Introduction
It is possible to speak about effective leadership when organizations’ stakeholders are satisfied with the provided services, and shareholders are satisfied with the received revenues. While focusing on the experience of public organizations or semi-private and private organizations which have strong connections with the government or serve the public’s needs, it is important to note that effective leaders are expected to pay more attention to communities’ interests (Northouse 23). Singapore Mass Rapid Transit is one of such companies. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the leadership style of the company’s CEO in terms of its effectiveness in addressing a crisis and create a positive public image.
About the Company
Singapore Mass Rapid Transit (SMRT) is an organization in Singapore that is the main public transport operator in the country. This organization represents the largest transportation network in the country while providing citizens with opportunities to use trains, buses, and taxis (Lim and Jaya 1). Phaik Hwa Saw was the organization’s CEO from 2002 to 2012. Saw’s resignation was associated with two large transport breakdowns, which affected thousands of people in the country. The inability of Saw to provide an appropriate response to the critical situation made the public disappointed (Lim and Jaya 6). After Saw’s resignation, SMRT’s leaders focused on selecting the CEO who could follow a traditional leadership style typical of public and semi-private organizations.
Characteristics of Effective Leaders and Saw’s Leadership Style
Leaders can be viewed as effective when their activities and decisions are oriented to addressing the needs and interests of employees, clients, shareholders, and community members who can be discussed as organizations’ stakeholders (Walker 151). From this point, characteristics of effective leaders include strategic thinking, communication skills, abilities to motivate and inspire employees, organizational skills, abilities to make appropriate decisions, abilities to work with teams, and capacities related to implementing changes (Northouse 112). While discussing Saw’s leadership style and traits, it is possible to state that most of these characteristics are typical of SMRT’s CEO.
Thus, Saw could be viewed as oriented to developing the strategic potential of the organization in terms of its progress and profitability; she was focused on developing close relationships with employees, but she was also interested in observing high-class performance (Lim and Jaya 4). From this perspective, Saw had developed organizational and communication skills.
In this context, Saw’s leadership style can be discussed as facilitative because the CEO was oriented to employees’ performance, to the efficiency of the provided services, and the received incomes. All the processes were maintained most efficiently to guarantee both “human touch” concerning employees and orientation to the strategies, which could lead to higher profitability (Lim and Jaya 3). Thus, Saw’s facilitative leadership was directly connected with her orientation to high results.
However, this leadership style is rather “unconventional” for government-linked organizations where combinations of authoritarian and strategic leadership styles are typically applied (Lim and Jaya 3; Walker 54). Saw’s leadership style was not suitable for this organization because of the necessity to pay more attention to policies, directives, plans, and control. It is possible to state that Saw’s approach to leading the organization was more oriented to the principles of the market and private sector than to the public sector.
Management of the Leader’s and Organization’s Images in the Media
Researchers agree that leaders need to pay much attention to managing their images, as well as images of their organizations, in the media (Rahman 244; Walker 21). The reason is the public’s reactions to the proposed services, products, and situations associated with certain organizations that are based on their perceptions of leaders and their images promoted in the media (Rahman 244). While working on their public image and maintaining an organization’s reputation, leaders often focus on building trusting relationships with clients and representatives of communities (Northouse 153).
The purpose of communicating with the public is usually to demonstrate how the organization guarantees the protection of individuals’ rights, guarantees their security, and provides only high-quality services (Schwarz et al. 87). In this context, the leader of the organization should be associated with a positive reputation for the company.
However, Saw’s strategy to develop her image in the media cannot be discussed as contributing to improving the organization’s reputation. It is possible to state that Saw chose an aggressive and provocative approach to creating her image in the media. The problem is that the public had developed some stereotypes regarding the effectiveness of assigning a woman for the position of the CEO at SMRT (Lim and Jaya 2). Furthermore, Saw’s strategic course was also discussed as too innovative and market-oriented. Even though Saw did not ignore the importance of the media and made many claims for the public, her statements did not reflect the public’s expectations regarding customer care, security, or sustainability (Lim and Jaya 4).
The image of an innovator and a “trailblazer” did not contribute to creating a positive vision of Saw’s leadership (Lim and Jaya 2). Furthermore, several ineffective claims made by Saw and spread by the media contributed to ruining the public image of the CEO. It is possible to state that, when the organization faced a crisis because of several breakdowns, Saw followed her typical strategy of communicating the message, without focusing on providing any support or care for the public (Lim and Jaya 5). As a result, the media played a significant role in creating a negative image of Saw because of her inability to take responsibility for the problem and demonstrate emotions expected by the public (Northouse 121; Walker 54).
Saw’s Leadership in a Different Context
While assuming that Saw can take a leading position in a similar industry, but in another country, it is possible to state that her success depends on the organization’s connection with the government and the overall attitude of the public to females who take such positions. Facilitative and democratic leadership with the focus on the market success of the organization is followed in countries where the semi-private sector is developed along with private and public sectors (Northouse 121).
While speaking about the situation in the United Arab Emirates, it is possible to state that the application of innovative strategies in the public, semi-private, and private sectors of the country is encouraged. However, there are also some barriers: Saw’s leadership style seems to be oriented to the Western cultures, and some people can see her gender as an obstacle to receive such position despite current positive changes in the United Arab Emirates that are related to this context (Lim and Jaya 3; Northouse 121; Pang 125). Still, even in Western countries, Saw’s approach to communicating with the public can raise many questions and be viewed as provocative.
Therefore, Saw’s leadership style can be discussed as appropriate for the contexts of actively developing countries which are oriented to promoting innovation. From this point, Singapore is one of the best places to realize Saw’s potential. However, this leader’s problem is in her extreme focus on marketing principles and disregard of interests of stakeholders and clients typical of private organizations working with the government or public and semi-private organizations (Lim and Jaya 4). To become an effective leader in a government-linked organization, Saw needs to focus on the public’s interests and expectations (Northouse 81; Pang 125).
Conclusion
After analyzing Phaik Hwa Saw’s leadership style and approach to communicating with the public while using the media, it is possible to state that this leader selected a style that cannot be effective in the context of those organizations which cooperate with the government and serve many people. Although Saw’s strategy oriented to winning the market of public transport in Singapore and covering the organization’s expenses can be viewed as effective for private organizations, it is not efficient for SMRT.
The problem is that Saw has focused on maximizing profits while compromising the safety and security of potential customers. It is also important to note that little attention was paid to improving the organization’s image with the help of the media. Saw’s provocative statements made in the media during her career as SMRT’s CEO cannot be discussed as contributing to the improvement of the organization’s image.
Works Cited
Lim, Vivien, and Nikodemus Jaya. Singapore Mass Rapid Transit: Going off Track. Ivey Publishing, 2015. Web.
Northouse, Peter G. Leadership: Theory and Practice. 7th ed., SAGE Publications, 2015. Web.
Pang, Augustine. “Derailed: Communicating Singapore’s Mass Transit Crises.” Media Asia, vol. 40, no. 2, 2013, pp. 124-127. Web.
Rahman, Khairiah A. “Crisis Miscommunication and Media Persecution: The Case of the Singapore Mass Rapid Transit.” Media Asia, vol. 40, no. 3, 2013, pp. 244-259. Web.
Schwarz, Andreas, et al., editors. The Handbook of International Crisis Communication Research. John Wiley & Sons, 2016. Web.
Walker, Robyn. Strategic Management Communication for Leaders. 3rd ed., Cengage Learning, 2015. Web.