Difference between Management and Leadership - Essay Example

Differentiate between management and leadership The major difference between leaders and managers is the various methods they use to motivate their workers who follow and serve them, and mostly this is what elaborates in deeper details what their role is (American Airlines, 2010). Most managers in American Airline have junior workers who work under them who can also be termed as subordinates’ staff. This title they have is to honor them and to symbolize they are seniors (Lewis, 2007). Managers hold a sense of authority with the permission from the organization and most of their subordinates serve them and strictly follow the managers’ orders. They style of managing in American Airline is transactional, this means that every subordinate must perform as the managers expects, and they do it because they is always a reward after their service (Finkelman & Assessment Technologies Institute, 2006). Managers are rewarded purposely to make sure everything is in order and the work is well done, therefore they forward their work to the subordinates. From this context managers can also be subordinates. Some researchers have reported that most managers come from stable and comfortable lifestyles, this kind of a background makes them appear to be somehow risk averse and always keep on avoiding/preventing inconveniences and violence whenever they sense danger (Lewis, 2007). Most organizations especially the American Airline give their authority to managers basing on their roles, for example to supervise the tasks of others and plan a day to day activity. They aim at tactical tasks and most of the times they have a guideline and controlling approach (American Airlines, 2010). By being tactical they acquire a skill that is highly required in this present world which helps them to plan and organize workers. In different and several organizations, most managers are promoted from being the common employers and therefore they tend to function the same way (Bush, 2003). Some of them takes time to cope up with the demand and ends up not performing as expected. In this kind of a situation the organization conducts a training session to cover up the deficit (Lewis, 2007). On contrary, leaders lack subordinate staff especially if they are not leading. As seen in various organizations, some leaders have fewer subordinates, only because they play the role of a manager. Immediately they start leading, they drop down previous authoritarian control, for leading calls for followers, which (following) is a voluntary task. Leaders who hold a firm charisma encounters no difficult in persuading people to follow them (Bush, 2003). In their act of persuading, they promise transformational gains, in that the people following them will not only benefit from external rewards but also will be greater people in future. Leaders in American Airline are people minded, they tend to direct blames to themselves yet they are effective at developing loyalty. Although they are good towards people, this does not qualify them to be friendly with the same people. They maintain a range of distance to avoid familiarity. Leaders are known as risk takers, they are comfortable when risk opportunities shows up for they take advantage of the situation to have things right, while others run away from risk Leaders on the other hand they motivate and become a source of inspiration to the workers as they encourage them to be responsible and accountable (American Airlines, 2010). They are known to be emotionally intelligent and this is what they normally apply to produce excellent results. As most managers’ gets authority basing on major roles, leaders’ authority comes from within them. Some of the leadership skills cannot be achieved from education thus becomes hard to attain, for more are on the line of behavior, character and integrity. Leaders seem to be focused and change oriented, once they recognize an improvement is needed somewhere, they direct their members through the change, instead of managing them towards the same. This act develops an infinite outcome (American Airlines, 2010). Leadership in deeper lengths can be explained as the act of performing the correct things while management is the act of performing tasks right. This basic defines how the skills work hand in hand in order to be a good leader. Excellent leadership skills must be supported by skills in management; otherwise one can be unable to operate their set visions (Bush, 2003). However an excellent manager in American Airline who lacks leadership skills will lack motivating factors for his workers hence affecting the end results that the manager is striving to achieve. To summarize these differences here is a short outline Leaders; they lead people, managers; they manage work Leaders have followers, managers have subordinates Leaders facilitates decision making, managers make decision Leaders sets direction, managers plan every detail Leaders’ shapes culture, managers enacts culture Roles of a leader; A leader is open minded that is, he sees new ideas in the midst of impossibility A leader is a risk taker who takes advantage of the opportunity to get things done A leader is committed and very determined to his work A leader dreams the impossible and turns them into reality A leader has the capacity to release the present with no guarantee of tomorrow A leader maintains calmness in spite of the transition turbulence A leader facilitates the company’s success by furthering the global activities. A leader seeks for common interest to enhance work productivity A leader motivates his people as they get hold of inner drive. Roles of a manager A manager manages and supervises the entire performance of workers as he assist by offering any necessary aid. Supervision is very important and needs to be done often, to make sure all the workers are not miss-using time during operational hours A manager controls most of the rewards like promotions, compensation, bonus, paying wages and purchasing materials, therefore he is in charge of decision making over the daily performance of the organization (American Airlines, 2010). A manager concentrates on delegating work to his subordinates in order to get things running. He must be sure that the delegated power is ample to carry up the task by his subordinates. If the power overtakes the responsibility, misuse of power may arise. However if the power is insufficient the subordinates might be unable to perform. A manager identifies crises/ negative outcomes and provides a solution or alternative measures to be practiced. He solves conflicts between his subordinates concerning organizational issues and he is expected to arrive at harmonious conclusion (Bush, 2003). A manager organizes and holds meeting with the desired group in mind, this might be done to lay down some arising matters, gather information, and express their views as they get feedbacks from subordinates on work progress (Finkelman & Assessment Technologies Institute, 2006). A manager in American Airline motivates his workers by acting as a leader because he must be a good example; he is expected to be honest, faithful and unswerving to his work. Any manager should be accountable to the resources of the organization; therefore he should make sure every resource has been well utilized Most managers especially in sales and marketing department, regularly takes trips to other parts of the country with an aim of attending seminars, workshop or any other beneficial reason to the organization (Lewis, 2007). Managers may be under pressure now and then as they work to get hold of the target group. This can be proved by the production, sales and marketing group. Since managers are accountable for organizational resources, they also handle crisis like, machine breakdown, strikes or fire breakdown (American Airlines, 2010). A manager is focused on attaining the goals and objectives of the organization A manager is responsible over the financial increase and growth of an organization A manager has control over recruitment, training, career growth and development of his workers A manager issues recommendations, analyzes and gives out strategies on what to do to improve their quality It is the work of the manager in an American Airline to establish and retain contacts of other organizations or business men from internal and external areas. This people may include his workmates, raw-materials suppliers, government etc Effects of globalization: Positive and negative effects Globalization has enabled several communications linkages to open up. This has provided job opportunities in American Airline for most workingmen not leaving aside women, who are getting highly involved in this workforce. Out of these new opportunities for jobs, there is a tendency for payments increase, which uplifts self esteem and confidence leading to independence. It has been perceived as a motivating factor in most organization especially the American airline (Bush, 2003). The management has taken this advantage of globalization to explore new cultures and implement new strategies to cope up with the arising demands (Bush, 2003). Most managers are being forced to train their members a fresh in order to fill the gap of insufficiency. It’s raising an effect in most organization because majority of this organization are forced to adapt to the raising homogenization all over the globe (Finkelman & Assessment Technologies Institute, 2006). This is being caused by the extension of businesses which is also associated with change of management practices, so as to gain standards of control needed to function competitively (American Airlines, 2010). This drift to one global market is making majority of countries to do away with their management styles in gain of global practices that are fitting the demands of the new market. This entails development in technology, management and staffing development. As globalization confrontation elements begin to play in various forms, more problems are being encountered (Bush, 2003). Although globalization has increased the economy of most developing nations, some people seem to be suffering from enlargement of corporate organization because they work for extra time but receive no compensation (Finkelman & Assessment Technologies Institute, 2006). As globalization receives support from other organizations such as World Bank in conjunction with international monetary funds, this is causing development of slave wages. This slave wage is not necessarily as a result of neglecting societies, but it’s due to the point that global trade puts no value on peoples’ work and lives. Out of new job opportunities arising now and then to most rural areas and developing countries, some of these jobs are not applicable because of insecurity purposes. Globalization has brought about separation of families in cases where one member is forced to migrate in new cities in the name of work. Adoption of western culture on the other hand has contributed to loss of social norms and an increase in violence (Finkelman & Assessment Technologies Institute, 2006). The new global culture is bit by bit becoming the predictable norm and will make most companies that are not aware of taking some note and creating some changes to be absent in this battle for global survival. Recommendation on Strategies In order to maintain a healthy organization effective and efficient decisions are needed to be put in place. The leaders and managers should work hand in hand despite of their differences to create an impact in the organization, as the rate of success and its growth is highly determined by management. Decision on planning and implementing should be done by managers and leaders and each should be given a chance to participate.They should be motivated fairly in all means and be allowed to exercise their authority fully. Leadership style should be well analyzed to block a dictatorship element that lowers the morale of most employees. The channel of communication must be well elaborated and all the subordinates’ staff should be aware of the protocol, and incase there is a change everybody from top to bottom should be updated. There should be a flow of authority between the management and leadership, and every member should be willing to submit under the authority. Respect and dignity among the individuals should be highly observed for this is a major element of maintaining peace, harmony and a conducive environment for working. Conclusion The management team on the other hand should be highly valued to work with a common interest and goal. This team helps in organizing a succession of command by way of which it distributes dependability and assigns power. This in return creates a sense of accountability to all members. Every team member should practice the desired and expected code of ethics, and if need be, they be taught some basics on communication skills. This will enhance improvement of personality traits, add knowledge and increase work performance. It is important to appreciate and acknowledge the worth of every worker in every organization especially in big companies like American Airline. The role and responsibilities of management should not be taken by other party unless they wish to delegate it. The managers should be rewarded according to their level of performance but not on likes and dislikes of personality from the top authority. Promotions should not only be based on education but also on hard work and character. This will facilitate high performance and justice. The higher authority therefore must be willing to support the managers whenever there is a need. Training for managers and extra curriculum activities should be valued and budgeted for through out the financial year. The higher authority must acknowledge and appreciate the work of the management. References American Airlines. (2010). Home. Retrieved from http://www.aa.com/homePage.do?locale=en_US&pref=true Bush, T. (2003). Theories of educational leadership and management, 3rd Ed. London: Sage Publications Ltd. Finkelman, A. & Assessment Technologies Institute. (2006). London: Assessment Technologies Institute, LLC. Lewis, J. (2007). Fundamentals of project management, 3rd Ed. New York: AMACOM Div American Mgmt Assn. Read More