Organizational Leadership Swedish Company Case

A Swedish company situated at Stockholm area, constructing and producing cable machines for industrial applications. This company is a leading performer in the market and constantly has to find innovative technical solutions to stay in that position. When the study was undertaken, the company had about 60 employees in three countries, including Sweden. The founder of the company was, at the time of the study, still active as a leader.

According to market surveys, the company has had a better economic performance than other comparable companies. At the same time, the employees of the company have also had a comparatively low sickness rate.

The founder of the company has consciously developed and refined the culture and the structure of the company since it was established in the 1970s. He claims that My business idea is basically honesty and that power and control is associated with fear and suspicion, and a sign of lacking confidence. He assumes that all individuals want to do something meaningful, take responsibility and develop their work. He thinks that this is best promoted by freedom, appreciation, and participation.

The philosophy of the founder permeates both the structure and the culture of the organization. It is also reflected in the buildings of the company. A new factory building was constructed in 2003. The major parts of this building are made of glass, meant to symbolize a pure flow of communication. The idea is that the shaping of the building should promote the participation of all employees and promote an open and honest communication. On the walls are hanging pictures from the companys history such as the first machines constructed. The founder of the company is actively communicating the values of the organizational culture of the employees. He is taking a central role in the meetings with all employees, and he spends a lot of time talking about the importance of the employees being alert and taking responsibility, emphasizing that it is the responsibility of the employees to make the company profitable and to find sustainable solutions.

An observation was made when the founder of the company together with all employees formulated the quarterly goals of the company. He encouraged the employees to work with the quality of products to change a negative trend. The final version of the goals was typed bout and handed to all employees during the next coffee break.

A respect but also a certain distance to the founder of the company was expressed by the employees interviewed. They believe that a prerequisite for the companys organization of work was a leader who raised the awareness of the employees own responsibilities for work performance. All the persons interviewed described the frequent communication in the company as something positive and an important condition for their work/ The employees felt that their contributions were appreciated.

The leader of the company has decentralized structure which has no formal hierarchy; instead, it is organized in self-managed teams. In these teams, the employees are expected to take initiative, try new things, take responsibility, adapt and co-operate. According to one of the employees It is a mental development, you are developing mentally, it is not only machines, and you are also developing as an individual. You always learn something new all the time no limits are set; you can decide yourself in what pace and all that

According to the CEO, it is important for the company to have a work environment where the employees can learn, develop and take responsibility. Employees who are willing to step outside their professional limits and want to have a clear working division are not suitable for this company.

question:

Delegation in leadership:

a) Explain if the leader successfully used the delegation in the case above?

b) Why the delegation is important for leaders?

c) Why other leaders might avoid delegation?