Effect of Communication and Leadership of Senior and Middle Managers on Employee Performance - Assignment Example

Effect of Communication and Leadership of Senior and Middle Managers on Employee performance and satisfaction of an organization Introduction This study is completely focused towards how communication and leadership styles of senior and middle managers affect the performance of the employees of an organization. Poor internal communication and leadership style of both the categories of managers lead to poor performance of the employees. There are chances that the employees get demotivated and their productivity could come down as a result of that. Hence the theme of this study revolves around how communication and leadership styles of senior and middle managers affect employee satisfaction and job performance and also how the relationship of the employees with their managers affect their job performance (Wiley, 2006). In this study four different questions will be answered pertaining to internal communication and leadership along with their effect on employee satisfaction and motivation. 1. What are differences in the communication and leadership style of senior and middle managers in organisations? Both senior and middle managers play a great role in running the business of an organization. Their leadership and communication has direct effect on the motivation and job satisfaction of the employees. However, there are differences in the communication and leadership styles of senior and middle level managers. The middle level managers mainly act as the change agents in the organization. This is an important responsibility as the business environment changes every day and to keep the pace along with the time middle managers need to act accordingly and frame their communication in such a way the message reaches the employees in a constructive and positive manner. The employees feel empowered and motivated to accept the change and act accordingly to take the business to the next level. The middle level managers are mainly the bridge between the employees and all other levels of management leadership (Ober, 2006, Sinickas, 2005 & Sinickas, 2011). Hence this important level of leadership has become a critical field of study. In the ever changing business environment this key role demands that there should be more study centers dedicated to this level of leadership. The relation between the middle managers and the employees play a critical role in influencing the communication between the two entities. The importance of the manager is fundamental to any organization when recognizing the rising disconnection between the workforce and the entire levels of management as a result of inefficient internal process of communication. As a matter of fact the middle level managers and supervisors are regarded as the most trusted communicator more than even the CEO of the organization. In the senior leadership front they are mostly responsible for more of strategic decision making for the benefit of the organization and how the business can be grown. Their focus is towards the strategic use of people as well as other assets of the organization in order to grow the business in a profitable way. The business environment is changing every day and it is important for the senior leadership to use both vertical and diagonal channels of communication in order to communicate to the larger group of the organization (Varbanova, 2013). Their communication generally focused on the organizational direction, support employee knowledge, and underpin relationships and achievements within the organization. The senior or the top level management uses three practices for effective communication – displaying comfort in physical situation, deliver direct clear speeches and presentation and a proper display of influence, interaction and effective communication to all the members of the organization. This kind of communication from the top leadership plays a great role in job performance of the employees as they are aware of the strategic direction of the organization and understand where the company is heading to. This clear communication help them understand their role to be played in this strategic journey, which is again the role of the middle manager to answer any question. 2. What is the perspective of the effect of managers’ communication and leadership style of senior and middle managers and employees to job performance? If there is any change in the organization, it should occur with the participation of the members of the organization. Whether and organization is big or small and profit or non-profit the communication and leadership styles of both middle and senior level mangers play a critical role in the job performances of the employees. With the clear and transparent communication great leaders motivate and inspire their team members to see beyond the current challenges and hurdles that are faced by the organization. The employees look mostly to the communication and leadership of the senior management in order to get a clear picture about where the organization is heading to and what is their future as an employee of the organization. The success of an organization lies in the successful motivation of its employees (Bent and Freathy, 1997). Today the retail industry is undergoing a drastic change and a motivated and enthusiastic workforce has the capacity to weave the success of the firm (Huddieston and Good, 1999). Through clear and transparent communication about the strategic road map and the future plans of the organization the senior leadership can instigate the motivational factor among the employees. They need to keep in mind that motivation is the only key to increase the work performance and productivity. There can be various motivational factors like good salary hike, benefits or education but most importantly recognizing their efforts and hard work is the most important factor. It is the duty of the managers and supervisors, the middle level managers, to recognize the good work of their team members. It has been evident that employees put a great trust on the leadership of their immediate managers or supervisors. Hence it is the duty and responsibility of these managers and supervisors to keep that trust with their effective leadership. Different leaders have different perspective in terms of communication and leadership. However, it needs to keep in mind that every employee in the team is unique and they have different motive to work. Many middle level managers fail to recognize this and struggle to put the workforce on the right track. This is the first perspective that a middle level manager should have in order to create a great team. Transformational leader is the type of leadership that the middle level managers should always display with their team. In this type of leadership the effective communication and motivation help the team to go through the change and create a healthy competitive environment. Transformational leadership exists in four dimensions. These include idealized influence, individualized consideration, inspirational motivation and intellectual stimulation. These dimensions aid the management in adopting the most suitable leadership style that can be implemented within the organization. Inspirational motivation from the middle level managers inspires the employees to align themselves with the objectives and mission of the organization, which make them deliver the desired result for the benefit of the organization. 3. Do senior and middle managers’ communication and leadership style effect on employee satisfaction? This indeed is a big question. The answer is yes – the communication and leadership style do affect employee satisfaction. Job satisfaction for the employees is a widely investigated area. Apart from the communication and leadership styles of the senior and middle level managers it also includes culture and performance of the organization, active participation of the management and organizational commitment. According to study it is seen that the employee get stressed out when they work under a manger who does not support them (Sirkin, 2005). Hence it is imperative for the middle level manager to know how well they can support the staffs in the team so that their idea and style of work can get better every day and they feel motivated. On the other hand if there is any miscommunication or negative leadership from the manager the team gets damaged very badly and it would surely affect the morale of the team as whole. Hence it is mandatory for the leader to remain open and transparent in the communication and share as much as possible updates regarding the company and business with the team to keep them updated. Since the leadership of middle level managers are more towards the transformational one it is seen that in this kind of leadership the manager provides constructive feedback to the employee with open communication, which helps the employees to understand the situation and encourages them to come up with creative ideas in order to overcome the situation. On the other side though the senior leadership does not have a direct effect on the employees day to day work, their clear and transparent communication keep the employees updated about the organization’s goal and strategic road map. This again help the employees to get motivated and they feel satisfied that their work is adding value to the core purpose of the organization. It is mandatory for the senior leaders to understand the vision and mission of the organization. The diverse leadership quality of the senior leaders plays an important role in the success of the organization. Though the leadership quality of the senior leadership does not directly affect the job satisfaction of the employees like the middle level managers but it is good to remain connected with the employees and keep the communication channels open. It is seen that if the employees receive communication and updates from the senior leadership at a regular interval – even though it is not affecting their job functions – the employees remain updated about the progress and future of the organization, which in turn motivates them to deliver more and weave the success story of the organization. It is necessary for the senior leadership to identify the areas where employee dissatisfaction is high and increasing. It is their duty and responsibility put forward corrective actions and the ways to reduce it. In order to provide solutions, the managers have ascertained that overall job satisfaction comprises of both intrinsic and extrinsic job satisfaction. Read More