A640.3.2.RB_DiazBrian

Rowe and Guerrero (2013) wrote "Blake and Mouton (1964, 1978, 1985) developed their leadership grid to demonstrate that leaders helped organizations achieve their goals through two leader orientations: concern for production and concern for people" (p. 105).  By answering a list of statements regarding leadership behavior, I was given an idea which leadership style I identify with most.  The purpose of this assessment was not only to identify which leadership style I identify with most, but also it gave me the opportunity to see what questions I scored lowest on.  By focusing on the questions I scored lowest on, I could use my critically thinking skills in order to improve in those areas.

The question at issue (utilizing the Blake and Mouton Managerial Grid) is which type of leadership style is best representative of who I am?  There are four styles on the managerial grid: authoritarian leader, team leader, country club leader, and impoverished leader.  Rowe and Guerrero (2013) wrote "The authority compliance style describes leaders who are results driven with little or no concern for people except to organize them in a way that keeps them from interfering with getting the job done.  The country club style describes leaders with a high concern for people and a low concern for results or production.  Impoverished management describes leaders who have little or no concern for people and a low concern for results or production.  Team management style leaders emphasize interpersonal relationships and getting results.  These leaders help employees focus on and commit to their work and promote teamwork and a high level of participation in work-related decisions by employees" (p. 105).  I am happy to report that based on my answers I interpreted that I identify most with the team leader style.  However there were areas that I could improve in.

I chose the following questions which I scored lowest on to focus on:

• Counseling my employees to improve their performance or behavior is second nature to me.
• I manage my time efficiently.
• I enjoy coaching people on new tasks and procedures.

When I first started working as an advisor I realized I had a hard time managing my time.  It is an area that I continue to work toward improving so it was no surprise to me that this was an area I scored low on.  I tend to be a pretty analytical person and I think this plays into the amount of time it takes for me to make decisions or to reach conclusions.  I have learned to manage my days better in order to be more effective however there are other areas in my life that I feel like I don't make time for.  While my job is extremely important to me so is my family and my health.  I am working on my work-life balance in order to dedicate an appropriate amount of time to work, my wife, my son, and also manage to find time for me somewhere in there.  It is an ongoing challenge however I have been able to make some strides.  For example, when I come home from work I have learned to disconnect from work.  No more checking my work email throughout the evening, it can wait until I'm in the office the next day.  I now set aside time for my son as soon as he gets home, homework waits until after he goes to bed.  Once he goes to bed, then I try to watch at least one show with my wife and catch up with her before beginning my homework.  I am still working on having a set schedule and sticking to it.

Since I have only been part of my team for about a year and a half, I don't really have the opportunity to coach others on new tasks or procedures.  My current position is not a leadership position so I don't currently help others  improve their performance.  What I do find myself doing however is sharing information with my teammates.  If I use a new method or procedure that makes me more successful in my job, then I let the others know.  For example, for each academic term we have enrollment goals that must be met.  As a team, for October we needed to have a combined 1850 total enrollments.  We all individually send emails to our respective student populations for registration.  We then follow up leading up to the term start date in an effort to maximize our target.  The emails we use are standard, we all use the same format.  However, on my second follow up email I changed up the language of the email and included this photo

I was stunned at the number of responses I had by simply adding this picture and letting students know that I was working with them to achieving their ultimate goal of earning a Master's degree.  I shared this with my team members and they too saw a spike in responses.  This helped us in pursuit of our team goal.

I think in order to coach others in new tasks and procedures, I need to consider what our current team processes are and how to improve on them.  We have done this in the past as a team and it seems like with each new idea we come up with, we are reliant on other departments for assistance however the help is slow to come because there are other projects that we have been told "take precedence".  Maybe if I were to come up with some new ideas we could implement immediately without relying on others, we could improve in certain areas.  For instance, I came across a new communication platform recently that could improve how we all relay important information.  We are all so wired to mainly relying on email for information that we sometimes have the tendency to not open certain emails or to flag them to read later. 

Going into the assessment, I assumed I wasn't an impoverished or country club, or authoritarian leader.  I was happy that my score indicated I fit as a team leader.  I can now focus on the areas that need improvement based on my results.  If I dedicate myself to improving these skills  have a better opportunity to be the type of leader that leads by example.  I want to be the type of leaders that others can rely on but more importantly I want to change the lives of others and provide them with the tools necessary for them to become leaders as well.

Rowe, W. Glenn and Guerrero Laura. (2013). Cases in Leadership. (3rd edition). Thousand Oaks, CA. : Sage Publications, Inc.