Leadership Styles X and Y

February 3, 2010 at 1:47 am (Business) (Business, employees, forbes, industry, leadership, theory x, theory y, wegmans, working)

Caught ya!

Okay, so I happened to decide after reading quite extensively about various leadership theories and styles that I particularly hate the theory x and theory y ways of implementing leadership. Just as a general definition, theory x assumes people are lazy and do not want to work, while theory y assumes that people are generally hard workers and will work to their fullest even without pressures from superiors.  Each situation is a PRODUCT of the environment in which one works. Honestly, I have to think about being less of superior and more of the drone for this instance. If my boss is implementing a “theory y” in which there are no quotas, monitoring systems, check ups, sign in and outs, I am going to feel as if it doesn’t matter. As if I do not matter. If I do not matter, it is actually SMARTER to not waste your resources and energy on something pointless. Now, if this theory Y is implemented and there is recognition of your work, someone says hi to you and cares what you are working on, (not being all draconian) then depending on the type of person, it motivates one to want to perform well and continue to receive positive feedback. For those people who do NOT, quite simply they are using the system to their advantage — if their main goal is NOT to do any work. Maybe they will eventually get fired, or maybe they will work for the state and clock in at 9am and leave at 3pm accomplishing well, not much (not that I’m generalizing, I figured once the guy who made 90K a year spoke out to the media though about how he did nothing all day called for a reference). I find nothing wrong with this, at all. In fact, I certainly see no reason if a company is wasting their resources they shouldn’t have to face the consequences. But that does NOT mean I am in support of theory X, either. Theory X is filled with distrust for employees and every step of the process from hire to fire and in between is monitored, checked up on, and evaluated by superiors. What is wrong with this? In the theory it certainly can have the potential to border on unethical behavior (for instance, shutting the blinds on workers, only allowing them certain breaks regardless of state mandates, etc). This HAS happened, especially in smaller private companies. But poor working conditions are hard to judge and there’s a fine line between purely unethical behavior and control.

It only seems natural to want to control every aspect of those working for you. Make sure they’re working! No waste! However didn’t elementary school teach us anything? I learned that you need to give respect to get it back. You can’t be a good leader if your teammates do not share your goals and want to strive to achieve them with you! Sadly, many leaders do not understand this. But there’s causality behind it too.. at times, people do not deserve the benefit of the doubt, the chance to prove themselves. But why should everyone be punished for the few lazy people out there? Our society generally is hard working. There are many people in ghettos, slums, and other places who work hard every day. They may not be in a position to just “go get a better job.” Maybe they’re watching their children at home, working two part time jobs, etc. But people do what they can to survive. And we have a lot of options as humans. So if you’re going to be a jerk as a leader, don’t expect to have an easy time. Some people would rather say goodbye and choose another option, even if it’s destitution. So what? who cares about those people, there are plenty of people who just need money to feed themselves and wont care? Well, sure, when your entire workforce is made up of these people good luck getting them to help you achieve goals and objectives. In fact, many find themselves instilling yet more rules and demands. That’s the difference between a place like Wegmans and one of their competitors. People love Wegmans, not only their customers but their employees too. Wegmans offers numerous benefits such as tuition help, vacation time, and the highest wages … even for the lowest of jobs. The atmosphere isn’t dark, dreary and horrible. In fact it’s quite pleasant, and the feeling is in the air. With almost 80 stores and revenue of over 4 million, they have been ranked numerous times as Forbes best companies to work for. It’s a lot to do with Danny Wegman, and a lot to do with how they value their employees. In other words, theory x and y are just names given to two styles so opposite on the continuum that IRL, it usually doesnt occur this way. Instead of labeling theories, we should just dig to the bottom and find out what works, what doesn’t, and how to implement the best strategy for leadership to achieve profitability and deliver the best value.