Potential Minor 1 Topics: Virtual Leadership And Born Leader ✓ Solved

Potential Minor 1 Topics Virtual Leadership Is a leader born

Potential Minor 1 Topics Virtual Leadership Is a leader born or made? The role of leadership in averting conflict and promoting unity Challenges faced by HR leaders in a global economy Impact of humility on leadership Impact of culture on leadership Impact of creativity on leadership Challenges to HR leaders How can HR leaders lead innovation? Servant leadership Transformational leadership Leadership development Transactional leadership Situational leadership Toxic leadership Mentoring How does a leader stop workplace bullying? Leading change Management versus leadership Conflict management Communicating as a leader Rewarding employees Disciplining employees

To My dear MAXX Sports Employees and Management Staff Members, I am ready to take our business to the next level. As you already know, I very recently asked all the managers and leaders and staff at all of my MAXX Sports stores to come up with and create a new variety of new ways to get lots of people into our stores. Very recently, we have seen a steady decrease in customers in all of our stores and there is a very good chance our business is in serious jeopardy. Collectively, we have to find, discover, and come up with a variety of different ideas to increase the number of customers who want to shop in our stores. I have received many, many ideas from the store managers. Some of their ideas might be a bit helpful while some of the ideas are not so helpful. While some of the ideas are not so helpful. Here are just a few of the obvious ideas that most struggling stores use in their attempt to drag customers back into their place of business: coupons, clearance sales and racks, rewards program, sidewalk sales, customer surveys, and changing the appearance of the stores. These are old, tired ideas that do not go above and beyond. Our business, MAXX Sports, needs a fresh approach to finding a brand new stream of customers. In my opinion, the ideas submitted to me by the managers of the stores, were lacking the passion MAXX Sports is known for having. As a result of the unoriginal ideas, here is what I am going to do in regards to this very important situation: I am going to ask all MAXX SPORTS employees and workers to submit ideas that they think might work and help us get more customers in our stores. I want ideas from all levels of our company – from the warehouse workers to the board members. Please send your ideas, plans, and suggestions to me through email or come by my office and we can discuss your ideas. Thank you all very much, Max Profit, Owner MAXX SPORTS

Write a 120 word summary of the article here.

Please use in-sentence citations (e.g., 'According to Jones (2014) ...') or parenthetical citations (e.g., '(Bass, 2000)') to show where your ideas came from. Use italic and quote marks to show a direct quotation of the text from a source (e.g., According to James (2015) “Leadership is about relationships (p. 245).”).

Paper For Above Instructions

120-Word Summary

MAXX Sports' owner, Max Profit, communicates urgent concern about declining store traffic and requests new, creative ideas from employees at every level. Managers submitted familiar retail tactics—coupons, clearance racks, rewards programs, surveys, and store redesigns—but the owner rejects these as uninspired and insufficient. He emphasizes a company-wide ideation drive, asking frontline workers, managers, and executives to propose original strategies to attract customers. The memo frames the challenge as existential and appeals to organizational passion, inclusion, and collective problem-solving. It calls for submissions by email or in-person discussion, signaling a willingness to listen and act. The message positions employee-driven innovation as the pathway to revive customer engagement and secure the company's future.

Introduction and Purpose

The memo from MAXX Sports' owner is a leadership call to action that highlights a common retail challenge: declining foot traffic. The assignment asks for a concise summary and also implies exploration of leadership approaches that can convert employee ideas into effective innovations. This paper interprets the memo through the lens of leadership theory and HR-driven innovation, proposing practical steps for MAXX Sports to harness employee creativity, transform ideas into pilots, and measure impact.

Leadership Approach: Inclusive and Servant-Oriented

Max Profit’s appeal for ideas from all organizational levels aligns with servant and transformational leadership principles that prioritize employee voice and empowerment (Sendjaya & Cooper, 2011; Bass & Riggio, 2006). Servant leadership creates psychological safety and encourages discretionary effort (Edmondson, 1999). To move beyond rhetoric, leadership must model active listening, acknowledge contributions publicly, and provide resources for experimentation (Northouse, 2018). As Avolio and Bass (2004) argue, transformational leaders energize followers around a compelling vision and support autonomy—both necessary to generate novel retail concepts.

Structuring Idea Generation and Selection

To convert company-wide suggestions into actionable pilots, HR and store leadership should implement a structured innovation funnel: idea submission, triage, prototyping, pilot, and scale. Use digital platforms (e.g., a simple intranet portal) for submissions and voting; involve cross-functional panels to evaluate feasibility, customer impact, and cost (Ulrich et al., 2012). Crowdsourcing internal ideas and pairing frontline employees with marketing and operations leads accelerates practical refinement (Howe, 2006). Establish transparent selection criteria and rapid, low-cost prototyping to test concepts in one or two stores before broader rollout (Ries, 2011).

Innovation Themes Relevant to Retail Traffic

Rather than repeat coupon and sale tactics, consider four strategic themes supported by literature and market trends: experiential retail, community partnerships, omnichannel integration, and employee-driven service differentiation. Experiential retail—hosting in-store events, product demos, and local athlete appearances—creates memorable experiences and drives social sharing (Pine & Gilmore, 1999). Partnership programs with local sports teams, schools, and fitness studios create community pull. Omnichannel convenience (buy-online-pickup-in-store, local inventory visibility) reduces friction and increases visits (Verhoef et al., 2015). Finally, empower employees to deliver differentiated service (personalized fittings, local product curation), a direct application of frontline creativity (Gronroos, 2008).

HR’s Role in Leading Innovation

HR must enable the initiative by aligning incentives, training, and performance systems. Reward structures should value innovation behaviors—idea submission, participation in pilots, and customer feedback collection—alongside sales metrics (Yukl, 2013). Provide brief training modules on customer experience design and low-cost piloting; create rotational teams pairing warehouse, sales, and marketing staff to broaden perspectives (Ulrich et al., 2012). HR also needs to track innovation KPIs: number of ideas, pilot conversion rate, customer footfall lift, and revenue per visit.

Change Management and Communication

Leading such a change requires clear communication, quick wins, and iterative learning (Kotter, 1996). Publicize accepted ideas and pilot results to sustain momentum. Use storytelling to highlight employee contributors and customer responses. Maintain a feedback loop so employees see how their suggestions influence decisions—this reinforces participation and trust (Heifetz et al., 2009).

Risk Management and Avoiding Toxicity

Leaders should mitigate risks of tokenism and managerial pushback. Genuine inclusion requires that suggestions are evaluated fairly and that failed pilots are treated as learning opportunities, not grounds for punishment. Cultivate a culture that discourages toxic leadership behaviors that silence employees (Lipman-Blumen, 2005). Ensure managerial accountability for implementing approved pilots and measuring outcomes.

Recommended 6-Week Action Plan

1. Week 1: Launch idea portal, communicate criteria, and host town-hall Q&A (Kotter, 1996).
2. Week 2: Collect submissions and conduct employee voting; form cross-functional review team.
3. Week 3: Select top 6 ideas; design low-cost prototypes and KPIs (Ries, 2011).
4. Weeks 4–5: Pilot in 1–2 stores; collect customer and sales data; document lessons.
5. Week 6: Review results, scale successful pilots, and recognize contributors publicly.

Conclusion

The MAXX Sports memo provides a valuable opening: leadership has asked for company-wide creativity. To capitalize, leaders must pair inclusive, servant-minded approaches with structured innovation processes, HR-enabled incentives, and rapid prototyping. By focusing on experiential retail, community connection, omnichannel convenience, and frontline-driven service differentiation, MAXX Sports can generate original strategies that go beyond couponing. Transparent communication, measurement, and recognition will sustain momentum and embed a culture of continuous improvement (Bass & Riggio, 2006; Pine & Gilmore, 1999).

References

• Avolio, B. J., & Bass, B. M. (2004). Multilevel theory of leadership. In J. Antonakis, A. T. Cianciolo, & R. J. Sternberg (Eds.), The nature of leadership. Sage.
• Bass, B. M., & Riggio, R. E. (2006). Transformational leadership (2nd ed.). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
• Edmondson, A. C. (1999). Psychological safety and learning behavior in work teams. Administrative Science Quarterly, 44(2), 350–383.
• Gronroos, C. (2008). Service logic revisited: Who creates value? And who co-creates? European Business Review, 20(4), 298–314.
• Heifetz, R., Grashow, A., & Linsky, M. (2009). The practice of adaptive leadership. Harvard Business Press.
• Kotter, J. P. (1996). Leading change. Harvard Business School Press.
• Pine, B. J., & Gilmore, J. H. (1999). The experience economy: Work is theatre & every business a stage. Harvard Business School Press.
• Ries, E. (2011). The lean startup: How today's entrepreneurs use continuous innovation to create radically successful businesses. Crown Business.
• Sendjaya, S., & Cooper, B. (2011). Servant leadership behaviour scale: A hierarchical model and test of construct validity. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 20(3), 416–436.
• Ulrich, D., Younger, J., Brockbank, W., & Ulrich, M. (2012). HR from the outside in: Six competencies for the future of human resources. McGraw-Hill.