Assessing a High Performing Organization’s Leadership Selection and Development The Use of the Leadership3 Instrument as an Evaluation Tool in Organizational Leadership Development

Assessing a High Performing Organization’s Leadership Selection and Development: The Use of the Leadership3 Instrument as an Evaluation Tool in Organizational Leadership Development Darryl L Jinkerson Department of Management Sciences Abilene Christian University ACU Box 29334 Abilene, TX 79699-9334 Phone: (325)-674-2493 Fax: (325) 674-2507 Email: darryl.jinkerson@coba.acu.edu Phillip D Vardiman Department of Management Sciences Abilene Christian University ACU Box 29327 Abilene, TX 79699-9327 Phone: (325) 674-2153 Fax: (325) 674-2507 Email: phil.vardiman@coba.acu.edu Annual Meeting of the American Evaluation Association San Antonio, TX November 2010 ©J&A Consulting Group, LLC Leadership Abstract Leadership3 is a 40 item forced-choice leadership development assessment that provides organizations and decision makers with key insights including: (1) PERSPECTIVES the instrument provides both individual and organizational insights into the culture and leadership development opportunities as perceived by both leadership and the rank and file; (2) POTENTIAL- the instrument identifies internal leadership talent and desirability within the organizational labor pool beyond the one-sided (typical) viewpoints of making leadership selections for development based only on top management’s perspective; and (3) PROFILES - the instrument provides graphical presentation of the convergence and divergence of leadership development perspectives between leadership and workers The current study presents a case study of the evaluation application of this unique instrument in assessing the effectiveness of an organizational transition towards becoming a high performing organization Keywords: leader assessment, leader selection, organizational effectiveness, leadership development, environmental context Leadership 3 Assessing a High Performing Organization’s Leadership Selection and Development: The Use of the Leadership3 Instrument as an Evaluation Tool in Organizational Leadership Development Effective leadership within an organization is often viewed as the foundation for organizational performance and growth Organizations that lack strong leadership are likely to fail to meet performance expectations Leadership has been described as a process of influence toward the accomplishment of objectives (e.g., Bass, 1960; Katz & Kahn, 1966; Yukl, 1998) This view of leadership generally focused on the dyadic relationship between a leader and follower, but not on what conditions or opportunities need to be in place for effective leaders to emerge or be developed In order to better understand how to enhance and develop effective leaders, one must first understand what causes or facilitates leadership emergence and selection Of particular interest are contextual factors within an organization that either foster or inhibit the transition from follower to leader Leadership theory needs to further investigate the factors that motivate organizational members to reach their full leadership potential (Bass and Avolio, 1997) An understanding of the importance of creating an environment that recognizes each employee for their current accomplishments and future potential is critical in developing future leaders at all levels of the organization (Shipper & Manz, 1992; Tichy & Cohen, 1997) Through a better understanding of the conditions or contextual factors that should be present to enable the development of effective leaders, organizational leaders may be better equipped to fertilize and cultivate the soil to facilitate the growth of the next crop of leaders and help facilitate the development of what has been referred to as a ‘High Performing Organization’ (Vardiman and Jinkerson, 2008) Understanding the conditions that support the emergence of leadership is critical to creating an environment that not only promotes and encourages Leadership leadership development but also removes the roadblocks that prevent people from stepping out and taking leadership roles and an organization transforming into a high performing one The emergence of future organizational leaders and high performing organizations may seem a simple or naturally occurring process, but in many organizations the progression from follower to leader is not encouraged or even provided and may in fact be actively discouraged by the organization’s culture therefore preventing a high performing level of achievement The process of identifying and developing future leaders has traditionally revolved around the characteristics of the potential leader, but equally important is the creation of an organizational environment and culture that facilitates the development of effective leaders at every organizational level and lays the foundation for becoming high performing Organizational hierarchies and control processes tend to impose constraints on organizational members that restrict and limit self-expression (Fairholm, 1994) This phenomenon tends to create a barrier to leadership development within the organization by selecting only a few employees for development opportunities This paper is an extension of the model originally developed by Vardiman, Houghton and Jinkerson (2006) Vardiman et.al presented a contextual model of leadership selection and effectiveness Their model examined the interactions between the level of environmental support for leadership development and the level of individual leadership characteristics Based on these interrelations, the model suggested certain predictable outcomes relative to the potential for leadership selection and effectiveness Finally, based on these predictable outcomes we will advance research propositions that may guide future empirical research in this area as presented in Figure Leadership Insert Figure About Here - As demonstrated in Figure 1, the model suggests that two primary factors influence leader selection and effectiveness: individual leadership characteristics and environmental support As outlined above, individual leadership characteristics that may influence leadership emergence, selection and effectiveness include intelligence, dominance, gender role, generalized self-efficacy, self-monitoring, emotional intelligence, conscientiousness, emotional stability, and extraversion Individual leadership characteristics may also include self-regulatory, selfmotivational, empowering, and transformational leadership skills and behaviors (e.g., Conger, 1999; Day, 2001; Manz & Sims, 2001) Although these individual characteristics play a large role in influencing leader selection and effectiveness within an organization, the model suggests that individual characteristics alone provide an incomplete picture and in fact only about half of the true picture is understood The model suggests that the level of environmental support will also influence leader selection and leadership effectiveness in As further shown in Figure 1, the two dimensions of individual leadership characteristics and environmental support combine to form four distinct quadrants with predictable outcomes relative to leadership selection and effectiveness Quadrant I represents a situation in which environmental support for leadership development is high and in which the individual possesses high levels of essential individual leadership characteristics This quadrant represents the ease with which a person can step into a leadership position because of the supportive environmental culture and high levels of key individual leadership characteristics Individuals in this quadrant are easily promoted into leadership positions because of their high individual leadership skills Leadership and their ability to match the criteria for selection They also relish the opportunity to lead and find it easier to be selected to leadership positions The individual fits the organizational stereotype of a good leader Organizations routinely succeed in identifying and promoting these individuals as leaders because they are easy to recognize Individuals in this quadrant understand the importance of learning, they are self-directed, and have an internal motivation to succeed The organizational culture is helpful in creating an environment that is supportive and enables them to develop as leaders Because the organizational culture is focused on effective leadership development and because individuals high in key leadership characteristics fit general leadership stereotypes, individuals in this quadrant will tend to emerge and be recognized and selected as leaders by their peers and superiors more than individuals in less supportive environments or those with fewer visible leadership characteristics In addition, because of their high levels of leadership skills and characteristics, individuals in this quadrant are likely to be more effective leaders than individuals with less leadership talent who need additional leadership development support Quadrant II represents a situation in which environmental support for leadership development is high but the individual possesses relatively low levels of key individual leadership characteristics and skills This quadrant illustrates the difficulties a person may experience when they are in a culture characterized by highly integrated leadership development processes and a tendency to recognize individuals for high productivity achievement, but they lack the ability and the characteristics necessary to lead effectively They are encouraged and nurtured toward becoming an effective leader These individuals consistently perform well in their specific subject matter role but not possess the necessary leadership characteristics to be successful As noted, individuals in this quadrant are pushed into leadership positions by the Leadership organizational culture Because of the lack of individual leadership skill development, people in this quadrant tend to resist the leadership opportunity Furthermore, these individuals tend to lack the internal motivation for developing additional leadership skills Because environmental support for leadership development is high and the contextual barriers to leadership emergence are low, individuals in this quadrant will be pushed toward selection for leadership roles, often because they possess technical expertise or demonstrate high productivity However, because of their relatively low levels of leadership skills and characteristics, individuals in this quadrant are less likely to become effective leaders if forced into a leadership role than individuals with higher leadership skills and characteristics Quadrant III represents a situation in which environmental support for leadership development is low and the individual possesses relatively low levels of important individual leadership characteristics and skills This quadrant identifies the continuity employees within an organization These are the employees who follow direction with little question while routinely performing their tasks day in and day out They are not always happy about their work but they don’t want to make waves They lack key leadership characteristics and therefore are not perceived as leader or as a person who might develop into a leader In this quadrant, the organization tends to take a very passive view toward potential leaders and if an opportunity is presented, these individuals may refuse it because of their lack of desire and relevant individual leadership skills Stability and security are very important to these individuals and it allows them to be satisfied with the status quo and remain comfortable Because environmental support for leadership development is low, individuals in this quadrant are not encouraged to undertake a leadership role Due in part to this lack of encouragement and in part to their lack of leadership characteristics, individuals in this quadrant tend not to seek leadership opportunities Given the Leadership lack of both organizational support for leadership development and the lack of important individual leadership characteristics, individuals in this quadrant will resist selection to leadership roles Likewise, individuals in this quadrant are less likely to become effective leaders than individuals with higher leadership skills and characteristics because of the noted lack of leadership skill Quadrant IV represents a situation in which environmental support for leadership development is low but the individual possesses relatively high levels of key individual leadership characteristics and skills This is a very interesting quadrant Although this situation represents an excellent source of leadership talent, the organization fails to remove the barriers that allow individuals to emerge as effective leaders These individuals possess leadership talent but find it difficult to be recognized as a leader or move into leadership roles because the organization is not actively seeking to identify leadership potential and develop leadership talent The organization culture of resisting leadership development support will often prevent these individuals from leadership opportunities even though they request and desire the opportunity Due to the lack of organizational fit, individuals in this quadrant may be viewed as troublemakers or even identified as poor performers because their leadership capabilities cause them to push for changes and to exert significant influence Lacking an organizational culture that values and supports leadership development, these efforts to exert influence may be viewed as disruptive or problematic by supervisors concerned more with short-term continuity and success than with long-term leadership development Rather than developing this latent leadership potential, supervisors often reprimand would-be leaders causing them to seek leadership roles elsewhere In extreme instances, individuals with high levels of leadership potential may actually be terminated for attempting to exert influence that is viewed as overly Leadership disruptive to short-term organizational objectives Although individuals in this quadrant possess high levels of essential leadership characteristics, a limiting and non-supportive organizational environment will tend to inhibit the natural leadership emergence of these individuals In this quadrant individuals may decide to leave or jump from the organization to other opportunities Those individuals who gain leadership positions in other organizations or even departments are likely to be effective due to their high levels of vital leadership characteristics and untapped leadership potential Leadership Leadership3 is a 40 item forced-choice leadership development assessment that was developed specifically to measure and validate the model developed by Vardiman et al (2006) The items were worded to reflect specific behaviors and attitudes consistent with each of the four quadrants In completing the instrument, respondents first indicate their respective role in the company (i.e., assigned leadership position or non-assigned leadership position) and then select their level of agreement (Strongly Disagree, Disagree, Agree, Strongly Agree) to each of the 40 statements Each level of agreement is “linked” to a specific quadrant For example, if a respondent indicated that they “strongly disagreed” with question one (Your company’s culture encourages everyone to become leaders), that would be linked to Quadrant Likewise, disagreeing would be linked to Quadrant 3; agreeing to Quadrant 2; and strongly disagreeing to Quadrant The linking is balanced across the 40 items such that each quadrant has the same possibility of being selected based on the respondent’s level of agreement Test-Retest Reliability The reliability of this instrument was established via test-retest procedure The instrument was administered to 30 professionals employed at a non-profit including both the Leadership 10 Executive Team and all levels of employees They were told that the instrument was in stage of development and that it would be used in helping to later develop a strategic approach to leadership development Respondents completed the instrument anonymously with the exception of supplying the last four digits of their Social Security Number and their mother’s maiden name for matching purposes The same group of individuals completed the same instrument four weeks later A test-retest correlation coefficient of 81 was obtained between the matched responses of 28 of the 30 original respondents Instrument Validity Three different Executive Directors and/or Plant Managers were interviewed regarding the process and success of their respective leadership selection and development within their organization In all cases, the executives indicated select issues or concerns The executives were then shown results of the Leadership3 instrument for their respective organization along with the appropriate interpretation and in all cases, the three strongly agreed that the instrument accurately assessed their situation and provided significant insights into how they might move their organization forward in this arena Instrument Patterns As additional organizations have utilized Leadership3, specific organizational patterns have emerged The patterns are displayed in Figures – Insert Figures - About Here The respective patterns of each respondent group (Leader, Worker) when considered both individually and taken together generate the three main deliverables from the instrument: Leadership • 11 PERSPECTIVES - the instrument provides both individual and organizational insights into the culture and leadership development opportunities as perceived by both leadership and the rank and file • POTENTIAL- the instrument identifies internal leadership talent and desirability within the organizational labor pool beyond the one-sided (typical) viewpoints of only on top management’s perspective • PROFILES - the instrument provides graphical presentation of the convergence and divergence of leadership development perspectives between leadership and workers High Performing Organization Jinkerson & Vardiman (2008) defined a high performing organization as: An organization that outperforms others in consistently producing high quality, valued products/ services and strives to exceed the expectations and needs of their customers and employees High Performing Organizations are resilient and have the ability to adapt and prosper over a long period of time through the utilization of all available talents & resources Decisions are made based on principles & values rather than absolute rules They generate a sense of enthusiasm; ownership and excitement among the people involved and support a strong belief in the development and potential of everyone in the organization Model of Organizational Transformation Aaron (2008) adapted the standard Systems Development V-Model in presenting a Human Performance Evaluation Model as a measurement framework for training evaluation The Systems Development V-Model has also been adapted as a model for demonstrating organizational transformation (Jinkerson & Vardiman, 2008) The model is referred to as the Six Delta Model of Organization Transformation because it is hypothesized that there exists six levels of change that must occur in order for an organization to be reach the highest level of a performing organization Correspondingly, there are six different organizational components that Leadership 12 must be considered, measured and/or assessed before the organization can undertake each respective delta The model is presented in Figure Insert Figure About Here Application at New Horizons The current study documents an effort by a non-profit organization know as New Horizons to strategically transition to a level of higher performance New Horizon’s mission is to provide an environment where children, families and staff are able to heal and grow through caring relationships and unconditional love and acceptance This agency has existed for over 40 years and its philosophy is that children are first Children’s needs guide decisions made, goals set, and direction of programs The overriding principal is "What is in the best interest of the child?" The majority of children that are served have been removed from their home by the state for some type of abuse Services are segmented into Programs Currently, there are five programs: CPA (Child Placement Agency (CPA), Family Strengthening (FS), Services to At-Risk (STAR), Community Center of Care (Audrey Grace), and the Ranch The first four programs although different in operations are all relatively new (less than years old) and are all located in close geographic proximity to each other in a small city (population 115,000) The last program (The Ranch) has operated since the founding of the agency and is located approximately 2.5 hours away in a rural setting The ranch provides housing, services and schools for approximately 60 children year round Organizationally and operationally, it is vastly different from the other four programs Leadership 13 Consistent with the 6∆ Model of Organizational Transformation, Leadership3 was administered to both leadership and staff employees from all programs The earlier components of the transformational model (Strategic Alignment, Organizational Value Analysis, and Current Practices/Policies Alignment) are also occurring and are at different stages of analysis and consideration Figure presents the results of the assessment from the entire New Horizon’s organization Insert Figure About Here Figure presents the results of the assessment from the New Horizon’s Abilene’s Operation (4 Programs) Insert Figure About Here Figure 10 presents the results of the assessment from the New Horizon’s Residential Operation (The Ranch) Insert Figure 10 About Here As shown in all three figures (8 – 10), Quadrant dominates the results which is consistent with the Stop-Gap Profile (see Figure 4) The Stop-Gap Profile describes a highly transitional organization that is undergoing significant change In many situations transitional change is considered good but such change can become ineffective if an organizational cannot Leadership 14 escape falling into the trap of “continual transition” which the authors describe as “being on the treadmill” New Horizons is poised to make the transition into a high performing organization Current leadership and employees both perceive that individuals are encouraged to pursue leadership, the organization strives to exceed the leadership development expectations of its employees and that desires for leadership advancement are supported Profile Assessment and Recommendations for New Horizons As suggested above, the New Horizons organization can be identified with the Stop-Gap Profile based on the assessment analysis The organization has experienced a high level of change within the employee ranks and also organizational structure There exists significant challenges at all levels of leadership (roles and positions) for an organization with multiple locations and unique 24/7/365 full service leadership coverage for its largest location Although New Horizons is in a transitional mode, it is moving in the right direction towards higher performing Based on its Stop-Gap Profile, there are a number of specific recommendations for New Horizons to consider as it continues its transformation: Implement a structured and focused leadership development training program for all current assigned leadership personnel and interested employees based on a needs assessment Conduct one-to-one interviews with the organization’s strongest leaders to gain support and also information for areas of strength and weakness within the organization Strategically align and communicate the organization’s Values, Mission and Vision (Philosophy) to grow a culture of employee development and recognition especially among new employees Targeting specific leadership training for individuals who are currently in leadership but would like to develop their leadership skills in the organization Establishing defined career paths within each program Leadership 15 Establish and promote succession plans for key leadership positions that support career management Establish a formal mentoring program for leadership development Set a target of reducing employee turnover significantly below industry averages Build an individual employee assessment process that focuses on the C’s of performance throughout the entire organization as noted in the 6∆ Model of Organizational Transformation 10 Capture and implement “Low Hanging Fruit” which represents quick changes that can make an immediate positive impact per the 6∆ Model of Organizational Transformation Leadership 16 References Aaron, B.C (2008, November) Chain of impact: How to build the evaluation framework Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Evaluation Association, Denver, CO Bass, B M (1960) Leadership, psychology, and organizational behavior New York: Harper and Row Bass, B M., & Avolio, B J (1997) Full range leadership development: Manual for the multifactor leadership questionnaire Redwood City, CA: Mind Garden, Inc Conger, J A., & Benjamin, B (1999) Learning to lead: How successful companies develop the next generation San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Day, D V (2001) Leadership development: A review in context Leadership Quarterly, 11, 581-613 Fairholm, G W (1994) Leadership and the culture of trust Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers Jinkerson, D.L & Vardiman, P D (2008) The six delta model of organizational enrichment (Bandag Project Proposal No 1) Abilene, TX: J&A Consulting Group, LLC Katz, D., & Kahn, R L (1966) The social psychology of organizations New York: Wiley Manz, C C., & Sims, H P., Jr (2001) The new SuperLeadership: Leading others to lead themselves San Francisco, Berrett-Koehler Shipper, F., & Manz, C C (1992) Employee self-management without formally designated teams: An alternative road to empowerment Organizational Dynamics, 20, 48-61 Tichy, N M., & Cohen, E (1997) The leadership engine: How winning companies build leaders at every level New York: Harper-Collins Leadership 17 Vardiman, P.D., Houghton, J.D & Jinkerson, D L (2006) Environmental leadership development: Toward a contextual model of leadership selection and effectiveness The Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 27, 93-105 Yukl, G (1998) Leadership in organizations (Fourth edition) Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall Environmental Support (ES) High Quadrant II High ES, Low ILC (Pushes/Resistant) (Promotes/Relishes) Quadrant I High ES, High ILC Pushed toward leadership role Finds leadership roles difficult to fill Lacks important leadership characteristics P2a: Low Leadership Emergence P2b: Low Leadership Effectiveness Naturally assumes leadership role Easy to identify as a leader Fits leadership stereotype P1a: High Leadership Emergence P1b: High Leadership Effectiveness Individual Leadership Characteristics (ILC) Low High Not encouraged toward leadership role Does not seek leadership opportunities Comfortable in current role P3a: Low Leadership Emergence P3b: Low Leadership Effectiveness Quadrant III Low ES, Low ILC Frustrated follower, “trouble maker” Seeks more leadership opportunities May seek leadership roles elsewhere P4a: Low Leadership Emergence P4b: High Leadership Effectiveness (Passive/Refusal) (Prevents/Requests) Low Quadrant IV Low ES, High ILC Figure A Contextual Model of Leadership Selection and Effectiveness Figure At-Risk Profile Figure Settlers Profile Figure Leadership Rich Profile Figure Stop-Gap Profile Figure High Performing Profile Leadership 20 Figure ∆ Model of Organizational Transformation Leadership Figure Entire New Horizon Organization Output 21 Figure Abilene Location Output Figure 10 Ranch Location Output ... Performing Organization’s Leadership Selection and Development: The Use of the Leadership3 Instrument as an Evaluation Tool in Organizational Leadership Development Effective leadership within an. .. roles and an organization transforming into a high performing one The emergence of future organizational leaders and high performing organizations may seem a simple or naturally occurring process,... V-Model in presenting a Human Performance Evaluation Model as a measurement framework for training evaluation The Systems Development V-Model has also been adapted as a model for demonstrating organizational