MGT811: Contemporary Management Capabilities Report on CEO Behavior

This report provides a critical analysis of a CEO's capabilities in the face of credible accusations of sexual harassment from former subordinates, as presented in a critical incident scenario. The report examines the CEO's required personal competencies, including the ability to build trust, make wise and quick decisions, understand company vulnerabilities, avoid 'deaf ear' syndrome, work under pressure, and maintain personal motivation. The findings are based on empirical research, offering recommendations to the company's board of directors for assessing the CEO's skills. The report emphasizes the importance of clear communication, establishing employee safety, consulting experts, and responding responsibly to the crisis while maintaining daily responsibilities and personal goals. It concludes with recommendations for further research into the CEO's conduct and employee relations to prevent future incidents.

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Running head: CONTEMPORARY MANAGEMENT CAPABILITIES
Name
MGT811
Contemporary Management Capabilities

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CONTEMPORARY MANAGEMENT CAPABILITIES
Table of Contents
Introduction...............................................................................................................................................3
Findings of the Case Study.......................................................................................................................3
Building of Trust....................................................................................................................................4
Findings..............................................................................................................................................4
Recommendations..............................................................................................................................4
Ability to Make Wise and Quick Decisions..........................................................................................4
Findings..............................................................................................................................................4
Recommendations..............................................................................................................................4
Understanding Obvious Company Vulnerabilities.............................................................................4
Findings..............................................................................................................................................4
Recommendations..............................................................................................................................5
Deaf Ear Syndrome...............................................................................................................................5
Findings..............................................................................................................................................5
Recommendations..............................................................................................................................5
Ability to Work Under Pressure...........................................................................................................5
Findings..............................................................................................................................................5
Recommendations..............................................................................................................................5
Personal Motivation..............................................................................................................................5
Findings..............................................................................................................................................5
Recommendations..............................................................................................................................6
Conclusion..................................................................................................................................................6
References..................................................................................................................................................7

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Introduction
Management of any entity is very crucial, whether it is a small entity or a large entity. It
requires a lot of personal competencies such as the ability to solve problems, make concise
decisions, be reliable, and be committed to the key aspects of the entity (Stahl, Pless and Maak,
2013). Organizational leaders tend to enter into scandals which at times go viral, posing the risk
of tarnishing their reputation, as well as the reputation of the entity they serve. For example, a
CEO who was a former COO in another company has currently been accused of sexually
harassing two of his ex-employees. The stories have spread so much to the public through the
media and other online platforms. In the stories, it seems that the two victims do not know each
other and their arguments are very unique but consistent. However, the CEO adamantly denies
such stories. Therefore, this piece of work aims at providing recommendations to the company
board of directors that will be used to assess this CEO. An assessment interview will be
conducted with the guide of these recommendations on the CEO to determine his personal
capabilities. The recommendations will be based on empirical research evidence, showing
various findings on the key personal competencies that this CEO should possess. This piece of
work will present the findings sections which will provide recommendations on the basis of
empirical evidence and a conclusion section which will summarize the recommendations and
provide recommendations for further research regarding this scenario.
Findings of the Case Study
From the case of the CEO in his previous position in the previous workplace, it is
possible that the alleged stories are true. The fact that the complainants are two is an evidence to
support the truth of these stories. Additionally, the fact that the two complainants do not know
each other and that they are arguing of a story pertaining a common topic, that is, sexual
harassment gives more evidence of the truth behind these stories. Though the CEO does not
accept these stories, it is obvious that a person would not accept a case that is showing his
negative and unethical behavior that has become known to the public. Looking at these facts, it is
suggestive that this CEO lacks personal respect. Personal respect is a major attribute that every
leader should possess since he or she will need to interact with a variety of people in the
workplace. However, by refusing the alleged stories, he has shown a quality of reputation
protection. It was wise of him not to accept the stories because, assuming that he had accepted
that he harassed the ex-employees, his reputation among the current employees and the public
would be destroyed and mistrust developed. Additionally, the company that he currently works
for would be viewed negatively, destroying its reputation too. This would decline the
performance of the company entirely. However, more assessments need to be done through an
interview in order to evaluate some of his personal competencies in connection with the alleged
stories.

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Building of Trust
Findings
Konig, Graf-Vlachy, Bundy and Little (2018) argue that the U.S. has been having cases
of sexual harassment on the newspapers an in the television. This has posed a crisis to the
concerned companies. Another form of a crisis has been outlined where the Johnson and Johnson
Company was faced with an issue of deaths of the public due to its production of cyanide-laced
Tylenol capsules. Konig et al. argue that the main problem, in this case, is not the deaths of the
consumers of these capsules but how the leadership of the company is displayed in the whole
process of the crisis. The Johnson and Johnson company still remained the top company despite
the crisis that it faced. This is argued to be as a result of the ability of the leadership to build trust
both to the employees and to the public (Pearson and Clair, 2014).
Recommendations
From this study, the CEO in our scenario should display the ability to build trust. This
can be done through consistent communication which is clear and honest. This pertains to the
responses that are given to the people who ask questions concerning the alleged case. However,
great wisdom should be displayed in the responses given. Additionally, the CEO should establish
safety and security to the employees to ensure that they feel comfortable in the workplace. This
involves engaging them consistently and maintaining good conduct and relations. This is because
the issue of sexual harassment can increase worker turnover hence affecting the performance of
the entire company.
Ability to Make Wise and Quick Decisions
Findings
Konig et al. (2018) give an example of Denny’s where the management portrayed racial
discrimination on its customers. The customers felt betrayed by the management and several
lawsuits headed to the judicial system. However, the leaders were able to consult from different
minority businesses, civil rights groups, its legal team, as well as management trainers, in order
to have a good opinion on how to deal with the crisis. Chen and Chung (2016) suggest that a
leader should portray the ability and capacity to make quick decisions and enquire from experts
when quick decisions would affect the company negatively.
Recommendations
In our scenario, the CEO should portray the ability to make a quick and concise decision on how
to deal with the crisis. When he is not confident with his opinions and decisions, he should
consult several experts in order to get significant ideas which would help protect the company.
Understanding Obvious Company Vulnerabilities
Findings
A study that was conducted by Fischbacher-Smith and Fischbacher-Smith (2016)
indicates that competent organizational leaders have knowledge and awareness on some of the
challenges that may occur in the organization and how to respond to them. Seiffert-Brockmann,

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CONTEMPORARY MANAGEMENT CAPABILITIES
Einwiller and Stranzl (2018) suggest that leaders should always be ready to face some of the
challenges that come their way in the organization. Comer and Cooper (2011) also add that when
dealing with people, various stories may arise, whether they are true or false. However, a leader
should understand that these issues are at times a normal aspect and that they have to be dealt
with in the best way possible in order to prevent them from affecting the organization negatively.
Recommendations
The CEO in this case of sexual harassment should have the understanding that some
cases do occur, whether they are expected or not. This helps in reducing the tension that a leader
may face when such stories emerge. He should also be able to identify the various areas of
vulnerability that emerge due to the current stories. By identifying the vulnerable areas, he
should be able to counter or prevent the vulnerabilities from affecting the company negatively.
Deaf Ear Syndrome
Findings
This “deaf ear” syndrome is termed as the inability of a leader to respond to issues that
emerge concerning their reputation or the reputation of the company they serve (Peirce,
Smolinski and Rosen, 2014). A study that was conducted by Muller (2015) shows that
companies which faced a crisis that spread significantly among the public and whose leaders
remained silent, not responding to the issues ruined the reputation of the company.
Recommendations
In our case, therefore, the CEO should not remain silent on the issue. He should respond
to it but in a responsible way. Silence may mean that the spreading stories are true and this may
affect the reputation and performance of the company.
Ability to Work Under Pressure
Findings
Mulvaney (2016) indicates during a crisis, leaders may develop tension and stress. A case
of a company experiencing complaints of sexual harassment from its employees is highlighted
where the leader developed emotions towards the press and the members of the public who
spread the stories widely (Heath, 2017). The development of negative emotions leads to negative
responses and interrupts the competence to maintain smooth leadership in the company.
Recommendations
The CEO should be a good and competent leader who is able to work without negative
emotions. Despite the pressure from different groups, the CEO should ensure that the daily duties
and responsibilities are accomplished successfully.
Personal Motivation
Findings
A competent leader sets goals which are challenging but achievable. A scenario is given
where a company manager was involved in a car accident where he killed two kids. Stam, van

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Knippenberg, Wisse and Nederveen Pieterse (2018) say that the arguments of the public were
that the manager was drunk and that he is a drug addict. However, the manager was able to
analyze the situation and set goals which need to be achieved in order to deal with the situation
promptly. The manager was persistent and determined to improve his personal performance.
Recommendations
Relating this to our scenario, the CEO should be able to be persistent with improving his
personal performance in the company. This would be setting goals on how to ensure that his
reputation is protected, as well as how his overall performance in the company would be
effected.
Conclusion
This report indicates that the CEO should have the capability to build trust on the
employees and the public. This is displayed in his overall behavior and interactions with the
employees I order to make them feel safe and secure. Ability to make quick and wise decisions is
a quality that is important in this case. Diverse ways of making decisions and solving the
problem should be portrayed such as consulting managerial experts. Insight in the form of the
ability to identify vulnerable areas which may be affected by the current case should be a quality
possessed by the CEO. Additionally, the CEO should be responsive on matters pertaining to the
case, such as to the press, the employees, the bard, as well as the public. Having a “deaf ear”
syndrome would affect his reputation as well as the reputation of the company negatively. He
should also have the ability to work under pressure, responding to people who are concerned in a
responsible manner and at the same time ensuring that his responsibilities are accomplished.
Despite the crisis at hand, the CEO should portray personal motivation by setting achievable
goals and planning how to achieve them. However, I would recommend further studies to be
conducted in order to investigate the personal conduct of the CEO as well as his relations with
the employees. This will help in predicting such a case happening again in the future.

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References
Chen, H. M., & Chung, H. M. (2016). How to measure personal brand of a business
CEO. Journal of Human Resource and Sustainability Studies, 4(4), 305-324.
Comer, D. R., & Cooper, E. A. (2011). Gender relations and sexual harassment in the workplace:
Michael Crichton's Disclosure as a teaching tool. Journal of Management
Education, 22(2), 227-241.
Fischbacher-Smith, D., & Fischbacher-Smith, M. (2016). Crisis management as a critical
perspective. Journal of Management Development, 35(7), 930-940.
Heath, R. (2017). Working under pressure: crisis management, pressure groups and the
media. Safety science, 30(1-2), 209-221.
Konig, A., Graf-Vlachy, L., Bundy, J., & Little, L. M. (2018). A blessing and a curse: How
CEOs’ trait empathy affects their management of organizational crises. Academy of
Management Review.
Muller, R. (2015). Corporate crisis management. Long Range Planning, 18(5), 38-48.
Mulvaney, P. (2016). Innovation to Manage Crisis: A Study of Leadership Competencies
Important for Both Crisis Management and Innovation.
Pearson, C. M., & Clair, J. A. (2014). Reframing crisis management. Academy of management
review, 23(1), 59-76.
Peirce, E., Smolinski, C. A., & Rosen, B. (2014). Why sexual harassment complaints fall on deaf
ears. Academy of Management Perspectives, 12(3), 41-54.
Seiffert-Brockmann, J., Einwiller, S., & Stranzl, J. (2018). Character assassination of CEOs in
crises–Questioning CEOs’ character and values in corporate crises. European Journal of
Communication, 33(4), 413-429.
Stahl, G. K., Pless, N. M., & Maak, T. H. O. M. A. S. (2013). Responsible global
leadership. Global leadership: Research, practice, and development, 240-259.
Stam, D., van Knippenberg, D., Wisse, B., & Nederveen Pieterse, A. (2018). Motivation in
words: Promotion-and prevention-oriented leader communication in times of
crisis. Journal of Management, 44(7), 2859-2887.