BUS576 - 3 Teams, Communication, and Leadership

Leaders Deserve the Big Bucks, or Do They?

Whenever I think of a CEO, CIO, COO, or any executive heading a company, I think that they make a lot of money. The decisions being made rest on their shoulders and they are the face of the decision, no matter who actually makes it. They deserve to make six figures, right? Pfeffer and Sutton provided data from 1980 to 2000. In 1980, the average CEO made 42 times as much as the average worker. In 1990 the number rose to 85 times as much and then to 531 by 2000 (Pfeffer & Sutton, 2006). Moving forward through the years, the gap of pay wages between the average worker and CEO is increasing at rapid speeds. What is changing so drastically that the pay for CEOs and other executives is skyrocketing while the average worker gets a minimal increase every year? These facts were astonishing to me. I never thought to really look at how much all the executives were making at UPMC versus what I am making now. I'm sure it is even more than 531 times by now. The CEOs and executives may get to convey the final decision, but it's the workers under them that come up with the decision based on evidence and facts they have researched. Overall, they don't really have the influence over the performance of the company because there are so many external factors. The best example is one in sports. When a sports team does well, they keep the coach and manager, when they do poor, they both get fired and are replaced. This just happened with the Pittsburgh Penguins where the coach and general manger were fired. They didn't play on the team and affect the winning and losing like the players do, but they are seen as the face of the team and are blamed for their losses. These are attributional errors, but it won't stop happening, especially in sports. It's all about money, power, and prestige, and people accept getting credit or blame when they step up in a leadership role (Pfeffer & Sutton, 2006). Do you think it is a leader's role to get all the credit and all the blame? Why or why not? Would you want to be in a leadership role, maybe a CEO, knowing everything you read in chapter 8? Why or why not?

How Influential is Your Feedback?

I also found the experiment that Pfeffer and his colleagues did at Stanford provided interesting results. The experiment was between 3 subordinates and 3 supervisors. Each subordinate worked on a rough draft for an advertisement. The first supervisor was told they could only see the final advertisement due to constraints. The second supervisor was told they could see a rough draft and a checklist of things to change, but the subordinate wouldn't get the feedback due to constraints. The third subordinate was able to see a rough draft and submit a checklist of things to change that the subordinate can use. All the subordinates' final advertisements were exactly the same, but the third supervisor ranked that their subordinate's advertisement was twice as good and they were twice as good of a manager compared to the other two. When managers believe they have influence on something, they rate it higher than if they don't. They overestimate their positive effects and this is a pitfall of many managers I work with. I never really knew why they needed t provide me with changes that were so unnecessary to me, but so important to them. Sometimes when I submit something, the feedback I get back will not change the submission at all because the information is already there! It drives me crazy. When I feel this way, I will just think back to this experiment and just 'redo' my work. Do you have examples of this experiment at your job? What is your take on this experiment? Do you think it happens with many managers?

Critique

In the article 7 Ways to Become a Better Leader, the author goes into 7 ways leaders can improve and become a better leader. The first says 'don't be scared to fail big' and describes how a self-made billionaire, Michael Rubin, isn't afraid to fail and how he learns from his mistakes. This sounds like a great example, but the experience he went through may not always hold true for others. The second is 'banish self'doubt by acknowledging your accomplishments.' The author uses a book as evidence of this claim. As far as I know, the author of the book did her research to come up with the recommendations. The third says 'don't settle for the standard solution.' Again, the author of the article uses a book and author as evidence. If someone writes a book, should we automatically believe their claim? They had to have done some research, right? The rest of the claims are supported by some research or studies that the author describes in the text beneath the heading. Overall, the article isn't just based on what the author thinks, past experience, or people with advanced degrees. The article does focus on research and facts that can back up the claims.

Reflection

Everyday I work with teams and am trying to develop into a successful leader. I especially liked this chapter in Pfeffer and Sutton's book because it tells you what others don't. You always think the CEO or executives are in charge of the performance of a company, but that isn't necessarily true. Learning how to be a good leader is important, especially now. Getting an MBA was one of the best decisions I have made. The information provides real-world examples on what to expect. I am also looking at everything I say and everyone else says with having no evidence! Whenever someone presents me with a claim, I ask for the evidence. If they don't have any, I say well then if there's no evidence, let's just go with my opinion. I hope I can keep this mindset going.

Resources:

Entis, L. (2014, Jan 14). 7 Ways to Become a Better Leader. Retrieved 
Jul 12, 2014, from Entrepreneur: http://www.entrepreneur.com
/article/230860

Pfeffer, J., & Sutton, R. (2006). Hard Facts, Dangerous Half-Truths, & Total Nonsense. Boston: Harvard Business School Publishing.