Case 1: “The Real Colonel”

Case 1: “The Real Colonel”
“I have a feeling that he was beaten as a child.” That´s why he considers violence
the only way to educate and manage. – Olga could not hide her indignation
in the voice. Her interlocutors in the smoking room nodded in agreement. When it came to talking about the new chief executive of a small advertising agency, the employees showed surprising unanimity.
– This is not childhood, this is the army. What do you want - martinet! Just where did he come from?
on our heads?
“They say he’s an old friend of the Pope.”
The agency called Vladimir Samoilenko, the owner and general director, “Dad” as a sign of great love and respect. Under his leadership, the company in just 2
reached a stable position in the market. The advertising created by the agency - television commercials, slogans, posters - was distinguished by a sense of humor and originality, and
the agency itself almost always met the specified deadlines (which for creative people
was a rarity in the advertising world). Since things were going well at the company, Vladimir
Samoilenko decided to move away from current issues and focus on the development of the company and new projects. And for inspiration, he went on a long-term vacation, introducing the team to the executive director, Alexey Borisovich Zubtsov. Zubtsov really
retired with the rank of major, received an economics education through a military retraining program and managed to work for six months in a construction company as deputy general director for general issues.
Having started working at the agency, Zubtsov was outraged by the “anarchy” that reigned here, as he put it, which the employees for some reason called the “creative process.”
Zubtsov decided that Samoilenko had disbanded the team, and was going to “tighten the screws” before his return and restore order in the organization. He took up the matter very actively: he carried out
discipline meeting that announced a ban on flexible working
schedule, the introduction of a system of penalties for various offenses (late
to work, failure to provide daily progress reports on each project and
etc.). The team began to grumble, but the cruel Zubtsov was not stopped by discontent. He
He regularly made rounds of the office, expressing critical remarks, and called managers to his office every morning, demanding reports. The employees were so discouraged
going on in the company that it was affecting their performance. For the first time in a long time, customers began to show dissatisfaction. General Director, the only one,
who could turn to for help was a thousand kilometers away from them, without
communication, and returned only after 3 weeks.
– Still, we must give him his due, he has some benefits. After talking to him
our cook has stopped being late with lunch and brings it on time. And also a courier,
who was previously impossible to find, is now always in touch and fast as a meteor,” Yulia timidly tried to stand up for Zubtsov.
“I’ll show you “no inspiration”!” – came from somewhere at the far end of the office
the voice of the executive director, and everyone involuntarily shuddered.

Questions for the case:
1. Describe, from the point of view of leadership theories known to you, relationships
Zubtsova with the agency team.
2. Why do you think his leadership style was ineffective? Why did he still get what he wanted from some employees?
3. What do you think Vladimir Samoilenko should do upon his return to normalize the situation?