Ethical Values and Leadership Styles - Assignment Example

Autocratic Leadership Style in the “Sarah Booth Case Study” “Policing has traditionally relied on a militaristic philosophy” (Murray, 2002, p.2) that is autocratic in nature. Senior Officer Sarah Booth demonstrated several of the characteristics of this autocratic style of leadership in attending to a motor vehicle accident on Canterbury Road, Wiley Park. There are several characteristics of the autocratic style of leadership which are outstanding during Senior Officer Booth's performance of duty in this incident. First of this is the “authority linked to rank” (Murray, 2002, p.5). As the senior officer, Booth took charge of the matters swiftly and decidedly. She immediately knew that decisions have to be made and that people need to be contacted. Because of her position, the communication process was swift, flowing from the top to the bottom. She issued orders on a macroscopic standpoint to ensure that things will be carried out in a way that will guarantee the immediate rescue of those injured and the minimal negative consequences to those who were affected by the accident. Second, she required “unquestionable acceptance of directions from a superior rank” (Murray, 2002, p.5). She did not ask for anyone else's initiative on the matter, and ensured that she gave out all orders directly and clearly without relying on the fact that other officers will act on their own. This guaranteed the singular flow of instructions --- from command to execution --- that is crucial especially during emergency situations. This also guaranteed that there will be no conflicting orders, thus avoiding any confusion regarding which order to execute since every instruction came from her. Additionally, while making all the decisions, she did not explain to nor tell anyone about what she was trying to accomplish (Rabinowitz, 2005). ETHICAL VALUES AND LEADERSHIP STYLES 3 Third, she involved “no consultation in decision-making” (Murray, 2002, p.5). She did not waste time by asking for other officers' ideas and inputs. She took the responsibility of issuing out orders with the awareness that should anything go wrong because of her solely-made decisions, she will be the one mainly held accountable (Brower, Lester, Korsgaard, & Dineen, 2009). From the minute she arrived on the scene, she automatically gave orders that will ensure the arrival of an ambulance to rescue the injured and the arrival of a car crew that will assist with the traffic. Upon the arrival of the car crew, she again gave orders on how to direct the traffic before going back to attend to the injured. Never once during this whole incident did she consult other officers on what to do and what to decide on. Appropriate Use of Autocratic Leadership Style as Senior on the Truck It is significant that leaders know the concept of situational leadership to recognize when to adapt a certain leadership style depending on the need and the situation (Baker, 2000). Consequently, “There is absolutely no doubt there are situations in police operations where command and control is critical and that rank based authority is required to give directions free from dissent, equivocation, or debate” (Murray, 202, p.7). A senior person on the truck would definitely encounter several situations where autocratic leadership style is required. The most common of these situations are the following: 1) If the senior has new and untrained followers who still do not have experience in following most procedures and performing most tasks. Police work deals with the law and with ensuring the safety of the surroundings, and it is not advisable to risk these due to the lack of guidance and inexperience of the police. In this situation, it is crucial to ensure that new and untrained individuals adhere strictly to the senior's instructions (Brower, et al., 2009). ETHICAL VALUES AND LEADERSHIP STYLES 4 2) If the senior determines that the situation needs effective supervision through clear and specific instructions and orders. Dangerous situations usually require autocratic leadership style. Here, confusion on which instruction to follow should never happen and everyone else's initiatives cannot be accommodated (Hautala, 2005). 3) If a different leadership style is deemed ineffective. This sometimes happens if the followers are not knowledgeable of the present task. If the senior decides to use the democratic, managerial, or collaborative style, chances of obtaining insightful ideas from the followers are minimal. This could also happen if animosity among the followers is present. Therefore, as Murray states, “every police force/service must have an organisational regime which recognises these situations, and when required, moves into a command and control format” (2002, p.7). 4) If the situation calls for immediate decision-making. Time is limited in emergency situations and the senior cannot go through the longer process of consulting with other officers to determine which steps to follow. Here, the senior should be able to quickly eliminate poor options (Brower, et al., 2009) and choose the one that suits the situation. 5) If coordination with a different office, department or organisation is needed. In such instances, the senior is usually required to issue out the order. Giving freedom to everybody to decide on coordinating with other offices, departments, or organisations could result in several negative issues and confusion (Brower, et al., 2009) especially if a specific group receives contradicting coordination requests from one department. 6) If the senior's authority is challenged by a lower-ranking staff. Allowing a lower-ranking staff to challenge the authority of a senior promotes an environment open to anarchy (Burgess, Fleming, & Marks, 2006). ETHICAL VALUES AND LEADERSHIP STYLES 5 Situational Leadership in Developing Probationary Constables Immediate supervisors are normally the best coaches to new officers, and obviously, a senior officer on a truck will be expected to help develop probationary constables (Baker, 2000). It is then important to determine a situational leadership style that will be most effective for the task. However, there are several factors to consider in deciding this. It is then necessary to just focus on the key variable which is the interaction between the leader and the follower. In order to maximise this interaction, focus should be given on the task that needs to be learned, the relationship between the leader and the follower, and the follower's readiness to perform the task. Consequently, a follower's readiness is the foundation in determining what situational leadership style is effective. Therefore, treatment of each probationary constable should depend on readiness components such as the individual's level of ability and depth of willingness (Baker, 2000). For probationary constables who lack the ability, the senior should use the task behaviour strategy. Task behaviour is the amount of guidance and direction a leader gives (Baker, 2000) and will ensure that adequate details and information are provided to the followers. For probationary constables who lack willingness, the senior should use the relationship behaviour strategy. Relationship behaviour is the “extent to which leaders listen, facilitate, and support” (Baker, 2000, p.77) the followers and will ensure that there is an open and effective line of communication. Since there is no singular way to effectively exercise leadership (Baker, 2000), the senior should be aware that in most cases and in every step of the learning process, the probationary constables will each require a different set and mixture of the task and relationship behaviours. Flexibility is a must. ETHICAL VALUES AND LEADERSHIP STYLES 6 Three Things Learned 1) Autocratic leadership style could provide stability in certain situations. - I can see myself using this style during emergencies since I am confident with my decision-making skills. However, it might still be my last recourse when developing probationary constables since there are several other leadership styles that can be used in developing people. 2) There is a difference between leading and commanding. - In developing probationary constables, commanding will not be enough (Burgess, et al., 2006). As previously stated, there is no singular leadership style that is effective in every situation. An effective leader would know when to use a certain style, and when to modify it (Harvey, et al., 2007). Since being a senior would require me to deal with different individuals with different personalities (Harvey, et al., 2007), I should be flexible enough to use the leadership style that is deemed most effective for the situation or the person. 3) Effective leadership requires a leader's flexibility. - As a senior person on the truck, I plan to use the situational leadership style in developing probationary constables. In old-school training, readiness is always associated with the follower's knowledge and skill levels (Hautala, 2005). I have learned that determination, motivation, commitment, and even confidence are also significant components of one's readiness. This is a crucial information since there had been several occasions when a supposedly very able individual fails to correctly execute a task (Burgess, et al., 2006), and despite numerous repetition of information by the leader, performance still fails (Hautala, 2005). Relationship behaviour strategy could be very useful during such incidents. ETHICAL VALUES AND LEADERSHIP STYLES 7 References Baker, T. (2000). Sergeants and police officers. Effective police leadership (pp.76-89). Flushing, NY: Looseleaf Law Publications. Brower, H., Lester, S., Korsgaard, M., & Dineen, B. (January 01, 2009). A Closer Look at Trust Between Managers and Subordinates: Understanding the Effects of Both Trusting and Being Trusted on Subordinate Outcomes. Journal of Management, 35, 2, 327-347. Burgess, M., Fleming, J., & Marks, M. (December 01, 2006). Thinking Critically about Police Unions in Australia: Internal Democracy and External Responsiveness. Police Practice and Research, 7, 5, 391-409. Harvey, M., Buckley, M., Heames, J., Zinko, R., Brouer, R., & Ferris, G. (January 01, 2007). A Bully as an Archetypal Destructive Leader. Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies, 14, 2, 117-129. Hautala, T. (January 01, 2005). The Effects of Subordinates' Personality on Appraisals of Transformational Leadership. Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies, 11, 4, 84- 92. Murray, J. (2002). Leadership and integrity in policing: The march away from militarism presentation at the third police leadership conference. Managing change through principled leadership, April 10-12, 2002, Vancouver, BC, Canada. Rabinowitz, P, 'Styles of leadership', in Community toolbox, B Berkowitz (ed), University of Kansas. Read More