Laurie Baird
Case Studies 2.1 - 2.2 - 2.3
AIS 4081 Leadership Theory and Practice
January 16, 2013
Case 2.1
Questions:
1)
Based on the information provided about the trait approach in Tables 2.1 and 2.2, if
you were Sandra, whom would you select?
Reading the scenario leaves me with the feeling that if I were Sandra, I would have
mixed feelings. To have available three strong candidates is a blessing and a curse.
However according to the trait table on page 23, she has some tools to help in her decision.
Laying out the candidates - Director of Research
Alexa Smith
 Longtime employee
 Versatile - worked in many departments
 Creative
 Insightful
 Developed and Brought to Market 4 New Products
 Persistent
Kelsey Metts
 5 Year Employee
 Bright
 Harvard MBA - top of class
 Personable
 Social
 Strong Human Relations
 Developed and Brought to Market 2 New Products
Thomas Santiago
 10 Year Employee
 Visionary
 Actively Promotes GLF
 Honest
 Integrity
 Trustworthy
 Fair and Consistent
 Involved in the development of 3 New Product Lines
Information from Sandra's superiors is to improve the overall growth and productivity of
the company. With that in mind, looking at the traits of the above three candidates, I would
first look to the history of product development. According to the above listings Alexa
would be a very strong choice. She has tenure with the company and success in developing
more products AND bringing them to market. All candidates show the traits for leadership,
such as intelligence, persistence, which makes this decision difficult. However, the history
of success for product development helps push Alexa Smith to the top. Seeing that the
position is for Research and Development verifies the choice. With the strong leadership
traits the other two candidates have, one would hope that other areas of the company
would benefit from their strengths and a promotion would be forthcoming.
2)
In what ways is the trait approach helpful in this type of selection?
The trait approach is extremely helpful in any selection process. Having a guideline
such as the trait listing is a tool to use when as you lay out the need and you can work back
and forth. Based on studies, these traits are tried and true for finding leadership ability.
This however, leads into the answer for question #3.
3)
In what ways are the weaknesses of the trait approach highlighted in this case?
All the candidates for the Director of Research showed significant leadership traits.
The listing is minimalized because you are duplicating the results for each candidate.
There is no real "winner" by trait alone. They all have strong and inclusive traits from the
listing. Therefore, that is why I chose the highest success rate for product research AND
development into the market.
Case 2.2
Questions:
1)
How would you describe Carol's leadership traits?
Carol's leadership traits were put to the test in a way I bet she never anticipated. I have
found that people have the traits that are listed on page 23, but if you never have to put
them to the task, they stay dormant. I believe many homemakers fit into this category. So,
Carol is presented with the horrible realization that she must move into the vacancy from
her husband's death. A horrible tragedy pushed her into action. The following traits were
present in Carol:
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Solid Person
Cared Deeply
Fair and Considerate
Supportive
Strong Person
Good and Quality Individual
2) How big a part did Carol's traits play in the expansion of the company?
In this situation, Carol's traits helped leapfrog this small company over the chain retailers
in their community. The persistence and strength showed in all her employees and was
then presented to the community. Carol had the strength to push her ideas of advertising,
sales and service. This obviously was a correct route for this particular company to take.
Carol had the personal ownership to continue to be a guiding factor for the company.
3)
Would Carol be a leader in other business contexts?
This is a very interesting question. If I follow my responses above, one would think
that she was qualified for this situation only. However, as time went on, Carol acquired
many other quality traits that may have worked in other business contexts. I would say at
first - her survival mode kicked in and that was very helpful to her success. After time, she
was creating more and more leadership traits that could have crossed over to other
business ventures. Being a family run business was perfect for her as she was able to
utilize her sons in the progression of leadership.
Case 2.3
Questions:
1)
Based on ideas described in the trait approach, do you think Pat is looking for the right
characteristics in the people he hires?
The situation of employee retention is present in almost all industries today. The younger
generation does not stay with a career like our parents and grandparents did. This could
be part of the recruitment issue versus Pat's processes. However he must adjust and work
toward a solution in order to prove himself to upper management. I would say that his
recruitment process shows strong potential, however he may need to incorporate more
traits in his selection. He may want to add loyalty, cooperativeness, self-monitoring and
problem solving. These traits may add the sense of ownership to one's day-to-day
activities, which then may create a sense of commitment and allegiance to a company.
Finding traits that help people grow may keep the interest up in the employees to lead
them to longer tenures within a company.
2)
Could it be that the retention problem raised by upper management is unrelated to
Pat's recruitment criteria?
I touched briefly on this in question #1. I believe his criteria process could be a
portion of what Pat is up against. However, I do believe there are other reasons behind the
retention problem. The industry may just be a "jumping point" type of career for today's
new hires. That is why to help answer question #3 - YES - I do believe he can change his
criteria just a bit to see if it helps to find employees willing to bring about new ideas and
concepts to make the job more interesting. If it doesn't, he may want to figure out a way to
meet with upper management and see if they might need to change their needs and/or job
succession model.