Organizational Leadership

Submitted By: Warda Ahmed

Submitted To: Sir Hamid Ali Nadeem

Roll No: CF503549

Program: PGD (ELM)

Semester: Spring 2021

Course Code: 1646

Assignment 1
Department of Educational Planning, Policy Studies and Leadership

ALLAMA IQBAL OPEN UNIVERSITY, ISLAMABAD

 Assignment No.1

Q. 1 Discuss Some Factors Which Play Vital Role In Development Of Organization And Its
Culture?

Answer:

An employer must begin with a thorough understanding of what culture is in a general sense
and what their organization's specific culture is. At the deepest level, an organization's culture
is based on values derived from basic assumptions about the following:

• Human nature. Are people inherently good or bad, mutable or immutable, proactive
or reactive? These basic assumptions lead to beliefs about how employees, customers
and suppliers should interact and how they should be managed.

• The organization's relationship to its environment. How does the organization define
its business and its constituencies?

• Appropriate emotions. Which emotions should people be encouraged to express, and

which ones should be suppressed?

• Effectiveness. What metrics show whether the organization and its individual
components are doing well? An organization will be effective only when the culture is
supported by an appropriate business strategy and a structure that is appropriate for
both the business and the desired culture.

Culture is a nebulous concept and is often an undefined aspect of an organization. Although

extensive academic literature exists relating to the topic of organizational culture, there is no
generally accepted definition of culture. Instead, the literature expresses many different
views as to what organizational culture is.

Organizational culture can manifest itself in a variety of ways, including leadership behaviors,
communication styles, internally distributed messages and corporate celebrations. Given that
culture comprises so many elements, it is not surprising that terms for describing specific
cultures vary widely. Some commonly used terms for describing cultures include aggressive,
customer-focused, innovative, fun, ethical, research-driven, technology-driven, process-
oriented, hierarchical, family-friendly and risk-taking.
Because culture is difficult to define, organizations may have trouble maintaining consistency
in their messages about culture. Employees may also find it difficult to identify and
communicate about perceived cultural inconsistencies. See Defining Organizational
Culture and Culture Conversation Starters.

Factors That Shape an Organization's Culture

Organizational leaders often speak about the unusual natures of their company cultures,
seeing their domains as special places to work. But organizations such as Disney and
Nordstrom, which are well-known for their unique cultures, are rare. See Viewpoint: 3 Steps
to Cultivating a Customized Culture.

Most company cultures are not that different from one another. Even organizations in
disparate industries such as manufacturing and health care tend to share a common core of
cultural values. For example, most private-sector companies want to grow and increase
revenues. Most strive to be team-oriented and to demonstrate concern for others. Most are
driven, rather than relaxed, because they are competing for dollars and market share. Some
of the cultural characteristics that distinguish most organizations include the following.

VALUES

At the heart of organizations' cultures are commonly shared values. None is right or wrong,
but organizations need to decide which values they will emphasize. These common values
include:

• Outcome orientation. Emphasizing achievements and results.

• People orientation. Insisting on fairness, tolerance and respect for the individual.

• Team orientation. Emphasizing and rewarding collaboration.

• Attention to detail. Valuing precision and approaching situations and problems

analytically.

• Stability. Providing security and following a predictable course.

• Innovation. Encouraging experimentation and risk-taking.

• Aggressiveness. Stimulating a fiercely competitive spirit.

DEGREE OF HIERARCHY
The degree of hierarchy is the extent to which the organization values traditional channels of
authority. The three distinct levels of hierarchy are "high"—having a well-defined
organizational structure and an expectation that people will work through official channels;
"moderate"—having a defined structure but an acceptance that people often work outside
formal channels; and "low" —having loosely defined job descriptions and accepting that
people challenge authority.

An organization with a high level of hierarchy tends to be more formal and moves more slowly
than an organization with a low level of hierarchy.

DEGREE OF URGENCY

The degree of urgency defines how quickly the organization wants or needs to drive decision-
making and innovation. Some organizations choose their degree of urgency, but others have
it thrust on them by the marketplace.

A culture with high levels of urgency has a need to push projects through quickly and a high
need to respond to a changing marketplace. A moderate level of urgency moves projects at a
reasonable pace. A low level of urgency means people work slowly and consistently, valuing
quality over efficiency. An organization with high urgency tends to be fast-paced and supports
a decisive management style. An organization with low urgency tends to be more methodical
and supports a more considered management style.

PEOPLE ORIENTATION OR TASK ORIENTATION

Organizations usually have a dominant way of valuing people and tasks. An organization with
a strong people orientation tends to put people first when making decisions and believes that
people drive the organization's performance and productivity. An organization with a strong
task orientation tends to put tasks and processes first when making decisions and believes
that efficiency and quality drive organization performance and productivity.

Some organizations may get to choose their people and task orientations. But others may
have to fit their orientation to the nature of their industry, historical issues or operational
processes.

FUNCTIONAL ORIENTATION
Every organization puts an emphasis on certain functional areas. Examples of functional
orientations may include marketing, operations, research and development, engineering or
service. For example, an innovative organization known for its research and development may
have at its core a functional orientation toward R&D. A hospitality company may focus on
operations or service, depending on its historical choices and its definition in the marketplace.

Employees from different functions in the company may think that their functional areas are
the ones that drive the organization. Organizational leaders must understand what most
employees perceive to be the company's functional orientation. See Building a Customer-
Centric Culture: Five Lessons Learned.

ORGANIZATIONAL SUBCULTURES

Any organization can have a mix of subcultures in addition to the dominant culture.
Subcultures exist among groups or individuals who may have their own rituals and traditions
that, although not shared by the rest of the organization, can deepen and underscore the
organization's core values. Subcultures can also cause serious problems.

For example, regional cultures often differ from the overall culture that top leadership tries
to instill. Perhaps aggressiveness that is common in one area may not mesh with a culture
emphasizing team building. Or an organization with a culture built around equality may have
trouble if the national culture emphasizes hierarchy and expects people to bow to authority.
Employers must recognize those differences and address them directly.

Creating and Managing Organizational Culture

An organizational culture tends to emerge over time, shaped by the organization's leadership
and by actions and values perceived to have contributed to earlier successes. A company
culture can be managed through the cultural awareness of organizational leaders and
management. Managing a culture takes focused efforts to sustain elements of the culture
that support organizational effectiveness. See Addressing the Six Sources of Workplace
Cultural Conflicts.

HOW CULTURE DEVELOPS

An organization's customs, traditions, rituals, behavioral norms, symbols and general way of
doing things are the visible manifestation of its culture; they are what one sees when walking
into the organization. The current organizational culture is usually due to factors that have
worked well for the organization in the past. See How to Create a Culture of Civility.

Founders typically have a significant impact on an organization's early culture. Over time,
behavioral norms develop that are consistent with the organization's values. For example, in
some organizations, resolution of conflicts is hashed out openly and noisily to create
widespread consensus, whereas in other places disputes are settled hierarchically and quietly
behind closed doors.

Though culture emerges naturally in most organizations, strong cultures often begin with a
process called "values blueprinting," which involves a candid conversation with leaders from
across the organization. Once the culture is framed, an organization may establish a values
committee that has a direct link to leadership. This group makes sure the desired culture is
alive and well. For values blueprinting to work, organizations must first hire people who live
the values and have the competency needed to perform the job.

SUSTAINING A CULTURE

The management of organizational culture starts with identifying a company's organizational

culture traits or "artifacts." Artifacts are the core business activities, processes and
philosophies that characterize how an organization does business day-to-day.

Identifying these traits—and assessing their importance in light of current business

objectives—is a way to start managing culture. Three broad concepts help identify the traits
specific to a culture:

• Social culture. This refers to group members' roles and responsibilities. It is the study
of class distinctions and the distribution of power that exists in any group.

• Material culture. This involves examining everything that people in a group make or
achieve and the ways people work with and support one another in exchanging
required goods and services.

• Ideological culture. This is tied to a group's values, beliefs and ideals—the things
people view as fundamental. It includes the emotional and intellectual guidelines that
govern people's daily existence and interactions.
Leaders and managers within an organization should approach culture management by
initially gaining an understanding of the common traits found in all businesses. Then, they
should take the following steps to manage their organization's culture:

• Identify common artifacts or traits, including those from the standpoint of an

organization's social, material and ideological culture.

• Convene groups of employees—representatives from all levels, functions and

locations of the organization—to assess the validity, significance and currency of key
artifacts.

• Subject those traits to a rigorous assessment of their underlying shared assumptions,

values and beliefs.

• Summarize findings and share them with all participants to solicit additional insights.

• Create a culture management action plan. The plan should enhance traits that support
corporate growth or organizational effectiveness and correct traits that might hinder
a company's advancement.

Typically, shared assumptions and beliefs originate with an organization's founders and
leaders. Because those beliefs proved successful (otherwise the company would not exist and
the leaders would not be in their positions), often they go unchallenged; however, those
assumptions and beliefs might be outdated and may hinder future success. See 6 Steps for
Building an Inclusive Workplace.

Q. 2 Describe Diversity Issues Effecting Decision Making In An Organization?

Answer:

There are a number of barriers to effective decision-making. Effective managers are aware of
these potential barriers and try to overcome them as much as possible.

Bounded Rationality
While we might like to think that we can make completely rational decisions, this is often
unrealistic given the complex issues faced by managers. Nonrational decision-making is
common, especially with nonprogrammed decisions. Since we haven’t faced a particular
situation previously, we don’t always know what questions to ask or what information to
gather. Even when we have gathered all the possible information, we may not be able to
make rational sense of all of it, or to accurately forecast or predict the outcomes of our
choice. Bounded rationality is the idea that for complex issues we cannot be completely
rational because we cannot fully grasp all the possible alternatives, nor can we understand all
the implications of every possible alternative. Our brains have limitations in terms of the
amount of information they can process. Similarly, as was alluded to earlier in the chapter,
even when managers have the cognitive ability to process all the relevant information, they
often must make decisions without first having time to collect all the relevant data—their
information is incomplete.

Escalation of Commitment

Given the lack of complete information, managers don’t always make the right decision
initially, and it may not be clear that a decision was a bad one until after some time has
passed. For example, consider a manager who had to choose between two competing
software packages that her organization will use on a daily basis to enhance efficiency. She
initially chooses the product that was developed by the larger, more well-established
company, reasoning that they will have greater financial resources to invest in ensuring that
the technology is good. However, after some time it becomes clear that the competing
software package is going to be far superior. While the smaller company’s product could be
integrated into the organization’s existing systems at little additional expense, the larger
company’s product will require a much greater initial investment, as well as substantial
ongoing costs for maintaining it. At this point, however, let’s assume that the manager has
already paid for the larger company’s (inferior) software. Will she abandon the path that she’s
on, accept the loss on the money that’s been invested so far, and switch to the better
software? Or will she continue to invest time and money into trying to make the first product
work? Escalation of commitment is the tendency of decision makers to remain committed to
poor decision, even when doing so leads to increasingly negative outcomes. Once we commit
to a decision, we may find it difficult to reevaluate that decision rationally. It can seem easier
to “stay the course” than to admit (or to recognize) that a decision was poor. It’s important
to acknowledge that not all decisions are going to be good ones, in spite of our best efforts.
Effective managers recognize that progress down the wrong path isn’t really progress, and
they are willing to reevaluate decisions and change direction when appropriate.

Time Constraints

Managers often face time constraints that can make effective decision-making a challenge.
When there is little time available to collect information and to rationally process it, we are
much less likely to make a good nonprogrammed decision. Time pressures can cause us to
rely on heuristics rather than engage in deep processing. While heuristics save time, however,
they don’t necessarily lead to the best possible solution. The best managers are constantly
assessing the risks associated with acting too quickly against those associated with not acting
quickly enough.

Uncertainty

In addition, managers frequently make decisions under conditions of uncertainty—they

cannot know the outcome of each alternative until they’ve actually chosen that alternative.
Consider, for example, a manager who is trying to decide between one of two possible
marketing campaigns. The first is more conservative but is consistent with what the
organization has done in the past. The second is more modern and edgier, and might bring
much better results . . . or it might be a spectacular failure. The manager making the decision
will ultimately have to choose one campaign and see what happens, without ever knowing
what the results would have been with the alternate campaign. That uncertainty can make it
difficult for some managers to make decisions, because committing to one option means
forgoing other options.

Personal Biases

Our decision-making is also limited by our own biases. We tend to be more comfortable with
ideas, concepts, things, and people that are familiar to us or similar to us. We tend to be less
comfortable with that which is unfamiliar, new, and different. One of the most common
biases that we have, as humans, is the tendency to like other people who we think are similar
to us (because we like ourselves).
While these similarities can be observable (based on demographic characteristics such as
race, gender, and age), they can also be a result of shared experiences (such as attending the
same university) or shared interests (such as being in a book club together). This “similar to
me” bias and preference for the familiar can lead to a variety of problems for managers: hiring
less-qualified applicants because they are similar to the manager in some way, paying more
attention to some employees’ opinions and ignoring or discounting others, choosing a familiar
technology over a new one that is superior, sticking with a supplier that is known over one
that has better quality, and so on.

It can be incredibly difficult to overcome our biases because of the way our brains work. The
brain excels at organizing information into categories, and it doesn’t like to expend the effort
to re-arrange once the categories are established. As a result, we tend to pay more attention
to information that confirms our existing beliefs and less attention to information that is
contrary to our beliefs, a shortcoming that is referred to as confirmation bias.

In fact, we don’t like our existing beliefs to be challenged. Such challenges feel like a threat,
which tends to push our brains towards the reactive system and prevent us from being able
to logically process the new information via the reflective system. It is hard to change people’s
minds about something if they are already confident in their convictions. So, for example,
when a manager hires a new employee who she really likes and is convinced is going to be
excellent, she will tend to pay attention to examples of excellent performance and ignore
examples of poor performance (or attribute those events to things outside the employee’s
control). The manager will also tend to trust that employee and therefore accept their
explanations for poor performance without verifying the truth or accuracy of those
statements. The opposite is also true; if we dislike someone, we will pay attention to their
negatives and ignore or discount their positives. We are less likely to trust them or believe
what they say at face value. This is why politics tend to become very polarized and
antagonistic within a two-party system. It can be very difficult to have accurate perceptions
of those we like and those we dislike. The effective manager will try to evaluate situations
from multiple perspectives and gather multiple opinions to offset this bias when making
decisions.

Conflict
Finally, effective decision-making can be difficult because of conflict. Most individuals dislike
conflict and will avoid it when possible. However, the best decision might be one that is going
to involve some conflict. Consider a manager who has a subordinate who is often late to work,
causing others to have to step away from their responsibilities in order to cover for the late
employee. The manager needs to have a conversation with that employee to correct the
behavior, but the employee is not going to like the conversation and may react in a negative
way. Both of them are going to be uncomfortable. The situation is likely to involve conflict,
which most people find stressful. Yet, the correct decision is still to have the conversation
even if (or especially if) the employee otherwise is an asset to the department.

Dante Disparte

Dante Disparte is the founder and CEO of Risk Cooperative and also coauthor of Global Risk
Agility and Decision Making. He suggests that unforeseen and unanticipated risks are
becoming more frequent and less predictable and are having a greater impact on more people
at one time. Credit (New America/ flickr/ Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0))

If the bad behavior is not corrected, it will continue, which is going to cause more problems
in the workplace in the long run. Other employees may recognize that this behavior is
allowed, and they may also start coming to work late or engaging in other negative behaviors.
Eventually, some employees may become sufficiently frustrated that they look for another
place to work. It’s worth noting that in this situation, the best employees will find new jobs
the most quickly. It’s important for managers to recognize that while conflict can be
uncomfortable (especially in the short-term), there are times when it is necessary for the
group, department, or organization to function effectively in the long run.

It is also helpful to think about conflict in terms of process conflict or relationship conflict.

Process conflict, conflict about the best way to do something, can actually lead to improved
performance, as individuals explore various options together in order to identify superior
solutions. Relationship conflict is conflict between individuals that is more personal and
involves attacks on a person rather than an idea. This kind of conflict is generally harmful and
should be quelled when possible. The harm from relationship conflict arises at least in part
because feeling personally attacked will cause an individual to revert to the reactive system
of the brain.
Effective managers should be particularly aware of the possibility of relationship conflict
when giving feedback and should keep feedback focused on behaviors and activities (how
things are done) rather than on the individual. Being aware of and dealing with relationship
conflict points to why emotional intelligence and empathy are beneficial in organizational
leaders. Such leaders are more likely to be attentive to the harmful consequences of
relationship conflict. The “Managerial Leadership” segment shows how one CEO encourages
empathetic collaboration and how that effort is proving beneficial.

When Satya Nadella became the CEO of Microsoft in 2014, he set in motion a major
transformation of the organization’s culture. He wanted it to shift from a culture that valued
“know-it-alls” to one that values “learn-it-all.” Instead of employees feeling the need to prove
that they were the smartest person in the room, he wanted them to become curious and
effective listeners, learners, and communicators. Only through continual learning and
collaboration with one another, and with customers, would Microsoft remain able to develop
and provide great technology solutions.

One of Nadella’s first mandates as CEO was to ask all the members of the top management
team to read the book Nonviolent Communication by Marshall Rosenberg. The primary focus
of the book is on empathetic communication—a kinder, gentler approach than Microsoft
employees were accustomed to. Nadella believes that developing empathy leads to a
heightened understanding of consumer needs and wants and an enhanced ability to develop
better products and services through collaboration.

Nadella has also embraced diversity and inclusion initiatives, though he readily acknowledges
that there is more to be done. This is, in part, an extension of his focus on empathy. However,
it’s also good business, because increasing the diversity of perspectives can help to drive
innovation.

This cultural shift is reflected in Microsoft’s new mission statement: “To empower every
person and every organization on the planet to achieve more.” Empowering every person
includes Microsoft’s own employees. Achieving diversity is particularly a challenge in an
industry that is male dominated, and Nadella admits that he has made mistakes based on his
own biases. At a Women in Computing conference early in his tenure as CEO, Nadella
suggested that women did not need to ask for raises when they deserved them; the system,
he said, would work it out. He later admitted that he was wrong and used the mistake as a
platform for making greater strides in this arena.

Senior management team meetings at Microsoft have apparently changed dramatically as a

result of the culture change driven by Nadella. Previously, members felt the need to
constantly prove that they knew all the right answers at team meetings. Nadella has
established different norms; he seeks out honest opinions from team members and gives
positive feedback on a regular basis. By moving the focus away from always being right and
toward a focus of continual learning, the culture at Microsoft has become more collaborative,
and employees are more willing to take risks to create something amazing. The culture shift
seems to be paying off: Microsoft’s products are being described as “cool” and “exciting,” its
cloud-computing platform is outperforming the competition, and its financial performance
has improved dramatically. Transforming the culture of an organization is a massive
undertaking, but Nadella’s leadership of Microsoft clearly shows that it’s a decision that can
pay off.

Q. 3 Explain Different Components Of The Communication Process?

Answer:

Communication can best be summarized as the transmission of a message from a sender to

a receiver in an understandable manner. The importance of effective communication is
immeasurable in the world of business and in personal life. From a business perspective,
effective communication is an absolute must, because it commonly accounts for the
difference between success and failure or profit and loss. It has become clear that effective
business communication is critical to the successful operation of modern enterprise. Every
business person needs to understand the fundamentals of effective communication.

Currently, companies in the United States and abroad are working toward the realization of
total quality management. Effective communication is the most critical component of total
quality management. The manner in which individuals perceive and talk to each other at work
about different issues is a major determinant of the business success. It has proven been
proven that poor communication reduces quality, weakens productivity, and eventually leads
to anger and a lack of trust among individuals within the organization.

The communication process is the guide toward realizing effective communication. It is

through the communication process that the sharing of a common meaning between the
sender and the receiver takes place. Individuals that follow the communication process will
have the opportunity to become more productive in every aspect of their profession. Effective
communication leads to understanding.

The communication process is made up of four key components. Those components include
encoding, medium of transmission, decoding, and feedback. There are also two other factors
in the process, and those two factors are present in the form of the sender and the receiver.
The communication process begins with the sender and ends with the receiver.

The sender is an individual, group, or organization who initiates the communication. This
source is initially responsible for the success of the message. The sender's experiences,
attitudes, knowledge, skill, perceptions, and culture influence the message. "The written
words, spoken words, and nonverbal language selected are paramount in ensuring the
receiver interprets the message as intended by the sender" (Burnett & Dollar, 1989). All
communication begins with the sender.

The first step the sender is faced with involves the encoding process. In order to convey
meaning, the sender must begin encoding, which means translating information into a
message in the form of symbols that represent ideas or concepts. This process translates the
ideas or concepts into the coded message that will be communicated. The symbols can take
on numerous forms such as, languages, words, or gestures. These symbols are used to encode
ideas into messages that others can understand.

When encoding a message, the sender has to begin by deciding what he/she wants to
transmit. This decision by the sender is based on what he/she believes about the receivers
knowledge and assumptions, along with what additional information he/she wants the
receiver to have. It is important for the sender to use symbols that are familiar to the intended
receiver. A good way for the sender to improve encoding their message, is to mentally
visualize the communication from the receiver's point of view.

To begin transmitting the message, the sender uses some kind of channel (also called a
medium). The channel is the means used to convey the message. Most channels are either
oral or written, but currently visual channels are becoming more common as technology
expands. Common channels include the telephone and a variety of written forms such as
memos, letters, and reports. The effectiveness of the various channels fluctuates depending
on the characteristics of the communication. For example, when immediate feedback is
necessary, oral communication channels are more effective because any uncertainties can be
cleared up on the spot. In a situation where the message must be delivered to more than a
small group of people, written channels are often more effective. Although in many cases,
both oral and written channels should be used because one supplements the other.

If a sender relays a message through an inappropriate channel, its message may not reach the
right receivers. That is why senders need to keep in mind that selecting the appropriate
channel will greatly assist in the effectiveness of the receiver's understanding. The sender's
decision to utilize either an oral or a written channel for communicating a message is
influenced by several factors. The sender should ask him or herself different questions, so
that they can select the appropriate channel. Is the message urgent? Is immediate feedback
needed? Is documentation or a permanent record required? Is the content complicated,
controversial, or private? Is the message going to someone inside or outside the organization?
What oral and written communication skills does the receiver possess? Once the sender has
answered all of these questions, they will be able to choose an effective channel.

After the appropriate channel or channels are selected, the message enters the decoding
stage of the communication process. Decoding is conducted by the receiver. Once the
message is received and examined, the stimulus is sent to the brain for interpreting, in order
to assign some type of meaning to it. It is this processing stage that constitutes decoding. The
receiver begins to interpret the symbols sent by the sender, translating the message to their
own set of experiences in order to make the symbols meaningful. Successful communication
takes place when the receiver correctly interprets the sender's message.

The receiver is the individual or individuals to whom the message is directed. The extent to
which this person comprehends the message will depend on a number of factors, which
include the following: how much the individual or individuals know about the topic, their
receptivity to the message, and the relationship and trust that exists between sender and
receiver. All interpretations by the receiver are influenced by their experiences, attitudes,
knowledge, skills, perceptions, and culture. It is similar to the sender's relationship with
encoding.

Feedback is the final link in the chain of the communication process. After receiving a
message, the receiver responds in some way and signals that response to the sender. The
signal may take the form of a spoken comment, a long sigh, a written message, a smile, or
some other action. "Even a lack of response, is in a sense, a form of response" (Bovee & Thill,
1992). Without feedback, the sender cannot confirm that the receiver has interpreted the
message correctly.

Feedback is a key component in the communication process because it allows the sender to
evaluate the effectiveness of the message. Feedback ultimately provides an opportunity for
the sender to take corrective action to clarify a misunderstood message. "Feedback plays an
important role by indicating significant communication barriers: differences in background,
different interpretations of words, and differing emotional reactions" (Bovee & Thill, 1992).

The communication process is the perfect guide toward achieving effective communication.
When followed properly, the process can usually assure that the sender's message will be
understood by the receiver. Although the communication process seems simple, it in essence
is not. Certain barriers present themselves throughout the process. Those barriers are factors
that have a negative impact on the communication process. Some common barriers include
the use of an inappropriate medium (channel), incorrect grammar, inflammatory words,
words that conflict with body language, and technical jargon. Noise is also another common
barrier. Noise can occur during any stage of the process. Noise essentially is anything that
distorts a message by interfering with the communication process. Noise can take many
forms, including a radio playing in the background, another person trying to enter your
conversation, and any other distractions that prevent the receiver from paying attention.

Successful and effective communication within an organization stems from the

implementation of the communication process. All members within an organization will
improve their communication skills if they follow the communication process, and stay away
from the different barriers. It has been proven that individuals that understand the
communication process will blossom into more effective communicators, and effective
communicators have a greater opportunity for becoming a success.

Q. 4 What Is The Role Of A Leader In Team Development In An Organization? Give

Relevant Examples?

Answer:

A team leader is someone who oversees the functionality of a workgroup by providing

guidance and instruction. These individuals can have many roles, including:

• Manager or supervisor: Responsible for overseeing all activities within a team.

• Strategist: Responsible for deciding how to approach tasks and develop a plan to
accomplish them.

• Communicator: Responsible for distributing information to team members and

stakeholders.

• Organizer: Responsible for keeping track of and structuring various tasks, employees
and documents.

• Goal setter: Responsible for determining the goals that members will work toward.

Each role includes responsibilities that can overlap with others. For example, a manager and
communicator both include discussing strategies with a team and giving verbal directions to
complete tasks.

Team leader responsibilities

Responsibilities of a team leader include decision-making, coaching, mentoring, developing

the team’s skills and managing conflict. Learning these important team leader skills is an
ongoing process that requires regular practice and use. Here are five important
responsibilities of a team leader:

1. Coach team members

An effective team leader coaches members on achieving goals and developing necessary skills
that get results. Coaching involves developing team members’ performance, offering
feedback and demonstrating the desired skills and expected work ethic. A coach-style team
leader works alongside its members to develop their skills.

Example: Erin’s sales team leader plans weekly one-on-one meetings with each of the
individual team members. During this meeting, Leonardo discusses areas of improvement
while also demonstrating effective leadership characteristics. Leonardo identifies that Erin
needs help to meet sales quotas. Erin and Leonardo go through each step of the sales process
and determine which points are the most difficult for her. They collaboratively come up with
alternative ways to complete these steps in an attempt to improve Erin’s sales numbers.

2. Develop team strengths and improve weaknesses

It is also the responsibility of the team leader to identify the team’s strengths and weaknesses.
By determining which team member excels at which task, you can delegate the required tasks
to the appropriate person. It’s also helpful to determine areas of opportunity and the
appropriate steps to improve on them.

Example: Tyonna is in charge of planning the upcoming fundraiser. She first sits down and
considers the strengths of each team member. She uses these strengths to delegate each of
the required tasks. Tyonna is aware that Jennifer struggles with budgeting. She also knows
that Jennifer has requested the ability to develop this skill, so Tyonna assigns the task to her
along with Jordan, who excels at budgeting.

3. Identify team goals and evaluate team progress

In order to measure team success, it’s important to identify what success means. Evaluating
goals and determining how the team will measure success can prevent miscommunication.
This also gives team members a clear understanding of what they are expected to complete.
Setting clear team goals and evaluating progress along the way allows teams to work
collaboratively.

Example: Your organization’s management tasked Lorna with leading a team of top
salespersons to create a new training program for onboarding. The main goal of the team is
to create a training for new employees that will teach them necessary sales skills. The team
identified a shared goal of completing the project. However, Lorna also identified individual
course completions and the creation of sales training manuals as goals. She set deadlines for
each aspect of the project and assigned individual tasks so each team member had a clear
understanding of what they were expected to do and when.

4. Resolve conflict

Because teams are made up of different personalities, work traits and motivations, conflict
can sometimes occur. The team leader is responsible for preventing conflict where possible
and resolving it when it does arise. By setting ground rules and clearly assigning tasks, you can
prevent many sources of conflict. If you notice conflict, it is best to resolve it before it
escalates. Meeting with both team members can give you insight into the cause of the issue.
Conferring with the members as a team can give everyone the opportunity to come up with
a solution that works for both sides.

Example: Suraya was beginning to feel like the delegated workload was uneven. She claimed
that Luz had easier tasks and would often make comments during sales meetings. Instead of
taking up a valuable team meeting time to discuss this conflict, Yuri arranged a different
meeting with each individual and then one together. This method allowed the team leader to
understand each individual’s concerns while encouraging communication to come up with an
agreed goal.

5. Organize team initiatives

Organization is necessary when there are multiple team members working on a single goal.
Individual projects, goals, communications and important documents should remain clear and
accessible. It is the responsibility of the team leader to organize team meetings, topics of
discussion and progress toward the goal.

Example: Dina uses her strong organizational skills when managing her team. She gives team
members plenty of notice for upcoming sales meetings. She prepares for each meeting by
creating an outline of the most important topics to discuss. During the meeting, Dina closely
follows this outline, keeping everyone on topic and completing all of the necessary talking
points.

Important traits of a team leader

Because the team leader is responsible for not only managing but also organizing the
workplace, resolving conflict and planning tasks, the following traits are important:
 • Verbal and nonverbal communication skills: Communication is crucial when working
with and leading a team because you will have to communicate with both your team
and your supervisors. A team leader communicates in a way that is clear, effective and
directive.

• Organizational skills: Organization is important when you have multiple team

members working on one project. Strong organizational skills will help you monitor
progress and keep team members motivated.

• Ability to delegate: Team leaders must delegate tasks to individual team members.
This requires the team leader to trust in the abilities of the team.

• Integrity: Team leaders should lead by example. A team leader who has integrity is
not only more likely to be trusted by their team members but also will often be
respected and appreciated by the team.

• Confident work ethic: Team members often mimic the work ethic of the team leader.
Displaying confidence in the task and the team itself can help to instill confidence in
team members.

Q. 5 Discuss Different Levels Of Conflicts Which Can Evolve In An Organization?

Answer:

You may experience conflict when working with people with different backgrounds,
personalities and perspectives. However, resolving conflict can create powerful opportunities
for open discussion, progress and improved relationships. Understanding the types of conflict
you may encounter in the workplace can help you identify the best approach to solving them.

In this article, we discuss the different levels of conflict and provide tips that you can use to
manage conflict in your career.

What are the levels of conflict?

The “levels of conflict” are four types of disagreement that affect an individual or group of
individuals. Each level comes with its own unique challenges and solutions. The four levels of
conflict are:

1. Intrapersonal

This level refers to an internal dispute and involves only one individual. This conflict arises out
of your own thoughts, emotions, ideas, values and predispositions. It can occur when you are
struggling between what you “want to do” and what you “should do.”

Example: Reyna is hiring a new member for her sales team. She interviews several candidates
and feels strongly that three would make excellent sales representatives, but she can’t decide
which one to hire. She delays hiring for a month as she considers the hiring decision.

2. Interpersonal

This conflict occurs between two or more people in a larger organization. It can result from
different personalities or differing perspectives on how to accomplish goals. Interpersonal
conflict may even occur without one party realizing there was ever conflict.

Example: Tanya has been a digital marketer in her company for four years and always
anticipated that she would take the place of the director of marketing when he retired.
However, when it was time to fill the role, the company hired another employee who had
only been with the company for one year. Tanya was upset with both her former supervisor
and her new supervisor, although she never communicated her feelings with either of them.

3. Intragroup

This level of conflict occurs between members of a single group when there are multiple
people with varying opinions, backgrounds and experiences working toward a common goal.
Even though they may all want to achieve the same goal, they may disagree about how to
reach it. Intragroup conflict can also occur when team members have differences in
communication styles and personalities.

Example: A company is about to launch a new product, and Josh and Ashley believe that the
best marketing strategy is a direct mail campaign to a targeted audience. Beth and Tom
believe that social media ads are a better approach. Adam believes that an influencer
campaign would have the strongest impact. Because of the disagreement, no campaign
strategy is created and the launch date is only two weeks away. Tension is high, and the delays
impact other departments.

4. Intergroup

This level of conflict occurs between different groups within a larger organization or those
who do not have the same overarching goals.

Example: The marketing team at an e-commerce company is promoting an all-new initiative

that should help increase the average order value of every order by 15%. They create a
timeline and notify customers of the launch date. However, the web developers in charge of
creating and implementing the new functionality on the website are behind on schedule,
despite their best efforts. The web developers are frustrated because of unrealistic deadlines
and the marketing department is frustrated about delaying the launch.

How to manage each level of conflict

Conflict can be constructive in the workplace because it opens employees to new ideas and
perspectives and creates opportunities to look for new and unique solutions to problems.
Here are some steps to resolving each level of conflict in the workplace.

1. Managing intrapersonal conflict

Intrapersonal conflicts can happen daily, but learning to work through them can hone your
critical thinking and decision-making skills. To manage intrapersonal conflict:

Follow your values

Determine how the conflict affects your core values and what matters to your productivity in
the workplace. Consider solutions that align with your beliefs and motivations.

Check your company policy

If applicable, review the company policies that relate to the conflict. Follow any procedures
already in place, or reach out to a supervisor for guidance.

Write the conflict down

Review the pros and cons related to your conflict and anticipate the outcomes of the optional
decisions. Consider selecting the resolution that has the most pros or better outcomes.

Be conscious of time
Keep in mind how much time you have to reach a solution. Consider setting a deadline to
ensure the conflict is resolved promptly.

2. Managing interpersonal conflict

Managing interpersonal conflict allows team members to work together in finding a

resolution. Colleagues can improve their relationships and even come up with all new
strategies or solutions to problems. Here are four steps you can use to resolve interpersonal
conflict in the workplace:

Define the conflict

Start by identifying exactly what the conflict is about, including what event started it and how
each party reacted to the situation. Look at the situation from each person’s point of view to
determine what each party wants and needs from the resolution.

Put the conflict into context

Discuss the conflict’s impacts on each party, the project and the workplace. This step can help
each party understand the importance of resolving the conflict and motivate them to
collaborate on finding a solution.

Create options

Let each party come up with one idea to resolve the conflict, allowing each party to take turns.
This step allows each party to identify how the conflict can be resolved amicably. Parties can
also brainstorm as a group to create solutions that benefit each party.

Agree on a solution

As a group, determine a solution that positively impacts each party. Consider including goal
setting as part of this stage to evaluate and measure a resolution’s progress.

3. Managing intragroup conflict

Managing intragroup conflict can help maintain employee productivity and ensure teams
accomplish group goals. Here are three steps you can take to resolve intragroup conflicts
efficiently:

Discuss the conflict as a team

Openly discuss what caused the conflict and how each party feels about it. This step ensures
everyone is involved in coming up with a solution and can talk through the issue honestly.
Have each team member clarify why they hold their position and discuss what information is
the basis of these beliefs.

Collaborate in small groups

Break the team into smaller groups consisting of different viewpoints. Analyze the conflict
and brainstorm the pros and cons of different solutions. Convene as a team and have groups
share ideas they had. Smaller groups can provide more thorough discussions, as fewer people
are trying to discuss their side at once.

Reach a decision

As a full team, decide what course of action to take or determine if further brainstorming
needs to happen. Make sure everyone is satisfied with the decision and committed to the
proposed strategy.

4. Managing intergroup conflict

You can use intergroup conflicts as opportunities for building relationships between teams,
brainstorming new and creative ideas and strengthening employees’ beliefs in their abilities
to overcome future conflicts. Here are three steps to help get you started:

Discuss the issue with all relevant parties

You may engage in conversation with large groups, such as in an open forum. This situation
may work for issues that affect a large group of people and can be used to hear a variety of
perspectives, ideas and concerns with a smaller group of stakeholders.

Have a closed meeting with necessary stakeholders

Sometimes, address an intergroup conflict with only a few necessary people, such as team
leaders or department heads. This step can come after holding an open forum or be the main
resolution tactic.

Gather a variety of possible solutions

Encourage each side to hold meetings to discuss issues as they arise. If possible, you might
move team members from one team to another so they can better see an issue from the
other team’s perspective. Then, have groups brainstorm solutions that provide the most
positive impact. To come to a solution, consider holding a vote to gauge each side’s interest
in the proposed solutions.