A Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of a company is the “boss” and they are responsible for everything, including the success or failure, of the company. They are in a place of legitimate power, “a place were a person in a higher position has control over people in a lower position in an organization” (Giang ). Without a clear understanding of the power that they hold, they may abuse it. A CEO has many individuals counting on them to be successful with every move they make and a CEO must be able to meet the needs of all of those individuals, including employees and customers. This can be a very daunting and stressful position to be in, although also a very sought after position as well. After reading an email from …show more content…
He is in a place of legitimate power and is using coercive power to lead his organization with threats, force and punishment and is using pressure tactics (Kreitner & Cassidy, 392 ). By using pressure tactics, “intimidation demands, or threats to gain compliance or support”, to do so he will most likely infuriate his staff as well as lose the respect and loyalty from employees instead of motivate them to become more dedicated and put forth more effort like he is wanting (Kreitner & Cassidy, 390 and Giang). Any previous trust that was built will now be gone and many employees may end up leaving the company altogether once his proposed changes are made public. According to Kreitner and Cassidy, employees do not like change. They prefer to “maintain a safe, secure and predictable status quo. Any change that is brought on spur of the moment and can cause a threatening sense of imbalance in the workplace” (423 ). Enforcing longer work hours with little notice, not allowing breaks, laying off staff, decreasing perks/benefits, and not allowing any promotions are all very large changes and things that will be looked at negatively by most employees. The CEO hopes that these changes will spark more effort and dedication from his employees to fulfill the company’s vision, but he unfortunately is going about it in the wrong way. He instead will most likely see less effort given by the employees that choose to stay …show more content…
In the video, Jim Goodnight of SAS, says that 95% of his best investment enters through the gates in the morning and leaves every evening. Mr. Goodnight uses many types of power to run his company. SAS has every benefit and amenity a person could every dream of having in life, let alone at the workplace. This is an example of a type of reward power, where a CEO motivates through rewards (Kreitner & Cassidy, 391). From massages, Montessori on-site childcare, flexible work hours to pick-up basketball games, on-site healthcare and significant discounts for employees to a private country club, this company has it all. The employees are well taken care of, they know what is expected of them and they have produced meaningful, successful products for the past 3 decades. In the same way he is gaining connection power, “a person attains influence by gaining favor” and referent power, “ the ability to convey a sense of personal acceptance or approval” (Kreitner & Cassidy, 392). These types of power are typically well received by employees. Turnover at SAS is unheard of and saves them tens to hundreds of millions of dollars every year. Even before I learned that SAS has never had a losing quarter, I would have guessed that this was a successful company. Employees will put forth more effort in their job if they feel they are appreciated . He even says in the video that a “happy employee leads to