The Process of Leadership and Potential of the Organisation - Essay Example

The Process of Leadership and Potential of the Organisation Introduction Generally speaking, the term leadership can be defined as a process through which an individual tries to manage, direct and control a group of people towards a goal. According to Cohen (2000), leadership has the ability to make or break an organization. In other words, effective leaders lead the organization towards success whereas ineffective leaders retard the progress of the organization. Effective or charismatic leaders have the ability to influence the minds of employees. According to Hall et al. (2013), the role of a manager in the workplace is leadership. Because of globalization and liberalization, competition in the market is getting intensified as time goes on. Traditional management and leadership principles may not be effective at present since the needs of the organization and that of the employees are changing constantly. It should be noted that the ultimate success of an organization rests in the hands of the employees since employees are responsible for the mobilization of organizational resources. It is the duty of the leader to address the needs of all the employees properly to lead the organization towards success. Modern organizations are functioning cross culturally and these organizations are keen in keeping a diverse workforce. The needs of diverse employees could be different. No two individuals are alike; therefore it would be difficult for a leader to use same management style to motivate two different employees. Same way, it would be difficult for a leader to implement same management strategies in different industries since the requirements of different industries could be different. In short, the process of leadership is not homogenous in all contexts. This paper discusses how the process of leadership may be used in different contexts to maximize the potential of the organization and its employees with the help examples from high tech industry. The current issues facing by the high technology industry High tech industry (Smartphone, tablets etc) is currently facing strong competition with the arrival of new players like Apple Inc. and Samsung. Earlier, this industry was controlled by Nokia and LG like companies. At present these companies are struggling for existence because of the leadership failures in their organizations. It would be difficult for modern organizations to stay competitive without processes like innovation, change management and knowledge management etc like modern management principles. Leadership is responsible to implement these things in organizations. The introduction of Apple Inc.’s innovative touchscreen phone (iPhone) at the beginning of 2000 has changed the complexion of the high tech market. Samsung has immediately followed the footsteps of Apple Inc. while others failed to adapt with the situations properly. At present Samsung is competing neck to neck with Apple Inc in the high tech industries whereas others struggling for survival. The problems in the leadership approach were the major reasons for failures in Nokia like companies. Leadership Approach According to Herbert Henkel, chairman and CEO of Ingersoll Rand, the ability of a leader to question the “halo effect” determines the success and failure of the organization which he leads (Carey et al., 2009). For example, in 80’s and 90’s Apple Computers was struggling for survival. The competition from arch rival Microsoft was immense for Apple. Steve Job, the former CEO of Apple Computers decided to make some changes in Apple’s business strategies. Instead of concentrating more on computer and OS market, he decided to concentrate more on consumer electronics market. As a result of that he was able to introduce a series of innovative products such as iPhone, iPad, iPod, etc at the beginning of 2000. The rest is history. At present, Apple Inc. is the most valuable technology company in the world and they are the second largest in the world in terms of market capitalization (Kim, 2010). Krazit (2008) has mentioned that the Wall Street is expecting Apple to report “earnings per share of $1.07 on revenue of $6.9 billion in 2008”. On the other hand, Nokia, the former leader in mobile phone industry, is currently struggling and they are closing down their operations in many countries like India (Nokia Siemens to close small factory in India, 2013) It is evident that Nokia never anticipated such a big turnaround in the 90’s or 80’s. The leadership in Nokia thought that their place in mobile phone industry is secure and no other companies can beat them in near future. They failed to read the changing trends in the market and develop new products based on these changes. Effective leaders are those who build the capacity of the organization (Fulmer & Goldsmith, 2000, p.146). In other words, transformational leadership is necessary in high-tech industry. Apple Inc. was able to found a transformational leader in Steve Jobs (Comlead, 2011) whereas Nokia failed to do so. In transformational leadership, leaders act as motivators who inspire their followers to perform to their best. This leads to high productivity, increased participation, and high cooperation. Transformational leadership is a process that changes and transforms individuals (Northouse, 2001; Cherry, 2013; Changing Minds, 2013). While ‘Apple computers’ was on the verge of destruction, the transformational leadership of Steve helped the company immensely. In other words, Steve’s visionary leadership helped Apple Inc. to rise like a phoenix bird. According to Max Weber, visionary leadership revolves around the charisma of the leader (Kirkpatric, 2011, p.1616). Influence In high tech industry, employees are likely to be highly intelligent (high IQs). Therefore, it would not be easy for the leaders to influence the followers or the employees with the help of simple things. Leaders in this industry should have real capabilities to influence the employees. They should lead by examples instead of giving instructions. The employees in this industry are capable of taking independent decisions since they are highly educated and talented. Therefore, it would be logical to the leaders in this industry to provide autonomy in decision making up to certain extent. Apple’s performances were attributed to a one man show of its charismatic leader Steve Jobs. If Steve leaves apple, probably the stocks of Apple may down by 25%” (Qumer, 2009, p.4). At present, Apple Inc. is facing a leadership vacuum after the demise of Steve, whereas Samsung has no such worries. The charismatic leadership of Samsung’s current chairman Kun Hee Lee is one of the major strengths of the company now. Lee was selected as one among the Asia’s 50 most influential people by Asiaweek for six consecutive years and was also named as one of the most influential people by the French weekly Nouvel Observateur (Samsung Press Information, n.d., p.2). At present, Samsung products are moving better than Apple’s products all over the world, except in America. Samsung is best positioned in the smartphone market at present (Samsung Electronics, 2011, p.151). This is because of the innovative business strategies developed by Lee. According to Hitt & Ireland (2005), a strategic leader is outcome and process focused. Lee is a strategic leader who cares more on the outcomes and processes. That is why Samsung products are currently delivering more than what they promise. Even though Apple Inc. has a good reputation in technology industry, it does not enjoy a good reputation among the employees (Chen, 2013; Tate, 2011; Sethi, 2012). The HR management in Apple Inc. is controversial at times. The company shows no respect towards work-life balancing and asks the employees to report for overtime works on a quite regular basis. Moreover, the company warns the employees that it is more interested in employability rather than employment security (Qumer, 2009). All these strategies are creating a group of demotivated employees in Apple Inc. The case of another high tech company P & G is also not different. They usually punish staff is they fail to come up with new ideas. On the other hand, Samsung and Motorola like companies are giving more importance to the opinions of the employees and they do everything possible to improve the creativity of the employees. In fact, the Six Sigma quality management strategy introduced by Motorola is currently followed in many other high tech companies (Ramias, 2005; Tennant, 2001). It should be noted that Six Sigma was developed because of the creative minds in Motorola. Followers In order to build strong relationship between the leader and the followers, leaders should communicate properly with all the employees’ irrespective if the status of the employees. Leader-member exchange (LMX) theory says that is that leaders communicate differently with in-group and an out-group, of followers (Lunenburg, 2010; Mindtools, 2013b; Jones, 2009). However, this type of communication often cultivates dissatisfaction among the employees. The leaders can show the way. It is the duty of the followers to make use of it. In high tech industry, this principle is extremely relevant. In the 80’s, Bill Gates was successful in unveiling the potential of Windows Operating System in the computer market. Since then, plenty of versions of Windows have been entered the market. At present, no other OS can compete effectively with Windows since Microsoft has already monopolized the OS market (Basala, 2001). It should be noted that Microsoft has given many freedom to the employees and it followed a democratic management style in its premises. Communication among the Microsoft employees is extremely good. All Microsoft employees can meet and communicate with Bill Gates without any hassles. Teams Bruce Wayne Tuckman was the first one who researched the characteristics of group formation or team work. After a comprehensive research, he had identified five stages of group formation. They are; forming, storming, norming, performing and adjourning (CIPD, 2009; Mindtools, 2013a; Holmen, 2011). Teams function effectively only if the team members cooperate well. Even a single team member can spoil the entire objectives of the team. It is the duty of the team leader to provide clear instructions to all team members so that the ambiguity related to their responsibilities will be avoided. In modern business world, it is not necessary that all the team members should work under one roof. Because of the rapid advancements in computer and internet related technologies team members can stay anywhere in the world and still able to function properly. Virtual teams are "groups of geographically and/or organizationally dispersed co-workers that are assembled using a combination of telecommunications and information technologies to accomplish an organizational task" (Bell & Kozlowsk, 2002; Nevogt, 2013; Lipnack, 2000; Powel et al., 2004). The important thing is how effectively the team leader would manage virtual teams. Conclusion The process of leadership plays an important role in maximizing the potential of the organization and its employees. In high tech industry, majority of the employees are knowledgeable and hence leadership should provide enough freedom or autonomy to these employees while taking decisions. On the other hand, it would be difficult for a leader to provide enough autonomy or freedom to workers in the construction industry since the workers in this industry usually have less theoretical knowledge about their duties and responsibilities. In short, the process of leadership is not homogenous in all contexts. This is because of the interdependence of leadership with many environmental parameters such as such as the nature of the industry and the culture of the country. References Bell, B.S. & Kozlowsk, S.W. J. 2002. A Typology of Virtual Teams: Implications for Effective Leadership. Faculty Publications - Human Resource Studies. Paper 8. http://digitalcommons.ilr.cornell.edu/hrpubs/8 Basala, C.C. 2001. Antitrust Lawsuits Against Microsoft for Monopolizing Computer Software Markets. 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