Team Leadership

In this book, some of the world's leading scholars come together to describe their thinking and research on the topic of the psychology of leadership. Most of the chapters were originally presented as papers at a research conference held in 2001 at the Kellogg School of Management of Northwestern University. The contributions span traditional social psychological areas, as well as organizational theory; examining leadership as a psychological process and as afforded by organizational constraints and opportunities. The editors' goal was not to focus the chapters on a single approach to the study and conceptualization of leadership but rather to display the diversity of issues that surround the topic. Leadership scholars have identified a host of approaches to the study of leadership. What are the personal characteristics of leaders? What is the nature of the relation between leaders and followers? Why do we perceive some people to be better leaders than others? What are the circumstances that evoke leadership qualities in people? Can leadership be taught? And so on. The contributions to this book examine these important questions and fall into three categories: conceptions of leadership, factors that influence the effectiveness of leadership, and the consequences and effects of leadership on the leader. All in all, the chapters of this volume display part of a broad spectrum of novel and important approaches to the study of the psychology of leadership. We hope that they are equally useful to those who are or would be leaders and to those who study the topic. As recent events have served to remind us, it is too important a topic to be ignored by psychologists.

Shows how managers in any organizational setting can improve their own and their teams' results through a unique, step-by-step approach to setting goals and then - most importantly - by putting them into action. Curtis lays bare the linkages between organizational culture, philosophy, ethics, and the management of information and change, and shows how they contribute to goal setting and achievement. Throughout Curtis argues that deciding "what to do" may be an essential component of goal setting, but the real challenge is in "getting things done", and it is here that so many goal-setting systems fall. Part I begins by establishing the foundation for the remainder of the book. It addresses the managerial philosophy underlying goal setting. The theory of goal setting is covered in Part II. Studies are reviewed that show that organizations, teams, and individuals that set clear, challenging goals produce better results than those who do not. The next part begins by addressing goal setting from an organizational perspective. Team goal setting follows. Techniques for individual goal setting are discussed in Part V. Part VI pulls organizational, team, and individual goal setting together by examining the ways information must be managed in a goal-oriented setting. Part VII, Change and Goal Setting, provides the techniques necessary to implement the goal-setting philosophy in a rapidly changing world. The book concludes with an examination of the ultimate purpose of management, to produce positive results.

This book challenges orthodoxy and static ideas about small group dynamics. A primary goal is to offer an alternative model of group development.

This book examines numerous topic areas that are considered to be especially relevant for making a strategic leader development investment. The topics covered are areas that have theoretical and empirical connections to important aspects of growth, change, adult development, and underlying abilities, skills, and competencies needed to lead effectively in times of great complexity. In addition, these are investment areas identified by the U.S. Army--a world-class organization faced with the need for radical transformation--as particularly relevant for success and survival. This book identifies key concerns in developing leaders and leadership, and in transforming organizations in better meet the challenges of a complex world.

Adult Education contradicts the theorists and practitioners who claim that empowering organizations can only be created when those at the top decide to share power. The emancipating educational processes are the tools of those who work within systems whether the issue is literacy, civil rights or democracy in the workplace. The Adult Education movement has linked its mission to cultivating the growth of democratic processes. Those people who work in organizations and are trying to improve their understanding of how to reshape the organization into a democratic workplace will find this useful.

The Design and Construction industry is in a state of attempted change. Improvement is a key word for employer, consultant and contractor. Real steps forward are slow, and most damning is the continuous repetition of the same mistakes. Communication in the Design Process considers the gap that can exist between client expectation and realisation in building projects. It focuses on the communication interface between the employer and the consultant design team, and specifically on the areas of function, finance, timescale and aesthetics. This book includes an extensive review of current thinking and guidance on this and other related subjects. New data is obtained from a survey using questionnaires and personal semi-structured interviews. Data is presented graphically, analysed and compared with practice as defined in current literature.

This book documents what some of the world's most successful and innovative companies are doing to improve their recruitment, retention and employee relations. The book is designed to make Human Resources a competitive weapon. During these times of labor shortages and increased dependence on front-line people to perform their task with dependability and zeal, it is essential to enhance our ability to recruit, retain and improve employee relations. World-class companies like Merck, Hewlett-Packard, General Electric, Federal Express, Motorola, Cypress and PepsiCo share their techniques.