Leadership Development: Cases for Analysis Valena Scientific Corporation Valena Scientific Corporation (VSC) is a large manufacturer of health-care

products. The healthcare market includes hospitals, clinical laboratories, universities, and industries. Clinical laboratories represent 52 percent of VSCs sales. Laboratories are located in hospitals and diagnostic centers where blood tests and urine analyses are performed for physicians. Equipment sold to laboratories can range from a 50-cent test tube to a $250,000 blood analyzer. When the industry experienced a move into genetic engineering, companies such as Genentech Corporation and Cetus Scientific Laboratories were created and staffed with university microbiologists. These companies were designed to exploit the commercial potential for gene splicing. Senior executives at VSC saw the trend developing and decided to create a Biotech Research Program in 2005. Skilled microbiologists were scarce, so the program was staffed with only nine scientists. Three scientists were skilled in gene splicing, three in recombination, and three in fermentation. The specialties reflected the larger departments to which they were assigned. However, they were expected to work as a team on this program. Twenty technicians were also assigned to the program to help the scientists. Senior management believed that the Biotech Research Program could be self- managed. For the first 18 months of operation, everything went well. Informal leaders emerged among the scientists in gene splicing, recombination, and fermentation. These three informal leaders coordinated the work of the three groups, which tended to stay separate. For example, the work typically started in the gene-splicing group, followed by work in recombination, and then in fermentation. Fermentation was used to breed the bacteria created by the other two groups in sufficient numbers to enable mass production. During the summer of 2008, the Biotech Research Program was given a special project. Hoffman-LaRoche was developing leukocyte interferon to use as a treatment against cancer. VSC contracted with Hoffman-LaRoche to develop a technique for large-scale interferon production. VSC had only six months to come up with a production technology. Scientists in each of the subgroups remained in their own geographical confines and began immediately to test ideas relevant to their specialty. In September, the three informal group leaders met to review the teams progress. Alison Chan, the group leader for gene splicing, proudly announced, Our team has been using an innovative research, one recently developed at my alma mater, MIT. We are excited about the results so far. Rich Bailey, group leader for recombination, leapt from his seat, exclaiming, This is no time to be experimenting with an untested research program! You should have told us you were going down this path so we could have stopped you sooner. We should all be following the same research path. For the rest of the meeting, the group leaders argued vehemently, defending their positions and refusing to change direction. With the deadline now in jeopardy, Bailey e-mailed his manager, explained the impasse the group leaders had reached, and complained about Chans arrogance. Managers at VSC decided to appoint a formal leader to the program. On November 15, a Stanford professor with extensive research experience in recombinant DNA

technology was hired. His title was chief biologist for the Biotech Research Program, and all project members reported to him for the duration of the interferon project. The chief biologist immediately took the nine scientists on a two-day retreat. He assigned them to three tables for discussions, with a member from each subgroup at each table, so they had to talk across their traditional boundaries. He began by discussing their common ground as scientists, and their hopes and vision for this project. After they developed a shared vision, the group turned to scientific issues and, in mixed groups, discussed the ideas that the VSC subgroups had developed. Gradually, one approach seemed to have more likelihood of success than the others. A consensus emerged, and the chief biologist adopted the basic approach that would be taken in the interferon project. Upon their return to VSC, the technicians were brought in and the scientists explained the approach to them. At this point, each subgroup was assigned a set of instructions within the overall research plan. Firm deadlines were established based on group interdependence. Weekly teleconferences were planned and face-to-face meetings with the three group leaders were put on the schedule. Dramatic changes in the behavior of the scientists were observed after the two-day retreat. Communication among groups became more common. Problems discovered by one group were communicated to other groups so that effort was not expended needlessly. Subgroup leaders coordinated many solutions among themselves. Lunch and coffee gatherings that included several members of the subgroups began to occur. Group leaders and members often had daily discussions and cooperated on research requirements. Enthusiasm for the department and the interferon project was high, and cohesion seemed especially strong. QUESTIONS 1. Was the research program a group or a team? What about each subgroup? If a team, what type of team was it (functional, cross-functional, self-directed)? Explain. 2. What were the group norms before and after the retreat? How did the interdependence among the subgroups change with the interferon project? 3. What factors account for the change in cohesiveness after the chief biologist took over?

Devereaux-Dering Group Dashing to catch a cab at the corner of Sixth and Vine, the account team was exhilarated. After a quick exchange of high fives, three of the four jumped into the backseat of a cab to return to the Manhattan offices of Devereaux-Dering, a global advertising agency with offices in New York, Hong Kong, and Paris. The team couldnt wait to tell their team leader, Kurt Lansing, that they had won the BMW account that morning. The fourth team member, Brad Fitzgerald, stood apart from the animated group, studying his BlackBerry and then hailing a cab for an afternoon flight out of LaGuardia. After a two-year slump in sales, Devereaux-Dering needed a big score like the BMW account. To drive new business and land high-profile accounts like this one, the company had hired Kurt Lansing, an MBA from Wharton, with prominent status in the advertising industry. His job was to lead a new business team to study the market, develop strategies, and acquire major accounts. Lansing hand-selected four high achievers for his team that represented each area of the business: Brad Fitzgerald, creative director; Trish Roderick, account services; Adrienne Walsh, production manager; and Tyler Green, brand strategy. That was a shocker! said Roderick as she scooted across the backseat of the cab to make room for her teammates. The client didnt seem too impressed with our presentation until Fitzgerald presented the last set of slides describing the global campaign. They loved it. I think he singlehandedly clinched the deal when he presented the tag line for the Asian market, she said excitedly. Hes a real whiz, alright, muttered Green. The eighth wonder of the world. Sighing deeply and losing his earlier exuberance, Green said, We couldnt have bagged the deal without him, and I know well all get credit. But none of us knew he planned to present that last part of the global campaign. I know he was working on that tag line late last night, but there was plenty of time this morning to get team input on it. I hate surprises in front of a client. I felt like a fool, even if we did win the business. Hes a regular white knight, chuckled Walsh, riding in at the last minute to save the day. I suppose we should appreciate him, but hes just so irritating. He snapped at me last week for not telling him about a client who was upset about delays in their ad campaign. I reminded him that I had told him about it in our status meeting, but he wasnt listening at the time. He was glued to his precious BlackBerry, as usual. Why have team meetings if he isnt going to participate? Roderick was surprised by her teammates reaction to Fitzgerald. She thought they had been working well together. She was quickly discovering, however, an undercurrent of resentment. This was the first time that she had been exposed to the conflict that was simmering below the surface. No doubt, Fitzgerald did have a strong ego and aggressive personality. A previously successful entrepreneur, Fitzgerald had a track record of success and was very ambitious. However, she did notice that he didnt show respect for differing opinions or invite collaboration on ideas. She wondered if he was placing his own success above the teams. But why complain if the team was sharing the credit and earning fat bonuses along with him? She was content to go with the status quo. You know, she said, were darn lucky to be on his team.

She stared out the cab window at the passing traffic and listened to her two teammates continue to grouse. I should have known something was up when I walked past his office last night and saw him working with the new copywriter. They must have been hashing out the new tag line, smirked Green. We are a team, arent we? The system is bigger than the individual, remember? He doesnt seem too concerned about the welfare of the teamonly his own. Well, lets all have a heart-to-heart with Mr. McWhiz, said Walsh sarcastically. Im sure hell see things our way. Well give him a brief overview of Teamwork 101. That will go over great! As the cab pulled to the curb, they tossed the driver a $20 bill and headed to their offices on the 40th floor. They would all stop to see the team leader, Kurt Lansing, first. In the meantime, Lansing smiled broadly when he received Fitzgeralds text message that they had won the BMW account. Sinking back in his chair, he marveled at the cohesiveness and success of his team. All that time building a shared vision and building trust was starting to pay off. QUESTIONS 1. What factors do you think are affecting this teams cohesiveness? Explain. 2. If you were the team leader, what could you do to bring Fitzgerald into the team more and foster better relationships among the team members? 3. As a team member, what would you do? Should the three members of the team confront Fitzgerald with their concerns? Should they inform Kurt Lansing? Explain your answers.