When one speaks about the Caribbean, or the more popular expression, the "West Indies," the picture that is often conjured up is that of cricket, calypso, reggae, rum, sun, sea and sand. Business and organizational life and the critical contribution of leadership appear to remain firmly lodged in the recess of the mind.
While this laissez faire outlook may have a benefit for the region's tourism product, it is doubtful that it will contribute in a real sense to the promotion of the competitiveness of the region and its ability to sustain itself in the global environment that fashions the 2lst century.
Jones (1976: 80) had long suggested that people, land, ideas and good leadership are the developmental resources of the poor small states of the Caribbean. He did not, however, go on to define his understanding of what constitutes good leadership.
Ryan (1994) in a different context and, perhaps recognizing that leadership also implies followership, argued that, while we recognize the value of climate, natural resources, geo-political location and other material factors to the region and to institutional efficiency, it was the human capital (mental infrastructure) and culture which determine the way in which opportunities or constraints are perceived and exploited.
As if to underscore that Caribbean Leaders are in no way strangers to business, Stewart (1994)- citing Addo (1980) - postulated that the Caribbean is the oldest and most penetrated part of the periphery. From its history one can discern and map the maturing of the capitalist historical system.
Stewart's (1994) contribution would seem to assume greater significance and urgency in the face of globalization and the pace of privatization of electric utilities in Latin America and the Caribbean. The emergence and growth of Independent Power Producers (IPP's) and the deregulation of the industry from its monopoly days point to the need for change in the vision of electric utilities.
Khan's (1987) valuable work in public management in the Eastern Caribbean has explored the impact of the colonisation process on Caribbean Managers. The study concluded that public management and by extension leadership, is embedded in the socio-cultural systems. Khan used the expression 'personality factor' to refer to the prevailing leadership typology.
Khan (1987) identified two personality factors. The first power elites who were very much concerned with independence making, solidarity enhancing, mobilisation seeking, power exerting, value allocating, symbol wielding and slogan making. This type of leadership appears to be what Burns (1978) had earlier described as transaction leadership. Khan (1987) contrasted the power elites with a long range alternative that he described as task elites. This latter group tended to be attentive to formulation, performance, productivity, instrumentality, innovation, reform advocacy and institutionalisation very much along the line of Burns' (1978) theory of transformation leadership.
While Khan (1987) was not being prescriptive in his conclusions, he did claim that the use of classical organizational principles engendered organisational pathologies and dysfunctions. Organisational change in the sub-region was incremental and generally responsive only to external stimuli.
This research paper into leadership practice takes into consideration the geographical and historical context of the Caribbean, rooted in a slave history and colonial administrative experience where leadership was both enforced and imposed. This is being advanced as an important independent variable that underpins the social architecture of Caribbean enterprise and particularly several electric utilities.
The paper examines the evolution of VINLEC's management system from its colonial legacy and ownership and influence, to that of a wholly-owned monopoly.
A broad body of leadership theory has been examined essentially to find a fit with VINLEC's leadership practice. In the end, Burns' theory of transaction and transformation leadership is selected for study to determine whether it could provide prescriptions for the attendant changes identified.
Against the background of an action learning approach which was adopted for the DBA programme and the conscious selection of the participant observation approach as a part of the research methodology, the tendency in the paper is to search for best practice to improve management effectiveness. The study is, however, a descriptive rather than prescriptive examination of the nature of leadership in a small island electric utility.
From a theoretical perspective, effective leadership behaviour is examined through Burns' theory that leadership is a process across culture and time. The relative stability in VINLEC's management does allow for critical analysis of the central theme of Burns' work as identified and listed below.
In recognising these principal tenets of Burns' theory, neither the temporal nor spatial constraints are ignored. VINLEC is surveyed to determine the extent to which any or all of the above practices are replicated, and to what degree and for what purpose.
Consistent with Burns' approach, the paper does not propose to examine in any detail the Freudian approach to leadership. The researcher focuses on the social, cognitive and affective process at VINLEC, thereby concurring with Burns that the psycho-analytic approach is inadequate to explain the leadership dynamics at work.
While, therefore, the research does not ostensibly set out to build new theory, it consciously seeks to measure the fit between Burns' transactional and transformational dichotomy and the leadership practice in VINLEC. An examination is required into the causation of the leadership style that has emerged.
Bacharach and Lawler (1998) point out that, to the extent that a political perspective views the organisation system as a process of power-based negotiation, some focus must be directed to the power and influence at VINLEC. It was Burns himself who asserted that power is ubiquitous.
The paper also examines the bureaucracy, Weber (1964), and the emerging culture, Hofstede (1991).
Bass and Avolio (1994) argue the need for researchers to evaluate the overall process by which elements meet, interact and average. This is vital since they argue that control organisations tend to trample ideas with bureaucratic rules and constraints.
The paper takes on board Yukl's (1998) advice that leading change is one of the most important and difficult responsibilities of the leader. It is, therefore, necessary to attempt to draw conclusions from the empirical research, as to whether transactional and transformational leadership are mutually exclusive or alternatively which, if any, can best bring about change that will sustain managerial effectiveness. It was Bass (1985) who argued that transactional leadership is dependent upon compliance. The question is, does this control and conformance ultimately contribute to a monolithic control or form of synoptic management.
Leadership is easily one of the most researched subjects in the management literature. Yukl (1998), however, reminds us that the field of leadership is still very much alive with many conceptual and methodological issues still surrounded by controversy.
Anthony (1998) has submitted that Caribbean Leadership needs to look at their business and the region, not through microscopes, but rather telescopes. This paper shares the long term vision approach consistent with the transformation leadership approach of Burns (1978). It is not evident, however, that this has to be at the expense of what Bass and Avolio (1994) describe as individualised concentration and idealised influence, two of the four I's.
Although the research recognises the importance of reducing the confusion in the literature, it also agrees with Yukl (1998), that a more productive result will be a focus on leadership effectiveness and its critical role in organisational life, public or private. Hence, the selection of Burns' seminal work.
There exists substantial definitional debate in the literature over the subject of leadership. Stogdill (1974), recognized it as a rather sophisticated concept. Practitioners, however, tend to be more concerned with practical applications. For example, Danns (1994), laments the fact that Caribbean scholars appear to have written about development in the Caribbean, (Thomas 1976, Beckford 1972, Girvan 1971, Best 1963, Brewster 1973, Demas 1965, and McIntyre 1971) but that all have concentrated in structural factors which either inhibited or promoted development in the region. The paper, while recognising the critical role of electric utilities to infrastructural development and the investment climate, puts forward the proposition that the role of the leader in the productive process is often not considered, nor is the retardation of our institutions attributed to the attitudes and values of its people and their leaders.
Danns (1994) blames the neglected phenomena of entrepreneurship, as he calls it, on an inadequacy of effective entrepreneurial skills. He assigns this on the climate of rules, which can be interpreted to mean the command and control style of management and the value orientations of the people. Muffins (1994) identifies this as the typical classical approach of Taylor, Fayol, Urwick and others to organisation life.
Sadler (1999) puts the change affecting utilities very bluntly. "... Deregulation is primarily designed to clear away inefficient costly power production, leaving customers with the cheapest possible electricity". At the point of this research proposal, the Government of St Vincent and the Grenadines are presenting new legislation in the form of the Fair Trades Act to facilitate competition for all monopolies.
Heddon (1996) suggests that utility leaders need to retrain to gain the winning edge and manage the turbulence in the new markets.
Danns (1994) defines entrepreneurship as an extra orientation which marshals the forces. If we substitute leadership for entrepreneurship, then his invocation that leaders are the architects of economic change and success, may be the acceptance that Burns' call for transformation leadership is most timely for VINLEC and other electric utilities in the Eastern Caribbean.
Selznik (1957) and Zaleznik (1977) have argued that leaders and managers differ significantly. Peters (1987) postulates that the very essence of leadership is that you have a vision. This appears consistent with Burns' (1978) notion of Inspirational Motivation where the leader demonstrates commitment to goals and shared vision. In this regard, Peters and Burns are at one with Bennis and Nannus that "Managers are people who do things right and leaders are people who the right things." From this point of view, while managers are necessary, leaders are absolutely essential in the increasingly global environment (Peters 1992).
Burns (1978), in his seminal work, identified two basic types of leadership, the transactional and the transforming. For Burns, the relationship between most leaders and followers are transactional - the underlying assumption being that both parties are constantly exchanging one benefit for another, very much in keeping with the collective bargaining that characterises industrial relations.
In contrast with the transactional leader, is the transforming leader. Burns (1978) recognised this to be more complex and potent while rooted in the exploitation of existing needs or demands of potential followers; the relationship is to be guided by mutual stimulation of a moral order. It was value based and aimed at social change.
Bass (1985) in locating the leadership context of Burns' (1978) transactional and transformational dichotomy correctly identified the limitations of cost benefit exchange theories.
The evidence is that both the external and internal environment of VINLEC are changing very rapidly. The International Power Generation magazine (IPG) (1998) charges that with the liberalisation and deregulation of electricity markets, old certainties no longer apply, as markets are in the process of transformation and diversification. The article went on to say that "only those companies that face up and respond to permanent change will be assured success in the next Millennium".
On the surface, the argument while highly plausible, may appear improbable in the Caribbean context. However, one witnesses with great interest that in the neighbouring Caribbean country of Trinidad and Tobago this international scenario is being played out.
In 1994, 'Watts Happening' reported that the Directors of Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission (T&TEC), executing the instructions of Government as majority shareholder, gave the company a directive to divest of its generation assets to a newly formed independent private power company (IPP) Powergen. The dominant shareholder in Powergen is Southern Electric of the United States of America.
What is of greater significance here, is the Government's philosophy that future projected load growth should be supplied by private investors. As a result, on July 31, 1997 Cabinet authorised T&TEC to enter into negotiations with Inncogen with a view to formalising a power purchase agreement. Inncogen was also obliged to make 20/o of its shareholding available to T&TEC. This represented T&TEC's second agreement with an Independent Power Producer (IPP).
In St Lucia, Dominica and Grenada, the three other islands of the Windward Islands group of which St. Vincent is the fourth, privatisation is very much alive. One witnesses new ownership patterns of the utilities with the return of the Commonwealth Development Corporation (CDC) as a major shareholder. In Grenada, GRENLEC, the island utility is now wholly owned by WRB, a U.S. Company.
In Barbados, The Barbados Light and Power (BL&P) has always been privately owned.
This, indeed, is the new reality facing leaders of Caribbean utilities. Gone are the days of monopoly leadership where, as Petrock's (1996) classification of a hierarchy of culture claims, they focused on internal positioning with an emphasis ranging from stability and culture to trivialities, and inbound cultures. Kets De Vries and Balazs (1998) contend that it is the organisations which foster constructive conflict among their people that will be in the best position to align with a continuously changing business environment. This appears to be a call for transformation leadership.
The picture that appears to be unfolding is one of external influences impacting upon the leadership of small island utilities. Burns (1978) perceived this change as a call for transformation leadership through intellectual stimulation. Bass and Avolio (1994) described this I of the four I's as stimulating one's followers' efforts to be innovative and creative by questioning assumptions, reframing problems and approaching old situations in new ways.
At the time of this research paper VINLEC's CEO had been sent on forced vacation leave in the middle of a major restructuring exercise. He had apparently failed to take vacation in eighteen years of governance. Newman and Nollen (1998) advance that it is firms with structures, systems, resources and capabilities that fit the environment which are more likely to survive. However, citing the work of Eisenhardt and Schoonhoven, (1990), Stinchcombe, (1960), Tucker, Singh and Meinhard, 1990, they also reminded us that a firm's structures, systems, resources and capabilities are related strongly to its founding conditions. The CEO is clearly part of the foundation of the present VINLEC. For this reason it is being suggested that the quality of the executive leadership will be a critical factor in the change intimated at VINLEC - Newman and Nollen (1998).
The research paper is about the executive leadership of VINLEC. It is being posited that as the then Commonwealth Development Corporation (CDC) and later VINLEC, it pursued its economic objective of securing what it termed an equitable rate of return on its investment, in such a manner that the technical system, over time, unconsciously developed at a pace leaving the social system a considerable degree behind - Leacock (1995).
In the process and largely in continuation of its historical bureaucratic tradition, a strong command and control management style emerged as the dominant culture. Etzioni (1964) described control of organisations through material rewards as use of utilitarian power. The approach appears highly transactional in nature, consistent with Burns' transaction leadership. Pugh (1971) reminds us, however, that centralisation is not a system of management good or bad in itself.
Quinn and Spreitzer (1997), arguing for decentralisation and employee empowerment, suggested that command and control hierarchies are increasingly less appropriate. It would seem that structure is closely related to leadership practice.
To what extent the unitarist need of organisations, as argued by Nwankwo and Richardson (1996), contributed to this culture is not yet certain. There is, however, considerable evidence that the common interest co-operation assumptions of management have been a contributing factor. In the course of this ongoing research, Nwankwo and Richardson's pluralist view that people are attracted to organisations to satisfy personal aspirations not only appears as a defensible proposition but in support of Burns' (1978) argument of transactional leadership as an exchange process.
Leacock (1995) and Shorey (1997), point to a demotivated workforce, inadequate employee involvement and high levels of distrust at all levels of the company. It was, however, observed that this finding was at variance with the public relations image of the Company as a national success.
Burns (1978) suggested that first order changes can be handled adequately through the exchange process or transaction leadership. The higher order of change, however, which speaks to issues such as trust, and motivation beyond original expectation represent a call for transformational leadership.
McGill and Slocum (1998), making use of influence theory, advocate that enterprises such as VINLEC need to change their business process and simultaneously develop and draw on the commitment of the people. They identified this as both the challenge and contribution of leadership to engineer change. They concluded that if effective leadership is not provided, companies like VINLEC will face a major crisis.
This research paper, therefore, both recognises and pursues the need for diligence and or robustness in the way the research is conducted. Coming, however, from a DBA perspective and an action learning orientation, it does attempt some guidelines or prescriptions for the practice - Yukl (1998). It is, however, not deterministic. It supports the argument of the utility using research to improve the practice of management - Yukl (1998).
In this regard, therefore, the paper must of necessity recognise that there are still controversies over conceptual and methodological issues on leadership research.
Stogdill's (1974) seminal work on leadership has made an invaluable contribution by exploring a range of contextual situations, categorised as follows:
On the surface, the typology appears exhaustive. Bass (1974) also recognises the plethora of taxonomy of leadership but agrees that notwithstanding, common themes do appear. Yukl's (1987a) taxonomy is cited by Bass. Yukl's (1998) leadership classification is identified in Figure 1.
Katz and Khan (1976) appear to be accurate in their summation that leadership appears in social science literature with three major meanings, viz.:
It also brings to the fore the importance of dyadic relationship. Bass (1990) cited the work of Graen and Schienmann, (1978) on leader-subordinate relationship instead of the leader and the primary work group (Hunt, Osborn and Schriesheim, 1978). Schriesheim (1979) himself interestingly enough, was researching a public utility.
Whitener et al. (1988) highlight the attempt of principal and agent to structure the relationship to protect their own economic interest. This would seem to lend support to Burns' theory of transactional leadership. A rational interrogation for the research, therefore, might be which of the two parties then, leader or follower if any or both, best represent the organisations interest?
The research paper acknowledges that the early theorists recognised that leadership, like management does not take place in a vacuum. The context was, and still is the organisation. It is perhaps equally rational then to argue that the ~ century organisations, their social and operating environment are irreversibly different to the preceding century - Bennis and Mische (1995). If this is so, then Burns' (1978) theory of transformation leadership assumes even greater significance as we progress from one social and economic epoch to what is now called the new utility environment.
Bass (1985) seems to have recognised the influence of time on leadership, and the requirements to progress from transactional to transformation leaders. He also noted the emergence of teams as a factor. For Bass (1985), the transformation could be achieved in any of three inter-related ways:
Bass' (1985) model of transformational leadership, therefore, differs from Burns' (1978), in three important respects as follows:
The research paper recognises the following controversies raised by Bass (1985) in furtherance of Burns' (1978), seminal work; and attempts an evaluation based on the empirical evidence at VINLEC:
To the extent that this research is essentially behaviouralist in contrast to the structuralist approach, the focus on internal influences would of necessity require some examination of the contribution of the contingent approach. Bass (1985), claims that transactional leadership is contingent reward. The work of Peters and Waterman (1982), is cited, and so too is Yukl's (1981), even though in the latter case it was called goal setting.
Figure 1 adopted from Yukl's (1994) classification is a good summary of the leadership approach that has been endorsed by researchers. This approach has been accepted for this research paper in conducting the literature review.
It was Fiedler (1985) who suggested that we could research leadership to infinity creating more mass to the literature at the expense, as he called it, of finding a coagulating substance to bring it to a useful result. The researcher is not only mindful of this admonition, but optimistic about being able to add new insights to the dilemma at VINLEC. As if to support this quest, Quinn and Spreitzer (1997) called for leaders to step outside of the box, that is their traditional command and control hierarchical environment.
One is sympathetic to Quinn and Spreitzer's argument that leadership is not just the choice between mechanistic and organic views, but a need for proven recipes for the integration of both is required. Only in this way, they conclude, can one avoid reutilisation and the maintenance of the status quo.
The phenomenological approach to the research is, therefore, supported by the social constructionist school of Meindl (1990), Hooking, and Morley (1991), and the interactionist approach - Nicholson (1998).
Haskins et al. (1998) employing metaphorical language, most appropriate for a power utility such as VINLEC opined that these service firms must operate with dynamics that transcend traditional concepts of teamwork. In the process, they identified their source of power as grounded in what they termed the ethic of collaboration. This collaboration, they argue, is characterised by a system of moral principles grounded in a sense of calling and stewardship. This moral appeal appears to bring one fill circle with Burns' (1978) clarion call for transformation leadership behaviour to respond to the higher levels of moral development "to a set of reasoned, relatively explicit, conscious values".
Haskins et al. (1998) are clearly in company with Greenleaf's Servant Leadership philosophy school along with their disciples such as Spears et al. (1998) and Javorski (1996).
In examining the executive leadership practice at VINLEC, it will be necessary to pay some attention to bureaucracy, culture mid power in the organisation. Quinn and Spreitzer (1997) suggests that bureaucratic cultures similar to that which now govern VINLEC (Shorey & Co., 1977), encompass multiple layers of hierarchy that impede change, since bureaucracy emphasises the maintenance of the status quo. If this is so, then it presents a unique challenge for the transformational leader's effectiveness - (Bass and Avolio, 1994)
Burns' (1978) writing in a political context, had earlier posited that while, on the one hand, bureaucracy seemed to be the very distillation of leadership, on the other hand "The classic stereotype of bureaucracy - rigidity, oligarchy, deference, impersonality, specialisation, lack of reciprocal relationship of wants, needs, motives and values between leaders and followers would seem to represent the negation of leadership".
The researcher would investigate whether a gestalt approach would more likely promote a people centred approach. Haskins et al. (1998) refer to the need to create alchemy. For them relational collaboration needs to move beyond the creation of transactional teams. Relational collaboration must become embedded as an aspect of the firm's culture.
Hofstede (1991) drawing on extensive research and empirical findings has underscored the importance of strong cultures in organisations. He cited the work of Peters and Waterman (1982) at IBM, which showed that homogeneity was significantly correlated with results orientation Reference was made to the work of Eberhard Witte who concluded that successful innovations in organisations required the joint action of two parties: macht-promotor and a fach- promotor. The research takes note of Hofstede's (1991) advice that although culture is a 'soft' characteristic, changing it calls for 'hard' measures.
Hofstede (1991) seems to suggest that effective management of organisations, and culture innovations, require the support of a power holder whom be describes as being indispensable. The impact of culture on organisations appears to the researcher to challenge influence theory dominance of the leader over the follower - Ross (1977). This naturally brings the research on effective leadership to the question of power and influence - Pfeffer (1977). Pfeffer and Cialdini (1998), cited the research of Morris and Peng (1994) which demonstrated that Chinese are much less likely to make causal attributions to the individual, in part because they "have been culturally conditioned to more often subordinate themselves to the group".
The reverse dynamics is perhaps equally true. Barcharach and Lawler (1998) contend, for example, that the first problem faced by an individual attempting to influence the organisation is whether to act alone or in a group. They termed this contextualisation. This must be an important consideration for either the transactional or transformational leader.
Bennis (1997) claims that we can summarise leadership into three major contexts: Commitment, complexity and Credibility. He terms this "transformative leadership". Here, the leader must take charge and empower the workforce. This appears to be an advance of Burns' (1978), and Bass' (1985) transformational leadership, where the follower is active in the leadership process. Bennis (1997) concludes "that they must be architects and cheerleaders for change - true visionaries who are able to point to destinations".
In slightly different language but in support of the same philosophy, Grove (1998) contends that managers need to expose themselves to lower level employees who, when encouraged, will tell them a lot that they need to know. Grove (1998) introduces the notion of a strategic inflection point where the balance of forces shifts from the old structure, from the old ways of doing business and the old ways of competency, to the new. This sounds very much like a transition from transactional to transformational leadership.
Yukl (1978) has advised that the first requirement fix transformational leaders is to recognise the need for change. He cited Tichy and Devana's (1986) suggestion for leaders to increase the sensitivity to environmental changes and threats. This, however, is not the focus of this research.
Apart from the changing environment, there appears to be leadership problems at VINLEC. In November 1998, a letter from VINLEC's professional staff to the Company's CEO alleged that "... there is a breakdown of work ethics and morale, and the existence of general malaise which sometimes give the impression that VINLEC is a ship sailing without a rudder ...".
In 1997 an external consultant, David C. Shorey and Company submitted a report on the restructuring of VINLEC. The findings that are critical and relevant to the research are summarised below.
The damning report of VINLEC's executive leadership ought to be a cause for concern for the company management.
VINLEC as an electric utility has an international ownership history that is colonial in nature. Its previous owner was the Commonwealth Development Corporation (CDC), of the United Kingdom.
The company is perhaps in a hybrid situation. This is so because its legal form is private but its sole share holder is the Government, thereby making it public at least at the level of accountability.
Partly because of the need to attract regional and international financing, and the need to be on the leading edge of technological and engineering improvements, research at the company is perhaps above the national average.
Over the last ten years, there have been two behavioural studies by external consultants into the social fabric of the company. One of these has been an Employee Altitude Survey by NRECA (1990), and the other by David C. Shorey and Company (1997). Both studies are of immediate relevance to the research under consideration.
The researcher (1994), (1995), (1996), (1997), (1998) has himself conducted a number of internal studies, but essentially for academic purposes. While these internal and external researches do not impact the research design as does the hypothesis, they constitute very useful references that may support the robustness of the overall research by the attention that must be paid to reliability and validity. Saunders et al. (1997) cites the contribution of Raimond (1993:55) who himself had cited Rogers (1961).
The researcher needs to bring to the fore the ethical question of his being a member of the executive management team of VINLEC. There has been full disclosure and approval of the research. Albeit anticipatory, the CEO has already graciously attended a flu length unstructured interview with the researcher to assist in crystallising the research into transactional and transformational leadership.
The research into the leadership of the organisation would require some examination of the Board function: the roles of the Chief Executive Officer, Line Managers (Senior Management); the Professional Staff (Engineers, Accountants); Section Heads; Supervisors; Unionised Members; other Stakeholders; the Government as owners; the Trade Union; and the Minister of Communications and Works under whose Ministry the utility falls.
The research envisages interviews with twelve of VINLEC's managers, twenty- four supervisory staff which represents about 50% of the total number of supervisors. The sample size for unionised staff is still to be determined. The research also contemplates a survey of twelve managers in sister utilities of water and also telecommunications.
The research strategy for this proposal is essentially that of surveys, employing a cross-sectional study. Saunders et al. (1997) refers to the greater control over the research process that the survey approach facilitates.
Both structured and unstructured interviews will be conducted after the questionnaires have been developed and piloted.
Because of the participant observations approach (ethnography) that is being employed (Esterby-Smith et al., 1991), the research will be by documentary analysis (Saunders et al., 1997) to support triangulation (Bell, 1993).
To the extent that the surveys and interviews are designed to test the evidence of transactional and transformational leadership in the first instance, then the research must of necessity dedicate some energy to the factors which constitute transactional and transformational leadership. This requires a literature search that is normally a feature of the exploratory approach recommended by Cooper and cited by Saunders et al. (1997).
Since transactional leadership is contingent reinforcement (Bass, 1985), the questionnaires will be informed by research work from Yankelovich and Immerwahr (1983), Sims (1977), Zaleznik (1967), Keller and Szilagyi, (1976), Peters and Waterman (1982, p. 123), etc. One, however, anticipates a need for suitable relevant and appropriate adjustments.
The approach to be applied to determine transactional leadership factors is equally applicable to the transformational argument. Therefore, it is suggested that the contributions of Mintzberg (1975), Yukl and Van Fleet (1982), should be valuable. The work of Burns and Stalker (1961), which addresses the impact of the organisational environment, is also relevant, particularly with respect to the organic versus mechanistic nature of organisations.
The social values issues (Bass, 1985) also need to be 'fleshed out'. The surveys must also address the questions of organisational climate, structure, task and objectives raised by Bass (1985).
A central feature of the research is, therefore, a comparative analysis using Sheridan et al.'s (1982) questionnaire as a guide.
A similar analysis of the NRECA attitude survey will be conducted. Bass (1985) cites the work of Hut and Schuler (1976), in a large public utility as well as Oldbam (1976) and Reitz (1971), Keller and Szilagyi (1976). In this regard there may be an element of longitudinal approach (Saunders et al., 1997) when a comparison is made between the current research and NRECA's.
As part of the research methods, some careful review and evaluation for adaptability will be conducted on a number of tried and tested instruments and models of leadership behaviour, that have been developed: Blanchard and Johnson (1982), Yukl (1981), Bass et al. (1975), Klimoski and Hayes (1980), and Yanklovich and Immewahr (1983).
The research strategy which adopts a multi method approach is phenomenological in nature, or (Saunders et al., 1997) social constructionist as Easterby-Smith et al. (1991) also define it. At times, the research is attempting to determine what is happening especially in light of the rapid changes confronting the utility. On the other band there is a definite attempt to establish causal relationships between the leaders, followers and the operating environment. This is being essentially explanatory (Saunders et al., 1997). One, however, has to guard against an extreme position, as both the positive and phenomenological approach enjoy advantages depending upon where the research emphasis lie. It is important here that the dependent and independent variables are clearly identified.
This research began using an ethnographic approach, systematically recording, interpreting and analysing data (Sapsford and Jupp (1996), Glaser and Strauss, (1967)). The need, however, for credibility has influenced the research design. Saunders et al. (1997) cites Rogers (1961) who was himself cited by Raimond, (1993:55). One can, therefore, expect a combination of quantitative and qualitative analysis.
Yin's (1994) framework for qualitative analysis which involves pattern matching, and explanation building is particularly useful in the descriptive nature of the research underway. This constant comparison of the theory under investigation, in this case transactional and transformational leadership, and the data being collected from observation and field testing both deepen and widen the investigation until some kind of pattern emerges.
Yukl refers to useful descriptive studies of effective executives to identify characteristic behaviours, traits and influence processes. He cites the work of Bennis and Nannus (1985); Howell and Higgins, (1990); Kouzes and Posner, (1987); Levinson and Rosenthal, (1984); Peters and Austen, (1985); Tichy and Devanna (1986). Much of the methodology applied in these researches are of current relevance.
Dey (1983) suggests the three C's approach of Critique, Clarity and Cluster, that is, ask, test and pilot on route to the researcher's hypothesis. This is particularly valuable in this paper where there appears a contradiction between external images of the company as a success and the findings of the internal consultants that argue for reform (Shorey, 1997).
It is by now an incontestable fact that even Caribbean electric utilities must be competitive in the new global marketplace. Like other national enterprises, they can no longer rely on Government subsidies, protective tariffs and trade barriers and licenses (monopoly) to protect them. This appears to be a call for leadership (Bennis and Mische 1994, Powell 1998).
Bass and Avolio (1994) strongly suggest that radical transformational strategies are necessary when, as in the case of VINLEC, there is an inadequate fit with the demands of its environment and greater internal participation is signalled.
Newman and Nollen, (1998), citing the work of Lawrence and Larsch (1969) and Woodward (1965), highlight the advantages of a contingency approach which embraces both questions of fit between the firm and its environment and internal fit or alignment. Both of these circumstances have been established as being present (Shorey, 1997).
While the contingency approach appears attractive, the strategic choice approach supported by Eisenhardt and Schoonhoven (1990), as cited by Newman and Nollen (1998), bears much resemblance to the transformational argument of Burns (1978) and Bass (1985).
The researcher's conclusions hypothesise that some managers may only demonstrate one form of leadership, in this case transactional. This argument may be supported by institutional theory which points to a tendency of organisational similarity and inertia leading as Greenwood and Hlnnings (1996) warn towards isomorphism. In other words because leadership gains its importance from the organisational context, it is posited that the organisation's culture itself is always a countervailing or supportive force to the leader's influence. This is perhaps the justification for Shorey and Company's conclusions that "the leadership style of top management at VINLEC is autocratic and not conducive to team building". In this light the case for transformation seems clear. This is the dilemma that confronts VLNLEC.
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