In this assignment, you will write an essay analyzing the effects of power, politics, and conflict on leaders and subordinates.
When used incorrectly, power, politics, and conflict can derail an organization and corrupt a leader. However, successful
leaders are able to use these strategies in a positive way to motivate employees and benefit the organization. In your essay,
explain what strategies leaders should use when faced with the following situations.
- Your company opened a new production facility in Florida that uses non-union labor. Within one year, production
numbers from the new facility surpassed those at the home facility in Michigan that uses union labor. There is a growing
conflict between managers of both facilities. How could you use this information to increase production at the home
facility? Could you use this information to increase production at both facilities?
- A decrease in demand for oil has caused your refinery to cut back on production, necessitating a hiring freeze and
elimination of bonuses for workers, which were based on company production and profits. Supervisors are telling you
that the workers are beginning to grumble and there is talk of a strike. You just received word that the company margins
are high enough to merit a slight pay increase and a marginal increase in production. How would you leverage this power
to increase employee satisfaction as the company begins to turn things around?
- Bob is a hard-working, intelligent, and loyal employee at your company. However, Bob keeps to himself, never takes credit for any work he does, and never offers suggestions to help the company or others. He says that he is not interested in politics and that he simply wants to do his work. Bob has been passed up for promotion several times. How would you help Bob understand the importance of becoming politically savvy and that not all office politics are bad?
In your essay, be sure to address each situation, and use examples from your research to back up your explanations.
Compare and contrast leadership approaches used to address each situation. Feel free to add details to each scenario as
necessary for the purpose of explanation. Be sure to include an introduction in your essay. Your essay should be at least two pages in length, not including the title and reference pages, which are required as part of
this assignment.
