Divisional Plastics Inc.: Leadership Transition and Expressive Change

This case study explores the challenges faced by Jake Ward, the new team leader at Divisional Plastics Inc., focusing on the importance of expressive change within the team. The initial team meetings were difficult, revealing communication problems, lack of unity, and poor group dynamics. The case study reflects on Jake's approach, highlighting the team's reliance on an instrumental approach rather than embracing expressive change. It emphasizes the need for Jake to foster engagement, community, and continuous learning within the team to improve motivation and work output. The study further discusses the author's personal experiences with the lack of learning opportunities in their own organization, and maps organizational processes to identify areas where learning is both achieved and hindered. Actionable thoughts are suggested to promote expressive qualities, encourage community, and ensure team members understand their roles and responsibilities. Desklib offers a platform to explore similar solved assignments and past papers.

EXPRESSIVE CHANGE
Silent reflection and organisation
mapping

PROCESS
• In this case study, we teamed up as a group in order to learn
more about expressive change.
• We first decided to each individually conduct a research on
what expressive change was before scheduling our meetings.
• Our meetings were once every week and during the meeting
we were able to discuss what we learnt.
• We used an individual approach were each person was
allowed to air their views and feelings.
• We also conducted a research on the instrumental approach
so that we would have a better understanding of what
expressive change was.

• We recorded our processes in terms of minutes in every
meeting.
• Some of the results were in terms of the questions
answered, some in terms of questions and others in terms of
the strengths and weaknesses of the team.
• The results also included of ways that we can have
expressive change as opposed to using the instrumental
approach in our organisation.
• We also included the ways we can improve as a team in our
organisation.
• We submitted the results as findings

CASE STUDY
• In the case study provided, Jake Ward is given the
role of the team leader in his organisation
Divisional Plastics Inc.
• He is warned by the financial adviser that this
particular team is hard but he assumes it.
• He approaches the team just like he had
approached previous teams that he worked with.
• Jake was familiar with the team members and
also the previous leader who was Bill Butler

• Jake found the first meeting very difficult and
very stressful.
• After the first meeting he had to do reflect the
events that happened in the first staff meeting.
• He needed to evaluate ways in which he could
better the team that he had been put in charge
off.
• The meeting was very difficult and in his own
views nothing much was accomplished.

CHALLENGES
• Jake thought that handling the team would be easy
but he faced a number of challenges. These were:
• Communication problems
• Lack of unity
• The group had no motivation
• The group was not able to work together
• The group dynamics was poor
• The group did not feel a sense of community
• The group was not engaging

REFLECTION ON CASE STUDY
• After viewing the case study I believe that Jake has a lot of
work to do with this particular group.
• The group did not have any expressive change but rather used
the instrumental approach.
• I believe that the group did their work simply because they
were asked to and not because they had the passion to do it.
• From the study I have seen that this particular group does not
engage in activities for example when Jake Brought coffee.
• Their lack of engagement I believe reflects in their work output
which from the study is see it is not much.

REFLECTION
• I can attest that in this particular group, members have
conflict with each other.
• When one tries to speak the other interrupts and responds
angrily. Also they make mean faces at each other.
• I believe that this is the main issue that is causing them to
have poor output.
• I believe that the conflict is the cause of the group not
being able to work together.
• This is because with conflict then one cannot engage with
the other person.

• I also believe that Jake needs to engage with
the group members to create expressive
change.
• From the study the group members are simply
aware of what they need to do but they lack
motivation.
• By engaging, I believe Jack will be able to
motivate the team members, so that there
work output can be more efficient.

MAPPING ACCORDING TO THE CASE STUDY
• If Jake wants to make his group as effective as possible,
he needs to do the following things.
• First he needs to engage with the team members and
also encourage them to engage with each other as well.
• Engagement will allow the team members to be
motivated by learning what there roles are as well as
what they can do to improve.
• Second he needs to foster a sense of community. Most
of the group members feel like they do not belong and
therefore it affects their work

• Jake needs to promote learning among the group
members.
• When creating the budget plan it was evident that
many of the group members did not know what to do
with their templates. They need to be trained on such
tasks.
• Also, Jake needs to encourage the group members to
learn from each other.
• Most of the group members complained that they
were not able to share ideas in the group.

SILENT REFLECTION
• In my organisation, the fundamental need that I feel needs to be fulfilled is
learning.
• I feel that with adequate learning then we as employees in the company will be
able to know more and therefore want to use our gained knowledge in the office.
• I can say that many at times I am presented with tasks that I do not know how to
do.
• In this situations I am not taught what to do to create excellent work but rather, I
just do the task as long as I finish it.
• I believe that with learning I will be able to have an expressive approach towards
working.
• I will be curious to always learn more and will therefore gain more intelligence in
my area of work.
• With more intelligence, I will be able to increase my work output and be more
innovative and creative when doing tasks.