Approach of asking tough questions as leadership technique

Assignment Help Operation Management

Reference no: EM132291135

Lola majored in business administration with a concentration in marketing, and she is delighted with her career progress. She joined the frozen-food division of a large company ten years ago as a product specialist for frozen Indian food. Lola says with a smile, “I was torn between Asian studies and marketing. My first job was therefore a perfect fit for my interests.”

Lola now holds the position of general manager of frozen foods, with a team of 6 people directly reporting to her, and 350 total employees. Lola has learned that a leader does not have all the answers, so he or she should ask lots of questions. She also believes that the right questions will get people thinking.

During a recent meeting with her sales manager, Marvin, Lola asked her, “What’s to prevent consumers from serving mostly inexpensive fresh food instead of purchasing our expensive products?” Marvin responded, “Let me think about that one. It never occurred to me that our industry was in jeopardy.”

The next day Lola sent a text message to Quinn, a new product development specialist, that asked, “How have you justified your pay this month?” Quinn sent a message back, “I’ve been working forty-five hours a week. Isn’t that enough?”

The following day, Lola dropped by the cubicle of Brooklyn, the department administrative assistant, and asked her, “How can I improve my communication with you?” Brooklyn responded, “I thought that our communication was pretty good.”

While having lunch with Geoff, the director of human resources, Lola asked, “Can you please explain to me how your group is increasing our revenue, improving our products or saving us money?” Geoff replied, “With all due respect Lola, you need more information about what HR does for an organization.”

The following week during a staff meeting, Lola asked her team, “What should I be doing to help make our group the best frozen-food division in the industry?” Margot, the director of supply chain management, responded: “I’m going to need time to think about this one.”

Question: How effective does Lola appear to be in her approach of asking tough questions as a leadership technique?

Reference no: EM132291135

Questions Cloud

What is uniform guidelines on employee selection : What is Uniform Guidelines on Employee Selection? What are the main implications for employee selection?

Reach an agreement on price and quantities : Assume that the firms reach an agreement on price and quantities. Do you expect the firms to abide by their promises? Why or why not?

Report to chief operating officer to evaluate the processes : HI5019 - Strategic Information Systems for Business and Enterprise - HOLMES INSTITUTE - Describe the various transaction cycles, financial reporting

Changes in the prices of other inputs cause the demand curve : [1] How could technological change and changes in the prices of other inputs cause the demand curve for labor to shift to the left?

Approach of asking tough questions as leadership technique : How effective does Lola appear to be in her approach of asking tough questions as a leadership technique?

National competition titled innovations in management : You recently learned of a national competition titled “Innovations in Management”

Based on national and local news reports : Based on national and local news reports, is economic growth in the United States growing at a mild or rapid rate? How do you know?

Impact of different stages of business environment : Impact of different stages of business environment! Macroeconomic environment influences the performance of a firm and the magnitude of influence

How might producer define quality : How might a producer define Quality? Consider the costs of Quality, how might an organization prevent rising quality costs?

User Account

All Pages