A of Definitions of Leadership - Literature review Example

Table of Contents Page Executive Summary ………………………………………………………………….. 2 Introduction ……………………………………………………………………………3 Definitions of a Leader My Definition ……………………………………………………………..…...4 Five Other Definitions ………………………………………………………….5 Review of Articles ……………………………………………………………………..6 Leadership Model …………………………………………………………………….10 Conclusion ……………………………………………………………………………12 References ……………………………………………………………………………13 Executive Summary Leadership is a quality of character essential to providing guidance, support and evaluation of an organization, its employees and the procedures and processes that enable all to function effectively. This paper will present several definitions of leadership, as defined by me, five of my friends, and across a selection of peer-reviewed articles from my class reading list. The purpose of the review is to develop my own personal model of leadership, by drawing on the input from others, as well as recognizing characteristics, values and behaviors that I consider important in a successful leader. The review shows that a variety of theories exist as to what makes an effective leader – emotional intelligence, strength of character, humility, communication efficiency and the will to succeed are some examples. Overall, this review highlights the importance for a leader to be flexible to the situation and context in which they find themselves making decisions and taking action. It appears that there is no one set formula to be an effective leader, instead professional and personal development must be made lifelong learning goals. Professional development may take the form of training courses, or getting back to the ‘ground floor’ of the organization. Personal development for the leader requires critical reflection on one’s outcomes, to bring awareness of one’s strengths and weaknesses, as well as what makes one unique. It is anticipated that this paper will provide a concise collection of leadership definitions that can contribute to student learning of leadership, and the qualities that are necessary to motivate others to be led by them. Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things. - Peter F. Drucker Introduction Leadership is a role that requires valuable skills as well as a reliance on innate personal characteristics. Effective leadership is highly demanded in the product and service industries. The act of leadership is complex and is determined by the credibility of the leader; importantly the leader must be able to exhibit commitment to a clear set of values (Kouzes & Posner, 2003). Characteristics of a good leader are often identified as being: honesty, competency, a good communicator, inspiring and forward-thinking (Kouzes & Posner, 2002). Definitions of a Leader My Definition My personal definition of leadership is, a person who is able to act in an ethical manner and so keeps in mind the rights and dignity of other person’s they interact with. Complementary to this, is transparency of decision and actions, as well as demonstrating accountability for decision and action outcomes. Also, leadership is cultivated through the practice of reflective thinking, as when a person critically considers their decisions and actions in light of the outcomes. I see leadership as a flexible behavior, which adapts itself to the context of the situation, whilst remaining aligned with the leader’s temperament. An example of flexible leadership is when socio-cultural, political, economic and/or another’s personal characteristics are included in how a decision is arrived at, or a solution implemented. Finally, leadership is the embodied in the skill of communication, the leader being able to empathize with others, listen to their needs and expectations, and can learn what motivates and empowers others to try, persist, achieve, and to adapt to unsuccessful outcomes and focus on solutions. Five Other Definitions Using email, five friends were contacted to ask them who they determined was a good leader. Their responses are outlined below: R ---- suggests that the Prime Minister of the UK, Tony Blair as the embodiment of good leadership. With the modification of the National Health System, beginning in 1997, Blair’s government demonstrated their ability and willingness to take risks, place the patient first in the therapeutic process, and to listen to what it is the people of the UK want from a health system. This makes Tony Blair a ‘trail blazer’ in regards to the radical steps taken to reform the NHS, and to provide an integrated and local service that meets the health and social care needs of the community. C ----‘s response was that David Suzuki, a Canadian environmentalist, is a prime example of what it takes to be an effective leader. He has high ethical standards, and advocates for the rights and dignity of not only humans, but also the fauna and flora across the globe, and of the Earth itself as a living eco-system. Also, Dr Suzuki continually supports the education of the community in areas of conservation, recycling, interacting with the environment, and sustainable living. Suzuki motivates others to follow his cause, and to persist in seeking change from a consumerist society. A--- states that Dr Phil is an ideal example of a leader as he seeks to help others alleviate their relational, emotional or mental distress. He appears to have a strong set of ethical values, such as respect for others, and his desire to empower others to take responsibility for their own well-being. Dr Phil seems to be transparent in regards to his opinions and viewpoints of a variety of issues, and this may be why people are comfortable sharing with him, taking on board his advice, and putting into practice the skills he guides them in developing. B---- answers that Opra Winfrey is an excellent example of a leader, as she is humble, genuine, sincere, empathetic as well as opinionated, independent, and very intelligent. Opra listens to others within her community, shares her fortune with those in need, and seeks to aid others in accessing information which can empower and enrich their lives. Her professional appearance inspires confidence in others of her ability to take on challenges, and to take risks. Oprah continually succeeds in meeting her goals and is openly critical and reflective of her decisions and actions in view of the outcomes. G--- answers that Bill Gates is a great leader due to his philanthropic activities, and his ability to motivate others to take risks, ‘think outside the square’, to be proud of their achievements, and to contribute to an efficient and effective corporate culture. Article reviews Following are the brief reviews of a selection of articles from the class reading list: Brennemann (1998) – Use common sense and logic advises Bain consultant Greg Brenneman, in regards to his work with Continental Airlines. Understand the market, improve products, increase revenue, and motivate employees by transforming organizational culture that fully engages the employee, and acknowledges their value. What do the customers want? - Ask them the right questions. When leaders have little time to plan, and no strategies in place for a crisis, it is best to keep things simple. To overcome unsuccessful outcomes have a strategy for direction and monitor progress towards the goal; clean house of management involved in the crises, adopt a “money in” mantra (p. 5); do not cut costs as this may lower production and services and further undermine the organization. Importantly, apologize to all stakeholders and work towards regaining customer loyalty. Drucker (1999) – A leader must “know thyself”, that is, their values, their strengths and their weaknesses. In order to achieve this level of self-awareness it is necessary that a leader reflect on their decisions and actions in regards to the outcomes. Reflection processes allow the leader to continuously develop themself as a leader. This is a type of feedback analysis can be achieved by leaders asking themself: Am I a reader or a listener? How is it that I learn? Am I a loner or do I work better with others? In what situations? What are my personal values in regards to work? Do my values align with those of the organization? What should I contribute? Where do I belong within the organization? Leaders must take responsibility for the relationships that they form, and for the communication that maintains and develops these relationships. Wetlaufer (1999) – Multi-national corporations need to integrate and synchronise employees across the nation and globally. An example is Ford™ that provides in-house teachers to provide “teachable points of view” (p. 75). The teachers use story-telling, training programs, reports and emails to transmit their knowledge to other employees. Employees think as shareholder, enabling swift change and /or anticipation of consumer needs. The employees are encouraged to think and act as if they owned the company. The teachers encourage ideas about what it is that employees consider makes a company profitable; the development of personal and workplace values to set business goals; guide the utilization of emotional energy which, enabling employees to motivate each other; cultivate an ‘edge’ to employee competencies in the development of unique thought processes, and knowing when to act and to take risks. Overall, the teachers as leaders make their implicit knowledge, explicit. Wise and Baumgartner (1999) – Leadership is all about service, otherwise known as ‘heading downstream toward the customer (p. 133). There is less emphasis on manufacturing in the 21st century, and focusing on the customer enables benefits of higher margins whilst using fewer resources. This provides for continuous steady service-revenue streams. Downstream methods include follow-up calls or surveys, administration, and customer support following purchase. One of the ways a leader can achieve a downstream orientation is to embed services, such as building technology into the product and creating ‘smart’ products that are less labour intensive for the consumer. Another way is through integrated solutions, such as combining products and services to tailor to the needs of the consumer. Leadership is required in recognizing when it is acceptable for an organization to take a downstream approach. To do this, the leader must examine the organizations competitive position, and the likelihood of increased differentiation. Furthermore, new ways to monitor progress and to assess outcomes must be developed. Gofee and Jones (2000) – Reflection is the key factor in a leader’s ability to be an inspirational leader. Self-knowledge cultivates effective communication, allowing the leader to engage others and to motivate them. It is essential that the leader not hide weaknesses all the time, so as to show that they are approachable and human. Judging when to show weakness requires a leader to follow their intuition. The process of reflection, or soft data collection and analysis, aids in knowing when to act; when to practice tough empathy, and how to care for the realities of others. A leader should be proud of what makes them different from others as it demonstrates their uniqueness. Leaders should ask themselves: Why would someone want to follow me? Goleman (2000) - Leadership that is effective and efficient incorporates a variety of leadership styles to complement the leader’s style, and the situation at hand. Furthermore, the incorporation of a flexible leadership style can be learnt. Using an archival search design the Hay/McBere consulting firm used a random sample from 20, 000 managers across the globe and concluded that six dominant leadership styles could be identified which were based on emotional intelligence: Coercive (demanding); Authoritative (mobilizing); Affiliative (bonds emotionally), Democratic (seeks consensus), Pace-Setting (expects self-direction) and the Coach (develops others). There is not one particular style but a blend of styles that fosters the most effective leader. A person must identify where their leadership competency is lacking, and target underlying emotional intelligence tendencies. Hill and Wetlaufer (2000) – Ultimately, leaders must make decisions on their own states Eni’s CEO, Franco Bernabè. Hence, they need to rely on their conscious as an “inner compass” (p. 2). Humanity and morality are dual traits of an effective leader, as they allow one to look to the well-being of the worker and the community as well as the organization. Leaders promote integrity and independence within the workplace, whilst providing moral and strategic direction. It is important that a leader is able to take risks and to be transparent in their actions. Bernabè encourages leaders to get involved with the operating-units of their company, and to learn about the employees, the organization, the procedures and processes. Collins (2001) – Transformational leadership requires humility and professional will according to a five year research study resulting in a “Level 5 Leadership” model. The model places leadership capabilities into a hierarchy: Level 5 Executive Leader: builds enduring greatness by way of the opposition between humility and will; Level 4 Effective Leader: catalyzers commitment form employees and motivates their high performance; Level 3 Competent Manager: effectively and efficiently organizes people and resources toward goals; Level 2 Contributing Team-Member: contributes to group achievement of goals, and can effectively work within a group; Level 1 Highly Capable Individual: productively contributes knowledge, skills, talent and good work habits. It is noted that these levels are not sequential, but must encompass all levels. Druskatt and Wolff (2001) – Organizational success requires collaboration within teams, and this in turn must draw on the emotional intelligence (EI) of team members. A leader can develop more effective groups by developing a team’s emotional intelligence. Such development requires cultivation of trust among members, a sense of group identity, and awareness of group efficacy. Fostering these factors will provide the leader with a team that is more engaged with their work and colleague interactions. To establish EI a leader should encourage: beliefs, values and behaviours that support group engagement; activities that cultivate cooperation and collaboration in problem solving; allowing groups to be innovative in their productivity. It is critical that the team be encouraged to focus on small acts that contribute to large differences. For example, saying thank you and respecting others. Efficient EI is demonstrated when a team member is able to express negative interactions with other members, or to express constructive criticism in regards to the outcomes of another. EI can be fostered through the use of team-self evaluation and group feedback, such as with discussion times, encouraging an affirmative environment, and taking a pro-active approach to problem solving. Maletz and Nohria (2001) – Organizational whitespace allows speed and flexibility of an organization to meet challenges and to adapt to change. Whitespace is the ‘fuzzy’ area of innovation and entrepreneurial risk taking. As such, it is important that the leader know when to break with the status quo within their organization, and to implement policies that support employees working within a whitespace. One study into the use of “whitespace” used ethnographers to document entrepreneurial managers, and a steering committee of advising managers to guide decisions based on the managers input. Employees who are allowed to work within the whitespace proved to be successful innovators, introduced new markets, and cultivated new businesses. It is important that upper management be aware of whitespace, support it and monitor it. Few companies have formally institutionalised whitespace potential. It is recommended that leaders recruit, develop and retain managers who work best within whitespace. And to cultivate an organizational culture that fosters innovation and collaboration. Leadership Model The following leadership model incorporates the empirical knowledge of up-to-date research, as well as the insights of me, and others who were asked about their ideal of a leader, as illustrated in Figure 1. Figure 1. Leadership Model An effective leader should focus on developing their Personal Philosophy in regards to being a leader, such as questioning their ethical approach to achieving outcomes, their ability to be transparent, and the awareness of their accountability for their decisions and actions. It is essential that an effective leader adopt Reflective Practices, such as critically reviewing their decisions and actions, maintaining a journal and cultivating their self-knowledge. Finally, an effective leader must spend time investing in Professional Development, so as to up-skill and cross-skill their knowledge and competencies within the organization; continue to be up-to-date on multicultural and other discrimination issues, and to actively contribute to evidence-based research and the development of leadership theory. The outcomes of these factors are twofold, contributing to a unique Leadership style, and to an efficient Organizational Culture. The Leadership style will be tailored to the individual characteristics of the leader; who will be fully aware of how and when to use their strengths and weaknesses; allowing them to be adaptable and flexible; increasing their communication ability; and enhancing their ability to motivate and inspire others. In regards to Organizational Culture, this model will contribute to the organization setting expectations of employee’s values, behaviours and ethics; development of employee EI; enhancing team-building, and a pro-active affirmative workplace. As such, my leadership model focuses on the qualities of the leader that have consequences both for the leader and for their organization. Conclusion In summary, this paper presented a review of definitions of leadership gathered from a variety of sources – peer-reviewed articles, five of my friends, and me. The aim of this procedure was to establish the key criteria considered to be essential for the effective leader, so that my own personal model of leadership could be constructed. The variety of definitions of leadership make it clear that a leader must have a flexible approach, be rich in self-knowledge, and needs to adopt leadership styles that suit their tempermant, as well as the situation at hand. The leadership model developed supports the definitions reviewed in that it incorporates flexibility, and personal and professional development of the leader. The model is an example of leadership qualities that benefit both the leader and the organization that they work within. It is noted here that this paper will be utilized during my career as a reference source, to guide my understanding of why another would want to be led by me. References Brenneman, G. (1998) Right away and all at once. Harvard Business Review, (September-October), pp. 1-13. Collins, J. (2001) Level 5 Leadership: The triumph of humility and fierce resolve. Harvard Business Review, (January), pp. 61-76. Drucker, P. F. (1999) Managing oneself. Harvard Business Review, (March-April), pp. 63-74. Druskatt, V. U. & Wolff, S. B. (2001) Building the emotional intelligence of groups. Harvard Business Review, (March), pp. 79-90. Goffee, R. & Jones, G. (2000) Why should anyone be led by you? Harvard Business Review, (September-October), pp. 60-70. Goleman, D. (2000) Leadership that gets results. Harvard Business Review, (March- April), pp. 76-90. Hill, L. & Wetlaufer, S. (1998) Leadership when there is no-one to ask: An interview with Enri’s Franco Bernabe. Harvard Business Review, (July-August), pp. 78-95. Kouzes, J. M., Posner, B. Z. (2003) The leadership challenge (3rd ed.). Jossey-Bass. Maletz M. C. & Noriha, N. (2001) Managing the whitespace. Harvard Business Review, (February), pp. 101-111. Wetlaufer, S. (1999) Driving change: An interview with Ford’s Jaques Nasser. Harvard Business Review, (March-April), pp. 75-89. Wise, R. & Baumgartner, P. (1999) Go downstream: The new profit imperative in manufacturing. Harvard Business Review, (September-October), pp. 131-142. Read More