659w09

I have been delaying this first CWP because I wanted to have the Presidential Inauguration behind us. Understanding Leadership in the Presidency is more important than ever these days and it is becoming increasingly complex. The complexity is due in large part to the close interconnection between political and financial issues. And the demands on this President are extraordinary in this regard. So I want you to write a report on the Leadership values and virtues (you should work out the relationship between the two) we should expect from President Obama as he enters the Oval Office. As a result of this discussion you may even want to suggest some strategies to promote effective Leadership. I do not want you to focus on "war" issues except insofar as they may impact on the fiscal issues.

Keep in mind that, as a result of my "twisted mentality," I may ask you to do an assessment of "How the President is Doing" as your second collaborative project since, by then, you will have a much more comprehensive knowledge of what is involved in Leadership.

THE TASK FOR THE SECOND COLLABORATIVE WRITING PROJECT (CWP2).

Because of recent events I have decided not to let my "twisted mentality" determine the topic for the second Collaborative Writing Project. [Battling infections has a secondary effect in that regard.] Instead, I would like you to address the issue of Financial Compensation as a part of Leadership Values. You cannot watch a news program or pick up a newspaper --- respectable or otherwise --- without being bombarded by notices and criticisms of the bonuses that have recently been announced for executives of AIG and other companies in light of the government "bailouts" that have been given to those companies. Even before the "bailouts" were announced last fall many Americans were aghast at the financial compensations for high level executives. But that taxpayers (you and I) might be called upon to support these "highrollers" was just over the top. Some thought the executives were being rewarded for failure (the golden parachute syndrome) rather than for success (nobody's efforts are worth THAT much). Even President Obama has got into the act with the suggestion that no executive working for a company that has received a "bailout" should receive more than $500,000. [That's $100,000 more than his Presidential salary --- before perks.]

So in this CWP2 I would like to ask you to suggest the appropriate ways a Moral Leader would address the issue of appropriate compensation for services rendered. Is there a level beyond which a Moral Leader should not go in accepting a compensation package? What values should guide a Moral Leader in negotiating a compensation package? Is there a compensation "ceiling?" Or does Capitalism give free rein to "get whatever you can?" Does the concept of "Servanthood" give any guidance in this matter? Does Congress or the President have the right to dictate a ceiling for executive compensation?

You have probably all discussed these matters around the water coolers ---- are there such things in offices these days? --- or over the dinner table or during cocktail hour. So you have probably already formulated opinions about these matters and many others that I have not suggested. So I know that this will not be a back-breaking task for you to discuss the issue of "Financial Compensation as a part of Leadership Values" and see if you can come to some consensus [I can imagine that a team might not come to a consensus --- that's OK.] about Compensation and Leadership Values. Dare I suggest that the question could be "What would a Moral Leader do?" I'll bet you could give some pretty darn good answers to that question.

I'm not going to give you an outline for this report. Let's see how you do with developing it yourselves. You did such a good job about this in CWP1. Why should I tinker with success?

You will notice that this project combines the features of a threaded discussion and the task of writing. The threaded discussion that leads up to the actual writing should contain at least 5 contributions from each member of the team. The merits of the report will be judged on the team discussion and the reflection of that discussion in the final report. The contributions should be CONTENT oriented in addition to any contributions that may be addressing the manner in which the work has been divided or how the report will be assembled. The contributions to this discussion should be made on an on-going basis. You should not wait until the end of the discussion period to make your contribution. Waiting until the end is not fair to the other members of the team and will jeopardize the success to the project.

Since the situation is so current you will have to use news magazines and newspapers for your research. I suggest Time and Newsweek and also The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. You probably all get The Wall Street Journal so you can go to WSJ.com as an easy resource. You can also take advantage of the Dow Jones Interactive website, <http://www.sba.udayton.edu/it/dji.asp>, which the School of Business Administration makes available to you. The link to the Dow Jones Interactive website is accessed form the SBA link identified above, but you will probably have to use a computer at the university to access this site. Much good and accurate information is available from these sources. The library at this site is a particularly valuable treasure trove of references.

The first report is due Monday, March 2. The second report will be due Wednesday, April 22.