Leadership is an evidence-based practice that seeks to maximize the performance and effectiveness of others. Leaders can engage their subordinates through the use of powerful dexterities such as teamwork, appropriate coordination, personal influence, and communication of a vision. Successful managers understand how to engage others by addressing their concerns, identifying emerging obstacles, and focusing on the best outcomes. One potential concern that might occur while engaging others is the inability to achieve desirable aims. This hurdle emerges when different followers are disengaged or unwilling to be part of the process. With effective competencies, a leader will succeed in engaging others and ensuring that outlined objectives are realized in a timely manner. The first section of this discussion explores the benefits of leadership in influencing others. The second part uses the presented YouTube video to evaluate the ability of teams to function optimally. The third part will focus on the team’s ability to accomplish its tasks. A summary of the issues described in the paper will also be presented.
Leadership in Engaging Others
Leadership is a vital concept in engaging others. The practice creates the best opportunity whereby different individuals are willing to focus on a common goal. It creates the best environment whereby individuals can exchange ideas and embrace the power of teamwork (Scott, Matthews, & Kirwan, 2013). The process facilitates various practices such as collaboration, communication, critical thinking, and decision-making. Leadership acts as a model whereby workers focus on the best outcomes. Managers tackle challenges, communicate vision, bring players together, and create the best action plan to deliver positive results (Makikangas, Bakker, & Schaufeli, 2017). Leadership fosters persistence, innovation, and curiosity to maximize performance.
Leaders have an obligation to ensure others are engaged successfully. The first role played by leadership in engaging others is the establishment of a favorable environment. The approach empowers others and addresses emerging hurdles. Effective communication is required throughout the process. Organizers should use desirable skills to build and support their teams. Individuals’ needs should be analyzed and met to reduce cases of resistance (Scott et al., 2013). These approaches will encourage others to be involved throughout the process.
Managers tend to encounter specific obstacles that can disorient the process. For instance, some individuals might resist and fail to support the process. When the members of a targeted team are unwilling to be part of the process, it becomes impossible to engage them and achieve the targeted outcomes. Leaders will be forced to utilize their competencies to manage and promote engagement (Marchuk, 2014). These challenges explain why leadership should be implemented to achieve desirable outcomes whenever engaging others.
Within the healthcare environment, teams whose members are engaged will make appropriate decisions much faster and develop better care delivery models. Caregivers working as a team will make informed decisions and address every emerging issue. Such teams will succeed when the concept of leadership is taken seriously (Stoller, 2014). Hospitals led by leaders who are capable of engaging others will achieve their objectives within the shortest time possible.
Team Evaluation
The video “Engaging Others” presents a team that is unable to achieve its goals. The team is tasked with the role of reviewing different policies in an attempt to promote the concept of shared governance. Unfortunately, the teammates portray inappropriate behaviors that affect the targeted aims. The first element of a good team is the ability to engage others (Marchuk, 2014). The presented team does not meet the minimum requirements for this element. Members such as Michael do not take their positions and roles in the seriously. The level of engagement in the team is affected by malpractices such as ineffective communication and inability to respect one another (Al-Sawai, 2013).
The leader is unable to maintain order in the team. This goal is unattainable due to the behaviors displayed by the members. The teammates have diverse views about various issues such as dressing. It is noticeable that the members belong to different generations. This issue makes it hard for them to come to an agreement. Another challenge that comes out clearly is that of ineffective communication. This problem arises from the members’ inability to listen to one another. Al-Sawai (2013) indicates that effective listening skills contribute a lot to desirable communication. The communication process is affected by the members’ inability to focus on a common goal.
A successful team is usually cohesive (Marchuk, 2014). The presented case presents individuals who are not thinking from the same page. They disrespect each other and concentrate on their unique responsibilities in the institution. They also have diverse views and ideas regarding how specific issues must be dealt with. These malpractices affect the cohesiveness of the team.
Team Development
The policy review committee has been established to come up with better ideas for effective corporate governance. The team leader has identified different managers to discuss and amend the existing policies. The case shows how the individuals are unable to agree on specific issues (Mackintosh-Franklin, 2016). The roles of the team are not guided by any rule or protocol. The individuals do not give each other adequate time to share their views. The team leader is in a precarious situation since she cannot guide the members effectively. The reduced level of cohesiveness makes it hard for the leader to address the existing differences.
Despite such issues, it is evident that Cynthia demonstrates a positive action when she asserts that mobile phones should not be used in the team. She acknowledges that the malpractice amounts to disrespect. Three non-productive actions are also evident in this scenario. The first one is that the individuals interrupt one another whenever presenting their points. This behavior affects the manner in which ideas are shared. The second one is the use of mobile phones during the process. The malpractice can make it hard for a given team to achieve its aims (Mackintosh-Franklin, 2016). The third one is the absence of decorum. This is exhibited by various misbehaviors such as disrespect and failure to listen attentively.
The viewer observes that the team is characterized by dysfunction. The main cause of this dysfunction is the lack of assertiveness form the lead manager. A good leader is usually assertive. He or she implements a guideline or protocol to be followed by the members (Reed, 2017). The absence of these attributes affected the effectiveness of the team.
The members of the team are from different generations. Desirable actions should be considered to foster productivity in such kind of a team. The first action plan is promoting the concept of diversity. This means that the individuals should be allowed to embrace their ideas while at the same time supporting those of their counterparts. The model can guide the leader to offer adequate support to the members. The second action is the creation of a positive culture (Stoller, 2014). A good culture in a team fosters performance. Individuals are also empowered using personalized strategies.
Teams with multiple disciplines can be supported using different actions. The first one is the promotion of coordination. This practice can ensure the members understand their differences. They will come together to augment each other and promote the best outcomes. The second approach is the concept of role modeling (Reed, 2017). The leader creates a pathway that can be followed by the individuals from different disciplines.
Finally, the presented team can benefit from various actions plans and eventually improve performance. The first one is the power of efficient leadership. A competent leader will be assertive, guide the members, and encourage them to focus on the best outcomes. Critical thinking is the second strategy that will be utilized to identify the targeted goals and ensure every person is guided to deliver the best results. The third action plan is the use of an effective change model. For example, Kurt Lewin’s model (refreeze-change-freeze) will be applied to deal with resistance, inform the members about the benefits of the proposed policy changes, and eventually guide them to achieve the targeted objectives (Mackintosh-Franklin, 2016). The last recommendation entails the use of adequate guidelines. With proper principles, the members will be required to act accordingly in an attempt to achieve every goal.
Concluding Summary
This paper has proved that ineffective leadership can result in disengaged members and eventually affect performance. Leaders should be ready to guide others, promote efficient communication, and influence the behaviors of their respective teammates. The case study presents evidence-based insights that can be embraced by leaders who are planning to engage others. For instance, effective communication and implementation of powerful leadership competencies can compel nonresponsive members to act ethically and eventually deliver desirable outcomes. Role modeling, coordination, and mentoring can tackle emerging differences and support the process. These concepts will encourage and guide more leaders to engage others.
References
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