Bill Bailey
The Opera is a much smaller organization than is the Symphony, both in personnel and budget. Indeed, many of the Opera employees expressed concern that they would simply be absorbed by the larger Symphony without regard to their uniqueness and reputation within the community. Bill Bailey, as chairman of the board of the Utah Opera, is in a unique position to influence the merger. He can seize the opportunity presented by virtue of his positional authority (power) to offer support for the merger by recognizing the perceived inequity by the Opera staff and artists – a perception that will become reality should he decide not to intervene.
Baily’s first duty as board chairman is to the shareholders of the corporation, but he is vested with a very large and visible role in organizational governance as well. In that role, he balances the needs of shareholders, employees, and other stakeholders (to include ticket-buying customers). In his Equity Theory, Adams postulated that determining both negative and positive equity and inequity in an organization is a process of measuring anticipated outcomes from known inputs. Moreover, equity theory seeks to explain the correlation between an individual’s behavior and their perceived level of justice, or lack thereof.
The financial balance sheet and estimations of future earnings potential serve to provide a cost basis for the merger. However, the larger question for Baily to consider is the perception by Opera staff that their role in the organization following the merge will be diminished, that their budget will be subsumed into the larger organization, and that they will generally be given “second billing” as their Symphony counterparts absorb a larger share of resources. This perception by the Opera of inequity and unfairness is referred to as Distributive Justice and can permanently damage any existing relationship with the Symphony. Moreover, studies of Distributive and Procedural Justice have concluded that where inequity and unfairness is perceived, decreased job performance, increased absenteeism and increased employee turnover are manifested.
Artistic value aside, Baily can publicly announce his support for the merger on the basis of continued financial viability in a strengthened and streamlined organization better able to withstand the pressures of economic instability. Secondly he can express his confidence in the promotion of Anne Ewers, current General Director of the Opera, to the position of CEO in a combined organization. Baily’s positive assertions that Anne’s promotion will bode well for the Opera given her past association and strong performance in public relations and fundraising can do much to negate the Opera Staff and artist’s perceptions of being relegated to a secondary position behind the much larger Symphony. Thirdly, Baily can logically compare the cost-to-performance ratio for both the Opera and Symphony and assert that the Opera is a demonstrably more “valuable” organization than is the Symphony and that future Symphony performances may be scaled back to fit within a more refined and stringent budget. This comparison also helps to further assuage the perception of inequity harbored by the Opera Staff and artists and may deflate attempts by them to derail merger negotiations.
Lastly, Bailey can offer his opinion that, although both organizations are being merged to take advantage of cost savings afforded by economies of scale and streamlined administration, he nonetheless considers both organizations to be unique and distinctly different, with differing talents, audiences, and requirements. By championing the professional distinction between the organizations, Bailey demonstrates to the Opera Staff, artists, and to the public that although they are a smaller organization, the Opera’s intrinsic worth to the community at large and to the organization is not diminished.

Scott Parker
Although the real motivations for Mrs. Abravanel’s opposition to the merger cannot be known, Scott Parker, chairman of the board of the Utah Symphony, has an opportunity to apply Vroom’s Expectancy Theory and advance the expectation of a positive outcome. To do so, Parker must juxtapose the consequences (outcomes) of opposing the merger against those of supporting it.
Parker had already come to the realization that the Utah Symphony, as an independent organization, was in or very shortly would be in financial trouble. A merger of two “similar” organizations, the Symphony and the Opera, would in Parker’s mind produce economies of scale. Mrs. Abravenel may have been swayed by the nostalgic notion of her husband’s enormous contributions to the Symphony which may be lost in the ensuing merger. Parker’s job then, is to convince Mrs. Abravenel that given the seriousness of the situation, a merger may produce the outcome of a surviving Symphony that maintains her husband’s artistic imprint.
Vroom postulated that the degree of effort will be followed by a certain level of performance. Additionally, practical management application of the theory purports to attach rewards for teamwork that encourages cooperation. Scott Parker must then give Mrs. Abravenel the unvarnished truth about the Symphony’s looming fiscal crisis, and using her husband’s memory and the opportunity for some monetary or societal recognition reward as an expectancy motivator, entice her cooperation and public support for the merger.

Power
As General Director of the Utah Opera and potential CEO of the combined Opera/Symphony organization, Anne Ewers has the positional authority (legitimate power) and influence necessary to sway the argument for or against merger. Moreover, she can manifest that power either positively by being constructive and helpful in her approach, or negatively by threatening and demeaning those who disagree with her. In contrast, her personal power, a manifestation of her innate charisma and personal attraction, may be more effective in obtaining compliance through persuasion than through brute force tactics associated with a negative application of legitimate power.
Anne’s positional power can be used in various ways, some of which are not as effective at influencing and leading. Within the construct of her managerial power, the outcome of her leadership in the proposed merger may be a direct result of how she applies her formal authority to set deadlines for action, demand compliance, and set priorities and goals for her subordinates to meet. Her current position in the corporation is highly visible and respected within the community; public statements that reaffirm her commitment to the merger would have a major influence on public opinion. Additionally, her position within the organization is strategically situated, giving her the ability to foster ad campaigns, manipulate strategy development, and set corporate board agendas in favor of the merger process at the expense of those who would seek to undermine the merger.
Her personal power as potential CEO of a combined organization can be effectively used by empowering Keith Lockhart to make artistic and organizational decisions relevant to the Symphony. Empowerment is enabled by pushing decision-making power one holds down to lower levels. Lockhart’s initial dismay at in the organizational chart that has him reporting to Anne can be negated by involving Keith almost immediately in the artistic and organizational decisions for the combined corporation. Anne’s personal power (charisma and tact) can be used to assuage Keith’s fears about artistic control by gradually assigning him more autonomy, thereby reinforcing a feeling of trust and confidence in his abilities and leadership. In this way, Keith Lockhart retains the control he currently has as director of the Symphony, perceives his value is understood and appreciated, and is more inclined to be supportive of the CEO’s efforts to administratively streamline the organization.

Potential Issue
One potential issue that could jeopardize organizational performance is presented in the case study with the development of a musician’s ad hoc committee. The ad hoc committee produced “guiding principles” it felt were of importance to consider for the merger, including “A strong collective bargaining agreement.” Concomitantly, the musicians expressed a concern for a more effective fundraising campaign, ostensibly to counter any pay and benefits dilution attempt in future collective bargaining agreements. Should the musicians perceive procedural injustice, they may not only voice their opposition to the merger, but may well rally opposition to include defections to other Symphony organizations as well as organizing a general strike to curry public support for their cause.
To counter this potential disgruntlement and opposition, Anne could implement Participative Management techniques allowing the musicians as a group to become actively involved in making decisions affecting aspects of their employment and tenure, as well as limited artistic and design decisions. Additionally, her verifiable public record as a superlative fundraiser at previous organizations, enabled by her personal power characteristics of charisma and charm, lends credence to assertions she can make to embark on an aggressive fundraising campaign. Moreover, she can publicly advertise and elevate the stature of Keith Lockhart as the primary artistic decision-maker for the musicians in concert with developing a personal empowerment relationship with him. In so doing, she defuses the animosity associated with the merger through her personal involvement declaration of fundraising support and empowers Keith Lockhart and the musicians with decision rights affecting their professional well-being, giving them a sense of autonomy.

Influence Tactics
Anne can use several tactics to help win over the full-time staff and artists under contact to support the merger. Chief among these tactics are rational persuasion, inspirational appeals and Consultation – all considered “soft” tactics because of their non-coercive nature.
Rational persuasion involves attempting to convince a skeptical audience through reason, logic or facts. Though the staff and artists are justifiably anxious about the down-sizing that occurs in the aftermath of a merger, Anne can produce detailed data that shows most personnel cost savings will occur through attrition and not through dismissal. Anne can present the specific budgetary numbers and discuss the symphony and opera’s current standing within the community, as well as the potential for increased funding through fundraising appeals. She can also exercise her expert power gained through managing the Opera to explain the relationship between the Symphony, the Opera, and the community at large in matter-of-fact verbiage that reveals the financial and cultural need for the Opera to merge in order to remain viable. Listening to the concerns of the Opera’s full time staff and artists, and offering logical, reasoned solutions will help alleviate concerns about the merger.
Inspirational appeals conjure the image of a cheerleader who enthusiastically relates the benefits and potential goal attainment of the merger. By appealing to the staff and artists on an emotional level about the potential greatness of the merged organization, Anne can garner support through a willingness of the employees to be a part of this new enterprise. Anne has used similar techniques in the past as a champion fundraiser, igniting public enthusiasm for their involvement in the arts. In similar fashion, Anne’s personal charisma, charm, enthusiasm and energy can be used persuasively to foster cohesiveness among the staff and artists, giving them a sense of unity and purpose going into the merger.
Consultation, as with participative management mentioned earlier, invites the staff and artists to be part of the decision-making apparatus and participate in the planning and execution of various aspects of the merger. By soliciting the staff and artist’s input and advice, she is revealing her respect and trust in their opinions and in so doing she is giving them a sense of ownership in the merger process itself. In this way, Anne involves the employees directly and thereby diminishes the employee’s overt feelings of being ostracized or of not being valued.
The combination of these influence tactics increases the likelihood that Anne will garner support for the merger from the staff and artists of the Opera. These particular tactics are inclusive and non-threatening, not relying on coercive tactics associated with legitimate positional power alone. Anne and the Opera staff and artists share a common professional genealogy and passion making her appeals through logic, inspiration, and consultation that much more effective in garnering support.