Leadership at Mountain West Health Plans Inc - Coursework Example

BAM work INTRODUCTION Mountain West Health Plans Inc. is a healthcare insurance company located in Denver. The business is known for its ever-increasing cost of its customer service unit which is a labor intensive unit. There were many issues that were being faced by Martin Quinn the senior vice president for operations and service in Mountain West Health Plans Inc. However, the main problem is predicted to have risen after the retirement of the former director of the company. With reference to the mentioned case study organization i.e. Mountain West Health Plans Inc., the two identified leaders are Evelyn Gustafson and Erik Rasmussen (Daft 516-517). Evelyn Gustafson was the former director of customer service who had successfully achieved a distinctive position from a customer service representative position. Gustafson was considered to be an effective leader within the organization as she was mainly involved in the implementation of short-term and long-term strategies that has helped the organization in improving the efficiency of the human resources within the workplace (Daft 516-517). Erik Rasmussen is a young man measured to be in late twenties with a bachelor’s degree in business administration. It was viewed that after the recruitment of Rasmussen as the new director, he increased the number of calls per hour that each representative would address with the prime motive of bringing the operational cost under control. However, it was later found that the performance of the representatives became inefficient and no proper training was provided to them (Daft 516-517). THESIS STATEMENT The main aim of report is to provide a detailed analysis of the leadership style that both Gustafson and Rasmussen adapted to meet the organizational goals. The report would also intend to reveal the strengths and weaknesses of both the leadership style, along with providing recommendations that would help Rasmussen to implement a better leadership approach within the organization. 2. ANALYSIS OF LEADER’S LEADERSHIP STYLE Leadership style is considered to be the way through which a leader provides direction, implements plan and motivates subordinates that help them to achieve the organizational goals efficiently and effectively. There exist various forms of leadership style which mainly depend on the way a leader wants to achieve the pre-set goals and objectives. 2.1 ANALYSIS OF EVELYN GUSTAFSON’S LEADERSHIP STYLE With reference to the case study, it can be viewed that Gustafson mainly focused on achieving the organizational goals through establishment of coordinated relationship with the subordinates. The leadership style that can be identified in her leadership approach is relation oriented leadership style. Relation oriented leadership style mainly focuses on supporting, motivating and uniting the team as one individual. This style of leadership tends to encourage good team work and collaboration through the establishment of mutual relation amid the team members. It is also determined that this form of leadership style highlights the welfare of every individual working in a group. Additionally, it is has been viewed that leaders who adopt this form of leadership style also implement strategies that help them in meeting the individual needs (Daft 516-517; Schmid 179-194). With reference to the above stated leadership approach, it can be viewed that Gustafson focused on training that not only helped in developing the skills of the representatives but also provided them with frequent breaks which in turn motivated them to perform better. Additionally, it was also viewed that Gustafson implemented steps to mitigate the problem that aroused during their course of work and provided flexible working schedule for the subordinates (Daft 516-517; Schmid 179-194). Considering the aspect of success or failure, it can be stated that Gustafson can be termed as a failure in terms of meeting the organization goals. It was viewed that the cost involved in training the employee was considerably high. Although the turnover ratio was low which provided ample opportunity for the organization to provide a seamless performance however the aim of decreasing cost within the department was not met (Daft 516-517; Schmid 179-194). 2.2 ANALYSIS OF ERIK RASMUSSEN’S LEADERSHIP STYLE With respect to the various leadership theories, it can be stated that Rasmussen adapted task oriented leadership approach. It is a form of leadership where the leaders mainly focus on implementing strategies that would help in getting the task done within a speculated time. These types of leaders are viewed to be less concerned to hear opinions from the team members and have no time to discuss for alternative course of work that would help in attaining the goal more easily (Columbia University 472-510; Daft 516-517). In accordance with the case study, it can be viewed that Rasmussen mainly concentrated on meeting the organizational goals through increasing efficiency and decreasing cost. However, it was viewed that with the motive of attaining the new goals Rasmussen increased the number of calls per hour and installed automated work schedule that helped in measuring the performance of the employees which was done for the first time in the company’s history (Columbia University 472-510; Daft 516-517). After Rasmussen became the new director, it was viewed that the employees maintained an efficient scheduling and also maintained a clear performance standard. Furthermore, it was also determined that the calls per hour increased dramatically and the customers spent less time on hold which resulted in decreasing the department cost to a great level. Although it was viewed that the department’s morale was subsiding and the overall turnover rate increased to 30%, however, the aim of decreasing the cost within the department was met to a great extent which was the main objective of Quinn (Columbia University 472-510; Daft 516-517). 3. EVALUATE LEADER’S LEADERSHIP STYLE There exist various forms of leadership style and the adoption of those depends on a leader’s way of dealing with his/her subordinates in order to fulfill the desired goals and objectives of an organization. An evaluation of both Evelyn’s and Erik’s leadership style is provided hereunder: 3.1 EVALUATE POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE POINTS OF EVELYN’S LEADERSHIP The positive points under Evelyn’s leadership are stated hereunder: Considering Evelyn’s leadership style i.e. relation oriented leadership style, it can be viewed that she mainly focused on providing frequent training that facilitated in updating the skills of the employees. Moreover, feedbacks where asked from the employees that aided in maintaining a coordinated relation amid the management and the employees. Furthermore, the aspect of providing flexible working hour helped the customers to get the right information (Udovic, “Mountain West Health Plans, Inc.”). The negative points related to Evelyn’s leadership are stated hereunder: Under the leadership of Evelyn, the aspect of providing frequent training increased the overall cost within the department. Moreover, providing flexible working hours resulted in increasing long waiting hours for the customers who called for asking information relating to the different insurance plans that were provided by the organization. According to Quinn, the leadership style that Evelyn adopted was incorrect as under her leadership Quinn heard that the length of time customers spend on hold was considerably high. However, it can be stated that the main aim of the department was to provide necessary information to their customers which was not fulfilled (Udovic, “Mountain West Health Plans, Inc.”). 3.2 EVALUATE POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE POINTS OF ERIK’S LEADERSHIP The positive points related to Erik’s leadership are stated hereunder: Considering Erik leadership style i.e. task oriented leadership approach, the positive facet of Erik’s approach can be considered as the strategy of uplifting the practice of providing training to the employees at a continuous interval. This has resulted in decreasing cost within the department. Additionally, the implementation of surveillance has also facilitated the management in keeping a track on the performance of the representatives thereby improving the performance of the organization (Udovic, “Mountain West Health Plans, Inc.”). The negative points of Erik’s leadership are stated hereunder: The negative aspect that can be viewed under Erik’s leadership is that ceasing the practice of providing training to the employees had caused a decrease in their performance to a great extent thereby affecting the turnover rate of the organization (Udovic, “Mountain West Health Plans, Inc.”). 4. CLARIFY VIEWPOINT AND PROVIDE MY FURTHER RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE BUSINESS It has been viewed that both Evelyn and Erik had their own leadership styles to achieve the organizational goals. However, on close analysis, it has been viewed that both the leadership styles were incomplete in their own way. If one approach provided an opportunity to flourish or improve the performance of the employees, the other brought in new challenges. Therefore, considering both the negative and positive aspects of the mentioned leadership style, adapting democratic form of leadership would be the best option with regard to the current situation. The main reason behind suggesting the adaption of democratic leadership style is that it not only provides an opportunity to bring changes that help in maintaining a coordinated relation amid the employees and the management but also offers an opportunity for the employees to take active participation in any decision making policy which signifies an equal opportunity for every employee (Gastil 953-975). 5. CONCLUSION The adoption of appropriate leadership style is very essential for every leader in any association as it not only facilitates in establishing a coordinated working environment but also aids in achieving the organizational goal efficiently. With reference to the above mentioned discussion, it can be viewed that Evelyn who was an ex-director of Mountain West Health Plans Inc. followed a relation oriented leadership style which resulted in failure in achieving the organization goals and also increased the cost of operations to a great extent. Whereas, Erik who had been recruited as the current director mainly focused on reducing the cost within the organization by increasing the call rate for the representatives which resulted in decreasing the performance of the employees and increased the turnover rate. Thus, it can be concluded that if Erik would adapt the democratic form of leadership approach the issues that has arisen would be mitigated to a great extent. Additionally, the company would also be able to maintain a low turnover rate along with efficient performance by the employees. Works Cited Columbia University. “Task-versus Relations-Oriented Leadership.” Leadership and Management (n.d.): 472-510. Print. Daft, Richard, L. Management. The United States: Cengage Learning. 2007.3 Print. Gastil, John. “A Definition and Illustration of Democratic Leadership.” Human Relations 47.8 (1994): 953-975. Schmid, Hillel. “Leadership Styles and Leadership Change in Human and Community Service Organizations.” Wiley Periodicals, Inc. 17.2 (2006): 179-194. Print. Udovic, Tadej. Mountain West Health Plans, Inc. 2011. Web. 14 Nov. 2013. Read More