Envisioning future strategy
- Aligning the organisation
- Embodying change and act as a role model
2. Middle Managers
- Advisers to senior management,
- ‘Sensemaking’ of strategy into specific contexts.
- Reinterpretation and adjustment of strategy as circumstances change
- Local leadership of change
Briefly describe the 2 main types of leaders?
Transactional / Instrumental leadership:
Leadership based on systems and controls, seeking general improvement rather than change. (More focused on the day to day operations and likely be lower levels of management)
Charismatic/Transformational leadership
Leadership that energises people and builds a clear vision of the future, seeking to change that status quo
What are Balogun and Hope Haily’s (2008) change management styles?
What is it used for?
Hint? D.I.C.C.E
- Direction - Gradual change directed by management, in a top to down style
- Intervention - Use of change agent
- Coercion - (More aggressive form of direction) Change is imposed by management for urgent needs
- Collaboration & Participation - Collaborate with people to enact change
- Education & Communication - Clearly communicate the need to change
Used to assess which change management style, would be appropriate in a given context.
What is ‘Strategy’?
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What are the Horizons of strategy?
A strategy is the long term direction of an organisation.
Horizons
- Defend and Extend Current/Core Business
- Build an emerging business to provide to sources of income
- Ventures are new and risky and might provide returns in the future
How to think strategically?
- Taking a long-term perspective on dealing with company issues
- Looking at the whole organisation as well as individual products/divisions/SBU’s
- Setting the direction of the whole organisation and integrating its activities.
- Considering the views of all stakeholders.
- Analysing the resources and defining requirements.
- Relating the organisation to its environments.
- Looking at gaining a sustainable competitive advantage.
What is entrepreneurship?
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What is intrapreneurship?
Entrepreneurship: the process by which individuals identify and exploit opportunities for new products or services that satisfy a need in a market.
Intrapreneurship: Implementing entrepreneurial principles within an organisation. Such as identifying cost-saving or improving the efficiency of processes.
Explain Ashridge 4 styles of management?
- Tells (autocratic)- The manager makes all the decisions and issues instructions which must be obeyed without question.
- Sells (persuasive) - The manager still makes all the decisions, but believes that team members must be motivated to accept them in order to carry them out properly.
- Consults (participative) - The manager confers with the team and takes their views into account, although still retains the final say.
- Joins (democratic) - The leader and the team members make the decision together on the basis of consensus.
What is expected of Accountants as being an organisational leader?
Accountants are increasingly expected to be more involved in the leadership of a company.
A leader is expected to be able to -
- analyse a business situation and
- provide and implement appropriate, effective and sustainable solutions
This means that they can: -
- be clear and focussed, identifying the key issues in any situation
- analyse and address ethical concerns
- use models and quantitative analysis to draw out key issues, establish causality and integrate a wide range of factors into a coherent argument
- make clear ‘fit for purpose’ recommendations that meet and exceed the needs of the business
Explain Blake and Moulton Managerial Grid
The Blake and Mouton Managerial Grid is a leadership model that assesses a manager’s leadership style based on two dimensions:
- Concern for people: focus on the well-being and satisfaction of their team members.
- Concern for production: focus on achieving goals and results.
The grid consists of five different leadership styles:
- Impoverished management:
- Country club management:
- Task management:
- Middle-of-the-road management:
- Team management:
The grid is widely used to help managers understand their leadership style and to identify areas for improvement. It is also useful for managers to identify what style they want to be and what style they want to avoid
It’s worth noting that leadership style should be flexible and adaptable to the situation and the team. A manager should also be aware of the style that is more effective for the team and be able to adjust it accordingly.
Country club management:
- High concern for people and low concern for production.
- Managers with this style may be seen as friendly and supportive, but may not be as focused on achieving results.
- Pros: can lead to high morale and good relationships among team members.
- Cons: can lead to poor performance and lack of results.
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When to use: best used in situations where team morale and cohesion are more important than achieving specific results, such as in a non-profit organization or when working with a team of volunteers.
- non-profit organization where maintaining a positive and supportive work environment is more important than achieving specific results.
- when working with a team of volunteers, where maintaining good relationships is important to keep volunteers engaged and motivated
TASK management:
- High concern for production and low concern for people.
- Managers with this style may be seen as demanding and task-oriented, with little interest in the well-being of their team members.
- Pros: lead to high performance and results.
- Cons: lead to low morale and poor relationships among team members,
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When to use: This style is best used in situations where achieving specific results is the top priority, such as in a fast-paced or high-stress work environment.
- well-suited in a fast-paced work environment such as a technology start up where achieving specific results is the top priority and time is of the essence.
- well-suited in a high-stress work environment such as a hospital emergency department where efficiency and results are critical to patient care.
Middle-of-the-road management:
Moderate concern for both people and production.
Managers with this style may be seen as neither particularly supportive nor particularly demanding.
- Pros: This style can be less demanding and require less effort from the manager.
- Cons: This style can lead to mediocre results and mediocre relationships among team members.
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When to use: This style can be used in situations where the priorities are not clear or when the manager is unsure of what style to use.
- This style could be used in situations where the priorities are not clear, such as in a small business where the manager is unsure of what style to use.
- This style could also be used in a transition period when a team is undergoing a change, such as a merger or acquisition.
Team management:
High concern for both people and production.
Managers with this style may be seen as supportive and results-oriented, with a focus on both achieving goals and supporting their team members.
- Pros: This style can lead to both high performance and high morale among team members.
- Cons: This style can be more demanding and require more effort from the manager.
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When to use: This style is best used in situations where both achieving results and maintaining a positive work environment are important.
- well-suited in a matrix organization, where different teams work on different projects and achieving results and maintaining a positive work environment are important.
- well-suited in a knowledge-based company such as a consulting firm where team members are highly skilled and motivated and achieving results is important.
What are the three levels of strategy?
1. Corporate Strategy
- Overall Purpose of the organisation. (The type products or SBU portfolio the company will have, markets the business will focus)”What type of business should we be in?”
2. Business Level Strategy
- How will the company be successful in the market place, “Tactics to win sales, make a profit and beat the competition”
3. Operational Strategy (Resources)
Operational Methods to implement the tactics on a day to day level. How will the divisions of the company support the company
What is a Mission statement? and What is the purpose of it?
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What is a Vision Statement?
A Mission Statement: is a formal document that states the organisation’s mission.
What is its purpose?
- Communication with stakeholders
- Promotes desired behaviour
- Support for Strategy & Purpose
- Adherence to Core Values
- Adoption of Policies
Vision Statement: Expresses the future that an organisation is trying to create. If all the plans went well this what it would look like.
What are the four elements of the Ashridge College Model of Mission?
- Purpose
- Values & Morals
- Policies & Standards of Behaviour
- Strategy
What are the common criticisms of a mission statement?
Users see the statement as meaningless if they are seen to be
- A Public Relations Exercise
- Over Generalised and provide no real guidance
- If the are ignored
- If poorly constructed it could create a conflicting statement and confuse users
- Unsupported by specific objectives
Highlight Johnson et al (2017) main elements of strategic management?
1__. Strategic Position
2. Strategic Choices
3. Strategy in Action (Implementation)
What are the 6 Drivers and Conclusion of the Cultural Web? (C.R.O.P.S.P.S) SOP.CRS
Stories & Myths (Key Messages Given both Inside & outside the organisation)
Organisational Structure ``(Hierarchy i.e. top-down (army) or flat (charity)
Power Structures (Who makes the decisions)
Control Systems (Monitoring & Rewarding Performance)
Routines (Informal Behaviour) & Rituals (Formal Behaviour)
Symbols (Logos, Job Titles, Uniform etc.)
Paradigm (Conclusion: Is there anything we are seeing a lot of as common threads).
What are the Pros and Cons of Strategic Planning?
