Chapter 2
REVIEW OF LITERATURE AND THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK
This
chapter presents the related literature and studies, theory base,
conceptual framework, and research hypothesis of the study. It
also technically discusses the concepts on leadership, leadership
styles, management, school leadership, performance, and factors
affecting performance and performance effectiveness.
Related Literature and Studies
This
section presents related literature and studies on the topics of
leadership and performance, specifically leadership styles, management,
school leadership, performance effectiveness and the factors affecting
performance in the organization. This section also presents a brief background on DMMA College of Southern Philippines.
Leadership. Leadership
is a process by which a person influences others to accomplish an
objective and directs the organization in a way that makes it more
cohesive and coherent (Northouse, 2007). Ogbonnia (2007)
argued that effective leadership is the ability to successfully
integrate and maximize available resources within the internal and
external environment for the attainment of organizational or societal
goals. Leveriza (1996) contended that leadership contributes
significantly to the success or failure of the organization. The leader has to exert all his efforts and must function according to the expected duties and responsibilities. Successful leadership involves knowledge in dealing with human behaviour in order to gain support from subordinates.
Secretan (1998) pointed out that leadership is not so much about technique and methods as it is about opening the heart. It is about inspiration of oneself and of others. Great
leadership is about human experiences, not processes. It is not a
formula or a program, it is a human activity that comes from the heart
and considers the heart of others. It is an attitude, not a routine. More
than anything else today, followers believe they are part of the
system, a process that lacks heart. If there is one thing a leader can
do to connect with followers at a human, or better still, a spiritual
level, it is to become engaged with them fully, to share experiences and
emotions, and to set aside the processes of leadership we have learned
by rote.
Sugars (2008) enumerated the principles of leadership namely: Know
yourself and seek self-improvement. In order to know yourself, you have
to understand your "be", "know", and "do" attributes. This is possible
by continually strengthening your attributes by reading and self-study; Be technically proficient. As
a leader, you must know your job and have a solid familiarity with your
employees' jobs; Seek responsibility and take responsibility for your
actions. Search for ways to guide your organization to new heights. And
when things go wrong, do not blame others; Make sound and timely
decisions. Use good problem solving, decision-making, and planning
tools; Set the example. Be a good role model for your employees. They will believe what they see - not what they hear; Know
your people and look out for their well-being. Know human nature and
the importance of sincerely caring for your workers; Keep your people
informed. Know how to communicate with your people, seniors, and other
key people within the organization; Develop a sense of accountability,
ownership and responsibility in your people. These traits will help them
carry out their professional responsibilities; Ensure tasks are
understood, supervised, and accomplished. Communication is the key to
this responsibility; and Train your people as a team. By
developing team spirit, you will be able to employ your organization,
department, section, etc. to its fullest capabilities.
Leadership Styles. There
are a number of different approaches, or styles to leadership and
management that are based on different assumptions and theories. The leadership
styles which are discussed in this study were developed by
psychologists and professionals namely Lewin in 1939 who introduced
autocratic or authoritarian leadership and democratic or participative
leadership, Greenleaf in 1977 who introduced servant leadership, Hersey
and Blanchard in the early 1970s who introduced situational leadership,
Weber in 1947 who introduced transactional leadership and charismatic
leadership and Burns in 1978 who introduced transformational leadership.
Autocratic Leadership.
Autocratic leadership can be said to be synonymous to dictatorship
where only one person has the authority over the followers or workers.
Their decision has to be taken as the golden rule and should never be
questioned. They plan out everything and order their subordinates to
work according to their rules. The autocratic leader has full control of
those around him and believes to have the complete authority to treat
them as he wants.
Though
autocratic leadership style is tyrannical, it has proved to be very
efficient during certain situations and conditions. Autocratic
leadership works positively during emergency and stressful situations.
When such situations arise in a company or organization, most people are
confused and are not able to reach a common solution. During such
times, having an autocratic leader would be great as he would take the
reins in his hand and would direct the workers or employees to move
forward. Autocratic leadership may have its benefits; however, in most
cases it is seen as something that is undesirable. Although
there have been cases where adopting an autocratic leadership style has
led to the success of the company, it is very rare for such leaders to
remain popular among the employees and workers (Kartha, 2010).
Charismatic Leadership. In charismatic leadership, as cited by Musser (1987), the leader gathers followers through dint of personality and charm, rather than any form of power or authority. He
is the one who provides an environment full of energy and positive
reinforcement. Charismatic leaders inspire others and encourage them to
be their best. Employees and group members want to impress a charismatic
leader, so they work hard and strive to succeed. Under charismatic
leadership, group members may view success in relation to their leader. A
major problem with charismatic leadership is that group success tends
to hinge on the leader. The charismatic leader is the glue that holds a
group together. So if the leader steps down or transfers, normally, the
group dynamic will fizzle and individual members will lose enthusiasm.
Conger
& Kanungo (1998) described five behavioral attributes of
charismatic leaders that indicate a more transformational viewpoint: Vision and articulation; Sensitivity to the environment; Sensitivity to member needs; Personal risk taking; and Performing unconventional behaviour. Musser
(1987) notes that charismatic leaders seek to instil both commitment to
ideological goals and also devotion to themselves. The extent to which
either of these two goals is dominant depends on the underlying
motivations and needs of the leader.
Participative Leadership. The participative leadership style is also known as the “participative democratic leadership style”. As cited by Rampur (2000), it
is a very essential factor in today's organizations, which does the job
of creating and maintaining healthy relationships between the employees
and their leaders. This is probably the best type of corporate
leadership style that necessarily allows employees to give suggestions
and take some of the crucial decisions, along with their manager.
However, the final decision rests on the manager himself. As the name
indicates, a participative leader enables the employees to play a major
part in any decision-making process, which is needed to make the
employees’ performance better.
According to Cherry (1989), Lewin’s
study found that participative leadership is generally the most
effective leadership style. Democratic leaders offer guidance to group
members, but they also participate in the group and allow input from
other group members. Participative leaders encourage group members to
participate, thus they feel engaged in the process and are more
motivated and creative.
Servant Leadership. As cited by the Lincoln Leadership Community website in 2006, Greenleaf,
the founder of servant leadership, argued that “True leadership emerges
from those whose primary motivation is a deep desire to help others”,
which is where servant leadership is anchored. Servant leadership is a
very moral position, putting the well-being of the followers before
other goals. The servant leader serves others, rather than others serving the leader. Servant
leadership is a natural model for people working in the public sector.
It requires more careful interpretation in the private sector lest the
needs of the shareholders and customers and the rigors of market
competition are lost. A challenge to servant leadership is
in the assumption of the leader that the followers want to change. It
closely aligns with religious morals and has been adopted by several
Christian organizations.
Some
philosophers claimed that although Greenleaf had never fully defined
servant leadership, it can still be defined as a management philosophy
which implies a comprehensive view of the quality of people, work and
community spirit. It requires a spiritual understanding of identity,
mission, vision and environment. As a servant leader is someone who is a
servant first, who has responsibility to be in the world, and so he
contributes to the well-being of people and community. He places his
main focus on people because only content and motivated people are able
to reach their targets and fulfil the set expectations (Spears, 2002).
Situational Leadership. “Different situations call for different leadership styles”, this is the principle the situational leadership method from Blanchard and Hersey is anchored. It holds that managers must use different leadership styles depending on the situation. As
cited by 12Manage E-learning Community Management website in 2007, the
model allows you to analyze the needs of the situation you are in, and
then use the most appropriate leadership style. Depending on employees’
competences in their task areas and commitment to their tasks, your
leadership style should vary from one person to another. You may even
lead the same person one way sometimes and another way at other times.
The fundamental underpinning of the situational leadership theory is that there is no single "best" style of leadership. Effective
leadership is task-relevant and that the most successful leaders are
those that adapt their leadership style to the maturity or the capacity
of the individual or group they are attempting to lead or influence. It
also emphasizes that effective leadership varies, not only with the
person or group that is being influenced, but it will also depend on the
task, job or function that needs to be accomplished.
Transactional Leadership. As cited in the article entitled “Transactional Leadership” published by Changing Minds.org in 2002, transactional leadership is based on contingency, in that reward or punishment is contingent upon performance. Despite
much research that highlights its limitations, transactional leadership
is still a popular approach with many managers. The transactional style
of leadership was first described by Weber in 1947 and then by Bass in
1981. It focuses on the basic management process of controlling,
organizing, and short-term planning. It involves motivating and
directing followers primarily through appealing to their own
self-interest.
The
power of transactional leaders comes from their formal authority and
responsibility in the organization. The main goal of the follower is to
obey the instructions of the leader. The leader believes in motivating
through a system of rewards and punishment. If a subordinate does what
is desired, a reward will follow, and if he does not go as per the
wishes of the leader, a punishment will follow. Here, the exchange
between leader and follower takes place to achieve routine performance
goals.
Transformational Leadership. Transformational leadership
is defined as a leadership approach that causes change in individuals
and social systems. In its ideal form, it creates valuable and positive
change in the followers with the end goal of developing followers into
leaders. Enacted in its authentic form, transformational leadership
enhances the motivation, morale and performance of his followers through
a variety of mechanisms. These include connecting the follower's sense
of identity and self to the mission and the collective identity of the
organization; being a role model for followers that inspires them;
challenging followers to take greater ownership for their work, and
understanding the strengths and weaknesses of followers, so the leader
can align followers with tasks that optimise their performance (Rampur,
2000). Transformational leadership may be found at all levels of the
organization: teams, departments, divisions, and organization as a
whole. Transformational leaders are visionary, inspiring, daring,
risk-takers, and thoughtful thinkers. As discussed by Bass
(1990), while the transformational leader seeks overtly to transform
the organization, there is also a tacit promise to followers that they
also will be transformed in some way, perhaps to be more like their
amazing leader. In some respects, then, the followers are the product of
the transformation. One of the traps of transformational leadership,
however, is that passion and confidence can easily be mistaken for truth
and reality. While it is true that great things have been achieved
through enthusiastic leadership, it is also true that many passionate
people have led the charge right over the cliff and into a bottomless
chasm. Just because someone believes they are right, it does not mean entirely that they are right.
Finally,
transformational leaders, by definition, seek to transform. When the
organization does not need transforming and people are happy as they
are, then such a leader will be frustrated. Paradoxically, the energy
that gets people going can also cause them to give up. Transformational
leaders often have large amounts of enthusiasm which, if relentlessly
applied, can wear out their followers (Spears, 2002).
Management. Management
in all business and organizational activities is the act of getting
people together to accomplish desired goals and objectives using
available resources efficiently and effectively. Management comprises
planning, organizing, staffing, leading or directing, and controlling an
organization, a group of one or more people or entities, or effort for
the purpose of accomplishing a goal. Resourcing encompasses the
deployment and manipulation of human resources, financial resources,
technological resources, and natural resources (Gomez-Mejia, et al.,
2008).
According
to Gomez-Mejia, et al. (2008), since organizations can be viewed as
systems, management can also be defined as human action, including
design to facilitate the production of useful outcomes from a system.
This view opens the opportunity to manage oneself, a pre-requisite in
attempting to manage others.
Chapman
and O’neil (2000) defined management as keeping people productive,
maintaining optimal working conditions, and making the best possible use
of resources. It is also anticipating problems and solving them before productivity declines. It
is holding things together as well as moving things forward, usually
with the goal of utilizing resources in a cost effective manner.
In
managing organizations, attention should be focused on the analysis of
what abilities or skills managers need in order to be effective (Kyad,
et al, 1997). It is vital that a manager should possess the competencies that enable him to perform effectively. Furthermore, a manager needs a solid background of knowledge. He should be guided with certain management principles regardless of the type of organization he works in. Managers must be highly skilled in order to be successful in managing an organization. All
managers of professional organizations face the same challenge: to
manage one's time, objectives, and resources in order to accomplish
tasks and implement ideas (Waldron, 1994).
School Leadership. School leadership
is the concept that conveys dynamism and pro-activity. It is the
process of recognizing and directing the talents and energies of
teachers, students and parents toward achieving common educational
objectives. The principal or school head is commonly
thought to be the school leader; however, school leadership may include
other people, such as members of a formal leadership team and other
people who contribute toward the aims of the school (Chance &
Chance, 2002).
Education
is an integral part of school leadership and development. Countries
throughout the world, before effecting development and progress, have to
educate their people first for it is difficult to teach people to do
things necessary to uplift their living conditions and contribute
something for their country if they are uneducated. An
educated citizenry is indispensable in many societies so that the people
can participate intelligently in the discussion of vital issues and in
moulding the public opinion necessary to the existence of any society
(Guizo, 2002).
School
leadership has been emphasizing managerial or operational functions.
Superintendent and principals were expected to serve as efficient
managers, directing the day-to-day operations of the school. Possessing
positional and command authority, school leaders directed the
operations at the school with business management techniques. It
is essential that leaders of school improvement link with others in the
school and district and connect the school’s goals to the broader and
deeper mission of providing high-quality learning for all students. Leaders
also must consider equity issues when developing and implementing
change initiatives – asking themselves, for example, whether a proposed
program will improve access to higher-order learning tasks for
marginalized students (Senge, 1990).
Performance. Performance is the ability of an individual to function well in the organization where he operates (Ogbonnia, K., 2007). It is the responsibility of the administrators of the organization to create a good working environment for the employees. It is also expected that the managers perform well and effectively so that they would be emulated by their subordinates.
Factors That Affect Performance. There are many factors that can affect the performance of employees in an organization as cited by Daniels (2006). Some
factors that affect the performance of the people in the organization
are ability, effort, motivation, equity and expectation, task or role,
perception, knowledge and skills, family, support from supervisors,
adaptability, social values, health, workplace, ethics and environmental
factors. With the exception of the environmental factors,
these factors can be controlled and improved by individuals, in that if
they are properly controlled, stress can be avoided, thus performance
will also improve.
Environmental factors are
the factors over which an individual has no control, for example, the
job may have been completed under severe time constraints, with a lack
of adequate resources, or by using obsolete equipment; there may have
been conflicting priorities or information overload, such that the
individual was confused and under stress; other staff and departments
may have been less cooperative; the restrictive policies of the
organisation may have prevented the individual from using his initiative
and imagination to the extent that he wished; or the quality of the
supervision exercised may have been defective. Some people need
encouragement and support, whereas others like to be left to get on with
the job. The environmental factors cannot be used as excuses for poor performance, but they do have a modifying effect.
Performance Effectiveness. Performance effectiveness
is essential to the success in any organization. In order to achieve
increased and sustainable results, organizations need to execute
strategy and engage the employees. To ensure performance effectiveness
in the organization, leaders need to focus on aligning and engaging
their people, the people management systems, and the structure and
capabilities, including organizational culture, to the strategy. An organization that can sustain such alignment will achieve increased positive results. The key element to achieve sustainable performance effectiveness
is to align employees with the organization’s strategy by (1) helping
them to understand the part they play in achieving success, and (2)
engaging them in their tasks and with the organization. Strategy
alignment is achieved through capable leadership and effective people
systems and culture. Integrating efforts across these areas will lead to
more highly engaged employees who are willing and capable of helping
the organization achieve its goals (Right Management Inc., 2010).
Employee Development. Employee
development, according to Reagan (2008) is a joint, on-going effort on
the part of an employee and the organization to upgrade the employee's
knowledge, skills, and abilities. Successful employee development
requires a balance between an individual's career needs and goals and
the organization's need to get work done. Employee
development programs make positive contributions to organizational
performance. A more highly-skilled workforce can accomplish more and a
supervisor's group can accomplish more as employees acquire experience,
knowledge and skills.
As
cited by Reagan (2008), the supervisor has several roles to play, but
providing information and support to facilitate the employee's
development is what is most important. There are a few basic roles for a supervisor in developing employees. They
include: Coaching employees to help them determine what they need for
development; Providing both positive and corrective feedback; Offering
organizational insight, information, and advice; Guiding the planning
through goal setting and checking back over time; Allotting time and
money for development experiences; and Ensuring opportunities for
applications of new learning.
It
is very helpful for an employee to get an honest assessment of his work
as well as access to others who may be able to provide information or
coach the employee. The successful supervisor will also
respect every employee's learning curve. It takes time for anyone to
learn new skills and be able to apply them well; this does not happen
overnight. Building this development time into the application of a new
skill set will make the employees more successful.
Employee Efficiency. Employee efficiency
is an employee characteristic and relate to the speed and accuracy of
an employee at the job task. The concept relates to employee
productivity - the more efficient they are the more productive they will
be if managed correctly. Employee efficiency and
productivity represents another major area of concern to the
administration. As a rule, it is the duty of each head of the department
to require all employees under him to strictly follow the rules and
regulations at work. A performance evaluation system
should be designed to continuously foster improvement of employee’s
performance and efficiency and to enhance organizational effectiveness
and productivity. A manager’s task also includes the
provision of tools and equipment to facilitate work activities, minimize
backlog and improve the quality of work (Blake and Mouton, 1985).
Organizing
the various and numerous details of specific jobs through task setting
and control are potent tools in promoting job performance improvement
and efficiency. They can be used to effectively reduce the most
intricate and time consuming jobs into daily routines that are performed
automatically. At the start of the day, a list of tasks
according to importance, accompanied by strategies for accomplishment,
people involved, and resources needed to accomplish them can do a lot in
minimizing time spent on doing unessential things. Employee productivity
is a particularly important issue to managers and supervisors as the
primary purpose of their job is to get the most out of the people they
are responsible for (Reagan, 2008).
Job Satisfaction. Saari & Judge (2004) contended that job satisfaction is one of the major perplexing problems that confront management. Job satisfaction
describes how content an individual is with his or her job. The happier
people are within their job, the more satisfied they are said to be.
Job satisfaction is not the same as motivation or aptitude, although
they are clearly linked. Job design aims to enhance job
satisfaction and performance. Methods include job rotation, job
enlargement, job enrichment and job re-engineering. Other influences on
satisfaction include the management style and culture, employee
involvement, empowerment and autonomous work position. Job satisfaction
is a very important attribute which is frequently measured by
organizations. The most common way of measurement is the use of rating
scales where employees report their reactions to their jobs. Questions
relate to rate of pay, work responsibilities, variety of tasks,
promotional opportunities, the work itself and co-workers.
Herzberg’s dual factor theory viewed two sets of motivators related to job satisfaction, namely extrinsic and intrinsic factors. The extrinsic factors include: pay
or salary increase, technical supervision, company policy and
administration, working conditions or physical surroundings and security
on the job. The intrinsic factors are: achievement
or completing task successfully, being singled out for praise,
responsibility for ones own or others, and advancement or changing
status through promotion. Known as the “Two Factor Theory”
or the “Motivational Hygiene Theory”, Herzberg describes the two sets
of factors as motivators which influence behaviour on the job.
Steers
and Porter (1991) suggests the following implications of current
theories of work motivation for managers: Managers must actively and
intentionally motivate their subordinates; Managers should understand
their own strengths and limitations before attempting to modify those of
others; Managers must recognize that employees have different motives
and abilities; Rewards should be related to performance, not to
seniority or other non-merit based considerations; Jobs should be
designed to offer challenge and variety. Subordinates must clearly understand what is expected of them; Management
should foster an organizational culture oriented to performance;
Managers should stay close to employees and remedy problems as they
arise; The active cooperation of employees should be
sought in improving the organization’s output since employees, after
all, are also stakeholders in the organization.
Stable Policies and Programs. Policies and programs represent another major area of concern for the administration. As
cited by Steers & Porter (1991), policies are usually established
formally and deliberately by top managers of the organization because:
they feel it will improve the effectiveness of the organization; they
want some aspect of the organization to reflect their personal values;
or they need to clear up some conflict or confusion that has occurred in
the lower level of the organization.
Programs
are designed to meet particular objectives of the organization and are
carried out through a host of projects or related activities with more
specific objectives and targets. More often, policies are
carried out through programs which, in turn, embody specific
responsibilities, rules, regulations, procedures, and standards
affecting the parties involved. The stability of policies and programs to a large degree influence the performance effectiveness of the organization.
A
policy development process should be undertaken before program
implementation. This helps agency personnel evaluate possible options
and then select those that are best suited for a particular program. It
is also important to develop policies that allow enough flexibility for
future changes that may be needed.
It
is crucial to include significant stakeholders in the program
development process. At the least, agency administrative and line
personnel need to be incorporated. Other important persons to involve
will vary from one jurisdiction to another, but careful consideration
must be given to including them in the planning process (Steers &
Porter, 1991).
DMMA College of Southern Philippines. Very
few organizations throughout the world can claim to experience a truly
stunning growth just a few years after its establishment. Among these is the DCSP or DMMA College of Southern Philippines.
The institution is a realization of a group of people’s dreams and vision for the future. It was established in October 1993, and was formerly known as the Davao Merchant Marine Academy (DMMA). Since its inception, the college has experienced a dramatic upward zoom that is clearly phenomenal.
Owned
by seafarers and educators, the DMMA College of Southern Philippines is
definitely biased towards the proper education of future seafarers so
that they will not only be at par but also better skilled and more
competent than their counterparts from most other Philippine maritime
schools and from most other seafarer-producing countries of the world. The
establishment of the college was made with the foresight of making the
Philippines the future global leader in the calculation of theoretical
knowledge, practical training and sublime values of seafaring.
To date, the DMMA College of Southern Philippines has acquired a solid reputation in the maritime industry. Memorandum
Order No. 34, dated November 12, 1999 of the Commission on Higher
Education (CHED) lists down twenty-two (22) Philippine maritime schools
offering BS Marine Transportation and another twenty (20) schools
offering BS Marine Engineering as those which have “fully complied with
STCW ’95 requirements for submission to the International Maritime
Organization (IMO).” It is the only Maritime School in Region XI found in both lists. The
world–class status of the college has been confirmed when the
international accreditation body for maritime institutions, the Det
Norske Veritas (DNV), stamped its seal of excellence to DCSP in July
1999, making DCSP the 11th maritime school in the whole world to receive such accreditation. And
prior to that, the institution very satisfactorily passed the
evaluation conducted by the Norwegian Maritime Directorate (NMD) in
March 1999.
The
institution is presently a member of the Association of Accredited
Marine Institutions (AAMI), the organization of Philippine maritime
schools which were chosen by the CHED as having fully complied with STCW
requirements. It is also one of the seven Philippine
maritime schools accredited by the Philippine Maritime Education and
Training Foundation (PMETF), the Philippine counterpart of the UK-based
International Maritime Training Trust (IMTT).
The institution does not only offer courses and excel in maritime education. From its BS Maritime Transportation, BS Marine Engineering and Seafarers Rating Course programs, other new courses were offered. Since
the school year 1994-1995 commenced, it has offered BS Customs
Administration, Associate in Hotel and Restaurant Management and Nursing
Aide courses. In June 1997, the BS Hotel and Restaurant Management was added to the list of its allied courses. And
in the school year 2004-2005, the college has added another feather in
its cap, as it finally opened its Bachelor of Science in Nursing program
in order to address the demand for globally competitive and efficient
nurses here and abroad. This particular program boasts of
state-of-the-art-facilities and competent human resources while adhering
to the quality standard requirements of CHED and PRC in nursing
laboratories. Indeed, DMMA College of Southern Philippines
will cease at nothing in order to further excel in the field of
education and training (DCSP Student Handbook, 2010).
Theory Base
This research is anchored on the theory known as the path-goal theory, also known as the path-goal theory of leader effectiveness or the path-goal model, which is a leadership theory in the field of organizational studies developed by House in 1971 and was revised in 1996. The
theory states that a leader's behavior is contingent to the
satisfaction, motivation and performance of his subordinates. The
revised version also argues that the leader engages in behaviors that
complement subordinate's abilities and compensate for deficiencies
(House, 1996).
Another
theory from which this research is anchored is the functional
leadership theory introduced by McGrath in 1962. This is a particularly
useful theory for addressing specific leader behaviors expected to
contribute to organizational or unit effectiveness. This
theory argues that a leader can be said to have done his job well when
he has contributed to group effectiveness and cohesion (Fleishman, et
al., 1991).
Research Hypothesis
The study tested the following hypotheses:
1. There
is a significant difference in the performance effectiveness of the
teaching and the non-teaching staff of DMMA College of Southern
Philippines, Davao City;
2. There
is a significant relationship between the leadership styles of the
managers and the performance effectiveness of the employees of the
college; and
3. The leadership styles of the managers influence the performance effectiveness of their employees.
No comments:
Post a Comment