Assignment Task

You will have the opportunity to use your Leading and Change knowledge to evaluate your own leadership capabilities in a change situation. Assessment 1 is based on material covered in term one and consists of a 1,200 word reflective essay. This assessment is worth 40% of your overall grade for the module.

Reflective Essay Brief

Write a reflective essay (1,200 words) on a real change situation you are currently facing or have dealt with in the past. This might be a challenge at University, in the organisation you work for, the neighbourhood you live in, or extra-curricular activities or clubs you participate in. The chosen change challenge has to be important to you and needs to involve the execution of your leadership capabilities.

Your reflective essay should include 3 sections:

1. 1.    A brief introduction to the situation you wanted to change (+/-200 words). 

This section should introduce the change challenge you faced. Example of change challenges include:

• Changing a process in the organisation you work in
• Re-defining tasks and responsibilities in a group project
• Implementing a mentoring programme for disadvantaged children in your community
• Improving your career prospects

It is recommended that you:

• Include specific detail about the situation:
  • What was the initial situation/problem?
  • Where and when did it take place?
  • What was your role?
  • Who were the key people involved?

1. 2.    A critical analysis of your own leadership capabilities in the situation (+/- 800 words). 

This section of your paper should focus on the analysis of your leadership capabilities in the chosen change situation. For your analysis, it is required that you apply TWO leadership theories/topics covered in term one.

In analysing the situation critically discuss:

• What exactly did you want to change?
• Why did you consider the change necessary?
• What was your goal? What needed to happen in order for the change to take place? (e.g. influence others, find resources, find collaborators/supporters, etc.)
• Were you successful in bringing about change?
  • If so, what leadership capabilities do you have that were valuable to making change?
  • If not, what leadership capabilities did you lack to make the change happen?
  • What have you learned about your leadership capabilities through this experience?

It is recommended that you:

• Do not only describe “what happened” or “what you did”, but critically analyse why and how you behaved or reacted in specific ways, or why the situation unfolded as it did.
• Focus on your own behaviour and leadership capabilities, not on those of others.
• Define and apply those leadership theories that are most relevant to the chosen change situation. “Applying theory” requires you to draw out links between theory or academic evidence and your own experiences.
• Show how theories are linked together. This will make your reflective essay more insightful.

1. 3.    A leadership development plan (+/- 200 words) 

In this section of your reflective essay you have the opportunity to develop an action plan to become a more effective leader. Your plan must include TWO distinct actions.

It is recommended that you:

• Develop a specific, realistic and feasible action plan that can help you develop your leadership capabilities. Your action plan should clearly derive from your previous analysis. 
• Focus on future events, do not discuss “what you should have done”, but concentrate on what would you do in a similar situation in the future.

Further guidance and requirements

• Your essay should include a cover page
• Since you are analysing a personal experience with reference to leadership theories, it is required that you:
  • Write your analysis in an academic style
  • Draw your analysis on appropriate academic evidence (academic articles and books)
  • Cite a minimum of TEN appropriate and different academic sources in the body of the text
  • The reference list is NOT included in the word count, but the in-text citations ARE included in the word count.
  • It is recommended that you use headings appropriately to structure the work and guide the reader. Headings ARE included in the word count.

Background/Context

What is a reflective essay?

A reflective essay is a recount of your own life experiences. In a reflective essay, you explain and analyse your behaviour, choices, and development. You also set new goals and define an action plan.

You should write your reflective essay in first person (I, me, my). This is an academic assignment, and as such it has to be structured and written in formal language (avoid slang). Your reflective essay should be concise, specific, and objective.