1. Organizational Skills Management
David L. Page
ECE 400
The University of Tennessee
November 21, 2005

2. Exercise Divide into three groups. Elect a leader.
Have the leader meet me in the hallway.
Task
Materials
8 ½ x 11 white paper (20)
Paper clips (4)
Masking tape (2 ft)
Rubber bands (5)
4 x 6 Index cards (10)
Build ?
November 11, Slide 2

3. Exercise (Cont.) After team leader returns…
Congratulations! We have been selected to design a new art structure for the entrance of the new ECE building.
You must use only the materials given.
You have 20 minutes to complete your structure.
Three criteria used to judge final designs
Maximum height of structure
Durability
Overall beauty
After 20 minutes, I will need…
Completed structure
Team name
November 11, Slide 3

4. Leaders versus Managers
Managers have legitimate or positional power as a result of their post
For leaders, the source of their ability to influence others comes from their expertise or from their personality.
Possible to be a leader without being a manager.
Also, possible to be a manager with no leadership skills.
Typically, though, the best managers are also leaders.
November 11, Slide 4

5. Lewin, Lippitt, and White
Studied boys in arts and crafts clubs led by adults (1930s)
Three types of leadership styles: autocratic, democratic, and laissez-faire
Autocratic leaders
These leaders told the boys what sorts of models they would make.
They sometimes praised or blamed them but did not explain their comments.
Democratic leaders
They discussed various possible projects and allowed the boys to make their own decisions (built consensus).
They explained their comments.
Laissez-faire leaders
They left the boys very much to their own devices.
They did not become involved and generally participated little in the group's activities
November 11, Slide 5

6. Lewin et al. Findings Autocratic (Task centered)
Aggressive towards each other
Submissive to leader
Two types of members
Aggressive: members become rebellious
Apathetic: Place fewer demands on the leader and less critical of leader
Higher productivity than other groups
Lower quality of products
Democratic (Person centered)
Got along well with each other (high morale)
Approaches to leader were task related
Accomplish less work than autocratic (moderate productivity)
When group leader leaves, group continues to be productive independently.
Fair amount of originality
Higher quality
Laissez-faire (Not really leadership, rather a neglect of duty)
Worst groups of all
Very little work done
Low productivity
Little cooperation and place great demands on leader
Show little ability to work independently
November 11, Slide 6

7. Fiedler’s Contingency Model
Task oriented is most effective when
Relations are good
Task is highly structured
Leader has substantial power and authority
Or the exact opposite of the above conditions
People oriented (relations approach) is most effective when
Relations are only moderately good
Leader has a degree of power and authority
In general, best managers are those that place
High concern for people
AND high concern for task
November 11, Slide 7

8. Appropriate Leadership Style
Factory employee who is new to the job.
Laundry worker who sorts laundry.
Three long-time receptionists ask for same day off for legitimate reasons.
Employees are receiving CPR training.
A programmer refuses to follow the company’s coding policies.
District salesperson who spends most of the year on the road.
Autocratic
Bureaucratic
Democratic
Laissez-faire
The employee is new and needs to learn what to do.
Employee is performing a routine task over and over.
Employees are used to working together and can help solve the problem.
Safety or security training must be done the same way each time.
Employee is challenging the manager’s power.
Employee is able to perform work w/o supervision
Bureaucratic – Management “by the book.” This manager is really more of a police officer than a leader. He or she enforces the rules.
November 11, Slide 8

9. Homework 1 Consider each of these statements below.
Think of a time when you, or a leader over you, used the authoritarian (autocratic) style of leadership.
Think of a time when you or a leader over you used the participative (democratic) style of leadership.
Think of a time when you or a leader over you used the “by the book” (bureaucratic) style of leadership.
Think of a time when you or a leader over you used the delegative (free reign) style of leadership. (Delegative is a more positive version of laissez-faire style.)
Write some comments about each statement.
Did it work?
Could a different style have worked better?
How did the employees feel about the decision?
Did everyone learn from that style and what did they learn?
Which style is easiest to use, and why?
Which style do you prefer the leaders over you to use, and why?
Post your write up on your webpage (~one page).
Only one per team.
November 11, Slide 9

10. Homework 2 Go to the website:
Click on “Take the Keirsey Tempermant Sorter II”
Create a user account and take the test
After your results, read through the website about the different tempermants
November 11, Slide 10