Activity Instructions: Leader Essay
Identify a leader with whom you have had many opportunities to interact and have had many opportunities to observe. This leader may be a good or bad example of leadership; however, you must choose someone about whom you can write intelligently while providing numerous examples to support your evaluation of him or her. This leader does not necessarily need to be from industry; he or she may be a leader in academia, sports, social organizations, etc.
After identifying a leader, write an essay evaluating that leader. The objective of your essay is to demonstrate that you understand the concepts and that you can apply them to a real-world situation. You may use any of the other concepts presented in the Required Readings or from other sources that help you discuss or explain the leader. If you use sources other than your textbook, you must cite your sources and provide references in APA format. In your essay, you must include discussion of each of the following eight (8) concepts and provide one (1) example for each concept.
Big-Five Personality Dimensions
Values and Attitudes
Charismatic, Transformational, or Transactional Leadership
Independent Thinking and Open-Mindedness or Systems Thinking
Leading with Love versus Leading with Fear
Moral Leadership and Moral Courage
Stewardship or Servant Leadership
Leader's Role in Developing Effective Followers
You must provide examples to support your analysis of the person. For example, you might state that Mr. Jones demonstrated a low degree of conscientiousness. You would then need to support that statement with an example, such as the fact that he rarely operated according to any schedule, was often late for meetings and deadlines, and frequently changed priorities in the middle of a project. Keep in mind that although you are required to use the concepts listed above, you may be arguing that the leader did not demonstrate a characteristic.
The conclusion of your essay should be an argument as to whether the leader you have chosen was effective or ineffective based on the concepts you have just learned. Generally speaking, no leader is completely good or bad; therefore, you will use the concepts covered in the Required Readings to discuss the person's strengths and developmental opportunities.
Keep in mind, your goal is to demonstrate your understanding of the concepts and your ability to apply them, not to meet or exceed a length requirement. Your Activity responses should be both grammatically and mechanically correct, and formatted in the same fashion as the Activity itself. If there is a Part A, your response should identify a Part A, etc. In addition, you must appropriately cite all resources used in your response and document in a bibliography using APA style. (100 points) (A 4-page response is required.)