The Chipotle firm’s food safety problems deterred customers and reduced its stock by more than 20% leading to the shutdown of several outlets.
How the Composition of Leadership Influences Outcomes
Studies have shown that the top management team (TMT) has the responsibility of leading an organization (Colbert, Barrick, & Bradley, 2014). It is hypothesized that the makeup of leadership in the top management team is associated with the success of the group of administrators. This supposition is supported by the upper echelons perspective, which suggests that the proficiencies, standards, and dispositions of a firm’s chief executive officer and TMT members influence their understanding of the surroundings, which consequently shapes premeditated choices and organizational efficacy.
These aspects are evaluated by looking at two pointers of administrative success: the firm’s economic performance, and combined employee organizational obligation. The collective organizational obligation is vital to the organization because it determines the retaining of employees within the firm. In the Chipotle E. coli outbreak case, various reports recount the ensuing events such as the number of people affected by the contaminated food as well as the resultant financial losses as evidenced by the decline in the company’s stocks.
Personality traits play a significant role in the way people reason, feel, and function. In a work setting, character motivates the attitudes of management, workforces, and their work functioning. Similarly, personality inspires the working, contentment, and accomplishment of a team. The upper echelons theory insinuates that these effects spread to the top ranks of administrations and that character peculiarities of executives may affect their elucidation of the surroundings, their premeditated choices, and eventually the success of the firm.
Unique Characteristics of the Project Team and Leaders
The unique characteristics of individuals are grouped according to the main character attributes suggested in the five-factor representation of behavior. They include scrupulousness, emotional steadiness, willingness to go through new experiences, extraversion, and amicability (Colbert et al., 2014). Leaders are either task-oriented or interpersonally focused. The features of a task-centered leader include meticulousness, emotive stability, and willingness to go through new occurrences. On the other hand, an interpersonally oriented leader exhibits extraversion and friendliness. These two qualities are evident in the responses provided by the Chipotle executives during the crisis. The top management of Chipotle consists of two co-CEOs: the originator Steve Ells and Monty Moran.
While responding to a group of financiers at an industry seminar, Moran showed the undesirable attributes of crisis leadership. Moran blamed the Centers for Disease Control and the media for the gravity of the calamity. He complained that the two bodies exaggerated the situation through the unconventional reporting of the incidents that transpired in the Northwest.
He blamed the media’s love for melodramatic stories for the continued reporting of the tragedy and said that there was a probability that the media would attribute unrelated health events to the Chipotle E. coli outbreak in the future. There was some truth in Moran’s statement about the media’s love for sensational stories (Colvin, 2015). However, his articulation did not exude confidence and accountability, which were crucial traits that stakeholders desired in people charged with managing their investments. Moran’s response showed that he was emotionally unstable and was not open to new experience.
Conversely, the response made by Steve Ells displayed desirable aspects of leadership. The CEO used a television show called Today to apologize to the masses about the E. coli outbreak. He explained the details of the company’s extensive endeavors to get to the bottom of the problem and find a lasting solution. He even made a bold promise stating that the measures being implemented by the company surpassed the conventional food industry standards and would make Chipotle the safest place to eat. Steve’s statement exhibited overconfidence, which implied that future instances of food poisoning would have disastrous consequences on the company’s repute. However, it served to convince the stakeholders and reassure the masses of their safety. Consequently, the company’s stock moved upwards by 5%. His style could be described as task-centered and interpersonally oriented.
Summary
Consequences of the Incident
- Deterrence of customers
- A reduction in the company’s stock by more than 20%
- The closing down of several outlets
How the Composition of Leadership Influences Outcomes
- The top management team (TMT) has the responsibility of leading an organization.
- The composition of the TMT determines the success of the company.
- There are two indicators of administrative success:
- The firm’s fiscal performance.
- Combined employee organizational obligation.
- In the Chipotle E. coli outbreak case, there are financial losses as indicated by a drop in the firm’s stock.
- Personality traits affect the reasoning, feeling, and functioning of individuals.
- Personality inspires the working, contentment, and accomplishment of a team.
Unique Characteristics of the Project Team and Leaders
- The unique characteristics of individuals are grouped according to the main character attributes suggested in the five-factor representation of behavior. They include:
- Scrupulousness
- Emotional steadiness
- Willingness to go through new experiences
- Extraversion
- Amicability
- Leaders are either task-oriented or interpersonally focused.
- The features of a task-centered leader include meticulousness, emotive stability, and willingness to go through new occurrences.
- Interpersonally oriented leaders exhibit extraversion and friendliness.
- These two qualities are evident in the responses provided by the Chipotle executives during the crisis.
Monty Moran:
- Showed the undesirable attributes of crisis leadership.
- Blamed the Centers for Disease Control and the media for the gravity of the calamity.
- His reaction showed a lack of confidence and accountability.
- Emotionally instability and a lack of openness to experience.
Steve Ells:
- Displayed desirable aspects of leadership.
- He apologized to the masses about the E. coli outbreak.
- He explained the company’s extensive endeavors to get to the bottom of the problem and find a lasting solution.
- Demonstrated task-centered and interpersonally oriented leadership style.
- The company’s stock was increased by 5%.
References
Colbert, A. E., Barrick, M. R., & Bradley, B. H. (2014). Personality and leadership composition in top management teams: Implications for organizational effectiveness. Personnel Psychology, 67(2), 351-387.
Colvin, G. (2015). Chipotle’s E. coli fiasco teaches us how not to respond to a crisis. Web.