Strategic Leadership Skills and Evaluation in an Organization

This document discusses the importance of strategic leadership skills and how they can be developed. It also explores the role of evaluation in assessing leadership performance in an organization. The document provides insights into different leadership models and frameworks, and offers a personal development plan for improving leadership qualities.

Assignment

Table of Contents
Scenario......................................................................................................................................3
Task 1.........................................................................................................................................3
Task 2.........................................................................................................................................5
TASK 3......................................................................................................................................6
TASK 4......................................................................................................................................8
TASK 5......................................................................................................................................8
Reference:................................................................................................................................11

Scenario
Here at Pinnacle Financial Partners we have always believed that we are all part of one big
happy family. Be it the executives or the clients we have accepted everyone into the fold. The
main reason behind this is that our CEO’s vision of following the Behavioural Management
Theory, specifically the sub-part of the previously mentioned theory called the Human
Relations Theory (Elkins, 2019). Our plan is to work hard as a team and individual ideas are
appreciated and encouraged. We even have book club sessions that are hosted by our CEO at
his place and everyone is invited. This team building process goes a long way to make sure
there is no communication gap among the members. We don’t believe that money can
compensate for the late hours that we might need to keep so in all these sessions family is
included. This helps in bridging the gap that might have resulted. Working in such a close
knit environment helps us not only perform better but also increases our appreciation for our
seniors in the organization. Questions get promptly answered along with a pat on the back for
a job well done. But the deadlines are handled with care and mistakes get corrected as soon as
they are sited. The company even looks after the further enhancement of the workers’ skills
and are sent off to get specialized training as well all under the company budget. Thus it can

be said that this is one of the key reasons behind our speedy and constant growth. (256
words)
Task 1
The company has a centralized system of management. The CEO is at the top followed by the
senior managers who in turn are followed by the junior executives and the workers. The
company follows the Human Relations Theory of the Behavioral Management Theory. Thus
the environment is very close knit and relaxed. The deadlines are mentioned in the weekly
meetings by the CEO to the senior managers, who in turn let their respective teams know
about it. There isn’t any iron clad rule about work hours and employees are encouraged to
finish their designated work fast and spend quality time with their family. This report is being
prepared for the year 2018-19, after one has worked for a year at the concerned company as a
Senior Manager. The CEO is at the helm of the team and is available for questions and any
suggestions regarding the projects. Any project that comes from a client is discussed by the
CEO with the concerned senior manager and the team members. Then the Senior Manager is
given some time to decide what direction should be taken for that particular project and then
the work is allocated to the team members according to their skill set. Another meeting is
arranged with the CEO to describe the ideation of the project by the team, which then get
approved or disapproved by the CEO. Then the project starts and after completion the CEO
again sees the final work before sending it to the client. Thus the entire process happens
under the watchful eyes of the CEO, who has an abundance of knowledge and experience
with the kind of accounts that the firm deals with. Thus in this organization there is not only
good old ideas achieved through knowledge and experience but also new ideas from the
workers in the team too.
This has resulted in forming a very close-knit unit, where communication gaps have come
down to a minimum if not completely removed. The CEO practices a very centralized for of
management where everything, starting from the ideation to the execution to the final result is
overseen. Proper credit is given by the CEO to not only the senior manager on a job well
done but also the junior executives and workers on the project. The CEO knows everything
for being part of most of the important meetings. Presiding of these meetings it is easier for
the CEO to decide who deserves a raise or some sound advice. Furthermore the employees

are sent off to attend seminars and training sessions to become even better at their work.
Mistakes are dealt with in a fashion where the guilty party realizes the fault but isn’t
humiliated. All these factors have resulted in the firm enjoying a few specific skills. There is
a sense of loyalty that goes beyond monetary benefits. The book club sessions hosted by the
CEO has resulted in a sense of community. The employees are more productive and work
hard to give back to the company. Another important aspect the company looks after is the
welfare of the employees. Unlike other companies they are given paid vacations once a year
and are encouraged to not keep long hours. The key is to work intelligently and efficiently
(Mueller, 2018). Every single member of the organization is encouraged to bring in new ideas
and not blindly follow their team leaders. It is seen that many a times when teams blindly
follow the leader there isn’t much growth in the organization. Every different personnel have
their own views and ideas and if these are not encouraged then the firm will become stagnant
after some time. Thus new ideas pour in abundance and help the firm provide its clients
custom made solutions to their problems.
But there are certain drawbacks to this kind of business plans. Firstly the team spirit isn’t
always at a high and as a senior manager boosting up their inspiration is a bit of a trouble.
The teams are mostly divided into two major parts, the ones who do and the ones who do the
bare minimums. The latter are not always productive and tend to attach themselves to the
team’s success with little work. Secondly as a senior manager one has to make sure that the
work submitted is up to the par and many a times these uninspired workers submit work that
isn’t up to the mark. But owning to the deadlines the senior manager has to make up for these
shortcomings. Even though there are opportunities for further development and skill
enhancement, many workers do not take it up lest they have to work harder than they already
are (Afifah and Daud, 2018). So even though the firm is showing steady growth at a constant
rate, it could be improved if these shortcomings are dealt with properly. These uninspired and
motivation-less persons will in the long run bring the moral of the team down. This will
finally result in harming the organization.
The strategic direction that the firm should opt for the next 3-5 years should be planned
following a few points. The human resource factor should be given the top priority (Covin
and Slevin, 2017). The resources which are already there should be properly evaluated and
given work according to their capabilities. If any personnel is seen to be more detrimental
than good for the firm, they should be let go. (Davies, 2018) Furthermore the human
resources in the company who are very capable and are doing good work should be provided

with proper training to increase their productivity. There already is a sense of community
among all the members of the team, now they need to be made even more responsible and
capable. Teams should be strictly to adhere to the deadlines and members of the firm who are
able to reach it should be awarded with some form of acknowledgement. The personals
lacking in motivation should be aptly motivated or at the worst case scenario let go. These
changes might seem harsh in the beginning but the long run it will help the firm become even
more productive (Ferreira, 2018). (1015 words)
Task 2
Strategic leadership skills can be developed in many ways. Self-awareness is an important
part of it (Rubens, 2018). For without it there will not be any change in current
circumstances. Management and self-development go hand in hand. (Glatthorn, 2018).
If the word strategy is searched on Google one will see that means a plan of action designed
to achieve a long term goal (Google search). Thus when one says strategic leadership, it
means to devise a plan as a leader that will help the team to ideate better. In other words it is
a strategy to help the leaders to exercise better leadership. There are many important methods
by which one can hone their skills better. The different models that are there to follow are the
authoritarian leadership, charismatic leadership, transformational leadership, transitional
leadership etc. Through transformational leadership model workers can be inspired by the
team leader to do better work than they are currently (Cleverism, 2019). The charisma of the
transformational leader can inspire even the laziest personnel to gear up. There are leaders
who prefer to not explain every small detail of the project but let the subordinate find their
way to the final race line (Boschee, 2018). Another important aspect is to not be too rigid and
restrict the creative part of the entire process (Glatthorn, 2018). Another important aspect is
self-awareness, for without it there will be neither inquisitiveness nor any desire to do better.
Thus this is one of those situations that need a healthy dose of self-awareness. Other
important factors that are key to a leader’s success are to interpret, anticipate and decide. The
leader needs to be able to interpret the client’s needs and wants, so that when the leader is
finally briefing the team there is no misinterpretation. Second comes the power to anticipate,
be it the wants of the client or the talents of the team he can anticipate it all. The leader needs
to know who can properly handle what work so that those members get the proper work

allotted to them. Then comes the need to decide. Be it between two equally great options or
between a good and a bad option the team leader needs to be able mine enough to handle the
situation (Sarfraz, 2017). The leader has to decide the best course of action for the team.
Starting for which idea is best suited for the client to which member needs to work on what
aspect of the work, to how the project is to be finally executed- the leader needs to deal with
it all. .These qualities when showcased by the leader, they become proper leaders by
displaying the key leadership qualities. Thus in order to properly utilize and improve any
strategic leadership skill one needs to have the above mentioned qualities. For these qualities
help not only solve situations and crisis during a short span of time, but in the long run too
these help. (492 words)
TASK 3
Evaluation plays an important role in every field. It helps to understand the requirement of
development in the procedures that are being followed. In the organisation we use the
leadership gap indicator tool to assess the manager’s requirement of leadership development
(Bergh et al., 2016). Managers are hence assessed on the basis of success attained cause of
their leadership qualities. Every company has their set of goals that they plan to achieve and
the employee’s performance decides if the goals can be attained or not. As a leader within the
organisation in context, it is important for me to have clear recognition regarding my own
abilities and limitations to evaluate my suitability as a leader in attaining the organisational
goals effectively.
Leadership managerial grid:
As per the proposed framework, it has been suggested that largely there are two types of
leadership behaviours. These two types of behaviours include concerns for people and
concerns for tasks. While employee orientation refers to the behaviour where the employees
are approached with strong human relation intention; production orientation largely focuses
on the technical aspect of the job.
As per the given case scenario, it is evident that in order to ensure smooth functioning of the
company activities, more attention is given towards employee orientation in order to explore
and stimulate broader sets of opportunities. In respect to my own abilities, it can be seen that

I have always been a social person with standard verbal communication skills. However,
when it comes to motivating people and bring out the best from their part, it is important for
me to learn the nooks and crannies of the process. Appropriate leadership programmes and
detailed research may enable me to hone my individual skills in more suited ways. I also
require increasing my knowledge in technology. Once the managers change their views then
there can be an option for the employees to improve their skill sets considering the field that
they are associated with.
Similarly, in regards with the four framework approach, it may be noted that I am more
inclined towards Human Resource framework in respect to my leadership behaviour.
According to the model the widely distributed frameworks include structural, human
resource, political, and symbolic framework (Marshall, 2019).
If efforts are being made to improve this crisis situation then it shouldn’t take more than a
year to achieve the objectives set for the company. On a personal level I feel the lack of
opportunity to improve my skill sets which makes me struggle to progress. Technology can
assure significant improvement in the productivity of every individual associated with the
company. This will also help to motivate the employees and hence they will put in more
efforts to attain the goals set. A leader is expected to have excellent management skills and
has the aura to inspire the team members to work hard (Dyer and Dyer, 2017). Additionally, I
also require focussing on diversity management while dealing with different individuals from
varied backgrounds.
Given below is a PDP of my leadership qualities in order to be more aligned with
organisational requirements.
Sl.
No
Goals Action Process Resource Required Time Limit
1 Technological
knowledge
 Attend
technological
programmes
 Personal research
to be familiar
 Continuous
practice
 Technical books
and magazines
 Internet
connections
 Technology
trainers
1 years

 Variety of
software
2 Mentoring
capabilities
 Observation of the
individual
 Confidence
building
 Frequent
interaction with
public
 Comprehension of
personal desires,
strengths and
personality of
people
 SMART
objectives
 Schedules and
goals
 Feedback from
my own mentor
 Performance
measurement
toolkits
 Internet for
research
1 year
3 Diversity
Management
 Effective
communication
 Continuous
interaction
 Being a good
listener
 Establishment of
healthy
relationship
 Effective
organisational
policy
 Inclusive
mandatory
participatory
activities
 Diversity
trainers
1 years
(Word 615)
TASK 4
The strategy to achieve the development in the technological aspect is to conduct training
programs from time to time to upgrade the quality of productivity. Since the time the analysis

has concluded the requirement to use updated technology the managers have personally
looked into matter. They conducted a meeting after the analysis results were out to discuss
the results with everybody. Every employee was given the opportunity to share their views
and finally there was a plan set to achieve these goals. A team was made who was responsible
to find out the advancements in technology in the relevant field of the organisation, once they
were ready with the reports the managers thoroughly went through the reports. They then
conducted a seminar to introduce the new technologies in the company and thereafter there
were intensive training sessions for every employee to understand these technologies and to
know to implement them successfully (Langley et al., 2017). Within the next six months we
saw a huge progress in terms of productivity with ensured improvement in the growth rate of
the company. The managers and the CEO himself have been supporting us since then. There
are rewards and recognition functions organised every six months. These initiatives help to
maintain a healthy competition in the company. Apart from this these rewards help us to
understand our position in the office and give us the enthusiasm to look forward to something
while working. The workplace atmosphere is more positive since then. By the end of this
financial year we are expecting a huge rise in terms of revenue and hence there has been a
plan to expand the business. These results ensure that the approach was definitely correct and
has been really helpful. It can be hence concluded that the plan has shown excellent results.
And the development strategies have efficiently contributed in the progress of the company.
On the personal front it is first important to identify the requirement of development. Self-
evaluation is an excellent tool that helps in identification of the required field of
development. Once it is identified we can then take necessary steps to improve our skills that
can improve the productivity and will ensure significant progress in the company’s economy.
(Word 436)
TASK 5
A company aims to do business and business aims to earn money but who is the one working
hard to achieve these goals that an organisation has set? The employees associated with that
organisation are the ones working efficiently to achieve the goals. The major contribution in a
company’s progress is of the employees. It is hence the prior responsibility of the
organisation to take care of the requirements of the employees (Burgelman, 2016). When we
say requirements we mean the things required to perform better in the professional aspect.

Employee welfare is a wide concept that every company needs to follow. Around 2 million
people die cause of accidents that happen in the work place every year, according to the
reports by the International Labour Organisation. Over 160 million people are suffering from
illness caused due to the work that they are involved in. This is the reason of death of one
person every three and a half minutes in the European Union. We have advanced in terms of
preventing these unfortunate incidents. Hence companies should practice anxiety control,
stress control environment in the workplace (Simsek et al., 2015). We do not value the
importance of health when we have but tend to appreciate it once it’s gone. It is hence
mandatory for every organisation to promote and protect health. Health is just an aspect of
employee welfare. As mentioned earlier the importance of employees in the company hence
the company should invest on their employees. These investments might sound unnecessary
however in the long run they are beneficial in nature both for the company and the
employees. According to the principles of employee welfare the company needs to show
concerns towards every individual employee which will encourage the employee to be
committed towards their work. There are different aspects of employee welfare.
Who doesn’t like a little appreciation? When employees are being appreciated, this
appreciation helps them understand their importance in the company and makes them feel
content about their work. This also helps to increase the productivity of the employees. Apart
from increasing the productivity it also ensures customer satisfaction and hence can be
considered profitable for the company. Candidates have a number of options when it comes
to other or let’s say better job opportunities and there are employees who consider job
satisfaction as a bigger concern than the money earned. In this scenario when an employee is
satisfied with his or her job they will not look for other options and hence the company gets
to keep the best talent and the employee turnover remains low. The procedure of employment
offers a number of benefits to which the candidate decides if he or she wants to get
committed to that organisation. A company with better employee welfare schemes ensures to
maintain the quality of personnel during recruitment. For the companies to agree to the law it
is important that they ensure certain benefits to their employees (Jumaa and Alleyne, 2017).
Many companies agree to pay for the insurance policies of the employees as recompensing.
The main objective of employee welfare is to provide a better life and health to the
employees, to keep the employees satisfied and to ensure a safer workplace for them to
function better. Employee welfare is usually classified into two different types, statutory and
non-statutory. Statutory is referred to the employee welfare schemes that were planned by

abiding the law and non-statutory as the ones planned by the concerned management of the
company. There is classification in welfare activities as well. The activities meant to be
performed inside the workplace are termed as intra-mural and the ones performed outside the
workplace are termed as extra-mural.
Statutory welfare benefits include the provision of all the following points mentioned.
- Provision of safe drinking water.
- Proper facilities to sit.
- Presence of basic first aid amenities.
- Clean and sufficient number of washrooms.
- Facility of canteens.
- Proper lighting and electricity back up units.
- Rest rooms.
- Maternity or adoption leaves.
- Reimbursement of medical insurance bills.
- Strong sexual harassment policies.
Non statutory benefits on the other hand include the following benefits for the employees.
- Health check-ups on a regular basis to ensure that the employees are healthy.
- Option of flexible work schedules.
- Organising a number of employee assistance programs.
- Encouraging employee referral schemes.
We have a clear idea about what are statutory and non-statutory employee welfare benefits
that the employees should get. There are a number of theories that help the welfare society
policy makers to develop schemes that ensure better beneficial schemes for the employees.
We mentioned about the classification of welfare facilities earlier. Intramural welfare
facilities are considered to be the ones that ensure that the employees are provided with a
proper working environment and the convenience of the employees are taken into
consideration. Under this section safety cleanliness, drinking water, first aid services are to be
considered. Maternity aid and family planning services are also included in this section.
Extramural welfare activities on the other hand are diverse in nature and are usually
government sponsored acts (Belias et al., 2017). There are a number of benefits included in
this section. Some may ensure home loans at lower interest rates and some may ensure better

infrastructure. Factories act of 1948 is considered to be a constitutional act and is an excellent
example of welfare activities initiated by the government.
In our organisation they have an employee’s welfare committee who which looks after the
employee welfare in the organisation. Any query or complaints are being taken care of with
providing prior attention. As a result of which the employees feel motivated and have 100%
job satisfaction. Providing a suitable environment for the employees and ensuring that they
do not have to worry about other things and can completely concentrate on their work is the
priority of every company. And I am proud to say that I am associated with a company who
takes employee welfare quite seriously. (Word 994)

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