The Commitment to Social Responsibility
The Concept of Responsibility
The concept of responsibility is essential because it provides a sense of purpose at an individual and societal level and the ability to become accountable. It is an ethical term that relates to individuals’ and groups’ moral obligations and duties to others as well as to larger ethical and moral rules, norms, and practices (Freeman and Auster, 2011). The rationale greatly influences how an individual associates with members of the community and the impact of such relationships on constructing a solid and stable life. In most circumstances, responsibility aids in maintaining a healthy association with people while also ensuring that all interactions are directed toward a common purpose (Waldman and Balven, 2014). Based on this, responsibility is the foundation of concepts such as social and corporate responsibility practiced by most organizations across the globe.
Responsibility is one of the most powerful actualizers of high quality of life. To be successful in leadership, one must perform their role at all phases (Fourie, Van der Merwe, and Van der Merwe, 2017). It plays an important role at an individual and societal level because it aids in developing good behavior. For example, one of the important qualities that enable one to make explicit judgments that match his expectations of a group or a community without supervision is accountability. Responsibility also allows one to coexist with others while focusing on the group’s or organization’s aims and objectives. In the workplace, responsibility is when an employee performs their job duties as stated in the job description and adheres to policy and procedures professionally and to their ability.
The Key Aspects and Tensions of Responsibility
Some of the key aspects of responsibility are moral courage, empathy, and commitment to social good. Moral courage enables an individual to address ethical issues and take action to do the right thing. This is a person’s ability to overcome fear and stand up for their core values and ethical obligations (Waldman and Balven, 2014). Empathy is a crucial aspect of responsibility because it enables one to understand how others feel and respond effectively. It is one of the traits of a responsible person because it promotes moral behavior. With empathy, one can act effectively and even accept the mistake. Finally, commitment is a dedication to a given organization, cause, and a willingness to get engaged. In other words, it is a feeling of responsibility that an individual has towards the goals, vision, and mission of an organization.
There are several tensions of responsibility that should be considered in leadership and corporate social responsibility. The first tension is perfectionism, where individuals expect themselves to be perfect and have extremely high standards. The perfectionist has a problem acknowledging their mistakes and shortcomings. The second tension experienced in responsibility is resistance to change (Waldman and Balven, 2014). Based on this, some people are reluctant to act responsibly because they do not want to change and are perceived to be weak. The third tension is a need to avoid shame and distress when an individual takes responsibility for their actions. Therefore, the tensions of responsibility are the main barrier to responsible behavior that individuals would want to adopt.
Processes and Practices to Enact Responsibility
For People in Power
Responsibility can be enacted in individuals and groups in power through training. The concept is both inherent and learned in any setting. Responsible behavior can be learned through teaching and life experiences (Doh and Quigley, 2014). Based on this, individuals and groups in power need to understand the benefits of being responsible. They should be informed that responsibility enables them to foster trustful stakeholder relationships. Since they have followers, it will be beneficial to have a responsible team. In addition, teaching is likely to develop effective behavior among this group and allow them to lead by example. The main aim of the training is to equip the group with appropriate behavior and help them become responsible.
Motivate individuals in power to pay attention to what others have to say rather than thinking about whatever they want to express in return. Motivation is an important practice because it ensures that individuals have the energy to engage in the desired behavior (Voegtlin, Patzer, and Scherer, 2012). This guarantees that people listen to and comprehend the other party’s views rather than shift their attention inward. Most importantly, convey to individuals that they should wait for others to accomplish their comments without interjecting. Personnel may even consider taking notes to record what the other person says so that the conversation may be referred to later. In addition, there is a need to make sure that individuals consider solving other people’s needs. For example, listen to their issues and find a solution. Therefore, encouraging individuals in authority to focus on solving the needs of followers.
For People in Positions
Responsibility should be cultivated among people in different positions. For leaders, it is important to train and ensure that they understand the importance of being responsible. Leaders should focus on ongoing communication about how everyone’s contributions and successes affect the organization’s success (Voegtlin, Patzer, and Scherer, 2012). They should learn how to set up weekly check-ins with the team to see how they are doing on their individual goals. Each individual goal should fit into the organization’s larger vision because, by the end of each meeting, the team should have a better grasp of how they are collectively working toward the goals. As a result, leaders are supposed to learn the technique of being responsible by engaging in training activities.
For Privileged People
Responsibility should be adopted among privileged individuals and groups by creating policies and regulations. These policies are supposed to be standards intended to guide individuals toward adopting responsible behaviors (Voegtlin, Patzer, and Scherer, 2012). For example, there is a need to develop policies that align with the culture, vision, mission, and values. The concept of responsibility should be one of the key values promoted in a given setting. Privileged individuals may find it challenging to practice responsibility due to ego and fear of changing the status quo. With appropriate policies, people of this status should understand that responsibility is an important concept that everyone should adopt. Therefore, they will be forced to adhere to the set standards.
Stakeholder Engagement
The Reasons for Bad Stakeholder Engagement
The reason why organizations are poor at maintaining stakeholder relationships is ineffective leadership. Leaders play an integral role in developing effective relationships with stakeholders (Maak and Pless, 2006a). Poor leadership creates an environment that is not conducive for stakeholders to thrive and achieve the expected objectives. In addition, bad leaders are less likely to understand the needs of stakeholders. When leaders fail to conduct extensive research to determine what their followers want to be solved, their relationship with stakeholders continues to worsen. For example, employees may have an issue with how the organization adopted a recent change. If a leader is not close with the employees in such an environment, they may not hear the complaint and face continual adverse impacts such as reduced productivity.
The second reason for the failure of an organization to maintain stakeholder engagement is poor communication. Internal communication’s absence of focus and futility makes it difficult to convey its seriousness and may result in a culture of distrust (Waldman and Galvin, 2008). Furthermore, poor communication hinders the closeness of connections and employee engagement, resulting in a lack of organizational commitment, low morale, and, finally, attrition. When management fails to communicate goals and lacks direction, feedback, and positive reinforcement, employees naturally tend to believe that important information is being hidden, and the barrier between management and staff grows. Therefore, ineffective communication is one of the reasons for the lack of stakeholder engagement.
Developing Constructive Relationships with Stakeholders
One of the strategies is to maintain consistent and clear communication with stakeholders. Make it a point to share relevant information with the stakeholders freely and on a regular basis. This keeps them informed and provides them with a general knowledge of the project as it progresses. Create a communication plan that takes into account all the stakeholders of an organization. When stakeholders are updated, they will feel more connected and engaged. Some stakeholders may require an annual report, and others may require a weekly report. Whatever the strategy, consistency aids in the development of trust and involvement. As a result, stakeholders usually desire to work in a setting where they can share ideas and create ties with their colleagues.
The other approach is adopting leaders who can foster trust, understand before being understood, and take responsibility for actions. Stakeholders often prefer it when leaders accept responsibility for their mistakes and work efficiently to remedy concerns. When it comes to creating and keeping strong connections with people, the power to modify a situation for the better and prevent bad outcomes is quite valuable. In addition, there is a need to have leaders who listen and show interest in their followers. For example, leaders are supposed to pay attention when their stakeholders talk about issues they experience. The stakeholders are more likely to reciprocate by being more open and interested in their leaders in reaction to this. Based on this, it is important to engage responsible leaders because they can foster trust, develop, and maintain positive relationships with stakeholders.
Responsible Leadership
Limits and Blind Spots
Insecurity is one of the blind spots experienced when approaching responsible leadership. Ego, as well as a lack of self-confidence and self-esteem, are frequently to blame. Insecurity in a leader can lead to uncertainty and an unwillingness to embrace change (Pless, Maak, and Waldman, 2012). Insecure leaders want to be liked by everyone; thus, they frequently avoid or fail to defuse conflict and avoid situations that need them to pick sides or take a line. When one is an insecure leader, they may also micromanage, refuse to listen to ideas or feedback, and refuse to explain decisions. Recognize that an individual does not understand everything about leadership. Mistakes will be made, and failure will ensue in any setting, whether one is a leader or not. Therefore, it is important to consider the aspect of insecurity among responsible leadership.
The other blind spot in responsible leadership is the aspect of compassion. When leaders are compassionate in situations that require accountability, trust, and organizational effectiveness suffer (Pless, Maak, and Waldman, 2012). When bosses are lenient, employees can become entitled, expecting things to go their way constantly. It can also result in inaction, imprecise decision-making, and a loss of impartiality. For example, there is a need for a leader to introduce relevant punishment for followers who may fail to act as required or achieve the set objectives. There are some situations in which leaders do not need to be compassionate. They should have a good understanding of when to apply compassion and where it is not needed. As a result, leaders fail to engage their teams, which has an impact on the customer experience.
The Collaborative and Relational Aspects of Leadership
Collaborative leadership improves the morale of followers in an organization. This approach ensures that team members work together to meet the set objectives. It provides an opportunity to learn from one another and solve problems together, producing an enticing workplace for most individuals (Pearce, Wassenaar, and Manz, 2014). For example, when a person has a work-related problem, they can request help from a colleague who can help solve the issue. When employees work together, they can share their problems and understand each other (Fairhurst and Connaughton, 2014). In addition, it is a method that naturally fosters trust since everyone is striving for the mutual success of everyone else. As trust grows, team morale improves, inspiring even greater collaboration.
Relational aspects of leadership promote the development of a profession, increase productivity, and reduce employee turnover. Employees with coworker friends are likelier to be engaged in their work. Individuals who are engaged are less inclined to hunt for a new job, which can assist cut turnover-related costs (Uhl-Bien, 2006). Furthermore, engaged employees are more likely to be productive. For example, a positive relationship creates a conducive environment where all the followers can work and achieve the set organizational goals (Maak & Pless, 2006b). Getting to know coworkers can aid in the development of trust. Being on good terms with colleagues and managers might also lead to new promotions and possibilities that an individual would have missed otherwise. Therefore, the relational approach help create an environment that supports the growth of an individual and organization.
Use of Resources
Assumptions, Discourses, and Histories
The assumptions that promote and constrain resources use are eudaemonic and amplification assumptions. Eudaemonic is based on the idea of happiness as a proper end of a product (Cameron, 2011). In this concept, it is important for leaders to make sure that resources are effectively used to achieve the intended aim. The resources are supposed to help generate products that can achieve the organization’s goals (Orlitzky, Schmidt, and Rynes, 2003). On the other hand, the amplification assumption is based on a belief that resources are supposed to use the input to generate more output. For example, employees are supposed to help an organization realize its objectives. The performance of an organization is achieved when the output is more than the input.
The discourses that enhance and constrain resources use are responsible and transformational leadership. A responsible approach to leadership involves making sustainable business decisions that consider all stakeholders’ interests (Voegtlin, Boehm, and Bruch, 2015). It ensures that resources are effectively used to achieve the set objectives. Leaders using this approach have the ability to improve the performance of an organization. However, transformational leadership help in making sure that employees are motivated to carry out their roles (Yukl, 1999) effectively. For example, they ensure that the followers have the right tools to support their work. Thus, these discourses facilitate the effective use of resources.
Some of the histories that can be used to enhance the use of resources are romanticism and realism. Romanticism is usually associated with the concept of control, logic, and rational behavior (Kempster and Carroll, 2016). It is a concept that emphasizes emotions, aspirations, and imagination. In addition, it enables an individual to focus on using their imaginations to enhance productivity. On the other hand, realism is based on the actual or situated understanding of facts (Kempster and Carroll, 2016). Therefore, it allows one to use existing facts to make the right decisions. For example, a leader should use factual information collected in the business environment to make informed decisions. With facts obtained, one is able to make use of the data collected in real-time.
To fundamentally change the assumptions, discourses, and histories in a South Africa, responsible leadership is required. Responsible leadership emerged from social relations, ethical theories, and a leadership style that occurred during social interaction. Leaders face new problems as a result of today’s globalized and economic realities, organizational networks, and diverse workforces. Leaders focus not only on creating earnings for shareholders but also on meeting stakeholders’ requirements. In addition, they make sure that employees are treated effectively to achieve the set output. Therefore, a responsible leader plays an integral role in ensuring that employees are comfortable and the organization achieves its goals.
Moreover, since South Africa is a diverse, industrialized, and technologically advanced country, using responsible leadership will assist in addressing the issues. Diverse stakeholder demands, compelling tensions, and complicated relation networks put the responsible leader in a position to play multiple roles in a company. For example, a responsible leader could be a homemaker, a visionary, a democratic negotiator, a motivator, a decision-maker, or a debater. In addition, they always create and maintain deep relationships with all stakeholders by leveraging the great forces of protection, acquisition, connection, and understanding.
Personal Reflection
The most appropriate proposition is one that indicates that responsible leadership is a shared orientation. In my view, it is important for a responsible leader to adopt a collaborative and relational approach. This ensures that leaders major in meeting the needs of everyone who contributes to the organization, either directly or indirectly. Managing stakeholder relationships is fundamental to any business because it facilitates relationships. Successful businesses must always be mindful of who will hold them back and assist them in moving forward. Therefore, I believe that the proposition shows that contemporary organizations must construct stakeholder maps for each operational and change activity in order to make short-term decisions and achieve long-term goals.
I discovered that stakeholder management is an important concept that a responsible leader should adopt. It involves learning and understanding the stakeholders’ perspectives and addressing issues of great importance. Stakeholders acquire new information on an issue or product through effective communication, which can help them gain a competitive advantage. The knowledge gained from many stakeholder viewpoints aids in better and more informed decision-making. As leaders are probably aware, it is never a bad idea to look at challenges from a new or different perspective. I also believe that the proposition shows responsible leaders that the purpose of any organization should be to make educated decisions that take into account the different demands of stakeholders, including customers.
Depending on the nature of an organization, the proposition shows that different stakeholders will be involved. Some of the key stakeholders in any organization are clients, staff, vendors, shareholders, communities, regulators, and the government. Because stakeholders are important in the effective performance of an organization, responsible leaders should focus on recognizing their needs. Understanding their requirements and wants and how to deal with them and listen to them will aid in the development of stronger connections. A leader in an organization is likely to encounter stakeholders who are antagonistic or opposed to their initiatives at times. Therefore, this is the time to put the stakeholder management approaches, capabilities, and strategies into action.
The proposition also shows that responsible leadership should develop a stakeholder perspective because it is supposed to foster trust. Effective stakeholder engagement is important because it determines the success or failure of an organization. When leaders reach out to stakeholders, they are letting them know that their input and opinions are appreciated. This collaborative approach will increase goodwill and trust in a firm. This is especially useful if organizational leaders operate in a crisis or against a tight deadline. Rebuilding trust is easier said than done, and it can be a difficult and time-consuming process. However, if leaders make sure that all of their stakeholders are handled with the respect and participation they deserve, they can get the organization to a good start.
Through this proposition, I found out that responsible leaders should engage stakeholders to help identify and solve the risks. When a concept is reviewed with a group of people, potential negative risks can be recognized. Individuals can ensure that their operations run smoothly and follow their natural course by avoiding these hazards. Engaging with groups also enhances accountability within their firm and with external audiences. Transparency is critical in assisting leaders to reach their desired goals and outcomes. They must always keep in touch with their stakeholders to keep them up to date on how their company is progressing.
Reference List
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