Leadership

Lead Max

Maximizing manager's or executive's leadership competency is critical for the success of any modern organization. Better and more the leadership at the top and at various levels of management, more are the chances of organization taking the right course and heading towards real success. It is also important for a manager or executive to sharpen his leadership abilities or leadership competency for him to go up the hierarchical ladder of an organization and thus, get an opportunity to maximize his professional contribution.

Leadership Defined

Leadership is defined as influence, the art or process of influencing people so that they will strive willingly toward the achievement of group goals. This concept can be enlarged to imply not only willingness to work but also willingness to work with zeal and confidence.

Normal expectancy of capability utilization induced by social
pressure, need for a job and authority of superior: 60%
Contribution induced by leadership ability of the manager: additional 40%

Concept of the leadership is seen as the influential increment over and above mechanical compliance with the routine directives of the organization.
Therefore, leadership is communicating and convincing the people about their strengths, potentials and worth in such a manner that they can clearly see them within themselves and feel motivated to tap them fully.

Leadership Approaches

There are large numbers of leadership theories and approaches that came in existence from time to time. Only some of them are given below:

Great-man Theory

Leaders are born and not made. Some few people are superior than the masses and masses follow those superior few.

Trait Approach

Leaders are bestowed with superiors traits. These traits make them different from the others. Followers follow them due to this superiority.
Traits (as found by Stogdill):

Five physical traits related to leadership ability (such as energy, appearance and height)
Four intelligence and ability traits
Sixteen personality traits (such as adaptability, aggressiveness, enthusiasm and self confidence)
Six task related characteristics (such as achievement drive, persistence and initiative)
Nine social characteristics (such as cooperativeness, interpersonal skills and administrative ability)

Situational Approach

Leadership is strongly affected by the situation from which the leader emerges and in which he or she operates. Situational factors like place, circumstances and time determine the emergence of a leader.
Examples:

Hitler in Germany in 1930s
Earlier rise of Mussolini in Italy
Emergence of Roosevelt in the Great Depression of the 1930s in the United States
Rise of Mao Tse-tung in China in the period after World War II

There exists an interaction between the group and the leader.

Psychoanalysis Approach

It involves patronage by the leader. Leader acts as a father figure- source of both love and fear. Followers are treated more like children.

Contingency Approach

Leadership has to be situational and these situational variables are:

Leader’s personality
Nature of leader-member relations (which certainly implies the importance of people being led)
Task
Organizational climate of the enterprise

Transformational Leadership Approach

Theory of transformational leadership says “transformational leadership occurs when one or more persons engage with others in such a way that leaders and followers raise one another to higher levels of motivation and morality. It is a dynamic leadership wherein followers feel “elevated” and often become more active themselves, they’re creating new cadres of leaders”.

Bernard M Bass (1990) based on his research findings gives following characteristics and approaches of transformational leaders:

Charisma: Provides vision and sense of mission, instills pride, gains respect and trust.
Inspiration: Communicates high expectations, uses symbols to focus efforts, expresses
important purposes in simple way.
Intellectual Stimulation: Promotes intelligence, rationality and careful problem solving.
Individual Consideration: Gives personal attention, treats each employee individually,
coaches, advises.

Leadership Behavior and Styles (Likert’s System of Management)

Exploitative authoritative
Benevolent authoritative
Consultative
Participative group

Four Basic Leadership Styles

Coaching
Directing
Supporting
Delegating

Managerial Grid (Blake and Mouton's)

Through their actions and communications, leaders demonstrate their concern for the task and concern for the people. Suppose we consider a scale of 0 to 9, then the concern for task can vary any where from 0 to 9 and so also the concern for people which can also vary from 0 to 9.
A leader can be gauged for the extent of concern he has for task and extent of concern he has for people on this 0-9 scale and based on this score, we can classify the various types of persons in leadership positions into following five extreme categories. In real life, the persons in leadership positions may not lie exactly on these five classification points but their scores may be closer to anyone of them and as such can be appropriately classified.

Impoverished manager: 0 concern for task and 0 concern for people (cannot be called a leader at all).
Country club manager: 0 concern for task and 9 concern for people (people are on picnic generally, under his supervision).
Autocratic task manager: 9 concern for task and 0 concern for people (theory X proponent to the core).
Middle of the road manager: 5 concern for task and 5 concern for people (a middle of the road type- a compromiser, plays safe).
Team manager: 9 concern for task and 9 concern for people (leader in real sense).

Most Essential Leadership Qualities

Professional knowledge
Professional competence
Ability to make up your mind and take a decision; then take full responsibility
An act of omission is worse than an act of commission
Absolute justice and impartiality
Moral courage
Ability to distinguish right from wrong
Physical courage
Loyalty- give it, then expect it
Discipline- code of conduct to live in society
Character- knowing what we really are

Add to These Most Important Leadership Qualities, Some More Leadership Qualities Mentioned Below

Have High integrity- trusted
Become a visionary- dream a lot, dream things of significance (small or big is immaterial)
Be aware of realities of the real world- don't be naive
Business acumen
Build customer touch. Refer: (Customer Orientation) http://customer-orientation.blogspot.com/
Believe in change and lead change- be flexible, create flexibility all around
Having created vision, develop leaders at different levels who see a sense in your vision and will give it a shape
Emphasize implementation- emphasize results through effective and ethical processes
Promote excellence- without any compromises
Practice boundaryless behavior in every aspect- encourage others to follow the same
Think global- the entire world is the play field. Refer: (Global Mindset) http://global-mindset.blogspot.com/
Encourage creativity and innovation- in every aspect of life
Carry and spread infectious enthusiasm
Unleash the energy of colleagues- make ordinary people perform extraordinarily
Become a great team builder and team worker
Develop self confidence with humility- sense of humor
Be an open communicator- good listener. Refer: (Listening) http://listen-skills.blogspot.com/
Believe and practice lean- reduce and eliminate all kinds of fat, non-value adding stuff and waste of all kinds everywhere. Refer: (Lean Enterprise) http://lean-organization.blogspot.com/
Do use effective technology- don't shy away from it

Are Leaders Born or Made?

Leaders are not born- there is no proof available that leadership is an outcome of genetic determinism.
Also, leaders are not made meaning that they are not made by others, they are not environmentally trained or nurtured.
Leaders are self made through their own choices. They make their choices in life on a continual basis in such a manner that their actions and achievements position them as leaders.

Some Leadership Myths

Position Myth: I have to be at the top position or at least at a position that matters for me to be a leader- it is wrong. Formal position is not necessary to become a leader. You have to create a moral authority around yourself by the right kind of choices about your life time objectives and actions.
Destination Myth: After I reach the top position, I will start leading- wrong. You can increase your sphere of influence at any position or level and then, you are reckoned as a leader by yourself and by others.
Influence Myth: If I were at the top, then people would follow me: wrong. People will also follow you even at any other position provided you have exhibited your leadership qualities through your actions.
Experience Myth: I will have to gain experience in leadership and that would come through my hierarchical rise- wrong. You will gain experience as you start taking up leadership roles at any and every level. Leadership experience is not position related, it is leadership choice related.
Freedom Myth: I should be given freedom to have my say and then alone my leadership qualities will come into play- wrong. Who says that you don't have freedom? You have freedom at every instant throughout your life. Even if you may not have freedom to implement or execute in a formal setup, you always have freedom to suggest or recommend. Use it. Soon the organizations or your bosses will give you powers or authority to implement since your ideas are so brilliant.
Potential Myth: I do not have the right kind of potential to be a leader- wrong. Seemingly ordinary people have been seen doing extra-ordinary things when they find out the right choices in life and listen to their inner beliefs.
Give Me on the Platter Myth: I am never given the challenging assignments. Then how can I use my leadership qualities- wrong. You have to look around for the challenging opportunities and assignments- there are plenty of them around you. Nothing is easily given on the platter.

Differences between Leadership and Management

Leadership is motivating people to want to do what is needed. Management is getting people to do what is needed.
Leaders do the right things (direction, effectiveness). Managers do things right (speed, efficiency).
Leaders focus on people (animate). Managers focus on things (inanimate).
Leaders are organization free; they are directed by the universal principles (boundaryless, principle driven). Managers are more closely linked to the organization they work for (boundaries, only driven by organizational emphasis and practices).
Leaders pull. Managers push.
Top line important for leadership. Bottom line important for management.
Leaders communicate, motivate and empower the people. Managers command and control.
Leaders exude their persona and that enthuses people to utilize themselves more. They facilitate an ordinary person to accomplish extraordinary things. Managers stick to mechanical compliance of routine directions of the organization.
Leaders have lot more genuine followers. People follow managers till the managers have authority over them.
Leaders always have more long term view. Managers may not have long term term view all the time.
Leaders mostly facilitate. Managers mostly direct.
Leaders are investment centered. Managers largely focus on controlling expenses.
Leaders continuously work on improving the systems and processes. Managers by and large confine themselves in following the laid down systems and processes.

Books Authored by Shyam Bhatawdekar and Dr Kalpana Bhatawdekar (eBooks and printed books available online from Amazon)

Management, Business, Self-help & Personality Development Books

1. HSoftware (Human Software) (The Only Key to Higher Effectiveness)

2. Sensitive Stories of Corporate World (Management Case Studies)

3. Classic Management Games, Exercises, Energizers and Icebreakers

4. Classic Management Games, Exercises, Energizers and Icebreakers (Volume 2)

5. Classic Team Building Games, Exercises, Energizers and Icebreakers

6. 101 Classic Management Games, Exercises, Energizers and Icebreakers

7. Stress? No Way!! (Handbook on Stress Management)

8. HSoftware (Shyam Bhatawdekar’s Effectiveness Model)

9. Competency Management (Competency Matrix and Competencies)

10. Soft Skills You Can’t Do Without (Goal Setting, Time Management, Assertiveness and Anger Management)

11. Essentials of Work Study (Method Study and Work Measurement)

12. Essentials of Time Management (Taking Control of Your Life)

13. Essentials of 5S Housekeeping

14. Essentials of Quality Circles

15. Essentials of Goal Setting

16. Essentials of Anger Management

17. Essentials of Assertive Behavior

18. Essentials of Performance Management & Performance Appraisal

19. Health Essentials (Health Is Wealth)

20. The Romance of Intimacy (How to Enhance Intimacy in a Relationship?)

Novels, Stories, Biographies and Travelogues

21. The Peace Crusaders (Novel: how the peace crusaders established permanent peace on a war strewn planet?)

22. Love Knows No Bounds (Novel: a refreshingly different love story. Also available with the title “Good People”)

23. Funny (and Not So Funny) Short Stories

24. Stories Children Will Love (Volume 1: Bhanu-Shanu-Kaju-Biju and Dholu Ram Gadbad Singh)

25. My Father (Biography)

26. Travelogue: Scandinavia, Russia

For everything you wanted to know on building leadership and management, refer Shyam Bhatawdekar’s website: http://shyam.bhatawdekar.com/

(Refer our High Quality Management Encyclopedia at: http://management-universe.blogspot.com/)

Leadership

Monday, November 25, 2013

Leadership: One More Quality of a Leader

Thursday, November 6, 2008

Leadership

Followers

Routes to All Our Articles/Blogs/Knols

Labels

Blog Archive

About Me