by Frank Shipper, Ph.D. Professor of Management, Franklin P. Perdue School of Business Salisbury University Salisbury, MD 21801-6860 Phone: (410) 543-6333 FAX: (410) 548-2908 E-mail fmshipper@salisbury.edu An earlier version was published in the Journal of Leadership Studies, 1995, Vol. 2, No.3, pp. 133-143. AN INTERACTIVE EXERCISE: DEMONSTRATING THE POSITIVE SIDE OF CONTROL⁽¹⁾ Introduction

Over the years the use of control as a managerial technique has often been looked upon unfavorably. In fact, many of the items that could be considered to be controlling behaviors were not included in the revised version of the Leader Behavior Description Questionnaire (LBDQ) - Form XII (Schriesheim & Kerr, 1974). Much of the work in the 1960's and 70's on managerial effectiveness was based on the LBDQ. Reviews of that work found inconclusive and inconsistent results (Yukl, 1994). More recent conceptualizations of effective management have emphasized the need for a full array of managerial skills (Quinn, 1988; Wilson & Shipper, 1992). This exercise demonstrates how a balance of control and interactive skills can benefit the manager, the employees, and the organization. Instructions to Facilitator

This exercise can be used with any group of twenty or more participants. Fewer participants will probably not produce reliable results. Steps:

1. Have the participants either (1) complete a self-scoring Survey of Management Practices on a boss that they have had or (2) use the results that they have received from their direct reports or associates (Both self-scoring and computer-scored surveys are available from The Clark Wilson Group 800-537-7249).

If the participants use the self-scoring Survey of Management Practices, they will also have to use the Tension and Commitment Scales at the end of this exercise, as they are not part of that survey.

2. Ask the participants to follow the Scoring Instructions for the Managerial Skills Matrix.

4. Ask the participants to form groups based on which quadrant they fell in on the Managerial Skills Matrix.

5. Ask the newly formed groups to compute and be ready to report the average for the tension and commitment scores for the group. Also, ask the members of the newly formed groups to develop a verbal description of the strengths and weaknesses of the individual profiled.

6. Plot the scores on an overhead made from the Worksheet for Plotting Subunit Tension and Commitment of Novice, Controlling, Interactive and Master Managers, and discuss the results.

7. Show the results entitled, "Work Unit Effectiveness of Novice, Interactive, Controlling and Master Managers," from an organization where performance, commitment, and tension data were all available. Emphasize that these results are typical. The same analysis has been done in hospitals, financial institutions, and high-tech firms with similar results. Comparisons have been made between managers in traditional, hierarchial and those in non-traditional, flat organizations and the results remained similar. Comparisons have also been made by the gender of the manager and the results were similar. Good management is good management regardless of the organizational culture in which it is delivered or the gender of the deliverer.

SCORING INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE MANAGERIAL SKILLS MATRIX To locate yourself (or someone else) on the vertical axis of the Managerial Skills Matrix, average the centile scores of the following interactive skills:

A	Clarification of Goals and Objectives	____________
B	Upward Communication	____________
C	Orderly Work Planning	____________
D	Expertise	____________
E	Work Facilitation	____________
F	Feedback	____________
J	Delegation (Permissiveness)	____________
K	Recognition for Good Performance	____________
	Total	____________
	Average for Interactive Skills (Total/8)	____________

To locate yourself (or someone else) on the horizonal axis of the Managerial Skills Matrix, calculate the weighted average of the centile scores of the following controlling skills:

Participants	Individual Commitment Scores	Individual Tension Scores
1.	__________________	__________________
2.	__________________	__________________
3.	__________________	__________________
4.	__________________	__________________
5.	__________________	__________________
6.	__________________	__________________
7.	__________________	__________________
8.	__________________	__________________
9.	__________________	__________________
10.	__________________	__________________
Total__________________	__________________	__________________
X = Number of Participants X 6	X =
Y = Number of Participants X 5		Y =
Group Average Commitment Score (Total Divided by X)	__________________	__________________
Group Average Tension Score (Total Divided by Y)	__________________	__________________

Please give a rating for the six statements below on how each one reflects your feelings about your job. Give your frank personal opinion.

You may think of the degree or extent to which each is true. Or if it is more appropriate, you may think of the frequency: 1, 2 = "Extremely low degree, seldom or never"; 3, 4, 5 = "An average degree, some of the time or about half"; 6, 7 = "A very high degree, all or almost all of the time."

Circle your rating for each question and then enter that rating in the column at the right. When you have finished, add up the numbers and write the total at the bottom of the column.

	A small degree, seldom or never		Normal, average, sometimes, about half			A high degree or almost always
1. We work hard because we like it here ...	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
2. We try hard to do the work well ...	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
3. We put out a lot of effort to meet commitments ...	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
4. Most of the group are loyal to the organization ...	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
5. We are committed to reach our goals ...	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
6. We are dedicated to the organization ...	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
						TOTAL

Please give a rating for the five statements below on how each one reflects your feelings about your job. Give your frank personal opinion.

Circle your rating for each question and then enter that rating in the column at the right. When you have finished, add up the numbers and write the total at the bottom of the column.

	A small degree, seldom or never		Normal, average, sometimes, about half			A high degree or almost always
1. We feel a lot of stress in the work place ...	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
2. Things seem to be in a constant state of crisis ...	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
3. We feel uneasy in dealing with management ...	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
4. There is conflict between the group and management ...	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
5. The situation is full of tension ...	1	2	3	4	5	6	7
						TOTAL

Jamal, Muhammad, (1985). "Job Stress and Job Performance: An Empirical Assessment," Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, February 1984, pp. 1-21.

Jamal, Muhammad, (1985). "Relationship of Job Stress to Job Performance," Human Relations, May 1985, pp. 409-24.

Quinn, R. E. (1988). Beyond rational management, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers.

Schriesheim, C. A., & Kerr, S. (1974). Psychometric Properties of the Ohio State Leadership Scales. Psychological Bulletin, 81: 756-765.

Shipper, Frank, (1995). "A Study of the Psychometric Properties of the Managerial Skill Scales of the Survey of Management Practices," Journal of Educational and Psychological Measurement, Vol. 55, No. 3, pp 486-497.

Shipper, Frank, (1994). "A Study of Managerial Skills of Women and Men and Their Impact on Employees' Attitudes and Career Success in a Nontraditional Organization." Abstract published in the Proceedings of the Academy of Management, Dallas, Texas, August 14-17, 1994, p. 471.

Shipper, Frank, (1991). "Mastery and Frequency of Managerial Behaviors Relative to Sub-unit Effectiveness," Human Relations, Vol. 44, No. 4, pp. 371-388.

Shipper, Frank. & Dillard, John E., Jr., (1994). "Comparing the Skills of Early Derailers vs. Fast Trackers, Late Derailers vs. Long-Term Fast Trackers, and Mid-career Derailers vs. "Recoverers." Abstract published in the Proceedings of the Academy of Management, Dallas, Texas, August 14-17, 1994, p. 424, (Winner of the Outstanding Paper on Management Development Award).

Shipper, Frank & Neck, Chris, (1990). "Subordinates' Observations: Feedback for Management Development," Human Resource Development Quarterly, Winter, pp. 371-385.

Shipper, Frank & White, Charles S. "Mastery, Frequency & Interaction of Managerial Behavior Relative to Subunit Effectiveness." Abstract published in the 1995 Proceedings of the Academy of Management, Vancouver, British Columbia, August 4-9, 1995, p. 542.

Shipper, Frank & Wilson, Clark L., (1992). "The Impact of Managerial Behaviors on Group Performance, Stress and Commitment," published in Impact of Leadership, Kenneth E. Clark, Miriam B. Clark, and Donald P. Campbell, eds., Greensboro, NC: The Center for Creative Leadership, pp. 119-129.

Wilson, Clark L., (1980). "Identify Needs With Cost in Mind," Training and Development Journal, pp. 58-62.

Wilson, Clark L., O'Hare, Donal, & Shipper, Frank, (1990). "Task Cycle Theory: The Processes of Influence," In Measures of Leadership, Kenneth F. Clark and Miriam B. Clark, Editors. West Orange, New Jersey: Leadership Library of America, Inc.

Wilson, C.L. and Shipper, F. (1992). Task Cycle Management: A Competency-Based Course for Operating Managers (Rev. ed.), Silver Spring, Maryland: The Clark Wilson Group.

Wilson, Clark L., & Wilson, Jane L., (1991). Teams and Leaders: A Manual for the Clark Wilson Publishing Company Training and Development Programs. Silver Spring: The Clark Wilson Group.

Yukl, G. A. (1994) Leadership in Organizations (3rd ed.). Englewood Cliffs: Prentice Hall.

1. The author would like to thank Clark L. Wilson, Ph.D. Professor Emeritus, University of Bridgeport and Daniel J. Booth, Ed.D., President of the Booth Company for their assistance in the development and testing of this exercise.

2. The commitment and tension scales are copyrighted by the Clark Wilson Group and are used here with permission.

G	Time Emphasis	X 2
H	Control of Details	X 2
I	Goal Pressure	X 1
		Total
Weighted Average for Controlling Skills (Total/5)

AN INTERACTIVE EXERCISE:

DEMONSTRATING THE POSITIVE SIDE OF CONTROL©