Prelims

Half Title Page

LEADERSHIP IN MIDDLE-EARTH

Series Page

EXPLORING EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP PRACTICES THROUGH POPULAR CULTURE

Series Editor: Michael J. Urick

The aim of this series is to examine modern and innovative business theories and methods via relatable popular culture themes. The books will provide academically rigorous and credible applications and solutions to practitioners and upper level business students in a format designed to be highly engaging and effective.

Titles in Exploring Effective Leadership Practices through Popular Culture:

A Manager’s Guide to Using the Force: Leadership Lessons from a Galaxy Far Far Away

Michael J. Urick

Leadership in Middle-earth: Theories and Applications for Organizations

Michael J. Urick

Title Page

Exploring Effective Leadership Practices through Popular Culture

LEADERSHIP IN MIDDLE-EARTH

Theories and Applications for Organizations

By

Michael J. Urick

Saint Vincent College, USA

United Kingdom – North America – Japan – India – Malaysia – China

Copyright Page

Emerald Publishing Limited

Howard House, Wagon Lane, Bingley BD16 1WA, UK

First edition 2021

Copyright © 2021 Emerald Publishing Limited.

Reprints and permissions service

Contact: permissions@emeraldinsight.com

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without either the prior written permission of the publisher or a licence permitting restricted copying issued in the UK by The Copyright Licensing Agency and in the USA by The Copyright Clearance Center. Any opinions expressed in the chapters are those of the authors. Whilst Emerald makes every effort to ensure the quality and accuracy of its content, Emerald makes no representation implied or otherwise, as to the chapters’ suitability and application and disclaims any warranties, express or implied, to their use.

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

ISBN: 978-1-80071-528-8 (Print)

ISBN: 978-1-80071-525-7 (Online)

ISBN: 978-1-80071-527-1 (Epub)

Dedication Page

To my parents, Michele and Richard. I still have your copies of “The Hobbit” and “The Lord of the Rings” that you gave to me when I was 11 years old. Thank you for that and, even more, thank you for your constant support. At an early age, you encouraged me to pursue a career as a writer and you helped me to grow my imagination. I am forever grateful. I love you both very much.

Contents

List of Tables

Biography

Dr Michael J. Urick is Graduate Director of the Master of Science in Management: Operational Excellence (MSMOE) program and Associate Professor of Management and Operational Excellence at the Alex G. McKenna School of Business, Economics, and Government at Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, USA. He received his PhD in Management (Organizational Behavior focus) from the University of Cincinnati. His MBA (focused in Human Resource Management) and MS (in Leadership and Business Ethics) are both from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh and his Bachelor’s degree is from Saint Vincent College. He teaches undergraduate and graduate courses related to organizational behavior, human resources, communication and conflict, organizational culture, operations, and research methods.

The MSMOE program, which he directs, focuses on providing aspiring leaders with cutting-edge management techniques to effectively problem solve, minimize waste, and continuously improve their organizations. The program has been consistently ranked as a “Top 50 Best Value Master’s in Management” program by Value Colleges and as a “Top Online Non-MBA Business Graduate Degree” by US News and World Report.

He is Six Sigma Green Belt certified and is also certified through the Society for Human Resource Management as well as the True Lean program at the University of Kentucky. He is the recipient of an “Excellence in Teaching” award from the Lindner College of Business at the University of Cincinnati, the “Quentin Schaut Faculty” award from Saint Vincent College, and a “Teaching Excellence” award from the Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs among other pedagogical honors. Internationally, he was also recognized by the Institute for Supply Management as a “Person of the Year” in the learning and education category.

He is an Associate Editor of the Journal of Leadership and Management and the North American Associate Editor of the Measuring Business Excellence journal. He is also the Editor for the “Exploring Effective Leadership Practices through Popular Culture” book series from Emerald Publishing.

His research interests include leadership, conflict, and diversity in the workplace. Much of his work focuses on issues related to intergenerational phenomena within organizations. He also often examines how popular culture can be used to advance organizational behavior theory. In addition to authoring or co-authoring over 50 publications including multiple books and peer-reviewed articles, he regularly presents at academic and practitioner international meetings such as the Academy of Management, Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, and Institute for Supply Management conferences. He is a regular speaker on age-related issues in the workplace throughout the United States and internationally (having presented on four continents) and is an active consultant on issues related to workplace interactions, organizational culture, and ethics. He has served as a reviewer for a variety of academic publications including the Journal of Intergenerational Relationships, Journal of Social Psychology, Journal of Organizational Behavior, and Journal of Family Issues as well as the Organizational Behavior and Human Resources divisions of the Academy of Management Annual Meeting in addition to other conferences. In his monthly blog, he blends his research and teaching interests to suggest practical and actionable items for readers to use in their current or future work situations.

Professionally, he has served on the boards of ISM-Pittsburgh in various roles including President and the Westmoreland Arts and Heritage Festival. He has also served on the Westmoreland Human Resources Association board in various positions including Vice President. Prior to academia, he worked in a variety of roles related to auditing, utilities, environmental issues, and training and development. Through these experiences, he became fascinated with interactions in the workplace and how they might be improved which has influenced his academic career.

For fun, he enjoys music and, since 1998, has led and performed with Neon Swing X-perience, a jazz band that has toured through over a dozen US states and released their 10th album in 2020.

Acknowledgments

There are many people to whom I am indebted and without whom this book would not be a reality. First and foremost, I would like to thank my family, especially Lucy and Janet. You have encouraged me throughout the long process of writing this book. I also especially want to thank my parents, Rick and Mickie, to whom this book is dedicated. Thank you for all of your support.

I also want to thank my grandfather, Mike “Ug” Cilli, who first taught me to read. Because of your guidance, I developed a love of reading which eventually led me to the works of Tolkien.

Many thanks to Dean Gary Quinlivan and all of my colleagues at Saint Vincent College who supported this book as well as earlier research that I did on this topic.

I would especially like to thank Fr Wulfstan Clough. Your perspectives and insights into Tolkien’s life and works helped me to grow my appreciation of the depth of Middle-earth.

Thank you also to Rev. Dr Bill Hisker for your Gandalf-like mentorship.

The comments, guidance, and support from Mike Percival, Lynn Whitaker, Luke Shelton, Darrell Curtis, and everyone at the Tolkien Society have been invaluable as I wrote this book. The feedback that I received from attendees of the society’s Oxonmoot 2020 on my presentation of some of the concepts found herein was indispensable in improving this book. Thank you, all.

Thank you also to the American Tolkien Society and Journal of Leadership and Management for publishing my earlier articles related to some of the concepts in this book.

Thanks to my Tolkien buddies in the Second Breakfast Smial, especially Betsy Chapman, Ross Nunamaker, and Joan Freeman. I’ve learned so much about the Professor from each of you and enjoy our conversations.

Gina McKlveen made suggestions after attending one of my leadership facilitation sessions that strengthened this book as well as my overall approach to leadership coaching. Thank you so much.

Drs Gregory Bassham and Eric Bronson were extremely helpful in providing insight for this book. Thank you very much for sharing your expertise with me.

Fiona Allison has been especially helpful as a champion of this book and the series to which it belongs. Thank you for your enthusiasm and excitement for this project. Thank you also to the entire crew at Emerald for your hard work and dedication.

Thank you to Peter Jackson. Your films helped boost Professor Tolkien’s popularity and further cemented “The Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit” in their appropriate place of high status in the realm of not just popular culture but also culture in a broader sense.

Lastly, I of course want to thank Professor J. R. R. Tolkien. You are an inspiration to many. Your writings have provided readers (including myself) with comfort in hard times. And, in part because of your influence based on what I learned about your career over time, I explored a career in academia and writing. In doing so, I found my calling as a professor and author.