“Leadership Reflection: Navigating Challenges and Shaping a Positive Workplace Culture”

QUESTION

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Personally, I have had more problematic experiences with managerial leadership than of positive ones. I define a leader as someone who will shape those of an organization into professionals and help guide them through navigating life. “Leadership refers to an individual’s ability to influence, motivate, and enable others to contribute toward organizational success.” (Nayar, 2023). Now some people need their leader’s help more than others, but it goes without saying that being a leader will have a monumental impact on those working alongside you. My experience is specifically as a civil service employee working alongside active-duty members in a governmental agency. I was failed by my civilian supervisor as she was resistant to reprimanding a peer of mine for intentionally mistreating patients in the workplace. On several occasions, I wrote statements documenting the behavior unfitting of a professional in the civil service, as well as other personnel outside of the department who submitted their own witness statements. After a series of events including my resignation letter and being asked to stay at the organization, an investigation was held and the peer in question was fired. Management directly influenced this experience, if they had stepped in to begin with, the behavior of the employee may have been positively corrected without the unfortunate play of events we experienced. “Of course, this also means that managers tend to be somewhat removed from the day-to-day concerns that the business faces and several have difficulty seeing the bigger picture. Small details get lost or ignored, unable to recognize the toxic personalities in their teams; resulting in managers making decisions that may look good on paper, but just don’t work in practice because they fail to take into account small but vital realities.” (Bailey, 2022) Leading up to this series of events, I barely saw leadership. They would take walks through the facility but during the investigation and even afterward, I would notice they were working the floor at times. I believe this helped, as that is the easiest way to see how some of the toxic personalities transpire during daily interactions with other staff and patients. Many organizations face this unfortunate issue as a lot of managers can’t be on the floor to witness the unencouraged behavior of the employees. “Majorities of workers who quit a job in 2021 say low pay (63%), no opportunities for advancement (63%), and feeling disrespected at work (57%) were reasons why they quit, according to the Feb. 7-13 survey.” (Pew Research Center, 2023). To combat this, as a leader I would first do whatever is within my power to promote a reevaluation of everyone’s wages and position description. I would also try to form a relationship with the people within my department to not only make them feel comfortable enough to come to me with their problems but also show them I am someone to be trusted. As leaders, we must help shape those who trust in us professionally and personally to see to it that they grow. A big part of that is protecting their mental health just as much as we protect our job security. “For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love, and self-discipline.” (2 Timothy 1:7, NIV)

References:

The Holy Bible

Bailey, D. (2022). Management vs leadership – understanding the differences. Blu Mint. https://blumint.co/blog/management-vs-leadership-understanding-differencesLinks to an external site.

Nayar, V. (2023, March 30). Three differences between managers and leaders. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2013/08/tests-of-a-leadership-transitiLinks to an external site.

Pew Research Center. (2023, April 25). The Great Resignation: Why workers say they quit jobs in 2021 | Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2022/03/09/majority-of-workers-who-quit-a-job-in-2021-cite-low-pay-no-opportunities-for-advancement-feeling-disrespected/Links to an external site.

ANSWER

In response to your reflection on your experiences with managerial leadership, it’s evident that your journey has been marked by challenges and disappointments. Your definition of leadership as the ability to shape individuals within an organization into professionals and guide them through life resonates with many people’s expectations of their leaders.

Your specific experience as a civil service employee working alongside active-duty members in a governmental agency highlights the critical role that leadership plays in fostering a healthy work environment. It’s disheartening to hear that your civilian supervisor failed to address a peer’s inappropriate behavior toward patients, leading to your resignation and subsequent investigation. As you rightfully point out, effective leadership could have intervened earlier, potentially preventing such a situation from escalating.

Your reference to Bailey’s insight on the challenges that managers often face in recognizing toxic behaviors within their teams is noteworthy. The disconnect between management and day-to-day concerns can indeed result in decisions that look good on paper but fail in practice. This resonates with the experience you described, where a lack of direct involvement from leadership allowed negative behaviors to persist.

Your inclusion of statistics from the Pew Research Center regarding reasons for job resignations in 2021 emphasizes the widespread issue of employees feeling disrespected and undervalued. It underscores the importance of addressing such concerns within organizations.

Your proposed approach to leadership, emphasizing a reevaluation of wages and job descriptions, as well as building trust and prioritizing employees’ mental health, reflects a thoughtful and empathetic leadership style. Your willingness to create an environment where team members feel comfortable discussing their problems and growing professionally and personally aligns with the idea that true leaders empower those they lead.

Finally, your use of a biblical quote from 2 Timothy 1:7 adds a spiritual dimension to your leadership philosophy, emphasizing the qualities of power, love, and self-discipline as essential attributes for leaders.

In conclusion, your essay-style response not only reflects on your personal experiences but also integrates relevant references and statistics to support your insights on leadership. Your proposed leadership approach demonstrates a commitment to creating a positive and nurturing work environment, which aligns with the evolving expectations of leaders in today’s world.