Harvard psychology of leadership 1508 06 context

Psychology 1508: The Context “I think the ideal leader for the 21st century will be one who creates an environment that encourages everyone in the organization to stretch their capabilities and achieve a shared vision, who gives people the confidence to run farther and faster than they ever have before, and who establishes the conditions for people to be more productive, more innovative, more creative and feel more in charge of their own lives than they ever dreamed possible.” Robert Crandall (Chairman, American Airlines) Theory X Management Assumptions Most people HATE work ● Most people want to AVOID responsibility ● Most people have little AMBITION for themselves ● Most people prefer to be LED ● Most people have little ability to SOLVE PROBLEMS ● Most people require close control to prevent mistakes and prohibit loafing ● TWO groups of people ● Theory Y Management Assumptions Work can be ENJOYABLE as play ● Most people want to accept reasonable levels of RESPONSIBILITY ● Most people have strong GOALS for themselves, and seek organizations that will help to fulfill those goals ● Most people like to LEAD occasionally ● Most people are good PROBLEM SOLVERS ● Most people require NO policing or close control by the organization ● Most people CAN be autonomous and independent ● Theory X Management Assumptions Most people HATE work ● Most people want to AVOID responsibility ● Most people have little AMBITION for themselves ● Most people prefer to be LED ● Most people have little ability to SOLVE PROBLEMS ● Most people require close control to prevent mistakes and prohibit loafing ● TWO groups of people ● Leaders Create Their Environment Leader’s Assumptions/ expectations Leader’s Behavior Employees’ Behavior Organizational Environment Research Findings Hawthorne Effect (Mayo, 1932) ● Equity theory (Adams, 1965) ● The professor as leader (Frank, Gilovich, & Regan 1993) ● Psychological safety (Edmondson, 1999) ● “Today the laurel will go to the leader who encourages healthy dissent and values those followers brave enough to say no The successful leader will have not the loudest voice, but the readiest ear His or her real genius may well lie not in personal achievements, but in The Pygmalion Effect (Rosenthal, 1967) “What managers expect of subordinates and the way they treat them largely determine their performance and career progress.” Sterling Livingston “When the faith is present in the leader, it communicates itself to followers with powerful effect In the conventional mode people want to know whether the followers believe in the leader; a more searching question is whether the leader believes in the followers.” 100 Years of Leadership Development A Meta Analysis (Avolio & Luthans, 2006) “The largest developmental impact was raising the positive beliefs of followers, instilling in them the conviction that they were better at a performance task than they thought.” “Bad Leadership” “He was bright, and he didn’t tolerate fools And they weren’t fools, they were trying to get to understand what he was saying.” ● “He didn’t trust others’ capabilities as he did his own.” ● “I wasn’t given any guidance He wasn’t leading me or teaching me… I never got any feedback on ideas.” ● “He wasn’t direct and honest enough to give the bad side, he was always selling the dream.” ● “He was above us all… flying with the eagles above while dealing with the turkeys below.” ● “Bad Employees” ● ● ● ● ● “I was cautious a lot of the time, and I was frustrated I didn’t really throw myself into the job” “I had no motivation I didn’t anything that was particularly productive I did what I was told.” “There was much turf fighting, in-fighting… It made for a lot of disputes.” “I was choosing the path of least resistance I was doing the minimal work I didn’t excel… I didn’t go beyond what the job required.” “After a while, you become cynical about both the person and job You really the bare minimum.” “Good Leadership” “He made us feel like there were no boundaries to what we could be doing.” ● “He was very honest in his feedback with people… I always knew how I was doing.” ● “He took the initiative to build morale in the office He was sensitive, and after we had worked long hours he made sure we had a great dinner.” ● “He was always willing to take a chance, and trust people, give them responsibility and push them.” ● “Whenever we brought something up, he had the openness to listen to other people and make the changes The idea that he actually listened to you made a difference.” ● “Good Employees” ● ● ● ● ● ● ● “I was a different personality for both leaders… I was more relaxed and enjoyed working with him.” “I brought in my personal interests, my humor…” “He’s a guy I thought a lot of and I wanted him to think a lot of me, so I worked the hardest…” “I was much happier, more productive.” “You move away from selfishness, and toward more group oriented ways of thinking.” “I was calmer and more confident.” “It’s like marriage, where you marry someone and this person brings out all the good things in you.” Treat a man as he is and he will remain as he is Treat a man as he can and should be and he shall become as he can and should be Johan Wolfgang von Goethe “Good Followership” Leader’s Assumptions/ Expectations Leader’s Behavior Employees’ Behavior Organizational Environment “The follower who is willing to speak out shows precisely the kind of initiative that leadership is made of.” Ask not what your followers can for you; ask what you can for your followers Embodying Leadership Encounter groups (Lieberman, Yalom, & Miles, 1973) ● “Modeling the way” (McNeese-Smith, 1995) ● Emotional contagion (Barsade, 2002) ● “The leader’s mood and behaviors drive the moods and behaviors of everyone else A cranky and ruthless boss creates a toxic organization filled with negative underachievers who ignore opportunities; an inspirational, inclusive leader spawns acolytes for whom any challenge is surmountable.” Daniel Goleman “Our analysis suggests that, overall, the climate —how people feel about working at a company— can account for 20-30 percent of business performance Getting the best out of people pays off in hard results If climate drives business results, what drives climate? Roughly 50 to 70 percent of how employees perceive their organization’s climate can be traced to the actions of one person: the leader More than anyone else, the boss creates the conditions that The great leader… … creates an environment that facilitates growth Success Induced Blindness Environment Safe Guards Unconscious Incompetent (UI) Unconscious Competent (UC) Conscious Incompetent (CI) Conscious Competent (CC) “They lead because they want to create an environment in which people are free to think, innovate, and unite into teams and groups, in order to solve problems that are too big for any one person to solve alone.” Roger Smith Chairman, GM Corporations ... in the followers.” 100 Years of Leadership Development A Meta Analysis (Avolio & Luthans, 2 006) “The largest developmental impact was raising the positive beliefs of followers, instilling in them... out shows precisely the kind of initiative that leadership is made of. ” Ask not what your followers can for you; ask what you can for your followers Embodying Leadership Encounter groups (Lieberman,... 20-30 percent of business performance Getting the best out of people pays off in hard results If climate drives business results, what drives climate? Roughly 50 to 70 percent of how employees