Question1:

Interpersonal relationships between superiors and subordinates in an organization involve

Ans 1:
Power is the potential ability to influence the behaviour of others. Power influences the behaviour
of individuals and the department, which may further influence the behaviour of other individuals or
departments. However, in this case, the idea of power symbolises interaction among individuals
where one individual shape the other. Power can be exerted in all directions, upward downward or
vertical, and affects decision making for resource allocation, goal and objective setting hiring
individuals and structural decisions.
Likewise, in a superior and subordinate relationship, the power of the equation can be either a leader
and follower or a boss who craves power and a subordinate. Leaders are the ones who can influence
the behaviour of other individuals due to personality and behaviour traits and not because of the
position he/ she holds. Synergy enables the subordinate to work in a group by establishing group
goals and achieving them. However, power enables an individual to have a command over another
person regardless of their concerns or wishes while leaders influence the other person through their
conduct and actions to make the subordinate act.

As per my conscious and understanding, I would arrange the source of power from top priority to the
least as

1. Expert power

As the name implies, the word expert defines the individual ability to influence others through his/ her
competency and is not limited to talent, skills, knowledge and experience. Furthermore, in every field,
whether related to professional work or household chores, experience aids in the execution of the
same action or task in the shortest amount of time with maximum efficiency. A manager can utilize
his or her experience in the same field of work. This will enable him to direct the behaviour of his or
her subordinates towards achieving maximum efficiency and company goals.

First and foremost, it is imperative to have an expert manager or leader to nurture his subordinates.
Without expert guidance, one cannot find his way and channel his energy to achieve harmony and
team goals. 

2. Reward power

Reward power is influencing the behaviour of an individual by rewarding him with a desirable means
of reward. It can be monetary or non-monetary. As a result, the subordinate gets motivated and
exhibits behaviour changes in the relationship between manager and subordinate. Praise, promotions,
salary increases, bonuses, and giving appropriate rewards according to employee needs are examples
of rewards.

It is in the second place because a reward may motivate the employee more than expert power.
However, the motivation has to be channelled, which is impossible without competent and
experienced leadership. The same would help in nourishing the relationship between manager and
subordinate.
3. Referent power

Individuals with this power can influence the behaviour of others because they are respected, admired,
and liked. When a subordinate tries to become like a manager who is experienced and skilled and
attempts to copy the way he or she works. This has an impact on the behaviour of the imitating
individual. A successful manager is admired by all his subordinates who always want to work like
him and be admired by others.

We place it here because there are very few charismatic people whom we adore and wish to be like.
But not always. Often, we learn from our managers or co-workers, but we don't necessarily wish to
emulate them. People like Bill Gates, Elon Musk, Steve Jobs, Narendra Modi, and the like are
examples of influential individuals with referent power.

4. Legitimate Power

By using a formal position in an organization, a person can use his or her legitimate power to
influence the behaviour of others. Using the hierarchy system in an organization, the superior or
manager has the power to influence the behaviour of his subordinate through the channel of hierarchy.
The behaviour or decision is influenced by the superior or the legitimate authorised representative. It
is desirable to have such power because it follows a formal structure made by the organization, and it
adheres to the principle of authority and responsibility.

Putting it there is because I believe giving people legitimate power limits their freedom within a given
structure and will restrict their ability to work. Tom Murphy was CEO of capital cities broadcasting
during the 1970s and converted a single radio station company into a billion-dollar company. A
bartender was at their promotional event and later invested his money in capital cities. An executive
asked the bartender what you see in the company that makes you invest. He replied: “I have worked at
a lot of corporate events over the years, but capital cities were the only company where you couldn't
tell who the bosses were.”

5. Coercive power

Punishment influences an individual's behaviour. When a manager punishes a subordinate, the fear of
punishment influences their behaviour. It is the weakest source of power a manager can use.
Demonstrating this can demotivate an employee to the extent that he or she will no longer wish to
work for the organization. Punishments can include reprimands, undesirable work, strict business
rules, suspensions, or pay cuts. Managers cannot use this power in their relationship with subordinates
if they want to influence their behaviour in a positive way.

As per Abraham Maslow's theory of hierarchy of needs an individual may crave power which can also
be placed at the second level of the hierarchy. The relationship between superior and subordinate can
be influenced by using the power as discussed above. But the preference may change as per the
individual's mindset. An individual seeking more power may put legitimate power first, while an
individual with leadership qualities may place influence power first. These powers can be used by
managers to achieve organizational goals effectively.
Question 2: Performance of employees at the workplace depends on their personality traits.
Describe the five major traits that most researchers agree upon and explain how they lead to
meaningful workplace behaviour.
Ans 2:

Personality refers to a set of traits possessed by an individual that distinguish him/ her from
others. It determines the behaviour of individual in the organization as well as in the external
environment. When hiring employees, employers use personality tests to determine the attitude and
personality of the employee towards the job and their attributes related to the culture of the company.
By analysing the personality characteristics of a potential employee at the time of recruitment, we can
determine how well they will work in teams and be agile during their employment.

Personality is not formed over a short period of time. Instead, it is a continuous personal quality
development process which starts from the time we are infants till the time we die. Factors such as
heredity, situational factors, and environment determine the personality of an individual. There are
five major traits that an employee seeks in an individual. There is consensus among many researchers
on five major traits connected to positive behaviour in a workplace. Collectively, these traits are
called the Big 5.

Concepts & Application

1. Extroversion

Extroversion refers to the degree to which a person is outgoing and derives energy from being around
other people. Since the employee cannot work alone, he has to be in a team so he should enjoy the
company of others. For an individual to be in a group, he must have warm attitudes towards others
and be open to expressing gratitude to others.

A person's extraversion can be helpful in determining their level of job satisfaction. Gaining an edge
on this trait will allow the individual to master customer service, marketing, and sales. People with
positive energy, positive emotions, confidence, sociability, and the tendency to explore stimulation in
the workplace with others will be the ones who can take charge of situations. They will have the most
impact on the organization. It will improve the coordination and cooperation among employees.
Employees form quick and easy friendships, which leads to an effective work group.

2. Open is to experience

The person who seeks novel experiences and thinks creatively about the future exhibits the trait of
openness to experience. That rate also refers to the depth of someone's mental experience or
imagination. It motivates people to try new things, be open to learning experiences, and think
creatively. Employees who are high on this scale are artistic and curious to try various things. On the
other hand, those who are low tend to be conventional and stay in their comfort zone.

Openness is often viewed as a positive trade. A person with a high level of openness, experience has a
higher level of self-motivation, knowledge, curiosity to learn more about the world. Employees with
such adaptability thrive in the workplace. Changes happen at every workplace related to environment,
relationship and situation. A high degree of openness among employees allows them to respond
accordingly.
3. Emotional Stability

People are defined by their characteristics according to how stable they are and how they react under
stressful or challenging circumstances. An individual who is emotionally unstable is characterised by
sadness, moodiness and anxiety. A more emotionally stable employee is less likely to feel sad or
depressed.

In an organization workgroup an individual with a higher degree of emotional stability should lead the
team. In the workplace, there is usually a high degree of stress and responsibility, which a stable
person can easily handle and doesn't mind very much. Instability in person may cause instability in
organizational workplace behaviour as well.

4. Agreeableness

Agreeableness describes the extent to which a person prioritises the need of others over their own
need. People who are high in agreeableness tend to have a great deal of empathy for others, and they
get a great deal of pleasure from serving and taking care of their co-workers. Such people are well
liked and prefer cooperation over conflict and have an ability to maintain relationships.

Employees with a high degree of agreeableness tend to be more polite considerate, trustworthy,
cooperative, and modest. These personality traits will enhance the workplace. Highly agreeable
employees can make effective leaders. Leadership that places the needs of others before self enables
others to do the job to the best of their abilities, resulting in meaningful workplace behaviour.

5. Conscientiousness

Conscientiousness describes a person’s level of goal orientation and persistence. Those who are high
in conscientiousness are organised hand determine and are able to forgo immediate gratification for
the sake of long-term achievement. And the individual who are low in the trade are impulsive.

An employee with a high degree of conscientiousness will be well organized, demonstrate self-
control, and be able to manage their time efficiently. A conscientiousness employee can demonstrate
meaningful workplace behaviour, as such individuals have strong work ethics, are punctual, pay
attention to details and show commitment and purpose. Conscientious employees can be highly
effective workers, which can contribute to the achievement of team as well as organizational goals.

Conclusion
The personality traits of an employee affect his job satisfaction as well as the organizational
environment. Individual personalities determine an individual's behaviour in the organizational
environment. Certain personality traits play an essential role in employee and organizational
behaviour, which is desirable for an organization to run smoothly. Some individuals may be more
sociable and carry extroversion traits of personality and prefer a work environment more social and
friendly, while others prefer the opposite. This doesn't impact immediately their behaviour at work but
harms organizational workplace behaviour in the long run. People are not means to an end but are
important in organizations as a wheel to a chariot. An organization must have a workforce that is
composed of unique employee traits to fit the right size of a wheel in a chariot to avoid collisions of
ideas, harming the structure and behaviour of an organization.
Question 3:

Mr. Ranveer Goswami, the current CEO retired from the organization and everyone bid him a
very emotional farewell. He was a people’s leader and the team was going to certainly miss him.
The young CEO Ms. Riya Talwar who was going to take his position had a tall task ahead of
her. She was eager to implement the ideas she had in mind to expand the organization and was
one focused leader, doing everything in her capacity to lead the organization to greater success.

Ms. Riya did not get the welcome or support she expected from the team. Her plans were not
implemented with the same vigour that she had imagined? Which common organizational
pitfalls in leadership are described in this scenario?

Ans: 3(a)

Introduction

Leaders are the individuals who establish direction for working groups of individuals who gain
commitment from this group of members to this direction and who motivate these members to
achieve the outcome. It is the ability to persuade others to believe in a certain way. Miss Riya does not
receive the welcome support she expects from the team. An effective leader is aware of the potential
pitfalls along the way and is prepared to overcome them. The problem can also be viewed as a pitfall
of conflict in the organization. Conflict refers to actual and perceived disagreements among needs
values and interests of individuals and groups. The following are the leadership pitfalls that Miss Riya
needs to address to resolve the conflict.

Concepts & Application

Lack of understanding of existing culture

There are times when new leaders do not understand the culture of the organization they are working
for. Miss Riya should be well-versed in the existing policies and rules. A leader who does not
understand the culture may face challenges in leading the organization in a completely different
direction. Because of her lack of knowledge of existing structures, she may raise a conflict for which
she has not been welcomed or supported by her team.

Lack of trust

The key to effective leadership is trust; without trust, leadership is likely to fail, and a high level of
trust improves the relationship between leaders and subordinates and enhances the performance of the
team. Riya has to demonstrate consistency with her verbal and nonverbal communication caring about
others welfare and interests, respecting and valuing the knowledge that is being taught by her team.
This type of activity would generate trust and commitment to the goals.

Ineffective communication

Different team members have different communication skills and to control ineffectiveness one has to
communicate with different strokes for different folks. Miss Riya has to communicate with every
level of organizational structure to effectively convey about the goal she has in her mind for which the
team has to work.

Conflict and feedbacks

Conclusion

The organization's expansion has been on Miss Riya's mind since she has so many ideas to
implement. From my point of view, the conflict between employee ideas and company interests is
likely to give rise to organizational conflict. It is the leader's responsibility to overcome these
challenges, and by understanding the pitfalls in her leadership, she may get the full support of her
team and achieve the goals she expected.

Correlating it to the above situation, explain how emotional intelligence would help the new
CEO get the support she expects from her employees? 

Ans: 3(b)

Introduction

Emotional intelligence is also called emotional quotient (EQ). it is the ability to understand and
facilitate emotions. These are organised resources that typically arise in response to an event internal
or external, which bears a positive or negative impact on an individual. A person's intelligence can be
defined as their ability to act purposefully, think rationally, and deal with change effectively.
Emotional intelligence is an individual's ability to identify understand and manage emotions to
effectively communicate and empathise with others to overcome challenges and conflict.

Concepts & Application

To gain the support of her employees, Miss Riya has to use a variety of emotional intelligence skills,
such as the former CEO did. With the right EI skills Riya can influence her workplace.

Empathy

It is the ability to note and respond to other people’s motivation and need. It is like stepping into
another person's shoes and understanding how they feel and how you respond to these emotions.

In the workplace, Riya needs to find key managers with influential roles in achieving her goals and
plans, and she must think about the problem from their perspective.

Self awareness

It is the recognition of one's own strengths and weaknesses. Being self-aware involves being aware of
various aspects of oneself, including ones emotions and feelings. In this case, she must pay attention
to her own feelings about the unsatisfactory outcome and how she should respond. This would make
her aware of her own emotions. She also has to acknowledge her emotional strength and weaknesses
that lead to impatience, anger and annoyance. By doing so, she will learn how to respond and act in
different circumstances, so she will not react impatiently, thus damaging her reputation and
personality.

Self regulation
It is the ability to manage and express appropriately. Being aware of your emotions is imperative
because one must manage their own feelings. Acting impatiently would add fuel to the fire and may
harm the relationship with her employee.

Motivation

It is being driven by passion rather than just working for money or paychecks. People with strong EI
tend to be more motivated to achieve goals for their own sake rather than seeking rewards. They want
to do because people find them fulfilling and passionate about the work. Riya should focus on what
their colleagues love to do. That way the employee can work and demonstrate commitment to the
business. Ria has to find inspiration and identify those components of jobs that motivate her as well as
her employees. This would help in building the support she expected from her employee.

Social skills

It is the ability to win others' respect and build rapport, adapt and recognise other people's emotions.
A leader must have the social skill to bring all the team players together. She must listen to what
others have to say and act accordingly. She can ask questions and provide feedback to show how
much she is passionate about the company's plans and her new position in the company. It is
important for her to demonstrate her willingness to work with others and how the group can help her
to achieve her goals.

Conclusion

Emotional intelligence plays an influential role not only in wellbeing but also in success in the
workplace. Riya can use her EI skills to persuade the team. As a result, she will be able to foster high
levels of emotional competencies to improve work and the implementation of her plans with the same
vigour she had anticipated.