Handbook of Principles of Organizational Behavior - Soltanieh ...

LEAD THROUGH VISION AND VALUES
383
up. There ’s really nothing I can do. We could never fi re him because we can’t replace him
to keep the contracts going – no one else on our staff has the contacts that he does. ”
The initial contracts that Addison brought in were soon coming to an end. Projects
were falling behind schedule, giving them little chance of being renewed. In his annual
forecasts, Addison promised continued growth, bragging about his high level contacts, but
emphasized that his “ incompetent staff of inexperienced, junior analysts ” made it diffi ­
cult to do the work. McKnight began noticing a trend – first, one of her team members
left, deciding to relocate back to his hometown. Then, Thierry’s head scientist left for his
“ dream job ” at another employer in Chicago. A few more left after that, and then a few
more. Some expressed their frustration during their exit interviews, while others made no
mention of Addison’s behavior.
McKnight ran into Modell at headquarters one morning. “ This turnover is hitting us
pretty hard. I ’ m not sure I can take much more of Addison’s outbursts, let alone handle
him ignoring our analysis. Can we talk about some ways of dealing with Addison’s behavior?
” Modell simply shook his head, “ He ’s the one who brought in the clients and you
want me to get him to change? ”
Ultimate impact. Over the next year, the turnover continued and morale plummeted.
Customers did not renew their contracts. Modell and the rest of the leadership team
took no steps to resolve the situation. Addison’s client base reduced to a handful of small
contracts.
About a year later, Addison resigned after a shouting match with MidState ’s director of
finance. McKnight took over the few remaining contracts. Over the next six months, she
managed to build up the contracts into a profi table niche. She then resigned when Modell
told her that she was not eligible for a promotion because Addison originally brought in
the customers.
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, discernible behaviors for leading through vision and values have
been shown to lead to effective outcomes. By understanding and applying these principles,
leadership skills can be enhanced.
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Bandura , A. ( 1986 ). Social Foundation of Thought and Action: A Social Cognitive Theory.
Englewood Cliffs, NJ : Prentice - Hall .
Bass , B. M. ( 1985 ). Leadership and Performance Beyond Expectations. New York : The Free Press .