Leadership

BA (Hons) Business and Management Module Assignment - Leadership BABM – Final Year Module Tutors: Paul Leonard and Ruth Leggett Module: HR 0376 Venushka Siriwardana (w10039232) Submitted: 09th September 2011 Word Limit: Part 1 – 1,500 (+/- 10%) Part 2 – 2,000 (+/- 10%) Word Count: Part 1 – 1,518 excluding references, titles and tables Part 2 – 2,155 excluding references, titles and tables CONTENTS PAGE Introduction. .......................................................................................................... 03 Part 1 1.1 Leadership................................................................................................... 04 1.1.1 Importance and Benefits of leadership. ............................................. 05 1.2 Myself as a Leader...................................................................................... 08 1.2.1 My professional Back ground............................................................. 08 1.2.2 Myself as a Leader in my current Job role......................................... 08 1.2.2 My Leader ship qualities in a SWOT analysis. .................................. 09 1.3 Conclusion................................................................................................... 10 Part 2 2.1 What is Leadership Style'.......................................................................... 11 2.2 Leadership Approach. ............................................................................... 15 2.3 Adopted Leadership Style in my organization......................................... 19 2.4 Conclusion................................................................................................... 20 References.............................................................................................................. 21 Introduction This report contains two parts where the first part contains analysis and reflections on leadership, impotencies benefits and how I have contributed to the leadership of my department. And the second part contain critically analyze and review the approach to leadership and leadership styles adopted within your organization.   Part 1 Leadership What will it signify by leadership' This is often a question that centuries of thinkers wished to outline; nevertheless we tend to couldn’t agree on single common definition concerning leadership. However we have came across few good definitions from different great authoress. According to Barron and Greenberg (1990) leadership is the process whereby one individual influences other group members towards the attainment of defined group or organisational goals. Kotter (1988) states that leadership is the process of creating a vision for others and having the power to translate it into a reality and sustain it. Locke (1991) defines leadership as “the process of inducing others to take action towards a common goal” another different view on leadership has been given by Conger (1992), Conger (1992) defines leaders as “individuals who establish direction for a working group of individuals, who gain commitment from these groups members to this direction and who then motivate these members to achieve the direction’s outcomes” Alike this we can find number of definitions in the subject of Leadership. In 1999, Locke has came up with four element which good leader should posses, Motivation and personnel traits, Knowledge, skills and abilities and vision and the ability to realize that vision. Furthermore, he emphasise the importance of leadership as “it is leadership that make or brakes the success of a company” this could also prove according to Kotter (1990) he outline that a leader requires not only charismatic and exotic personality traits but they require the ability to cope with the change and be consistent. As a conclusion true leadership is not the position of authority. Leadership is not primarily a particular personality trait. An attribute closely linked to leadership is charisma, but many people who have charisma (for example, movie actors or sportsmen) are not leaders. Importance and Benefits of leadership Effective leadership helps an organisation through times of risk. It makes a business organisation victorious. Good leadership enables organizations to fulfil its vision. Like effective leadership of parents enables children to grow strong and healthy and become productive adults correct guidance from the good leader will decide the rise and fall of an organization. Leadership isn't similar factor as being in a very position of authority. It’s attainable to be a Head of a department or a boss in a very company while not being a pacesetter. A boss may be a lot of a Manager than a Leader. From a good leader all the parties in an organisations stand an opportunity to create advantages we are able to summaries a number of the advantages as, Enabling a business to develop deeper and a lot of trusting relationships with its stakeholders, Inspiring and Motivating team members to finish vital project serving to businesses and organisations convince their investors to fund future project. Effective leadership is one in all the foremost valuable assets to an organisation. Those leaders who acknowledge that their leadership to the organization isn't a destination to their carrier however perfection to the organisation can serve followers beyond everything. Encouraging staff or team members to hold in through strong times making passion and through times of challenge or troublesome is depend on the leader. Ultimately the followers ought to be benefited from the leadership before the leader might enjoy the advantages. Known competencies of good leaders can be pointed out according to different authors. (Campbell, 2005, p16) has introduced key components that should be possessed by a leader. 1. Vision – foresighted, persuasive, resourceful and have a global view; 2. Management – dedicated, focused and systematic; 3. Empowerment – encouraging, perceptive and trusting; 4. Diplomacy – tactful, well connected and trusted; 5. Feedback – candid and honest, good listener and good teacher; 6. Entrepreneurialism – creative, adventuresome and good fundraiser; 7. Personal style – optimistic, credible, experienced and visible role model; 8. Personal energy – balanced, energetic, publicly impressive; According to Northouse (2009, pp135) there are six key traits that are applicable for effective leaders. 1. Intelligence 2. Confidence 3. Charisma 4. Determination 5. Sociability 6. Integrity According to Mumford, M. et al. (2000) to be a decent leader there are many leadership skills that leader ought to posses. These leadership skills are * Thinking strategically A good leader is strategic with their thinking, they perceive what result business is attempting to realize and the way the business to realize these results. * Creating passion for your vision A good leader, at any level within the business should have a vision, this vision is sort of a fireplace that burns within them, and it's the supply of their passion. * Being a good manager What makes a good leader' Well, you need to start by being a good manager. And, what is a good manager' Simply put a good manager knows his numbers. * Performance managing when required A smart leader surrounds themselves with good individuals, they are doing not settle for inferior performance, and whereas they coach and mentor to boost performance. * Be in the business of employee service What makes a good leader' ..... A good leader is someone who is committed to providing their followers with the service that their people deserve. * Communication A good leader provides considerably additional communication in each ways that than is usually needed to complete the employee's job. * Feedback A good leader can use feedback to assist reinforce their business priorities. As a summary smart leader acts strategically, they craft out a vision and refer constantly to their vision, in their communications and when giving feedback. They’re firstly an honest manager and that they are targeted on their individuals, surrounding themselves with smart individuals. Myself as a Leader. My professional Back ground In my present job role I carry out my duties as a team leader of group risk and control division. My organisation is a number one apparel export company with over 25000 employees. My duties Involve in the process of business risk assessment for various SBUs of the Group and report to the top management (group CEO through HOD). Also I have to manage the allocated trainers for the team and guide them to complete the assignment with in the given time limits. Myself as a Leader in my current Job role. From my years of experiences as a team leader in my department I noticed that I have qualities of a democratic leader. I have come to that conclusion because I always think that I can do any given task with the given team. Even though the team is not very experienced one, I put my total confidant in the team and try to take most out of each member. I always pay attention to what they have to say before I suggests what I want them to do. I communicate management expectations to the team properly and always give their feedback to the management. However, I’m good at adopting any of leadership style according to the given situation. My Leader ship qualities in a SWOT analysis. Strengths * I'm very creative. * I have good communication well with my team. * I’m good at asking key questions when it’s come to a critical investigation. * I'm committed to obtain good results from the each and every member of the team. * Good management skills both interpersonal and daily work. * Good at dealing with conflict situations. * Ability to recognising strengths and weaknesses within the team. Weaknesses * Sometimes I try to complete and finishes it off things without thinking about the quality of my work. * The same thing I do when I’m doing things on behalf f others. * I provide too much of preparing time to my team before starting the field works. Opportunities * I have a very experienced boss; by working under him I have opportunity to gain good experience and recognition in the company. * Company conducts good training programs and if I perform well I can participate in those training programs Threats * Due to lack of field staff, I'm often work overtime, and this harmfully impacted my creativity. * Most of the time my individual effort has not been properly communicated to the higher management. So they might not aware of the actual work done by myself as an individual. Having completed my personal SWOT analysis, I spend some time reflecting on what does it mean to me, so I have came to a conclusion: After I look at myself using the SWOT framework, I start to identify myself from my peers, and further identified which talents and abilities that I should develop and specialized in order to advance my career. Conclusion On top of theories and frameworks we will return to a conclusion that there's no specific and definite conceptual model for a leader, leadership competencies are the foremost necessary practices that a leader ought to observe to be a noticeable leader among leaders. Finally, flexible leadership approach is more reliable than a rigid approach. The leader who changes their style according to the situation will not only climb to the top but stay there even in the turbulent times. Part 2 What is Leadership Style'  When we search through the subject of Leadership style we can came across several theories which have been introduced by different authors. Leadership style refers to a leader's behaviour. It is the result of the attitude, personality and experience of the leader. Lewin, K. et al. (1939) propose out that there are three main types of styles to categories a leader. Autocratic or authoritarian style Under the autocratic leadership style, all decision-making powers are centralized within the leader; they are doing not entertain any suggestions or idea from subordinates. The autocratic management has been successful because it provides strong motivation to the manager. It permits fast decision-making, as just one person decides for the full cluster and keeps every call to himself till he feels it's required to be shared with the remainder of the cluster. Democratic style The democratic leadership style favours decision-making by the group as shown, like; leader provides instruction when consulting the group. They’ll win the co-operation of their group and may encourage them effectively and completely. The decisions of the democratic leader don't seem to be unilateral like the autocrat because ideas arise from consultation with the group members and participation by them. Laissez-faire or free rein style A free-rein leader doesn't lead, however leaves the cluster entirely to itself as shown; such a leader permits most freedom to subordinates, i.e., they're given a free hand to choose their own policies and methods. Completely different things incorporate different leadership designs. In an emergency when there's very little time to converge on an agreement and where a delegated authority has considerably has lot of expertise or experience than the rest of the team, an autocratic leadership style may be most effective; but, during a highly motivated and aligned team with a uniform level of experience, a lot of democratic or laissez-faire style may be more effective. The style adopted ought to be the one that almost all effectively achieves the objectives of the group while balancing the interests of its individual members. McGregor’s Theory X and Theory Y are the most famous styles of leadership of the time. According to Northhouse (2009, P36) the central question that McGregor’s has addressed in his book The human side of enterprise(1960) is whether people like to work or they find in unpleasant. Douglas McGregor(1960) proposed two different motivational theories. Managers tend to believe one or the other and treat their employees accordingly. Theory X states that employees dislike and try to avoid work, so they must be coerced into doing it. Most staff don't need responsibilities, lack ambition, and worth job security over anything. Although when speaking a theory of leadership, the leadership strategy of effectively-use planned in Douglas McGregor's book has a great impact on Leadership styles. The most exposed concept is that leadership strategies are influenced by a leader’s style and human nature. As a result of his experience as a consultant, McGregor summarised two theories as follows Theory X Leaders believe that: * The average human being has an inherent dislike of work and will avoid it if possible. * Because of this human characteristic, most people must be coerced, controlled, directed, or threatened with punishment to get them to put forth adequate effort to achieve organizational objectives. * The average human being prefers to be directed, wishes to avoid responsibility, has relatively little ambition, and wants security above all else. Theory Y Leaders believe that: * The expenditure of physical and mental effort in work is as natural as play or rest, and the average human being, under proper conditions, learns not only to accept but to seek responsibility. * People will exercise self-direction and self-control to achieve objectives to which they are committed. * The capacity to exercise a relatively high level of imagination, ingenuity, and creativity in the solution of organizational problems is widely, not narrowly, distributed in the population, and the intellectual potentialities of the average human being are only partially utilized under the conditions of modern industrial life. It will so be seen that a leader holding Theory X would favour an autocratic style, whereas one holding Theory Y would favour a lot of Democratic style. Fiedler, (1967) introduce a contingency theory postulates that there's no single best method for Leaders to steer. Things can produce completely different leadership style necessities for a leader. The answer to a managerial situation is contingent on the factors that impinge on matter. Fiedler, (1967) also looked at three situations that could define the condition of a Leader, * Leader member relations: How well do the Leader and the followers get along' * Task structure: Is the job highly structured, fairly unstructured, or somewhere in between' * Position power: How much authority does the leader possess... Leaders were rated on whether or not they were relationship oriented or task oriented. Task oriented leaders tend to try and do better in things that have good leader-member relationships, structured tasks, and either weak or strong position power. Other part of the contingency model theory of Fiedler, (1967) is leader’s situational control. Leaders’ relations are the amount of loyalty, dependability, and support that the leader receives from employees. It is a measure of how the leader distinguishes the team is getting along together. In a positive relationship the leader has a high task structure and is able to reward and or punish employees without any problems. In a negative relationship the task is usually unstructured and the leaders have limited authority. Leadership Approach When we go through theories of leadership we can come across number of leadership approaches Transactional leadership Burns (1978) was the prime researcher who proposed transformational and transactional leadership styles. Transactional leadership involves an exchange relationship between leaders and followers. Burns (1978) further discuses that Transactional leadership inquire the interactions between leaders and followers. A transactional leader focuses a lot of on a series of "transactions". This person is fascinated by searching for oneself, having exchange edges with their subordinates and clarifies a way of duty with rewards and punishments to achieve goals. Transactional leaders communicate with their followers in a more passive way by rewarding them and maintaining the status quo. Transformational leaders communicate with their followers in a more active way and transform their followers by providing a sense of mission, inspiration, and intellectual stimulation Hackman and Johnson, (2004). Further he discusses that the transactional leadership is based on the exchange process where the leader administers rewards and sanctions. One way or another, the leader and follower agree, explicitly or implicitly, that desired follower behaviours will be rewarded, while undesirable behaviours will draw out punishment. Potential rewards include an increase in salary, promotions, and more benefits. Similar to those penalties may include pay cuts, demotions, and terminations. It can be seen that this type of leadership is not satisfactory for most situations. Transformational leaders communicate with their followers during a lot of active means and remodel their followers by providing a way of mission, inspiration, and intellectual stimulation Hackman and Johnson, (2004). Further he discusses that the transactional leadership relies on the exchange method where the leader administers rewards and sanctions. One way or another, the leader and follower agree, explicitly or implicitly, that desired follower behaviours are rewarded, whereas undesirable behaviours can prolong punishment. Potential rewards embody a rise in salary, promotions, and a lot of advantages. Similar to those penalties may include pay cuts, demotions, and terminations. It can be seen that this type of leadership is not satisfactory for most situations. One could say that transactional leadership behaviours do not even qualify for a "true" leadership label Bryman, (1992). Since it is based on exchange, transactional leadership does not seek to motivate followers beyond the level that is required to avoid punishment or gain extrinsic rewards Transformational leadership Different from transactional leadership, transformational leadership involves motivating followers to attain exceptional performance. Bass (1985) mentioned transformational leadership in his book, Leadership and Performance beyond Expectations. According to Bass (1985), organizational leaders who use transformational leadership will encourage their staff to perform beyond expectations. “The transactional leader is most concerned with the satisfaction of physiological, safety, and belonging needs ... Transformational leaders also attempt to satisfy the basic needs of followers, but they go beyond mere exchange by engaging the total person in an attempt to satisfy the higher-level needs of self-esteem and self-actualization” Bass (1985,p. 89). According to Bass (1998) the full range of leadership introduces four elements of transformational leadership: 1. Individualized Consideration – the degree to that the leader attends to every follower's desires, acts as a mentor or coach to the follower and listens to the follower's considerations and wishes. The leader provides empathy and support, keeps communication open and places challenges before the followers. This additionally encompasses the necessity for respect and celebrates the individual contribution that every follower will create to the team. The followers have a can and aspirations for self development and have intrinsic motivation for his or her tasks. 2. Intellectual Stimulation – the degree to that the leader challenges assumptions, takes risks and solicits followers' ideas. Leaders with this style stimulate and encourage creativity in their followers. They nurture and develop those that suppose independently. For such a leader, learning may be a worth and sudden things are seen as opportunities to find out. The followers raise queries, suppose deeply concerning things and discern higher ways that to execute their tasks. 3. Inspirational Motivation – the degree to that the leader articulates a vision that's appealing and inspiring to followers. Leaders with inspirational motivation challenge followers with high standards, communicate optimism concerning future goals, and supply that means for the task at hand. Followers ought to have a powerful sense of purpose if they're to be motivated to act. Purpose and that means give the energy that drives a bunch forward. The visionary aspects of leadership are supported by communication skills that build the vision understandable, precise, powerful and fascinating. The followers are willing to take a position additional effort in their tasks; they're inspired and optimistic concerning the long run and believe in their skills. 4. Idealized Influence – Provides a role model for high ethical behaviour, instils pride, gains respect and trust Ethical leadership According to Trevino, L. K., Brown, M., & Hartman, L. P. (2003) Ethical leadership is leadership that is involved in leading in a manner that respects the rights and dignity of others. There are several uses of ethical leadership. * Ethical leadership models ethical behaviour to the organization and the community. * Ethical leadership builds trust. * Ethical leadership brings credibility and respect, both for you and for the organization. * Ethical leadership can lead to collaboration. * Ethical leadership creates a good climate within the organization. One of the foremost famous examples of not having an ethical leader is within the company Enron. Moral of the Enron case is, smart leader can understand that an honest, transparent, and trustworthy culture can even bolster employee morale and ultimately guard shareholder price. Authentic leadership Luthans and Avolio (2003, p. 243) define the construct of authentic leadership as "a process that draws from both positive psychological capabilities and a highly developed organizational context, which results in both greater self-awareness and self-regulated positive behaviours on the part of both leaders and associates, fostering positive self development. Situational leadership According to Hersey and Blanchard (1972) Situational leadership is all about modifying your style to fit the situation. Effective leadership is task-relevant and that the most successful leaders are those that adapt their leadership style to the maturity Hersey and Blanchard (1972) characterized leadership style in terms of the amount of Task Behaviour and Relationship Behaviour that the leader gives to their followers. Adopted Leadership Style in my organization   My current working department consists with thirteen junior trainers (J), two seniors (S) including me one assistant manager (AM), manager (M) and Head of department (HOD). I have used Lewins et al.’s method to categories the department according to the leadership style they posses. HOD - Democratic M - Authoritarian AM - Democratic S1 - Laissez Faire S2 - Democratic (which is myself) As per the analysis HOD, AM and myself demonstrate identical leadership styles. Our HOD is a very flexible person and she posses very good tendency of listen to others before declare her decisions. I and AM has joined the company in same time period and he also has a good reputation to pay attentions. Manager is a very old and experienced person, he generally does not like others to say what he should do and does not give opportunity to revile new ideas. Conclusion There is a unique approach to the team leadership style that's aimed toward action oriented environments, where effective practical leadership is needed to attain critical or reactive tasks by team. In other words, there's leadership of small teams typically created to reply to a scenario or important incident. The approach that the leader change to face that incident will depend on the leadership style of the person. References * Barron, R. A. & Greenberg, J. (1990) Behaviour in Organisations, MA: Allyn and Bacon. * Bass, (1985). Leadership and performance beyond expectations. New York: The Free Press. * Bass, B. M. (1998). Transformational leadership: Industrial, military, and educational impact. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum. * Bryman, A. (1992). Charisma and leadership in organizations. Sage: London. * Burns, J. M. (1978). Leadership. New York: Harper & Row * Campbell, D (2005) ‘Traits of Successful Leaders’, Association Management, 57 (1) pp16-16 Ebsco [Online]. Available at: http://www.ebscohost.com. (Accessed: 05 Sep 2011) * Conger, J. A. (1992) Learning to lead: The art of transforming managers into leaders. San Francisco, CA- Jossey. * Fiedler, (1967) A Theory of Leadership Effectiveness. New York: McGraw-Hill. * Hackman, M. Z. & Johnson, C. E. (2004). Leadership: A communication perspective (4th ed.). Prospect Heights L: Waveland Press, Inc. * Hersey, P. and Blanchard, K. H. (1977). ‘Management of Organizational Behaviour: Utilizing Human Resources’ 3rd ed. New Jersey/Prentice Hall * Kotter, J.P. (1988) The Leadership Process, New York: Free Press. * Kotter, J.P. (1990) What Leaders Really DO. Harward Business Review, 68(3). * Lewin, K., Lippitt, R.; White, R.K. (1939). ‘Patterns of aggressive behaviour in experimentally created social climates’. Journal of Social Psychology, 10. * Locke, E. A. (1991) The Essence of Leadership, New York: Lexington Books. * Locke, E. A. (1999) The Essence of Leadership, the nature of leadership, 6th edn. San Francisco: Lexington Boos. * Luthans, F., & Avolio, B.J. (2003). Authentic leadership development. In K.S. Cameron, J.E. Dutton & R.E. Quinn (Eds.), Positive * Organizational scholarship: Foundations of a new discipline (pp. 241-258). San Francisco, CA: Barrette-Koehler. * McGregor, D. (1960). The human side of enterprise. New York: McGraw Hill * Mumford, M. D., Zaccaro, S. J., Harding, F. D., Jacobs, T. O., & Fleishman, E. A. (2000). Leadership skills for a changing world solving complex social problems. The Leadership Quarterly, 11. * Northouse, P. G. (2009) Introduction to Leadership. SAGE Publications Ltd. * Trevino, L. K., Brown, M., & Hartman, L. P. (2003). A qualitative investigation of perceived executive ethical leadership: Perceptions from inside and outside the executive suite. Human Relations, 56(1).