Leadership Style at Mervyn's Department Store

LEADERSHIP STYLE AND THE EFFECTS OF LEADERSHIP STYLE ON ORGANIZATIONAL PERFORMANCE

The leadership style at Mervyn's Department Stores is described in the first section of this research. The effects of this leadership style on organizational performance are considered in the second section.

As North American economies and societies become more complex, and as both social and economic environments become more internationalized, so too, the demands placed on organizational leadership are magnified. Over the past three decades, scores of books, and hundreds of articles have been written on leadership styles, styles of management, motivation, and related topics. The general thrust of most of this writing has been that some form of participative management, or nonauthoritarian leadership style, as opposed to a strict authoritarian style, will result in improved organizational performance. Many North American organizations, however, appear continue to successfully rely authoritarian leadership practices.

A generally accepted agreement on the definition leadership has eluded theorists and practitioners alike for scores of years. As might be expected of any concept which has appeared to defy definition, there exists fairly widespread disagreement among the experts as to just what it involves. Peter Drucker (1954, p. 107) said that leadership "is of the utmost importance. Indeed there is no substitute for it. But leadership cannot be cr

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will almost continually be required to function in an environment characterized by high levels of uncertainty (Kotter, 1988, p. 143). The leader must be prepared to deal with a fluid and an uncertain environment. Within this realm of uncertainty, however, the leader must be a beacon of consistency for her or his organizational subordinates. The initial requirement for consistency is to always be oneself; never pretend to be something you are not. Leadership consistency also requires (1) an avoidance of ambiguous actions, (2) the admitting and correction of one's own mistakes, (3) firmness and conviction with respect to one's own decisions, (4) ethical behavior, (5) an acceptance of responsibility, and (6) a willingness to place trust in organizational subordinates. Consistency in leadership, however, does not imply rigidity. One's approach to leadership varies, of course, with one's own personality and areas of competence (Kotter, 1988, p. 144). Additionally, however, one's approach to leadership will tend to vary according to organization, mission, and situation. When all is said and done, what the transformational leader is really attempting to accomplish is the development of strong organizational commitment on the

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