Model paper

Dean's Office Official Model Question Paper

MGT 232 · Leadership and Organizational Behavior

Programme
BBM
Academic year
Semester 2
Paper type
Official Model Question
Sitting
Dean's Office Blueprint
Full marks
60
Duration
180 minutes

Tribhuvan University

Faculty of Management

Office of the Dean

Official Model Question Paper / Dean's Office Blueprint

Course: MGT 232 · Leadership and Organizational Behavior

Level: Bachelor of Business Management (BBM) · Semester 2

Full Marks: 60

Time: 3 hrs.

Candidates are required to give their answers in their own words as far as practicable. Figures in the margin indicate full marks.

Group A

Brief Answer Questions. Attempt ALL questions. (5 × 2 = 10)

[5*2=10]

  1. Distinguish between a leader and a manager in organizational settings.

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    Leader vs. Manager

    • Leader: Focuses on setting strategic vision, inspiring and motivating followers, driving organizational change, and building human relationships.
    • Manager: Focuses on planning, budgeting, organizing, staffing, and controlling processes to achieve predictability, efficiency, and order.

  2. State the Big Five Personality Traits (OCEAN model).

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    Big Five Personality Traits (OCEAN)

    1. O: Openness to Experience (curiosity, creativity, intellect).
    2. C: Conscientiousness (discipline, dependability, organized).
    3. E: Extraversion (sociability, assertiveness, energy).
    4. A: Agreeableness (cooperativeness, trust, empathy).
    5. N: Neuroticism / Emotional Stability (calmness vs. anxiety/vulnerability).

  3. Define Transformational Leadership and state its ‘4 Is’.

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    Transformational Leadership and the 4 Is

    Transformational leadership inspires followers to transcend self-interest for the collective mission of the organization.

    The 4 Is:

    1. Idealized Influence: Serving as a role model of integrity.
    2. Inspirational Motivation: Communicating an inspiring vision.
    3. Intellectual Stimulation: Encouraging creativity and questioning assumptions.
    4. Individualized Consideration: Mentoring and coaching followers according to individual needs.

  4. What is cognitive dissonance in organizational psychology?

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    Cognitive Dissonance

    Cognitive dissonance is the psychological discomfort or tension experienced by an individual when holding two or more contradictory beliefs, attitudes, or values, or when their behavior conflicts with their held attitudes (e.g., an environmentalist working for a polluting corporation).

  5. Define psychological contract and explain its impact on employee engagement.

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    Psychological Contract

    A psychological contract consists of the unwritten, implicit expectations, mutual obligations, and perceived promises between an employee and employer. A breach damages trust, morale, and performance, while fulfillment enhances organizational engagement and loyalty.

Group B

Short Answer Questions. Attempt any THREE questions. (3 × 10 = 30)

[3*10=30]

  1. Explain Hersey and Blanchard’s Situational Leadership Model. How should a leader adapt their style (Telling, Selling, Participating, Delegating) across follower readiness levels?

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    Hersey-Blanchard Situational Leadership Model

    The model asserts that there is no single optimal leadership style; leaders must adapt their behavior based on follower readiness / maturity (competence and commitment).

                  LEADER BEHAVIOR GRID
  High   +-----------------------+-----------------------+
         | PARTICIPATING (S3)    | SELLING (S2)          |
S        | High Relationship,    | High Task,            |
u        | Low Task              | High Relationship     |
p        | (Readiness R3)        | (Readiness R2)        |
p        +-----------------------+-----------------------+
o        | DELEGATING (S4)       | TELLING (S1)          |
r        | Low Relationship,     | High Task,            |
t        | Low Task              | Low Relationship      |
  Low    | (Readiness R4)        | (Readiness R1)        |
         +-----------------------+-----------------------+
                   Low                     High
                     Task / Directive Behavior

    Matching Styles to Follower Readiness:

    1. Telling / Directing (S1) for R1 (Unable and Unwilling/Insecure): High task, low relationship behavior. Leader provides explicit instructions, close supervision, and clear guidance.
    2. Selling / Coaching (S2) for R2 (Unable but Willing/Confident): High task, high relationship behavior. Leader provides directive guidance while explaining rationale and boosting enthusiasm.
    3. Participating / Supporting (S3) for R3 (Able but Unwilling/Apprehensive): High relationship, low task behavior. Leader acts as a facilitator, sharing decision-making and restoring confidence.
    4. Delegating (S4) for R4 (Able and Willing/Confident): Low relationship, low task behavior. Leader grants autonomy, entrusting execution and operational responsibility to followers.

  2. Compare and contrast Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs and Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory of motivation.

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    Maslow’s Need Hierarchy vs. Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory

    1. Comparison of Frameworks

    Dimension Maslow’s Need Hierarchy Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory
    Core Structure 5 hierarchical levels: Physiological, Safety, Social, Esteem, and Self-Actualization. Two independent continua: Hygiene factors and Motivation factors.
    Progression Logic Sequential satisfaction: Lower needs must be satisfied before higher needs emerge. Simultaneous: Eliminating dissatisfaction (hygiene) does not create satisfaction (motivation).
    Hygiene Factors (Dissatisfiers) Aligns with Lower-Order Needs: Physiological, Safety, and basic Social needs. Company policy, salary, physical working conditions, job security, and supervisor quality.
    Motivators (Satisfiers) Aligns with Higher-Order Needs: Esteem and Self-Actualization. Achievement, recognition, challenging work, responsibility, and personal advancement.

    2. Practical Managerial Insights

    • Managers must maintain adequate hygiene factors to prevent employee frustration, but must provide motivators (empowerment, autonomy, recognition) to inspire sustained high performance.

  3. Explain the stages of group development proposed by Bruce Tuckman (Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing, Adjourning). How can leaders resolve conflict during the Storming stage?

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    Tuckman’s Stages of Group Development and Conflict Resolution

    Groups evolve through five sequential developmental stages:

    1. Forming: Team members meet, display polite curiosity, explore boundaries, and clarify team purpose.
    2. Storming: Conflict emerges over roles, leadership authority, divergent working styles, and resource competition.
    3. Norming: Group develops consensus, establishes operating rules, builds interpersonal cohesion, and embraces shared goals.
    4. Performing: The group functions as a high-performing unit focused on executing objectives efficiently.
    5. Adjourning: Project completion, wrap-up, and dissolution.

    Resolving Conflict in the Storming Stage:

    • Clarify Roles and Expectations: Define clear accountability matrices (RACI model) to eliminate ambiguity.
    • Facilitate Open Dialogue: Encourage constructive debate while enforcing psychological safety and mutual respect.
    • Re-Anchor Collective Purpose: Align personal goals with the shared team mission to redirect energy away from interpersonal friction.

  4. Discuss organizational culture using Edgar Schein’s Three-Level Model (Artifacts, Espoused Values, Basic Underlying Assumptions). How is culture transmitted to new employees?

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    Schein’s Three-Level Model of Organizational Culture

    Edgar Schein conceptualizes organizational culture across three depths of visibility:

    [1. ARTIFACTS] (Visible surface: Dress codes, office layouts, ceremonies)
         |
         v
[2. ESPOUSED VALUES] (Stated strategies, corporate credos, official goals)
         |
         v
[3. BASIC UNDERLYING ASSUMPTIONS] (Unconscious, taken-for-granted beliefs, worldviews)

    1. The Three Cultural Levels

    • Artifacts (Surface Level): Visible organizational structures, office architecture, dress codes, jargon, and annual awards ceremonies.
    • Espoused Values (Conscious Level): Stated company philosophies, core values, mission statements, and ethical codes.
    • Basic Underlying Assumptions (Deepest Level): Unconscious, taken-for-granted beliefs regarding human nature, trust, and how the world operates that govern actual behavior.

    2. Transmission of Culture to New Employees

    • Stories and Legends: Circulating narratives of founder struggles, ethical choices, and customer heroism.
    • Rituals and Ceremonies: Structured onboarding rituals, peer celebrations, and recognition events.
    • Material Symbols & Language: Physical office design (open-plan vs. executive suites) and specialized internal acronyms.
    • Role Modeling by Leaders: How executives react to crises, allocate promotions, and handle failures.

Group C

Comprehensive Answer / Case Analysis Question. (1 × 20 = 20)

[1*20=20]

  1. Read the following scenario and answer the questions:

    Global FinTech Nepal is a 5-year-old digital payments startup that expanded rapidly from 20 to 180 employees. The founder, a brilliant software engineer, exercises an extreme authoritarian leadership style: he micromanages code commits, makes all commercial decisions unilaterally, publicly reprimands department heads during all-hands meetings, and views remote work requests as signs of laziness. The consequences are severe: senior software architects and marketing leads are quitting at an annualized turnover rate of 38%; the engineering department is locked in bitter conflict with the sales department; employees display acute symptoms of burnout; and glassdoor reviews describe the workplace culture as ‘fear-driven and toxic’. Concurrently, product release deadlines have been delayed by six months due to communication breakdowns.

    Questions: a. Analyze the founder’s leadership style and its dysfunctional consequences on organizational behavior and climate. b. Design an organizational intervention based on Servant Leadership and Emotional Intelligence (Goleman) to rehabilitate executive leadership. c. Formulate a structured Conflict Resolution and Cross-Functional Collaboration Strategy between Engineering and Sales. d. Outline an Organizational Change Management Plan based on John Kotter’s 8-Step Model to transform the startup’s culture.

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    Case Analysis: Leadership Rehabilitation at Global FinTech Nepal

    a. Diagnosis of Founder Leadership and Dysfunctional Outcomes

    1. Autocratic Micromanagement: Unilateral decision-making stifles initiative, demotivates senior talent, and creates operational bottlenecks where every decision awaits founder approval.
    2. Public Shaming and Psychological Insecurity: Humiliating department heads destroys psychological safety, fostering a culture of fear, defensive silence, and finger-pointing.
    3. Departmental Siloing & Intergroup Conflict: Absence of collaborative leadership fuels tribal rivalry between Engineering and Sales, each blaming the other for delayed product releases.
    4. Severe Talent Attrition & Burnout (38% Turnover): High attrition of intellectual capital directly threatens product continuity and enterprise valuation.

    b. Executive Rehabilitation: Servant Leadership and Emotional Intelligence

    1. Shift to Servant Leadership: Transition the founder from a coercive commander into an enabler whose primary duty is removing operational roadblocks for frontline teams.
    2. Executive Coaching in Emotional Intelligence (Goleman Framework):
      • Self-Awareness: Recognizing how aggressive public outbursts trigger amygdala hijacking and paralyze creative thinking.
      • Self-Regulation: Practicing emotional restraint and constructive feedback techniques (SBI: Situation-Behavior-Impact).
      • Empathy: Actively listening to employee workload concerns and remote-work flexibility needs.
    3. Executive Governance Delegation: Form an Executive Management Committee (CEO, CTO, CMO, CFO) with formal delegated spending and hiring authority.

    c. Cross-Functional Collaboration Strategy (Engineering vs. Sales)

    [Unified Cross-Functional Squads (Spotify Agile Model)]
- Shared Product Pods: 1 Product Manager + 3 Engineers + 1 Sales Lead
- Joint OKRs: Revenue linked to on-time, bug-free feature delivery
- Bi-weekly Sprint Demos: Shared celebrations and joint retrospective feedback
    1. Shared Objectives and Key Results (OKRs): Tie 25% of annual performance bonuses to cross-functional metrics—product adoption rates and client satisfaction.
    2. Service Level Agreements (SLAs): Establish transparent timelines for Sales to submit client feature requests and Engineering to deliver technical feasibility assessments.

    d. Kotter’s 8-Step Cultural Transformation Roadmap

    Kotter Step Action Plan for Global FinTech Nepal
    1. Create Urgency Present data to leadership showing how 38% turnover and product delays threaten company survival.
    2. Build Guiding Coalition Form a Culture Transformation Committee comprising respected engineers, sales leads, and an external HR advisor.
    3. Form Strategic Vision Articulate a clear cultural vision: ‘An autonomous, high-trust fintech hub where innovation thrives through psychological safety’.
    4. Enlist Volunteer Army Engage passionate employees across departments as culture ambassadors to lead open feedback roundtables.
    5. Enable Action / Remove Barriers Abolish micromanagement policies; implement flexible hybrid work; ban public reprimands.
    6. Generate Short-Term Wins Launch a collaborative sprint between Sales and Engineering, publicly celebrating on-time delivery with company-wide awards.
    7. Sustain Acceleration Train all mid-level managers in servant leadership and psychological safety.
    8. Institute Change Institutionalize culture by anchoring core behavioral values into hiring, quarterly reviews, and executive promotions.