Leadership and Rewards

For a company to maintain an innovative, creative, and adaptive edge of the competition, the organization needs to also focus on its leadership. A good leader can influence his or her subordinates to accomplish nearly any goal. Leadership traits can be sought after during the hiring process, however, they may not encompass all aspects of what is considered to be a good leader. Looking for all of the ideal leadership traits while hiring can also be time consuming and exhausting for a company.
When considering what characteristics a model leader possesses can be a broad. The trait theories of leadership give a good summary of what is to be expected, but not really all inclusive considering that the traits are general. The major aspects that stick out are drive, honesty and integrity, intelligence, and job-relevant knowledge (Robbins, Decenzo, and Coulter 301). These traits are important for an innovative, adaptive, and creative organization because they appear to be the most common. When you consider an innovator’s personality, one might imagine someone who is intelligent and driven. With those two traits, at the very least, the selection process is widened to a vast array of candidates for hire. Intelligence plays a large role in decision making and motivational behavior from a managerial perspective. In conjunction with a driven personality, the intellect of the person would naturally assume the job-relevant knowledge, if the person does not possess the trait already. In other words, hiring from a specific group of intelligent and self-motivated individuals for all positions give everyone the freedom to exercise leadership roles. This will avoid any disruptions in behavior due to employee unhappiness and keep a comp...

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...oyees use ten percent of their time for whatever they choose to pursue. The autonomy granted to research to explore a topic of an employee’s choice, which can be part of a skill that he or she already possesses, fits this criteria. They use this time to find meaningful work, while completely autonomous. If the project turns out to be a great idea, they receive feedback regarding their good work. Furthering the idea of a competitive edge within the organizations itself, this promotes the idea of equity theory, but with a positive impact. In addition to having a sort of “self-rewarding” program, an innovative company should thrive on individual employee recognition through achievements, but implement a financial gain. Whether increasing a salary or simply giving an annual bonus, more physical rewards can keep employees motivated even when nothing else works.