13 Jan As can be imagined, both Artos

Week 1 Learning Activities

To complete the learning activities, please create a new thread for each theme and identify in the subject line the theme for which you are responding. Students are expected to post to all themes by Thursday and to at least two other students (across all themes) by Sunday. In responding to the learning activities and to other students, please be sure to use the course material using in-text citations and a reference list to cite the source(s) used. Remember, an in-text citation cannot exist without having a corresponding reference list and a reference list cannot exist without having a corresponding in-text citation. Use of the course material using in-text citations and a reference list is always expected in the learning activities and good practice for the assignments in the course.

To respond to Learning Activities, click on the blue hyperlink.

WEEK ONE

Learning Activity 1 – Theme One: Understanding the nature of leadership helps to frame the viewpoint of a leader.

View: Drew Dudley:

In conjunction with the opening comments in the week 1 course schedule, the readings for week 1, theme 1, consider the point stated by Drew Dudley in Everyday Leadership. Then, reflect on your experiences with leaders, and in your own words, define leadership. How does your definition differ from what you read and viewed and explain why.

Learning Activity 2 Theme Two: The evolution of leadership theory can help to explain what makes a good leader today.

Explain the meaning behind theme two and describe the GDD leader of today based on the evolution of theory. What you will need to do is look at the different leadership theories and apply the theories to support your reasoning.

Week 2 Learning Activities

To complete the learning activities, please create a new thread for each theme and identify in the subject line the theme for which you are responding. Students are expected to post to all themes by Thursday and to at least two other students (across all themes) by Sunday. In responding to the learning activities and to other students, please be sure to use the course material using in-text citations and a reference list to cite the source(s) used. Remember, an in-text citation cannot exist without having a corresponding reference list and a reference list cannot exist without having a corresponding in-text citation. Use of the course material using in-text citations and a reference list is always expected in the learning activities and good practice for the assignments in the course.

To respond to Learning Activities, click on the blue hyperlink.

Learning Activity 2 Theme Two: Leadership drives competitive advantage when he or she can create a culture of inclusion of people and ideas, is responsible for its supply chain decisions and organizes a culture that promotes people, innovation and creativity. Inversely poor leadership creates little to no competitive advantage.

Use the facts of the case scenario below and the course readings for week 2, theme 2 to explain how Simon’s investigation and the accident prove the following statement:

The culture of the company if not reinforced at all levels of the organization can kill sustainability.

As part of the movement toward making money Rockfish reviewed the Human Resources (HR) departments of GDD nationwide. He realized that worldwide departments were staffed much like GDD North America, with a personnel officer and a benefits specialist. Further, he found that most of their work was focused on form review and collection for benefits, approving vacation and sick time, as well has processing applications for employment. Rockfish decided to hire a department head for HR in North America as a test to see if the department could provide more value to the company. The new Department Head, Carly Simon, has great ideas on shared leadership and is hoping to be involved in other departments of the division by providing what she calls a “people take” on departmental tasks.

Rockfish has asked Simon to review the safety record of the Chicago station because it seems to have the highest incident of injury. Simon looked at the number of workmen’s compensation claims that the Chicago station employees filed. The results show that the claims total was 24% higher than the other stations. Simon began to look for answers. Her conversations with the employees in the lunchroom revealed some very important ideas:

Employee attitude towards injuries was cavalier. They wore injuries almost like a badge of honor because it meant employees were able to cut down on time moving more packages out the door

Employees often worked double shifts to make up for the employees who were injured. Employees seemed to fear the idea of speaking up because it was not considered good to do so in the eyes of the team

When pressed, the employees admitted that when met with possible delays in conveying the packages to the sorters or planes, they would ignore safety procedures

Some believed that management cared more about productivity and profits than the welfare of the employees

Simon suspected that the attitude of the employees of the station did not help the situation, but management was creating the problem. A major accident validated her suspicions. An old baggage machine that uses hydraulic lift to get the packages loaded in the cargo hold collapsed seriously injuring two men. One was not likely to recover the use of his legs. When Carly heard of the accident she ran to the tarmac and talked with James Taylor, the station manager. Distraught, Taylor confessed that he was pushing the workers to use the old baggage machine because production was much higher than the new machine. Taylor indicated that he had made several requests for two new machines but only received one. Management said that they did not care about the safety of the machine; that the men would just have to be careful.

Week 3 learning activity

To complete the learning activities, please create a new thread for each theme and identify in the subject line the theme for which you are responding. Students are expected to post to all themes by Thursday and to at least two other students (across all themes) by Sunday. In responding to the learning activities and to other students, please be sure to use the course material using in-text citations and a reference list to cite the source(s) used. Remember, an in-text citation cannot exist without having a corresponding reference list and a reference list cannot exist without having a corresponding in-text citation. Use of the course material using in-text citations and a reference list is always expected in the learning activities and good practice for the assignments in the course.

To respond to Learning Activities, click on the blue hyperlink.

Learning Activity 1 Theme One: Leadership style has a direct effect on employee commitment and organizational effectiveness.

Take the leadership style quizzes below.

What’s Your Leadership Style

What Kind of Leader Are You?

Discuss the results and how leadership style can affect employee commitment and organizational effectiveness. Be sure to define in your own words, employee commitment and organizational effectiveness before showing how the leadership style relates to the two concepts. Also, discuss how style affects communication, employee input, morale and goals with respect to commitment and organizational effectiveness.

For example, a person with an authoritarian style might communicate only those ideas they he is she deems important for an employee to know. This can lead to inaccurate execution of tasks or morale issues.

Week 4 learning activity

To complete the learning activities, please create a new thread for each theme and identify in the subject line the theme for which you are responding. Students are expected to post to all themes by Thursday and to at least two other students (across all themes) by Sunday. In responding to the learning activities and to other students, please be sure to use the course material using in-text citations and a reference list to cite the source(s) used. Remember, an in-text citation cannot exist without having a corresponding reference list and a reference list cannot exist without having a corresponding in-text citation. Use of the course material using in-text citations and a reference list is always expected in the learning activities and good practice for the assignments in the course.

To respond to Learning Activities, click on the blue hyperlink.

WEEK FOUR

Learning Activity 1 Theme One: A leadership approach is a way of looking at the world around us.

Are you a leader? The point to the quiz below is to determine if you have a leader’s perspective in your approach to situations and people. Take the quiz and share your ideas about the quiz and the type of results provided. The questions asked of you have several characteristics of a leader’s attitude that have been researched to mark a leader rather than a follower.

Review the questions and list three characteristics the test examined. Share examples of questions that support your selections of characteristics.

Are you a Leader?

In the following quiz, you are evaluated in terms of the leader and follower relationship. Take the quiz and then share your thoughts on the quiz. Consider the focus of the questions and discuss whether there are times when a leader is also a follower? Be sure to use the course readings to support your answers.

Are You a Leader or a Follower?

Read:

5 Reasons Leaders Become Followers

Week 5 learning activity

To complete the learning activities, please create a new thread for each theme and identify in the subject line the theme for which you are responding. Students are expected to post to all themes by Thursday and to at least two other students (across all themes) by Sunday. In responding to the learning activities and to other students, please be sure to use the course material using in-text citations and a reference list to cite the source(s) used. Remember, an in-text citation cannot exist without having a corresponding reference list and a reference list cannot exist without having a corresponding in-text citation. Use of the course material using in-text citations and a reference list is always expected in the learning activities and good practice for the assignments in the course.

To respond to Learning Activities, click on the blue hyperlink.

WEEK FIVE

Learning Activity 1 Theme One: Creating your own leadership energy as Clawson would suggest starts with knowing who are as person.

Take the following quizzes.

After a review and reflection of the results, discuss how knowing more about your personality, emotional IQ, communication, ethics and your natural inclinations to be a leader can improve your relationships with others in the workplace. (Students can reflect generally or specifically on the results to the class. Privacy is important to us all so if you choose not to give actual numbers and just the results in general, that is fine.)

Think over your experiences in the workplace and find five examples where personality, emotional IQ, communication, or ethics helped to create trust or lose trust, for you, in a leader.

Jung Typology Test

EQ Test

Ultimate Ethics Quiz

How Good Are Your communication Skills

Would You Make a Good Leader?

Leadership Skills

Week 6 learning activity

To complete the learning activities, please create a new thread for each theme and identify in the subject line the theme for which you are responding. Students are expected to post to all themes by Thursday and to at least two other students (across all themes) by Sunday. In responding to the learning activities and to other students, please be sure to use the course material using in-text citations and a reference list to cite the source(s) used. Remember, an in-text citation cannot exist without having a corresponding reference list and a reference list cannot exist without having a corresponding in-text citation. Use of the course material using in-text citations and a reference list is always expected in the learning activities and good practice for the assignments in the course.

To respond to Learning Activities, click on the blue hyperlink.

WEEK SIX

Learning Activity 1 Theme One: Strategic thinking is how we craft the GDD “story” to create organizational wealth for the company, customer satisfaction, a etc. Strategic thinking can be done by anyone, but it does require an open mind, a positive attitude and organizational culture that encourages aligns with the organization.

Vision or direction is so critical to the achievements of the organization. Strategic thinking creates that vision and the direction of activity that flows from the vision. Visit the GDD Company Profile information and review it once again looking for the vision statement, and business philosophy of the company. Choose one of the areas that GDD is looking to improve in the future for sustainability and suggest a strategy as to how they may accomplish this goal.

Week 7 Learning Activities

To complete the learning activities, please create a new thread for each theme and identify in the subject line the theme for which you are responding. Students are expected to post to all themes by Thursday and to at least two other students (across all themes) by Sunday. In responding to the learning activities and to other students, please be sure to use the course material using in-text citations and a reference list to cite the source(s) used. Remember, an in-text citation cannot exist without having a corresponding reference list and a reference list cannot exist without having a corresponding in-text citation. Use of the course material using in-text citations and a reference list is always expected in the learning activities and good practice for the assignments in the course.

To respond to Learning Activities, click on the blue hyperlink.

Week Seven

Learning Activity 2 Theme Two:: The importance of change in the 21st century business can never be underestimated by the leader.

In the future of business, the impact of technology and globalization is creating a pattern of disruption that forces a leader to direct massive long term change. There is no strategy that a leader creates or a decision implemented that must not account for change.

As a leader, effective change begins with an attitude that embraces the idea that change is possible and is dynamic. In short, a leader needs to be open to change before leading others.

Take the following change quiz and report your results: Change Quiz

Based on the results of your quiz select a quote from one of those listed in this article 38 Quotes to Help You Become a Change Agent.

If the results show resistance to change select a quote that will inspire you to embrace change,

If you accept change select a quote that can act as a daily reminder that change is vital to your success as a leader.

Explain why you have selected the quote and support your reasons for selecting the quote with the class material.

Week 8 learning activity

To complete the learning activities, please create a new thread for each theme and identify in the subject line the theme for which you are responding. Students are expected to post to all themes by Thursday and to at least two other students (across all themes) by Sunday. In responding to the learning activities and to other students, please be sure to use the course material using in-text citations and a reference list to cite the source(s) used. Remember, an in-text citation cannot exist without having a corresponding reference list and a reference list cannot exist without having a corresponding in-text citation. Use of the course material using in-text citations and a reference list is always expected in the learning activities and good practice for the assignments in the course.

To respond to Learning Activities, click on the blue hyperlink.

Week Eight

Learning Activity 1 Theme One: Understanding the unique challenges facing leaders today, and the skills needed to meet them, will help you as a leader to act decisively and proactively.

Maria Artos, a 25-year-old female graduate of Harvard Business School, has just been appointed to the job of Director of IT in a medium size business. Her immediate junior in the business, Anthony Jones, is a 53-year-old long term employee of the business. He was passed over for the job that Maria Artos now holds.

First, identify all the leadership challenge issues that might be suggested by this fact pattern.

As can be imagined, both Artos and Jones could feel uncomfortable since Artos was told that Anthony Jones also applied for the position and Anthony could be resentful for being passed over. Students will create the opening interview/meeting between Artos and Jones on her first day on the job. Use this week’s course material to create the exchange between Artos and Jones.

In creating the exchange between Jones and Artos, have Artos deal with all the identified issues using her “leadership relationship building skills”. Note: In responding, consider that the situation is one in which the skills from week five should be employed along with addressing the topic of diversity.