Charismatic Leadership's Transformational Traits - Movie Review Example

?Running Head: Leadership in Movies A Charismatic Leader’s Transformational Traits: The Story of General Frank Savage of Twelve o’clock High A Self-Analysis Paper Name Course Title Name of Professor Date of Submission Table of Contents Section Title Page Number Introduction 3 Plot Summary 3 Charismatic Leadership’s Transformational Traits 5 Conclusions 10 Introduction Literature on leadership argues that for organizations to attain lasting positive outcome, a new leadership approach should arise: transformational leadership. Transformational leaders will possess the capacity to, as stated by Bass (1990), “broaden and elevate the interests of their employees, generate awareness and acceptance of the purposes and missions of the organization, and stir the employees to look beyond their own self-interests for the good of the overall entity” (as cited in Szewczak & Snodgrass, 2003, 8). This paper presents an analytical paradigm of leadership approaches. A typical illustration of how this paradigm functions is shown in the film Twelve O’Clock High. The 1949 movie is about the Second World War and how an unsuccessful bomber troop was made triumphant by Brigadier General Savage. Plot Summary General Frank Savage, in this narrative of the first phase of bombing attacks over Germany, is ordered to lead a disastrous bomber team after a commanding officer is dismissed. A great deal of the narrative focuses on Savage’s great effort to make the team highly disciplined despite of several and major losses. Real battle footage is included in this vividly told war story. The American 918th Bomber Group has recently accomplished another assignment. The performance of the 918th is depressing. The group is enduring major crew fatalities and aircraft damages. The poor performance of the 918th stands in contrast with the achievements of other bomber units. Consequently, the 918th experiences weak motivation and a status as ‘The Hard Luck Unit” (Lay & Bartlett, 1980, 19); thus starts the archetypal film about the Second World War. Savage, after reaching the 918th Bomber Group, observes that there are weak levels of obedience and discipline. The soldiers show almost no concern for military civility and are frequently intoxicated. Savage promptly evaluates the records of assistant leaders. He finds out that Air Executive Officer Lieutenant Colonel Ben Gately has a good record. But Savage is forced to order an arrest of Gately because he is missing from his position. When Gately is arrested, Savage criticizes him for abandoning his assignment and for being personally accountable for the failure of the prior commanding officer. Savage dismisses Gately from the position but refuses to recommend his reassignment. Rather, Savage proclaims, “I’m not going to pass the buck… I’m going to keep you right here” (Lay & Bartlett, 1980, 14). Savage afterward relocates all of the nonconformists of the 918th unit. Even though the decisions of Savage may seem to be humiliating, he is going on the right direction. His charismatic leadership style is usually aggressive, drastic, and transformative, often working as a change catalyst. Savage exhibits a supernatural intuition. He recognizes Gately can be a very effective leader, but one who requires motivation. The aspiration of Savage is for Gately to turn out to be a self-actualized individual, to emerge from a self-centered to altruistic character and be instilled with well-formed work principles. Savage displays transformational inclinations of a charismatic leader. By granting Gately the opportunity to regain his good reputation as a leader, Savage finally guides him to a deep empowerment position. Gately in time realizes his decisions and attitudes strongly influence the group’s capacity to effectively complete its assignment. Charismatic Leadership’s Transformational Traits Future leaders will confront numerous circumstances where in they will have to adopt transformational traits of a charismatic leader. Numerous leaders of the future will come to believe that top command has assigned them unattainable tasks, particularly in the face of unrelenting budget cuts and reduced personnel to carry out further deployments (Gill, 2006, 20). Thus, all military leaders have to espouse charismatic leadership, a leadership approach combatants want, need, and look for. The essential objective of the charismatic leader is to create self-aware individuals who view their behaviors as inherently linked to the success of their organization (Quinn, 1996, 90). This unselfish character would motivate the members of the organization to persistently look for means to enhance the strengths of the organization while sustaining its well-built work ethic. Consequently, subordinates would become skilled at wholly trusting their leaders. Charismatic leadership creates an idea that represents mutual beliefs and values. As an outcome, the members of the organization achieve enhanced self-worth, pride and, most importantly, improved performance (Northouse, 2009, 172). Only a handful of leaders actually go beyond transactional leadership. The daily organizational pressures usually suppress the vision of the leader. Sped up working paces also frustrate potential charismatic leaders. However, the genuine charismatic leader stays undisturbed by these pressures. The charismatic leader is frequently viewed as being heroic or possessing some kind of mystical power (Quinn, 1996, 91). In truth, s/he merely has a superior capacity to recognize human nature and to put into practice strong, effective leadership strategies. The charismatic leadership approach provides military leaders the chance to actually practice effectual leadership and to capitalize on the abilities of their followers. I believe that we should consider and adopt these ideals. By initially displaying a commanding leadership approach, Savage is able to set goals and launch strategies that allowed the team to evade the bombing attacks more effectively. Afterwards, as the team responds to Savage’s successful strategy he moves to a persuasive leadership approach. Assessing their attitudes, behavior, and performance he is successful in organizing their operations, evaluating the favorable outcomes and productively assessing the performance of the team members. Pursued by more victories Savage is able to engage each and every team member to rally for the eventual victory of the organization. Savage displays aggressive and revolutionary leadership traits. By giving a reassignment to those who wish for one, Savage is confident that he can engage the soldiers to his aspiration. Indeed, this becomes the foundation of his aspiration: that the unit can become a confident, exceptional group able to carry out successful bombing raids. A breathing aspiration is vital to the success of a charismatic leader and fits Savage’s strong professional ethic. In addition, Savage attempts to uplift the spirit of the soldiers to encourage them to embrace a self-sacrificing character. He imbues in them discipline and obedience by imposing a powerful work principle, endowing them a sense of direction and goal. His focus on knowledge and skills is essential; he is aware that capability results in self-esteem, and self-esteem results in excellent performance. Savage is instinctively confident that he accurately relates to the needs and goals of the group. He believes they embrace the same ideals. Savage is aware that shared ideals are vital to achieving his subordinates’ devotion and allegiance. He exhibits exceptional self-confidence despite of great difficulties, especially the group’s inclination to hold on to the memory of their previous leader. Moreover, he discovers the soldiers have all asked for reassignment from the group. However, Savage remains steadfast that he can positively transform the unit. Such assurance is suggestive of a charismatic leader who displays a fervent belief in personal principles and sustains self-determination from internal problems. This form of objectivity is completely vital: a charismatic leader is impervious from personal uncertainties or dominant beliefs (Gill, 2006, 54). Rather, he is driven by personal ideals that prevail over internal problem or, he intuitively act correctly. The self-esteem of Savage stems from his confidence that he can breathe new life into the group. Adjutant Major Harvey Stovall guarantees Savage more time by interrupting the process of reassignment. Savage knows that this action could provoke the fury of the inspector general. Savage reports that the group’s performance is getting better. Bombing tactics are quite more accurate, formations are stronger, and crew fatalities and aircraft damages are lesser. However, the previous leader, Col. Ernie Davenport, talks to Savage about the news that the new leader is delaying reassignment applications. He cautions that the inspector general will probe into it. Davenport informs Savage he “can’t drive those boys… [You have] to win something from them; give them something to lean on” (Lay & Bartlett, 1980, 25). The charismatic leader responds, “Lean on somebody? I think they’re better than that! (Lay & Bartlett, 1980, 25)” The remark of Davenport indicates he is a thoughtful leader. Nevertheless, Savage, being a charismatic leader, is far more creative and insightful. He does not think that complacency and compassion suggest thoughtfulness; the thinks that they are an act of abandonment. The performance of the group has progressed due to the heightened focus on training. Being independent from internal problems permits Savage to recognize that genuine leadership entails endowing the group the practical capability, physical strength, and moral boldness to effectively accomplish its task. This is the absolute kind of empowerment. By endowing the soldiers with such traits, Savage is providing them the biggest chance to come back alive. Savage is a genuine epitome of a thoughtful leader. Savage is determined in his pursuit to restore the self-esteem and strength of the unit. He persistently struggles to enliven his subordinates, imbue them with a sense of responsibility, gain their loyalty and trust, and instill them with self-confidence. Savage is an icon of a creative and insightful leader. He has a concrete vision and has a systematic understanding of the reality that the actions of the unit are not only strongly connected to the next task but are connected to the realities of the war. Savage is evidently an analytical leader. He knows that the behavior of one component in the group has an effect on all of the other components. He truthfully thinks that every soldier in his group serves a crucial function in the result of the war. Because he is an analytical leader, he also knows his duty to empower the group to effectively complete the task. Furthermore, he is confident that the only way to achieve his aspiration is through a well-built work principle, altruistic attitude, and hard work. The group should recognize its duty to the system and to the country. This scenario also shows the motivating and inspiring character of Savage. The inspector general is performing an inquiry into the delay of reassignment requests. Savage cleans his office of any paperwork thinking he will be discovered responsible for stripping men of their rights to prompt governmental action. Nevertheless, Major Joe Cobb, the newly assigned executive chief, says to Savage that every reassignment appeal has been pulled out. Cobb says, “I knew those jokers couldn’t buck you forever. They finally realized they had a chance to hit the target and get home when you were up front leading” (Surhone, Timpledon, & Marseken, 2010, 44). Even though the executive chief believes the soldiers should be given recognition for a successful mission, Savage observes the soldiers are now turning out to be quite reliant on him. He makes a decision to give the next assignment to the supervision of Cobb. Savage proclaims, “I want this group combed for every man who shows signs of being able to lead a mule to water” (Surhone et al., 2010, 45). The charismatic leadership of Savage is starting to generate bonuses. The pulling out of reassignment appeals suggests a change in values: the group is starting to internalize the values of its leader. The group has regained its true strength. The process of transformation has been successfully set off. Yet, Savage remains persistent. He is aware that the group is still far from being perfect. His followers see him as a man possessing supernatural abilities which enlivens them. Where there was hopelessness, with Savage’s leadership there is now optimism and triumph. The transformation is total. The group has reached the stage of self-actualization. The group is totally dedicated to the aspiration of Savage. Under the leadership of the former commander, soldiers were avoiding their obligation; under the leadership of Savage, soldiers are asking for it. The empowering aspiration of Savage has endowed the group direction and goal. These are the dominant influences of the charismatic leader, with these influences greatly stemming from the fervent ideals, visions, self-reliance, and self-worth. Conclusions Specifically, this paper attempts to argue how a leader can initiate positive transformations in the group by adopting transformational strategies. A major argument to consider from this self-analysis concerns the evaluation of the group and individual members of the group. That evaluation involves assessing the power relationship between the follower and the leader, the priority of the task, and the abilities, objectives, and eagerness of the individual. Being capable of applying that evaluation in order for the leader to choose a suitable leadership approach that the situation entails will certainly help the group to become successful. Afterwards directing the group toward autonomy from the leader and a common ‘duty’ is actually what differentiates transactional leadership from the transformational one. By using the traits of a transformational leader, just like what Savage did, a leader can motivate the group to exert more effort and perform better. References Gill, R. (2006). Theory and Practice of Leadership. London: Sage Publications Ltd. Lay, B. & Bartlett, S. (1980). Twelve o’clock high! New York: Arno Press. Northouse, P. (2009). Leadership: Theory and Practice. London: Sage Publications, Inc. Quinn, R. (1996). Deep Change: Discovering the Leader Within. The University of Michigan: Jossey-Bass Publishers. Surhone, L., Timpledon, M. & Marseken, S. (2010). Twelve o’clock High. New York: VDM Verlag Dr. Mueller AG & Co. Kg. Szewczak, E.J. & Snodgrass, C. (2003). Managing the Human Side of Information Technology: Challenges and Solutions. New York: IRM Press. Read More