Robert Hill founded his machinist company 10 years ago. He was the only employee at that time and as the company grew he personally worked long hours and encouraged others who wanted to share in the profits and stick with him as he aimed for his goal of retiring at 45 with 10 million dollars to work long and hard also. Loyalty and long hours were rewarded. Hill continued to discuss his personal financial situation with the employees. While it was a loyal group there was tension and people “blew off steam” with Hill acting as mediator whenever necessary. Hill brought in a partner nine years after the company was founded to help deal with the troubled financial situation he was in because of expansion. The new partner wanted Hill nearer to her and he moved his office from the shop to be closer to her. They brought in a works manager, Phil Bellows, the partner’s son in law. Bellows attempted to improve business processes without consulting or speaking to the employees, Instead of face-to-face communications, he began communicating by email the changes he wanted. He also told employees not to speak directly with Hill about problems as they had in the past. The employees resented this and took steps whenever possible to impede production. Bellows’ directives seemed to be in direct contract to Hill’s previous policies. Morale dropped and employees left even though Robbins and Bellow thought things were better because of the changes made.

Using the leadership theories from the chapter, compare and contrast the leadership practices of Robert Hill and Phil Bellows and assess their appropriateness given what you know about the employees at Hill Enterprises?