Transformative Leadership Essay

Transformative Leadership Part 1

Kathleen Cube

BSHS 465

October 19,2015

Christina James

Transformative leadership is typically a style of management or leadership that can inspire change. (Cherry, n.d.) Transformative leaders often manage utilizing concepts such as intellectual stimulation, individualized consideration, inspirational motivation and idealized influences. (Cherry, n.d.)  In simple language this style of leadership requires the leader to engage in the process with their staff, encourage creativity, foster support, and motivate the team as whole unit working toward a specific vision.   This strategic style of leadership can have a profound and positive impact on an organization.

Self Awareness

In the story “ Salt and Pepper in the Pot”, it appeared as there was the team of human service professional were not working as a team.  The staff in the agency did not appear to have a sense of self awareness especially when tension filled their arena.  The story takes place in a directors meeting were different team leaders and directors were being informed about “cut backs” that had to be made due to a budget decrease.  For example,  when the director indicated it was going to be Angelina’s program that was going to loose staff she became defensive. As her peers attempted to chime in and agree with her frustrations and the budget cuts she began to get verbally aggressive towards her colleagues. Of course, as the tension began to fill the room other peers verbalized their frustrations and is would seem as though none of them were aware of there setting, the inappropriateness of certain comments or the lack of support they were failing to provide to each other.

Perceptions

In reading the specific story “Salt and Pepper in the Pot”, it would seem as though there perception’s are very individualized to a point of near self absorption. For example, in the meeting when the professionals began to cut each other off with comments like “you people” and  use statements like “ I can handle my department with out any assistance”, demonstrates an unhealthy personalization of their work and the work of their departments. It would appear that each professional at that meeting perceives their individual work as the most difficult and strenuous. Burn out appears to be a contributing factor within this organization as the meeting and comments shared minimally identified the impact budget cuts would have the clients, it was more about the professional and how they were going to continue to function and run their departments. Towards the end of the story, the reader can begin to see where some of the perceptions of the team derive. Regina the supervisor of the director which if whom was running the meeting shared some of her own perceptions about her team to the journalist. Potentially from burn out herself she openly shared with Nick how she perceives her team. In great detail she identified both race and economic status amongst her team as being a driving force of the wedge between her colleagues  Appearing almost as if she justified their inappropriate comments and behavior due to how their perceive each other. Often times emotions, perceptions and even behaviors can trickle down from management into the team. In my professional opinion, it may seem as though a great deal of the separation and unhealthy perceptions are direct result of the opinions and vision of their leader Regina.The perceptions demonstrated in this story can be very harmful to the client. This is not a team that is working as unit for a greater cause. The burn out demonstrated by these professionals can be detrimental to the overall quality of care attempted to provide to clientele. If a professional is not utilizing all potential collaborative sources and working towards treating the person as whole the lack of perception and self awareness can be very harmful to the success of the client.

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