- Evelyn Gustafson’s leadership style can be described as more of charismatic. Her ability to motivate and inspire people results to her people doing more than they usually do. The level of motivation Evelyn provides to the people allows them to work extra mile despite several obstacles. Evelyn has created an environment for subordinates that drive them to strive harder. Evelyn’s supportive behavior made her to be more concerned about her staff as shown in her policies for providing training, frequent breaks and flexible schedule that the staff can be comfortable with.
- Erick Rassmusen on the other hand exemplifies a leadership style that can be described as very direct as observed in his actions such as telling his staff exactly what they need to do. He demonstrated opposite leadership characteristics to that of Evelyn’s. Scheduling and performance is among his primary goals. He increased the required number of hourly calls of his representatives. Erick is autocratic in nature and he is very particular with the roles that his subordinates by monitoring and ensuring that all tasks were done accordingly to each one’s job descriptions. It appears that Erick is not likely to change his leadership style because his focus is more on structuring plans and strategies, which requires extensive focus on tasks and performance. In order to change Erick’s leadership style, he should talk more to his staff; learn about their strengths so that he could learn to trust on his staff’s to succeed by openly expressing their capabilities.
- Erick could use one of the seven-workplace elements to further motivate his subordinates by means of a rewards system. Encouraging performance can be empowered by setting specific goals and providing a sort of an achievement trophy. Most employees look forward to being appreciated for their hard work and one of the best ways to recognize them is by exchanging their efforts with something of value.
References
Amabile, T. M., Conti, R., Coon, H., Lazenby, J., & Herron, M. (1996). Assessing the Work Environment for Creativity. Academy of management journal, 39(5), 1154-1184. doi:10.2307/256995
Gosling, B. R., Marturano, J., & Dennison, P. (2003). A review of leadership theory and competency framework. Centre for Leadership Studies, Exeter University.
