Developing Leaders at Ups

Norwich University

201509_OL510B

Week 3 Paper 1

Mini-Case “Developing Leaders at UPS”

Heather Powell

Question 1: What are the major skills Jovita Carranza has demonstrated in her career at UPS that have made her a successful leader?

        “Jovita Carranza attributes much of her success to her eagerness to take on new challenges: “The one error that people make early on in their careers is that they’re very selective about opportunities so they avoid some, prefer others,” she says. She continues, “I always accepted all opportunities that presented themselves because from each one you can learn something, and they serve as a platform for future endeavors” (Hughes et al. 2015, p.79).   Jovita worked hard and she was able to recognize the capabilities of growth within UPS. Jovita had great leaders in whom recognized and awarded her loyalty to UPS alongside her willingness to go the extra-mile concerning her work, because, “Carranza demonstrated a strong work ethic and a commitment to UPS, and UPS rewarded her with opportunities—opportunities Carranza was not shy about taking advantage of” (Hughes et al. 2015, p.79).

        There are many lessons in leadership and obtainable skills that readers can draw from this mini case study of Jovita Carranza’s career with UPS. “UPS has always striven to give its managers a stake in the company's success and rewards for long-term service. Some 90 percent of UPS's top executives began their careers in entry-level jobs, working their way up as package sorters or delivery drivers” (“UPS Delivers”, 2011, p.12). Jovita had the ability to shift her focus from technical/functional expertise (a clerk) to leadership skills; as she continued to move higher in the organization, currently vice president of UPS Air Operations. Additionally, she aligns her personal and organizational values and visions that benefit not only UPS but her life and career as well.  

        Jovita has the ability to listen to others, as she stated, “Sit back and listen and observe. You learn more by not speaking” (Hughes et al. 2015, p.79), and she learns from others’ mistakes, “Intelligent people learn from their own experiences; with wisdom, you learn from other people’s mistakes” (Hughes et al. 2015, p.79).  “Known also as observational learning or mastery modeling, vicarious learning is linked to social cognitive theory and stems from the notion that most learning generated by direct experience can occur by observing the behavior of others. Vicarious learning has been shown to facilitate knowledge transfer in organizational contexts related to management” (Ford et al. 2007, p.44).

        Through vicarious learning, Jovita has had surrounded herself with capable and dedicated employees. She has a willingness to learn from all opportunities and experiences which requires perception, observation and reflection. “Observation and perception both deal with attending to events around us. Both seem to take place spontaneously and effortlessly” (Hughes et al. 2015, p.47). “Perception influences reflection- because reflection is how we interpret our observations” Hughes et al. 2015, p.49).

        “Jovita Carranza’s corporate achievements, determination, drive, innovation, and leadership in business have earned her the distinction of being named Hispanic Business Magazine’s Woman of the Year”(Hughes et al. 2015, p. 80). Jovita has not stopped learning, and did earn her MBA. She was interviewed in 2001 the magazine, Traffic World, and was quoted,” Being a student is fun. I also believe that new information is critical to get ahead of the competition. There are a lot of accomplished business people in that classroom and listening to their experiences helps [sic] me improve aspects of our company” (Biederman, 2001, p.28).        

Question 2: Consider the spiral of experience that Jovita Carranza has traveled. How has her experience affected her ability as a leader?

Jovita actions started with the morals and lessons learned from her parents. “She credits her parents, both of Mexican decent, with teaching her “the importance of being committed, of working hard, and doing something with a positive outlook”- principles she says continue to guide her personal and professional life.  These principles mirror those of the company whose corporate ladder she has climbed nonstop, an organization she says values diversity and encourages quality, integrity, commitment, fairness, loyalty, and social responsibility” (Hughes et al. 2015, p.80). Jovita is not shy about her career and the advantages she took to get where she is today, and with her strong work ethic and loyalty and commitment to UPS will continue to allow her to grow personally and professionally. She says, “I always accept all opportunities that are presented themselves (sic)  because from each one you can learn something, and they serve as a platform for future endeavors” (Hughes et al. 2015, p.79).