GBUS817 Managing People in Organizations - Winter 2023
Individual assignment #2
Leadership Self-Assessment
Submitted by : Swati Sabharwal(MHRM)-200479739
Introduction
This assignment paper comprises three parts where the discussion would be around my selfassessment of leadership competencies by examining the results of two tests i.e. Leadership
Personality Questionnaire Behavioural Leadership Style Questionnaire.Part 1 would cover the
answer to the question of my identity of being a leader, followed by Part 2 which would describe
my type of organizational leader aligning with my personality, and finally, Part 3 would explain
the strongest and weakest personality traits linked to the leadership and their impacts.
Part 1: Are you a leader?
A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way(John C. Maxwell).
Considering this quote, I believe that my personality indeed has the balance of characteristics that
match to be an effective leader. What makes an individual stand out as a leader from others is
“situation-specific analysis” and the years of experience working with people operations have truly
imbibed my wisdom to be the ethical one. Working with different individuals ranging from
executive to top-management level has contemplated my persona with traits and behaviors which
are related to leadership emergence and effectiveness. Currently, my personality can be measured
high on self-confidence, building relations with the team members, and assessing situations with
morality. To illustrate, being an entry-level HR associate in the year 2014 my persona was lacking
the skills such as communication, confidence, and alertness. However, over the years with
continuous learning, my personality has evolved today. Accordingly, I am not only enabled to be
an individual with an appropriate balance of the big five personality traits i.e. conscientiousness,
agreeableness, openness to experience, emotional stability, and extraversion but even learned to
be adaptive. The key asset all leaders share, whether young or old, is their adaptive capacity, which
indicates the ability to process new experiences, find their meaning and integrate them into one's
life. My professional journey has enabled me to gather skills and eventually act as a leader who
can provide their expertise, resources, skills, and motivation to and share them with their members
and followers and encourage creativity in organizations, creating a ripple effect (Barsade 2002).
With enriched experience, have built high-performing teams in a range of different companies
from large enterprises to start-ups. This versatility truly shows that my personality is suitable to be
an effective leader.
Part 2: What type of organizational leader would you be?
The results of the “Behavioural Leadership Style Questionnaire” indicates that my personality
owns the High People-Oriented and Low Task-Oriented leadership style. The leading approach of
such individuals is weaved around the behavioral dimensions which are highly influenced by
consideration, participation, enablement, development, and empowerment. Alternatively, the
measurements of being directive, boundary-spanning, and initiating rigid structures would be on
the downside.Evident from the questionnaire outcome that on the one hand, I would be successful
to build strong relationships with the team, listening to them, putting their requirements at first
place and even meeting them but on the contrary the team members may expect changes in task
structures by providing them modified standards of task completion. However, in my viewpoint
overall the functioning of my leadership personality would be in synchronization with the
situational aspects where relationships among the team weighed more than the designated goals.
Apparently, my style of leadership is closely matching to Fiedler’s Contingency Model where the
leader’s style is required to be matched with the situation for productivity and ultimately
achievement of the goals. Though no leadership style is ideal and it depends on the associated
circumstantial aspects, each individual can create their approach to leadership based on situational
favourableness. By that means, it is an extent to which a leader can influence the followers in three
prospects i.e. leader-member relations, task structure, and position power. The extent of leadermember relations depicts at what level followers trust, respect, and have confidence in their leader.
The measure of task structure indicates the degree to which goals are defined and have specific
procedures with expected outcomes. And, finally, the position of power means what level of
authority a leader can exhibit over the followers. Subsequently, the findings of the “Behavioral
Leadership Style Questionnaire” indicates that my approach would be employee-centered and it
indicates that my focus would be more on supporting the followers, facilitating positive
interactions with them, and maintaining mutual trust and respect among them as compared to
scheduling the job activities and closely directing them. This kind of leadership could have
productive results because leaders’ engagement in initiating structure is less. Here, followers are
empowered and enabled to manage their tasks according to their will and zeal by putting trust in
them through their leader. Alternatively, leaders exhibiting high levels of initiating structure may
set higher goals such that they evaluate their subordinates more rigorously (House, 1971)(Choi et
al., 2019 Pg 16).
Furthermore, the situations where my personality displays leadership effectiveness would be a
mixture of task and people orientation. These are the circumstances where the leader and member
relations are good, the tasks are a mixture of repetitiveness and non-repetitiveness and the leader
has the required amount of power on the team. For example, while working in the capacity of
senior manager my approach has always been to have a balance of goal and employee-centric
leading style. Ensuring that my team members have enough control over their designated jobs so
that there is not much need for dominance and there is a sense of mutual trust in a leader-member
setting. Even tasks can be modified accordingly with the mindset of delivering the expected
outcomes. To illustrate, during the annual compliance audit, my team was delegated by me tasks
a month in advance and given complete freedom to make any changes in presenting the
dashboards. By this method, the project was completed with a leading style composed of both
orientations in the name of tasks and people. To encapsulate, my personality would exhibit a side
of an organizational leader who is exercising the wisdom to analyze and act upon situations. Also,
successfully achieving the given goals but retaining harmonious relations with followers.
Part 3: What is your leadership personality?
Leadership personality comprises the big five traits namely, Extraversion, Agreeableness,
Conscientiousness, Emotional Stability (Neuroticism), and Openness to Experience. The overall
ratings on the “Leadership Personality Questionnaire” indicates that my leadership personality is
high on Conscientiousness=35 followed by Emotional Stability (Neuroticism)=31, Openness to
Experience =31, and Extraversion=30.The factor on which I have been marked lowest is
Agreeableness=20.
Strongest personality trait related to leadership
As evident from the results, the strongest personality trait dimensions I carry are conscientiousness,
emotional stability (neuroticism), and openness to experience. Conscientiousness comprises two
related facets: achievement and dependability(Judge et al., 2002 Pg 3) and it indicates that the
individual is reliable, responsible, self-disciplined, and well-organized. Conscientious person
reflects a high degree of moral obligation, which means they value truth and honesty over anything
and completely abide by their duties and responsibilities. Among the big-five traits of personality,
conscientiousness is the most common one to be considered concerning leadership. Conscientious
leaders are dependable, behave consistently, goal and detail oriented and therefore they may be
more likely to communicate clear principles and standards for ethical behavior to their
subordinates (Brown et al2005; Brown & Trevino, 2006; De Hoogh and Den Hartog,
2008)(Özbağ, 2016 Pg 4). From my standpoint, I believe that the dimension of conscientiousness
of my personality will have a constructive impact on the leadership aspect comprised of leader
emergence and leadership effectiveness. Being conscientious reflects that an individual is
organized to a level where he/she can handle the tasks with due diligence. the organizing activities
of conscientious individuals (e.g., note-taking, facilitating processes) may allow such individuals
to quickly emerge as leaders(Judge et al., 2002 Pg 8).To illustrate, in 2020 I was employed with
an organization in the capacity of Manager and was required to complete the onboarding and
orientation of 130 new candidates in 48 hours that too virtually. With a team of five members, I
completed this task without a single escalation and even within the given TAT(Turn Around Time
i.e. 48 hours). Later on, my team was appreciated for the unwinded support and I was awarded the
honor of “Managing Maverick of the year”.This instance indeed reflects that my personality is
highly conscientious which means I am a dependable and responsible individual. Also, I am goal
oriented which ensures to achieve the set targets successfully.
Following conscientiousness, the trait on which my personality scored high is the Emotional
Stability (Neuroticism) and Openness to Experience. Being emotionally stable is the reflection of
the tendency of an individual to be self-confident, secure, and steady in their personality.
Adjustment and self-confidence are indicators of the construct—emotional stability (Hogan,
Curphy, & Hogan, 1994)(Judge et al., 2002 Pg 2).In layman’s words, it's the adjustment of
emotions but in a positive manner and excluding the traits such as negative affectivity. No doubt,
an emotionally stable leader can have effective outcomes in terms of overall performance. This
trait would ensure my productivity even when the situations are stressful and highly challenging
because an ethical leader maintains their calm during threats and thunder. For example,
considering the aforementioned situation where I was accountable to onboard 130 new candidates
that too in 48 hours, such circumstances instill an individual with anxiety and pressure. However,
I dealt with that situation by maintaining a calm and composed demeanor. Divided and delegated
tasks equally to all the team members, gave them ease to do their jobs in the best possible way but
ensured that everything is on track by having short review calls at intervals of five hours. This
condition reflects my ability to have focused control of my emotions and work pragmatically
during demanding times.
In addition to it, Openness to Experience is the personality trait that depicts the disposition to be
imaginative, nonconforming, unconventional, and autonomous(Judge et al., 2002 Pg 3). Basically,
it directly relates to the creativity measure of an individual, and this aspect of the five-factor
personality is directly linked with effective and emergent leaders. By this means, the individual
who is more open to experiencing new things has a higher chance of him/her being a leader with
wisdom. Openness is useful in leading teams as it allows an individual to have divergent thinking
which eventually ensures overall efficiency. For instance, while working as a People Operations
Specialist in a startup I was accountable to propose retention strategies. I discussed the task details
with my team and asked them to put their ideas regarding the same in a google sheet repository.
This exercise of data collection worked constructively because we as a team were able to have
dashboards ready with pie charts and histograms depicting the yearly attrition rate details in a selfexplanatory way. The results eventually brought me recognition as the jumpstart leader of the
quarter. Through this illustration, it is visible that the trait of openness to experience would have a
worthwhile influence on leadership.
Weakest personality trait related to leadership
Furthermore, the “Leadership Personality Questionnaire” depicts that my personality possesses
Extraversion and Agreeableness as the weakest trait dimensions. The aspect of extraversion
represents the tendency to be dominant and sociable. Such individuals are expected to be more
talkative, active, and involved in social settings or groups. An extravert is considered to be high
on zeal and energy as compared to the others who are falling low on this scale. My measure on
this scale is low i.e my personality is introverted and in my standpoint, it is linked in an efficacious
way with leadership. An introverted individual is calm, eremitic, and observant which means they
prefer to be below the radar of people. Besides this, they are effective listeners which is significant
to be an effective leader. An introverted leader is more likely to listen to and process the ideas of
an eager team(Introverts: The best leaders for proactive employees 2010).To illustrate, during my
initial days in a fintech startup, there was a huge stack of employee grievances that were long
pending to be taken care of. To manage this situation I brainchild a campaign named “Ask
Anything to your HR” and this activity worked in favor of employee well-being because I together
with my team listened to the workforce patiently one by one and acted upon the concerns in an
organized way. So, considering this episode my introverted persona and the facet of listening have
resulted in an effective leadership manner.
Underneath the extraversion, my personality has rated lowest on the agreeableness factor.
Agreeableness indicates facets like social harmony and getting along with others. An agreeable
individual is a moderator; which means yielding and collecting and believes in maintaining
relationships modestly. In my viewpoint, this factor is loosely linked with leadership because one
cannot be a moderator and a leader at the same time and for that matter, only organization
structures are being established with hierarchy levels ranging from associate level to middle
management to leadership level. Agreeable individuals are likely to be modest (Goldberg, 1990),
and leaders tend not to be excessively modest (Bass, 1990, p. 70)(Judge et al., 2002 Pg 4).To
exemplify, to complete any particular task in the capacity of a leader, I would need to be agreeable
at a level that is accommodative enough but does not deviate from the track of the designated
goals. And, I acted in the same manner when at one point I was required to structure my team.
Being a less extrovert and agreeable individual can be beneficial to be an effective leader
considering the listening skills and accommodative to a sufficient level. Having said that, there is
room for improvement because leadership is a continuous learning and evolving process. By
gathering more social skills and an agreeable attitude my personality would stand out as an
effective and ethical leader. To encapsulate, my leadership personality is high on the personality
traits which are conscientiousness, emotional stability (neuroticism), and openness to experience.
Being strong with these factors I would lead teams with the mindset which is cautious and
emotionally stable but open to introducing changes in the leading style and inculcating new things
to evolve. On the other hand, being marked low on extraversion and agreeableness would also
have a positive impact on my leadership personality by the strength of listening skills and being
accommodative up to a sufficient level. Howbeit, the scope of improvement exists by enhancing
the skills related to extraversion and agreeableness.
REFERENCES
1.) GBUS817-Individual assignment #2 Leadership Personality Questionnaire
2.) GBUS817-Individual assignment #2 Behavioural Leadership Style Questionnaire
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