Individual_Leadership_Styles

Individual Leadership Styles Nursing leaders and their style of leadership can be the determining factor in the success of a hospital. For a leader to be successful they must find ways to motivate their staff to work at their highest potential and work toward the goals and vision of the hospital. There are many different leadership styles that produce various responses from employees. I have chosen to compare the transactional and the transformational styles of leadership. The transactional leadership model is simply a reward for performance philosophy. If the work is done well the employee receives a reward and if the work is not done well the employee is punished or suffers consequences (Curtis & O’Connell, 2011). I can see parts of this philosophy used in my work setting. For example when the hospital is experiencing a staffing shortage they offer a bonus for those who sign up to work extra shifts. They believe that the monetary bonus will entice staff to sign up for extra shifts to fill the staffing needs. The thought is that people do what you want them to do if you reward them. If work is not completed as it should be workers can either be suspended or written up. The transformational leadership style puts the emphasis on motivation. It is based on the principle that if the employee is excited about the goal or vision of the organization that they will perform at a higher standard to achieve the common goal. This style encourages more interaction (Curtis & O’Connell) . It encourages input and suggestions from employees, making them feel that they matter and that their opinion matters. Studies have proved this style of leadership to be effective in achieving higher performance, and improving the productivity of employees. It makes the employee feel that they matter to the organization which makes them want to work harder to achieve the organizations goals. Studies have also shown that this style of leadership results in increase job satisfaction among employees and increased levels of nurse retention (Curtis & O’Connell). I personally identify more with the transformational style of leadership. I believe that people want to matter and that they want to be heard and valued as employees. I do not believe that all employees care about is money. I also think that having employees contribute by making suggestions can lead to solutions. Employees are on the front line and see things in ways a manager may not see them so their input can be invaluable in devising solutions to problems that arise. “Leadership is the art of getting people to do something you want them to do because they want to do it (Marino, 1999, p. 10).” Leaders are generally admired and inspire people to perform at their highest level. A leader teaches, and leads by example. A leader looks at the future of the organization and leads people to perform to reach the goals of the future. They are always looking for ways to make an organization better (Voshurgh, 2005). A manager is a person that gets people to do what they want them to do because they want them to do it (Marino, 1999, p. 10). Managers control the day to day operations of the unit. They coach and counsel employees and require them to do their best but do not necessarily inspire them to do their best. A manager worries about the immediate problems of the unit and not necessarily the overall goals for the future. They deal more with the individual and ensuring that each individual is performing at their best and not necessarily on the whole picture, they live more for the moment. They wait for a problem to arise and then fix it instead of working to anticipate possible problems. A manager can be a leader. With the right management and leadership techniques a manager can serve to inspire and motivate employees to perform at their highest level which is beneficial to the hospital the patients and the staff.