Leader/Follower Relationships at Cavi Consulting
One thing that I have noticed although I am only a few weeks into my internship is the unique approach to leadership that my two bosses take. The organization of this internship is very self-driving. There is a list of projects that need to be done, and it is up to the interns to take on these projects on their own and complete them. This style of business structure has worked well so far and has created a positive relationship between the leader and followers of this business. When you sign up to do a project, you set up a zoom with the owner of the project, you go over the details of what they want done, how it should be done, and the timeline for when it should be completed, and you take it from there. This style works well because it allows you to work at your own pace without the added pressure of someone looking over your shoulder. At the same time, it is good to feel supported along the life of the project to know that someone is there to help if you hit a roadblock in the project. As a small business and startup, the team is very small, so this type of organizational structure works really well, everyone knows what projects are being done and who is doing them which allows the entire team to be on the same page. The thing I like the most about this structure so far is that there is not a formal structure to the leadership and I feel trusted to complete projects on my own. Although I know I am at a different level of authority and knowledge compared to my bosses, owning and completing my own projects makes me feel like we are on a level playing field. Being able to present my findings in research, or my presentations on projects I’ve completed makes me feel well respected and heard within the startup. The only weakness that comes from this type of leader-follower relationship is the lack of direct motivation and the lag in response time when there are issues with what you’re working on. This can be attributed to working during COVID and not being able to be with people in person, but there are still many ways to go around these issues that my bosses have been successfully doing.