A640.4.4.RB – DEVELOPING A CASE (POST EVENT ANALYSIS)

            Completing this week’s class work was quite challenging not only due to the type of the course work required but at the same time, this week was a very busy week at work.  This week I was traveling within the East Florida Region of Florida Hospitals for acquisition meetings and open enrollment.  I cannot overstate the importance of developing my skills in time management enough.  Other than the benefit of having the ability to draw up a case study to strategically plan for a significant project at work, time management is one I consider one of the many principles of leadership that demands consistent practice and attention.
            Although this week’s assignment was quite challenging, it was a learning point for me.  Developing a case study taught me not only to learn that a case study allows us to retain a holistic diagnostic of actual life events and at the same time researching events that are existential.  Creating a case study indoctrinated me the necessity of utilizing Creative Problem Solving as a tool or method on how to approach challenges or problems in a creative and inventive way.  In the process of developing the assigned case study and writing this week’s discussion post, I found myself digging into my critical thinking skills.  Critical thinking skills are of utmost importance for a leader to possess to understand and assess logically the correlation of ideas and determine various inconsistencies in reasoning to arrive at the appropriate decision(s) in resolving a problem, an issue, or a case.
            According to the Creative Education Foundation, Creative Problem Solving is a methodology that assists us in redefining challenges and opportunities that we encounter to formulate new solutions and creative responses and implementing them.  CPS allows us to experience the rapid assimilation of new ideas positively, in addition to creating more efficient solutions.  Utilizing CPS gave me the idea to use Kotter’s (1947) 8-Steps Process of Leading Change to successfully derive a holistic approach to organizational change for Bethune-Cookman University under the leadership of Dr. Edison Jackson.
            By nature, every methodology has its positive effect, but we could never avoid that it is inevitable that any methodology also has its issues or weaknesses.  As a research methodology, a case study has its own criticisms.  According to Schell (1992), the most common criticism regarding a case study is that often times, it is directed to a multitude levels, beginning from best practical approach to the most theoretical approach.  The case study strategy is in nature very labor intensive, and the required energy at every stage of the research process in the collection of comparable data is very explosive.  Schell (1992) further stated in single case studies, a researcher has few foundations to rely on in defending himself or herself from unpredictable results and scientific concepts most specifically on a single case or experimentation.  Lastly, Schell (1992) noted that in practical cases that involved a dual role of a researcher and at the same time a member of the research team, there can be a plausible ethical issue.
            Overall, this week’s assignment regarding situational and contingency theory leadership, and case study methodology have been thought-provoking although challenging.  I have learned that a situational leader is competent to address the most pressing challenges in an individualized and innovative approach (Dubois et al., 2015).  Another point to learn from this week was that Fielder’s Contingency Theory of Leadership is inadequate when it comes to a leader’s flexibility.  Which meant leaders are generally definitive in regulating workplace issues or situations thus if a situation or an issue has to be handled differently, said issue or situation needs to be assigned to a different leader (Rowe & Guerrero, 2012).  And lastly, I have learned that although this week’s assignment was quite challenging, it was a learning point for me.  Developing a case study taught me not only to know that a case study allows us to retain a holistic diagnostic of actual life events and at the same time researching events that are existential.  To be efficient and fruitful in any case study, we need to utilize our Creative Problem Solving and Critical Thinking skills as a tool or method on how to approach challenges or problems in a creative and inventive way.  As a leader, it is of utmost importance that I consistently develop, practice and possess critical thinking skills to understand and assess logically the correlation of ideas and determine various inconsistencies in reasoning to arrive at the appropriate decision(s).

References: 
Dubois, M., Hanlon, J., Koch, J., Nyatuga, B., & Kerr, N. (2015). Leadership  
Styles of Effective Project Managers: Techniques and Traits to Lead High
Performance Teams. Journal of Economic Development, Management, I T, Finance, and Marketing 7.1 (Mar 2015): 30-46.  Retrieved from: http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.libproxy.db.erau.edu/docview/1681254193?pq-origsite=summon  
Creative Education Foundation. Creative Problem Solving.  Retrieved from:
Rowe, W. G., & Guerrero, L. (2012). Cases in Leadership (3rd ed.). SAGE Publications, Inc.
Schell, Charles (1992). The Value of the Case Study as a Research Strategy.  Manchester
            Business School


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

A634.9.4.RB – A Reflection of our Learning

A521.4.4.RB – Listening

A634.3.4.RB – The Harder They Fall