leadership

For several years, Rae Marie, a former colleague and long-time friend, had been a successful manager for a company you worked at together years ago. Because you no longer work together, she confides in you during a private lunch meeting soliciting your advice and expertise on her new leadership role with, MyShoppingSpreeTV.

In a second meeting Rae Marie, she discloses that she is working harder than ever in her new role as the Vice President of Operations for MyShoppingSpreeTV but sees little results from her efforts. She shares that business is slow and the pressure to improve sales and productivity is growing. She confessed, I am ready to give up. I don’t know if I have the leadership abilities required to turn things around. I certainly don’t have the confidence I did when business was good and I don’t think my employees have confidence in me either. What if I am not the right person for a leadership position anymore? What if I had been successful in the past because of the great economy?”

She went on to share that she was working hard and working long hours, but business indicators suggested that business was bad and taking a turn for the worst. She was clearly unhappy and knew her team was unhappy as well. Rae Marie asks you, “How can I influence my team to turn things around?”

You know that the ways in which leaders influence their employees and encourage them to be productive depend on many variables, including the personality of the leader, the skills of the employees, the task at hand, or the group dynamics and personalities of team members. As with leadership styles, each base of power has its place when leading people and can prove effective in the right setting and right circumstances.

It is clear to you that Rae Marie would benefit from a discussion on leadership and the sources of authority and influence that she, as a leader, has on her employees and her position within the company. In your discussion, analyze the ways that leaders can influence employees.

For full-credit, you must address the following in your posting:

• Describe three ways that leaders can influence employees
• How does a leader’s influence affect an organization’s performance? Provide a current example from your research.

Cite all references in a reference list. Be sure to reference all sources using APA format. For more information on APA, please visit the APASTYLE Lab.