Authentic Leadership - Dissertation Example

Download file to see previous pages The second article deals with increased performance due to trust given by subordinates to their leaders. Individuals with disability are excluded from social participation. Authentic leaders require strategies that involve these individuals in social contributions. This is discussed in the third article. The last article deals with strategic orientations for coping with organizational change. Different leaders have different goal oriented inclinations, which affect sustainability of change in an organization. From Avolio Bruce (2009) Most researchers concentrate on what a leader does, what they have done in the past, and how they have performed as a measure of quality leadership. Constituents of genuine leadership require a frontier of both the practice and science of leadership. In the current world, organizations are competing for leadership talent. Governments and businesses are concerned with developing leadership that will promote a sustainable world. The world is faced with finite resources, which calls for more attention for management and leadership qualities. The current leadership interventions aim at enhancing the self awareness of leaders. In the previous regimes of leadership, charismatic leaders could use symbols, images, and rhetoric to perform above ordinary levels (Avolio and Gibbons, 1988). These leaders sacrificed everything to show their followers their commitment to achieving their vision. According to Burns (1978) such leaders were inspiring, morally uplifting, and focused on converting followers into leaders. They transformed several of their followers into leaders. However, not all charismatic leaders are morally uplifting. Some leaders like Joseph Stalin advantaged on group by destroying others. They eliminated other people inclined towards leadership. Transformational leadership is characteristic on the leader throughout their life span (Avolio and Luthans, 2006). These leaders are inspiring and visionary. Positive outcomes in the organization and within an individual emanate from transformational leadership (Judge and Piccolo, 2004). According to Kegan (1994) leaders guided by self interest make it difficult to invest time to develop their followers into leaders. Their moral perspective is typically stuck at determining their personal gaining from transforming others into leaders. They dislike changes in the leadership positions and cannot judge the overall best course to pursue in transforming others. An authentic leader is self-aware, moral centered, transparent, and fair in decision making (George, 2003). As individuals advance in experience and wisdom, they shift from individual performers to morally uplifting and focus on transforming followers. Some of these leaders display transformational qualities but lack the moral basis to become transformational. Such leaders are seen to be very successful but leave their organizations in ruins. This is as a result of lack of transformational nature in these leaders and self motivated gains. Leadership is more made than born. In an incremental perspective, development is more elastic and modifiable within the life course. However, those who believe that leaders are born have an entity view. They consider personality and leadership as fixed entities at certain points in the life stream. Developing leadership is therefore difficult in people who think certain things are fixed. Transformational leadership should exist in strategic levels in an organization. Cascading effects are witnessed ...Download file to see next pagesRead More