Empowering Leadership to Rebuild a Divided Organization

Taking the Helm: The Leadership Challenge

Assuming leadership of Pequod, Inc., will not be an easy task. The previous leaders left suddenly, creating an atmosphere of infighting, challenge, disorder, and confusion, and now the organization is having significant trouble operating as a cohesive unit. As the newly appointed CEO of the firm, it will be my responsibility not simply to maintain operations and keep various departments goal-oriented and on target, but also to instill a culture that promotes the ongoing fulfillment and success of the company and the individuals who are a part of it.

Why Empowering Leadership Matters

According to leaders with both practical and scholarly experience, an environment that supports gossip, factions, and power struggles is directly counterproductive to empowering employees, even those not directly involved in such conflicts (Kraft, 2010). An empowering leader creates a culture where all employees, managers, and executives have ownership and responsibility for the operation, which leads to increases in knowledge sharing, efficacy, and overall performance (Kraft, 2010; Srivastava et al., 2006). Not only that, but empowering leadership translates directly to increased creativity and intrinsic motivation; striving to lead in a manner that recognizes and utilizes the talents of all employees and gives them authority over their tasks is therefore ideal from every perspective (Kraft, 2010; Zhang & Bartol, 2010).

The Cost of Political Power Struggles

Given the above research, it is clear that leaders can have an enormous impact on organizational effectiveness and that using politics and power struggles as a means of accomplishing things is ineffective and ultimately disastrous. Instead of political games and power differentiation, leaders should ensure that every individual has meaningful authority over their tasks and responsibilities in order to empower members of the organization at all levels. Currently, Pequod, Inc. is being torn apart from the inside due to the effects of power conflicts and politics in the wake of a sudden leadership absence. Achieving empowerment will therefore be difficult, as it will necessarily mean limiting certain individuals' power in areas where it has extended too far. A more empowered culture is nonetheless necessary for the continued success of the company and should be of paramount concern in this new leadership role.

Conclusion

A leadership vacuum leading to infighting and political power struggles can be incredibly destructive for any firm. A new leader should attempt to create an empowering culture, which will pacify certain destabilizing elements and inspire greater motivation, creativity, and success across all departments.

References

Kraft, D. (2010). Leaders Who Last. New York: Crossway.

Srivastava, A., Bartol, K., & Locke, E. (2006). Empowering leadership in management teams. Academy of Management Journal, 49(6), 1239–1251.

Zhang, X., & Bartol, K. (2010). Linking empowering leadership and employee creativity: The influence of psychological empowerment, intrinsic motivation, and creative process engagement. Academy of Management Journal, 53(1), 107–128.