Building on the concepts you have learned thus far, as well as the information y

Question

Building on the concepts you have learned thus far, as well as the information you have read in this hypothetical scenario, answer the following questions:

Compare and contrast the leadership characteristics of Stan and David.

Discuss whether David has any alternatives than implementing Stan’s order.

Even if the automation is successful at increasing productivity, what might be some other consequences of Stan’s decision that could negatively impact the firm?

How is David to reconcile the difference between Stan saying the decision has been made to move toward automation, Jane’s accounting analysis that demonstrates no improvement in efficiency by moving to automation, and the community’s need to keep their people employed?

Given David’s past behavior and management style, is Stan likely to persuade David to support the move towards automation? Is there a way that David and/or Jane could convince Stan to try this move toward automation at another plant? What would motivate Stan to change his support to automate David’s plant and instead have Jane find a plant that supports moving toward automation to increase efficiency?

Predict what might happen if David and Jane follow through with Stan’s request. Then predict what might happen if they do not.

Should the CFO be the key leader to deal with ethical risks? Why or why not? Justify your answer.

Explanation / Answer

1. Leadership characteristics of David resonate with a “Transformational Leadership’ style. He won the respect and support from the factory workers of Emper Corp with his empathy and caring attitude, keeping the efficiency at work high. Transformational leaders showcase high levels of integrity and empathy, with high levels of emotional intelligence like David.

Stan showcased a “transactional Leadership” style, where he expected his team members to obey his directives, and in return they were being offered hefty bonuses. Transactional leaders expect their team to obey his directions, and have or showcase his ability to punish if the work is not as per the leader’s expected standards.

2. No in my opinion, David does not have any alternative than implementing Stan’s order because the order came from the corporate top management of the company, so he has to follow the directives even if it displeases him and his workers. All he can do is communicate the changes happening, and train as many workers as possible to ensure they can be reabsorbed in the factories after the automation.

3. Even if the automation succeeds at increasing productivity, the firm’s image and good will in the community will be hurt for the long term. Workers might even lose their trust in the company, and hence, this could lead to high level of attrition in the future.

4. Stan’s saying the decision has been made implies that the corporate top management has already agreed on the decision, even after seeing the Jane’s accounting analysis. Decisions as big as automation, are not made in isolation, just based on Stan’s opinion. Hence, this decision implies the top management wants automation to be implanted in this factory; hence Jane will also have to change her accounting analysis to meet Stan’s order, as was suggested by Stan. So all that David has to do, is to communicate the news to the workers in a way that they don’t lose trust in his leadership and in the organization as whole, making sure the workers see what’s coming. Community’s reaction will be handled by changed cost sheet by Jane, but David has to ensure to provide automation training to his workers, to make sure he could retain some of those workers even after the automation is implemented.

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