Mountian West

Zhuofeng Wu

MGT 211

03/09/2012

Case 2

The former director of customer service of Mountain West Health Plan Inc., Evelyn Gustafson has a good leadership style that leads Mountain West Health Plan Inc. to success. The way she leads the company is like an authentic leader. Authentic leadership refers to leadership by individuals who know and understand themselves, who espouse and act consistent with higher order ethical values, and who empower and inspire others with their openness and authenticity. According to the leadership grid, she would rate as Country Club Management style. Her weakness is a low concern for production, but she has a high concern for people which is her strength. Her leader behavior could be described as behavior oriented. She has a high level of concern for her subordinates and their personal needs. Evelyn helps her subordinates with their low pay problem, break problem, and training opportunity problem. The reason she is doing that because she tries to keep the good workers who know the company system better, able to solve any problems with the products, and give the best service to customers. Her concern for her employee’s and their appreciation of this concern is reflected in the low turnover rate.

The fact that she worked her way from being a customer service representative contributes to her leadership style. Her style is positive because her concern for her employees creates a positive and pleasant work environment. In fact, her concern of the relationship with her subordinates does increase efficiency. As a result, Mountain West subscribers are satisfied about that. Also, she is a charismatic leader who has the ability to motivate her subordinates by telling them their job is important. The fact that her subordinates were happy reflected in positive customer service reviews. Evelyn uses a combination of influence strategies to develop her leadership. Such as use rational persuasion, make people like you, and...