Reference no: EM133694031
Leadership Interview Assignment - Midterm
Now that you are about halfway through this course, this is a good time to step back and think about the topics we have covered so far, and how they may be reflected in what an actual leader does in his/her daily life. Towards that end, we are asking you to interview and then analyze a leader. This assignment is in lieu of a mid-term exam.
This assignment is designed to help your own development by providing the opportunity to:
• practice the habit of reaching out, talking to/learning from other leaders
• practice discovery research as you ask key questions about leadership, listen carefully and reflect on the answers.
• practice analyzing leadership in more sophisticated, rigorous ways (using research-based frameworks and concepts) rather than surface-level impressions
• use observation of others to help determine what you want to develop in yourself.
Leadership Interview Instructions
1. Choose one person to interview for this assignment. You may interview any leader you want, though I encourage you to use this as a way to expand your professional network. So, if you feel up for it (not required!) rather than interviewing your boss or a family member, reach out to someone you don't know as well but whom you would like to make connections with. This is a great excuse!
2. Schedule your interview. Set the day, time, and the mode of your interview (face-to-face, phone call, or virtual meeting).
3. Do some background research about the person you are interviewing. You should never conduct an interview without first knowing a little about them. This allows you to ask better questions and to demonstrate that you have invested in this process and their time.
4. Review the topics we have covered so far in the first 4 modules (e.g., leadership learning, decision-making, motivation, job design, leading teams, conflict management). Develop and write out a list of questions with respect to aspects of these topics that interest you most.
Remember that a key goal of this assignment is to demonstrate that you can apply what you have learned to your analysis of a leader, so it's very important to include questions that will allow you to reflect on course material.
5. Conduct an interview that is 30-60 minutes long. Take notes during the interview or record your interview (with your interviewee's permission.)
6. Review your notes and then write a report that analyzes what you learned from the interview you conducted, following the instructions below. Report Instructions: Your report should include the following three sections. Please label them.
1: WHO Very briefly describe who you interviewed, why you chose this person to interview, and identify the method of the interview.
2: ANALYSIS Having reflected on your interview data, write an analysis of what you learned about this person as a leader. A few important points about this section:
o This should not be a re-telling or summary of the interview. Rather, it should be an analysis of this leader using the interview as data.
o Your analysis should be explicitly grounded in the application of the required leadership readings and materials we have covered so far. (While I won't penalize for using outside sources or optional readings, I won't give credit for them either. The goal is to demonstrate your grasp of required concepts from this course.)
o Your assertions about this leader should be supported using examples or evidence from your interview and/or your background research about the person.
3: ACTION STEPS Finally, suggest at least two lessons learned from this interview and how you can take steps to implement these in your own life.
o For example, perhaps there are skills you would like to develop, weaknesses you would like to avoid, qualities or capabilities that have more importance than you initially realized.
Make these specific and be sure to include how you plan to work towards these.