The Link between Leadership and Diversity - Assignment Example

1) Describe and discuss the link between leadership and diversity. (max. 8 points)       Diversity is increasingly becoming a big issue in the present day organizations as more and more of them are opening up to embrace global challenges and are also recruiting from a diverse mix of available talent. The need to be competitive has made the organizations redefine their focus and realign their resources. While, in many cases the handling of diverse workforce is still a difficult task, tainted by the misconception and stereotypes, some organizations have identified diversity as a potential source of competitive advantage. (Lockwood, 2005). There are also positive indications that organizations that are rated highly on diversity are also rated high on other measures of organizational success. (Winston, 2001). Once the diversity and its related issues are identified and acknowledged, the organization can move on to develop systems to co-ordinate and turn diversity into its competitive advantage. One such system, that is perhaps the most crucial one for the entire process to work, is of leadership. There are however, two fold links between leadership and diversity that must be given due consideration. The first arises (as we’ll see in the following paragraphs), due to the fact that it is extremely relevant that leaders and managers acknowledge diversity of the workforce and also, and that they are trained in their approach to direct a diverse people. The second link is due the growing need to encourage more leaders from among those who come with a diverse background. The first issue is pertinent as many of the leadership theories postulate that the leaders’ social skills, intelligence, attitudes, and traits like decisiveness and self-confidence, play a crucial role in his ability to motivate and lead. (Stogdill,1974). Other theories, like the contingency theories, also put forward the ability of the leaders to adjust to the situation and to adapt a flexible approach – an approach that is perhaps the most required one for leading a diverse workforce.       This is especially true in the light that people working together in teams, are required to share healthy working relationships, and to complement each other’s skills. The link between diversity and leadership can be identified by the fact that a leader’s task becomes important in a diversity environment, as he is required to keep heterogeneous teams motivated to work together and to stimulate synergistic outputs.       Secondly, a point to note here is that there is a need to encourage leaders from diverse backgrounds, as opposed to promoting only the traditional white males for leadership roles. The question also arises, whether the leaders, who have a different background in terms of race and gender, lead differently from the traditionally mainstream leaders. Here again the link between leadership and diversity can be explored. Other things being equal, men and women, and those from different racial and ethnic backgrounds, are equally effective as leaders (Fiedler, 1996). However, there has been a considerable debate relating to the issue that leaders from different backgrounds and sex favor different leadership approaches. (Duchatelet, 1992).       This is important also as leaders who come from different backgrounds bring their own learning and problem solving approaches – and which could be utilized for tacking problems from newer and fresher angles and bringing diverse insights and approaches to boost productivity.       So, we can positively state that diversity and leadership share a two-way relationship - diversity requires the leadership to understand and realign its approach to cater for the divers needs and motives of the workforce, and diverse leadership has the potential to influence and manages the people in new and insightful ways. After establishing the strong linkages between leadership and diversity, it is now necessary that we assess the different approaches to leadership in the light of their ability and scope to make an impact on leading a diverse workforce. This leads us to the next section of this essay, where we’ll discuss the leadership theories and their relevance in facilitating the link between leadership and diversity. (2) Discuss five leadership theories/approaches that would be relevant to your response in Question 1 in facilitating the link between leadership and diversity. (max. 8 points)       According to Northouse (2004) leadership is "a process whereby an individual influences a group so as to achieve a common goal". Other definitions of leadership include that leadership is ‘the position or office of a leader’ or, it is the ‘capacity or ability to lead’. (Dictionary.com, 2006). The concept of leadership, in itself, is very diverse, with different thinkers and researchers presenting a different model of leadership and its impact on the organizational effectiveness.       For example, according to Bass (Donald, 2005) there are 3 different ways in which this phenomenon can be described. These are, first by the way of trait theories (that postulate that leaders are born and not made), second, by the Great Events Theory (that states that important events make leaders rise to the occasion), and third, by the Transformational Leadership theory (that states that people can learn leadership skills). There are numerous leadership theories like, the style theory of leadership, the situational theory, the contingency theory, the path-goal theory, leader-member exchange theory etc. (Jin, 2006). It is of great importance that the approach that the organization practices must be in tandem with its diversity management efforts.        There is a need that the leader follows an approach that enables him to better lead a diverse workforce, and also, that enables him to lead effectively even when he himself is from a diverse background. Theories like Situational Theory, Contingency Theory, Path-Goal Theory, Transformational Theory, and Leader-Member Exchange Theory provide a substantially potential way of leading and managing diversity at work. Hersey and Blanchard’s Situational Theory states that leaders should employ a balanced mix of delegating, supporting, coaching and directing in their dealings with their subordinates. (ChangingMinds.org, 2006). This, they are required to do based upon their assessment of the situation and the need of the hour. In a an environment of diverse workforce, the leaders can employ this approach to develop the complementary skills of the workers – by delegating different tasks to people with different skills, by coaching and supporting the workforce, and by directing them when needed. This will create a stress-free atmosphere, in which people from different backgrounds can learn to use their maximum, yet diverse and complementary potential.       The Contingency Theory (Fiedler,1964) too, places an emphasis on the situation. It says that the effectiveness of the leader can be determined by parameters like the leader-member relations, the degree of structure of the task, and the position power. It also depends on the leaders perception of the people – as is found out by his score of LPC or least preferred co-worker score (a relationship-oriented leader will have a high score while a task oriented leader will show a low score on LPC). In a diverse environment, the leaders are faced with these issues more strongly. For managing a diverse workforce, a relationship-based approach is better suited to develop the workers into a synergistic team. Thus, the leaders who are relationship oriented do better in a situation that involves a diverse workforce. This theory therefore can address diversity issues as it identifies which leadership approach can be successful in diverse situations.   Path-Goal theory of Robert House postulates that good leaders are able to chart out a plan of action for their subordinates keeping in mind the subordinates characteristics and abilities. (House, 1971). The workers are therefore kept motivated, as the goals that are set are in keeping with their own abilities and hence they are able to perform their best. Such a leadership approach can work very well in a situation where the workforce is highly diverse – in terms of their prior learning, personality, or attitudes. The leaders here are therefore able to take into consideration the diversity of the workers before setting goals. Transformational leadership theory states that leaders are able to make the subordinates aware of their personal developmental needs and are able to synchronize the subordinates’ needs with the organization’s needs. According to Tichy and Devanna, transformational leaders see themselves as change agents and have the ability to deal with complex situations. (Tichy and Devanna,1986). This theory, therefore gives due consideration to the diversity at workforce – a situation which is more complex than when only homogenous workers are to be lead. The leaders can thus be able to improve their approach if they indeed see themselves as change agents see their task as leading to a change in the work culture to include the needs and aspirations of the diverse workforce. According to Northhouse (2004), the Psychodynamic approach states that effective leaders have a good understanding of their own psychological make-up, as well as of that of their subordinates’. Leaders, who realize and consider the differences in different people while assigning goals and leading them, are bound to be more successful. Hence, such an approach is useful when leading a diverse workforce – one that is bound to be different due to cultural, gender or ethnic differences. The above leadership theories have been used to explain how they can increase the effectiveness of leadership in a diverse situation – by postulating that leaders should pay attention to the workers’ differences, and to utilize their complementary skills and abilities to achieve organizational approach. However, the theories do not explicitly elaborate upon the issue of the leaders from diverse backgrounds. But it can be expected that, the increase in the number of female and ethnic leaders will lead to the development of similar literature and theories. As, for now, it is evident that a majority of leaders are from traditional backgrounds, and there are only few opportunities for women and ethnic and racial minority employees to reach the top positions, as we’ll examine in the following paragraphs.  (3) Compare and contrast where leadership practice in U.S. organizations is currently, and where, in your view, it needs to go in the future. (max. 8 points)  Though there has been an increasing recognition of workplace diversity in the United States, the leadership practice here is still dominated by the white male group. Women make up a small percentage of leaders in the US, and irrespective of their age, color or socio-economic status, face institutional roadblocks to success. (Sumru Erkut, 2001) Similarly, minorities, black and Hispanics form only a very small proportion of the leaders in the US organizations. (The US Workforce, 1997). Most organizations are structured without taking into consideration the special issues of women (like their concern for home and children), and hence they are unable to exploit the full potential of the female workers. (Sumru Erkut, 2001). In my view, it is essential that the US organizations realize the fact that female workers and leaders have a different approach to their work – but this does not mean that they are necessarily inferior to their male-counterparts or ineffective in their work. This difference is due to several factors, including domestic responsibilities, differing approach to conflict management etc. (Ely, 2003). The organizations can do well to encourage the female workers to work with their differing abilities and methods, to utilize their full potential and to rise to leadership positions. Instead of labeling them as unfit for higher position, I’ll like the US organization to take advantage of the diverse knowledge and viewpoint that female leaders can bring to work. Similarly, there is still a wide gap in the proportion of leaders that are from minority backgrounds. Though the minorities like Hispanics, Asians, and Arabs are increasing in number, both in terms of the overall population of the US as well as in terms of workforce, (The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 2006) there are very few minority leaders in position. This again is an aspect that I’ll like to be improved upon if the US organizations are to remain competitive in future. The increasing pool of the diverse workforce should be given better support and encouragement so that a more diverse approach to leading can be attained. The US organizations need to enact systems so that leaders from the diverse background too get an equal opportunity to develop and contribute to the organization’s success. In conclusion, I want to state that there is a need that organizations in the US increase their understanding and commitment towards the needs of the diversity, and also provide an environment where diverse leadership is able to develop. . References Question 1 1. Lockwood, Nancy R. 2005. “Workplace Diversity: Leveraging the Power of Difference for Competitive Advantage”. SHRMOnline. Retrieved from :http://shrm.org/research/quarterly/2005/0605RQuart_essay.asp, accessed on 17th July 2006. 2. Winston, Mark D. 2001. “The Importance of Leadership Diversity: The Relationship between Diversity and Organizational Success in the Academic Environment”. College and Research Libraries. Vol. 62, No. 6. Also available at http://www.ala.org/ala/acrl/acrlpubs/crljournal/backissues2001b/november01/winston.pdf Accessed on 17th July 2006. 3. Stogdill, R.M.1974. Handbook of leadership: A survey of the literature, New York: Free Press. Extracts available at ChangingMinds.org, http://changingminds.org/disciplines/leadership/theories/trait_theory.htm. 4. Fred E. Fiedler. 1996. “Research on Leadership Selection and Training: One View of the Future”. Administrative Science Quarterly. Vol 41.pp. 43. 5. Duchatelet Martine.1992. “Cultural Diversity and Management/Leadership Models”. American Business Review. Vol:16. pp. 96-99  Question 2 1. Northhouse, T. 2004. “Introduction”. Leadership theory and practice. 3rd Ed. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall 2. Dictionary.com. 2006. “Leadership.” Retrieved from: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/leadership. Accessed on 17th July 2006. 3. Clark Donald, 2005. “Concepts of Leadership” Retrieved from: http://www.nwlink.com/~donclark/leader/leadcon.html. Accessed on 18th July 2006. 4. Jin, Dengjian. 2006. “Leadership and Followership - Teaching Notes of Organizational Behavior”, Dickinson College websie. Retrieved from: http://www.dickinson.edu/~jin/Leadership.html. Accessed on 28th July 2006. 5. ChangingMinds.org. 2006, “Hersey and Blanchards Situational Leadership”. Retrieved from: http://changingminds.org/disciplines/leadership/styles/situational_leadership_hersey_blanchard.htm. Accessed on 19 July 2006. 6. Fiedler, F.E. 1964. “A Contingency Model of Leadership Effectiveness”. Advances in Experimental Social Ppsychology. L. Berkowitz (ed). NY: Academic press. 7. House, R. J. 1971. “A Path-Goal Theory of Leader Effectiveness”. Administrative Sciences Quarterl. pp. 322-38. 8. Tichy Noel M. and Devanna Mary Anne. 1986. The Transformational Leader. New York: John Wiley & Sons 9. Northhouse, T. 2004. “Psychodynamic Approach”. Leadership Theory and Practice. 3rd Ed. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall Question 3 1.Sumru Erkut. 2001. “Project: Women Leaders”. The Winds of Change Foundation and the Center for Research on Women at Wellesley College. Retrieved from : http://www.wcwonline.org/archive/womenleaders-se.html. Accsessed on 21st July 2006. 2. The US Workforce, 1997, Economic Trends, Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland. Retrieved from: http://www.clevelandfed.org/Research/Et97/0197/labmkt2.htm. Accessed on 19th July 2006. 3. Sumru Erkut. 2001. “Project: Women Leaders”. The Winds of Change Foundation and the Center for Research on Women at Wellesley College. Retrieved from : http://www.wcwonline.org/archive/womenleaders-se.html. Accsessed on 21st July 2006. 4. Ely, 2003.Reader in Gender, Work and Organization. Williston:Blackwell Publishing. Extracts available at : http://books.google.co.in/books?vid=ISBN140510256X&id=ibjgm3uTvaEC&pg=PA163&lpg=PA163&dq=How+do+women+leaders+manage+conflict+in+organizations&sig=FiPJX-A4y26abGJqN-Aiz5kE2-A&hl=en . Accessed on 21st July 2006 5. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 2006, Occupational Employment in Private Industry by Race/Ethnic Group/Sex, and by Industry, United States, 2000. Retrieved from http://www.eeoc.gov/stats/jobpat/2000/national.html. Accessed on 20th July 2006. Read More