Theories in Action- Transactional (Josie Bossidy)

While I have seen leadership in many different forms during my time at Rose & Co, one form that I recently took note of was the transactional leadership I have seen throughout our business.

Transactional leadership focuses on results, through the strong values of order and structure. These leaders are commonly found in high order positions that require strict rules to get a task done. These leaders are less likely to respect creativity and innovative ideas and rather focus on the one task they are required to do. An example I found that was used in my classes a lot was that a transactional leader was like a military leader. If there were a military officer that let the rules be “loose” and lacked structure, people would not be ready for the duty they were about to face. In certain scenarios these leaders are necessary to motivate a group of people.

At our company we work with clients to find them potential investors. When a client comes to us they trust that we will provide them with useful information that can help them as a company. Once signing on a company, it becomes the teams responsibility to find investors interested in the clients sector who are likely to invest. With signing on new clients comes deadlines and expectations, and this is where a transnational leader is very beneficial.

As August came around we had many new clients onboard. The timing was challenging because for many people August means time to take off from work and have a vacation. Knowing this our outreach required more work than the average client. One day, as the deadline for the Non-Deal Roadshow got closer, the whole team joined the morning meeting. That day the tone of the meeting was less of a check-in with everyone but more of a directive order to fill the schedule for potential investors by the end of the day. This direction motivated people to reach out to far more contacts and see who was available. The desired result of this task was to fulfill the clients needs and share with them potential investors. If the team had failed to do so at the end of the day there would have been repercussions. Someone would’ve had to contact the client and relay unfortunate news of not being able to complete the task they expected us to do.