Effective Managers Born or Made

Effective Managers Are Leaders Born or Made?

Research Title: Effective Managers. “It is often believed that effective managers and problem solvers are born rather than made and have a kind of magical power to understand and transform the situations they encounter. If we take a closer look at the processes used, however, we find that this kind of mystique and power is often based on an ability to develop deep appreciation of situations being addressed. Skilled leaders and managers develop the ability of reading situations with various scenarios in mind and of forging actions that seem appropriate to the understandings thus obtained” (Morgan, 2006).

The major task of the leader is to bring their followers from where they are to where they have not been. Acting like a manager and problem solver is an enormous job. The good and worst manager is remembered by the people throughout the history. From many years people are debating whether the effective managers are born or made. Some researchers believe that the effective managers are born with the necessary personality traits that make them successful (Bernard, 1926). On the other side most of the researchers has a firm belief that the effective managers are made. (Bernard, 1926; Blake et al 1964, Drath et al, 1994; Fiedler, 1967; and House et al, 1974) Let us assume that effective managers are the person born with the abilities to inspire and influence others. We can take a simple example on this statement. Sometimes we see a little girl influencing her brother and parents with their inherit abilities to do the things she wants to do.

If we take effective manager as a person who is courageous and willing to speak for the betterment of the people around him than we can say that the effective managers and leaders are born. In our surrounding we can see people who are introvert and are always in followers by nature but sometimes at a particular situation about which he was passionate will prove himself a good leader or effective manager. So by this we can assume that one can become effective manager by continues training and experiences. Saal et al (1988) stated that leadership is not necessarily in born, some skills could be taught to employees to make them an effective leader.

 This issue is still inconclusive although many researchers have found that the effective managers are made not born. In previous years many theories has been given to reach at a specific point. Some of the most known theories on this issue are: Great man theory, Trait theory, and behavioral theories.

Great Man Theory

According to this theory the leaders are different from other human beings. They do not need to develop intellectual brain to lead, but they have the right set of inherited capabilities which is not equally present in all the human beings. The basic assumption of this theory is that effective mangers are born not made and they contain some inherited traits that make them successful. These great people arise with the need.

A lot of research in 19th century was based on this theory. Most of the researchers have developed a link between the Great Man theories and the work of Thomas Carlyle who was a historian. He revealed that the leaders are the person who has naturally gifted capabilities and can capture the imaginations of the masses in a better way.

In earlier times it was considered that the qualities of effective manager is associated with man and this theory is named as a great man theory but in later year when so many great woman emerged as a effective manager that named the theory Great person theory.

According to the great person theory some person born with the necessary qualities that distinguish them with other persons. These inborn traits of a person make him responsible for the position of power and authority. This theory claimed that an effective manager within born attributes can achieve the goals for their followers by facing all the obstacles in his way. This theory implies that those who are at the positions of authority and power are just because of the gifted attributes they have. Moreover this theory also argues that these gifted traits of the effective manager remain stable over the period and in different groups.

Trait Theorists

Trait theory is basically all about the characteristics of the effective manager. This theory relates to the physiological characteristics including appearance, height and weight, demographics i.e. age, income and education, personality, self-confidence, intelligence and social characteristics with management effectiveness. Successful managers have some characteristics and traits that make the manager different from the unsuccessful manager. Researchers in 20th century have identified the set of the traits that are responsible to make an effective manager. These traits are achievement drive, motivation, honesty, self-confidence cognitive ability, knowledge about the practical things, creativity charisma and flexibility. An effective manager with good judgment, strong analytical skills can better solve the problems of any situations.

This theory is a naturally pleasant theory that tells us about the elements that make the effective manager and the leader. Trait theory of leadership has a great implication in all types of organizations and all positions. By utilization of information given in the theory people can evaluate their position and determine how they can make their positions strong.

Stogdill (1974) claimed that the people who are effective managers have right combination of attributes including achievement-orientation, ambitious and determination.

The trait approach gives rise to the issue that the effective manager is born or made or whether it is an art and science. According to the trait theory sometimes we can consider effective manager and leader an art but still there is a need of some skills to be successful. Even if there are some in born characteristics that make the person an effective manager still some kind of development and encouragement is also need to make him a successful leader.

Behavioral Theories

Behavior theory is based on the assumption that the leaders are made rather than born. Effective managers are basically the learnable behavior. Behavioral theories not actually based on the inborn traits and rather this theory focuses on the actions of the managers and leaders. This theory stated that it is easy to learn than to adopt the short-lived traits. Behavioral theory is contrary to the trait theory. Behavioral theory assumes that the effective manger and problem solver capabilities can be learned but trait theory assumes that these capabilities are inherited. This theory has opened the flood gates to the leadership development.

Leaders are born

The idea that leaders are born rather made is given by the two well-known theories great man theory and the trait theory. Robins et al (2006) stated that every person personality is comprised of unique psychological characteristics. This uniqueness make person different from the others in the sense of their reactions towards the certain things and interaction with the people. This can be clearly observed in the person born with the leader characteristics-the certain make the leaders different from the non-leader. The great man theory argues that the great man and heroes are those who born with the abilities of chrism, intelligence and wisdom which they utilized in such a way that make them successful.

Example for the clarification of the Great Man Theory

If you will see an eagle running on the ground you will immediately find that an eagle is not good in running. This is because it is not naturally balanced and usually compensates it by sticking their wings out. The eagle is not appropriate for running, even if someone give him training. The training to improve the eagle running will not bring the improvement.

Leaders are made

According to the behavioral theories leaders are not born. Leaders can be developed by proper training and observations. Behavioral theories depend upon the actions of the manager not on the psychological or physiological characteristics. Cawthon (1996) revealed that the people born with equal abilities and equal traits.

Knowledge and skills person learn directly contribute in the process of leadership, while the other personal characteristics make the leader unique. According to the process leadership theory people can chose to become the effective manager by learning leadership skills. Werren Bennis is a well know researcher of leadership. He believes that every person can become a leader through years of learning and experience.

Dr Carol supports this argument by saying that people can develop leadership skills by their dedications towards work and hard working. Moreover he said that intelligence and brain is the starting point of the leadership development. Powel said that the effective leaders are made not born. Effective leaders learn from the trial and error and from their experiences. They learn from their failure and use this learning in future for solving the problem.

Effective Managers
Effective Managers

What make an effective leader?

An effective leader does not need to be holding some specific attributes. Harry Truman the most effective executive in US do not have even one ounce of charisma. When Truman becomes the president of the US he knew that what he wanted to do. He found that after World War 2 he should focus more on foreign affairs. He started his work by taking tutorials on foreign policy. As a result he becomes the most effective president in the US foreign affairs. Similarly while working in some well-known business firms I found CEO’s who were not the stereo typical leaders. These types of CEO’s are all over the world. They are varying in attitudes, personalities, strength and weaknesses. They ranged from extrovert to introvert from easy going to controlling and from generous to economical in nature. This shows that it’s the inherited attributes that make the person leader but they follow some practices that make them an effecter manager.

Drucker (2004) stated that the Great managers can be charismatic or tedious, kind or miserly, creative thinker or numbers oriented. He stated that effective executives follow eight practices that make them the effective manager. These practices include what need to be done? What will be a write decision for the enterprise? They developed a detailed action plan. They took responsibility of making decisions and communicating to the followers. Their main focus is on the prevailing opportunities rather than problems. They arrange productive meetings and they thought as we rather than I.

Importance of emotional intelligence in leadership development

In our practical life we usually go through such stories that a person who was highly skilled and intelligent promoted to the leadership position and get failed and another person with limited skills and intelligence promoted to the same leadership position remain success full. Such anecdotes make our belief strong on the perception that the leaders are born. The personal styles of the leaders also very and in different situation different types of leaders usually emerge. Studies found that the most effective leader is the one with high degree of emotional intelligence. This argument doesn’t meant that intelligence and technical skills are useless in the leader development. They do matters but as a threshold capabilities. These are the basics requirement of the executive position. Goleman (1998) in his research claimed that without emotional intelligence a person cannot become a leader. He pointed out that a person with extensive trainings, analytical mind and endless supply of smart ideas cannot be a good leader unless he has high level of emotional intelligence.

Skills required for effective manager

Much research has been conducted in previous years to see the relationship between the individual trait and the effective manager. The most of the studies revealed that the individual trait alone does not guarantee a success flu and effective manager, Individual needs to learn certain skills according to the prevailing situations to become and effective leader. Kirkpatrick et al (1999) in their study on the “Leaders: Do traits matter” revealed that the person traits is not the only thing that contribute in the success of the manager. They revealed that besides personal traits they need motivation, cognitive skills and the knowledge of the business. The result of the study is also consistent with the behavioral theory that the skills of the manger matters rather than in born traits. Stogdill also revealed that the any individual cannot become the leader by the virtue of the some traits he possesses. Stogdill research shows that personal or in born trait is universally associated with the effective manager, it the skills that person adopt in certain situations make him effective manger. Some of the skills that individual should learn in order to become an effective manager is discussed below.

Cognitive skills

Cognitive skills are the primary skills that are required for the effective leadership. These are the skills that are related to the basic cognitive capabilities. These are the skills include collecting, processing and disseminating information and learning. Communication skills like speaking are also important to convey the message effectively. Written skills are also important to learn for effective communication. To be an effective leaders need to develop active learning skills this enables leaders to work on new information and to learn its implications. These skills help managers to adopt behavior and strategies to solve non- routine problems effectively. Gilllen et al (1985) stated that the critical thinking is also an important aspect of leadership in order to analyze the strengths and weaknesses of different approaches of work. Kirkpatrick et al revealed that the manager must gather and integrate the enormous amount of knowledge about the functions of the business to become an effective manager. By getting detailed knowledge about the business, manager can effectively formulate the strategies, solve problems and make decisions.

Business skills

Business skills include the skills that are related to the functional area of the field of the leader. This includes the knowledge about the contexts in which individual work. Business skills also involve the management of the resources and operational analysis. In addition it also involves management or personnel resources to motivate followers for their work. The skills of managing financial resources also come in business skills. Harvard professor Kotter said that the expertise in business is more important the knowledge.

Interpersonal skills

The term social skills refer to the person’s ability of making relationship at the workplace. People with high social skills are found to be mean-spirit. Socially skilled person has wide connections. They have the ability of finding common ground in people of different types. They work on the assumption that nothing can be done alone. These types of people have a detailed network of the people that they can use at the time of action. In every company social skills is considered to be the key capability of the leaders. To be an effective leader a person should develop its social skills. No leader is the island. After all the work of the leader is to get things done by the people and it is not possible without the required social skills.

Strategic skills

The strategic skills are the highly conceptual skills. These skills are needed for the understanding of complexity, dealing with ambiguities, and influencing the organizations. Strategic skills include planning-related skills of imagining the systems and problems in different situations. The environment scanning skills is also an important skill that individual should learn to become an effective leader. Environmental scanning skills are related to the identification of downstream consequences and identification of key causes of the problem. These strategic skills also contains some problem solving components including problem identification this help in determining the true nature of a problem that is faced in the organization. Effective leaders also need to learn the solution appraisal and objective evaluation skills in order to evaluate the solution of a problem in an appropriate way.

Organizational culture and Leadership development

The role of culture in making of a leader gets overlooked. The culture of the organization also plays an important role in supporting and hindering the development of the leader. Organization culture is basically the values, beliefs, rules and practices of the organization. Most of the managers do not account the role of culture while making a leader in their organization. The most considerable reason of neglecting culture influence in the development of the leader is their wrong understanding about their culture. But failing to understand the role of culture in making the effective manager can be costly.

Some executives have a wrong perception that sending managers in the leader development program can produce better leaders that can handle the challenges in a better way. But there is more to do with the managers to make them an effective lender. To build an effective manager, organizations need to focus on the context in which the development of the leaders takes place. Organizational culture is the more significant part of the context. For making a good leaders organizations needs to assess the drivers and the culture of the organizations.

Role of Work motivation in building effective managers

Motivation is the psychological and physiological urge of the individual. Motivation helps in activating the behavior and drive that helps in achieving some goal and objective. The motivation level of the individuals very situation to situation. The situations in which individuals are working have an influence on the level of motivation. There are certain ways in which the motivation level of individuals can be improved. These factors are important in making the effective manager

Job enrichment

Organizations who want to develop effective manager must design their jobs in such a way that increase achievements, recognition, responsibility and growth. The work assigned to the managers should be compromised of work contents, greater use of skills and increased authority.

Flex time

Organizations should provide employees with flexi time. This flexi time will help the manager in determining their own work schedules. Providing flexi time with the core time will help in developing effective manager.

Quality circles

Some autonomous work groups should be defined that meet on daily basis to solve some problems. By the help of these groups they will exchange their experiences and ideas on problems. This will help the managers in learning from other experiences and skills.

Organizational reward system and effective managers

The organizational reward system has been found strongly related to the development of the effective manager. Fair pay benefits and promotions motivate the managers to learn new things and to develop the skills. Employment recognition system is an effective tool of making the effective manager. When organizations give recognition and rewards for the task they performed they will motivated to repeat their efficiency in the future days.

Problem solving

Middle and senior level management are seems to be more engaged in problem solving. The results of the problem solving are dependent on the allocation of the resources and work results. The situations in which the problem solving activities are take place are often complex, unstructured and non-routine. Sometimes the problems occur are beyond the control of the manager. Managers lacking in sufficient life experiences and training found problems beyond their control. Effective managers normally follow some steps in order to solve a particular problem. In First step manager identify the problem by gathering and evaluating the information. After gathering the information regarding the problem managers makes logical assumption based on their prior experiences. Tentative alternate solutions are developed and each alternative is than considered in depth. On the basis of decision criteria each alternative is evaluated by the manager. Only that alternative is selected which best fit with the criteria. After selection of the best alternative the solution is implemented. The results of the solutions are evaluated with time.

Conclusion

After the thorough review of the theories and literature it is evident that we cannot support a side and negate the other side when it comes about the discussion of whether leaders are born or made. The studies show that the both in born characteristics and the skills adoption is important to become an effective leader. Leadership can be learned by many ways but cannot be taught, Leaders learn 80 percent of things from their job. They learn by monitoring others leaders, by taking feedback, by coping with the multiple situations. Leadership is basically the life time learning.

The insight on the previous literature shows that trait is not alone sufficient for making an effective manager. These are the only preconditions of becoming an effective manager. An individual with certain traits needs to adopt certain skills and knowledge to become an effective manager. Possessing some traits enable the individual that he can also become the effective manger by adopting some required skills.

Leadership can be something an art but application of special skills and techniques are required in order to be successful. Even if there are certain inborn qualities that make one a good leader, these natural talents need encouragement and development. A person is not born with self-confidence. Self-confidence is developed, honesty and integrity are a matter of personal choice, motivation to lead comes from within the individual, and the knowledge of business can be acquired. While cognitive ability has its origin partly in genes, it still needs to be developed. None of these ingredients are acquired overnight.

These executives need to accomplish the importance of the culture in the development of the leaders. They need to factor the organizational culture in a way that helps in building leaders. Organizations need to understand their culture. By thorough understanding of their culture organizations can determine that which factors in their culture can hinder and enhance the development of the organizations.

In a nut shell we can say that in born attributes is the pre-condition of becoming an effective manager but to become successful leader individual should adopt some skills relevant to their business. Although a leader born with set of qualities that make it different from the non-leaders but there is an influence of other environmental factors in making him the one of the successful and effective manager.

References

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Blake, R. R., Shepard, H. A., and Mouton, J. S. (1964). Managing intergroup conflict in industry. Houston, TX: Gulf Publishing Co

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Cowley, W. H. (1928). Three distinctions in the study of leaders.. The Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 23(2), 144-157.

Cawthon, D, L, (1996). Effective Managers and Leadership: the great man theory revisited, Business horizon may-June,1-4

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Drath, W. H., and Palus, C. J. (1994). Making common sense: Leadership as meaning-making in a community of practice. Greensboro, NC: Center for Creative Leadership.

Day, D. V. (2000). Leadership development: A review in context. The Leadership Quarterly, 11(4), 581-613.

Goleman, D. (1995). Effective Managers and Emotional intelligence. New York: Bantman.

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House, R. J., and Mitchell, R. R. (1974, Fall). Path-goal theory of leadership. Journal of Contemporary Business, 3(4), pp. 81-98.

Horner, M. (1997). Leadership theory: past, present and future. Team Performance Management,, 3(4), 270-287.

Johnson, A. M., Vernon, P. A., McCarthy, J. M., Molson,, M., Harris, J. A., & Jang, K. L. (1998). Logo Nature vs. nurture: Are leaders born or made? A behavior genetic investigation of leadership style. Australian Academic Press, 1(4), 216-223.

Kirkpatrick, S. A., & Locke,, E. A. (1991). Leadership: do traits matter? Academy of Management Executive, 5(2), 48-62.

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Agile Software Dissertation

How to Best Integrate Agile Software Development Methods (XP and Scrum) By Introducing Usability Practices and Methods

Dissertation Topic: Agile Software. This dissertation aims to investigate how end user involvement can be made possible without disrupting the agile process using ground theory and practical approaches. It will attempt to integrate light-weight usability methods incorporated into the agile processes. It will also describe the key question as to how usability legit-weight methods could be integrated in agile process in order to create efficient and effective usable software in a short span of time.

This dissertation proposes an integrated process model that will ultimately integrate Light-Weight Usability methods In Agile Software Development Processes, light-weight methods (Use case technique, Personas, low-fidelity prototyping and Guerilla testing) in agile different iterations. This would assist the design and development team to produce enhanced product that are aimed at increasing customer satisfaction while simultaneously reducing the risk of incurring additional costs due to ‘redesigns’.

AGILE Software Dissertation
AGILE Software Dissertation

To provide a clearer perspective on the direction of the research questions, the entire research will focus on agile software development or to some extent, at least compatible with agile development methods using SCRUM as a referral point due to the fact that Scrum is both the most widely used agile methodology as well as the system that is applied by the subject company. The researcher has formulated the research questions in a manner that would not only benefit the company in the case study but as well as for other companies that are similar. The proposed research questions are as follows:

  • How to analyze the end user requirements in agile software development processes?
  • How product evaluation with end users might be made possible in agile short iterations?

The research questions are based on the fact that although many software development companies have adopted the agile methodologies over the last decade for a variety of reasons, improving usability is rarely among these reasons. When the ratio of usability increases in importance, software developers with limited knowledge of usability or interactive interface designs are irresolute over making the new priority attuned with their development process principally due to the fact that the agile literature provides little direction. This research hopes to provide answers towards managing this scenario effectively and efficiently.

Dissertation Aims and Objectives

  • To develop a greater understanding about agile software development processes, and to critically evaluate the existing literature to highlight its vital elements, focusing in particular on end-user requirements in context of usability.
  • To provide a mechanism for product evaluation by end users in agile processes, which comprise of short iterations?
  • To analyze the precedence, if any, of integrating usability with agile methods and provide a feasible framework to this hybrid approach.
  • To highlight the benefits of integrating usability techniques with agile methods; and to offer guide-lines that facilitate software development companies that are using agile development processes.
  • To incorporate the findings of this research, to the subject company “Easysport” and provide conclusive evidence as well recommendations, which benefits the organization in terms of efficiency and productivity.

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Counterfeit Products Chinese Consumers

Impact of Counterfeit Products on Consumer Purchase Intention – A Study into the Chinese Mobile Phone Industry

This dissertation focuses on the on-going growth, nature and prevalence of counterfeit products in the global market. These products are attaining popularity at a higher rate due to several factors that form the focus of this research study. These attributes include pricing, durability and reliability. As such this dissertation aims at assessing the impact that these attributes have on the consumer purchase intentions. In the data collection phase, this research study employs survey as the research strategy and questionnaires as the preferred research instrument. The dissertation further utilizes IBM SPSS 20 in analysing the data collected. Descriptive statistics, specifically mean analysis, is the employed.

The study concludes that the pricing of counterfeit mobile phone devices is the attribute that affects the purchasing intentions of Chinese consumers. Precisely, Chinese consumers perceive counterfeit devices as affordable and accessible compared to their genuine counterparts. The other attributes considered in the study, reliability and durability, do not affect the purchase intentions of Chinese consumers as much. This research aims at outlining the various aspects of counterfeit products and their role in influencing consumer purchase intentions. These aspects are broadly categorized as pricing, reliability and durability. Among the three, previous research reaches to a consensus that pricing plays a significant role in influencing consumer purchase intention. Genuine mobile handsets, especially in the smartphone category, are pricey making them unattainable to majority of the Chinese populace. Chinese people are more inclined into purchasing counterfeit smartphones. In terms of reliability and durability, prior research concedes that counterfeit products are subpar in both aspects. However, this conclusion is applicable for luxury fashion and clothing items. Mobile phones, on the other hand, are not subject to the wear-and-tear dynamics of the aforementioned items. On this basis, this dissertation is justifiable as it presents an aspect that was previously disregarded by previous research.

Counterfeit Products China
Counterfeit Products China

This research study narrows down its focus to assess the impact that counterfeit products have on the purchasing intentions of Chinese consumers. The Chinese mobile phone industry is vast and provides conclusive insight on these impacts. Of note, this research analyzes the aspects of counterfeit products such as pricing, durability and reliability.

Dissertation Aims and Objectives

  • To examine impacts of counterfeits pricing differences on consumer purchase intention in Chinese mobile phone industry
  • To examine impacts of counterfeits reliability differences on consumer purchase intention in Chinese mobile phone industry
  • To examine impacts of counterfeits durability differences on consumer purchase intention in Chinese mobile phone industry

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Effective Leadership

Title: Effective Leadership – Within this study, the topics being synthesized are the philosophy of leadership within the 20th and the 21st century. Furthermore, the skills and characteristics of a leader or manager are going to be synthesized, showing the reasoning behind having these certain skills.

Evaluate the philosophy of leadership within early years settings by critically analysing the characteristics and competencies of leadership. Ensure that you include why it is essential to have a leader who understands the importance of an effective and multi-disciplined team of staff

Over the 20th and 21st century the term leadership has been changed several times and the perception of what a leader is has also changed. Extensive research has been taken under the topic of ‘leadership’, it has been discovered that through the 20th century there have been more than two hundred different meanings (Northouse, 2010). In the early 1900’s it has been seen that leadership was defined as the centre of power and domination and further down the line in the late early 1900’s the term was defined as persons having certain skills, values, motives and also being able to deal with conflicts (Northouse, 2010). However, Bonnici (2011) explains that leadership is about receiving praise, it is about being influential to teams and improving the student’s way of learning. Traditionally, leadership has been defined as a person having certain personality traits and qualities (Rodd, 2006). However, in recent research the definitions of a leader have been associated with shared ideas and working together (Dunlop, 2008)

Furthermore, Effective Leadership is perceived as inspirational, influential and charismatic, whereas management is about the organisational techniques and controlling things (Walker, 2011). Essentially, leadership is constructing and sustaining a vision and interpersonal relationships and management is monitoring activities and functioning (Davies & Burnham, 2003). There are many misconceptions of the term leadership and is usually mistaken as ‘Power’, this is down to the progression of influence (Northouse, 2010).

There are many general leadership theories and few well known. House and Mitchell devised the Path-Goal theory which is centralised on a model of motivation and is a part of the contingency approach (Burnes, 2004). The leader must provide the employees with support, confidence, and influential behaviour to feel able to attain their future goals (Burnes, 2004). There are two different situational contingencies within this approach; one being staff member’s individual characteristics and the second being the environment which they work in (Alanzi and Rasli, 2013). This theory involves around different situations and behaviour and how the leader’s motivation could lead to other staff being achievement-orientated (Alanzi & Rasli, 2013). However, there is a lot of debate whether path-goal theory is efficient within settings and Alanzi and Rasli (2013) explain further that good leaders will know and understand when and what approach to use when needed. Furthermore, Devader and Alliger (1986) discussed that using the Meta Analyst approach and self-report measures of 120 surveys and discovered that the evidence of its efficiency was infrequent. From the surveys that were conducted analysed, they discovered the environment and the task would not be adequate, it will not change the behaviourism (Devader and Alliger, 1986). Therefore this implicates that the behaviour of the leader will not affect the performance of the subordinates (Devader and Alliger, 1986). The weaknesses involved in the path-goal theory are lack of research and findings. However, Aubrey (2011) explain that the theory does not encourage the staff/team to act themselves as leaders when needed.

Psychologist Kurt Lewin formulated this style of effective leadership in the 1930s and many people followed his path. Lewin debated that there are three key aspects to the styles, these are Autocratic, Democratic and Lasseiz-Faire (Lussier & Achua, 2015). Lewin believed through his studies a leader is not solely based on personality traits but he moved towards different behavioural styles (Lussier & Achua, 2015). However, Lewin has also gained many criticisms of this three step approach and academic sources have noted that he has been progressively critiqued as only appropriate small scale alterations in stable environments and also stated that his model has issues of ignoring conflict and organizational politics (Burnes, 2004).

The autocratic style involves a leader who dictates methods of work and staff, struggles to involve staff in decisions of the setting and also limits the staff to doing different jobs (Khasawneh & Futa, 2013). This could be a leader is the owner of the business.). Therefore, this leader could be over-ruling to staff and lead parents/staff feeling under-valued (Johnston & Williams, 2012). Within an early years setting, it is vital that parents and staff feel welcome. If staff are not enjoying their job, this may lead to retention (Sadek & Sadek, 2004). Similarly, Sadek and Sadek (2004) explained that an autocratic leader is ‘like a spider in the middle of the web’, this could indicate that the leader is the only one with the control and power. Nonetheless, there are positives of the style such as the leader of the setting/business is the only one able to make decisions, also this could mean that the leader makes sure things run smoothly (Johnston & Williams, 2012).

The second of the style is democratic; this type of leader is able to welcome ideas and encourage staff to participate in all decision-making and closely watches/supervises (Lussier; Achua, 2015). A style like this could be welcoming, and staff may feel as though they are able to input their ideas as to what needs to be improved and sustained (Johnston & Williams, 2012). Lussier and Achua (2015) indicate that the democratic style increases the chances of staff feeling a valued member of the team, this will lead to present and future motivation and commitment. However, Johnston and Williams (2012) discuss that staff may misunderstand and feel as though the democratic leader may not have any true values or visions themselves. Furthermore, being a democratic leader in a setting will be more organised and have staff feeling valued to the leader (Johnston & Williams, 2012).

The third style is called ‘Laissez-faire’ which is also seen as non-directive and leaders who pursue this style may prefer to let the group of staff set their own goals. However, if problems arise within the setting, it is likely that they will be unable to get the staff back to being positive and motivated (Wood, 2012). However, leaders within an early years setting acting in the style of ‘laissez-faire’ could lead the other practitioners to become somewhat lazy and inefficient (Wood, 2012). In addition, Johnston and Williams (2012) state that a setting ran by a laissez-faire leader would come across and welcoming to children, parents and recruiting new staff. However, a setting ran by a leader who wants to work for an ‘easy life’ could also be seen as chaotic at times due to the lack of management (Lussier & Achua, 2015). Similarly, Wood (2012) adds on explaining that staff could lack in vision or no direction, also this could lead to future retention as the staff feel unsatisfied with the way the setting is.

Furthermore, Goleman’s research indicates that the visionary or effective leadership style is the most efficient and this is by making the vision everyone’s future goals (Burns, 2010). Leaders with this set style are able to connect with every individual in the workplace and know their capabilities and be able to give them time to grow and also how to achieve their goals (Mersino, 2013). Staff are able to benefit with this type of leader as they are able to tell them what they are doing right (Mersino, 2013). Visionary leaders heavily rely on the competencies, emotional intelligence, self-confidence, self-awareness and the ability to be empathetic to staff or others involved (Wood, 2012). In contrast, there are many issues with this style as Burns (2010) did not define how to be a visionary leader, this could come across as confusing. Furthermore, as this happened many researchers began to analyse the theory and show the cracks of it (Solan, 2008). Similarly, Bennis and Nanus (2003) searched further into the term ‘vision’ and researched into the behaviours of leaders with this style. They set out to do qualitative research and interviewed 90 different leaders. To add on Sashkin and Sashkin (2003) explained that Bennis and Nanus (2003) discovered that leaders have five different patterns of behaviour which were all down to trust, confidence attention and more.

One of the earliest leadership researches was based on characteristics of efficient leaders by Gregoire and Arendt (2004) who split these into a group of 5.

  • Surgency: – The traits being the individual characteristics and sociability.
  • Conscientiousness: – Dependability, the need to achieve and integrity.
  • Agreeableness: – Positivity, usefulness and connection.
  • Adjustment: – Emotional Intelligence, self-worth and strength of mind.
  • Intelligence: – Desire for knowledge, broad-mindedness and being learning orientated.

Since this approach based of characteristics, Jillian Rodd (2006) discussed personal assets of an early year’s leader. However, Jones and Pound (2008) indicate that characteristics, attitudes and skills are the base of an early year’s leader. Nowadays, researchers are following to think that the term effective leadership is now based solely about the interaction between leaders, staff, parents and agencies on the outside and also the emotional competencies between this (Jones & Pound, 2008).

Effective Leadership
Effective Leadership

Organisation is an important aspect of being a leader or a manager in a setting and this is because everything can be at hand. Practitioners that have a system in place for how they organize paperwork make it easier for inspections, to call people when in emergencies and also to look at different requirements for the children, for example, food requirements (Gabriel, 2005). Having paperwork at hand means that if anything goes wrong or they need to back themselves up by showing inspectorates that they have their filing systems up to date and showing that the staff are qualified up to standard (Gabriel, 2005).

Effective Leadership

A leader needs plenty of skills to be able to both manage and lead a setting. This includes many aspects such as assertiveness. Being assertive without needing to be may put the staff off their work and this may lead to possible retention (Stein-Parbury, 2013). However, being assertive for the right to be heard, valued and respected. Gabriel (2005) found within their research that practitioners were a lot better at being assertive in optimistic situations and this led to staff feeling appreciated and respected themselves. However, most of the research that has been done showed that assertiveness is usually seen in conflict and negative situations (Stein-Parbury, 2013). Furthermore, if an early year’s practitioner spoken to a staff member and told them to do something that they didn’t want to do, they would have to act assertively and also bring in an empathetic tone and let them know how it would help them move up and development (Stein-Parbury, 2013). Similarly, Maravelas (2005) explains that with high assertiveness, staff can become intimidated and undermined. On the other hand, she discusses that there is a low and high assertiveness and the lower toned assertiveness is used less (Maravelas, 2005).

Ofsted highlight the significance of having a strong leader within an early years setting which can influence how they are marked out of good and outstanding operations. The report also states that the visited settings have had few strong leaders who have the ability to self-evaluate and each staff being able to reflect on their own work (OFSTED, 2013). Furthermore, in the inspections, the leaders explain that it is vital to have staffs that are able to interact with the children effectively as it has a profound effect on the children’s development and learning (OFSTED, 2013). Ofsted created a survey that they gave to their ‘strong leaders’ and the findings were that they were inspiration to their staff, they were persuasive and passionate (OFSTED, 2013). Furthermore, the leaders were able to explain to other staff within the setting what strategies could work and why and also how this may be effective for children’s learning and development (OFSTED, 2013). Furthermore, due to the demand of “outstanding” schools and settings, there are many criticisms that OFSTED are facing, such as a member of the think tank explaining that “you’d be better off flipping a coin” and this shows that OFSTED are possibly becoming unreliable due to the amount of inspections that they are facing (Flanagan, 2014). In light of this, the inspections that OFSTED give are reasonable guidelines for schools and other settings. However, staff within a school may become pressured to do everything before the inspection as it is only once a year that it is done (Flanagan, 2014).

Blatchford and Manni (2006) explain that communication is key for all leaders working within a setting. Communication involves many factors, these include: reflecting, empathising, verifying, acknowledging, consulting and listening. Being accessible is vital for communication. Similarly, communication in the work place is vital, working with children involves a lot of communication as the job is pressuring and demanding, Making sure that everyone knows their role is especially important as the leader does not want the staff to make decisions without them and without consent to do so (Moyles, 2006).

In the early months of 2004, the government had dedicated themselves to use the United Conventions on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC). Furthermore, in 2011 the government devised a new law which is called the Rights of Children and Young Persons (Wales) Measure which also helps to confirm that the principles within this are actively used (Welsh Assembly Government, 2012).

There are also policies put in place to make sure settings such as nursery settings, family centres and child-minders have quality standards, such as nappy changing facilities (Welsh Assembly Government, 2012). One of the biggest of the policies is health and safety, Record keeping is also one of the health and safety standards. Records will consist of the parent’s contact details, the child’s health records (if there are allergies), medical administration, and statements on procedures in emergency, records of accidents (Welsh Assembly Government, 2012).

Over more than several years policies and governments have been changing the way they are working, especially with child care. Problems have risen within the past 20 years with mothers having to work and having to pay for childcare. It has been found that working parents pay more than twice as much for childcare than they do for food and bills (Lyus, 1999). Rutter (2015) has also found that 25% of families can afford to pay for full-time child care, whereas the other 45% rely on unreliable sources of care such as relatives, babysitters and friends (Lyus, 1999). In 2015 the family and childcare trust sent out a childcare cost survey and the findings were that parents still have to find the money to fund such necessities. Child care has risen for children under the age of two by 33% by the parliament (Rutter, 2015)

There a several different approaches to define leadership theory, for example the trait approach. Devader and Alliger (1986) established that traits of the personality were intensely related with insights of leadership. Furthermore, Kirkpatrick and Locke (1991) claimed that efficient leaders are diverse types of individuals in several ways. However, Stogdill (1982) had conclusions and his findings were that individuals will not become leaders because of certain personality traits that they have, but because they are able to be a leader in certain situations and then not necessarily be a leader in a different situation. Emotional intelligence is an important factor of our leadership skills; Devader and Alliger (1986) suggests that emotional intelligence entails two competencies which are personal and social. These include self-awareness, confidence and motivation (Northouse, 2010). However, the trait approach has several recognizable positives and has been researched for a century with theorists to back it up; secondly this approach shows what type of personality would fit a leadership role (Northouse, 2010). Nevertheless, the trait approach also has several weaknesses which could be critical, firstly it doesn’t state a definite depiction of the approaches needed to become a leader (Northouse, 2010). Furthermore, Stogdill (1982) implies that it is problematic to separate traits when there has been no insight to situational factors which is equally important as the leader might not lead in certain situations.

Since leadership has become wide spread within settings raising achievement in children, this is called shared / distributed leadership. This term is where a team within a setting are all active leaders other than the head leader (Lindon & Lindon 2011). Other team members have a role to play and it is their responsibility and feeling as they are capable to act as a leader in their own enjoyment (Lindon & Lindon, 2011). Distributed leadership is a well-known democratic theory, also in the category for ‘transformational leadership’ (Rodd, 2006), Moreover, this kind of effective leadership focuses on practice rather than delegation based on an individual’s expertise and encourages staff and practitioners to excel further and motivate them to work harder towards their goals (Rodd, 2006).

Lindon and Lindon (2011) explain that there are many misconceptions of the term and can be problematic within a setting. Distributed and shared leadership have separate meanings, the difference is that shared is that the leader delegates different roles to practitioners (Rodd, 2006). This would lead to effective partnerships within the work place, especially communicating with each other. Communicating is important when being a distributed leader and being able to listen to views of others, understanding and empathising with them (Williams and McInnes, 2005). Listening means providing individuals with their time and privacy and may require constant appraisal so that the staff feel invaluable (Williams and McInnes, 2005). Entrusting staff may be problematic, but with plenty of team working and outings, this may be reduced over time and staff time needs to be used efficiently (Williams and McInnes, 2005).

An example of shared/distributed leadership is family centres, such as sure start family centres. Becoming a leader within a family centre involves the ethic of care and sustaining caring relationships (Blatchford, 2006). Family centres involve multi-agency teams which consist of professionals within health care systems and supporting parents and children holistically. With extensive research in to ‘Sure Start’ family centres there have been many noted challenges. The challenges consist of: maintaining high quality services, leading through change, maintaining morale and motivation, increasing vulnerability, managing outside agencies (Rodd, 2006). Furthermore, family centres need staff that are able to form strong relationships by partnering with children, staff, parents and multi-agencies (Rodd, 2006).

There are many successes in working with multi-agencies, however there are also challenges. The children’s act (2004) brought out a plan to improve children and family services and emphasized the importance of integrated teams of educational professionals, health professions, social workers, job advisers and support for vulnerable parents and young people (Aubrey, 2011). Since the Every Child Matters Green Paper (2003) was devised because of the Victoria Climbie died from negligence and reports were made that on 12 occasions integrated services could have been able to help. This Green Paper is also along with the Children Act 2004. Every Child Matters (2003) discuss that ‘integrated working focuses on encouraging and enabling all professionals to work together and to have common visions which they can deliver, building around the needs of the individual children’. The professionals involved in working in a multi-disciplinary team could be:

  • Police
  • School teacher
  • Early Years Practitioner
  • Midwife
  • GP
  • Social Worker
  • Speech and language therapist
  • Health Visitor
  • Educational psychologist

There are several key aspects of working with other professions, such as having an early intervention before problems become more of an emergency; The CAF which is Common Assessment Framework and is also consent based (NDNA, 2007). Furthermore, multi-agency working also involves record keeping, sharing information to the right people, working with the family and the leader (NDNA, 2007). There are also policies and legislation supporting multi-agency working such as EPPE Report (2003), local safeguarding children board (LSCB) and Children’s Act (2004-06).These legislations have strengthened the meaning of multi-agency working bringing all professionals together in sight of the child (NDNA, 2007). However, there are many potential barriers for integrating professions which can be parental consent. Parents can often feel judged and pressured by certain individuals. In comparison, Aubrey (2011) explain further that with a code of ethics within the setting and moving forward with strategies such as developing a mutual respect and trust, support the continuing development of the parents’ skills and help to develop them further. Furthermore, other publications such as the DCELLS (2005) explain that the challenges could include recruitment. Recruitment can be vital in a centre with such professionals due to new talent, and this could show more of a diverse work-force.

Methods of communication are also important within the early year’s sector with staff. For example, communicating face to face now and again is essential and gives the member of staff time to feel listened to and a valued member (Daly & Byres, 2009). However, Lussier and Achua (2015) explain that communicating one on one could also have negative effects from being unable to record informal discussions and make other team members worried that they haven’t been in a meeting and therefore they may feel less valued. Group meetings are also an easy form of communicating; this would consist of staff being able to make their opinions known and to share views on certain aspects. Employee handbooks can also be an official way of communicating with the leader and other staff, this could be important when a job role has changed (Daly & Byres, 2009) However, this could also have a negative effect as all written information needs to be up to date and this could apply with the National Minimum Standards (Daly & Byres, 2009).

Parents are as much a part of their child’s education as the practitioners and Bowlby (1969) stated that parents are the child’s first source of learning and need to be in close contact with the work that is provided to the children (Daly and Byres, 2009). In successfully managed settings, the leader will have to keep the parents up to date and communicate about the development of their child. Parents being able to feel welcome, valuable and able to trust the practitioners are a key aspect (OFSTED, 2013). Childcare providers can assure the parents that the information that they give them about the child is with them and that they will take care of every child’s needs (OFSTED 2013). It is important that parents feel that they can confide in the manager/practitioner so that they can give them the information that they need and so they can be used to organise activities for particular needs (OFSTED, 2013). There are many ways of keeping parents frequently updated on the development of their children. For example, there are systematic approaches which enable the parents to be updated every six weeks. The ways that communication can be easier for parents/practitioners are regular text messages through mobile phones, emailing via the internet and also the settings website page (OFSTED, 2013). However, systematic approaches to the means of communication can also be hard due to parents having lack of technology to enable them to contact the settings (Bryant & Oliver, 2009). In sight of challenges, many parents feel as though they are being judged by their children’s practitioners and back away from having face to face contact with them weekly (Moyles, 2006).

Challenges that are faced within the workplace need to be underpinned by the leader for some form of conflict resolution. For a good leader, being able to notice staff that are not getting on for some reason should be easy, however sometimes this may be challenging as staff do not want to go through problems that they are facing (Moyles, 2006). There many general ways of how a conflict is, competition, accommodation, avoidance, collaboration and compromise (Rodd, 2006). Leaders with a certain amount of emotional intelligence will be able to understand strategies how to resolve conflicts between staff members. Generally, solving problems such as conflict are able to gather information and evidence to what has possibly happened, and after the time it has taken to get the information, they may get staff in separately and speak to them (Rodd, 2006). However, Sadek and Sadek (2004) explains that many colleagues suffer from conflicts between each other now and again and this may hinder their ability to be efficient to children or other adults within the setting.

ACAS (2015) provide conflict resolution for managers and leaders to show them effective ways of problem solving through times like this. ACAS (2015) also offer information and case studies for leaders and managers to help them with these possible challenges. The government sees wider benefits to improve ‘leader and employee relationships’ which will lead to the ‘high trust relationships’. They have come up with a method of how to manage and avoid conflict within the workplace. Developing strategies which may help manage conflict before it may become a problem is essential within the workplace, such as developing handbooks for staff before they enter the place of work (ACAS, 2014). A democratic leader would be needed in such situations, as this would be an empathetic situation in many cases and they will not presume the problem, they are able to communicate informally (ACAS, 2015). The steps which can be taken are 1. Informally asking an individual to come and talk to you about the problem. Furthermore, if the informal stage isn’t as effective as it is needed then the issue would need to be investigated informally. 3. If stage 2 doesn’t work, then internal procedures need to be used (ACAS, 2015). Finally, making diagrams which could also be designated to the staffroom wall could be used for staff to understand policies and procedures which may be used when a conflict arises (ACAS, 2015). Adults need as much support during team building exercises as much as children need help when they have conflict with peers. Team building is vital within any daily job or setting as colleagues need to get to know each other and get to know how to work together on a daily basis (Williams and McInnes, 2005).

To conclude, this discussion shows leadership in positive and difficult situations. Distributed leadership is seen as one of the most important factors of a setting and partnerships with parents are also significant. The organisation ACAS (2015) has given leaders and managers information and procedures on many challenges that will be faced through working with parents, staff and children. Overall, the most efficient style is Goleman’s visionary leadership, where all staff are aimed towards the same outcome and goal.

References

ACAS (2015) Mediation and Early Resolution.

ACAS (2015) Conflict Management.

Alanazi, T & Rasli, A. (2013) ‘Overview of Path-Goal Leadership Theory. Journal of leadership. London: ED Publications.

Aubrey, C. (2011) Leading and Managing in the Early Years. 2nd ed. London: SAGE Publications Ltd.

Bonnici, C. (2011) A Successful Leadership Style. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Education.

Bryant, J. & Oliver, M. (2009) Media Effects. New York: Routledge.

Burnes, B. (2004) Kurt Lewin And The Planned Approach To Change: A Re-Appraisal. Journal of Management Studies.

Burns, J. (2010) Leadership. London: Harper Perennial Modern Classics. 33-56.

Bennis, W & Nanus, B. (2003) Leaders: Strategies for Taking Charge. London.: Harper Business.

Blatchford, I, and Manni (2006) Effective Leadership in the Early Years Sector (ELEYS) Study – Research Report, London: Institute of Education, University of London/General Teaching Council for England.

Daly, M. & Byres, E (2009) Early Years Management in Practice. Harlow: Heinmann.

Davies, B. & Burnham, A (2003) The Handbook of Educational Leadership and Management. London: Pearson Education.

Department for Education (DfE) (2010) Working together to Safeguard Children: A guide to interagency working to safeguard and promote the welfare of children [London]: Department for Education (DfE).

Devader and Alliger (1986) A meta-analysis of the relation between personality traits and leadership perceptions: An application of validity generalization procedures. Journal of Applied Psychology.

DfES (2005) Children’s Workforce Strategy:A Strategy to build a world class work force for children and young people.

Dunlop, A. (2008). A Literature Review on Effective Leadership in the Early Years.

Every Child Matters (2003) The Stationery Office, Effective Leadership. Norwich.

Family and Childcare Trust. (2015) Frustrated Parents Take To Parliament To Demand Answers On Childcare.

Flanagan, P. (2014) Ofsted Inspections: ‘You’d Be Better Off Flipping A Coin’.

Gabriel, G. (2005) How To Thrive As A Teacher Leader. Alexandria, Va.: Association for Supervision, Effective Leadership and Curriculum Development.

Gregoire, M & Adrent, S. (2004) Effective Leadership: Reflections over the past 100 years. Journal of the American Dietetic Association. 103

Johnston, J. & Williams, L. (2012) Early Childhood Studies. England – Pearson Longman.

Jones, C & Pound, L (2008) Effective Leadership And Management In The Early Years: From Principles To Practice. London: Open University Press.

Kirkpatrick, S & Locke, E. (1991) Effective Leadership: Do Traits Matter?. Academy of Management. 5 (2), 48-60.

Khasawneh, A & Futa, M. (2013) The Impact of Effective Leadership Styles Used by the Academic Staff in the Jordanian Public Universities on Modifying Students’ Behavior: A Field Study in the Northern Region of Jordan . International Journal of Business and Management. 8

Lindon, J. & Lindon, L. (2011) Effective Leadership and Early Years Professionalism: Linking Theory to Practice: London: Hodder Education.

Lussier, R. & Achua, C. (2015) Effective Leadership: Theory, Application, & Skill Development. 6th

Lyus, V. (1999) Management in the Early Years. London: Nelson Thornes.

Maravelas, A. (2005) How To Reduce Workplace Conflict And Stress. Franklin Lakes, NJ: Career Press.

Mersino, A. (2013) Effective Leadership and Emotional Intelligence For Project Managers. United Kingdom: AMACOM.

Moyles, J. (2006) Effective Leadership and Management in the Early Years. Maidenhead: Open University Press.

Northouse, P. (2010) Effective Leadership. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications.

OFSTED (2013) Getting it Right.

Rutter, J. (2015) Childcare cost survey 2015.

Rodd, J. (2006) Effective Leadership in Early Childhood. Maidenhead, England: Open University Press.

Sadek, E. & Sadek, J. (2004) Good Practice In Nursery Management. Cheltenham: Stanley Thornes.

Sashkin, M & Sashkin, M (2003) Leadership That Matters: The Critical Factors for Making a Difference in People’s Lives and Organizations’ Success. London: Berrett-Koehler.

Solan, A. (2008) The Relationships Between Emotional Intelligence, Effective Leadership, And Organizational Citizenship Behavior In Continuing Higher Education. London: Hodder Education.

Stein-Parbury, J. (2013) Patient and Person: Interpersonal Skills in Nursing. Australia: Publisher: Churchill Livingstone Australia; 5 edition.

Stodgill. (1982) Stogdill’s Handbook of Effective Leadership: A Survey of Theory and Research, Revised and Expanded. United States: Macmillan USA.

Walker, A. (2011) Organizational Behaviour in Construction. Chichester, West Sussex, UK: Wiley-Blackwell.

Welsh Assembly Government. National Minimum Standards for Regulated Child Care, 2012

Williams, J. & McInnes, K. (2005) Planning and Using Time In The Foundation Stage. London: David Fulton.

Wood, J. (2012) Communication in Our Lives. Sydney: Wadsworth / Cengage Learning.

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Leadership Dissertation Topics

Health and Safety in Construction

Health and Safety in Construction

Title: Health Safety Construction – This report is as an advisory document to surveyors. It provides a critical appraisal of legal, economical and ethical issues relating to health and safety, considering the role of organisations and individual employees in complying with current legislation, and specifying limitations imposed on the conduct of the property professional.

Introduction

Health and safety is an area of concern which every surveyor and property professional must address. The costs of failing to do so may be felt by the professional in question, or may be borne by the property organisation or their clients. Understanding of health and safety issues necessitates knowledge related to three specific areas of concern – strict parameters regarding legislation, and economic concerns, and the more general but nonetheless important area of ethical conduct. Legal concerns comprise statutory regulations regarding site visitation, health and safety inspection, on site conduct, and provision of safe and reliable equipment. Economic issues are related to the necessity of budgeting for health and safety training, insurance against injury, and loss of revenue resulting from legal action in cases of health and safety breaches. Ethics relates to the individual nature and integrity of property professionals, and the establishment of specific codes of conduct within organisations.

Legal Constraints

When visiting premises or sites it is compulsory for a property professional to possess appropriate legal certification. To this end, certification via a valid CSCS (Construction Skills Certification Scheme) card is mandatory to gain access to all major UK construction sites (CITB, 2016). The purpose of schemes such as the CSCS is to ensure all construction professionals are competent and have the necessary training and qualifications for the work they will undertake (CITB, 2016). In addition, guidance issued by the Royal Institute of Chartered surveyors (RICS) states that, prior to any visit to a site or premises, a property professional should conduct a pre-assessment process to determine hazards that may be encountered on the visit (RICS,2011). To this end, it is important for the employer to have clearly understood procedures in place, and to provide suitable training and information for the employee (RICS,2011) This guidance should facilitate the organisation’s compliance with statutory regulations such as the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health 2002 (COSHH). Under COSHH legislation an employer must to decide how to prevent harm to health, for instance by appropriate risk assessment.

Consideration must be given to the risk associated in regards to work-related health and safety of an employee in the working environment. Under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 (HSWA) “employers must ensure, as far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare of all employees” (HSE, 2016). Section 2 of the act specifies general responsibilities owed by an organization to its employees. For example, for the purposes of site visits, the employer is obligated to provide personal protective equipment (PPE), and the employer must ensure the PPE meets the minimum required standards and is fit for purpose. This stipulation is further supported by Personal Protective Equipment at Work Regulations 1992. In terms of this legislation, employers are also obliged to provide and maintain a safe working equipment (Rics, 2011). Compliance necessitates regular inspections to certify the fitness for purpose of PPE and all other on-site equipment. Failure to meet this requirement will result in a breach of section 2 of the HSWA, and may result in prosecution, as seen the case of HSE v Zurich Management Services Limited (Zurich) and Railcare Limited (Railcare).

health and safety in construction
health and safety in construction

Another key responsibility for employers is the provision of employee health and safety training. This should be facilitated by regular attendance on training courses covering current health and safety regulations. The employer must also provide employees with all relevant information regarding the company’s specific health and safety policies and procedures. It is important to note that the employer is not solely responsible for the health and safety of the organization. HSWA section 7 describes a statutory duty for the employee “to take reasonable care for the health and safety of himself and of other persons who may be affected by his acts of work” (Legislations.gov, 2016). Therefore, employees must follow procedures, training and policies given by their employers. If an employee is unclear on any policies, or feels they are not adequately trained to complete a task, they are obligated to communicate this to the employer. Breach of HSAW section 7, often results in litigation relating to professional negligence, as seen in the case of HSE v Barry.

Surveys and Reports

Lone working is common in the property industry. There is no legislation against this practice; however, in the absence of appropriate risk assessments provisions and procedures, lone working may be hazardous. For this reason, under the Management of HSAW Regulations 1999, assessment of risk pertaining to lone working must be conducted every day prior to work commencement. This is further enforced by the HSE regulations stipulating the responsibility of employers to ensure the safety of their works (HSE,2013); prior assessment should be supported by clearly established procedures for communicating with the lone worker, and scrupulous maintenance of records by employer and employee alike. If it is deemed overtly hazardous, lone working should not be considered, or an extensive rescue and recovery plan should be implemented to reduce risks.

Hazardous surveys must be conducted in accordance with current regulations. Rulings and standards to this effect may be obtained directly from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). This means that professionals are bound by strict methodologies when conducting surveys and writing reports.

Contract Administration

When acting as Contract Administrator (CA) the property professional is obligated under the Constructions Design Management Regulations to manage health and safety risks throughout the construction process (HSE, 2015). The CA should prepare a written construction phase plan detailing the main dangers inherent in any given project, and suggesting appropriate control measures. For example, working at height necessitates a plan for the installation of gable ends, toe boards and guardrails. In general, the acting CA should have the relevant training, knowledge and experience necessary to carry out his duties safely. Again, this is supported by HSE regulations specifying the employer’s responsibility to ensure all employees are suitably trained to conduct specific tasks to which they are assigned.

Economic limitations

Legally all organisations must meet certain criteria in order to comply with current health and safety legislation. Under the Employers’ Liability (compulsory insurance) Act 1969 employees based in Great Britain are required to obtain Employers’ Liability insurance (HSE, 2012). The cost of the insurance premium is solely dependent on the nature of the business and risks associated. The nature of activities in construction-related professions means that higher insurance premiums are to be expected. Failure to meet this requirement may result in fines of up to £2500 (HSE,2012). Additionally, the HSAW act 1974 requires employers to finance the provision of information and training to ensure the health and safety at work of their employees. For instance, it is mandatory for a construction-related company to provide for employee attendance at courses covering the incidence of work with hazardous material. Further expenditure will be incurred in the provision of equipment necessary to complete work safely, such as PPE. However, the cost of meeting statutory requirements may be subsidised, on the basis that it facilitates improved standards of health and safety. According to HSE documentation, in the year 2014, 3% of workers in the construction industry sustained a work related injury (HSE,2015). This amounted to 65,000 separate incidents, resulting in 1.7 million working days lost. Increasing health and safety standards will help to minimise the potential for work related injuries, consequently, decreasing the chances of loss in working days and resultant economic burden to employers.

Breach of HSAW regulations may pose significant economic threat to an organisation, as it often results in a monetary sanction. The HSE can bring prosecutions before the magistrates’ court in which penalties of up to £20,000 per breach may be imposed (RICS, 2011). Furthermore, under HSAW (offences) Act 2008 imprisonment is also a possibility for almost any offence (RICS, 2011). In more extreme cases, persons may be prosecuted under the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007. The prosecution process whether it be for minor or substantial breaches, is bound to have a negative impact on the reputation of the organisation, resulting in a loss of clients and eventual a loss of earnings.

Ethics

There are grey areas which are not governed by legislation in this case the moral integrity of an organisation or professional is relied upon. Regardless of the type of task being carried building surveyors should recognise that they have a responsibility to the public and should at all times act in a manner which affirms this (2008,).

Conclusion and Recommendations

Interpreting legislation can be problematic; ambiguous terminology such as ‘reasonable and practicable’ is often cited to summarise the necessary level of compliance to legislation. Documents such as the Surveying Safely RICS guidance note 1st edition (Gn 74/2011) provide advice on how a property professional may meet current legislation. While these guidance notes are not enforced by law, in circumstances in which allegations of legislative breaches are made against a surveyor, a court or tribunal is likely to take account of the substance of RICS guidance. By conforming to such guidance notes, a surveyor should have at least partial defence against allegations of professional negligence. Hiring a health and safety office may also be advisable to ensure that an organisation is practising in such a way as to comply with current legislation. In relation to economic issues, good practice may minimise the incidence of expenses incurred in consequence of breaches of legislation. While ethical conduct is significantly related to personal and professional integrity, appropriate ethical conduct may be further encouraged by the establishment of codes of conduct within individual organisations. Such measures allow for in-house disciplinary proceedings, and bring the added advantage of improving the public image of the organisation in question.

References

CITB (2016) CSCS FAQs (Frequently asked questions)

Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (2011) Surveying safely 1st edition, guidance note. Coventry: Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. 1-13

Health and Safety Executive (2013) Working alone Health and safety guidance on the risks of lone working. London: Health and Safety Executive 1-5

Health and Safety Executive (2012) Health and safety training A brief guide. London: Health and Safety Executive 1-6

Health and Safety Executive (2016) Principal contractors: roles and responsibilities.

Health and Safety Executive (2012) Employers’ Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act 1969 A brief guide for employers. London: Health and Safety Executive 1-6

Health and Safety Executive (2016) Construction industry

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