Emotional Dilemma, Leadership and Motivation in an Organization Change Process

Bankole Kumolu-Johnson; Oluwaseun Ibukun; Adwowa A.P. Osei

Emotional Dilemma, Leadership and Motivation in an Organization Change Process

Bankole Kumolu-Johnson^*1, Oluwaseun Ibukun², Adwowa A.P. Osei³

¹Bowling Green State University, 1001 E Wooster St, Bowling Green, OH 43402, USA

²University of Toledo, 3764 Hill Avenue, Apt. 190, Toledo, Ohio, 43607, USA

³Bowling Green State University, 3368 Gibraltar Heights Dr., Unit A5, Toledo Ohio, 43609, USA

*Corresponding author: Bankole Kumolu-Johnson, Bowling Green State University, 1001 E Wooster St, Bowling Green, OH 43402, USA

Received Date: 20 June 2023

Accepted Date: 26 June 2023

Published Date: 30 June 2023

Citation: Kumolu-Johnson B, Ibukun O, Osei A.P A (2023) Emotional Dilemma, Leadership and Motivation in an Organization Change Process. Educ Res Appl 8: 224. DOI: 10.29011/2575-7032.100224

Abstract

This paper offers to understand the thought process and emotional dilemmas of top management officials and employees who must report to a higher-up supervisor and still attempt to cater to their subordinate’s needs. It explains the multi-faceted thought process and why leadership for a manager is not much of a win but of finding the right balance between your emotions, achieving your goals, and making the most of the resources at your disposal. This paper will review the concept of workplace motivation, how to deal with an aging workforce and why emotional intelligence is critical for every leader.

Keywords: Organizational Change; Leadership Dilemma; Motivation; Authentic Leadership; Emotional Intelligence

Introduction

Forever Strong is the motto of Upgrade bank. This bank is a 100-year-old bank in the sub-Saharan part of Africa with an encouraging customer base and excellent market capitalization. The bank’s executive board comprising of industry experts reviews the position of the CEO, and it determines if they need to vote for change or sustain the current leader every year. Most of the appointments over the years have been driven by nepotism. This approach has been the nature of business for several decades; some appointments prove great while most have been miserable. Such an approach to leader selection has resulted in a total decline of systems, share price, and a downward spiral in performance. The current CEO Mr. Frank Navidi lacked vision, ambition, and foresight. He never really grasped what it meant to transform the old ideas into new ones; to him, the traditional ways of banking were much better and still brought in profits. Part of the company’s structure was to give the Staff a sense of ownership by acquiring shares through different intervention programs and profit and stock sharing. Quite a few Staff took the initiative and felt they were the company’s owners even though the total Staff share only accounted for about 16.5% of the entire share structure of the organization. The advent of new generation banks and a fast- changing environment led to a mass exodus of customers who moved from Upgrade bank to the new generation banks. That resulted in plummeting profits year by year, raising a cause for concern and a question of survival in this market. For the first time in decades, the board realized that this ship was a sinking one if not immediately addressed. They sought to replace the CEO with a visionary with a proven track record, and they found their man in the name of Babatunde Solace. Before taking over from Frank Navidi, Babatunde has operated with two (2) new generation banks, helping them drive their customer base, emphasizing customer- centricity in the past 15 years. He believes the future of banking is maximizing the use of up-to-date technology in alternate channels, including mobile and online banking.

Independent Consultancy Examination and Recommendations

Babatunde set the ball rolling by observation. He enlisted an independent consultancy firm to provide him with data and analyze his Staff profile and Staff Intelligence. He got three primary intelligences from the consultancy firm:He has an aging workforce who cannot drive the new vision of the organization. They are technologically incapacitated. He must be careful in handling this issue, which could lead to litigation. The overall recommendation was to weed out old Staff in a planned departure by conducting a technology literacy test. This way, the organization can have a legal excuse in exiting old technology deficient Staff and replace them with young, vibrant, and aspiring young graduates with a passion for banking. There were recommendations to replace up to 40% of technological hardware, as they are outdated.The independent consultants also mentioned that their analysis revealed less motivated employees in the organization’s workforce at this present time. They saw that the old Staff was less motivated than the new Staff. The new Staff were categorized as people aged 20 to 40 and had spent less than 12 years at the organization, while the old Staff were more than 40 years old and had spent more than 12 years at the organization. The new Staff was reported to be 25% of the workforce and old Staff were about 60% of the distribution. Other Staff does not fall into the matrix and are labeled as such.

Early Life Experiences of the CEO Babatunde

Babatunde’s Background. Babatunde was motivated to become a banker because his father had a career in Banking. He worked hard to feed the family and make a provision for the family’s needs. They were a decent family until he was fired from his job due to a change in leadership. This development changed the trajectory of his life. He dropped out of the private school he was attending due to the inability of his Father to sustain his school fees. Their family also had to leave their beautiful house because they could not continue making payments on their mortgage and moved to a smaller flat. The incident also affected the relationship of their parents, who split up after the incident. It wasn’t until some years down the line that the parents reconciled. It was a dark period for the family. Babatunde has also believed in himself to make the right decisions for the people he leads, even when those decisions might be unpopular. He believes in the concept of authentic leadership. Authentic leadership represents one of the newer areas of leadership research. It focuses on whether leadership is genuine and “real.” Bill George identifies five basic characteristics of:

They have a strong sense of purpose,
They have strong values about the right thing to do,
They establish trusting relationships with others,
They demonstrate self-discipline and act on their values, and
They are sensitive and empathetic to the plight of others. George, Bill (William W.). (2003).

Babatunde cares about all the employees and never wants to repeat what he experienced in his childhood to the people he leads. He calls the Staff union representatives to engage and understand their position. The Employee Union mentioned that they had always been clamoring for an improved initiative to ensure the Staff stays up to date in learning and development. Still, previous management never saw their professional development as a priority. They provided several written evidence of recommendations made over the years, which top-level management ignored. They stressed those they could guarantee that the aging staff wasn’t the problem and that would get their Staff to the optimum performance provided they get the right training and given the proper time which could be considerably longer. Later that week, Babatunde got a call from a top board member informing him of their trust in him and wanted to remind him that a swift recovery is the over-arching goal of the board and the shareholders and why he was appointed to lead this transformation. In one year, we must see that the purpose of a total overhaul of Staff is achieved, which the board believes is the top piece to changing the trajectory of this organization and putting the organization on the right track of being among the technologydriven transformed bank.

Leadership Dilemma, Motivation and Adult Learning

He is crossed between implementing the recommendation of the independent consultancy agency to initiate a mass exodus of the organization’s aging Staff or keep the aging staff by introducing professional and technological training that would keep them up to date. This approach would transform them into valuable assets of the organization. Suppose he decides to take the independent consultants’ recommendation and activate the plan to disengage old Staff. In that case, it will prove to be a significant emotional burden, which could adversely impact the families of the affected Staff. Also, he knows that the organization could be under the scrutiny of regulatory bodies like the labor commission, and their actions could be investigated if not correctly executed. Babatunde had not experienced such a dilemma in over 15 years of banking. The emotional toll of navigating between upper management and subordinates could affect him.

Questions for Discussion

(1) What is the most appropriate way for Babatunde to navigate the dilemma?

(2) Do you see him compromise his self-identity as an authentic leader in the process?

(3) What role does emotion play in a significant decision that affects others?

(4) Do you think it is worth it investing in an aging population compared to a young and vibrant group of individuals?

Teaching Notes Authentic Leadership

In recent years, authentic leadership has garnered recognition and popularity as a leadership style. Avolio and Gardner [1] found that authentic leadership is characterized by self-awareness, transparency, and genuine concern for the welfare of others. Authentic leaders are not afraid to reveal their true selves, admitting their flaws and errors, which helps develop followers’ trust and credibility. This style of leadership is ingrained in positive psychology and emphasizes the significance of aligning one’s actions and behaviors with one’s personal values and beliefs [2]. The positive impact of authentic leadership on employee outcomes is one of its primary advantages. Walumbwa et al. [3] found a correlation between authentic leadership and increased employee job satisfaction, commitment, and engagement. Employees who perceive their leaders as genuine are more likely to trust them and feel psychologically empowered, resulting in greater motivation and performance. Moreover, authentic leaders foster a supportive work environment in which employees feel valued and are encouraged to share their thoughts and ideas [4]. This fosters a culture of collaboration and innovation, propelling the success of the organization. Authentic leadership is a valuable approach that fosters self-awareness, transparency, and genuine relationships with others. It has been demonstrated to have a positive effect on employee outcomes and to contribute to a wholesome work environment. As organizations continue to recognize the significance of authentic leadership, nurturing authentic leaders and cultivating an authentic leadership culture can result in increased employee satisfaction, engagement, and overall organizational effectiveness.

Adult Learning and Maslow’s Motivation Theory - The Hierarchy of Needs

Maslow motivation theory is one most influential theory regarding workplace motivation. Abraham Maslow developed this famous theory of individual development and motivation in the 1940’s. He posited that human beings have a hierarchy of needs, and it says that all humans proceed to act in a way that addresses basic needs before advancing to satisfy other higher-level needs. The Maslow motivation theory five steps are:

Physiological needs – such as hunger, thirst, and sleep
Safety needs – such as security, protection from danger and freedom from pain.
Social needs – sometimes also referred to as love needs such as friendship, giving and receiving love, engaging in social activities, and group membership.
Esteem needs include both self-respect and the esteem of others—for example, the desire for self-confidence, achievement, and recognition and appreciation.
Self-actualization is about the desire to develop and realize your full potential. To become everything, you can be.

The independent consultant recommends that it be easier to train new bankers instead of old Staff, which speaks to their orientation towards learning as adults. If Babatunde decides to give his aging staff a chance, their success in learning would depend on knowing what their motivation is. In Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, we could conclude that the Ageing Staff needs could be safety, social, and esteem. Hence, a planned approach to their learning would be crucial to the success of this approach.

Emotional Intelligence

Emotional intelligence refers to the ability to recognize, understand, and manage one’s own emotions, as well as effectively recognize and influence the emotions of others. The concept of emotional intelligence was popularized by Daniel Goleman in his book “Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ” [5]. It encompasses skills such as self-awareness, selfregulation, empathy, and social skills. Research has shown that emotional intelligence plays a crucial role in various aspects of life, including personal relationships, leadership effectiveness, and overall well-being. Studies have demonstrated the positive impact of emotional intelligence on individual and organizational outcomes. Individuals with higher levels of emotional intelligence tend to have better interpersonal relationships, as they are more adept at understanding and responding to the emotions of others [6]. Moreover, emotional intelligence has been linked to effective leadership, with leaders who possess high emotional intelligence being more capable of inspiring and motivating their teams [7]. In addition, individuals with higher emotional intelligence are often better equipped to manage stress, make sound decisions, and navigate conflicts, contributing to improved personal and professional success. Emotional intelligence is a vital skill that influences various aspects of life. It plays a significant role in personal relationships, leadership effectiveness, and overall wellbeing. Organizations and individuals can benefit from cultivating emotional intelligence through training programs and practices that enhance self-awareness, empathy, and emotional regulation.

Diverse Life Experiences

Early Life Experiences may help employees to be more emotionally discerning, empathetic, and resilient. The nuanced discernment of emotion may be valuable at work, where mixed feelings often prevail. Employees who have experienced hardship and persevered may be more emotionally resilient than those who have yet to be tested [8-10]. Babatunde’s early life will have an impact on his decision-making. One of the main anchors of authentic leaders is that they are sensitive to the plight of others. This sensitivity could make Babatunde take an unpopular decision but engineer a way that does not make their aging workforce casualties in the process. Babatunde’s emotional intelligence will eventually guide him in deciding between the two consequential choices we have. Leaders often have a heavy burden to bear that does not appear visible to followers as seen in this case study.

Bankole’s Biographical Statement

Bankole is a Graduate Student at the Doctoral in Leadership Studies Program at the College of Education and Human Development at Bowling Green State University. Before starting his Doctoral Degree in August 2020, Bankole was an ES Support at Velocity Phone Company. His previous roles include three (3) years of experience being a Customer Service Officer and the Head of Operations of a Financial Institution. Bankole’s undergraduate Education was at Olabisi Onabanjo University in Nigeria, where he studied Banking and Finance and completed his Master of Business Administration (MBA) at Bowling Green State University. Bankole’s passion has always been to help corporations transform their customer operations, including customer service, customer retention, and overall customer experience. His proposed dissertation for his doctoral program will encompass these aspects of service in organizations. Bankole’s overall vision is to become a business and leadership consultant. Bankole also has a passion for teaching in higher education. Bankole also desires to become a higher education professor at an institution of higher learning.

Oluwaseun Ibukun Biography

Oluwaseun is a distinguished economist with a remarkable career spanning over 7 years . He holds a first class Bachelor’s degree in Agricultural Economics from Obafemi Awolowo University in Nigeria and a master’s degree in Financial Economics from Bowling Green State University, Ohio, in United States. He has made significant contributions to the field through his research, analysis, and policy recommendations. Throughout his career, Oluwaseun has held various positions in academia, and non profit organizations. As a professor of economics, he has educated and inspired countless students, instilling in them a deep understanding of economic principles and their real-world applications.

His studies have shed light on important economic phenomena bordering on Network analysis and profitability of small scale businesses and Human capital development. He is currently enrolled in a Doctoral program in Spatially Integrated Social Science at the University of Toledo, Ohio.

Adwowa A.P. Osei

Adwowa Atta Panyin Osei is pursuing a doctorate in Leadership Studies and Policy at the College of Education and Human Development of Bowling Green State University in Ohio. Adwowa earned a Master of Fine Arts degree with a concentration in Jewellery design, Enamelling, and Metalsmithing. Adwowa earned her Bachelor’s degree in 2013 from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. Adwowa worked as an instructor of records and an adjunct faculty for several first-year foundation programs before pursuing her doctoral degree. Adwowa is a people person who consistently demonstrates a strong joyous spirit all she meets.

Since enrolling in the Leadership Studies Doctoral Program, she has become a dedicated advocate for ambitious art students in her home country. Adwowa’s doctoral dissertation proposal focuses on the transitional experiences of African graduate students studying in a US-based institution. Adwowa’s long-term objective is to teach at the university level and advocate for international and art students.