Applied Organizational Leadership
HRLR 311
Applied Organizational Leadership
Case Study Assignment 1
The purpose of this case study assignment is for you to apply what you have learned to a particular organizational situation and setting. The case studies have been selected to expose you to a wide range of organizations (e.g., business, government, nonprofit) and situations. Your success in the case study assignments largely depends on your ability to apply the leadership concepts and frameworks. Case study questions can be found in the Case Study Assignment document. Your assignment is to answer each of the questions. You may use bullet points in your answers, but please use complete sentences and paragraphs. Case study assignments must be typed and are limited to two single-spaced pages. Case study memos must be placed in the D2L dropbox. Emailed case study assignments or screenshots will not be accepted. Each case study assignment is worth 20 points and will be graded on the following scale: (20) excellent analysis and application of course concepts, (17) satisfactory analysis and application of course concepts, (14) poor analysis and application of course concepts, and (0) not submitted.
An excellent analysis usually involves the following: 1) a thorough understanding of the materials 2) providing a clear rationale for your analysis or argument) 3) linking your argument with examples from the case.
- Let’s assess Maggie Wilderotter’s emotional intelligence using the table from the “Leadership That Gets Results” article below. On a 1 to 5 scale, to what extent do you agree that Maggie Wilderotter possesses the four components of emotional intelligence? Justify your score on each of the four components using at least two sub-component examples from the case.
Here’s a totally hypothetical example of what I’m looking for: I rated 5 on Wilderotter’s self-management because, first and foremost, her achievement orientation is off the charts. For example, while at Microsoft, her boss Mundie noted that Wilderotter built an “incredible” organization “just largely out of her spunk and willingness to travel, to live on airplanes going all over the world to make stuff happen.” And, at Wink, she chose to have a schedule that required her to “push, push, push.”
| Self-Awareness | Self-Management | Social Awareness | Social Skill |
| Emotional Self-Awareness | Self-Control | Empathy | Visionary Leadership |
| Accurate Self-Assessment | Trustworthiness | Organizational Awareness | Influence |
| Self-Confidence | Conscientiousness | Service Orientation | Developing Others |
| Adaptability | Communication | ||
| Achievement Orientation | Change Catalyst | ||
| Initiative | Conflict Management | ||
| Building Bonds | |||
| Teamwork and Cooperation |
- Wilderotter has served on the boards of more than 30 public and private companies. What makes Wilderotter such a valuable board member? More specifically, identify three elements of emotional intelligence that she has leveraged to achieve leadership success as a board member. Use specific sub-component examples from the case to support your answer.
- As a highly effective CEO and board member, which leadership style did Wilderotter showed the most? Identify two styles that Wilderotter constantly used to be an effective leader from the 6 leadership styles that we have covered in this module. Use specific examples from the case, and provide clear reasons why those styles led to success.
- As an undergraduate student studying leadership, which leadership style do you see as ideal for you? And Why? How would you improve your leadership skill or emotional intelligence, so you can have such a style in the future?
