Organisms of Greatest Importance in The Spoilage of Canned Foods

Microbial spoilage of heat-processed canned foods is caused by microorganisms, which survive the heat processes or that gain entrance, through container leakage, subsequent to the heat processing. It is virtually impossible to predict what types of microorgan­isms may gain entrance through container leakage. However, there are important measures for minimizing this type of spoilage. These will be discussed in some detail later. From the standpoint of establish­ing sterilization processes, spore-bearing bacteria except in highly acid products are the organisms of chief concern. Because the type of microbial spoilage, as well as the heat resistance of bacteria, in closely related to the acidity of foods, for convenience of discussion the different foods are often grouped in classes with respect to pH.

Classification of Food with Respect to Acidity

Various classifications have been proposed. Cameron and Esty (1940) suggested the following:

1. Low-acid foods: pH 5.0 and higher.

2. Medium- (or semi-) acid foods: pH 5.0 to 4.5

3. Acid foods: pH 4.6 to 8.7.

4. High-acid foods: pH 3.7 and lower.

Except for the dividing line between acid and high-acid foods, this classification serves as well perhaps as any. In practice, it has been found that pH 4.00 is a more realistic dividing line between acid and high-acid foods. Seldom will spore-bearing bacteria grow in heat-processed foods with pH values of 4.0 or lower. Some of the butyric anaerobes and Bacillus coagulans (B.thermoacidurans) will grow in laboratory culture or even in foods at pH values as low as 3.7; however, this generally occurs only with very heavy inocula. Some workers recognize only three classes of foods, namely:

1. Low-acid foods: pH above 9.5.

2. Acid foods: pH 9.0 to 9.5.

3. High-acid food: pH below 4.0.

The dividing line between low-acid and acid foods is taken as 4.5 because some strains of Clostridium botulinum will grow and produce toxin at pH values as low as about 4.6. Some of the highly heat­-resistant saccharolytic anaerobes-for example, Clostridium thermo­saccharolyticum – grow in and cause spoilage of foods in this semi­-acid range. Therefore, until more is known of bacterial heat resistance and bacterial growth in the 'semi-acid foods, they perhaps should remain in the low-acid grouping.

Classification of Spore-Bearing Bacteria with Reference to Oxygen Requirements

In low-acid and acid foods, the spore-bearing bacteria are of greatest concern from the standpoint of sterilization. With respect to oxygen requirements they may be classified as follows: (1) obligate aerobes-Bacillus spp.; (2) facultative anaerobes-Bacillus spp.; (3) obligate anaerobes-Clostridium spp.

Obligate Aerobes

This group includes those species that require molecular oxygen for growth. From the standpoint of food sterilization, it is the least important of the three groups. Under present-day methods of canning, most foods contain very low levels of molecular oxygen, insufficient to support appreciable growth. Beyond this, spores of most obligate aerobes are low in heat resistance compared with spores of a number of organisms in the other two groups. Heat proc­esses designed to free foods of the more-resistant organisms in groups 2 and 3 are generally more than adequate to free foods of the aerobic bacilli. However, as with most things, there are exceptions. In canned cured meat products containing nitrate, the Bacillus subtilis - Bacillus mycoides group of organisms may at times be of greater economic importance than some other groups of bacteria.

Some canned cured meat products are given relatively mild heat processes, inhibitory action of the curing agents, and in some cases refrigeration, being depended on to prevent spoilage by organisms in groups 2 and 3. It is usual for spores of aerobic bacilli to survive in some of these products. A number of strains of these bacilli are capable of reducing nitrate to obtain oxygen for metabolic activity. If not destroyed by the heat process, and if subjected to favorable temperatures, many of them will grow in the cured meat products and cause gaseous spoilage. It should be noted that the dry spices used in seasoning some of these products are sometimes heavily contaminated with spores of the aerobic bacilli.

Facultative Anaerobes

Spore-bearing bacteria of the facultative anaerobic group are among the more important from the standpoint of food sterilization. Of particular importance in low-acid and acid foods are thermophilic spore-bearing bacilli. Some of these produce spores that are more resistant to heat than are spores produced by most obligate anaerobes. They generally cause what is known as "flat­-sour" spoilage; that is, they produce acid but little or no gas. Though the most troublesome ones are classified as thermophiles, many of them have the faculty to grow, though more slowly, at or near ambient food-handling temperatures.

Of greatest importance in low-acid foods is Bacillus stearothermophilus and related species. These flat-sour-producing organisms are often not identified with respect to species by the food bacteriologist butt simply labeled as belonging to the B.stearothermophilus group. A number of these strains and species produce spores characterized by D₂₅₀ values in excess of 4.00 minutes, D₂₅₀ being the time, in minutes, at 250⁰F required to destroy 90% of the spores in a given population. This is in contrast to a small fraction of a minute at 250⁰F required to destroy 90% of the spores of most obligate aerobic bacilli. The optimum growth temperature for these flat-sour thermophiles varies considerably among strains and species from about 40⁰ to 55⁰C (120⁰ to 131⁰F.). Most of them seldom grow at temperature below about 38⁰C. (100⁰F.)

Of greatest importance in acid foods are three species of facultative anaerobes-namely, Bacillus coagulans (B. thermoacidurans), Bacillus macerans, and Bacillus polymyxa. Of these, Bacillus coagulans is the more important, particularly in spoilage of tomatoes and tomato products. Bacillus macerans, and Bacillus polymyxa have been isolated as causative organisms in spoilage of some fruits and fruit products. There is some doubt whether spores of these latter organisms resisted the heat processes given or whether the organisms gained entrance through container leakage subsequent to the heat processing.

Bacillus coagulans has been the cause of economically importance spoilage of acid foods, particularly tomato product. It is quite acid-tolerant, growing at pH values of 4.0 or slightly lower. It grows well in tomatoes products and some other semi-acid foods in the pH range 4.0 to 4.6. It is of little concern in low-acid foods, however, because heat processes for these foods are generally more than adequate to destroy its spores. The D₂₅₀ values of B. coagulans spores are of the order of 0,1 and less. Bacillus coagulans is generally classified as a thermophile; however, it has the faculty to grow quite well at ambient food-handling temperatures.

Obligate Anaerobes

Some species of spore-bearing anaerobes produce spores those are relatively quite heat-resistant. With reference to canned food spoilage these may be classified in two groups, mesophilic and thermophilic. Of the thermophiles, the most important are the saccharolytic organisms, which do not produce hydrogen sulfide. Clostridium thermosaccharoliticum is generally considered the type species of this group. These organisms are very saccharolytic, producing large quantities of gas, chiefly carbon dioxide and hydrogen, from a wide variety of carbohydrates. Consequently, they cause spoilage of the “swell” or gaseous type. They often produce a butyric or “cheesy” odor on foods. They generally are of greater importance in the spoilage of semi-acid products (pH 4.5 to 5.0) than are flat-sour types. Their optimum growth temperature is about 32⁰C. (131⁰F). They seldom grow at temperature below about 32⁰C. (90⁰F). They can be a source of real trouble at temperatures of 35⁰C. (95⁰F.) and above. Some strains produce spores of extremely high heat resistance, making severe processing necessary if their spores are present in appreciable numbers.

Thermophilic spore-bearing anaerobes that produce hydrogen sulfide are responsible for the so-called “sulfur stinker” spoilage of canned foods. Clostridium nigrificans is considered the type species of this group. These organisms are proteolytic, and hydrogen sulfide is the only gas they produce in great quantity. They are only weakly, if at all saccharolytic, because the hydrogen sulfide is soluble in the product, spoiled cans usually remain flat. Many products spoiled by these organisms become black, owing to the interaction of the hydrogen sulfide and iron. Spoilage by these organisms is comparatively rare for two reasons: Incident of their spores in most products is generally low, and the spores of most strains are relatively low in heat resistance compared with spores of the saccharolytic thermophilic anaerobes and the flat-sour thermophilic facultative anaerobes. Neither of the above groups is of importance in foods having pH values below about 4.5.

Next in importance, in low-acid foods, to the groups discussed above are spore-bearing mesophilic anaerobes. Because of its public health significance, the toxin-producing organism, Clostridium botulinum, should perhaps be considered of greatest importance among organisms of this group. Of the different botulinum types, A, B, and E are of greatest significance. Spores of Types A and B are considerably more heat-resistant than spores of Type E and therefore of greatest concern in the sterilization of canned foods. Even the spores of A and B are not nearly as heat-resistant as the spores of a closely related nontoxic organism identified only as P.A.3679. Whereas the most-resistant spores of Types A and B botulinum are characterized by D₂₅₀ values of the order of 0.10 to 0.20, the most-resistant spores of P.A.3679 are characterized by D₂₅₀ values of the order of 0.50 to 1.50.

Fortunately, the incidence of the more-resistant strains of P.A.3679 is very low in most foods. For this reason, canning processes designed to assure a high degree of safety with regard to C. botulinum are often adequate to prevent economically important spoilage by even the most resistant of these nontoxic putrefactive anaerobes. Perhaps the greatest importance of P.A.3679 is as a test organism to check the adequacy of canning processes. It is almost ideal for this purpose, not only because of its heat resistance, but because it is nontoxic, it is easy to cultivate, and its spoilage of foods is accompanied by voluminous production of gas.

Other proteolytic or putrefactive organisms most frequently causing spoilage of low-acid and semi-acid foods are C. putrificum, C. Histalyticum, C. bifermentans, C. sporogenes, and related species. Heat processes designed to assure a high degree of safety with regard to C. botulinum are often adequate to prevent economically important spoilage by these organisms; however, not infrequently, more severe processes than considered adequate to control C. botulinum are necessary to prevent spoilage of a number of food items by the more heat-resistant members of this group, including P.A.3679.

Important in the spoilage of some foods are saccharolytic spore-bearing anaerobes of lower heat resistance than the more-resistant putrefactive anaerobes. Of greatest importance in this group are C. pasteurianum, C. butyricum, and related butyric anaerobes. Some strains of these grow well in foods with pH values in the range of 4.0 to 4.5. However, their spores are usually less resistant to heat than are the spores of the flat-sour organism B. coagulans. Therefore, heat processes designed to free acid foods of B. coagulans are generally adequate to free them of the butyric anaerobes.

In summary, of the mesophilic obligate anaerobes, in spoilage of low-acid and semi-acid foods (pH 4.5 and above) the putrefactive anaerobes, C. sporogenes and related species, are of greatest import­ance. In spoilage of acid foods (pH 4.0 to 4.5) the butyric anaerobes, C. pasteurianum and related species, are of greatest importance. The temperature range of optimum growth of these organisms is 25⁰ to 35⁰C. (77⁰ to 95⁰F.).

Non-Spore-Bearing Bacteria, Yeasts, and Molds

Except when they gain entrance through container leakage, these organisms are of greatest importance in spoilage of high-acid canned foods (pH below 4.0) given relatively mild heat processes-pickles, grapefruit, citric juices, rhubarb, cranberries, etc. They are of some importance also in spoilage of concentrated and sweetened products given mild heat processes, the high soluble solids content being depended on to inhibit growth of spore-bearing organisms-for ex­ample, fruit and vegetable concentrates, jellies, preserves, sweetened condensed milk.

Of the non-spore-bearing bacteria, Lactobacillus and Leuconostoc spp. are most important. A wide variety of yeasts have been found as spoilage agents of number of high-acid foods given mild heat processes. The more resistant of these yeasts and bacteria are charac­terized by D₁₅₀ values of the order of 1.00. Pasteurization processed based on this resistance value usually prove adequate. Molds are generally considered significant as spoilage agents in canned foods.

The temperature range of optimum growth for most of these non­-spore-bearing bacteria, yeasts, and molds is from 20⁰ to 35⁰C. (68⁰ to 95⁰F.).

Organisms Entering via Container Leakage

If a container "breathes" even shortly, bacteria may be sucked in with contaminated air or water. They are far more likely to enter with contaminated water than with air. In most cases, the openings causing leakage are small enough to filter out bacteria-laden dust from the air. This is not the case for bacteria suspended in water. Because of thin and because of stream on can seams and jar closures during the cooling operation, bacteria are most likely to gain entrance during cooling or shortly thereafter, while the containers are still wet. With cans, rough handling on contaminated conveyors, and elevators, while the cans are wet is a major contributing factor to can leakage and bacterial contamination.

The beat defenses against spoil­age because of container leakage are:

1. Good can seams and jar closures.

2. Careful handling to avoid container damage, such as dents close to can seams.

3. Chlorinated cooling water (3 to 5 p.p.m. active chlorine).

4. Rapid drying of containers after cooling.

5. Dry and sanitary post-cooling can-handling equipment.

Because of varied types of bacteria in contaminated cooling water and on can-handling equipment, many different species of bacteria have been associated with leakage spoilage. Usually, though not always, a mixed flora causes leakage spoilage of a container. Commonly found are micrococci, gram-negative rods of the Pseudomonas-Achromobacter group, and yeasts. It should be recognized that very minute amounts of heavily contaminated water could cause spoilage. For example, if the water were contaminated to the extent of 1 million bacterial cells per milliliter, only one-millionth milliliter would have to enter the container to cause spoilage.

Organisms of Greatest Importance in Food Pasteurization

Heat treatments given canned foods are generally thought of as sterilization processes, though those given high-acid canned foods and even those given some acid canned foods are commonly referred to as pasteurization processes. Whether the term sterilization or pasteurization is used to label a heat treatment designed to reduce the microbial population of a food, the basic purpose the heat treatment is the same-that is, to free the food of microorganisms that may endanger the health of food consumers or cause economically important spoilage of the food in storage and distribution. In other words, the purpose is to sterilize the food with respect certain types of microorganisms, regardless of how the heat treatment applied is labeled. Therefore, the chief difference between pasteurization and sterilization is in concept and common usage. Pasteurization is the term that is most often applied to relatively mild heat treatments given foods, that because of their mature will not support growth of the more heat-resistant organisms or that are refrigerated, frozen, concentrated or dehydrated to prevent significant growth of the more heat-resistant organisms. Sterilization is the term that is most often applied to more severe heat treatments, e.g., those given most low-acid canned food items that are designed to free foods of virtually all microorganisms regardless of their heat resistance. Obviously, there can be no sharp line of demarcation between the two terms in either concept or usage.

Pathogenic Microorganisms
Consideration here will be confined to a number of microorganisms that may, not uncommonly, foods that when ingested with foods have the ability to pass trough the intact mucosa of the alimentary tract, grow in the body tissues and produce damage therein causing disease syndrome. Infections diseases so produced are often referred to as food infections in contrast to afflictions caused by microorganisms, e.g., Clostridium botulinum, and most staphylococci, that normally are not pathogenic when ingested. When growing in foods before ingestion, however, they produce toxins that are absorbed from the alimentary tract when the food is ingested and thereby cause intoxication syndrome. The latter are usually referred to as food poisonings or food intoxications. Often infectious and intoxication disease syndromes are very similar, e.g., in the case of Salmonella infections and Staphylococcus food poisonings.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis
This is a non-spore-forming, gram-positive, acid-fast, rod-shaped bacterium that causes tuberculosis, a disease may appear in a diversity of forms, such as the more common pulmonary tuberculosis or the less common tubercular meningitis and tuberculosis of the bone. Tubercle bacilli readily pass through the intact mucosa of the alimentary tract and from there may spread to involve practically every organ of' the body. Historically, tuberculosis stands out as one of the next important scourges of civilized community.

From the standpoint of food pasteurization, M. tuberculosis is of chief concern in milk because it is infectious to cattle and frequently occurs ill the milk of infected animals; in fact, milk in times past was the most common vehicle of infection, although other foods, particularly meat from infected animals, and sputum may be source of infection also. The first real defense against transmission of tuberculosis through milk from cattle to humans was pasteurization, a heat treatment, based on the early work of Louis Pasteur mentioned above. Pasteurization of milk as practiced, to ensure inactivation of M. tuberculosis, was clearly defined in the Milk Ordinance and Code, recommended by the United States Health Service (1953) as follows: “The terms '’pasteurization,’ ‘pasteurized,’ and similar terms shall be taken to refer to the process of heating every particle of milk or milk products to at least 143 degrees F., and holding at such temperature continuously for at least 30 minutes, or to at least 161 degrees F., and holding at such temperature continuously for at least 15 seconds, in approved and properly operated equipment: provided that nothing contained in this definition shall by constructed as barring any other process which has been demonstrated to be equally efficient and which is approved by the State health laboratory.” “Boiled down" this code "specifies, for milk pasteurization, any heat treatment that is equivalent in lethality, with respect to the destruction of M. tuberculosis, to the time-temperature relationship of 30 minutes at 143 degrees F. and 15 second at 161 degrees Fahrenheit.

Brucellae
The brucellae are non-spore-forming, gram-negative, minute rod-shaped bacteria that cause brucellosis in animals and man. This disease is very infectious and causes contagious abortion (Bang’s disease) in cattle and undulant fever in humans. Though the disease may be acute in man, it is more generally chronic and characterized by recurring undulating fever. There are three recognized species of importance: Brucella abortus, Brucella melitensis, and Brucella suis, identified with brucellosis in cattle, goats, and swine, respectively. All three species may cause brucellosis in humans, although B. suis is most probably most infectious for man. Brucella suis is also highly infectious for cattle and may be transmitted to man through the milk from cows infected with this species.

The chief source of brucellosis infection in man is milk from infected cows. However, the disease can be transmitted in meat from infected animals. Like M. tuberculosis, Brucellae organisms pass readily through the intact mucosa of the alimentary tract. As with tuberculosis, milk pasteurization is also the oldest and most effective defense against transmission of brucellosis from cattle to humans. It should be noted that, in regard to both tuberculosis and brucellosis, eradication programs have markedly reduced the number of infected cattle and consequently have greatly, reduced the magnitude of the transmission problem; however they have not been and most likely never will be effective enough to eliminate the necessity of milk pasteurization.

The brucellae are appreciably less resistant to heat than are the most resistant strains of M. tuberculosis. It becomes obvious that pasteurization processes designed to sterilize with respect to M. tuberculosis are ample for sterilizing with respect to Brucella spp.


Coxiella burnetti
This organism causes a febrile disease in man known as Q fever. Epidemiological studies have implicated cows, sheep, and goats as sources of this infectious organism with regard to humans. When these animals are infected, their milk contains the organism, which probably explains the mode of transmission from animal to man. The infection in humans is characterized by a febrile condition that is often accompanied by pneumonitis. The mortality rate is low.

Prior to the studies on thermal resistance of Coxiella burnetti, minimum standards for milk pasteurization were based on the resistance of M. tuberculosis. As indicated in the above of M. tuberculosis, the milk pasteurization standards were equivalent in lethality to 30 minutes heating at 193 degrees Fahrenheit.

Salmonellae
The salmonellae are non-spore-forming gram-negative, rod-shaped bacteria that cause salmonellosis in animals and man. The three species recognized are Salmonella cholerae-suis, Salmonella typhii, and Salmonella enteridis.

As a group the salmonellae, compared to M. tuberculosis, C. burnetti, and many non pathogenic vegetative forms, have been found have appreciably lower resistance to heat, making their removal from certain foods (e.g., liquid eggs) possible by the application of relatively mild pasteurization processes. The average resistance reported for most of the strains is equivalent to a D150 of about 0.014 minutes, that of the least resistant strain to a D150 of about 0.007 minutes, and that of the most resistant strain to a D150 of about 0.070 minutes.

Shigella dysenteryae
This species is closely related to salmonellae and is often included with them in discussion. It causes the enteric disease, shigellosis, which symptomatically is so similar to salmonellosis that differential diagnosis usually depends on isolation of the causative organism and species identification. Its thermal resistance has been found to be intermediate compared with the wide range of resistance reported for various strains and serotypes of salmonellae.

Toxin-Producing Microorganisms
Micrococcus pyogenes var. aureus – Coagulases-Positive Staphylococci
This is a gram-positive and micrococcus the cells of which often appear in culture. It is widespread in nature and is well known as a pathogen. It causes a number of infections in man and animals, notably, pimples, boils, carbuncles, internal abscesses, osteomyelitis, and septicemia. Though highly infectious under certain circumstances, it commonly resides on the skin of the healthiest individuals. It commonly causes mastitis in cows and contaminates the milk of infected cows. Because of its prevalence, in minor and major infections and in residence on the skin of healthy individuals, and because it readily multiplies outside the animal body placed in a suitable environment, its chance of contaminating a wide variety of foods is indeed great.

Though many strains of this species are highly pathogenic under certain circumstances, this characteristic of the organism must be considered of minor importance from the standpoint of food contamination. Normally, they are noninfectious when ingested by healthy individuals. They are of chief concern as food contaminants because of their ability to grow in a wide variety of foods and produce an exotoxin that induces acute gastroenteritis when ingested. As a group they are mesophilic and facultatively anaerobic. They can grow and produce toxin in foods having pH values slightly above 4.00 and upward. Virtually all strains of Micrococcus pyogenes var. aureus are coagulase positive, that is, they produce the enzyme that coagulase that coagulates human (and rabbit) blood plasma. It is a distinguishing characteristic of the group. In fact, in discussion of food poisoning, these micrococci are generally referred to as simply coagulase-positive staphylococci.

Clostridium botulinum Type E
This is a gram-positive, sporulating, anaerobic, motile bacillus that produces a powerful neuroparalytic exotoxin. It is not pathogenic in the sense of causing infection in man. However, its toxin when ingested causes an often-fatal intoxication known as botulism.

The incubation period in botulism is usually 8 to 24 hours. The course of events somewhat as follows: abdominal symptoms of nausea, vomiting, pain, and distension may develop within a few hours after ingestion of toxin. These are generally followed by persistent constipation and the onset of a peculiar paralytic syndrome. When sufficient toxin has been absorbed from the alimentary tract to reach sites adjacent to cranial and peripheral motor nerve endings, it exerts an inhibitory effect upon the mechanism of acetylcholine synthesis, or release, thereby interfering with the transmission of neural impulses to muscles and glands. Frequently, the cranial nerves supplying the muscles of the eyes and throat are affected first, resulting in dim, fuzzy, or double vision, and difficulty in swallowing. This is usually accompanied by respiratory and cardiac failure. In fatal cases, death usually occurs between the second and fifth day but may occur as early as 20 to 24 hours, or as late as 10 to 14 days after ingestion of affected food (with minor exception, this quite accurately describes the events in botulism caused by other types as well).

There are six known Types of C. botulinum, designated alphabetically from A to F. Human botulism is nearly always caused by Types A, B, and E. The spores of Types A and B are the most heat resistant, their resistance being characterized by D250 values in the range of 0.1 to 0,2 minutes. They are of great concern in the sterilization of canned low-acid foods.

Spoilage Microorganisms
Nonsporulating Bacteria
Reference here is to saprophytic bacteria that normally are neither pathogenic nor toxin producing. Virtually all such organisms, and there is a multitude of different species and strains, may if given the opportunity grow and cause spoilage of foods of one sort or another. However, among the more important genera from the standpoint of food spoilage are Pseudomonas, Achromobacter, Lactobacillus, Leuconostoc, Proteus, Micrococcus, and Aerobacter.

Unfortunately, there is a grave paucity of definitive heat resistance kinetic data available for most of these organisms. However, judging from the effectiveness of pasteurization processes employed for treating a wide variety of foods for extending their keeping quality (under refrigeration) it may be deduced that the average maximum heat resistance of most of these organisms may be characterized by D150 values in the range of 1.00 to 3.00 minutes.

LEADERSHIP

INTRODUCTION
Making the organization live and become dynamic depends upon leadership. Although providing supervisors with formal authority is important, they must foster group enthusiasm by their personality, inspiring subordinates to achieve higher levels of performance. Leadership is an elusive quality, which in supervision has great potential for stimulating productivity. Organizational performance is closely related to quality of leadership. Competent leadership is an essential ingredient for a successful operation. A bungling leader can wreck morale and destroy efficiency. Strong leadership, on the other hand, can transform a lackluster group into a strong, aggressive, successful organization.


DEFINING LEADERSHIP
Leadership can be defined as a person's ability to bring people to work together efficiently and follow him willingly for the achievement of a common goal. It is the process of influencing others to act in a way that will accomplish the objectives of the leader or the organization. There are three important implications of this definition.

First, leadership must involve other people-subordinates or followers who must willingly accept the directions from the leader. Second, leadership involves unequal distribution of power among leaders and group members. Leaders have the authority to direct the activities of the group members. Third, leaders influence subordinates in a variety of ways.

Effective leadership is a function of the leader's style, the nature of the followers, and the characteristics of the situation. All these factors of leadership place emphasis on the interaction of many elements that determine leadership effectiveness in a specific situation. Supervisors can improve their chances of success when they get an opportunity to lead by cultivating certain behavior.


MOTIVATIONAL LEADERSHIP TRAITS
The style of leadership employed by a supervisor undoubtedly affects motivation and employee behavior. Actions that foster motivation are listed below:

1. Gain the confidence and respect of your team by demonstrating loyalty and trust without sacrificing your identity as the supervisor.

2. Discuss frequently individual and group performance with all members of the team to keep them informed of their progress.

3. Include group members in the planning of operations which affect them whenever possible, and explain the reason when something needs to be done by relating it to overall objectives.

4. Inform team members of changes in plans as soon as possible.

5. Suggest or request, rather than issue commands, when making assignments in order to foster greater commitment to a course of action.

6. Utilize the knowledge of the team by knowing the members personally. Familiarity with their interests, habits, sensitivities, and specialized skills contributes to cooperation and ideas about how to do things better. Give credit to the contributors.
7. Develop sensitivity to the behavior of others. Notice unusual behavior and attempt to discover its cause in order to anticipate future difficulties. The gripe of one may represent the feelings of many.

8. Freely give recognition when it is deserved and try to precede criticism with understanding appreciation.

9. Criticize carefully and constructively. Give reasons and accompany your criticism with suggestions for improvement.

10. Be consistent in dealing with all team members, but insist that they accept and exercise responsibility according to individual ability. Give them a chance to participate and support to do so.

11. Set measurable goals, communicating them clearly, assessing progress often, and monitoring to stay on schedule.

12. Demonstrate pride in your team on every possible occasion.


LEADERSHIP STYLES
Leadership styles are based on the types of control leaders use in a group and their behavior towards group members. They can be categorized as follows:

1. Autocratic leadership;
2. Participative (Democratic) leadership;
3. Free-rein leadership;
4. Other leadership styles:
- Manipulative leadership;
- Expert leadership.

Autocratic Leadership
The autocratic leader is work centered. He wants to get the work done and to reach the firm's goals. He uses the power he has acquired through rank, knowledge, or skill to reward and punish as he sees fit. Authoritarian leaders give orders and assume that people will respond obediently. There are two different types of autocrats: the "tough" autocrat and the “benevolent" autocrat.

1. The tough autocrat views leadership as a means of giving orders. The follower’s role is to take orders and obey without question. Tough leaders feel insecure and lack confidence in their employees or in them. They rely on many as enough of a reward and as a lever for punishment or for changing behavior.

2. The benevolent autocrat sees his role in the workgroup as that of a “parent figure”. He praises employees for work well done, and encourages them to consult him for solution to their work problems. He develops effective human relations and deals with the workers effectively. Some of them would derive a sense of security and satisfaction working under this style of leadership.

The autocratic style is efficient. Little time is allowed for subordinate’s people to influence the decision-making process. The style works particularly well in crises, when decisions must be made quickly and carried through without question.

Participative (Democratic) Leadership
Participative leaders invite decision sharing. This style calls for subordinates to exercise high degrees of both responsibility and freedom. They use as little authoritarian control as possible and are concerned with relationships within the group as well as with getting the job done. There are two types of participative leaders:

1. Democratic leaders confer final authority on the group; they abide by whatever the group decides, with no exception. They develop a certain sense of responsibility in the group for their accomplishments. They may use both praise and criticism and provide a work environment that allows the worker to satisfy higher-level needs.

2. Consultative leaders require a high degree of involvement from employees but make clear they alone have the authority to make final decisions.

Participative leaders encourage employees to contribute opinions and information, and to participate in the decision-making process as much as possible. When people participate in making the decisions that affect their lives, they support those decisions more enthusiastically and try larder to make them work.

Participative leadership can be time consuming and requires a great deal of energy. Participation sometimes means that little or no planning gets done at all, and a situation can go out of control. Supervisors can also use participation as a disguise for shirking their responsibilities and passing the buck to others.

Free-Rein (Laissez-Faire) Leadership
The free-rein leadership is often described as no leadership at all. Some supervisors have very little ability to make decisions. They are completely non-directive and depend on employees to make decisions and take action. Discipline and control are not enforced because it is hoped that employees will act in a mature banner by them. In this situation, group goals are often not clearly stated or understood, and confusion develops among employees.

Free-rain leadership can be found to some degree with certain professional workers such as engineers, scientist, and teachers; there is limited amount of supervision of people in these areas. The laissez-faire atmosphere can motivate people to initiate and carry out complex work plans efficiently and responsibly.


Other Leadership Styles

1. Manipulative Leadership
Manipulative leadership exploits the aspirations of each employee by trading-off performance for reward (or promises of rewards). Under this kind of leadership, employees who recognize that they are being manipulated can become bitter and resentful of the leader. The manipulative leader is usually very sensitive to the needs and desire of the employees as individuals. However, this sensitivity is not used for the well being of the employees unless the leader is able to find some personal “gain” in using it.

2. Expert Leadership
Expert leadership is based on the individual leader’s knowledge and ability and the leader’s ability to use his expertise. It depends on the appropriate mix of the individual skills and the needs of the others in a problem situation. Once the situation changes, another person with expertise for that challenge would become the leader.

ANALYSIS OF LEADERSHIP STYLES
In actual practice, no one uses any of the above styles exclusively. The ideal style is the one that utilizes all leadership types to the best advantage. We may use autocratic management when necessary. We may use participative management to best develop the talents of our employees. We use the democratic style because it is the only system that recognizes and takes advantages of individual differences and capabilities. An example might help to clarify how the manager uses all three types under different situation.

Suppose James is a successful plat manager. He may direct his secretary to prepare a report on all overtime work on a specific order till the order completed. In doing this John has employed the autocratic approach. He may consult with his five department heads on the best way to push this special order through their departments with a minimum of disruption of regular production. In doing this he has used the democratic approach, or participative method, in that he has allowed the live department heads to participative in the decision.

James may suggest to the assistants that it would be a good idea to figure out ways in which they could handle special orders a little more smoothly in the future. In doing this he is using the free-rein, or laissez-faire, style of leadership.


The skill of leadership, then, lies largely in knowing when to use which method. Effective leadership is not he function of any one particular management style, but rather of matching the right style to the right job at the time. Your Problem as a supervisor is to vary the techniques to fit the changing positions under which your people are working.
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DELEGATION
The supervisor’s most common organization problem is delegation. Supervisors must learn to delegate. Delegation does not mean giving up leadership. It is the assignment of a task to another person and that person‘s acceptance of the task. Delegation means that you get most from each employee, who is given authority to perform well and reach certain objectives.


Why and When Supervisor Should Delegate
Why?

1. You cannot do everyone’s job.
It is not possible to work as efficiently as a group of employees working together.

2. Your job is to manage.
Supervisors are responsible for management functions. The operational activities of a job should be left to the employees.

3. Employees are close to problems and often they can make better decision.
Employees have first-hand information available. No matter how closely you supervise, it is just not possible for you to be closer than employees to a situation. Without delegation of authority to make decision, employees have to wait for the supervisor to appear. Meanwhile, the problem may get out of hand.

4. Delegation demonstrates a trust of and respect for the individual.
You show your employees that you respect their judgment and trust them to make correct decisions. This creates an atmosphere of participation and commitment to the organizational goals.

5. Delegation is a step towards employee development.
Employees permitted and encouraged to act on their own have an opportunity to explore their abilities. This is valuable training. By making mistakes and having supervisory support and instruction, employees learn and their confidence is built up.

When to Delegate?
1. When there is not enough time to complete all the supervisory tasks assigned to you.
2. When the quality of the decision-making would be improved by having the people who are closer to the actual problem directly involve in the decision.
3. When the supervisor is serious about the development of subordinates.
4. When the work group is willing to accept the obligations, and where a harmonious relation between supervisor and employees.


Why Subordinates Do Not Respond to Delegation
Some employees are unwilling to involved in the delegation process for a variety of reason. Perhaps it is because there is lack of trust in management. Employees who do not trust their supervisor may have previously been in situations where they were poorly delegated to or managed. Because they have become resentful from past experiences, these subordinates need to see that your delegation is not a trick or gimmick. New employees may lack confidence in their skills. They may fear failure and criticism. If they believe they will fail, they will choose not to accept delegation. Employees who feel that the big rewards go to employees who follow orders are unlikely to accept delegation.


Action Guidelines for Leadership And Delegation

1. Recognize that a leader possesses many personality traits but no individual leader can have them all. There is no formula equating leadership traits with successful supervision.

2. Leadership patterns reveal that every leadership style can be effective in some situations and with certain kinds of employees.

3. The most important thing a supervisor can learn is to become more sensitive to all the factors that influence leadership effectiveness in the work environment.

4. Delegation is not a sign of weakness. It is a way of management that is based on the opportunity for each employee to develop maximum commitment to the organization. Delegation is an important form of motivational leadership.


CONCLUSION
Leadership is a process of influencing and directing the task-related activities of group members. Many people admire of fear leadership and do not recognize the leadership potential in themselves. Few supervisors are successful without first demonstrating good leadership skills. All good leaders posses three core qualification: (1) competency or expertise, (2) trustworthy behavior, and (3) an absence of excessive manipulation.

Leaders should choose leadership behavior patterns that are most consistent with their personalities, the function to be performed, and the situation at hand.