Leadership is simply about 'getting the job done'. Discuss in relation to concepts and conflicts - Essay Example

On average, a manager’s job would be to administer things as per the managerial continuity and integrity. This paper will examine the existing theoretical concepts in relation to leadership. Also, conflicts might arise in the case all the theories are applied in one go. The paper would examine the possible conflicts too. Key Concepts Introduction: The following discussion would cover the key concepts in relation to management and how a job should be executed. It also focuses on management and corporate strategy in relation to leadership.

Discussion: If a job is to be done, it is not likely that one does it single-handedly in today’s complex socio-psychological environment. He or she would need a team, hence the formation of workgroups. In a workgroup, the goals must be shared, group values must be specified, decision must be based on consensus and evaluation must be constantly done. Moreover, in order to get the job done, some other ethical values like mutual trust, dedicated participation and respect for each other must be ushered (McGregor, Bennis and Schein, 1966).

In doing the job, the leader must understand the relationship between behaviour and performance among his or her subordinates. Reinforcement Theory explicates the concept as such that a rewarded behaviour is more likely to be repeated while a behaviour that is punished is less likely to be repeated. The concept of reward and punishment is necessary and thus simply getting the job done may be insufficient (Keller, 1969). Figure - 1 Goal setting is also important because neither the leader nor his or her subordinates are supposed to know what to do if no goal is set at all (Brenda Devis, 1988).

Again, according to Adam’s Equity Theory, the extent of equity that an individual would observe in relation to a work situation would proportionally affect his or her job performance and satisfaction (Kinicki, 2009). However, management in the real world cannot be completely based on theories only. To get the job done, the leader must handle general management and show skills in operational systems. A manager uses management tools to manage people and resources, while the leader is supposed to use the same tools innovatively.

This is beyond simply completing the job. The fundamental questions like “What is management?” and “What is business?” should be explored with support from practical experiences. Techniques and tools like networks of critical path, cash flow and inventory control add more dimensions to decision making (Payne, Chelsom and Reavill, 2004). In getting the job done, the leader must not remain in the constraints of that job only. He or she must understand business failure or success is primarily dependent on how diverse areas of function in management can be combined to deliver and produce value to the different stakeholders.

Corporate strategy in the form of functional integration is imperative in orchestration with the complex and dynamic corporate environment (Johnson, Scholes and Whittington, 2005) Summary: The key concepts in relation to leadership and ‘getting the job done’ are discussed. Stress has been put on: 1. Workgroup functionality 2. Reinforcement Th