Leadership & Organization Development Journal

If all human beings were motivated in the same way, the job of management would be relatively easy. Of course we do not all see the world in the same way. Perception is what we see, and attitudes are what we think about what we see. There are two views of perception: a macro, or organisationally influenced view, and a micro, or individually oriented view of the perceptual process.

This study empirically tested Hersey and Blanchard’s situational leadership theory (SLT) among 151 senior executives within service and manufacturing businesses of a large Fortune 100 company. SLT focuses on the interaction of the leader’s behaviour and follower readiness to determine leader effectiveness. SLT suggests that the appropriate level of task and relationship behaviour is the one that “matches” the level of follower readiness. A variety of statistical techniques were used to test the central hypotheses of SLT and the matching concept. The study produced 18 matches and 126 mismatches. One statistical technique, the partitioned test, was found to provide the most insight about SLT and the concept of matching. The researchers recommend its utilization in future research of SLT. The researchers conclude that SLT remains intuitively appealing and empirically contradictory. The concepts of SLT and matching are engaging and further research is recommended.

A new definition of university organisation structures has begun to emerge. Customers in the form of students determine what the senior university departments offer. Staff members work in programme teams to manage and organise delivery. A professor is simply one grade of staff within the university available to teach or left to his own devices in research. Vice Chancellors now spend much of their time in the role of industrial relations officers. To make the whole industrial relations job that much more fascinating, virtually all academic staff have tenure—a sophisticated notion that goes well beyond contemporary concepts of unfair dismissal.

– This paper seeks to examine gender‐ and management‐ level differences in perceptions of effective leadership within a framework of new leadership models that focus on the processes of influencing self and others rather than leadership based on hierarchy., – A self‐report questionnaire was distributed to a sample of council employees. The responses were analysed using thematic matrix displays., – Males and non‐management employees (when compared with female and management) perceived effective leadership as that which emphasises fairness, equality and honesty, develops staff, fosters workplace harmony, and is trustworthy. Female employees emphasised communication, decision‐making ability, and supporting the leader as being important to how a work unit could contribute to organizational leadership effectiveness. Employees at the management level underscored vision, supporting the leader, and integrity as being important to how a work unit could contribute to organizational leadership effectiveness. Female and non‐management employees highlighted employee development, contingent reward, communication and vision as being central to how organizational leadership could contribute to the effectiveness of the work unit., – Unlike the literature that differentiates between charismatic and transformational forms of leadership, this paper views these two constructs as both being components of transformational leadership.

– By introducing the concept of “full engagement,” this article aims to propose that employee engagement is more likely to be sustainable when employee well‐being is also high., – Research evidence covering the separate concepts is reviewed and evidence of the benefits that both engagement and well‐being confer on organizations is presented., – Most current perspectives on employee engagement include little of direct relevance to well‐being and reflect a narrow, commitment‐based view of engagement. This view focuses too heavily on benefits to organizations. A broader conception of engagement (referred to as “full engagement”), which includes employee well‐being, is a better basis for building sustainable benefits for individuals and organizations., – Research exploring the links between employee engagement and well‐being is needed to validate and develop the propositions put forward in this article., – A model for improving full engagement in organizations is presented and brief; case study illustrations are also given., – The integration of well‐being and commitment‐based engagement into the single construct of full engagement provides a novel perspective.

The feasibility and success of empowerment are to some extent determined by factors relating to the culture and structure of the industries within which organizations are embedded. The UK construction industry is an example that has a unique socio‐technical context, some aspects of which seem well‐suited to empowerment strategies. However, despite support for empowerment, it has not yet been universally embraced by construction organizations. Outlines the aspects of the industry that provide a suitable context for implementation of empowerment strategies. Suggests that, used selectively, it could play an important part in helping construction organizations to address increasing performance demands whilst mitigating the negative effects of the fragmented project delivery process. However, there remain many barriers to individual and team‐based empowerment strategies that require empirical investigation before the industry can benefit from their implementation.

Examines the practical utility of research on managerial behaviour and managerial effectiveness for training and development programmes. Casts doubt on the relevance of models in the literature that tell managers what they should do. Reviews studies of effective managers. Concludes that the design of programmes in particular settings requires a study of who is an effective manager in that setting; that the concepts and methods available in the literature will be used; that such research has potential use for programmes where training is a stepping stone to change.