The Different Leadership Styles - Essay Example

Organizational Behavior – Management and Leadership Introduction Organizational behavior deals with the impact that people, individuals, groups and structures have on behaviors within an organization. According to Keith Davis, “Organizational behavior is the study and application at knowledge about the how people - as individuals and a groups - act within organization. It strives to identify ways in which people can act more effectively.” Hence organizational behavior concerns with how people work in an organization and how their behaviors affect their overall performance of that particular organization (Spillane, et al, 2004, p33). However dealing with how organizations behave, it is necessary to see how the concept of leadership is in an organization. Leadership is all about the needs of the individuals of an organization. Leadership styles are mostly related to the situation in hand. They are used by considering the requirements of people involved and the particular challenges that the organization is facing. There are apparently six different leadership styles or approaches (Kotter and Cohen, 2002, p124). Compare the effectiveness of different leadership styles in different organization The first one is Visionary. This style is needed when an organization is looking for a new direction and its aim is to move people towards a new goal. Second one is coaching. This style deals with the development of individuals and showing how they can improve their performance and connects their aims to the aims of the organization. Coaching is best for organizations in which the workers who are initiative and want more professional development (Hatch, 2006, p19). Thirdly there is the Affiliate style. This style talks about team work and how a good connection between groups is important. This approach is important in improving and increasing team harmony and morale and improving communication or repairing any type of broken trusts within an organization. However too much praise can lead to poor performance as well. The fourth one is the Democratic style. This style deals with people’s knowledge and skills and introduces a commitment towards goals. However this style will fail in times of crises and in times of urgent decisions. The fifth style is Pacesetting. This style deals with the high standards of performance. The leaders want a perfect work and better and faster things. This style fails in if used too much hence it should be used sparingly. The final and sixth style is Commanding style. This style is also known as the military model. This is the most often used one but the least effective though. It deals with less praise and more criticism; it undercuts morale and reduces job satisfaction. This model should be used only in times of crises. Affiliate leadership styles are best for small setup businesses or firms. As it deals with for example a department reorganizing itself, so this style will help the employees understand how they fit into their new department, or new firm or new job. Since this style promotes harmony and helps solve conflicts, it is good for new businesses as well (Luis et al, 2008, p23). Furthermore, Commanding style of leadership is used in times of crisis, to bring about dramatic change, and with problematic employees. This style of leadership is good for any size of organizations, considering what the aims of the organization are. This style ensures that immediate compliance is achieved, however it is often misused, has an adverse impact on the working environment and leads to poor morale and staff retention (Baron and Greenberg, 2008, p51). Explain how organizational theory underpins the practice of management Organizational theory is a study of organizations for the advantage of identifying common aims and objectives for the purpose of resolving problems and maximizing productivity and efficiency. There are four theories of organizations and management and these are the Classical theory, Human Relations Theory, Contingency theory, and the Modern Systems theory. Classical theory itself has four main elements. Firstly, the principles of management are a fundamental factor. These principles include division of work or specialization, authority and responsibility, discipline, unity of command, unity of direction, subordination of individual interest to general interest, remuneration of personnel, centralization, scalar chain, order, and equality, stability of tenure of personnel, initiative, and union is strength factor. Secondly, the line and staff organizational relationships, which include assisting managers, accomplishing organizational objectives, and providing information, staff advice and counsel of experts. Thirdly, the Committees which provide an organizational structure contribute to creativity, communication, motivation, coordination, education, advising, and representation of opinions (Johnson et al, 2008, p82). The fourth one is the Functions of management. Management functions are classified into planning and setting goals and ways to achieve them, organizing and assigning responsibilities for task accomplishment, dealing with effectiveness and efficiency and ensuring that goals are attained and products and services are of a good quality and quantity, leading and using influence to motivate the workers in times of changes in an organization, controlling activities and making corrections, and dealing with different departments within an organization and ensuring that these departments are managed effectively. These are the classical management functions and all these tend to help and assist managers to effectively plan and organize an organization and manage and control it well. However the cons of the classical theory are that they ignore factors such as workers’ freedom and motivation and work environment. Moreover there are other theories as well such as the Human Relations theory, contingency theory, and the modern system theory (Mulcaster, 2009, p66). Evaluate the different approaches to management used by different organizations As there are different leadership styles, there are different styles of management as well and they differ with different types of organizations. Managers see themselves as the regulators of their firm or business. The roles of managers are planning and budgeting and establishing timetables for attaining results, and allocation of proper resources, organization for plan requirements and delegation of responsibilities, planning and organizing to solve any problems in work, production of results, and adopting a professional and passive attitude (Tichy, 2000, p54). There are many approaches to management. The Human behavior approach deals with getting things done by people, and how human behavior should be understood In order to get work done. The main aim is to increase motivation and productivity. Secondly there is the Social System Approach which deals with ensuring good relationships between employees and employers both. It also deals with good cooperation between members and a harmony between departments so goals can be achieved (Clayton, 1997, p23). Then there is the socio technical systems approach. This deals with technological forces which operate by setting rules and procedures. Moreover there is the Decision Theory Approach. This has features such as decision making and problem solving. It states that an organization can work more effectively if it excels in good decision making. Furthermore we have the Management Science approach. This approach deals with mathematical tools used to provide exactness in managerial discipline. This approach is fast. The systems approach deals with a ensuring all systems or departments within an organization work effectively and efficiently. Then here is the Situational Approach. This deals with behaviors outside of an organization and how an organization deals with these behaviors. This is important for keeping a healthy environmental relationship. The final approach is the Operational approach. This approach deals with how management functions are carried out and are they done in the best way possible or not. All these approaches or theories have their own advantages and disadvantages. And for every firm, the approaches differ (Mulcaster, 2009, p.72). Like for a small firm, the approaches would be different compared to a large firm. For example, for a large cake baking firm, the market would be a niche market. Hence their approaches would be social systems approach, socio technical approach, management science approach as well as situational approach keeping in mind all the competitors. For a huge fruit selling business, almost all the approaches would be needed. Hence there are differences in approaches which different sizes and types of firms use (Robbins, 2004, p2). Conclusion Therefore it can be concluded by verifying how organizations behave and how different firms and businesses behave differently compared to other firms and businesses. Every organization has its own aims and objectives that it must work towards and every organization has their own set of rules and regulations. Reference Baron, R. A., and Greenberg, J. 2008. Behavior in organizations – 9th edition. NJ: Pearson Education Inc. Clayton, C. 1997. The Innovators Dilemma. Boston: Harvard Business School Press. Hatch, M.J. 2006. Organization Theory: Modern, symbolic, and postmodern perspectives, 2nd Ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Kotter, J. and Cohen. P. 2002. The Heart of Change. Boston: Harvard Business School Publishing. Johnson, G, Scholes, K, Whittington, R. 2008. Exploring Corporate Strategy, 8th Edition. UK: FT Prentice Hall, Essex. Luis R., Balkin, D. and Robert L. C. 2008. Management: People, Performance, Change, 3rd edition. New York, New York USA: McGraw-Hill. Mulcaster, W.R. 2009."Three Strategic Frameworks," Business Strategy Series, 10 (1), pp. 68 – 75. Robbins, S. P. 2004. Organizational Behavior - Concepts, Controversies, Applications. 4th Ed. London: Prentice Hall. Spillane, J. P., Richard, D., John, D. 2004. "Towards a theory of leadership practice". Journal of Curriculum Studies 36 (1), pp.3–34. Tichy, N. 2000. Managing Strategic Change: Technical, political, and cultural dynamics. NY: John Wiley. Read More