282 Part 3 Group and Organizational Communication
and Mahatma Ghandi, possess all three of these qualities. Dr. King, for example,
had a clear vision for the United States and eloquently articulated his seminal
“I Have a Dream” speech. He was also charismatic—a gifted writer and speaker
with a magnetic personality and a presence that inspired Americans to join him
in demanding equal rights for all citizens. And, finally, he was a transformative
leader: he motivated those inside the movement to work hard for civil rights,
while changing the way others thought about race, rights, and equality. In a
similar vein, our effective high school principal may exhibit vision, charisma, and
initiative as she successfully transforms her school.Unethical Leadership
Competent leadership requires more than the ability to adapt your leader-
ship styles to your group or exhibit the effective qualities of vision, charisma,
and initiative. Competent leaders also hold both themselves and the group
accountable for achieving their results, and they treat all group members in an
ethical manner.THINK
ABOUT
THIS❶ Was Bradley wrong,
or was he just doing what
any aspiring journalist
would do to free up his
time? Do you have a
greater understanding for
his struggle in light of your
own position?
❷ Is it OK to pawn your
work off on unpaid college
students, even if they’re
willing to do it?
❸ As the group’s leader,
do you have a responsi-
bility to these interns to
ensure that they get the
most from their internship
experience?
❹ Looking back at your
own internship, is possible
that it was more valuable
than you think? What
might you have learned
about the business while
answering the boss’s
e-mails or filing his
completed work?Leading the Interns
You are currently working as an editorial assistant at a reputable music maga-
zine, and among your responsibilities is leading a group of young, aspiring
summer interns. You find this task especially rewarding because, as a college
student, you suffered through a mind-numbing internship in order to get your
foot in the door, so you hope that you can make this internship rewarding for
the students in your department.
Back when you were an intern, you worked with an assistant named
Bradley, who was in a position similar to the one you’re in now. Bradley al-
ways seemed to pass off his boring, menial tasks—such as filing, answering
his boss’s e-mail, and setting up appointments—to the interns so that he
could sit and listen to new records in an attempt to further his career in rock
criticism. You and the other interns were willing to take on just about any task
in order to get a good recommendation, but you always slightly resented
Bradley, feeling that he had used you and others in your group.
Since you started working long hours at your assistant job, however,
you’ve wondered if Bradley actually had the right idea. Like Bradley, you as-
pire to be a music critic, and the mundane tasks of your job are beginning to
frustrate you. Such tasks are, however, part of your job description—they are
what every assistant does.
You want to have time to talk to writers, to write or edit copy, and to be
able to sit in on pitch meetings. Bradley kept you from such experiences as
an intern because you were too busy fetching lattes for his boss. The prob-
lem is, now you need to get lattes for your own boss, and this is keeping you
from gussying up your own portfolio. Yet here are new, young interns willing
and eager to do anything to get ahead, perhaps even taking over those me-
nial tasks. What should you do?EVALUATINGCOMMUNICATIONETHICS