The Success of a Leader in an Organisation - Case Study Example

Leadership The success of a leader in an organisation is based on the ability to get extraordinary things done through various processes. The process includes the methods employed by leaders to transform values into action, obstacles into innovation, vision into realities, risk into rewards and separatedness / division into solidarity. The leadership is responsible to create a climate in which people / workforce transform challenging opportunities into remarkable success. In an organisation there is no shortage for challenging opportunities especially in these times when there is an increase in challenges combined with various complexities. Every generation faces new and serious threats and also finds favourable circumstances to overcome or solve the threats. Therefore, the key role is in finding the right response to bring about the most effective and efficient solution. The response to a challenge has the potential to immensely improve the circumstances or seriously worsen the situation. Kouzes and Posner proposes a model of leadership that gives up conventional ideas and embraces innovative steps to support work teams and provide direction during uncertain times by fully utilising the skills and talents of subordinates and colleagues, by finding a better balance in work and personal lives, by setting a positive example with regard to ethics and honesty in daily life (Kouzes & Posner (c) p.xi), use knowledge about products and services to create more value for customers, consider the wisdom and innocence of various generations at the workplace and utilise the advantages of scientific knowledge to come out with a more sustainable and safer world. The leadership should adopt new tools of technology to create a web of human connections, rebuild a thought of community at workplace and improve understanding among the diverse workforce, convert information into knowledge, enhance the collective living standard of people, promote peace to the world tired of war and create hope and a profound sense of meaning to the lives of people. Every challenge creates a need in people to utilise the opportunity to lead the world into greatness. Leadership is about giving up traditional methods of control and scrutiny, rewards and punishment and take up the advantages of individual character, innovation and the boldness of conviction. It is all about answering the call for leadership. It may be noted that leadership is not specific to a selected few charismatic women and men, but it is a process that can be practiced by ordinary people to bring forth best results for themselves and others. The liberation of the leader in a person gives rise to extraordinary results (Kouzes & Posner (c) p.x). Whether the challenge is to emphasise self learning or develop the constituents in an organisation, team, peers, reports, managers or community members, the leader can take immediate action to implement above said recommendations. The leader need not conduct a meeting, discussion, or consider budget or take permission from peers or top management to substantiate actions to meet the challenges or improve the situation. The person can conduct the process with discipline and personal commitment. The step towards a better leadership is to revive the leader in the self (Kouzes & Posner (c) p.xv) Consistency is a crucial factor required in the behaviour of a leader because it reflects the credibility of the person. People will believe that they can rely on the leader and their action from time to time and have certain expectations (Kouzes & Posner (b) p.5) The act of leader is that of providing service. Therefore a leader will be followed only if the people unconsciously or consciously judge the person to be capable of finding solution to their needs and problems (Kouzes & Posner (a) p.14). When a leader gives up traditional methods of management, it does not necessarily mean that there should be a whole lot of new information or latest techniques to manage a situation. It is all about leading the ideas that are already in the soul but need to be implemented. It is essential for a leader to have clarity of values to guide it in the right direction. If the leader is clear about the strategies to be implemented it becomes the easier to stay in the chosen path to initiate the steps to make a difference (Kouzes & Posner (a) p.98) Loyalty is not a factor which a leader can demand but it is a factor that people opt to grant when a person earns it through his / her deeds. The authority of a person does not earn loyalty but it is offered based on the leader’s capacity to solve a need (Kouzes & Posner (a) p.15). A good leader must be willing to listen to criticism. It is not necessary to pay attention to all negative comments but the person must listen to healthy criticism without flattery that benefit the leader to take corrective measures and improve the change process (Kouzes & Posner (a) p.27). The problem associated with criticism is that majority of the leaders do not wish to consider honest feedback. If there is no voluntary feedback from concerned people, the leader must pose a question about how the effectiveness of the new techniques applied by the leader to transform a situation or meet a challenge (Kouzes & Posner (a) p.28). After drafting new proposal the leader must pause and review the situation before moving on to new methods of progress. Best leaders are those who observe the circumstance and then come up with strategies (Kouzes & Posner (a) p.103) Exemplary leadership does not evolve from divinely inspirational methods or prophetic solutions or the vision of the leader, but occurs by finding methods to fulfil the aspirations of the people. People like to foresee what future holds for them. A shared vision makes a leader more acceptable because people like to be a part of the process than being directed to a process (Kouzes & Posner (a) p.108). Leaders should be able to create a lasting legacy out of their vision to draft a bright and exciting future as a part of their competence. Present day leaders must have a concern for tomorrow’s world and for the people who inherit it. This makes the leaders to leave the organisation in a better position. A forward looking leader is preferred by the public and is only second to the quality of honesty required in a leader (Kouzes & Posner (a) p.99). Leadership challenge is beyond training or guiding people. It sets example as to how it can change the lives of people. Works Cited Kouzes,  James M. & Posner, Barry Z. (a) A leaders legacy San Francisco:John Wiley and Sons, 2006 Kouzes,  James M. & Posner, Barry Z. (b) Leadership practices inventory: LPI.. Participants workbook : 10 steps to understanding and using your LPI feedback San Francisco: John Wiley and Sons, 2003  Kouzes,  James M. & Posner, Barry Z. (c)The leadership challenge San Francisco: John Wiley and Sons, 2007 Read More