Leadership The only factor that truly defines a leader is the acceptance of leadership by the followers. Remember he who leads and has no followers is walking alone
Exercise and Discussion: The Buck Stops Here
As a chief correctional supervisor in a small minimum â€"security facility, you report to the warden.
The plate on the wardenâ€TMs desk saying, “The Buck Stops Here†reasonably describes her approach to the job. She never avoids a decision or a problem, even of the most controversial or unpleasant sort, and for this you respect her.
However, the warden make her decisions in a vacuum with no input from other department heads involved in the issue at hand. She is apparently conscientious in her attempts to come up with the best solutions each time.
But when she transmits the instructions for carrying out her decisions she does so without giving you or anyone else the opportunity to provide the perspective of the person who has to translate the order into action.
Questions:
When you receive an order from the warden which you know is inappropriate (and assume you know so because you are much closer to the problem) how can you make yourself heard without deliberately rejecting her style of management?
Are there ways to effectively increase the flow of information to a supervisor so that the leadership pattern is strengthened by having better data?
How (and here is the ticklish part with many supervisors) might you bring this subject up in a way that shows your legitimate concerns?