Leadership Style Analysis Using Value Systems Theory

Definition of Value Systems Theory

Discuss about the Leadership Style Analysis using Value Systems Theory.

Dr. Clare Graves comprehensive Value System Theory is a theory that aims to explain and correlate in a holistic fashion the relations between the different psychological levels of a human being and the effect they have on his interactions with the environment. The theory dwells into the gradual development of human psyche and cognition through several earning experiences.

Beginning with an in depth description of the Value Added System, it is defined as an acquired and developed logic consisting of certain ideas and ideals which gradually constitute a person’s mind-set or a system of ideals (Rokeach, 2008). Every human being acquires, learns and experiences a number of events throughout his or her life and crates certain assumptions of their own. They form their own ideals, values, ethics and morals; define events and happenings according to these mind-sets and thereby carry out their duties, utilize resources ad lead their life by following such definitions and understandings (Walker, Webster and Bianchi, 2011).

Three stages or conditions dictate and determine the overall mind-set or the organising principle of a human being as follows:

1. Life Conditions: Four factors make up the life cycle conditions which dictate overall psyche of person. They are: Time, Circumstance, Problems and Place.

Time- The period of history or generation and the epoch or chronological era during which a person are a vital contributing factor to the development of a person’s psyche.

Circumstance- The opportunities, the education and the social status to which a person belongs are another supposedly important factor.

Problems- The requirements, the dangers, issues and concerns faced by a person on a day to day basis make up this factor.

Place- The natural environment and ecology, the climate and the people around which a person is born and brought up also contribute enormously to the overall life conditions stage of psyche development.

1. Bio-Psycho-Neuro Adaptation: This particular stage deals with the physiological, psychological and neurological factors that affect overall human character and psyche. Medical and health aspects that affect development of a person’s total cognition make up this stage.

Biological- The genetic lineage, physical structure and development, the metabolism and every other medical & health aspects that determine the development of a human being are obviously one of the biggest factors affecting character and personality development (Safty, 2015).

Psychological- The emotional stability, cognitive capability and nervous state of a person are another key contributing factor as it determines how a person interacts with the world around him or her.

Neurological- Dwelling deeper into the biological constituents of a person’s nervous system and the base on which a person’s very nature and personality are dependent, this factor deals with the biochemical and acute neurological effects of interaction with the environment, how a person’s nervous system affects and is in turn affected by such dealing with the outside world (Bruce, Fred and Todd J., 2009).

1. Socio-Cultural Elements: This stage defines how human beings through their interactions and experiences adapt their own intelligences so as to cope with & survive in the world which they live in.

Determinants of an individual’s character and personality development

A number of factors are interacted with by a human being and knowledge & experience gained through such interactive events help and accordingly lead the person to adapt ad modify his understanding, working style,  own personality and several other elements of the psyche. Typical contributing factors are Culture, Values, Religious Beliefs, Literature, Fashion, Art, Music, Work, Traditions and Customs, Money, Politics, Philosophy, Architecture, Lifestyle, Family, Skills etc (Walker, Webster and Bianchi, 2011).

Figure: Vision and Values for market success

Source: (Walker, Webster and Bianchi, 2011)

According to the Value System Theory, these determinants dictate the creation of a person’s overall character, his understanding of values & ethics, and determine his working style & interactions with fellow human beings, that is, makes up his or her Thinking System. The theory also sates certain types of Thinking System that a person can have according to the influencing stages. They are: Red signifies individualistic and egocentric mind-set; Beige stands for survivalist way of thinking; Purple defines kinship or close knit tribal way of working and thinking; Blue stands for Self-sacrificing for a group way of working; Orange refers to individualistic and materialistic mind-set of organizing; Green defines thinking and working keeping while caring for the human society and understanding human values; Yellow signifies thinking and working in a cognitive way while exactly understanding the problems faced by humanity and using appropriate functions to deal with them in  a responsible fashion; Turquoise defines understanding the true place of human beings in the universe, learning compassion for all life and protecting nature & living harmoniously with it (Marcel, 2009). There are some cited examples that show how multinational organisations are organising their leadership strategies to mould the core values to evolve the cultures around the world. In terms of the how the biggest companies and organizations in certain sectors are being managed and lead, one can discuss leadership styles in companies like Samsung, Google, etc.

For example, Google’s leadership had coined a motto for the company “Don’t Be Evil”. This clearly portrays how the company’s work culture focuses on valuing its relationships with its customers, employees and with the world as a whole. Leaders of the company can be said to be following the “Yellow” Level System according to the Value Added System theory. 

Besides Google’s, there is another example that establishes the concept of adaptation of skills through changeable environment and that is, Samsung is another leader in the digital and analogy electronics sector that manages its operation, all the while keeping in mind the competition in the business and at the same time the needs of the community and sustainability. The company can be considered to be managed by leaders whose mind-sets are akin to the “Yellow” value set (Global Harmony with People, Society & Environment, 2016).

Types of Thinking System according to influencing stages

Figure: Company’s Mission and Vision Values Model

Figure: (Simmons and Striley, 2013)

The company in discussion is Oman’s Public Authority for Radio & Television, a centralized company that broadcast programs on radio and televisions. The programs broadcasted are of different varieties, with the leadership now emphasizing on airing more programs that deal with local & international issues & concerns faced by the human society as a whole (Simmons and Striley, 2013). During the year 1974, Oman’s Public Authority for Radio & Television has started to broadcast from Muscat and gradually transmitted their network across the country. They have overcome every possible obstacle to create their broadcasting operations in both the places, populated and remote stations. Today, they have 119 transmitters, which help them to operate 29 major stations and ninety Transposers.  Recently, the ministry of information has declared to introduce the most advanced digital HD technology that helps to build strong networking infrastructure which can deliver smooth transmission to the viewers.

Oman is an Islamic country in the Middle East and several restrictions are imposed on discussion regarding certain issues, primarily due to strict laws laid down in the religion of Islam itself. Yet in spite of all such limitations, the media company has decided to start several programs on radio and televisions to address several controversial social, political, economic issues (Thomas and Bendoly, 2009). In addition, the company’s Oman General TV broadcast a number of programs that aims to educate people on religious, social, cultural issue & seeks to promote harmonious society based on mutual understanding and peace.

Thus, the management of the company are to be lauded and according to the Value System’s theory, the company can be considered to be led by a GREEN Egalitarian management value system (Marcel, 2009). For any given company, it is imperative to follow some mandate rules that can regulate the policies trough the work force. Once the rules get established, it is important to determine the specific institutional design of the regulators. Here, Oman’s Public Authority for Radio & Television has beautifully crafted their institutional design with the help of the government to issue better quality to their public. The organisation understands the system of designed institutional norms that strengthen administrative structures by enhancing leadership as well as management. Overall, the said company of Oman respects the institutional framework that delivers strict regulations over accountability, independence and transparency.

The work culture in the company is typically focused on positive interactions amongst all workers working at any level in the company (Yammarino and Dansereau, 2011). The company aims to achieve success by airing programs on both radio and television that not just focus on eth commercial aspect of the business, but also emphasizes on how the business itself can give back to the country and society as a whole.

Examples of multinational organizations and their leadership strategies

However, a number of issues and hardships were faced initially. Socio-cultural and regional conditions were some of the main obstructing factors that hampered the positive changes which the company aimed to implement. The Middle East itself is a region that has witnessed several atrocities on the human society; the strict adherence to religious laws had stifled discussions and debates on cultural and social aspects & issues (Martens, 2016). The management of the company faced all of these problems head on and this was mainly due to the changes in their own mind-set which occurred due to the various experiences gathered and local & international events observed (Valentinov, 2013). The leaders of the company slowly changed their overall outlook & began to focus on hard hitting issues with the sole intention of solving them and instilling amongst the people of the country the feeling of mutual understanding & peace amongst people from all spheres and classes (Jepson, 2009).

The leadership gradually made certain necessary changes regarding contest of some programs and creation of new programs that encouraged the common people to actively participate in them. Debate & discuss regarding several issues are plaguing and affecting the country, the Middle Eastern regions and humanity as a whole. Instructions and guidelines were passed on to the employees to develop and brain storm to create appropriate programs (Marcel, 2009).

The intention to associate with ad help the community, create and promote harmonious relations with others irrespective of any factor, the aim to spread unity, harmony and peace amongst the people of the country are typical traits that were also utilized by the management of the company while running the company itself (Emiliani and Stec, 2014). Teamwork and positive work culture are two vital factors that encompass all operations and undertakings of Public Authority for Radio & Television.

While making the above said changes in their working principle, program contents etc. the management had to keep in mind certain other vital factors such as market competition, challenge faced due to objections of certain groups & individuals, restriction imposed by authorities and the changing social & political scenario in the Middle East. All of these factors posed several challenges and issues which required careful strategizing and adaptation on the management’s and company’s part respectively (Bruce, Fred and Todd J., 2009).

Market competition and commercial success are obviously vital factors since to put it very bluntly, in the current global scenario, money is required for almost everything. The content aired by the company were subjected to major changes and to ensure continued viewership and public interest, the leadership formulated strategies where address serious issues that attracted the interest of the common people (Batabyal and Nijkamp, 2011). Directly involving people in the discussions themselves is another successful strategy, which proved beneficial to the commercial aspect of the company’s operations and pacing up with other competitors in the broadcasting market of Oman.

The socio-cultural and political aspects were other aspects which imposed restrictions on the company regarding the content to be aired along with monitoring of all aired real life discussion programs and the issues addressed in them. In addition, security and safety issues were also a very concerning factor with the rise of several Islamic fundamentalist ad radical groups whose aim is to spread death and destruction at any behest (DeAndrea and Carpenter, 2016). The company leadership brought together the whole company as a team and family and provided encouragement by discussing how people-driven philosophy and social responsibility can not only enhance the company but every working individual also. The initiation of absolute teamwork, honesty, harmony and the idea of giving back to the community is clearly reflected in the strategies and actions implemented by the PART’s leadership (Bruce, Fred and Todd J., 2009).

Conclusion on Leadership

A person’s whole idea and concept of leadership is bound to change after being involved in this project. Leadership was thought to be a set of ideas that are learned through education and implemented with certain skills. Yet, after completing this project, it is well understood how every aspect of a person’s life is instrumental in creating his psyche, mind-set and thinking process, which ultimately shape up his or her leadership skills and capabilities. The factors and events that influenced the leadership of eth Public Authority of Radio & Television and how those vets have affected them were gauged into and understood to a greater extent through the application of the comprehensive Value Systems Theory of Dr. Clare Graves.

References

Batabyal, A. and Nijkamp, P. (2011). Research tools in natural resource and environmental economics. Hackensack, N.J.: World Scientific.

Bruce, A., Fred, W. and Todd J., W. (2009). Leadership: Current Theories, Research, and Future Directions.

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Yammarino, F. and Dansereau, F. (2011). Multi-level issues in evolutionary theory, organization science, and leadership. The Leadership Quarterly, 22(6), pp.1042-1057.