Unit VII Mini Project

BBA 2026, Organizational Communication 1 Cou rse Learning Outcomes for Unit VII Upon completion of this unit, students should be able to: 7. Summarize the differences in communication styles of managers vs. leaders. Reading Assignment In order to access the following resource(s), click the link(s) below: Detert, J. R., Burris, E. R., Harrison, D. A., & Martin, S. R. (2013). Voice flows to and around leaders: Understanding when units are helped or hurt by empl oyee voice. Administrative Science Quarterly , 58 (4), 624 -668. Retrieved from https://libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direc t=true&db=bth&AN=92688565&site=ehost -live&scope=site Grossman, L. (2016). Inside Apple’s code war. Time , 187 (11), 42 -49. Retrieved from https://libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direc t=true&db=bth&AN=113831986&site=ehost -live&scope=site Solomon, I. G., Costea, C., & Nita, A. M. (2016). Leadership versus management in public organizations. Economics, Management, and Financial Markets , 11 (1), 1 43 -151. Retrieved from https://libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/login?url=http://search.proquest.com.libraryresources.c olumbiasouthern.edu/docview/1782998705?accountid=33337 Click here to view the Unit VII Presentation. Click here to view the Unit VII Presentation transcript. Unit Lesson Introduction When discussing the difference between leadership and management, many articles, books, seminars, workshops, video series, and motivational presentations have been created. A simple search in the CSU Online Library, or with a search engine like Google or Bing, will reveal a plethora of resources that address the issue. The sources provide a variety of opinions on how t o define the two roles and how to help a manager transition into the role of a leader or how a leader can become a more effective manager. It is important to realize that the two roles are not mutually exclusive, but the tasks each complete in an organiza tion require a certain set of skills. Managers usually focus on specific work and tasks that fit within the subject of a designated resource: human, time, financial, equipment, and so forth. The skills managers develop work within the constraints of the sy stem and enforce the desired standards of work on the employees. Leaders, on the other hand, often concentrate on the long -term vision or goal of the organization and work on defining the system that allows the organization to operate. Leaders concentrate more on the overall view and try to expand the standards of work by motivating, mentoring, and building relationships with employees. Organizations need managers to decide about resources and manage risk. Acquiring resources requires a significant investment for an organization, so managers need to make good decisions, not just about technology, but also when hiring new employees. For ex ample, Christina Merhar (2016) estimates that every time an organization hires a salaried employee, it costs between six and nine months’ salary on average in recruiting and training expenses. Deciding upon the employees to hire for a job is an essential p art of working UNIT VII STUDY GUIDE The Different Communication Styles of Managers and Leaders BBA 2026, Organizational Communication 2 UNIT x STUDY GUIDE Title within the constraints of the system. Hiring talented employees and retaining them is part of creating a functioning organization. The leadership role focuses on the overall view of employee retention and expands standards that will benefit the organization. After all, as Merhar (2016) suggests , beyond the cost of hiring and training new employees, organizations face additional costs in lost productivity and engagement, increased customer service errors , loss of income due to dissatisfied cu stomers, and a cultural impact with other employees. Beyond employee hiring and retention, though, organizations need to work with strategic partners, academic institutions, and also contract workers. Both managers and leaders are required to achieve thes e tasks , and their primary tool is communication. While this information is focused on managers, it can also help employees and staff who are looking to move from their current role to a more visible leadership position. As Detert, Burris, Harrison, and M artin (2013) relate, leaders are not just those in the most senior positions in organizations. They define leaders as members of the organization who formally oversee the collective effort of employees who are accountable for measured results. Case Study: Apple Versus the U.S. Government In order to understand the way in which a leader communicates, it can be helpful to study a real -life situation. Tim Cook, who is the CEO of Apple, has been embroiled in a public debate regarding a request from the U.S. government to unlock an iPhone. Apple has complied with the government in the past, but the current situation is different due to the scope of the request. The phone is owned by the San Bernardino Department of Public Health, which provided it as a work ph one for Syed Rizwan Farook, one of the shooter suspects in a massacre in San Bernardino, C alifornia , where 14 people were killed , and 22 people were injured. Due to the iOS8 operating system installed on the phone, data (e.g., photos, messages, contacts, c all history ) is securely encrypted using a password. Apple cannot bypass the passcode to obtain the data; this is one of the selling -features that the company provides for its customers. The encryption protects users from hackers and criminals. In “Inside Apple’s Code W ar,” Lev Grossman (2016) explains that after the Orange County Regional Computer Forensics Laboratory retrieved the phone and booted it up, the authorities learned that it required a passcode for access. Since the phone belonged to San Berna rdino County, a technician was able to remotely reset the iCloud password. Unfortunately, this meant that the iPhone, which has its own passcode, would no longer back up information to iCloud. If the iCloud password had not been changed, Apple could have provided the iPhone’s back up data to the government. However, as Kim Zetter (2016) notes, by changing the iCloud password, there is no chance for the iPhone to back up additional data. Zetter (2016) states that the best opportunity to get the data from th e iPhone was nullified by the technician changing the Apple ID. If this had not occurred, then Apple would not have to resist the government’s attempt to break the security of its own operating system. What would have been a simple request before the chan ge now resulted in a massive issue. The FBI requested that Apple make a new version of the iPhone operating system that circumvented important security features and install it on the iPhone recovered during the investigation of Syed Rizwan Farook.

Apple’s argument is that once this type of software is developed , it can be used to unlock any iPhone , and there would be no way to limit its use. Managers Zetter (2016) explains that Apple has a standard procedure when working with government agencies. There is a specific department set up to deal with technical requests of this sort, and Apple technicians walked the government agents through the standard process of retrieving the data. The agents did not inform the Apple technicians that the iCloud password had been changed, however, so the information remained locked. BBA 2026, Organizational Communication 3 UNIT x STUDY GUIDE Title The managers , at this point , had focused on one specific area: They were working on the technical support aspect of the phone. Their communications were centered on fixing this one particular problem; they were meeting the specific demands of a single situation. Leaders Cook became involved when the FBI requested that Apple create a new version of iOS 9 that would allow them to unlock the phone. At this point , the issue had moved from a singl e situation to one of company policy. Cook did not just make a unilateral decision; instead, h e consulted with his managers and staff. Cook explained that the company engaged in long, internal discussions prior to the decision being made (as c ite d in Gross man, 2016). This is an area of leadership. The leader has to be focused on how all of the departments in an organization work together. Since this is a problem that could affect the entire company, Cook took the time to gather feedback from his executives , manager s, and staff. Each person had an opportunity to provide information and to influence the decision. When the U.S. government filed a motion to compel Apple’s assistance in unlocking the iPhone, the situation changed once again. By not filing a sea led case, Grossman (2016) notes, the FBI was trying to bring the court of public opinion into play about the issue. As the leader of Apple, Cook was now faced with anticipating the reactions of his employees to this situation, as well as customers, strateg ic partners, and so forth. He needed to make decisions in regard to this issue, but he also needed to explain the rationale for those decisions to everyone involved. Creating a Communications Strategy that Fosters Change and Innovation Cook addressed thi s through creating messages about Apple’s company mission, goals, and responsibilities. He stressed Apple’s dedication to helping law enforcement and provided details on the special efforts the company makes to provide support. Cook focused on customer pro tection, security, and human rights under the U.S. Constitution. He provided transparency with the court documents and Apple’s response. Along with conducting media interviews to clarify Apple’s position, Cook released “A Message to our Customers” where h e stressed the company's efforts to keep consumers' information private. The letter calls for public discussion of the issues and presents an overview of the situation so both Apple customers and people throughout the United States can understand what is a t stake. He lays out the argument for keeping encryption and adds that if the government uses the All Writs Act to unlock one iPhone, it would have the ability to go into any device to monitor and/or collect dat a. This would extend to health records, finan cial data, and location tracking. The All Writs Act could be used to constantly access and monitor any smart phone’s microphone and camera without the user’s knowledge (Cook, 2016). In the letter, Cook states that this legal challenge by Apple was not tak en lightly but with the deepest respect for American democracy. He feels that the organization is standing up to an overreach of authority by the U.S.

government. He welcomes a discussion with the public where people consider the full implications of government surveillance to this extent. Cook concludes the letter by stating that , while the F BI has good intentions in this one case, what will follow will undermine the freedoms and liberty of law -abiding citizens who our government should be protecting (Cook, 2016). Variations of this message have been repeated by Cook in interviews and at the Town Hall meeting that occurs quarterly at 1 Infinite Circle Plaza. But Cook goes one step further in certain interviews, pointing out that even if the government outlaws encryption by companies in the U nited States , criminals will simply download apps from outside its borders. Since the Internet is worldwide, it is easy to purchase encryption apps from other countries. So the criminals’ data would be unavailable t o law enforcement, and everyone else would be vulnerable. Financial information, personal messages, photos, and work documents — anything stored on a computer, tablet, or smart phone — would be vulnerable. This type of technology, Cook states, will only affect good, law -abiding citizens. It will not deter criminals (as c ite d in Grossman, 2016). BBA 2026, Organizational Communication 4 UNIT x STUDY GUIDE Title References Cook, T. (2016). A message to our customers. Retrieved from http://www.apple.com/customer -letter/ Detert , J. R., Burris, E. R., Harrison, D. A., & Martin, S. R. (2013). Voice flows to and around leaders:

Understanding when units are helped or hurt by employee voice. Administrative Science Quarterly , 58 (4), 624 -668. Grossman, L. (2016). Inside Apple’s code w ar. Time , 187 (11), 42 -49. Merhar, C. (2016 , February 4 ). Employee retention – the real cost of losing an employee [Blog post] . Retrieved from http://www.zanebenefits.com/blog/bid/312123/Employee -Retention -The -Real -Cost -of- Losing -an -Employee Zetter, K. (2 016 , February 19 ). Apple says the government bungled its chance to get that iPhone’s data. Wired . Retrieved from http://www.wired.com/2016/02/apple -says -the -government -bungled -its -chance - to-hack -that -iphone/ Suggested Reading The article s below highligh t some of the issues related to the topics discussed in the U nit VII L esson. Merhar, C. (2016 , February 4 ). Employee retention — the real cost of losing an employee [Blog post] . Retrieved from http://www.zanebenefits.com/blog/bid/312123/Employee -Retention -The -Real -Cost -of- Losing -an -Employee Zetter, K. (2016 , February 19 ). Apple says the government bungled its chance to get that iPhone’s data. Wired . Retrieved from http://www.wired.com/2016/02/a pple -says -the -government -bungled -its -chance - to-hack -that -iphone/ Learning Activities (Non -Graded) Apply What You Have Learned In your current (or past) place of employment, reflect on how leaders communicate company policy. Non -graded Learning Activities are provided to aid students in their course of study. You do not have to submit them. If you have questions, contact your instructor for further guidance and information.