Transformational Leadership

Below is a list of terms which are relevant to this unit.  Please provide responses in your own words, to fully demonstrate your knowledge and understanding of each term.  You will need to undertake your own research (online, dictionary, relevant books), in addition to reviewing your learning content. 

You should aim to present responses which average 75 words each (to provide sufficient evidence of your understanding).  A minimum of 50 words is required. 

Your responses must be provided as if you were explaining the term to a person who has never heard of it before.  Each submission should (i) average 15 words for each sentence (ii) be grammatically correct, (iii) error free and (iv) be presented in simple English.  (A good tip here is to read all of your text aloud, to check for accuracy and good presentation.  Another tip is to ask another person to proof-read your work, where possible). 

Now, please:  

(i)    Provide a comprehensive definition of each term.  State WHAT the term means within the work place, in the first column.

(ii)   Provide a detailed explanation of the term.  Your explanation must identify WHO, WHEN and WHERE this term would be applied within the work place, in the second column.

(iii)   Provide your own simple example of a situation where the term could be applied within the workplace in the blank row presented. 

Please Note:  Where insufficient words are submitted, your responses will be returned for reworking.

Term

Definition

What does this term mean in the workplace in your own words.

(minimum of 50 words)

Explanation

When, where and who would apply this term in the context of a workplace in your own words (minimum of 50 words). 

An example:

Transformational leader

An example of the type of response to be presented:

This type of leader is a person who uses relevant corporate goals to inspire and motivate their teams or individual.  It is an approach intended to encourage personal development and achievement to the highest of standards.  This approach recognises the different types of workers, work to be performed and standards to be achieved.  As a positive approach, it should result in enabling individuals to establish leadership roles to support and enhance performance at work.

An example of the type of response to be presented:

A transformational leader usually promotes and applies independence.  They have the ability to inspire their co-workers or team members to identify, value and embrace changes.   Within the workforce, this enables a model of behaviour to be consistently observed, and enables all employees to work towards delivering positive work behaviours to a high standard of work.

Example: A manager identifies that a member of his team lacks confidence.  A transformational leadership approach will help the individual to see different ways of working, to improve their performance.  This is to enable them to transition from the way they normally work

Trait theories

Traits can be defined as characteristics belonging to an individual. Trait theories therefore refer to the approach that studies human personality. Measurements of an individual’s personality can be reached by studying habitual patterns of behaviour, thought and emotion. In the work place trait theories are able to explain the behaviour as well as attitudes of the workforce of a particular organization.

Trait theories can be able to explain how and even why individuals work or rather operate in the manner in which they do. Some people tend to be aggressive in service delivery while others are lazy. It is through understanding of trait theories we are able to distinguish why these two people have different behavioural patterns and how they affect their productivity in the workplace.

Example: A human resource officer is trying to put together a team for a project implementation. The human resource officer can be able to do a trait theory analysis that will enable him to distinguish those who are active from those who are lazy. This way he is able to choose the correct people to ensure the project is undertaken efficiently.

Work/life balance

Shows a balance that individuals need between time allocated for work and other aspects of life. Work/life balance can be but not limited to personal interests, family and social or leisure activities.

Work/life balance especially in the works place tries to emphasize on the need for an individual to be able to create a balance between the work place and an individual’s personal life. An individual should be able to maintain aspects such as health so as to be able to be productive even at the work place.

Example: An individual who is working for an organization can be able to join a gym class in order to maintain his or her health. The individual can choose to go to the gym either in the morning before work or after work in an effort to maintain health. In most cases taking gym classes enables one to be able to be productive in the work place as there is a balance between. The two.

Learning styles

These refer to the range of competing and contested theories that aim to account for differences in an individual’s learning. There are almost seven learning styles. In some cases an individual can be able to have the ability to learn through one or more of the several learning styles. They include: visual, aural, verbal, physical, logical, social and solitary.

Learning styles in the work place are important to distinguish so as to know who to delegate the work to and also in how much time the work is going to be done. Visual style involves learning through seeing, verbal is learning through word of mouth, physical is through the use of touch, social involves learning through interactions, solitary involves things learned by an individual through his life, logical learning involves factual.

Example: A training session within an organizations the trainers should be able to use various learning styles: visual, verbal, physical, logical aural, social in order for the employees to get that being taught to them. By distinguishing various methods then one is able to target all the people within the organization. This is mostly because everyone has different capabilities in understanding concepts. Using these various learning styles then employees can use one or more of these to implement objectives of the organization.

Training needs analysis

Identification of the gap between training and the needs of training. This is the first stage in the training process and involves a procedure to determine whether training will address the problem identified

 Training needs analysis is used especially if the workforce are lacking a particular skill so as to advance the organizations goals as well as objectives.

Example:  The rise of technology has made the organization carry out an analysis of whether or not the employees should be trained on how to operate the new technology.

Objectives

These refer to the results that an organization hopes to achieve within a particular time frame and also with the help of available resources. In most times objectives within an organization can be categorized into two: long term objectives and also short term objectives.

Within an organization, it contains the policies that should be implemented. The manner in which these policies are reached can be put in objectives within the organization. Short term objective can be reached within a week and long term objectives can be set to be achieved within a month or at the end of the year.

Example: In almost most organization they have the financial budget for the year. In order for the budget to be implemented therefore the organization needs to come up with objectives so as to achieve the contents within the budget. The objectives will be arranged in order of the time frame that they hope to achieve putting into consideration the resources available to achieve them.

Priority Matrix

This is a time organization software application that is supported on a number of platforms including windows, android and IOS.

A priority matrix can be used in different places of work such as the hotel to know how the booking schedule is and also is institutions such as schools where time is of essence and also managing important tasks

Example: In the airlines there are several priority matrixes used in order to ensure the specific flights that leave at a certain time and also ensure that there is a purpose and boarding of passengers with concern to the environment.

Professional competence

Acting diligently in accordance with applicable, technical standards when performing professional activities or services

Professional competence is important in an organization as it can measure how productive the organization is. A workforce that is professionally competent is more likely to add more input to an organization as compared to a less professionally competent workforce.

Example: During the interview within which the organization was conducting it required that those shortlisted have professional competence which included the experience within which one has within the advertised positions.

Induction

Involves orientation and training of the employer in the organizational culture and showing the inter connection to and among people within the organization.

 Induction involves efforts within an organization to introduce the new employee or even the employees more about the organization. Within an induction period the employees are able to be oriented and they get acquainted to what the organization is all about, its policies as well as objectives.

Example: On the first week of being employed to the organization, the new employees got to go through an induction process that was to familiarize themselves with the organization

Mentoring

This is the passing of knowledge or skills from a more knowledgeable person within that field to another who less knowledgeable both in skill and experience.

Highly experienced and knowledgeable people within an organization are mostly called to teach the new workforce on some of the issues that the organization deals with. Mentoring is important as skills are able to be enhanced within the organization.

Example: Within the induction process of the new employees the organization saw it fit to provide the new employees with mentors who would help them advance their skills and knowledge of the organization

Job rotation

Movement of employees from one job to another within the organization in order to achieve various human resource objectives such as orientation of new members, enhancing career development this is with an aim to prevent boredom within the organization.

Job rotation ensures that everyone adds valuable input in accordance to ones skill within an organization. Job rotation one is able to also advance the already established skills and knowledge one has in a particular sector of the organization. This creates a joint effort from all persons within the organization.

Example: After an year, of working for the organization the employees went through a job rotation, most people having new positions within the organization

Performance

This refers to how the staff within an organization are at work. There are two levels of performances. The high level performance and the low level performance.

Performance can be measured by the level of input the employees decide to put in so as to achieve organizational objectives. The more the level the input the higher the performance level.

Example: The employees have decided to put in more work into achieving the objectives of the organization. The organization is anticipating to achieve high level performance at the end of the year

KPI

Measurable value that demonstrates how defectively a company is achieving key business objectives. This can be done within a specific period of time to measure performance.

This is used to measure how one is improving in a company or even to show how the amount work done by a person in a company this is done with in a period of time to show either consistency or deterioration

Example:

Corporate/business plan

Process used by a business to map on a course of action that will result to revenue growth and increased profits.

Business plans are able to steer the organization in achievement of both long term and short term objectives. Within the business plan matters such as budgeting, workforce the time frame, and resources are captured.

Example: After the last financial year, the organization came up with a corporate plan for the new financial year. Within it they hoped to correct the errors of the previous financial year as well as come up with new objectives.

Formal networks

These refer to collection of firms or organizations with an identity that encourages specialization and dynamics of learning and exploring

Networking is a vital tool used by organizations. Skills and knowledge are passed within these formal networks and this helps an organization to increase its levels of productivity.

Example: The organization has many formal networks with which they work with who provide resources required in ensuring that the organization’s input is always available

Situational leadership

This refers to a method used by a leader where he or she adjusts their style of leadership so as to fit or even develop the level of his employees or rather those trying to be influenced

Leadership styles are important as they are called for during various situations within an organization. A leader is capable of fitting his ideals into how people within the organization are to achieve a particular objective

Example: the organization has a project that required team work. The manager therefore applied situation leadership where he owed his team building skills to ensure that the project was undertaken by all persons within the team.

Transactional leadership

Refers to a leadership style that involves supervision, organization and performance. In this leadership style the leaders promote compliance by employees through rewards or punishments

A transactional leader is able to monitor the progress of the employees by supervising them. The leader then rewards the employees who work hard as well as punishing those who do not meet the needs of the organization.

Example: In as much as the manger used situational leadership to pit together the team, he evaluated the team’s performance by observing how each person adjusted and worked to achieve implementation of the project. At the end of it a a reward was given to the employee who worked most. This is an example of transactional leadership.

Feedback

This is the information that someone or an organization receives from an audience or other parties on how either their product is or how their company is this feedback can either be positive or negative.

This is an important tool in figuring out whether or not the service being offered in an organization is effective as well efficient. The feedback in the provision of a service can either be a positive feedback or a negative feedback.

Example: after selling the service to the customers the organization conducted a research that, was to get the response of the customers in the delivery of how the service was provided. The customers gave a positive response and the organization hoped to advance themselves by use of the feedback given.

Appraisal

This is a formal assessment usually in an organization that tries to rate the performances over a given period of time. Whether weekly annually or even monthly

An appraisal within an organization is needed in order to measure whether the objectives of an organization are being met or not. It also gets to measure the input of employees as well as their behaviour within the organization

Example: At the end of the year the organization has to get an appraisal from the human resource manager to measure how the employees are performing.

Databases

Structured set of data that is held within a computer and that is accessible in various ways

 Data within an organization requires to be stores also within a large system. This data is arranged to meet the needs of the organization and once it is structured is referee to ad a database

Example: The products as well as the number of employees within the organization are stored in the information technology office and they are stored in structured databases.

Modes of learning

Set of guidelines that describe methods required to acquire processes and maintain knowledge.

Within an organization there can be various ways in which it depends in to get knowledge as well as skills to advance itself. The various ways used is what is regarded to as the modes of learning.

Example: The human resource manager during the training sessions had to come up with various modes of learning so as to reach out to most of the employees within the organization.