I believe the need for a shift in leadership from an oligarchy to polyarchy style of leadership is occurring because people are tired of the runaround and investing time and money into something that will eventually fail because of poor decision making. Employees recognize that their upper management does not have a clue, and they know how to capitalize on this ignorance by also pretending not know as well; thus causing many avoidable challenges. If lower level employees do not feel as though they are relevant enough to be called upon when issues surface inside the company then at the end of the day they will not respond as they should, which can eventually lead the company into a collapse. It’s apparent this could be a way for the ‘irrelevant employees’ the opportunity to say “I told you so” and move forward with their expertise knowledge. However, this approach is just as wrong as the upper management ignoring their skills. I learned as a kid growing up ‘two wrongs don’t make a right ‘and this is a great example of why they don’t.
It is quite evident in many organizations that the employees serving in the trenches and on the front lines will typically be more aware of the problems the company is facing, and they usually know from their personal experiences how to fix these problems; however many times their leadership is not calling upon them to discuss the issues at hand. Instead they are researching data from the past trying to connect the patters, but what they fail to understand is technology and approaches have adapted so there isn’t always going to be a pattern that can be identified with the current situations. This charade of a game played between lower and upper level employees of “I don’t know, but you should know” and “I know everything, but secretly I really don’t have a clue” is why companies have become trapped and eventually face closure. Luckily, for the companies paying attention to the poor management approaches they are now able to recognize why these companies are failing and what they can do to prevent from becoming another statistic.
In order to move towards a more polyarchy organization a leader will need to demonstrate this type of behavior because “behavior breeds behavior” according to Obolensky (2010) because from this others will follow suit. Be the example of what you want your employees to do. If I have learned anything from the Leadership program as well as becoming a mother, is that the way you act, react, think, decide, speak, etc is exactly how your children and employees will respond and mimic your behaviors. It is important to be a good example first and foremost because without you showing true leadership skills prior to getting the job will enable you as well as the employees to build a solid foundation for the company to withstand future obstacles ahead.
In my discussion post this week I made the following statement “A good way to start to break the charade is to be the example and make yourself one with the team. If you truly want to succeed drop the titles, not forever, but when working together work as equals. Understandably the hierarchy system will remain nonetheless; a good leader can make their presence known for their qualities not their title. Asking questions to lower level employees is a good way to get to know what they need form you, and it also builds a solid foundation for a trusting relationship to form. Open communication is just one of the many ways a leader can bridge the gap between what they don’t know and what the other employees do know, and once the bridge is built communication will flow up and down creating a polyarchy environment. Another way is to restructure the organization removing older ways of thought and replacing with the new way to lead, the polyarchy way. Putting a leader in charge who can value their employee’s needs and suggestions for change and then making those changes”. These are great ways for a leader to take the initiative to start the process of adapting to a polyarchy approach. Leaders need to empower employees to understand every aspect of their job and the purpose of the company and encourage them to invest within the company’s mission. In doing that the employees will empower their leaders to do the same and this interaction will develop better relationships built on trust and give everyone a better understanding.
In Organization Theory and Design Richard Daft speaks about the importance of empowerment. He states “empowerment is power sharing, the delegation of power or authority to subordinates in an organization. Increasing employee power heightens the motivation for task accomplishment because people improve their own effectiveness, choosing how to do a task and using their creativity” (Daft, 2010). He further goes into three elements that enable this and they are information, knowledge and power. As stated within Obolensky as well as Daft employees need to be an active participant in all processes of the organization because as it is apparent employees are the root from which the company can grow so why not treat them this way?
In my organization we operate from a traditional oligarchy leadership approach, however within my department I work for what I describe as the personification of what a good leader is. My director is supportive, intuitive, intelligent, and receptive, empowers, and has a heart and all the other Yin qualities define by Obolensky in Complex Adaptive leadership (Pg 8). He is the reason I come to work and feel like I am needed, and it’s because he makes sure to recognize all of us as equals and important elements that make up our team.
We are a small team that can accomplish larger than life tasks simply because he is able to empower us and provide us with the key resources we need. He never drops the Director card nor does he ever feel a task is below him. If I need his help calling students back because I am too far behind he will drop all the calls from my voicemail and do whatever he can to help me, help them. He never pushes paper work to us he will always take the lead and make sure he can prevent any unnecessary stresses on an already stressed group. His abilities to operate his department in an polyarchy structured way while we are a part of a polyarchy organization is why I believe he was able to be promoted to his current title. He asks questions and if he doesn’t know he will find out. His door is always opened and our individual input is always wanted. The communication within our department flows up and down and there is always a collective decision made in changing of any processes or procedures. If we make mistakes he only asks us to learn from them and move forward and he is always there for us day or night. This is why I come to work every day and give my blood sweat and tears, and this is exactly the type of leader I hope to one day become.
Obolensky, N. (2010). Complex adaptive leadership. (1st edition.). London, UK: Gower/Ashgate
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Daft, R. (2009). Organization theory and design.
(10th edition.). Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning
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