Ken Blanchard College Of Business: Case Study
Three Pillars of the Ken Blanchard College of Business
Regina D. Adu-Boahene
Grand Canyon University
UNV-504(UNV-504-PEO 102)
August 19, 2014
As one of the premier business schools of choice in the Southwest, Grand Canyon University’s mission statement is to challenge and inspire students to be servant leaders with the business skills and values necessary to drive organizational success and have a positive impact on society. In doing so, the Ken Blanchard College of Business has implemented three pillars that will prepare students to be driven business leaders. These three pillars are entrepreneurial spirit, innovation and servant leadership. Entrepreneurial Spirit Those that have an entrepreneur spirit are those than can be described as having the drive to be risk takers and in some way be willing to step outside the box in terms of creativity. To add, creativity is an essential tool used by an entrepreneur to grow his or her idea into a unique product like no other in its competitive market. According to Marshall (1961), entrepreneurs should have both a thorough understanding of the industry they are working in and the willingness to act with less than complete information. Having an entrepreneur spirit doesn’t necessarily mean that the only focus here is to gain wealth but to gain …show more content…
an audience and build relationships that can add to the growth of one’s new idea and/or product. Being an entrepreneur means that you have to think big, be prepared to make an impact on those around you and be prepared to face different obstacles on a day-to-day basis. In order to be a successful entrepreneur, one must possess a servant spirit, be innovate, a positive attitude in regards to leadership, and have an ambitious mind-set. Innovation
In addition to having an entrepreneur spirit, innovation is the process of taking new ideas and implementing them in the market. What this means is that one must be ready and willing put their new idea to the test. On the other hand, there is recognition that innovation is also critical to cultural, environmental, social, and artistic progress as well (Bullinger, 2006). Grand Canyon University has several opportunities for its students and staff members to get involved in community outreach across the country and the world. Which in turn, introduces social innovation to the community.
Some scholars believe that innovation is a process rather than an outcome. Serrat (2010) expresses that the call for social innovation reflects a growing demand for “good ideas, put into practice, that meet pressing unmet needs and improve people’s lives” (p.1). Nevertheless, innovation is much needed to help shape and develop ideas from an entrepreneurs and leadership prospective. Rather on an individual or collective level, everyone has the capacity to be innovative in whichever way they chose.
Servant Leadership
Hale and Fields (2007) define servant leadership as “an understanding and practice of leadership that places the good of those led over the self-interest of the leader, emphasizing leader behaviors that focus on follower development, and de-emphasizing glorification of the leader” (p.
397). Rather it’s in the church, on the job, or in the community, servant leadership characteristics are important when serving in a leadership capacity. In order to be a great leader one must understand that it involves having a servant spirit first. If a leader does not have a servant spirit, it likely that it will lead to unfair treatment for those that serve under this type of
individual.
Servant leadership should definitely be about helping others grow. As a servant leader, one should be willing to accept the responsibility and display moral behaviors that come along with this type role. Furthermore, servant leaders should aid in shaping their follower’s needs. Servant leadership is characterized by unique behavioral patterns and attitudinal aspects, which are distinct from other related leadership concepts, and this accounts for a broad spectrum of positive outcomes, even after controlling for other aspects of leadership (Rivkin, Diestel & Schmidt, 2014).
To conclude, having the three pillars as part of an educational system are vital for students all over the world. Having an entrepreneurial spirit, having an innovative mindset and being taught to have servant leadership skills are key factors in preparing business students for their venture in the workplace or as business owners. As students prepare to connect the dots by utilizing the three pillars, one must be prepared to expect the unexpected but remember that going backwards is not an option.
References
Bullinger, H-J. (2006). Verdammtzur: Innovation. RKW-Magazine, 57(1), 12–14.
Hale, J. R., & Fields, D. L. (2007). Exploring servant leadership across cultures: A study of followers in Ghana and the USA. Leadership, 3(4), 397-417.
Marshall. A. (1961). Principles of economics. New York:
Macmillan for the Royal Economic Society. Rivkin, W., Diestel, S. and Schmidt, K. (2014). The positive relationship between servant leadership and employees’ psychological health: A multi-method approach.
Serrat, O. (2010). Sparking Social Innovations. Knowledge Solutions, 79, 1–8.
Regina D. Adu-Boahene
Grand Canyon University
UNV-504(UNV-504-PEO 102)
August 19, 2014
As one of the premier business schools of choice in the Southwest, Grand Canyon University’s mission statement is to challenge and inspire students to be servant leaders with the business skills and values necessary to drive organizational success and have a positive impact on society. In doing so, the Ken Blanchard College of Business has implemented three pillars that will prepare students to be driven business leaders. These three pillars are entrepreneurial spirit, innovation and servant leadership. Entrepreneurial Spirit Those that have an entrepreneur spirit are those than can be described as having the drive to be risk takers and in some way be willing to step outside the box in terms of creativity. To add, creativity is an essential tool used by an entrepreneur to grow his or her idea into a unique product like no other in its competitive market. According to Marshall (1961), entrepreneurs should have both a thorough understanding of the industry they are working in and the willingness to act with less than complete information. Having an entrepreneur spirit doesn’t necessarily mean that the only focus here is to gain wealth but to gain …show more content…
an audience and build relationships that can add to the growth of one’s new idea and/or product. Being an entrepreneur means that you have to think big, be prepared to make an impact on those around you and be prepared to face different obstacles on a day-to-day basis. In order to be a successful entrepreneur, one must possess a servant spirit, be innovate, a positive attitude in regards to leadership, and have an ambitious mind-set. Innovation
In addition to having an entrepreneur spirit, innovation is the process of taking new ideas and implementing them in the market. What this means is that one must be ready and willing put their new idea to the test. On the other hand, there is recognition that innovation is also critical to cultural, environmental, social, and artistic progress as well (Bullinger, 2006). Grand Canyon University has several opportunities for its students and staff members to get involved in community outreach across the country and the world. Which in turn, introduces social innovation to the community.
Some scholars believe that innovation is a process rather than an outcome. Serrat (2010) expresses that the call for social innovation reflects a growing demand for “good ideas, put into practice, that meet pressing unmet needs and improve people’s lives” (p.1). Nevertheless, innovation is much needed to help shape and develop ideas from an entrepreneurs and leadership prospective. Rather on an individual or collective level, everyone has the capacity to be innovative in whichever way they chose.
Servant Leadership
Hale and Fields (2007) define servant leadership as “an understanding and practice of leadership that places the good of those led over the self-interest of the leader, emphasizing leader behaviors that focus on follower development, and de-emphasizing glorification of the leader” (p.
397). Rather it’s in the church, on the job, or in the community, servant leadership characteristics are important when serving in a leadership capacity. In order to be a great leader one must understand that it involves having a servant spirit first. If a leader does not have a servant spirit, it likely that it will lead to unfair treatment for those that serve under this type of
individual.
Servant leadership should definitely be about helping others grow. As a servant leader, one should be willing to accept the responsibility and display moral behaviors that come along with this type role. Furthermore, servant leaders should aid in shaping their follower’s needs. Servant leadership is characterized by unique behavioral patterns and attitudinal aspects, which are distinct from other related leadership concepts, and this accounts for a broad spectrum of positive outcomes, even after controlling for other aspects of leadership (Rivkin, Diestel & Schmidt, 2014).
To conclude, having the three pillars as part of an educational system are vital for students all over the world. Having an entrepreneurial spirit, having an innovative mindset and being taught to have servant leadership skills are key factors in preparing business students for their venture in the workplace or as business owners. As students prepare to connect the dots by utilizing the three pillars, one must be prepared to expect the unexpected but remember that going backwards is not an option.
References
Bullinger, H-J. (2006). Verdammtzur: Innovation. RKW-Magazine, 57(1), 12–14.
Hale, J. R., & Fields, D. L. (2007). Exploring servant leadership across cultures: A study of followers in Ghana and the USA. Leadership, 3(4), 397-417.
Marshall. A. (1961). Principles of economics. New York:
Macmillan for the Royal Economic Society. Rivkin, W., Diestel, S. and Schmidt, K. (2014). The positive relationship between servant leadership and employees’ psychological health: A multi-method approach.
Serrat, O. (2010). Sparking Social Innovations. Knowledge Solutions, 79, 1–8.