Leadership 5th Edition by Larry Siegel, Robert Lussier, Robert Lussier, Christopher Achua, Christopher Achua

Exercise 27

Deval Patrick was re-elected to a second term as Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in November 2010. In his inaugural address, he renewed his commitment to expanding opportunity and prosperity in Massachusetts. Much has changed in Massachusetts since Governor Patrick assumed the leadership of the state five years ago. Governor Patrick funded public education at the highest levels in the history of the Commonwealth and his school reform initiatives earned Massachusetts the top spot in the national Race to the Top competition. And through targeted initiatives that play to the Commonwealth's unique strengths, like his landmark 10-year, $1 billion program to promote the state's life sciences industry, the Governor has positioned the state as a global leader in biotech, biopharmaceuticals, and IT, and as a national leader in clean energy, including making Massachusetts home to the country's first offshore wind farm. Governor Patrick committed the state to renewing its aging and neglected infrastructure and oversaw the expansion of affordable health care insurance to over 98 percent of Massachusetts residents. The Patrick administration also accomplished major reforms that had eluded decades of other elected leadership, reforming the state's pension systems, ethics laws, and transportation bureaucracy. It seems he has instituted a results-oriented culture in his administration. It is what we have described in this chapter as a high(strong)-performing culture.
Deval Patrick describes the story of his life-from growing up on welfare in Chicago to thriving in business and politics-as "improbable." From where he started and where he is now, it seems truly improbable. Long before he became Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Deval Patrick was a 4-year-old boy watching his father walk away from him and his mother. Deval talks of chasing his father down the street pleading with him not to leave. More than 50 years later, Gov. Patrick says that the day his father left their basement apartment on Chicago's South Side is burned into his memory. That's why the title of his new memoir, A Reason to Believe: Lessons from an Improbable Life is quite fitting. Speaking with Morning Edition co-host Renee Montagne, Patrick says his success stems from having supportive family and teachers-and from learning to look at life's lessons as "gifts." 132 He says he has been guided throughout his life by the advice of his grandmother: hope for the best and work for it.
As he puts it, "My life is often described as "improbable." Because I grew up in a broken home and in poverty, my academic career at Harvard College and Harvard Law School is sometimes called "improbable." My legal career, which included winning an argument before the U.S. Supreme Court and suing an Arkansas governor named Bill Clinton, who later appointed me assistant attorney general for civil rights, is called "improbable." My corporate career, which included service as a senior executive at two of the most highly recognized companies in America, Texaco and Coca- Cola, is called "improbable." My political career is described variously as "improbable" or "impossible": In my first race for elective office, lacking name recognition, connections, and money, I became the first African-American governor in the history of Massachusetts." 133 Governor Patrick has indicated that the purpose of his book is to share some of the lessons that have imbued him with core values, shaped his identity, and made him want to be a better man.
Here is a brief outline of Gov Patrick's meteoric rise to power. The first in his family to attend college, Deval Patrick went on to graduate from of Harvard College and the Harvard Law School. Following law school, he served as a law clerk to a federal appellate judge before joining the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund as a staff attorney. He then went on to lead a successful career in the private sector as an attorney and business executive, rising to senior executive positions at Texaco and Coca-Cola. In 1994, President Clinton appointed Patrick Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights, the nation's top civil rights post. At the Justice Department, Patrick worked on a wide range of issues, including prosecution of hate crimes, and the enforcement of employment discrimination, fair lending, and disabilities rights laws. In 1997, Patrick was appointed the first chairperson of Texaco's Equality and Fairness Task Force where he led a company-wide effort to create a more equitable workplace environment. In 2006, he was elected to his first term as Governor of Massachusetts. It was his first race for elected office. In 2010, he was comfortably reelected.
Gov. Patrick has shown in his appointments that he is a strong supporter of diversity, especially at the highest levels of government. In May 2011, Gov. Patrick's nominee, Barbara Lenk was confirmed to serve on the State Supreme Court. She is the Court's first openly gay member. Patrick's other judicial appointments include the court's first black chief justice, Roderick Ireland, and the first Asian-American member, Fernande Duffly. Recently, Governor Patrick signed an executive order protecting state workers from discrimination on the basis of gender identity. "This Executive Order ensures that all employees in the executive branch will continue to be able to perform their duties free of discrimination," Patrick spokesman Alex Goldstein said in a statement.
S-Comm is a Federal program that was designed with the best of intentions, but critics say its implementation mostly targeted illegal immigrants. Critics belief that due to pressure from the federal government, Gov. Patrick agreed to participate in the program. However, when confronted with the reality of the program, he showed the courage of his convictions by standing up to the federal government and saying no. He was praised for his courage to say no in the face of both a powerful federal government and widespread prejudice against immigrants. Governor Patrick showed the compassion, conviction, and common sense approach that got him elected in the first place. When Patrick was elected for a second term, he said to the immigrant community in Massachusetts, "I want you to know that you are welcome here in this Commonwealth. This is your Commonwealth. This is your home." His decision with the S-Comm program showed that he doesn't just talk the talk. He walked the walk, said another person.
When faced with difficult decisions, authentic leaders like Gov. Deval Patrick know what they stand for, and have the courage to act on their principles regardless of external pressures. He has been a visionary and very effective leader so far.
GO TO THE INTERNET : To learn more about Governor Deval Patrick, visit the official Web site of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts at www.Mass.gov
Support your answers to the following questions with specific information from the case and text or with information you get from the Web or another source.
1. In your opinion, would you characterize Governor Patrick's administration as a low- or high-performing culture? Support your answer with evidence from the case.
2. In what ways has Governor Patrick shown that he and his administration embrace and support diversity?
3. What is the evidence in the case to support the assertion that Governor Patrick exemplifies the principles of authentic leadership?
4. What are some the factors in Governor Patrick's life that have influenced his values?
C U M U L A T I V E C A S E Q U E S T I O N S
5. Based on your overall impression of Governor Deval Patrick, describe the quality of the exchange relationship (Chapter 7) he would most likely have with his followers. Explain your answer.
6. In Chapter 8 we discussed how organizational climate can influence team creativity and the role of top leaders in creating such a climate. Has Gov. Patrick created a climate for creativity and innovation in his state? Support your answer.
7. Transformational versus transactional leadership describes two leadership styles commonly associated with senior leaders of corporations (Chapter 9). Which of these leadership types is more representative of Governor Patrick? Support your answer.
C A S E E X E R C I S E A N D R OL E - P L A Y
Preparation: Put yourself in Governor Patrick's position. You are about to have a news conference announcing your choice for the state Supreme Court nomination. You anticipate a lot of questions about the fact that she is a lesbian, and some have accused you of pandering to gay and lesbians for political reasons, not because of any deeply held values or principles. Prepare your response to such a question(s).
In-Class Groups: Break into groups of four to six members to share ideas and develop the response.
Role-Play: One student (representing themselves or their group) may give the response to the entire class, with the class acting like members of the media. Use information from the case and the discussion on diversity for input.