Page 401 - Fundamentals of Management Myths Debunked (2017)_Flat

400 Part 4 • Leading
::::::: Technology and the Manager’s Job :::::::
VIRTUAL LeADeRSHIP

How do you lead people who are physically separated from you To be an effective virtual leader, managers must recognize that
and with whom your interactions are primarily written digital com- they have choices in the words and structure of their digital commu-
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munications? That’s the challenge of being a virtual leader. And nications. They also need to develop the skill of “reading between
unfortunately, leadership research has been directed mostly at face- the lines” in the messages they receive. It’s important to try and
to-face and verbal situations. But we can’t ignore the reality that decipher the emotional content of a message as well as the written
today’s managers and their employees are increasingly being linked content. Also, virtual leaders need to think carefully about what
by technology rather than by geographic proximity. So what guid- actions they want their digital messages to initiate. Be clear about
ance would be helpful to leaders who must inspire and motivate what’s expected and follow up on messages.
dispersed employees? For an increasing number of managers, good interpersonal
It’s easy to soften harsh words in face-to-face communication skills may include the abilities to communicate support and leader-
with nonverbal action. A smile or a comforting gesture can go a long ship through digital communication and to read emotions in others’
way in lessening the blow behind strong words like disappointed, messages. In this “new world” of communication, writing skills are
unsatisfactory, inadequate, or below expectations. That nonverbal likely to become an extension of interpersonal skills.
component doesn’t exist in online interactions. The structure of If your professor has assigned this, go to the Assignments section of
words in a digital communication also has the power to motivate mymanagementlab.com to complete these discussion questions.
or demotivate the receiver. A manager who inadvertently sends a
message in short phrases or in ALL CAPS may get a very different taLK aBOUt It 5: What challenges does a “virtual” leader face?
response than if the message had been sent in full sentences using taLK aBOUt It 6: How can virtual leaders use technology to
appropriate punctuation. help them be more effective leaders?

As we said in our earlier discussion of trait research, leaders need basic intelligence
and job-relevant knowledge. But IQ and technical skills are “threshold capabilities.” They’re
necessary but not sufficient requirements for leadership. It’s the possession of the five compo-
nents of emotional intelligence—self-awareness, self-management, self-motivation, empathy,
and social skills—that allows an individual to become a star performer. Without EI, a person
can have outstanding training, a highly analytical mind, a long-term vision, and an endless
supply of terrific ideas but still not make a great leader, especially as individuals move up in
an organization. The evidence indicates that the higher the rank of a person considered to be a
star performer, the more that EI capabilities surface as the reason for his or her effectiveness.
Specifically, when star performers were compared with average ones in senior management
positions, nearly 90 percent of the difference in their effectiveness was attributable to EI fac-
tors rather than basic intelligence.

Rudolph Giuliani’s EI evolution

Example of EI and Leadership: The maturing of Rudolph Giuliani’s leadership effectiveness
closely followed the development of his emotional intelligence. For the better part of the
eight years that he was mayor of New York, Giuliani ruled with an iron fist. He talked tough,
picked fights, and demanded results. The result was a city that was cleaner, safer, and better
governed—but also more polarized. Critics called Giuliani a tin-eared tyrant. In the eyes of
many, something important was missing from his leadership. That something, his critics
acknowledged, emerged as the World Trade Center collapsed. It was a newfound compassion to
complement his command: a mix of resolve, empathy, and inspiration that brought comfort to
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millions. It’s likely that Giuliani’s emotional capacities and compassion for others were stimu-
lated by a series of personal hardships, including prostate cancer and the highly visible breakup
of his marriage, both of which had taken place less than a year before the terrorist attacks on the
World Trade Center. 58