Coach K and Coach Knight - Differences and Similarities between the Two Coaches - Essay Example

Organizational Behavior Introduction There are many issues within an organization that managers have to handle. The ability of managers to deal with the issues affecting an organization depends on their style of management. A management style refers to a leadership method that a manager employs whenever he or she is making decisions in an organization. Some manager are autocratic in their management style while others tend to be permissive. Autocratic managers make decisions on their own without having to consult their subordinates. On the other hand, permissive managers give their subordinates an opportunity to be involved in the decision making process. This paper will compare and contrast Coach K and Coach Knight by discussing the differences and similarities between the two coaches. Moreover, the paper will highlight the assumptions that the coaches make with regard to the issues of motivation, nature, as well as management. The paper also describes a situation when I was motivated by a manager and the strategies that the managers used in order to become effective. Discussion #1 The leadership style of Coach Knight was demanding in that he expected the players to be at their best all the time. He was passionate about excellence in the game and this could be exemplified by the numerous awards he earned as a coach. Knight was obsessed with victory and wanted to win all the games that his team played. Moreover, he insisted on preparation and hard work from his team since he knew this would enable them win many titles in the basketball game. The leadership style of Knight was also based on discipline and resilience from the players. With regard to discipline, Knight always emphasized that players should put their best in what they did at all times and become successful, both in training and during tournaments. As a result of his emphasis on discipline, Knight rarely had some players he considered favorite. Every player had to be disciplined no matter how good they were at the game (Snook 1). Snook, Scott. Coach Knight: The Will to Win. New York: Harvard Business School, 2005. Print. Knight never tolerated lazy players and he always chased them from practice when they did not show hard work in the pitch. He sanctioned the non-hardworking players by threatening to drop them out of the team, or even deny them scholarships. Knight’s style of leadership was also based on commitment to see the students learn the basketball game and at the same time become perfect players. From the above assessment, it is clear that the leadership style that Knight employed was a combination of autocratic and democratic leadership. As an autocratic leader, he never gave a chance to failures and emphasized on perfection. Being a democratic leader, Knight always engaged his players in conversations and this explains why most of his players went on to become good coaches upon graduating from the University. In addition, most of the players he coached described him as a guy who was not tough (Snook 1). Snook, Scott. Coach Knight: The Will to Win. New York: Harvard Business School, 2005. Print. On his side, Coach K was a democratic manager whose interest was the success of the entire team without dictating the rules. Based on his coaching philosophy, Coach K was always determined to see the entire team win games. This is why he emphasized that the players work as a team and avoid doing things that will be detrimental to themselves and the team. According to him, if the players did something that was detrimental to themselves, then it would affect the entire program and the University. He is a flexible leader who is dynamic and can adjust to the needs of the players. Although Coach K did not set many rules, he kept on telling his players that they had to be disciplined. His perception of discipline was based on the players’ ability to do their best in what they were doing (Snook et al 4). Snook Scott, Perlow Leslie, Delacey Brian. Coach K; A Matter of the Heart. New York: Harvard Business School, 2005. Print. In order to ensure that the players were disciplined, Coach K ensured that he invested in skills and drills that kept the players alert at all times. Most of the times, players used to watch films about the game of basketball. In addition, he spent time with his players in order to understand them and know their weaknesses and strengths. By understanding the players, Coach K was able to help them improve their game and at the same time solve possible conflicts between the players. His leadership style can also be exemplified by his communication with the players during training sessions. Unlike most coaches who use a whistle to communicate with players, the coach’s approach was personal and based on face to face communication. This enabled the coach to assess the feelings, attitudes, as well as emotions of the players. Personal communication with the players was vital since it created trust in the coach and enabled the coach to build confidence of the players. A strong relationship with the players was beneficial to the team since, most of the times, there were no disagreements or constant arguments between the coach and players (Snook et al 5). Snook Scott, Perlow Leslie, Delacey Brian. Coach K; A Matter of the Heart. New York: Harvard Business School, 2005. Print. From the leadership style of Coach K and Coach Knight, it is evident that there are similarities and differences in their styles. The difference emerges from the autocratic nature of leadership employed by Coach Knight while Coach K is democratic. The similarities can be seen from the emphasis of both leaders on discipline. Both Coach K and Coach Knight acknowledge that discipline is a key to success in any team. This is why they do not tolerate undisciplined players. The coaches have developed a systematic way in which they approach the issues of motivation, human nature, as well as management (Bratton et al 190). Coach Knight acknowledges that when it comes to management, a manager can play many roles. According to Knight, a coach has to make himself or herself into many different things when dealing with players. This way, players become motivated and are encouraged to work hard and succeed in the game. Coach K was always interested in understanding the players in order to know their nature and behavior. This implies that he understands the attitudes of the people being managed affects the success of a manager. Since people are of different nature, it is essential to understand them and adjust one’s behavior based on the conduct of those being governed. Coach K does not like to yell at all times when communicating with players. He understands that not all players would like to be yelled at during training sessions. Based on the behavior of this coach, it is evident that successful managers should learn to be polite when coordinating teams within an organization. A good relationship with the team members motivates them to work hard and achieve the set targets (Snook et al 7). Snook Scott, Perlow Leslie, Delacey Brian. Coach K; A Matter of the Heart. New York: Harvard Business School, 2005. Print. #2 In my own opinion, the most effective coach among the two is Coach K. From his achievements and relationship with the players, it is evident that Coach K has achieved tremendously. He also encourages the players to interact with one another and improve their skills. Coach K is effective in addressing conflicts between the players. Apart from interacting with players on a personal basis, he also strives to understand whether there is any issue between the players. He has numerous achievements and this is why he is appointed to serve in other capacities rather than being only a coach. Coach Knight is autocratic in his approach and relationship with players. There is little room for the team to interact with the coach and engage him in a discussion. He even threatens the players with withdrawal of scholarships and this instills fear in the players (Snook 3). Snook, Scott. Coach Knight: The Will to Win. New York: Harvard Business School, 2005. Print. The two Coaches (Coach K and Coach Knight) can be hired under different circumstances. Coach Knight can be hired in a situation where a team is not hard working and there are many challenges that threaten the success and growth of such a team. When a team comprises of jokers, there is a necessity to hire a manager who is dictatorial. If Coach Knight is hired to lead a team that comprises of lazy persons, there is a possibility that such a team will excel. On the other hand, Coach K is appropriate for a team that is determined to succeed and comprises of members who are ready to interact with their manager. Since he is friendly manager, he can be successful when working with a team that is already established and there is unity among team members. Moreover, Coach K can be an appropriate manager when a new team is being formed. New teams that have just been established need a manager who will help them rise until they become competent. For such teams, managers should encourage them through personal interactions (Snook 4). Snook, Scott. Coach Knight: The Will to Win. New York: Harvard Business School, 2005. Print. #3 In my life, I have gone through a lot of experiences, some of which have been pleasant while others have not been good. As a student, I have always been encouraged to work hard and perform in my classwork as this is the only way I can succeed in life. There was a time I was motivated to perform to my best. I was in high school then and I never used to perform well in class. However, my teacher saw the potential in me and decided to motivate me and make me pass my exams. The teacher was effective in motivating me; when I finished my high school studies, I scored a good grade that earned me a place at the University. There are several reasons why my teacher was effective in motivating me. One of the reasons why he was effective is because he realized my strengths and weaknesses and encouraged me to focus on my strengths. In addition, my teacher taught me how to deal with some of the weaknesses that were affecting my grades. As a mentor, the teacher helped me to set targets and decide the marks I wanted to achieve in every subject. I had no other choice but to work extra hard and achieve these targets. He also helped me realize the weaknesses that were affecting my academic performance. After realizing my weaknesses, I developed strategies to study the subjects that I performed poorly. The teacher was also effective because he followed up with me to ensure that I applied the strategies that would improve my performance in class. During the follow-ups, he could always correct me to ensure that I am in the right direction. #4 Apart from being motivated, there was a time I motivated someone else to perform well and they eventually became successful in what they were doing. My younger brother, who is an engineering student, wanted to undertake a business course in the University, but I motivated him to pursue engineering. As an engineer, I convinced him that there are many opportunities and rewards when one studies engineering in the University. To become effective, I pointed out to him the job opportunities that are available to engineering students. Since not many students study engineering, I convinced my brother that engineering graduates do not stay for long without getting jobs. With such an assurance, he became motivated that engineering was better than business and he had no other choice but to study it. Being an engineer, I encouraged my brother to pursue engineering and mentored him while at the same time I acted as tutor. Since engineering is a technical subject, there were times he faced challenges in dealing with some of the technical issues in this course. However, with time, he improved since I used to monitor his progress and help him address some of the difficulties he could encounter. I also explained to him the rate at which the field of engineering is advancing. This way, he managed to understand that there are many chances of career growth. My effectiveness in motivating my brother was also based on suggesting to him appropriate learning strategies that could help him excel academically as an engineering student. #5 As a students who is studying a course related to human relations, I have some assumptions about the issues of motivation, human nature and management. When it comes to motivation, I believe that performance is greatly affected by motivation. Employees should be motivated in order to ensure that they perform their duties competently in the workplace. Motivation of employees involves giving them incentives such as promotion, increasing their salaries, as well as giving them bonuses when they perform well. Motivation of employees can also be done through taking employees for holidays and vacations (Bratton et al 190). This gives them time to rest and have fun as compared to being in the workplace all the time. Moreover, there is a need to appraise the performance of employees through regular performance appraisals. My assumption about motivation is that there has to be several factors that motivate an employee. Employees cannot be motivated by a single aspect; rather, employers should apply several measures in orders to motivate employees and ensure that they do their best. Motivation is related to the strategic plans of an organization. Therefore, when managers possess the knowledge of what motivates employees, they can use such strategies to ensure that the objectives of the organization are achieved (Bratton et al 191). Human nature varies from one person to the other. I hold the assumption that human nature is determined by the situation in which a person finds himself or herself, as well as their behavior. Humans tend to vary and the behavior exhibited by one person is different from the behavior exhibited by another. Therefore, managers should understand that employees are not the same and the diversity in the conduct of the employees is what drives success in an organization. Managers should learn to accommodate the behavior of all employees and understand that employees cannot behave the same. It is essential to acknowledge the diversity in the behavior of employees (Ogunyemi 4). From my experience, knowledge, skills, and expertise, I believe that management should be all-inclusive and include the input of all employees within an organization. The role of management should be performed at every level. Therefore, managers should include all employees in the decision making process. No employee should be left out as every employee has something to offer. My assumption of management is that managers should understand the behavior of employees. Employee behavior is essential in determining how competent an employee will execute his or her role. I also hold the assumption that management coordinates many roles within an organization. For example, it is the role of the manager to coordinate decision making and the implementation of the decisions in an organization (Ogunyemi 5). Conclusion Issues within an organization are handled by managers who have to apply their management styles in addressing these issues. Managers can choose to either employ an autocratic or democratic style of leadership. Coach Knight is a perfect example of an autocratic leader who also employs democratic strategies. Coach K is a democratic leader who engages his team while making decisions and communicates with them at a personal level. Managers can motivate employees by offering bonuses to workers who perform well and involving employees in the decision making process. Works Cited Bratton, John et al. Work and Organizational behavior. Washington, D.C: Palgrave Macmillan, 2010. Print. Ogunyemi, Kemi. Responsible Management: Understanding Human Nature, Ethics, and Sustainability. New York: Business Expert Press, 2013. Print. https://books.google.com/books?isbn=1606495046 Snook Scott, Perlow Leslie, Delacey Brian. Coach K; A Matter of the Heart. New York: Harvard Business School, 2005. Print. Snook, Scott. Coach Knight: The Will to Win. New York: Harvard Business School, 2005. Print. Read More