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Executive Summary
Executive Summary
KTG is a consulting company with diverse services to its
client in the field of mining, engineering, architectural, construction and
environmental services. KTG management have recognized that there are variables
that will surely increase as companies grow more complex and will then become
more difficult to trace the side effects of a change in dealing with a specific
area of management responsibility.
There are many problems to be solved. The challenge for KTG is to consider changes
in structure of organization and the locations of authority and responsibility.
The vital point to be considered is that the structural, technological and
human aspects cannot be separated as they all interact. When KTG changes from a functional to a
services grouping, problem of interpersonal relations occur. This may in turn
affect the techniques of control. A knowledge streams should enable a manager
to understand that it may not be easy to find a simple answer to a problem but,
by using facts and using available knowledge wisely, answers can be much more
accurate and effective.
Introduction
There are many ways of looking at leadership and many
interpretations of its meaning. Leadership might be interpreted in simple
terms, such as “getting others to follow” or “ getting people to do things
willingly” or interpreted more specifically, for example as “ the use of
authority in decision making”. It may be exercised as an attribute of position
or because of personal knowledge or wisdom. Leadership might be based on the
function or personality or it can be seen as a behavioral category. It may be
viewed in terms of the role of the leaders and their ability to achieve effective
performance from others. Leaders can also be discussed in terms of a form of
persuasion or power relationship.
From a comprehensive review of leadership theory and
research, Bass, M (2010), concludes that: “There are almost as many different
of leadership as there are persons who have attempted in defining the concept.
According to Crainer, K, 2008, there are over 4000 definitions of leadership
and “it it is a veritable minefield of misunderstanding and difference through
which leadership, but essentially, it is a relationship through which one
person influences the behavior or actions of other people. This means that the
process of leadership cannot be separated from the activities of groups and
effective teambuilding.
The changing nature of work organizations involves moving
away from an emphasis on getting results by the close control of the workforce
and towards an environment of coaching, support and empowerment. This places an
ever growing importance on leadership. The leader follower relationship is
reciprocal and effective leadership is a two way process that influences both
individual and organizational performance. Leadership is related to motivation
and interpersonal behavior. A major report from the Advanced Institute of
Management Research refers to the dual role of leadership. Leaders both
motivate employees and design effective organization. There are two broad
conception of what leaders do-they motivate their followers and they design
organizational contexts to enable their followers to function effectively.
Strategy
Corporate Level
Strategy
Corporate Strategy is defined by Drucker as “ a continuous
process of making entrepreneurial decisions systematically and with possible
knowledge of their futurity, organizing systematically the effort needed to carry
our these decisions and measuring the results against expectations through
organized systematic feedback.
KTG should include the following in their corporate
strategy:
·
Rational allocation of resources
·
Improved coordination and anticipation of
technological change
·
Increased profitability
It is really more of the style of management working in an
atmosphere of change. Corporate strategy is therefore needed to cope with
social and political change. The need to equally careful thought in setting
social objectives, policies, and plans to ensure the gain of social change of
company’s ideas. The idea behind is to adapt the organization to its
environment, and this will usually mean fundamental changes in management and
the organizational structure(Padilla, J; Chan M; 2010)
Certain key factors should then be identified which improve
KTG position. The final assessment would cover specific areas that follow:
·
Research and development
·
Human resources- the need to ensure staff are
available of the desired quantity and quality
·
Knowledge Stream
·
Business Stream
·
Finance
The essential need is for the plans from the various areas
of a business to be integrated, so the functional plans are interlinked to form
an overall corporate strategy. An interesting account of the various strategies
which can be adapted and classifications of opportunities and risks is given in
Managing for Results by P.F. Drucker. He points out two important strategies
which have to be decided:
a)
Decide what opportunities or wants the company
wishes to pursue and what risks it is willing and able to accept.
b)
Decide on the scope and structure and the right
balance between specialization and integration.
The classification of opportunities (additive, complementary
and breakthrough) and of risks are interesting and practical guides to help the
formulation of strategies. A capability profile of company strengths and
weaknesses can be drawn up; one method is a point’s scale related to a desired
level of performance.
Ansoff consider that the measurement of “synergy” is similar
to what is frequently called “evaluation of strength and weaknesses” In synergy
joint effects are measured between staffs , in strength and weaknesses
evaluation, the firm’s competencies are rated relative to some desired
performance level.
Long range planning enables management to anticipate
difficulties and take steps to eliminate them before they arise and can help to
bring about a more unified approach. Plans, though, must clearly state which
manager is accountable and for what results, i.e. it must be management by
objectives.
To be effective KTG must be goal driven. By setting goals or
objectives is therefore a key step in the strategic process and provide the
organization with a sense of direction, provide a basis of motivation, as well
as benchmark against which performance and effectiveness can be subsequently
measured. It is the heart of planning process, and is prelude to the
development of strategies.
Management by Objectives must not be looked at as just
another management technique. It can be considered to be an approach to
practical management. In essence, it embraces a clear cut strategic plan and
its translation into departmental and personal goals, which are reviewed when
results are obtained. The emphasis appears to be more on human needs and
motivation and increasing subordinates’ participation in setting objectives.
Effective strategies and planning use the approach of MBO
having a clear defined objective for function in the company. These objectives
must also be part of contribution to other objectives of KTG. Drucker goes a
stage further by suggesting that KTG managers at every level should participate
in devising objectives for the next higher level of management. The important
thing is to ensure that the individuals’ objectives are related to the common
goal.
Douglas McGregor (Human Side of Enterprise) stresses the
value of MBO especially the It is aspect of performance appraisal. McGregor
approach suggests that KTG look at two sets of assumptions about individuals
and their reaction to work as quote:
“Participation is one of the most misunderstood ideas that
have emerged from the field of human relations. It is praised by some,
condemned by others and used with considerable success by still others. Some
proponents of participation give the impression that it is a magic formula
which will eliminate conflict and disagreement and come pretty close to solving
all management’s problems. These enthusiasts appear to believe that people yearn
to participate, that is a formula which
can be applied by any manager regardless of his skill, that virtually no
preparation is necessary for its use , and that it is spring full blown into
existence and transform industrial relationships overnight.
Some critics of participation, on the other hand, see it as
a form of managerial abdication. It is a
dangerous idea that will determine managerial prerogatives and almost certainly
get out of control. It wastes time,
lowers efficiency and weakens management efficiency. A third group of managers
view participation as a useful item in their bag of managerial tricks. It is
for them a manipulative device for getting people to do what they want, under
conditions that delude the “participators” into thinking they have had voice in
decision making.
A fourth group of managers make successful use of
participation, but they don’t think of it as a panacea or magic formula. They
do not share either the unrestrained enthusiasm of the faddists or the fears of
the critics.
It is therefore very important to specify exactly the main
objective of any scheme for participation. It is concerned with power sharing
power to allow employees to influence decisions. This may be specific (i.e
relating to an employee to influence decisions. This may be specific (i.e .
relating to an individual –his career, promotion, remuneration). Or general
(i.e. representing groups of employees who are involved in decisions affecting
sections of the workpeople) and may refer to participation in profit sharing,
ownership of assets and decisions that affect the career or remuneration of
employees.
There are therefore many possible levels of involvement in
participation where management and employees commit themselves to voluntary or
legal agreements. The main point to consider is “what is participation designed
to achieve”? It could be considered to be either:
·
To improve the material well being of the
employees (e.g. profit sharing and bonus scheme)
·
To improve the efficiency of the company (e.g.
to set up works councils, planning, and consultative committees)
·
To own an enterprise (e.g. worker representative
on board and transfer of ownership schemes)
·
To safeguard position of individuals.
It was mentioned earlier that mutual confidence between
management and worker is of paramount importance. If this is not present it is
very doubtful if this can be installed by legislation. It requires employees to
look at the needs of the enterprise as a whole and not to pursue sectional
interest, and the employees have a right to be consulted and kept informed.
Behavioral Traits of KTG Leadership
A trait is a physical or psychological characteristic that
accounts for the behavior of a person. Trait theories grew out of qualities
found in great or well known natural leaders, whom it was thought were born
with leadership qualities. It was later considered that if traits of natural
leaders were identified it would be possible for others to acquire them through
learning and experience.
Social psychologists were interested in leadership as an
aspect of behavior in the workplace and not just in personal characteristics.
There are studies led by Padilla, J and Chan, M. (2010) and both concluded that
there were two principal aspects of leader behavior:
·
A concern of people
·
A concern for production
These studies led to the development of matrix to depict
managerial leadership styles. This was created by R. Blake and J. Mouton and
called “ The Managerial Grid”
R. Tannenbaum and W. Schmidt (2008) found that managers were
often uncertain to handle specific types of problem. In particular, to
distinguish between the types of problem they should handle themselves and
those that should be resolved with their subordinates.
They concluded that in making an appropriate choice of how
autocratic or democratic to be, a manager needed to consider three sets of
issues:
1.
Personal concern- managers had to consider their
own values, their inclinations toward leadership, and the level of confidence
they had in their subordinates.
2.
Subordinate Concerns –managers had to consider
their subordinates’ needs for responsibility and independence, their knowledge
and interest of the problem , and the amount they desired to be involved in
solving problems.
3.
Concern for the situation- this included concern
for the nature of the problem, the competence of the group in handling the
problem, the time available and the type and history of the organization.
They suggested a continuum of possible leadership behavior
which is available to a manager, along which may be placed various styles of
leadership. At one extreme, leadership was born-centered (or authoritarian) and
at the other extreme, leadership was subordinating centered (or democratic). The
continuum therefore, represents a range of action which relates to the degree
of authority used by a manager and the area of freedom available to
subordinates in arriving at decisions.
In order for KTG to be successful, coordination must not be
directed in an autocratic manner, but rather encouraged in a democratic manner,
everyone participating in a unified way. It operates vertically as well as
horizontally and should be affected at the most appropriate time . In addition
to these points , Mary Parker Follett suggested three more factors of effective
of coordination:
·
By direct contact between the person immediately
concerned
·
It must commence at the earliest stages of
planning and policy making
·
It must be a continuous process
It is apparent that everyone is influenced by their colleagues
and by the total environment: coordination will be easier to achieve if they
understand each other’s jobs and they will compromise more if information is
exchanged. The ideal is for arrangements for coordination to be such that
problems can be anticipated and therefore more easily prevented.
As previously stated, coordination exists horizontally and
vertically, and it is essential for authority and responsibility to be clearly
delegated so that department heads know the limits of permissible behavior. It
can be appreciated that as more functions are self contained the number of
organizational relationships will be reduced and less cooperation will be
required.
If authority overlaps, coordination generally will be more difficult;
but this may be permissible in some cases especially if the objectives of each
department concerned were different.
Motivation
A large part of a manager’s task is getting things done
through people; he must therefore try to understand people’s motivation. This
aspect of management element of direction is concerned with inducing people to
work to the best of their ability. All aspect of motivation of employees cannot
be provided by management as other influences occur outside the working
environment, e.g. community and family pressures. Motivations refers to the way
urges, aspirations, drives and needs of human beings direct or control or
explain their behavior. It may simply be described as keenness for a particular
pattern of behavior.
It is worthwhile taking a closer look at theories of
motivation and one approach which is widely known by managers is clearly set
out by Abraham Maslow in his book “Motivation and Personality (1970) end Harper
& Row). Maslow theory of motivation claims that human motives develop in
sequence according to five levels of need. This theory needs follow the
sequence and when need is satisfied it decreases in strength and the higher
need then dominates behavior. This leads to the statement that a satisfied need
is not a motivator. There is a doubt whether this really applies in practice to
the higher needs as it likely that self esteem requires continual stimulation
and renewal.
It was not until FV Hertzberg in his book Work and the
Nature of Man(1968, Staples Press) presented his two factor theory of motivation
that differences between higher and lower needs were elaborated. Here again the
outcomes related to satisfaction (satisfiers or
motivators) are those stemming from the intrinsic content of the job
(e.g. recognition and responsibility, meaning and challenge) –these satisfy the
higher needs; factors which create dissatisfaction (dissatisfiers or hygiene
factors) stem from extrinsic job context (e.g. working conditions, pay,
supervision)- these satisfy lower needs. An important point in the theory is
that as dissatisfaction stems from lower needs not being satisfied, when these
are satisfied, this only removes dissatisfaction, and does not increase
satisfaction. If hygiene factors did not reach a certain standard (e.g. salary,
working conditions, job security, poor supervision) they felt bad about their
jobs, and were unhappy. Positive motivation and a feeling of well being could
only be achieved, not by improving genuine motivators such as recognition,
achievement, responsibility, advancement and the work itself.
Another approach recognizes that people will act only when
they have a reasonable expectation that their actions will lead to the desired
goals. They will perform better if they believe that money will follow
effective performance, so if money has a positive value for an individual,
higher performance will follow. This is called Expectancy Theory which places
emphasis on performance noting that there must be clearly recognized goal and
relationship between performance and outcome
Communication
It has been said that management is concerned with the way
jobs are done through people. Communication therefore is the means whereby
people in an organization exchange information regarding the operations of KTG.
It is the interchange of ideas, facts and emotions by two or more person by the use of words, letters and
symbols.
KTG requires good communication but it is particularly
important in directing and will be treated for convenience. It is widely
considered that the organizing element of management should concern itself with
the system and environment within which communication functions. Management of
the communication process requires not only attention to the media of
communications, but to the personal interrelationships of people in the
organization.
Chester Barnard (2009) stressed the need for communication
to occupy a central place in organization theory because the structure,
extensiveness and scope of organization are almost entirely determined by
communication techniques. Communication can be regarded as the foundation upon
which organization and administration must be built. Barnard again stressed
that the first executive function is to develop and maintain a system of
communication.
Communication is a process which links various parts of a
system and problem of communication have been divided into three aspects:
1.
The technical problems of how accurately the
symbols can be transmitted.
2.
The semantic problem of how precisely the
symbols convey the desired meaning.
3.
The effectiveness problem of how effectively the
received meaning affects conduct in the desired way.
Cybernetics has helped to answer problems in group 1 above. Information
theory is the quantitative measure of the amount of order in a system. If the
properties of a system are known , the maximum rate at which a communication
system can transmit information can be calculated. The more probable a message
is, the less information it gives and the more uncertain a situation is, then
the more information is needed to describe it completely.
As far as group 2 above is concerned –that is the meaning a
message has to the receiver – a person may say one thing but may hear something
different, even though the same words were sent and received. A manager must
try and check whether the meaning of the communication has been understood.
In group 3 above, it is usually found that the more direct
the communication, the more effective it is. The more levels of organization it
passes through effects the action that is eventually taken. So the problem is
really to consider how the receiver actually accepts the communication. It
depends upon his needs, past experience, the completely of phrases used, the
distinction between facts and opinions and the environment in which the
communication takes place.
Formal communications are planned to meet the specific
requirements of an organization, but informal communications are very
important. One informal channel is the
grapevine where rumor passes quickly around. It is not an accurate method, but
can be used to the advantage of management at times. It can be considered to
serve the social needs of individuals in the organization.
Recommendation and Conclusion:
KTG must have an understanding of leadership is important
for various reasons:
·
Leadership binds a working group together and
assists KTG management , enabling an enterprise to perform successfully.
·
Good leadership sets the tone of an enterprise’s
culture and creates a climate in which personal growth is encouraged.
·
If KTG managers assume their subordinates are
lazy , uncooperative and need to be controlled, they will treat them accordingly
(Theory X), but if they assume subordinates are hardworking , friendly, and
cooperative they will treat them quite differently (Theory Y).
KTG must identify that communication is important for a
number of reasons:
·
The success of KTG depends upon it in
formulating and implementing plans and achieving enterprise objectives
·
It forms the basis of successfully introducing
change
·
An understanding of the process and barriers to
communications should lead to more effective management.
·
It is vital element in external enterprise
relations.
People must be attracted or motivated (a) to join an
enterprise and remain with it, (b) to exert sufficient energy and effort at an
acceptable rate and (c) to maintain and develop the human resources of the
enterprise.
For KTG managers to motivate subordinates, they must create
a working environment in which their employees can understand how the
achievement of organizational goals will simultaneously satisfy a range of
their own personal needs.
References:
Ansoff H.I. Business Strategy , Penguin (1987), pp101-103
Abraham Maslow in his book “Motivation and Personality
(1970) (edn) Penguin/ Harper and Row, pp89-91
Chester Barnard
(2009); The Value Based Leader, in Chowdhury. S (edn) Management 21C, Financial
Times Prentice Hall, pp56-68
Bass, M (2010), Strategy in Action, Manager, The British
Journal of Administrative Management, April 2010, pp 235-237
Douglas McGregor (Human Side of Enterprise)Penguin, (1987),
pp55
Drucker P.F. Managing for Results, Heinemann
Professional (1989) pp90-92
Crainer, K, 2008,
Exploring Corporate Strategy, seventh edition, Financial Times Prentice Hall
(2008)
FV Hertzberg in his
book Work and the Nature of Man(1968, Staples Press)
Padilla, J 2010 and
Chan, M. 2019, Strategic Management, 2nd edition, Prentice Hall
(2010), pp176-179
R. Tannenbaum and W. Schmidt 2008; Organizing and Mastering
Works, 2nd edition Financial Times Prentice Hall, pp 45-46
R. Blake and J. Mouton(2009) Organization: Contemporary
Principles and Practice, Blackwell Publishing (2009), pp90-91
