Twitter Leader Competencies
For this assignment, you need to identify a leader on Twitter with at least 10K followers. Focus on selecting a leader of an organization, charity, governmental agency, etc. Do not choose a celebrity. Based on your review of his/her digital content (tweets/re-tweets), identify his/her three competencies that you believe helped this person become a leader on Twitter. These should be based upon the competencies presented by Ruben (2006) and discussed in week 5.
In preparation for this assignment review the PowerPoint slides from week five and read Ingerson, K. & Bruce, J. (2013). Leadership in the Twitterverse. Journal of Leadership Studies, 7(3), 74-83.
Assignment Instructions: For each of the competencies that you select connect the tweets to two different sub-dimensions of that competency. For example, if you select Personal Competency then for example you should connect one tweet to the sub-dimension Character, Personal Values, & Ethics and one tweet for example to the sub-dimension Self-Discipline & Self-Confidence. You must define and describe each of the three competencies and six sub-dimensions that you are writing about in your own words. Be sure to justify your reasoning.
Organization of the Paper:
Begin with a brief introductory paragraph introducing the leader you picked for this assignment and the three competencies you will be discussing throughout the paper (5-6 sentences). Remember that there are five competencies identified by Ruben, each with 7 sub-categories.
Name and define (in your own words) the first competency briefly and explain your reasoning for selecting this competency for your leader. Make sure to include the original digital content (TWEET) of your leader to justify the competency you have chosen (e.g., 2 original tweets/retweets from Twitter). Connect each tweet to two different sub-dimensions of that competency.
Name and define (in your own words) the second competency briefly and explain your reasoning for selecting this competency for your leader. Make sure to include the original digital content of your leader to justify the competency you have chosen (e.g., 2 original tweets/retweets from Twitter). Connect each tweet to a different sub-dimensions of that competency.
Name and define (in your own words) the third competency briefly and explain your reasoning for selecting this competency for your leader. Make sure to include the original digital content of your leader to justify the competency you have chosen (e.g., 2 original tweets/retweets from Twitter). Connect each tweet to two different sub-dimensions of that competency.
Conclude with a paragraph of lessons you have learned from the assignment. Based on your analysis, describe which competencies do you think you need to develop to be influential in digital contexts and provide your reasoning.
Format: Make sure to include your name on your paper!!! Automatic 5pts deducted for no name!
Approximately 5 typed pages (double-spaced), 1-inch margins right, left, top and bottom, times roman font
Make sure to include in-text citations for Ruben and ALL TWEETS; Include a works cited page; no separate cover page is needed.
Citations: Cite Ruben and each tweet in your paper and include your citations in your references. In text citations for Ruben would look like: Personal competency as described by Ruben (2006) includes character, personal values, and ethics . . . For twitter in-text citations you would write: Obama (2012, November 7) demonstrated enthusiasm, a dimension of the personal competency, when he posted a photo of Michele and himself after the 2012 election. You would then include a full reference for that tweet in your reference section.
References: (Twitter example) Obama, B. [BarackObama]. (2012, Nov 07). Four more years. http://t(dot)co/bAJE6Vom [Tweet]. Retrieved from https://twitter(dot)com/BarackObama/status/266031293945503744 (Links to an external site.).
Ruben, B. D. (2006). What leaders need to know and do: A leadership competencies scorecard. Washington, DC: NACUBO.
APA Resources
OWL Purdue University - Online Writing Lab: APA General Format, https://owl(dot)english(dot)purdue(dot)edu/owl/resource/560/01/ (Links to an external site.).
OWL Purdue University - Online Writing Lab: APA In-Text Citations - The Basics, https://owl(dot)english(dot)purdue(dot)edu/owl/resource/560/02/ (Links to an external site.)
OWL Purdue University - Online Writing Lab: APA In-Text Citations - Author/Authors, https://owl(dot)english(dot)purdue(dot)edu/owl/resource/560/03/ (Links to an external site.)
OWL Purdue University - Online Writing Lab: Quoting, Paraphrasing, and Summarizing, https://owl(dot)english(dot)purdue(dot)edu/owl/resource/563/1/ (Links to an external site.)
OWL Purdue University - Online Writing Lab: APA Reference List - Basic Rules, https://owl(dot)english(dot)purdue(dot)edu/owl/resource/560/05/ (Links to an external site.)
OWL Purdue University - Online Writing Lab: APA Reference List - Electronic Sources, https://owl(dot)english(dot)purdue(dot)edu/owl/resource/560/10/ (Links to an external site.)
OWL Purdue University - Online Writing Lab: APA Reference List - Author/Authors, https://owl(dot)english(dot)purdue(dot)edu/owl/resource/560/06/ (Links to an external site.)
Twitter Assignment
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Twitter Assignment
Introduction
Twitter is one of the social media sites that leaders have embraced to share their ideas, opinions, and advice with their followers. One such leader is Aaron Levie, who is the CEO of Box, a B2B cloud-based company serving 97,000 companies (Box, n.d.). The tweets shared by Levie show that he is not only an expert in the field of technology but also an advisor for startups seeking to start operations using internet-based technologies. The tweets shared by the leader can provide a glimpse of his key leadership competencies. The three leadership competencies that Levie demonstrates through his tweets are analytic, positional, and organizational. These competencies alongside two sub-dimensions of each are examined in the sections that follow.
Analytic Competency
Analytic competency is the first ability that Levie demonstrates, judging from his tweets. Analytic competency is the ability to be thoughtful, self-aware, and attentive of not only one’s own feelings and purposes but also those of others (Ruben, 2006). I selected this competency for the leader because, through his tweets, I found him to be extremely aware and attentive to what is happening in the world of business technology. The leader also offers insightful ideas, which to a great extent shows that indeed he possesses analytical competency. Levie (2022, February 12) shared this tweet that depicts his analytical competency:
There are thousands of important things that you have to get right on the journey of building a business. But the thing that matters most, and ultimately takes priority above all else, is solving the customer’s problem far better than before. It’s that simple.
This tweet by Levie demonstrates problem-solving, which is a subdimension of the analytic competency. Problem-solving means the ability to evaluate a situation, identify potential courses of action, and make a follow-through to ensure it is addressed (Ruben, 2006). Levie (2022, February 12) shows his passion for solving customers’ problems, which he considers the top priority for building a business. Therefore, from the tweet, one can deduce that Levie is a leader who loves to solve problems. In this case, not only is he interested in solving customers’ problems, but also the challenges that business people face as they build their businesses.
In another tweet, Levie (2022, January 21) notes that “Markets will go up and down. Building something durable that you’re insanely excited about seeing in the world is the best way to get through any of the challenges along the way.” This tweet portrays a leader who has a broad perspective of how a business ought to be built. This is consistent with the system, organizational, situational analysis sub-dimension of the analytic competency, which means the ability to focus on the big picture and examine the short-term and strategic concerns (Ruben, 2006). In the tweet, it is deducible that Levie (2022, January 21) understands that markets going up and down in the short term can affect a business significantly, and therefore, he advises his followers to build businesses based on their passion, which will help address the turbulence that characterizes market behavior. From the tweet, I think he advises his followers to focus on the big picture and their passion.
Positional Competency
Positional competency refers to possessing the knowledge and skills that are considered essential for effective leadership in a particular field (Ruben, 2006). As the CEO of a company in the digital market, Levie demonstrates a high level of positional competency. I selected this competency because I found Levie’s Twitter timeline offering numerous pieces of advice relating to starting a digital business. Levie seems to possess an incredible amount of knowledge in running a technology business, and I think this stems from the fact that he has been the leader of Box, a technology firm, since 2005. Therefore, I felt he has valuable know-how related to digital businesses, and he is enthusiastic about sharing it with his followers. In the following tweet, Levie (2022, January 21) demonstrates his positional competency in the sense that he has been there in the software industry:
The fun part of software is its infinite opportunity. I’m not sure I’ve ever left a meeting with a customer without a new product idea or enhancement, just as a result of listening to what problem they’re trying to solve next.
The sub-dimension of positional competency related to the above tweet is experience. According to Ruben (2006), experience means having a relevant practical involvement in a particular sector. In the case of Levie, he has immense experience in dealing with software technologies that have made him who he is today. Therefore, the tweet shows that he has handled software in the past and knows there is a fun part. Furthermore, from the tweet, it is evident that he has had several meetings with customers who have inspired new product ideas and development. This underpins the significance of experience for a leader, and it means that the time one spends in a particular field is instrumental in leaders...