Leaders and Managers as Facilitators
Leaders & Managers as Facilitators
Leaders Role as a Team Builder
Leadership Style in Light of Fundamental Interpersonal Relations Orientation (FIRO)
Strengths
Weaknesses
Leadership Style in Light of Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)
Strengths
Weaknesses
Impact of Leadership within the Cohort
Role in Team Development
Hindrance in Team Development
Team Presentation
Planning
Execution
Team's Strengths
Team's Challenges
Balance between Task and Process
Different Styles of Team Members
Contributor
Collaborator
Communicator
Challenger
Surprises during Facilitation Sessions
Dynamics in Team Development
Mission as a Leader
References
Introduction
Facilitators are the most influential and important people in today's modern organizations. Effective and efficient facilitators are capable of helping individuals, teams and complete organizations in getting the tasks accomplished in the face of evolving organizations. They attain the skill of improving the quantity and quality of work by motivating and leading the members to work together with greater efficiency (Weaver & Farrell, 1997). The greatest fear of the employees in view of change is that of the unknown, particularly if the change is professed to threaten their jobs and individual financial safety. This self-doubt is often exploited by rumors. The role of the manager is to lead by being an agent and facilitator of change. As agents and facilitators of change, managers must recognize that they will need to handle their employees' doubts and anxieties concerning future variations possibly disturbing their jobs and private safety (Northouse, 2010).
Leaders Role as a Team Builder
A single mind cannot perform tasks with perfection as compared to a team. In a team, every individual donates to his best to accomplish the allotted objectives. The team members must be companionable with each other to avoid pointless conflicts and confusions. Thus every team must have a leader who must possess the capability to hold the team together and extract the best out of the every individual member of the team. Leaders perform multiple roles which are as follows:
A team leader plays a significant role in managing the team members and inspiring them to stay dedicated.
Suggestions should be welcomed from all and matters must be debated on an open forum to avoid conflicts and to promote healthy work environment.
A team leader must be neutral. This would further strengthen his position.
Motivate the team so that they make even better the next time.
Encourage the team members to help each other. This would build a healthy and active team.
Create a positive atmosphere at the workplace.
Be a mentor for your team members. This will help the leader to gain respect.
Leadership Style in Light of Fundamental Interpersonal Relations Orientation (FIRO)
This theory primarily describes the relational underworld of a small group. It is centered on the conviction that when people get together in a group, there are three main interpersonal needs:
Affection/openness
Control
Inclusion
The FIRO-B® instrument measures 3 basic interpersonal needs (Inclusion, Control, Affection) on 2 dimensions (Expressed, Wanted).
Inclusion
Control
Affection
Expressed
How much you embrace other people in your life
Expressed
Your need for inspiration and duty
Expressed
The warmth and familiarity you show for others
Wanted
How much consideration and gratitude you desire from others
Wanted
The amount to which you want others to take the lead
Wanted
How much you need the backing of others
Strengths
The strengths of using FIRO are as follows:
It is an effective team building tool as it identifies the reason of tension and incompatibility.
It improves decision making skills, conflict resolution, communication, confidence, and training efficiency.
It boosts personal development by helping in career progress and self-awareness.
It improves relationship counseling skills by figuring out the sources of dissatisfaction and conflict.
It improves selection and placement process as it is useful for organizing interviews and evaluating interpersonal style.
Weaknesses
The weaknesses of FIRO are as follows:
It is not a comprehensive test. It only focuses on interpersonal skills. As leadership demands a comprehensive evaluation of every individual, thus FIRO can be an insufficient approach.
As FIRO is not comprehensive, thus result obtained cannot be used to make an overall judgment.
Lastly, FIRO is not an effective tool to make a major decision based on the results. This is because it only tests interpersonal relationships.
Leadership Style in Light of Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI)
The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) assessment is a psychometric questionnaire planned to ration psychological inclinations in how people recognize the world and make decisions. With the MBTI, you'll learn how you get strengthened, make decisions, and shape your workspace. You'll discover your preferences on four significant personality sides:
Extraverted or Introverted: Strength is obtained from other people, or from an individual's own internal...
Effective leaders possess the traits to influence their teams through their charisma and talent. The can motivate, inspire and stimulate their team to work hard to attain the goals (Western, 2008). They build the confidence and trust of the team during tranquil periods in order to stop the negative impact of stress and anxiety that prevails in such circumstances. They possess the skills to involve every individual by creating a healthy work environment and by strengthening the overall team. Lastly, leaders play an effective role by providing an active feedback regarding the performance of every individual in a cohort. This will in turn help in making timely decisions to improve performance so that goals can be attained.
Role in Team Development
Leaders play a significant role in team development. Their personal traits are vital for the formation of a good team. Leaders are responsible for performing multiple tasks in the team development like maintaining the unity, promoting motivation, creating a healthy work environment for proper functioning of a team, making the team efficient and evaluating the task and teams' performance to accomplish the targets.
Hindrance in Team Development
Team development is a tough process that requires several necessary measures. Lack of few integral traits can cause hindrance in the development of a good team. The few factors that can be held responsible for being a hindrance in team development are as follows:
Lack of communication between the leader and the team members.
Lack of trust between team members and the leader.
Lack of good leadership skills in a leader can be a major hindrance in the development of a good team.
Team Presentation
Team presentations include exact techniques and are commonly involved when the risks are higher. Exceptional preparation methods and coordination energies are critical to the accomplishment of the team presentation.
Planning
The planning phase of a team presentation involves the following steps:
The team must have clear goals so that they can make an effective presentation.
Preparation is critical and co-ordination in necessary in planning a presentation in order to attain effective results.
Rehearse as a group early and often to attain perfection.
Include both, introductions and transitions as part of your groundwork and practice.
Focus on transitions
Execution
The team should reach early at the meeting site. Preferably, everyone should revise their part at least once, in the order in which they'll represent. They should practice their visuals and get easy with the equipment and physical location. Practice with a microphone if you're going to use it. Know where to find technical help, just in case.
This onsite test run is significant in any case. It's even more vital when the presentation is taking place before a huge audience. Lastly, be attentive even if you are not presenting.
Team's Strengths
The strengths of a team are as follows
More creativity as there are more individuals involved, thus leading to more ideas and improved results
Team gives an opportunity to improve and obtain new skills
The speed at which things can be achieved can be greatly improved as more individuals are performing a certain task.
A support network that can be trusted for the performance of any task.
Team's Challenges
Along with the added strengths of working in a team, there are added challenges as well which are as follows:
Keeping a check and balance on all team members is relatively difficult
Creating co-ordination between team members
Evaluating job performance
Giving feedback in accordance with the tasks achieved and with respect to teams overall performance
Promoting team work
Balance between Task and Process
It is general perceptions that task oriented leaders tend to ignore the human element which result in high rate of turnover, low morale and low flexible behavior. On the contrary, process oriented leaders are believed to be more considerate towards their followers, centering on the requirement of the employ, building competence, self-assurance and relationship. If the balance between task and process is missing, either the employees…
