Study of leadership and organisational behaviour of Abraham Lincoln

2. Abraham Lincoln
1809 1865186118341831
 1809- Born in Hardin County, Kentucky.
 1831 -moved to New Salem,Illinois and worked as a clerk in a
general store
 1834 -Lincoln became involved in local politics as a supporter of
the Whig Party, winning election to the Illinois state legislature.
 1836- Lincoln passing the bar examination after taught himself law.
Then he worked as a lawyer in Springfield, he was earn a reputation
as “Honest Abe”
 1860 – First speech about slavery, become the President of
America
 1861 – Civil war started
 1865 – 13th amendment signed, assassination by John W Booth
1836 1860

3. Agenda
Communication Motivation
Managing
Change
SWOT
Analysis
Problem
Identification
Solution &
Suggestion

4.  Lincoln communication style is Assertive.
 He make conviction in others because of the conviction of
the speaker himself.
 He made concepts simple and communicated with an
understanding of the concerns of the citizens.
 He has great ability to communicate his goals to his
countrymen.
 He created a climate where Cabinet members were free to
disagree without fear of retaliation. At the same time, he
knew when to stop the discussion and after listening to the
various opinions, make a final decision.
Communication

5.  Lincoln was a good writer and speaker who consistently
moved people through his humor and kind personal
presence.
 He use stories, and imagery so the audience were likely
remember his speech.
“Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend
the first four sharpening the axe.”
 During the Civil War, Lincoln established direct
communication and built connections with the troops by
visiting the battlefield and hospitals, which also helped
bolster morale.
Communication

6.  Lincoln implemented Equity Theory of Motivation
 Abraham Lincoln appointed the best people to his Cabinets,
who were also some of his greatest political rivals.
 Willingness to share credit for success
In response to concerns expressed by friends about the actions
of some of his Cabinet members, Lincoln stated that the "path to
success and ambition is broad enough for two”. When there was
success, Lincoln shared the credit with all of those involved.
 Willingness to Share Blame for Failure
When mistakes were made by members of his Cabinet, Lincoln
stood up for them. When contracts related to the war effort
raised serious questions about a member of his administration,
Lincoln spoke up and indicated that he and his entire Cabinet
were to blame.
Motivation

7.  Motivate with create goal setting
 When the war ended and he won reelection, Lincoln
did not focus on his achievements. Rather, in his
second inaugural speech, Lincoln focused on
bringing the country together as expressed in the
following excerpt.
“With malice toward none, with charity for all, let us
strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the
nation’s wounds, to care for him who shall have
borne the battle and for his widow and his orphan, to
do all which may achieve and cherish a just and
lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.”
Motivation

8.  Lincoln wanted to solve the problem of
slavery. The southern states were against the
abolition of slavery. This brought the unity of
the country in danger. The southern states
were prepared even to form a new country.
Abraham Lincoln wanted all the states to
remain united. He wanted to preserve the
unity of the country at any cost.
 Finally a civil war broke out between the
northern and southern states. He fought the
war and declared, 'A Nation cannot exist half
free and half slave.' He won the war and kept
the country united.
Managing Change

9. “All persons held as slaves
within said designated States,
and parts of States, are, and
henceforward shall be free; and
that the Executive government
of the United States, including
the military and naval authorities
thereof, will recognize and
maintain the freedom of said
persons.
And I hereby enjoin upon the
people so declared to be free to
abstain from all violence, unless
in necessary self defense; and I
recommend to them that, in all
cases when allowed, they labor
faithfully for reasonable wages.”

10. Unfreezing (Create the motivation to change)
• “What I do about slavery, and the colored race, I do because I believe it
helps to save the Union” – Lincoln
• 1861 - Lincoln sent his first annual message to Congress. In it he praised the
free labor system, as respecting human rights over property rights; he
endorsed legislation to address the status of contraband slaves and slaves in
loyal states, possibly through buying their freedom with federal taxes, and
also the funding of strictly voluntary colonization efforts
Changing (Provides new information or new behavioral models)
• 1862 – Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation
• 1863 - Abraham Lincoln declaration that all slaves would be permanently
freed in all areas of the confederacy that had not already returned to
federal control
Managing Change - solve the problem of slavery
Implementation of Lewin’s Change Model

11. Refreezing (by helping people integrate the changed behavior or attitude into
normal procedures)
• Union-occupied areas of the Confederate
states where the proclamation was put into
immediate effect by local commanders
included Winchester, Virginia, Corinth,
Mississippi, the Sea Islands along the
coasts of the Carolinas and Georgia, Key
West, Florida, and Port Royal, South
Carolina.
• An early program of reconstruction was set up
for the former slaves, including schools and
training. Naval officers read the proclamation
and told them they were free

12. STEP Lincoln’s Implementation
1. Establish a
sense of urgency
• Slavery devided the nation
2. Create the
guiding coalition
• Joining a newly formed Republicant party.
Spread about the slavery during debate with
Stephen Douglas for seat in US senate
3. Develop a
vision and
strategy
• Economic and Financial modenization by
expanding United States, with a focus on
commerce and cities instead of agriculture.
Ending slavery and preserving the union
Managing Change
Implementation of Kotter’s Eight Steps

13. 4. Communicate
the change-vision
• Lincoln used vision to provide direction for the
nation and justify the war (”elevation of the
condition of men”) and he reminded people of it
at every opportunity. Lincoln also renewed his
vision to ensure it remained meaningful.
5. Empower
broad-based
action
• Allowed African-American people to fight in the
union army
• Give fully support to Ulysses S. Grant and let
Grant persue a policy in a total war. Not only to
attack soldiers but also the economy
6. Generate short-
term wins
• By the fall of 1864, with Grant winning
battles and the tide of war turning and Lincoln
won re-election
Managing Change
STEP Lincoln’s Implementation
Implementation of Kotter’s Eight Steps

14. STEP Lincoln’s Implementation
7. Consolidate gains
and produce more
change
• Lincoln promised to pursue a policy of
bringing the Southern states back into
the Union and ending slavery forever.
• Ask Grant to win the war in order to
persue the policies effectively.
8. Anchor new
approaches in the
culture
• Lincoln and his cabinet discussed
reconstruction issue on his last cabinet
meeting.
• He died before doing this.
Managing Change
Implementation of Kotter’s Eight Steps

15. • Integrity and Honest
• Good in communication
• Self learning ability
• Awareness of own weaknesses
• Clarity of vision
• High fighting spirit
• Faithful
Strengths
• Tendency to give people too many chances
• Unable to manage work and family time
• Unable to identify really good military leadership
• Suffering a depression
Weakness
SWOT Analysis

16. • Create a nation without slavery
• Unify northern and southern states
• Build a prosper and stable country
Opportunities
• High civil war cost can lead to bankruptcy
• Lost of many lives can lead to lost of trust from the citizens
• Politic rivalry
• Radical form of disagreement can endanger his own safety
Threats
SWOT Analysis

17. Problem Identification
• Civil war because of the disagreement from the
southern states about the abolishment of slavery
• Disagreement inside the parliaments

18. Put the right man on the right place
How to overcome problem
Accomodate Needs of Some Parliament Members in
Exchange for Vote
Place McClellan as Major General to train and
organize army for the Union Army (up to 1864)
Place Ulysses Grant to replace mcclellan to win the
civil war (success)

19.  Lincoln fundamentally cared about people and made every
effort to demonstrate that to them. Through kind and
encouraging words, and authentic gestures of exceptional
thoughtfulness, he assured people of their individual
significance. He was most essentially a human being who
identified with the challenges people faced and the sacrifices
they made. His tremendous influence was due to this.
 Willingness to make change is not easy to come by, and
bureaucratic stumbling blocks are often seemingly impossible
to overcome. But decisions must be made, and they must be
consistent to be successful. Lincoln knew it. And because of
his extraordinary decisiveness, he was able to make policy,
produce change, and win the war.
Why we choose him as a leader

20.  Because of Lincoln strategy of
'leading while being led" he was to
always give credit where credit was
due and, conversely, to accept
responsibility when things went
wrong and rewarded the 'individual’.
Why we choose him as a leader