Run the Store

James Boyd

Case Studies: Chapter 4&5

Case 4.2: Eating Lunch Standing Up

1. In this case Susan can be described as an Authority-Compliance leader. Her main objective is to run the store as effectively and task oriented as possible to continue the store past growth performance. She more than likely runs the store this way due to her ownership stake and the fact it has been proven effective.
2. Many people react to this type of leadership differently, for most they would prefer to receive their daily assignments and know that at the end of the day they accomplished what was expected. Others tend to see this as a overbearing style and would much rather be able to assert themselves and accomplish task without being told, giving them a much greater sense of accomplishment while establishing a comradery with the boss.
3. I think that she probably has at times shifted her style and has found what works best for her and her business. I would think she would be better served hiring employees who would excel with that type of leadership rather than changing things up and possibly having the success suffer.
4. If she decided to change she very well could be more or less successful, it would depend on how the changes affected the daily routine and whether performance suffered.

Case 5.3: Getting the message across

1. The biggest problem I see for WCBA is that the leadership provided by Ann is too lackadaisical. She may provide a handout to the new members of the team; however she doesn’t explain the severity of failing to follow the rules. The chance of license suspension from an infraction could take away this popular job and advisor.
2. Ann needs to become more of an S2 coaching type leader. This would allow her to reinforce the rules and laws around the station when it comes to FCC requirements, but it would also allow her to keep the personal relationships with the staff.
3. In order to reinforce the rules, possibly holding some mock broadcast with the new team members could be conducted. She could give them thing to read, some of which are potential violations and see how the staff handles it. If they failed to recognize the problem she could correct them and reinforce them in order to prevent a future problem for the station. By conducting this type of exercise she could keep it light and maintain the laid back feel of the station while protecting them from FCC infractions in the future.