Describe a situation in which you have acted as
a transformational or transactional leader.
As a web
product manager for my current position, I have had to do some closely related responsibilities
to what a project manager does but with the exception of making sure the
product meets both the requirements of the client with objectivity to the
overall end-user experience. My
responsibilities in the organization may encourage me to practice a
transactional leadership method rather than a transformational one. For example, when I receive a large project,
I need to follow up with the developers, data processing, and systems
operations to ensure that their parts are on target with deadlines and meet the
specific requirements tasked to them. In
addition, many times when our team completes a large project on time and
satisfies all of the requirements, we have rewarded them with a lunch, or an after
work event, like bowling.
Were you successful or unsuccessful? Explain.
I believe
that I was successful as I still have my current position. I only say that because I am new to this
position and we have had many team lunches from the overall productivity from
using transactional leadership methods.
What type of power did you use?
My
influence over the team is powered by my charisma, enforcing the business requirements,
assigning tasks, and using my experience with people in development via “influence
tactics” (Wren, 1995, p. 339).
Was this use of power the most effective for
getting the results you wanted? Explain.
This power
is most effective in the web development environment of a business. Since I was also once a web developer, I have very specific
knowledge of the processes, flows, and structure about how web development is perceived
and accomplished.
Reference
Wren,
J. T. (1995). The leader's companion: Insights on leadership through the
ages. New York: The Free Press.
