HROB2100 – Week 11

Chapter 20 - Conflict and Negotiation

Definitions:

Trait theories of leadership: theories that consider personal qualities and characteristics that differentiate leaders from non-leaders

Behavioral theories of leadership: theories that propose that specific behaviors differentiate leaders from non-leaders

Initiating structure: the extent to which a leader Is likely to define and structure his or her role and the roles of employees in order to attain goals

Consideration: the extent to which a leader is likely to have job relationships characterized by mutual trust, respect for employees’ ideas, and regard for their feelings

Employee-oriented leader: a leader who emphasized interpersonal relations

Production-oriented leader: a leader who emphasizes the technical or task aspects of the job

Situational, or contingency theories: theories that propose leadership effectiveness is dependent on the situation

Fiedler contingency model: a leadership theory that proposes that effective group performance depends on the proper match between the leader’s style and the degree to which the situation gives the leader control

Situational leadership: a leadership theory that focuses on the readiness of followers

Path-goal theory: a leadership theory that says it is the leader’s job to assist followers in attaining their goals and to provide the necessary direction and/or support to ensure that their goals are compatible with the overall objectives of the group or organization

Charismatic leadership theory: a leadership theory that states that followers make attributions of heroic or extraordinary leadership abilities when they observe certain behaviors

Vision: a long-term strategy for attaining a goal or goals

Vision statement: a formal articulation of an organization’s vision or mission

Level 5 leaders: leaders who are fiercely ambitious and driven, but their ambition is directed toward their company rather than themselves

Transactional leaders: leaders who guide or motivate their followers in the direction of established goals by clarifying role and task requirements

Transformational leaders: leaders who inspire followers to transcend their own self-interests and who are capable of having a profound and extraordinary effect on followers

Mentor: a senior employee who sponsors and supports a less-experienced employee

Identification-based trust: trust based on s mutual understanding of each other’s intentions and appreciation of each other’s wants and desires

Authentic leaders: leaders who know who they are, know what they believe in and value, and act on these values and beliefs openly and candidly. Their followers could consider them to be ethical people

Socialized charismatic leadership: a leadership concept that states that leaders convey values that are other-centered vs. self-centered and who role model ethical conduct

Class Notes:

Conflict:

• The process in which one party perceives that its interests are being opposed or negatively affected by another party

Is Conflict Good or Bad?: Pre 1970s View

• Historically, experts viewed conflict as dysfunctional

o Undermined relations

o Wasted human energy

o More job dissatisfaction, turnover, stress

o Less productivity, information sharing

• 1970s-1990s View

o 1970s to 1990s – belief in an optimal level of conflict

o Some conflict is good because:

o Energizes debate

o Reexamine assumptions

o Improves responsiveness to external environment

o Increases team cohesion

Emerging View

• Two types of conflict

• Constructive conflict

o Conflict is aimed at issue, not parties

o Produces benefits of conflict

• Relationship conflict

o Aims conflict at the person (e.g. their competence), not the task or issue

o Introduces perceptual biases

o Distorts information processing

Is Conflict Good or Bad?

• Goal: encourage constructive conflict, minimize relationship conflict

• Problem: difficult to separate constructive from relationship conflict

o Drive to defend activated when ideas are critiqued

Minimizing Relationship Conflict

• Conditions that minimize relationship conflict while engaging in constructive conflict:

1. Emotional intelligence

2. Cohesive team

3. Supportive team norms

Structural Sources of Conflict

• Incompatible Goals: One party’s goals perceived to interfere with other’s goals

• Differentiation: Different values/beliefs, Explains cross-cultural and generational conflict

• Task Interdependence: Conflict increases with interdependence, Higher risk that parties interfere with each other

• Scarce Resources: Motivates competition for the resource

• Ambiguous Rules: Creates uncertainty, threatens goals, Without rules, people rely on politics

• Communication Problems: Increases stereotyping, Reduces motivation to communicate, Escalates conflict when arrogant

Power and Conflict

• Organizational Politics

o The pursuit of self-interest in an organization, whether or not this self-interest corresponds to organizational goals.

• Organizationally unsanctioned (means and/or goals)

• Self-conscious and intentional

o Individuals with a high need for power

Organizational Politics

• Political activities are more likely to occur in:

o Middle and upper management levels.

o Subunits with vague goals and complex tasks.

o Around certain issues (e.g., budget allocation, personnel changes).

o Scarce resources, uncertainty, and important issues provoke political behaviour.

• Results: lowered job satisfaction, lowered feelings of organizational support, and increased turnover intentions

Structural Approaches to Conflict Resolution

• 1. Emphasizing superordinate goals

o Emphasize common objective rather than conflicting sub-goals

o Leaders as role models

o Reduces goal incompatibility and differentiation

• 2. Reducing differentiation

o Remove sources of different values and beliefs

• e.g. Move employees around to different jobs

• 3. Improving communication/understanding

o Reduction of Ambiguity

o Employees understand and appreciate each other’s views through communication

• Relates to contact hypothesis

• 4. Reduce Task Interdependence

o Dividing shared resources

o Combine tasks

o Use buffers

• Increase Resources

o Duplicate resources

• 6. Clarify Rules and Procedures

o Norms and values that oppose politics

o Clarify resource distribution

o Change interdependence

Resolving Conflict Through Negotiation

• Negotiation -- attempting to resolve divergent goals by redefining terms of interdependence

• NEGOTIATION RESULTS

Influences On Negotiation

• Win-win vs. win-lose orientation

o Interpersonal Conflict Handling Styles

o Prisoner’s Dilemma

• Cognitive Framing

o Best Alternative To Negotiated Agreement (BATNA)

o Anchoring and Adjustment

o Risk Propensity (Prospect Theory)

• Tactics

o Distributive

o Integrative

• Situational Perceptions

Interpersonal Conflict Handling Styles

• Win-win orientation

o believe parties will find a mutually beneficial solution

• Win-lose orientation

o belief that the more one party receives, the less the other receives

Resolving Conflict through Negotiation

• Which conflict handling style is best in negotiation?

o Begin cautiously with problem-solving style

o Shift to a win-lose style when

Mutual gains situation isn’t apparent

Other part won’t reciprocate info sharing

Framing

• Best Alternative To Negotiated Agreement (BATNA)

• Anchoring and Adjustment

• Risk Propensity (Prospect Theory)

Distributive Tactics

• “Principled” Offers and Concessions

• Threats and Promises

• Silence and Patience

• Limited Authority

• Visceral Displays

• Boulwareism

Techniques for Reaching Integrative Agreements

• Broadening the pie: Available resources are broadened so that both sides can obtain their major goals.

• Nonspecific compensation: One side gets what it wants; the other is compensated on an unrelated issue.

• Logrolling: Each party makes concessions on low-priority issues in exchange for concessions on issues that it values more highly.

• Cost cutting: One party gets what it desires, and the coststo the other party are reduced or eliminated.

• Bridging: Neither party gets its initial demands, but a new option that satisfies the major interests of both sides is developed.

Situational Influences on Negotiation

• Location

• Physical setting

• Time passage and deadlines

• Audience

• Courtesy of Microsoft

Impact of Negotiations

• Reaction to extreme outcomes

• Meta-Negotiations

• Preparation

• BATNA

• Importance of Issues

• Authority/Interests

• Optional Exercise: Collecting “No”s

Leadership

• Leadership is the influence that particular individuals exert on the goal achievement of others in an organizational context.

• Strategic Leadership is the ability to anticipate, envision, maintain flexibility, think strategically, and work with others to initiate changes that will create a viable future for the organization.

Followership

• Neglected construct in leadership research

• “Self Leadership”

• Types (Kelley, 1992)

o Active vs. Passive

o Independent vs. Dependent thinking

• Follower Types

• Leadership Theories

Traits Associated with Leadership Effectiveness

• Intelligence

• Energy

• Self-confidence

• Dominance

• Motivation to lead

• Emotional Stability

• Honesty & Integrity

• Need for achievement

Competency Perspective Limitations

• Implies a universal approach

o But some competencies might not be valuable in all situations

• Alternative combinations of competencies might work just as well

• Some traits are subjective

o Supports implicit leadership theory

• Several competencies indicate leadership potential, not actual leadership

o Traits more predictive of leader emergence than leader effectiveness

• Comeback with Transformational, Charismatic?

Leadership Theories

• Basic Dimensions of Leader Behaviour

• The Managerial Grid

Leadership Theories

• LPC Contingency Theory: Overview

Situational Leadership Theory (Life Cycle Theory)

• Appropriate leader behaviour (Optimal combination of initiating structure and consideration) depends on the readiness of the employees in the work unit.

• Readiness is broadly defined as the degree to which employees have the ability and the willingness to accomplish their specific tasks.

o Readiness varies from R1 (unable and unwilling) to R2 (unable but willing) to R3 (able but unwilling) to R4 (able and willing).

• Situational Leadership Theory

• Telling (high initiating structure, low consideration) — the leader provides specific instructions and closely supervises performance.

• Selling (high initiating structure, high consideration) — the leader explains key issues and provides opportunities for clarification.

• Participating (low initiating structure, high consideration) — the leader shares ideas and tries to help the group conduct its affairs.

• Delegating (low initiating structure, low consideration) — the leader turns responsibility for key behaviours over to the employees.

Path-Goal Model

Path-Goal Leadership Styles

• Directive/Instrumental

o Task-oriented behaviours

• Supportive

o People-oriented behaviours

• Participative

o Encouraging employee involvement

• Achievement-oriented

o Using goal setting and positive self-fulfilling prophecy

Path-Goal Contingencies

Transformational v. Transactional Leaders

• Transformational leaders

o Leading -- changing the organization to fit environment

o Change agents

Not just the organization, but also the followers

• Transactional leaders

o Managing -- linking job performance to rewards

o Ensure employees have necessary resources

o Apply contingency leadership

Dimensions of Transformational Leadership

• Idealized influence involves behaving in ways that earn the admiration, trust, and respect of followers, causing followers to want to identify with and emulate the leader.

o “The leader instills pride in me for being associated with him/her.”

• Inspirational motivation involves behaving in ways that foster an enthusiasm for and commitment to a shared vision of the future.

o “The leader articulates a compelling vision of the future.”

• Intellectual stimulation involves behaving in ways that challenge followers to be innovative and creative by questioning assumptions and reframing old situations in new ways.

o “The leader gets others to look at problems from many different angles.”

• Individualized consideration involves behaving in ways that help followers achieve their potential through coaching, development, and mentoring.

o “The leader spends time teaching and coaching.”

Transformational v. Charismatic Leaders

• Charisma: “Gift” or “Divine Favour”

• Essential for transformational leadership?

• Some experts say yes, but emerging view is that:

o Charisma is distinct from transformational leadership

o A personal trait that might help transform, or might just help the leader

o Charismatic leadership might have opposite effect -- creates dependence, not empowerment

Evaluating Transformational Leadership

• Transformational leadership is important

o Higher employee satisfaction, performance, org citizenship, creativity

• Transformational leadership limitations

o Circular research

Transformational leaders identified by their success

• Universal theory

o Need a contingency-oriented theory

o Recognize differences across cultures

How Important is Transformational Leadership?

• Transformational leadership affects the job performance of the employees who report to the leader.

• Employees with transformational leaders tend to have higher levels of task performance and engage in higher levels of citizenship behaviours.

o Employees have higher levels of motivation and trust their leader more.

• Employees with transformational leaders tend to be more committed to their organization.

Leadership Across Cultures: Socio-Cognitive Theories

• Implicit Leadership Theory (ILT) (Lord & Maher, 1991)

o Effectiveness of leader depends on the perceptions and cognitions of followers

o Prototypical leadership characteristics and behaviours important

• Culturally Endorsed Implicit Leadership Theory (CLT) (Dorfman, Howell, Hibino, Lee, Tate & Bautista, 1997)

o Culture-specific leadership prototypes

o Shown for various different cultures and cultural regions

Ubuntu Leadership

• Ubuntu is “that profound African sense that each of us is human through the humanity of other human beings,” explains former South African president Nelson Mandela (shown here). The ubuntu value system provides a framework for leading others in Africa.

Cultural Issues in Leadership

• Societal cultural values and practices affect leaders:

o Shape leader’s values/norms

o Influence decisions and actions

• Some leadership styles are universal, others differ across cultures

o “Charismatic visionary” seems to be universal

o Participative leadership works better in some cultures than others

Followership Across Cultures

• Behaviors and traits of followers influence effectiveness of leader-follower relationship

• Prototypes and perceptions important

• Similar to CLT, Culture-specific follower prototypes shown for various different cultures and cultural regions

Leadership

• Marissa Mayer

• July 2012

• 1 Year

Leadership defined by perception: Romanticizing Leadership

Leadership Substitutes

• Contingencies that limit a leader’s influence or make a particular leadership style unnecessary.

• Examples:

o Training and experience replace task-oriented leadership

o Cohesive team replaces supportive leadership

o Self-leadership replaces achievement-oriented leadership

• Evidence suggests that substitutes might help, but don’t completely substitute for real leadership