Bob and John are exercising leadership in various ways. First of all, they have a vision for their organisation and they have exchanged this purpose with their people. Employees are aware that the company wants to be recognised as the top green builder in the country so they will contribute towards this shared vision.
Also, leadership can be seen through the fact that Shallenberger and Cavanagh have energized their people. They are passionate about their business and have passed on this energy to others in the organisation. This is an action that all leaders have to engage in.
Furthermore, leadership has been exercised through the act of working with people well to produce remarkable results at the end. It appears as though they are actually partnering with their employees rather than merely giving them orders on what to do or how to go about it (Dubrin, 2010).
As they attract cool people to work with them, these two entrepreneurs are exercising the role of persuasion. In other words, they have managed to illustrate to the applicants that the company has the potential to provide them with the most conducive workplace environment.
It seems as though the would-be employees have seen the supportive environment that they are likely to find here than elsewhere. Also, the leadership role of guiding could be another important factor. If already existing employees are treated with mutual respect rather than being ordered around then they are likely to stick to the company and maybe even spread the word that the firm is a great place to work.
This would cause even more cool people to be attracted to it because they would be rest assured that there are going to find what they are really looking for (Dubrin, 2010).
Cool people are likely to be keep working for Highland Homes because the owners are passionate about what they do. Instead of merely taking a businesslike and boring approach to everything, Shallenberger and Cavanagh believe in doing everything passionately. This inclination is going to rub off on everyone else as the latter will not just be thinking of their workplaces as just any other job.
Additionally, these two business owners have used very creative ways of handling business. For instance, they have the stereo, CD player etc that are typical in all their homes. Cool people are likely to want to work for people who continuously look for creative ways of doing business.
Also, as opposed to being highly bossy, the employees of Highland Homes are going to stay on because they will find that their employers are very inspiring. They will be motivated to keep reaching their potential and this will definitely keep them there (Dubrin, 2010).
In order to be the top green residential builder in the US, Shallenberger and Cavanagh may need to cultivate great interpersonal skills within themselves so as to maintain a close association with the team working for them. This will cause them to possess joint accountability and decision making ability.
A case in point was Roadway management which spread leadership to lower levels. This ensured that everyone played a part in the success of the firm and eventually contributed towards the realisation of huge profits. Essentially, what this implies is that once responsibilities are shared then the likelihood of attaining common goals is going to increase.
They must motivate their people to want to work harder so that Highland Homes can outsmart or outdo their competitors. People who are driven by passion rather than rules are likely to put in more and their results would speak for themselves (Dubrin, 2010).
Reference
Dubrin, A. J. (2010). Leadership: Research Findings, Practice, Skills (6th ed.). Rochester Institute of Technology