Strategic Leadership, Change Management and Employee Engagement Report

This report, prepared for the Managing and Leading People module (PGBM02), critically analyzes the differences between strategic leaders and managers, exploring both traditional and contemporary leadership styles like autocratic and transformational leadership, and their impact on high-performance organizations. It examines how ethical approaches to strategic leadership enhance employee engagement and performance. Furthermore, the report evaluates a manager's role in managing change, including communication and liaison, and how these roles increase organizational effectiveness, referencing Lewin's change management model. The report concludes with a summary of key findings and insights regarding the complexities of leadership and management in modern organizations.

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Managing Organizations and Leading People
[Type the document subtitle]
9/7/2019
Student name

Managing Organizations and Leading People 1
Contents
Part A: Strategic leader and manager..............................................................................................2
Introduction..................................................................................................................................2
Conclusion...................................................................................................................................6
Part B: Manager’s role in managing change....................................................................................7
Introduction..................................................................................................................................7
Manager’s role in managing change............................................................................................8
Lewin’s change management model...........................................................................................9
Conclusion.................................................................................................................................11
References......................................................................................................................................12

Managing Organizations and Leading People 2
Part A: Strategic leader and manager
Introduction
Leading people comes with various responsibilities and application of essential leadership skills,
and it comes with various challenges as it includes motivating individuals, influencing others
without authority, managing talent, leading teams and because human resource is one of the
tricky assets to be managed, the challenges while leading people are high. However, there is a
major difference between strategic managers. The task purpose is to analyse difference between
strategic manager and a strategic leader while understanding the emerging and traditional
leadership styles and their effect on employee performance in an organisation. Moreover the
ethical approaches will be considered while analysing strategic leadership to study the impact on
performance and employee management (Anderson, 2010).

Managing Organizations and Leading People 3
The evidence suggests that when an individual is authorized to manage people he or she does not
eventually become a leader. Various differences are found between leading and managing
people. As the research article in Forbes includes the major differences that set strategic leaders
apart from managers include
Managers create goals while leaders create a vision
A leader role is leading a team while picturing the possible result of the situation and inspiring
individuals in order to engage them while converting the vision provided by the door into reality.
Leaders are responsible for looking beyond what people can do. They are encouraging
individuals to become a part of a bigger motive and activity. They are aware that a high
functioning team would be able to achieve when they are working in a team rather than working
individually. However, managers are creating goals that are we are focusing on measuring,
setting and achievement of those goals. They are liable to control the situation to exceed or at
least reach to their objectives (Bennis & Thomas, 2002).
Leaders look for innovation while managers copy
The uniqueness that is the key USP for a leader, they believe in themselves and are trying to
build something of a unique as they are working actively and self-aware. They are willing to take
risks and stand out and prefer their own shoes rather than looking for the footsteps. Moreover,
they are transparent and authentic. On the contrary, managers are found to be copying others that
are the behaviours and competencies that they are learning from other individuals and try to
adopt a leadership style that is suitable instead of defining it (Birasnav, 2014).
Managers maintain status quo and leaders are change agents
One of the key elements for a leader is innovation and they are proud disrupters. Leaders believe
that if the things are working in a particular way they can be improved and could become better
while embracing change. It includes the leader’s readiness in acceptability, of the fact that
innovation and change can create waves, but they are aware that they can bring forward a better
way. However, managers prefer to work with the same system, environment structure and
process instead of refining them to make it better.
Manages control risk while Leaders take risks
The evidence suggests that the leaders are the risk takers, as they are always looking for
something new, better and unique in order to improve the existing process. In addition, they
realize that failure could be one of the steps while reaching to success and are ready to take the
risk of failing miserably. However manages prefer to control or avoid problem and preferred to
minimize risk instead of embracing them (forbes, 2019).
Leadership is one of the vital elements in an organization for centuries. Various researches have
worked on this aspect and some of the traditional leadership styles are still being considered,

Managing Organizations and Leading People 4
however, the emerging leadership styles or the contemporary styles are somehow different from
the traditional ones (DuBrin, 2016). For example one of the popular traditional leadership styles
include autocratic leadership style, According to this leadership style is a Leader is believing in
himself instead of its team. Therefore, individuals adopting autocratic leadership styles are
giving orders and are expecting the followers to follow the structure and orders by the legal in
order to accomplish be work on time and with accuracy. The impact of this leadership style on
the high-performance organization or in result of accuracy, maintenance of the quality, suitable
there a structure needs to be followed for the safety and need in the organization (Clarke, 2010).
On the contrary, some of the contemporary leadership styles include transformational leadership
style and servant leadership style. The researchers identified that individuals relying on
transformational leadership styles inclusive of persuasiveness, personal appeal, charisma, and
inspiration for the organization. Evidence suggests that there is a difference between
transactional and transformational leadership styles (Cherry, 2018). The leaders adopting
transformational leadership are leading their team members by providing goals of the litre
aligned with the goals of the employees. This for considering this leadership style the employees
who are working under this leadership styles are initiating to focus on building of the company
instead of considering best for themselves as individual employees. Transformational leaders are
found to be using inspirational motivation while providing a vision to the team in order to inspire
them.
Moreover, evidence suggests that transformational leaders, which reflect that we are challenging
the existing organizational status Quo and norms and encouraging their team, use intellectual
stimulation or employees to search for new ideas, work harder and think creatively. Innovation is
found to be one of the essential elements in today’s organization in order to sustain in the
competitive market (Carton, 2014). Before it can be said that the transformational leaders are
responsible for effective employee performance and innovation among the organization, which is
essential for a company to grow. For example one of the high-performance organization include
Apple Corporation, which has considered transformational leadership as the key style that will be
responsible for innovation, improvement and change in the products and process (Bottani &
Galli, 2017).
Ethics play a major role in leadership as ethical leadership includes respect for ethical values and
ethical beliefs and for rights and dignity of other individuals. The concept related to
consideration, trust, Charisma, honesty and fairness is considered under the ethical approach of
leadership. This includes any kind of morals and values that are appropriate for an individual or a
society. Some of the characters observed for ethical leadership include respect for others, Justice,
Honesty, Focus on team building, encourages initiative, leadership by example, no tolerance for
violation, value awareness and value are driven decision-making.
The ethical approach in leadership can reflect through leadership style adopted by an individual
and their impact over the employee's performance unemployed engagement (Antonakis et al.,

Managing Organizations and Leading People 5
2009). The research reflect that the relationship between the ethical leader and employee
performance can be directly proportional as it insures that be organizational values and moral
values are integrated together within the organization. It has been observed that a team of ethical
leadership are self motivated, have a clear picture in the mind and strong moral standards while
performing the task. Therefore, employees accept the responsibility towards the company and the
work that they are best to accomplish. Therefore the performance of the employees are impacted
positively due to ethical leadership. Other than this due to open environment and consideration
of moral values of every individual leader is open to every idea and viewpoint of their
employees, which eventually reflect in generation of new ideas and engagement of employs with
their leaders and with their work within the organization. Therefore it can be said that the ethical
approach to leadership are positively related to employee performance and employee
engagement in an organization (D’Innocenzo, 2016).

Managing Organizations and Leading People 6
Conclusion
From this part of the report, it can be concluded that Leadership is one of the vital elements in an
organization since centuries. There is a major difference between strategic managers. the major
differences that set strategic leaders apart from managers include Managers create goals while
leaders create vision, Managers maintain status quo and leaders are change agents, and Leaders
look for innovation while managers copy. One of the popular traditional leadership styles include
autocratic leadership style, On the contrary, some of the contemporary leadership styles include
transformational leadership style and servant leadership style. Transformational leaders are
found to be using inspirational motivation while providing a vision to the team in order to inspire
them. The research reflects that the relationship between the ethical leader and employee
performance can be directly proportional as it insures that be organizational values and moral
values are integrated together within the organization.

Managing Organizations and Leading People 7
Part B: Manager’s role in managing change
Introduction
Change in a constant part is found to be essential in an organization for the benefit of the
organization and growth direction, as innovation would lead to the change in the organization
which is the required element to sustain in the competitive market. However, this may come with
various opportunities and threat; the key opportunities are generally found externally that is the
growth opportunity for the company but the threat is the resistance from the employees as they
may fear the loss of job and fear of job position (Morgan & Oxtoby, 2000). The resistance could
be a major challenge for the managers and leaders of the company to manage the change and
implement the change in the organization. The task purpose is to identify and understand the role
of managers in the organization while managing change. Change management includes dealing
with the organizational transformation considering the change in organizational process, goals,
structure, or technologies. One of the major causes that have led to change in most of the
organization in recent environment includes change in technology and introduction of
digitalization in business (Brfidgman & Brown, 2016).

Managing Organizations and Leading People 8
Manager’s role in managing change
The key role that the manager could have played in order to implement the change in the
organization effectively includes
1. Communicator role
The role of the manager as the communication could be one of the crucial activities to be
performed as the positioning of the change and the understanding of the transformation has to
reach out to the employees in a way that they do not resist of understanding the need and
requirement of change. Moreover, the evidence suggests that the implementation is not possible
without communication, which may include the expected work from the employees after the
transition. The theorist has identified the major cause of resistance to change is the immediate
change implementation and lack of communication in the organization. It has been identified that
the employees are looking forward towards the change message from the managers and higher
authority and the structure in which they will be work and the effect that they will be imposed on
the team and individual performance. The manager must provide relevant information, well
before the occurrence of change in the organization which would answer the employee's
questions like how is a change affecting each employee, the reason for getting on board and
implement change, the reason for which the company is doing so (Kuipers & Higgs, 2014).
2. Liaison
The evidence suggested that the managers are the most relevant source of feedback to the
employees and the change sponsors considering the change implementation progress. In case the
managers of the project are not considered or not consulted in the change process in the
organization, those implementing the project team after the change implementation would be like
flying blind. The reason being there would be not an agent who can tell if the change has been
implemented as per the requirement or if the change is adopted by the team or not. Through this
role a manager can have relevant effect on reinforcement and sustain change (Norman &
Verganti, 2014).
3. Advocate
The employee's perspectives largely depend on their manager’s perspective, as they are the direct
subordinates who are directly in contact with the employees of an organization. Therefore, if the
manager is acting as the role of a strong advocate then the belief of the employees would be
strong considering the change and the change would not be resisted to the change
implementation. However in order to increase the commitment from the employees it is
recommended to the managers to play a major role of advocacy (Green & Cameron, 2015).
4. Resistance manager

Managing Organizations and Leading People 9
This one of the major reason that leads to a structured form of change management process, thus
this is one of the most crucial roles of manager in an organization while implementing the
change. The reason being resistance is the natural human nature and a common reaction to
change. For an effective implementation of change in the organization, the manager needs to
play role of resistance manager. This would include searching for the root cause of the
employees’ resistance and planning appropriate strategy to reduce the resistance level among the
employees (Tukker & Charter, 2017).
5. Coach
Another role of manager that the evidence suggests include the coaching activity that is
providing support and training to the employees. This activity would include providing guidance
to the team to perform in the new environment and as per the nature of change, the new job roles
were defined and the job competencies were evaluated, according to which the training was
provided to the employees where the gap was analysed by the managers. The manager effective
coaching could result in better understanding among the employees and ease the flow of change
management process by developing the ability to adapt the change among the employees (Holt et
al., 2007).
Lewin’s change management model
According to this model of change management, the manager role can be explained through
three stages in change management that a manager must adopt while implementing the change.
This includes three stages that are unfreezing, change, and refreezing. According to this model of
change management, the initial stage is to make the employees ready for the change as they are
performing their task in the company in the similar pattern or using same process since long
time, which reflect that this is the first stage, where the manager role as communication plays
major role (Tidd & Bessant, 2013).
The reason being, in this stage the managers communicate with the employees which would
include the key reasons to change like the declining sales statistics of the company. Through this
the employees of the company are ready to accept the change for the company and their personal
benefit as through this stage the manager's role is to provide the right amount of information and
the growth opportunity of every individual is also realised by the employees through the
perspective of managers (Greer & Ford, 2005).
The next stage as per this model includes the change that will reflect the actual action of change,
this will include action to be taken to actually implement the stage. At this stage the actual
change is introduced to the organizational process, this leads to the coaching role of manager, the
reason being in this stage the managers provide support in performing new Activities in the team
or to the employees, this may be in the form of guidance or in the form of training and
development process. However this stage may involve the actual harm to the employee’s
position which needs to be managed by the manager. At this stage the time and communication

Managing Organizations and Leading People 10
are considered to be the two major activities that must be taken by the managers for their
employees to effectively implement the change process (Brfidgman & Brown, 2016).
The third stage includes refreezing that will include the stabilizing the organizational chart and
job description is consistent that will include making the process permanent people and shaping
of the process. This stage will include the institutionalize or internalize the change which will
provide the new ways of the process that reflect ready to refreeze. This will include stability in
the employee performance and the job that the employees are assigning to incorporation of the
business so as to feel comfortable and confident with working new ways. This may include the
transfer and promotional activities so that the employees do not come back to the original state.
The role of managers in this stage includes motivating employees to keep performing as per the
new process and structure (Brenner, 2015).

Managing Organizations and Leading People 11
Conclusion
From this task, it can be concluded that Change management includes dealing with the
organizational transformation considering the change in organizational process, goals, structure,
or technologies. The key role that the manager could have played in order to implement the
change in the organization effectively includes Communicator role. The theorist has identified
the major cause of resistance to change is the immediate change implementation and lack of
communication in the organization. The evidence suggested that the managers are the most
relevant source of feedback to the employees and the change sponsors considering the change
implementation progress. Through Liaison role a manager can have relevant effect on
reinforcement and sustain change. Advocate, the employee's perspectives largely depend on their
manager’s perspective, as they are the direct subordinates who are directly in contact with the
employees of an organization. Resistance manager, for effective implementation of change in the
organization, the manager needs to play role of resistance manager.
Considered Lewin’s change management model, the manager role can be explained through
three stages in change management that a manager must adopt while implementing the change.
This includes three stages that are unfreezing, change, and refreezing.

Managing Organizations and Leading People 12
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