Introduction
The case of Boeing demonstrates that the main barriers to effective communication between employees are perceptual barriers, emotional barriers, and interpersonal barriers (such as withdrawal). These barriers prevent effective communication and interaction between employees. Boeing’s management admits that “cross channel communication” is neglected so this creates additional problems for Boeing. If a workgroup sees its overall task as a collective activity with mutual responsibilities, the group, within the constraints of agreed-upon quality and health and safety standards, takes on the responsibility for internal task allocation and with it the self-regulation of individual activities. Internal coordination and control by a supervisor are replaced by outcome-oriented process supervision on the part of the group as a whole. The decision latitude for internal task distribution depends on the skill and competence level of the workgroup members (Barker, 469). The barriers prevent team members and employees to communicate effectively and cooperate. The range of competencies has to be seen in the context of group size and the complexity of the overall task. In larger groups with more complex tasks, overlapping competencies might be sufficient; in other words, not every person has to be able to do everything Competence increases as time goes on, as individuals acquire new skills and problem-solving capabilities. Multi-skilling and task rotation can vary according to individual preferences and their current level of competence, allowing group members to find suitable niches.
Discussion section
The case of Boeing shows that the leadership strategy is appropriate as it allows the leader to improve communication and create a positive culture in all departments at Boeing If the merging firms are separated by great distances, communication becomes all the more essential (Armandi et al 1077). Periodic meetings, reports, or visits by management are all traditional methods of keeping in touch with the field office and keeping it in check. Likewise, steps must be taken in advance to ensure that the communication between the merged organizations is maximized. However, it is ineffective and wasteful for corporate management and executives to crisscross the country on a daily or weekly basis. Temporary relocations may be necessary to ensure that information is transferred to the appropriate personnel (Boehnke and Bontis 5).
The leader uses reward and expert power to influence subordinates. All people see the world differently. In order to understand each other, employees at Boeing should pay special attention to individual differences and different communication strategies. Perceptual barriers at Boeing lead to poor performance and a lack of cooperation between employees and departments. In order to rely on internal flexibility to deal with personnel fluctuations due to absences or changing output requirements, adequate personnel resources and sufficient time for planning are needed in addition to a certain degree of multiskilling of group members. Then the group will be able to balance the variances on its own. The result of these barriers is resistance to change and resistance to transformations introduced by the management (Charan et al 43). This prevents the group to plan its work activities over a longer time period. Based on the principle of self-regulation, the workgroup has to be able to set its own norms and rules for internal cooperation and the resolution of problems and conflicts. These norms and rules are likely to reflect the characteristics of the group’s composition. The absence of interpersonal communication and contact leads to poor performance and lack of trust, poor communication, and coordination of work. Group norms and values should have to be consistent with overarching values, principles, and guidelines of the total organization or, in the case of unionized firms, with both the employer’s and the union’s beliefs and values (Boehnke and Bontis, 5).
Conclusion
The case of Boeing suggests that the leader should develop an effective communication strategy in order to improve interpersonal communication and morale at Boeing. The leader should choose the best communication style to change the current culture and communication. The best style is consult/join style. The advantage of this style is that it will help the leader to communicate with employees and meet their expectations and needs. The strategy will be based on an audience strategy approach that allows the manager to meet the diverse interests and needs of employees. This will prevent the emergence of narrow group self-interest and will help preserve equities among the entire workforce. Thus, a balance must be maintained between decentralization of rules and unit functional autonomy and consistency of certain principles and practices across units. Otherwise, autonomous units will tend to develop animosity and competitive relations with other units. A coordinator might be elected by the group to handle external communication. To avoid the development of hierarchies or unintended supervisory roles and conflicts of interest, the role of the coordinator should be rotated. People respond differently to certain working conditions or task demands. What is seen as a challenge by one individual may be experienced as stressful by another person. Negative effects on psychological and social well-being occur if a person feels qualitatively or quantitatively overloaded or underutilized.
Works Cited
Armandi, B., Oppedisano, J., Sherman, H. Leadership theory and practice: a “case in point. Management Decision. 41 (2003), 1076 – 1088.
Barker, R.A. The nature of leadership Human Relations.54 (2001), 469.
Boehnke, K., Bontis, N. Transformational leadership: An examination of cross-national differences and similarities. Leadership & Organization Development Journal. 24 (2003), 5.
Charan, R., Drotter, S., Noel, J., The Leadership Pipeline How to Build The Leadership-Powered Company, Jossey Bass: San Francisco, 2001.