On his first day as the new plant manager, Said noticed Khadija in the lab was not wearing safety glasses. The manager has a ZERO TOLERANCE policy as far as safety is concerned and his normal response would be to call her to his office and give strong orders to strictly follow the rules.
He called her to his office and could see that she was worried about his reaction. But instead of leading with his dismay and disappointment, he started by explaining why he is so strict with regards to safety. He shared key concepts with her. He then asked her if she thought that the rule to wear safety glasses, even when there was no experiment on, was not necessary as there is no danger to the eyes.
The meeting ended with Khadija apologizing and saying that she will abide by the rules from then on. She really did not mean what she promised and just wanted that conversation to be over. As expected, a few weeks later, she completely ignored the policy and went on with her usual ways. She argued,
“I have worked here for seven years already and nothing bad has happened to me, even if I follow any policy or not”.
Upon learning about the Khadija’s behavior, the plant manager became frustrated. He need to do something as he knows that sooner or later, non-compliance to policies will result to disaster.
Q- In a situation where the leader is not respected by the subordinates, what leadership style should the plant manager apply in this situation? Explain