COMPARATIVE REPORT

NAME OF STUDENT:
NAME OF INSTITUTE:

1.

How would you define Janes leadership style? Citing relevant theory, discuss
whether this the right type of leader for this task.

In this case, the leadership style of Jane is the autocratic leadership style. It is because company
is centered on the boss and Jane is the only one who holds all the responsibilities and authorities.
Moreover, it can be understood by the case that Jane makes decision on her own and does not
consult the subordinates. According to the case study, Jane reaches to the decision,
communicates these decisions to the subordinates, and expects them to implement the decisions
promptly. In addition, as written in the case study She has a track record of forcing
improvement, and a reputation of being ruthless (even obsessive) about achieving the aims of
organizations, shows that the work environment of FamiliesInc. has little or no flexibility which
is the clear indication of the autocratic work environment.
The autocratic leadership style, which is followed by Jane, suggests that the procedures,
guidelines, leadership, policies, and all the other decisions of the company must be handled by
the upper authority only. Moreover, this style of leadership makes sure that the workers give
what they are expected by the leader. The leader does this by constantly keeping the eye on the
subordinates. In addition, autocratic style of leadership is good for the employees who are not
experienced and need to learn a lot; with the help of this style of leadership, they learn the work
easily (Saloner, G. and Rotemberg, J., 1993). Other than the learning, the autocratic style of
leadership helps the leader in controlling the environment of the company and in maintaining the
situation (Johnson, T. and Eagly, H.A., 1990). The best part about this leadership style is that it is
best for the workers who are demotivated and needs the pressure to work (Maccoby, M., 2000).

On the other hand, the autocratic style of leadership also has many problems and some of them
can be seen in FamiliesInc. This style of leadership plays the negative role for the workers who
are motivated and experienced (Hofstede, G., 1980). This problem is present in the company and
is also evident from the case study which says There are a series of management and leadership
problems at the agency. Some long-standing members of staff feel unhappy and unmotivated
because Jane (unlike the previous manager) is not listening to their problems. Moreover, the
autocratic leadership style also increases the burden on the workers and hence they feel
demotivated which is happening at FamiliesInc.
2.

Taking one of the issues outlined above, explain the issue using two of the
management theories you have covered this year.

Researchers have been working on and trying to find the exact definition for leadership and they
are also trying to make absolute categories depending on the traits. However, they have not been
able to find one particular definition but the leadership can be defined as the behaviors adopted
by the manager or the leader to direct the subordinates and the followers to achieve the desired
goals (Tullai- McGuinness, S., Farag, A.A., and Riggs, J.S., 2011). Most of the people get
confused and use the terms Management and Leadership interchangeably. However, the
management is totally concerned with the Mangers of the company. The Leaders are being
followed by the people whereas; the Managers have the people who work for them (Denison, D.,
1996).
Similar to the leadership theories, there are many management theories that are used by the
managers of the companies. The main issue of FamiliesInc. is that the workers are not satisfied

and they think that are not valued by the company and Jane. Following are two of the
management theories that are used to explain the most important issue of the company:

Human Relations Movement Theory (1930- today):

The Human Relations Movement, as indicated by the name, is concerned about the unique
capabilities of the individuals in the organization. The believers of this theory say that, in order
to prosper, it is important for the workers to proper as well. In other words, the Managers of the
company have to give importance to the workers and show them that they are vital to the
company. When this theory was applied on the organizations, the needs of the workers were
understood and how the harmony can be created between the workers and the managers. The
alignment of the workers and the organization is the basic aim of this theory.
The main issue of FamiliesInc. is that the workers are not aligned with the organization and Jane
as well. As written in the case study, they think that they are not valued by the Director because
she does not listen to their problems. The Human Relations Movement can help the company by
making Jane understanding the importance of the workers and that it is important for the workers
to be fully satisfied if she wants to achieve her goals. To do this, Jane will have to listen to the
problems of the workers and will have to give them possible solutions so that they would feel
that they are being valued.

Contingency Theory:

It is one of the contemporary theories and states that the managers need to take into consideration
all the aspects of current situation and them take the decision. It can be said that this theory is all
about finding the right key to the situation so that it can be used to unlock the door to the

success. Moreover, according to the contingency theory, all the aspects must be taken into
account and these aspects include the workers of the organization. At FamiliesInc., the decisions
are usually taken without consulting to the workers and Jane is the only one who takes them.
However, the workers must also be asked because they are the ones who actually have to be on
the front.
3.

Set out three things that Jane should do to address this issue, linking your solution to
management theories you have covered this year.

As mentioned above, the biggest issue of FamiliesInc. is that the workers are not satisfied with
the Director and think that she does not value them. To solve this issue, Jane may go through the
following steps:

The Human Relation Management Theory is one of the management theories that are
concerned about the relation of the Manager with the workers. So, Jane must try to adopt
the Human Relation Movement theory in the company. After adopting this theory, she
would have to listen to the problems of the workers and discuss with them. When the
Director would do this, the workers are going to feel that they are important and hence
they would be motivated. Moreover, the Human Relation Management theory is aims to
create harmony between the Manager and the workers and this is what the company is

lacking. As a result, the productivity and the efficiency would be increased.

Secondly, the thing which does and it demotivates the workers is that she keeps all the
decision making power to herself. The worst part is that Jane does not involve any other
worker and does not discuss things with them. However, the workers are the one who
actually have to be on the front and deal with the people; hence, they must be asked
whenever the decisions are taken. To do this, the Director has to adopt the contingency
5

theory which is about the consideration of all the aspects while taking the decisions. In

this way, the subordinated will also be involved and they will feel motivated.
The other reason behind the demotivation of the employees is the chaos within the
organization. This chaos is creating barriers between the workers and the Director. In
other words, Jane is unable to listen and to see these employees and their problems as
well. So, she must have to adopt the Chaos Theory which states that systems must expand

4.

more energy to exclude the chaos.

Compare the situation above, or some elements of the situation, to an organization
you know. To what extent would your discussion in parts 1 to 3 help you to resolve
that situation?

The employee satisfaction is one of the biggest aspects of a company that must be maintained in
order to achieve the goals. If the workers are not motivated and satisfied, they are not going to
work according to what they have to and, in the end, it will be the company that will have to ear
all the losses and eventually it will not be able to get what it wants. FamiliesInc. is also dealing
with the same problem and this is the reason that their productivity have been decreased. When
the employee satisfaction of Samsung is checked, it can be seen that their employees are well
motivated. This can be observed from their productivity and the sales they are doing.
The satisfaction level of the workers is very high in Samsung because they conduct different
survey in different time spans. Moreover, this is reason that Samsung Electronics has achieved
the 1st position in NCSI under the supervision of Korea Productivity Center for 8 years in a row,
the 1st position in KCSI by KMAC for 8 years in a row, and the 1st position in KS- SQI of
Korean Standard Association for 4 years consecutively in 2005 (Sheptycki, J. and Bowling, B.,
2012). The surveys help the Samsung Managers in realizing the needs of the workers and they

can also understand where they are lacking behind. In this way, the company can overcome their
weaknesses and give a better environment to their workers.
As far as FamiliesInc. is concerned, the company does not have any policy of conducting the
surveys to assist the employee satisfaction level. This is one of the reasons that they employees
are dissatisfied and the Managers have no idea about it. Moreover, when Jane does not know that
her workers are not happy, who is she going to work on their motivation and satisfaction? So, the
Director must bring the policy of conducting surveys so that the motivation level can be
maintained. In addition, the questionnaires are going to tell the Director that where they are
lacking behind and what are the causes that are demotivating the employees. This is when Jane is
going to realize the workers are not happy with her behavior and she will then have to work on it.
Other than the surveys and the questionnaires, some of the other solutions of managing the
motivation level of the employees have been discussed earlier. These solutions involve the
employment of the Contingency theory, the Human Relation Management theory, and the Chaos
theory (Luthans, F., Morey, R., and Schonberger, R., 1976). These theories are going to deal with
the relationship of the Director and the other Managers with the works and will be making their
relationship better. Moreover, the Chaos and the Systems theories are going to eliminate the
factor of chaos to much extent after which the Managers will be able to listen to the employees.
References
1. Saloner, G. and Rotemberg, J., 1993. Leadership styles. Management Science, 40 (21),
pp. 1399- 1418.
2. Johnson, T. and Eagly, H.A., 1990. Leadership styles and gender: An analysis.
Psychological bulletin, 109 (1), p. 133.

3. Maccoby, M., 2000. Human Side: Understanding the Difference between Leadership and
Management. Research- Technology Management, 32 (2), pp. 44- 60.
4. Hofstede, G., 1980. Motivation, leadership, and organization: Do the American theories
are applicable abroad? Organizational dynamics, 8 ( 2), pp. 32- 53.
5. Tullai- McGuinness, S., Farag, A.A., and Riggs, J.S., 2011. Work environment
characteristics of home health agencies. Western journal of nursing research, 23 (5), pp.
667- 775.
6. Denison, D., 1996. What is the difference between organizational climate and
organizational culture? Academy of management review, 20 (2), pp. 519- 664.
7. Sheptycki, J. and Bowling, B., 2012. Global policing. Sage.
8. Luthans, F., Morey, R., and Schonberger, R., 1976. Introduction to management: A
contingency approach. McGraw- Hill Companies.