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Leadership Skill Plan and Analysis Paper
Management 414
Spring 2015 – Professor Kristi Lewis Tyran
“Leadership is Action, not position.”
Leaders take action, and most importantly, they seek feedback to continuously improve their ability to lead. The
leadership analysis you will do for this course is an opportunity for you to learn more about your current
leadership behavior as perceived by yourself and others. In this assignment, you will gather and use information
from yourself and three others to identify areas in which you would like to improve. In completing the
Leadership Skill plan, you will then commit to implementing a plan to improve those leadership behaviors. To
do this you will need to honestly assess your own leadership behaviors, get feedback from three observers,
complete the assigned pages in the workbook, and write two analysis/action plan papers.
Important Due Dates:
1. Submit for Review and report generation:
Observer Checklist, first 3 completed Observer Surveys, one completed Self Survey,
Due Wednesday, April 15th, 2015
2. Submit for Review: SPLI Workbook. Complete modules 1, 2 and 8. In addition, for each Action
Plan practice, complete the appropriate module (found in modules 3-7)
Due Wednesday, April 22nd, 2015
3. Leadership Skill Plan and Analysis Paper #1
Due Wednesday, April 29th, 2015
Your written paper should include:
a. The analysis section described below on page 2 (double-spaced, 3-4 pages),
b. One page for each action plan for each leadership skill you have selected to improve (single
spaced, using the format below, beginning each action plan on a new page),
c. An appendix consisting of
i. The Observer check list,
ii. The tables on the last page of this handout,
iii. The graph on page 14 of your Individual Report
d. Finally, attach the peer review received from another student with the reviewer’s name clearly
shown at the top.
4. Submit for Review and report generation:
Observer Checklist, second set of Observer surveys, second self-survey.
Due Wednesday, May 27th, 2015
5.
Leadership Skill Plan and Analysis Paper #2
Due Wednesday, June 3rd, 2015
Your written paper should include:
a. The analysis section described below on page 4 (double-spaced, 2-3 pages),
b. Your career action plan, including the ranking of your goals and action plans,
c. Your visioning article,
d. An appendix consisting of
i. The complete Observer check list,
ii. The tables on the last page of this handout, comparing all surveys from both the 1st and
2nd assessments
iii. The graph on page 14 of your last Individual Report comparing the results from both
the 1st and 2nd assessments. NOTE: Manually add the first results onto the 2nd Graph.
e. Finally, attach the peer review received from another student with the reviewer’s name clearly
shown at the top.
LSPA
Page 1
Observer Feedback
Twice during the quarter you will obtain feedback from three individuals on your leadership behaviors. For
each of the two assignments, you will first identify three people to provide you with feedback on your leadership
behaviors. People who would be good observers include individuals who have observed you in the context of a
group or organization working towards a goal. Examples might be current or former supervisors or co-workers,
teammates from a sports team, individuals you have worked with in clubs or committees, or members of a group
you worked with in a class. Try to choose individuals who will be objective and honest. People who are NOT
good observers include parents, siblings, roommates, significant others, or close friends. Give your three
observers a few days to complete the survey. Have them return the survey to you for use in your workbook.
Work quickly to identify observers and list them on the attached “Observer Checklist”. Submit the
Observer Checklist, first 3 Observer surveys, and first Self survey on April 15th. On April 20th you will
receive the computer-generated Individual SLPI Report detailing the results of these surveys.
Self-Analysis
In addition to three observers, you will fill out a self-analysis form for yourself twice during the quarter.
Remember to be honest in your assessment of your behaviors. Think about times you have been in a leadership
role, or opportunities you have had to influence and motivate others. You will compare your own assessment to
those of your three observers in both assignments.
Workbook Instructions: After you receive your Individual SLPI Report, read and complete modules 1, 2
and 8 in the SLPI workbook. After you identify the 2-3 practices you wish to improve, complete the modules
associated with each of these practices (modules 3-7). Your completed Workbook is due on October 15th,
2014.
Instructions for Leadership Skill Plan and Analysis #1 (due April 29th):
I.
Analysis: Review what you’ve written in your workbook and think about the results. Write a 3-4 page
analysis that summarizes what you learned about your leadership behavior and identifies your strengths
and opportunities for improvement. In the introduction to your paper, be sure to state who your
observers were – their relationship to you, not their names (for example, my co-worker, committee cochair, and soccer team coach). Make sure to address the behaviors or practices are you most comfortable
with. In addition, which are you least comfortable with? Do your observers agree with your selfevaluation? Why or why not? Do your observers agree with each other about your leadership
behavior? Why or why not? How do you compare with other students (see graph on Page 14 of your
Report)? In general, why do you think your scores came out this way, and what does this mean?
Be sure you go beyond the mere listing of rankings and explain the implications. A significant portion of
your grade will be based on the quality of your analysis – how insightful and thorough is it? Have you
explained the implications? Have you utilized your critical thinking skills to analyze and interpret the
results?
II.
LSPA
Action plans: Read the chapter from Kouzes and Posner available on e-reserve and be sure you
understand the 5 leadership practices. Choose 2 or 3 leadership practices that you would like to become
more comfortable with, both now and in the future. For each leadership skill, describe what you would
like to improve and envision how you would like to behave. Identify the specific steps you can take to
improve. Think about the things you can do this term and later when you start your job. Refer to
Appendix A and B in the workbook to get ideas of actions you can take to improve your leadership
skills. Now identify the very first step you will take on the path of improvement. You should describe
this first step in very specific, concrete terms so that anyone could visualize you taking this first step.
You should be able to complete this first step by the end of this term.
Page 2
Follow the instructions and format below for writing your action plans.
For each of the 2 or 3 leadership skills you have selected to improve, create a separate action planning page
and answer these 5 questions (use single-space for your plans only):
1. What I would like to be better able to do: Identify which of the 5 leadership practices it is, and then
describe how you would like to behave in this regard (my goal).
2. What specific actions I will take to reach my goal:
3. First step:
Action:
People involved:
Target date to begin the action plan:
4. Complete this sentence: I will know I have improved in this leadership skill
when:_________________________________________________________
5.
I will review my progress on _______________ (date)
Sample action plan:
1. What I would like to be better able to do: I would like to become better at “Encouraging the Heart”. I
would like to become more comfortable showing support and expressing appreciation to both
individuals and teams, among my family and friends as well as my colleagues at work, rather than
taking everyone’s good performance for granted.
2. What specific actions I will take to improve in this area: First of all, I will increase my awareness and
observe the good work of others. Every night I will think about my interactions with people that day
and make a note about what I can do to support, encourage, and praise them. I will make a goal of
saying thank you to people at least three times a day and writing at least three thank you notes or emails
each week. In teams I am on, I will take the lead in suggesting to the team that we plan a small
celebration for each small milestone we achieve so that we get in the habit of celebrating our successes.
This will create an encouraging atmosphere and help build team cohesion and morale.
3. First step:
Action: Every night after returning from school and work, I will think about the people I came in
contact with that day and how I can encourage them and express appreciation. I will make notes in a
notebook or planner. Every day I will say thank you three times and I will send 3 thank-you emails or
notes each week. I will begin by writing a thank you note to my coworker this Friday.
People involved: My coworkers, family, friends, and teammates.
Target date: I will begin on Wednesday, April 27th.
4. I will know I have improved in this leadership skill when I automatically notice when people need
encouragement and deserve praise and I offer encouragement and express appreciation.
5. I will review my progress on June 1st.
III.
LSPA
Peer Review: After you have completed your paper, give it to one of your classmates to review for
feedback. Each student should review one other student’s paper – if a student does not obtain or
provide feedback, 25% will be deducted from their total score. Feedback should be typed, with the
name of the reviewer clearly stated in the title of the feedback. Each paper should have the feedback
received from another student attached. Feedback should focus on the following questions:
1. Does the analysis clearly outline the writer’s strengths and weaknesses?
2. Is the analysis thoughtful? Is the writer insightful in outlining “why” they feel the way they
do?
3. Do the plans seem reasonable, specific and achievable in the time span identified?
4. Make sure to make specific and descriptive suggestions for improvement in the paper.
Page 3
Instructions for Leadership Skill Plan and Analysis #2 (due June 3rd):
I.
Analysis: First, assess your performance on your skill plans from assignment #1. Who assessed you
this time (include at least one person from your practicum)? To what degree did you accomplish your
plans? Why did you accomplish the level of success you achieved? Data you should use for this
assessment should be your own perceptions as well as those of others who have observed you
throughout the quarter. Make sure to use the second SLPI assessment conducted with yourself and three
observers. Make sure to compare the assessment data for the second round of surveys with the first
round of surveys. You MUST use at least one observer from your leadership practicum for the
second assessment.
II.
Plan: Using this data, your experience in this class, and all other relevant information, make a career
plan for your future after graduation. Your career plan should include goals and specific action steps.
In addition to goals and steps, it is extremely helpful to create a “vision” of where you want to be in 10
years. In order to do this, follow the following guidelines:
1.
Career Goals You Want to Accomplish in the Next 10 Years:
a)
b)
c)
d)
2.
List 3-5 goals related to your work career.
List 3-5 goals related to relationships/family/lifestyle.
List 3-5 goals related to personal interests and development.
Go back over these 9-15 goals and rank order them from 1 – N.
Career Action Steps:
a) List 3 specific career action steps you plan to take in the next three years to
reach your most important goals.
b) List at least 3 additional action steps you plan to take in the following seven
years (years 4-10).
3.
Visioning:
Assume you are on the “cover” of the June 2025 issue of Business Week (or any other meaningful
magazine of your own choice). Write the “cover story” article about your career accomplishments
during the past 10 years (2015-2025). In other words, the “Visioning” is a synthesis that captures
the analyses performed in steps 1 & 2 above. Aim for approximately 700-1000 words.
III.
LSPA
Peer Review: After you have completed your paper, give it to one of your classmates to review for
feedback. Each student should review one other student’s paper – failure to either obtain or provide
feedback to another student will result in a 25% reduction in your score. Feedback should be typed,
with the name of the reviewer clearly stated in the title of the feedback. Each paper should have the
feedback received from another student attached. Feedback should focus on the following questions:
1. Does the analysis clearly assess the level of success achieved for each action plan?
2. Is the analysis thoughtful? Is the writer insightful in outlining “why” they feel the way they
do?
3. Do the career goals and action steps seem reasonable, specific and achievable in the time
span identified?
4. Is the vision reasonable and thoughtful, integrating ideas from the career goals and plan
discussed previously?
5. Make sure to make specific and descriptive suggestions for improvement in the paper.
Page 4
Observer Checklist
Student Leadership Practices Inventory
First Round of Surveys (due in class on April 15th, 2015):
Observer #1:
___________________________
Name
Date Distributed: ___________
_____________
________________
Phone #
e-mail
Date Received:
___________
Observer #2:
___________________________
Name
Date Distributed: ___________
_____________
________________
Phone #
e-mail
Date Received:
___________
Observer #3:
___________________________
Name
Date Distributed: ___________
_____________
________________
Phone #
e-mail
Date Received:
___________
Second Round of Surveys (due on May 27th, 2015):
Observer #1:
___________________________
Name
Date Distributed: ___________
_____________
________________
Phone #
e-mail
Date Received:
___________
Observer #2:
___________________________
Name
Date Distributed: ___________
_____________
________________
Phone #
e-mail
Date Received:
___________
Observer #3:
___________________________
Name
Date Distributed: ___________
LSPA
_____________
________________
Phone #
e-mail
Date Received:
___________
Page 5
Instructions: Print out this page and fill in the tables for each assessment. Include it as an
appendix to both Leadership Skill Plans, and make sure to include both scores and rankings for the
first and second assessments.
A. How my scores compare with observer scores (see pg. 17)
SELF
OBSERVERS
Score
1st 2nd
Ranking
1st 2nd
Score
1st 2nd
Ranking
1st 2nd
_______
_______
Challenging the Process
_______ _______
_______
_______
Inspiring a Shared Vision
_______ _______
_______ _______
Enabling Others to Act
_______ _______
_______ _______
Modeling the Way
_______ _______
_______ _______
Encouraging the Heart
_______ _______
B. How my scores compare with other student leaders. Use different colors to circle
ratings for the first and second assessments (see p. 20)
In my perception
Practice
Challenging the Process
Rating
H M L
In others’ perception
Practice
Rating
Challenging the Process
H M L
Inspiring a Shared Vision
H M L
Inspiring a Shared Vision
H M L
Enabling Others to Act
H M L
Enabling Others to Act
H M L
Modeling the Way
H M L
Modeling the Way
H M L
Encouraging the Heart
H M L
Encouraging the Heart
H M L
LSPA
Page 6