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The Leadership Dilemma
in a Democratic Society
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The Effects of the
Leadership Dilemma
A. The lack of integration of new and existing programs decreases the agency’s
clarity of purpose. Most individuals are unable to see how they fit into what is
perceived as the important work of the agency. When clarity of purpose is lost
there is a shift from a focus on mission outcomes to a focus on day-to-day
tasks, with a consequent decline in long-term results that further reinforces
leadership effectiveness.
B. When clarity of purpose is lost employees lose the feeling that their work
is meaningful. The feeling of meaninglessness leads to a loss of job
satisfaction and a loss of employee engagement. Lack of engagement is reinforced
by the loss of focus on results.
C. Lack of engagement and
the consequent lowering of morale leads to a bureaucratic mindset and reinforces
the focus on tasks.
D. A further loss of engagement as a
result of the task mind-set reduces productivity and long-term results.
E. The inability to prioritize because of
lack of clarity in purpose leads to a reactive approach to work, which
causes a general drift from crisis to crisis. The constant crisis
environment leads to frustration, burnout and further employee
disengagement.
F. The crisis approach also leads to the
need for constant resource triage with a consequent further loss in
productivity and a worsening of long-term results.
G. The trend of worsening of long-term
results leads to public and agency management distrust of agency employees,
which leads to more management suspicion about employee motives and work
ability and worker cynicism about the agency and its management. Cynicism
and suspicion fuel a stronger command and control approach by management
which leads to a more reactive mindset on the part of employees.
Summary of Map 2: The Effects of the Leadership Dilemma
©2003
The Public Sector Consortium.
Reproduced by GovLeaders.org with permission.
