- The chapter discusses the important but often overlooked role of followership in organizations. Effective followership requires both critical thinking and active participation. - There are five styles of followership: alienated, conformist, pragmatic survivor, passive, and effective. The most effective style is one that demonstrates independent, critical thinking as well as active involvement in the organization. - Followers can manage their relationships with leaders through strategies like being a resource to the leader, helping the leader succeed, building trust, and having realistic expectations of the leader. Developing these skills is key to effective followership.

1. CHAPTER 6:
Followership

2. TABLE OF CONTENTS
 SUMMARY
 THE ART OF FOLLOWERSHIP
 WHAT YOUR LEADER WANTS FROM YOU
 STYLES OF FOLLOWERSHIP
 STRATEGIES FOR MANAGING UP
 THE POWER AND COURAGE TO
MANAGE UP
 WHAT FOLLOWERS WANT FROM
LEADERS

3. SUMMARY

4. SUMMARY
 The important role of followership in
organizations is increasingly recognized.
Leaders and followers are interdependent, and
people are followers more often than leaders.
People who effectively manage both up and
down the hierarchy are more successful, but
managing up can be difficult for new leaders.
Strategies for managing up include being a
resource, helping the leader be a good leader,
building a relationship with the leader, and
viewing the leader realistically.

5. SUMMARY
 Leaders want followers who are positive and
self-motivated, who take action to get things
done, who accept responsibility, and who excel
at required tasks. An effective follower is both
independent and active in the organization.
Being an effective follower depends on not
becoming alienated, conforming, passive, or a
pragmatic survivor.

6. SUMMARY
 Effective followership is not always easy.
Effective followers display the courage to
assume responsibility, to challenge their
leaders, to participate in transformation, to
serve others, and to leave the organization
when necessary. Followers can recognize and
rely on several personal and positional sources
of power to gain the courage to manage up.

7. SUMMARY
 Followers want both their leaders and their
colleagues to be honest and competent.
However, they want their leaders also to be
forward-thinking and inspirational. The two
latter traits distinguish the role of leader from
follower. Followers want to be led, not
controlled. They also want leaders to create
an environment that enables people to
contribute their best.

8. SUMMARY
 Four specific ways leaders enhance the
abilities and contributions of followers are by
offering clarity of direction, providing
opportunities for growth, giving honest,
constructive feedback, and protecting
followers from organizational intrusions.

9. SUMMARY
 Followers want feedback that is timely and
specific, focuses on performance rather than
the person, and focuses on the future rather
than dragging up mistakes of the past.

10. LEARNING OUTCOMES
 After studying this chapter, you should be
able to:
 Effectively manage both up and down the
hierarchy.
 Recognize your followership style and
take steps to become a more effective
follower.
 Understand the leader’s role in developing
effective followers.
 Apply the principles of effective
followership, including responsibility,
service, challenging authority, participating
in change, and knowing when to leave.

11. LEARNING OUTCOMES
 Implement the strategies for effective
followership at school or work.
 Know what followers want from leaders
and what leaders expect from followers.
 Use feedback and leadership coaching to
help followers grow and achieve their
potential.

12. THE ART OF
FOLLOWERSHIP

13. THE ART OF FOLLOWERSHIP
 Leadership and followership are
closely intertwined.
 To succeed, some people must
be effective followers and
others must be effective
leaders.
 Moreover, leadership and
followership are fundamental
roles that individuals shift into
and out of under various
conditions.
Effective
Followers Effective
Leaders

14. THE ART OF FOLLOWERSHIP
Good Leaders Manage Both Up and Down the Hierarchy
Source: Based on Mark Hurwitz and Samantha Hurwitz, ‘‘The Romance of the Follower: Part 2,’’ Industrial and Commercial Training 41, no. 4
(2009), pp. 199–206.

15. THE ART OF FOLLOWERSHIP
Learn to Manage Up as Well as Down
 Managing up means
consciously and deliberately:
Developing Relationship - a
meaningful, task-related,
mutually respectful relationship
with one’s direct superiors
Offering insight, information,
guidance, and initiative
Challenging your superiors
when necessary in order to
enable all members to do their
best work for the organization.

16. THE ART OF FOLLOWERSHIP
Managing Up Presents Unique Challenges
 People who effectively manage
both up and down the hierarchy
are more successful.
 Managing up is uncomfortable
because we aren’t in control.
 However, bosses need their
subordinates’ support—their
talent, information, ideas, and
honesty—in order to do their
jobs well.
 To effectively manage up
requires understanding what
leaders want and need.
Understand
what leaders
want and need
Ability to
effectively
manage up

17. THE ART OF FOLLOWERSHIP
Video Time – “The Art of Followership”
 In his talk about 'the Art of
Followership', Professor Jamie
Anderson will suggest that there
can be no leaders without
followers in any societal domain,
and discuss the behaviors that
inspire loyalty, commitment and
unity of purpose amongst voters,
customers and fans.
 Jamie Anderson
 Jamie Anderson is Professor
of Strategic Management at
Antwerp Management School.

18. WHAT YOUR LEADER
WANTS FROM YOU

19. WHAT YOUR LEADER WANTS
FROM YOU
 Leaders want some qualities
and behaviors from their
followers:
A make-it-happen
attitude
A willingness to
collaborate
The motivation to
stay up to date
The passion to drive
your own growth

20. WHAT YOUR LEADER
WANTS FROM YOU
Discussion Question
 Discuss the role of a follower.
 Why do you think so little emphasis is given
to followership compared to leadership in
organizations?

21. WHAT YOUR LEADER WANTS FROM YOU
Discussion Answer
 Leadership and followership are
fundamental roles that
individuals shift in and out of
under various conditions. The
followers’ influence on a leader
can enhance the leader or
underscore shortcomings.
 Many qualities desirable in a
leader are desirable in a
follower. Followers have
received little attention because
they were not empowered in a
vertical hierarchy. Furthermore,
leaders are perceived as being
the ones who set examples and
lead from the front. Although
effective leaders have followers
who contribute in a major way, it
is always the leaders who are in
the limelight.

22. WHAT YOUR LEADER WANTS FROM YOU
Video Time – “Act Like the Leader You Want to Be”
 Richard Cox
 Lecturer in Management
Stanford Graduate School of
Business

23. STYLES OF
FOLLOWERSHIP

24. STYLES OF FOLLOWERSHIP
 Robert E. Kelley’s five styles of
followership are categorized
according to two dimensions:
 critical thinking versus
uncritical thinking
 active behavior versus
passive behavior
Critical thinking
versus uncritical
thinking
Active behavior
versus passive
behavior

25. STYLES OF FOLLOWERSHIP
 The extent to which one is
active or passive and is a
critical, independent thinker
or a dependent, uncritical
thinker determines the type of
follower the person is.
Critical thinking
versus uncritical
thinking
Active behavior
versus passive
behavior

26. STYLES OF FOLLOWERSHIP
 Critical thinking is thinking
independently and being mindful
of the effects of one’s own and
other people’s behavior on
achieving the organization’s
vision.
 Uncritical thinking is failing to
consider possibilities beyond
what one is told; accepting the
leader’s ideas without thinking.
Critical thinking
versus uncritical
thinking
Active behavior
versus passive
behavior

27. STYLES OF FOLLOWERSHIP
 An active individual
participates fully in the
organization, engages in
behavior that is beyond the limits
of the job, demonstrates a sense
of ownership, and initiates
problem solving and decision
making.
 A passive individual is
characterized by a need for
constant supervision and
prodding by superiors.
Critical thinking
versus uncritical
thinking
Active behavior
versus passive
behavior

28. STYLES OF FOLLOWERSHIP
Source: Based on information in Robert E. Kelley, The Power of Followership (New York: Doubleday, 1992)

29. STYLES OF FOLLOWERSHIP
 The five types are:
Alienated follower
Conformist
Pragmatic survivor
Passive follower
Effective follower.

30. STYLES OF FOLLOWERSHIP
 Alienated follower: a person
who is an independent, critical
thinker but is passive in the
organization.
Alienated follower
Conformist
Pragmatic survivor
Passive follower
Effective follower.

31. STYLES OF FOLLOWERSHIP
 Conformist: a follower who
participates actively in the
organization but does not use
critical thinking skills in his or her
task behavior.
Alienated follower
Conformist
Pragmatic survivor
Passive follower
Effective follower.

32. STYLES OF FOLLOWERSHIP
 Pragmatic survivor: a follower
who has qualities of all four
extremes (alienated, effective,
passive, conformist), depending
on which style fits with the
prevalent situation.
Alienated follower
Conformist
Pragmatic survivor
Passive follower
Effective follower.

33. STYLES OF FOLLOWERSHIP
 Passive follower: a person in
an organization who exhibits
neither critical, independent
thinking nor active participation.
Alienated follower
Conformist
Pragmatic survivor
Passive follower
Effective follower.

34. STYLES OF FOLLOWERSHIP
 Effective follower: a critical,
independent thinker who actively
participates in the organization.
Alienated follower
Conformist
Pragmatic survivor
Passive follower
Effective follower.

35. STYLES OF FOLLOWERSHIP
 Effective followers act as
leaders by setting an example
and using a positive attitude to
inspire and uplift other people.
They do not despair in their
positions, nor do they resent or
manipulate others.
Alienated follower
Conformist
Pragmatic survivor
Passive follower
Effective follower.

36. STYLES OF FOLLOWERSHIP
Action Plan: What should I do as a
leader in my organization?
 As a leader, you can also be an effective
follower. You can think independently and
critically instead of blindly accepting what
your superiors tell you.
 Rather than dwelling on the shortcomings of
others, you can look for solutions.

37. STRATEGIES FOR
MANAGING UP

38. STRATEGIES FOR MANAGING UP
 How followers manage their
leaders is just as important as
how their leaders manage
them.
How
followers
manage
their
leaders
How their
leaders
manage
followers
Important

39. STRATEGIES FOR MANAGING UP
 Two aspects of managing up
are: Understanding
the leader
Using specific
tactics to
manage up

40. STRATEGIES FOR MANAGING UP
Understand the Leader
 Effective followers try to learn
and adapt to their leader’s:
Goals
Needs
Strengths And Weaknesses
Organizational Constraints
Preferred Work Style
Preferences

41. STRATEGIES FOR MANAGING UP
Understand the Leader
 Gather information by:
talking to the boss
talking to others
and
paying attention to
clues in the
leader’s behavior

42. STRATEGIES FOR MANAGING UP
Tactics for Managing Up
 Poor followership is one of the
top three reasons people get
fired.
 To be effective, followers need to
develop a meaningful, task-
related relationship with their
bosses that enable them to add
value to the organization even
when their ideas disagree with
those of the leader.

43. STRATEGIES FOR MANAGING UP
Tactics for Managing Up
 Followers should also be aware
of behaviors that can annoy
leaders and interfere with
building a quality relationship.
 Most relationships between
leaders and followers are
characterized by some emotion
and behavior based on authority
and submission.
 Leaders are authority figures
and may play a
disproportionately large role in
the mind of a follower.

44. STRATEGIES FOR MANAGING UP
Tactics for Managing Up
 Four tactics enable followers to
develop an effective, respectful
relationship with their leaders.
Be a resource for
the leader.
Help the leader be
a good leader.
Build a
relationship.
View the leader
realistically.

45. STRATEGIES FOR MANAGING UP
Ways to Influence Your Leader

46. STRATEGIES FOR MANAGING UP
Action Plan: What should I do as a leader
in my organization?
 As a leader, you can use strategies for
managing up to create an equitable and
respectful relationship with your superiors.
 You can help your supervisor be the best he
or she can be by getting beyond submissive
feelings and behaviors, recognizing that
leaders are fallible, and being a resource for
the leader.

47. STRATEGIES FOR MANAGING UP
Video Time – “The Art of Managing Up”
 View this video to learn one of
the best ways to gain respect
and success in an organization
is understanding yourself, your
boss, and how to communicate
effectively.
 Joleen Goronkin
 Joleen Goronkin is a high-
energy speaker and
facilitator who is passionate
about helping clients
enhance their companies
and improve employee
effectiveness. She engages
her audience and delivers
quality sessions with
substantive takeaway value.

48. THE POWER AND
COURAGE TO MANAGE UP

49. THE POWER AND COURAGE TO
MANAGE UP
 Standing up to the boss isn’t
easy.
 Finding the courage to
effectively manage up comes
easier when people realize how
much leaders depend on
followers and the sources of
power in the subordinates’
hands.

50. THE POWER AND COURAGE TO MANAGE UP
Sources of Power for Managing Up
 Two sources of power for
managing up
Personal
Sources
Position
Sources

51. THE POWER AND COURAGE TO MANAGE UP
Sources of Power for Managing Up
 Personal sources include the
following:
Knowledge, skills: Useful knowledge and
skills are valuable to the organization.
Expertise: A demonstrated record of
performance can influence a decision.
Effort: Amount of work put forth creates
influence.
Persuasion: Direct appeal to leaders can
create desired outcomes. Rational
persuasion—using facts and reason—is
typically the most effective approach when
trying to manage upward.

52. THE POWER AND COURAGE TO MANAGE UP
Sources of Power for Managing Up
 Position sources include the
following:
Visible position: Formal position, such as
certain jobs or physical locations, makes an
individual visible.
Flow of information: A position that is key to
the flow of information can establish that
position and the person in it as critical to
those who need the information.
Central location: A location provides
influence because the follower becomes
known to many people and contributes to the
work of many.
Network of relationships: Access to people
and information in an organization provides a
means to establish relationships with a broad
range of people both inside and outside the
organization. It gives followers more clout
with the leader and more opportunity to
persuade and make significant contributions.

53. THE POWER AND COURAGE TO MANAGE UP
Sources of Power for Managing Up

54. THE POWER AND COURAGE TO MANAGE UP
Necessary Courage to Manage Up
 To be effective, followers have to
know what they stand for and be
willing to express their own
ideas and opinions to their
leaders, even though this might
mean risking their jobs, being
demeaned, or feeling
inadequate.

55. THE POWER AND COURAGE TO MANAGE UP
Necessary Courage to Manage Up
 They must have the courage for
several types of actions:
Accept responsibility
Challenge authority
Participate in change
Serve the needs of the
organization
Leave the organization when
necessary

56. THE POWER AND COURAGE TO
MANAGE UP
Action Plan: What should I do as a leader
in my organization?
 As a follower, you can assume responsibility
for your own personal development,
behavior, and work performance.
 You can look for opportunities to make a
difference, seek to meet organizational
needs, serve others, and work toward the
common good.
 As a follower, you can support your leaders
through difficult times, but have the courage
to challenge your superiors when their
behavior or decisions contradict the best
interests of the organization.

57. THE POWER AND
COURAGE TO MANAGE UP
Discussion Question
 The section describes five ways in which
followers need to use courage.
 Which do you feel is most important?
 Least important?
 How might a follower derive the courage to
behave in new ways to be more effective?
 Discuss.

58. THE POWER AND
COURAGE TO MANAGE UP
Discussion Answer
 Most important—assuming responsibility.
Followers initiate opportunities for personal
fulfillment, growth, and the fullest use of their
capabilities.
 Least important—courage to leave. A
follower derives courage and power to be
effective by having skills that complement
the leader’s weaknesses, while both are
working together in support of the mission.

59. THE POWER AND COURAGE TO MANAGE UP
Video Time – “Critical Leadership: Managing Up and
Down”
 US Assistant Secretary of
Defense for Health Affairs Dr.
Jonathan Woodson discusses
strategic leadership skills for
communicating both upward with
high level leaders and
managers, and managing one's
own staff.

60. WHAT FOLLOWERS
WANT FROM LEADERS

61. WHAT FOLLOWERS WANT FROM
LEADERS
 Good followers are created
partly by leaders who
understand their requirements
and obligations for developing
people.
 Followers also have
expectations about what
constitutes a desirable leader.
Good
Leaders
understand
their
followers
Good
Followers
understand
their
leaders

62. WHAT FOLLOWERS WANT FROM LEADERS
Rank Order of Desirable Characteristics
Source: Adapted from James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner, Credibility: How Leaders Gain and Lose It, Why People Demand It (San Francisco,
CA: Jossey-Bass Publishers, 1993), p. 255.

63. WHAT FOLLOWERS WANT
FROM LEADERS
 Leaders have a responsibility to
enable followers to fully
contribute their ideas and
abilities.
 Four specific ways leaders
enhance the abilities and
contributions of followers are by:
Offering clarity of
direction
Providing opportunities
for growth
Giving honest,
constructive feedback
Protecting followers from
organizational roadblocks

64. WHAT FOLLOWERS WANT FROM
LEADERS
Clarity of Direction
 The leader should communicate
where the organization is going
and why and help followers see
their roles in the big picture.
Offering clarity of
direction
Providing opportunities
for growth
Giving honest,
constructive feedback
Protecting followers from
organizational roadblocks

65. WHAT FOLLOWERS WANT FROM LEADERS
Opportunities for Growth
 Leadership coaching is a
method of directing or facilitating
a follower with the aim of
improving specific skills or
achieving a specific
development goal. Coaching
differs from managing.
Leadership coaching involves
empowering followers to
explore, helping them
understand and learn, providing
support, and removing obstacles
that stand in the way of their
ability to grow and excel.
Offering clarity of
direction
Providing opportunities
for growth
Giving honest,
constructive feedback
Protecting followers from
organizational roadblocks

66. WHAT FOLLOWERS WANT FROM LEADERS
Follower Benefits from Leadership Coaching
Source: ‘‘The Business Leader as Development Coach,’’ PDI Portfolio (Winter 1996), p. 6; and Personnel Decisions International,
http://www.personneldecisions.com.

67. WHAT FOLLOWERS WANT FROM
LEADERS
Frequent, Specific, and Immediate Feedback
 Feedback is using evaluation
and communication to help
individuals and the organization
learn and improve. Effective
leaders provide both positive
and negative constructive
feedback on an ongoing basis.
Offering clarity of
direction
Providing opportunities
for growth
Giving honest,
constructive feedback
Protecting followers from
organizational roadblocks

68. WHAT FOLLOWERS WANT FROM
LEADERS
Frequent, Specific, and Immediate Feedback
 Leaders can follow guidelines to
provide feedback that benefits
followers and takes less of an
emotional toll on both leader and
follower as follows:
Make it timely.
Focus on the
performance, not the
person.
Make it specific.
Focus on the desired
future, not the past.

69. WHAT FOLLOWERS WANT FROM LEADERS
Protection from Organizational Intrusions
 Good leaders serve as shields to
protect followers from
unnecessary interruptions. And
when people can’t or won’t learn
and change, good leaders get
rid of the “bad apples” rather
than letting them infect the entire
team
Offering clarity of
direction
Providing opportunities
for growth
Giving honest,
constructive feedback
Protecting followers from
organizational roadblocks

70. WHAT FOLLOWERS WANT
FROM LEADERS
Discussion Question
 What does it mean for a leader to act as a
human shield? Do you believe this should be
part of a leader’s responsibility to followers?

71. WHAT FOLLOWERS WANT
FROM LEADERS
Discussion Answer
 A true leader feels it is his responsibility to
guide and shield the team from adversities.
Success can be managed by anyone, even
subordinates. It is failure that requires
responsibility taking and putting in process a
procedure to set things right. A key role of a
good boss or leader is to act as a “human
shield” and protect people from
“meddlesome executives, nosy visitors,
unnecessary meetings, and a host of other
insults, intrusions, and time wasters.”

72. WHAT FOLLOWERS WANT FROM LEADERS
Video Time – “What Do People Want from Their Leaders?”
 Gareth Jones, London Business
School fellow, lists the four
attributes you need to secure
loyal followers.

73. KEY TERMS AND
CONCEPTS

74. KEY TERMS AND CONCEPTS
 Managing up: consciously and
deliberately developing a
meaningful, task-related,
mutually respectful relationship
with your direct superiors.
 Critical thinking: thinking
independently and being mindful
of the effects of one’s own and
other people’s behavior on
achieving the organization’s
vision.
 Uncritical thinking: failing to
consider possibilities beyond
what one is told; accepting the
leader’s ideas without thinking.
 Alienated follower: a person
who is an independent, critical
thinker but is passive in the
organization.
 Conformist: a follower who
participates actively in the
organization but does not use
critical thinking skills in his or her
task behavior.
 Pragmatic survivor: a follower
who has qualities of all four
extremes (alienated, effective,
passive, conformist), depending
on which style fits with the
prevalent situation.

75. KEY TERMS AND CONCEPTS
 Passive follower: a person in
an organization who exhibits
neither critical, independent
thinking nor active participation.
 Effective follower: a critical,
independent thinker who actively
participates in the organization.
 Leadership coaching: a
method of directing or facilitating
a follower with the aim of
improving specific skills or
achieving a specific
development goal.
 Feedback: using evaluation and
communication to help
individuals and the organization
learn and improve.