Discussion 1:
At my place of employment, our craft manager has informally granted autocratic decision-making authority to one of 5 shop supervisors; this action of leadership delegation has effectively changed the leadership dynamic of our work center and is evident by the behavior of the other supervisors and subordinates. The craft manager has an unusually close relationship with the supervisor I have selected to use in this conundrum. The problem is that both men come from very different professional backgrounds and are at opposite ends of the economic spectrum. The craft manager is a retired Naval officer who is comfortable with both his lifetime achievements and his position while the supervisor in question is hungry for economic security and power. The differences between the two men make it virtually impossible for the supervisor to be a true representation of the craft managers values and leadership style; this would not be a problem if 150 people were not affected by this informal decision I would add that while this supervisor in question has a powerful technical background, he also has very poor communication skills both verbal and computer and is very impersonal. Delegating responsibility for a more significant task will not be empowering if the individual lacks the requisite skills and knowledge to perform the task successfully (Fleishman et al., 1991; Yukl, 1989 p. 126-127).
References
Yukl, Gary A. Leadership in Organizations, 8th Edition. Pearson, 2013.
Albert, M. B. (2002). The relationship between different leadership styles and group cohesion in outdoor challenge education
Discussion 2:
Participative leadership can often go bad because the leader has loss control for one reason or another. When utilizing the participative approach there must be rules and boundaries. Even through the leader is utilizing a participative approach, he or she must maintain control. Participative leadership is concerned with power sharing and empowerment of followers. Participative leadership involves the use of various decision procedures that allow other people some influence over the leader's decisions. Other terms commonly used to refer to aspects of participative leadership include consultation, joint decision making, power sharing, decentralization, empowerment, and democratic management (Yuki, 2013)
When time is of the essence and a decision needs to be made quickly, participative leadership can be a problem. Why, because it is not always possible to call an on the spot meeting to figure out the solution to a problem. Participative leadership does not always work if all team members do not fully understand the strategic vision and goals (Murdock, 2014).
Participative leadership tends to work best when the leader is not attempting to make decisions under fire. Gathering individuals and teams together for strategy meetings normally is a time-consuming event. Participative leadership would not be the best style to follow when something happens that requires a quick response (Murdock, 2014).
Participative leadership works well in creative environments and is great for finding more than one solution to a problem. Often the problems you have might require a set of solutions, and not just one overall solution. A team approach often generates a list of potential fixes (Murdock, 2014). "In participative leadership, the leader turns to the team for input, ideas, and observations. That's not to say the leader doesn't have the ultimate decision-making task; this is to say that the leader understands the team may have skills and ideas that could benefit the decision-making process" (Murdock, 2014).
References
Participative Leadership: What it Is and When it Works Best; APRIL 23, 2014 BY KATHY MURDOCK;
Yukl, G. A. (2013). Leadership in Organizations, 8th Edition. [BryteWave].