Strategic Leadership Issues - Coursework Example

Strategic Leadership Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Name Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Course Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Instructor Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Date According to Wheelen and Hunger (2002), in any given organization strategic management and change is an important aspect that need to be understood for the purposes of improving business operation as well as increase performance and output within the organization. Further, understanding one strategic management and change enable an individual to provide direction for growth, vision as well as the success of an organization. Evidently, in order for an organization to deal successfully with desired change, there is need for all managers to equip themselves with tools and skills to ensure strategy is formulated and implemented effectively. This paper focuses on critically discussing whether “survival in today business environment requires strategic leadership”. This topic will be analyzed in depth by way of understanding what strategic management is and what relevance does strategic leadership have in today business environment. Also, it is necessary to identify challenges and issues affecting strategic leadership and how they largely related to today’s business environment. Lastly, it is necessary to understand whether different leadership styles have impact so as to obtain a comprehensive debate on the topic. Evidently, organization largely depends on capable leaders to guide them through all unprecedented changes. Therefore it is important for these organizations to develop a strong strategic management/leadership. Wheelen and Hunger (2002) maintain that, strategic leadership is defined as the great ability to envision, maintain flexibility, anticipate and largely empower other employee in creating strategic necessary changes within the organizations. The ability of an organization to create strategic change is important in survive in today business environment which is normally as a result of strategic leadership. Being multifunctional in nature, strategic leadership widely involves managing business operation through others, managing the entire enterprise as opposed to a functional subunit as well as has the ability to cope with changes that have are rapidly growing in today’s business environment. For example the great ability to envision a vision is an advantage in that it is a survival tactic in today competitive business environment (Wheelen and Hunger 2002). According to Kerber and Buono (2005), the relevance of strategic leadership within today business environment is the ability it has in managing human capital which is considered to be the most critical skill in any strategic leader. Evidently, survival in today business environment requires organization to adopt an effective strategic leadership (Kerber and Buono 2005). Today, business environment requires the ability of a given organization to acquire strategic competitiveness so as to largely earn above average return, strategic competitiveness ensures that an organization is able to cope up with various changes in today complex global business environment. Therefore, it is necessary for leaders to learn on how to deal with today complex and diverse changes so as to survive in the business environment. Kerber and Buono (2005) assert that, as a strategic leader, having an individual judgment is considered as an important aspect of learning and analyzing on an organization external condition so as to suite in today business environment. Kumar et al (2001) maintain that, in today competitive business environment, strategies can never be formulated and implemented so as to achieve return that are above average returns without putting an effective strategic management in place. This is because competitive advantage brought about by strategic leadership is considered to be a requirement towards strategic success. Arguably, since organizations competing in the 21st century competitive landscape are challenges with a lot of changes there is great need to develop and effective strategic leadership to survive (Kumar et al 2001). Even with the nature displayed by strategic leadership in adapting in today business environment there are various challenges linked to it. The challenges that are normally faced by strategic leaders in the implementation of long range consequential and complex decision usually arise due to power struggles and influence. In today business environment, organizations have largely been influence by power thus making power to be a challenge towards effective strategic leadership. Today, more leaders are preoccupied with power forgetting other responsibility in implementation of strategies that will foresee the company future. Usually, negative influence of organization power affects events, actions and behaviors within an organization thus creative a challenging position for strategic leaders. It is important that strategic leaders adopt power that widely gives a sense of control over outcome so as to have a great ability in coping with complexity displayed in changes. In particular, when decision and changes become more diverse and complex power should be viewed by strategic leaders as an n attractive tool that is effective in reducing uncertainty. Further, today business environment is being affected by global financial crisis which is acting as a main challenge. The challenge created by this economy requires the development of strategic leadership which is both ethical and response. Tregoe and Freedman (2004) maintain that, the uncertainty created by financial crisis is creating a business environment that is unprecedented and volatile. When a business environment is volatile and unprecedented it poses a challenge on how business operations are carried out within an organization for the success and positive outcome. In such a financial crisis a strategic leader need to develop a strategic environmental context where it adapts positive changes which in turn creates an effective and resilient organization. Tregoe and Freedman (2004) maintain that, strategic leadership throughout an organization faces tremendous challenges that require them make short term decision so as to become more competitive in today business environment. Political instability, terrorism and great political interference are emerging as key challenges in the growth of strong strategic leadership. If an organization lacks proper skills in its strategic leadership, it is quite evident that the ever raising political and economic stability as well as financial crisis will even limit them in implementing short term strategies thus paralyzing all business operations (Tregoe and Freedman 2004). Therefore, in order to meet the current demands that are brought about by such challenges there is need to develop a strategic management that will ensure that an organization is able to survive. According to Tregoe and Freedman (2004), this strategic leadership should be grounded by a strong understanding in the relationship between one organization and the business environment involved. For the political interference challenge, there is need to take abroad view which requires getting the right people who are not political minded but one who is able to identify pattern, connections and key issues associated in driving the business towards higher heights (Tregoe and Freedman 2004). Additionally, the complexity of the various challenges faced by an organization requires substantial amount of knowledge and information within a given strategic leadership. Top strategic leadership should comprise of key managers who are actively involved in both implementation and selecting the firm outlines firm strategies. Hambrick and Canella (2008) maintain that, the quality of the designed strategic decision that is normally created by top management team positively affects an organization ability to engage and innovate in various effective strategic changes. It is necessary that strategic leaders to develop broad knowledge about their company external environment so as to be able to cope with today ever raising challenges within business environment. According to Hambrick and Canella (2008), these challenges also call for the development of a strategic leadership that function cohesively so as to ensure there is a comprehensive examination of threats and opportunity display by both external and internal business environment. When all this is put together, an organization is able to have growth in its strategies as well as poses above average returns. Leadership styles have an effect on the motivational levels and the performance of employees as they set up challenges and enhance personal development. The different leadership is able to encourage or discourage the achievement levels due to high collective standards which is achieved through sagacity of rationale, visions and missions that are common. The leadership skills that are employed could lead the employees towards the performance of specific tasks in anticipation for achieving certain benefits in return. The strategic leadership is to aim at the management and directing of the employees towards productiveness and the additional of value to the company. The strategic leadership is to have an effect of the employees towards meaningful planning and thinking that involves and makes others to have a positive thinking and have appropriateness in their actions. The leadership styles are to have an effect on the employees to have a proportionate plan to develop the company for the future by having a future look through analyzing the present and relating it to the future and putting effective measures that will be able to handle the eventualities of the future (Tarabishy et al, 2005). The leadership styles in a business could either encourage or inhibit growth by training the employees towards the result oriented effectiveness. Effective leadership is to aim at productivity as its main goal. This does not mean the increase in the amount of the work that is to be done but rather emphasize on the firms strategic productivity. The leadership should not only be interested in the interests of the company but should be responsible and interested in the firm’s employee interests as the increase in the employee capacity will have an effective value to the firm’s productiveness and its maintenance of the its competitive advantage. Strategic leadership has an effect in ensuring that the employee’s knowledge is adequately enhanced so as to have the best results for the firm. The techniques that are to be used in effective leadership are those that will enhance the effective utilization of the employee techniques and not those that will bully them into productivity. This should include the creation of an environment that will enhance innovativeness and the attainment of the worker’s initiative (Taffinder, 2006). The leadership is to encourage rewards for effective performance thus being able to have a retaining formula and the boost for cooperate innovativeness and sustainable growth. Leadership has an effect as it has to consider the pros and cons of a certain initiative before going through the change. All the processes in the strategic leadership are to involve a deliberate and effective thoughtful management process that is aimed at successful growth. The growth of many sustainable businesses in the world today has been linked to the effective leadership skills which are possibly linked to the fit style that the leadership incorporates. The leadership strategies are often considered to have a correlated influence on the overall organizational performance as they incorporate all the perceived environmental uncertainty concepts as well as the sizes of the moderators who exist in the business field. The effective leadership is thus not only viewed as the task and the personal orientation towards the performance of a function but also as a enabling environment that makes them have effective and meaningful communication amongst themselves. The leaders are thus encouraged to consider the orientation task involved in the making of possible of the occurrence and existence of meaningful organizational communication among the organizational organs. The effective set up of knowledge and informational system is believed to be an effective way of improving the communicative nature of organizational communication as it not only encourages the sharing of information but also the building of the employee capacity tailored towards the attainment of the organizational goals and objectives. Leadership in an organization has an effect of portraying the personal abilities as well as the potentials that are to be sharpened or taken used as opportunities. Leadership traits in this case are not only portrayed through the existing qualities but also the characteristics that are portrayed depending on the circumstances and conditions that the person finds himself or herself in. this will also highly depend on how they are convinced that their personal objectives are well captured into the positive contribution of the organizational objectives and missions. The individual will thus positively support an organization if they feel positively valuable in it and have their skills and innovativeness being a necessity to the organization. This does not imply that the personal objectives are not to be met but rather they are to complement each other as the person will only be productive if they are also enhanced positively through comprehensive capacity building and self motivation. The leadership style will thus play a significant role in the retarding or enhancement of the individual’s commitment and interest in the organization in which he or she is employed. The leadership style is thus relied upon to provide the required allocation of resources that will enable the employee function and have the firm have an upper edge in the competitive world (Saowalux, 2007). The adoption of the appropriate style in leadership will play a vital role in the sustenance of the employee’s contribution in the harnessing of resources. The effectiveness in the allocation, utilization, enhancement of the organizational performance as well as the mobilization of resources by the managers and employers in the specific firms. Negative effects on the organizational performances in the Nigerian Oil Corporation is for example as a result of the lack of the availing of resources and allocation of appropriate roles and responsibilities to the employees who are thus left to feel that their innovativeness and resourcefulness is not required. Many of the workers in the GM have not been effectively utilized as the firm’s leadership styles in the firm have not only rendered novel ideas impossible but do not have the act or policies that govern the adoption and the sustenance of innovative minds and contributions to the country. A firm that lacks innovativeness only stays on the already existing technology which is being surpassed by the events of the ever dynamic world. This is highly viewed as to have a negative impact on the performance and the valuing of the company’s employment opportunities in the firm thus, impacting on the sustainability of the firm in addition to its maintenance of its competitive advantage (Qiu, 2008). It is thus imperative to note that strategic leadership has the ability to having organization create strategic change is important in survive in today business environment which is normally as a result of strategic leadership. Strategic leadership widely involves managing business operation through others, managing the entire enterprise as opposed to a functional subunit as well as has the ability to cope with changes that have are rapidly growing in today’s business environment. For example the great ability to envision a vision is an advantage in that it is a survival tactic in today competitive business environment. Top strategic leadership should comprise of key managers who are actively involved in both implementation and selecting the firm outlines firm strategies. Effective leadership is to aim at productivity as its main goal. This does not mean the increase in the amount of the work that is to be done but rather emphasize on the firms strategic productivity. The leadership should not only be interested in the interests of the company but should be responsible and interested in the firm’s employee interests as the increase in the employee capacity will have an effective value to the firm’s productiveness and its maintenance of its competitive advantage. References Hambrick, C and Canella, B. 2008. Strategic leadership. Theory and research on executives, top management, teams and boards. New York: Oxford University Press Kerber, K. and Buono, A. 2005. “Rethinking organizational change: Reframing the challenge of change management”. Organizational Development Journal, Vol. 23 No. 3, pp. 23-38 Kumar, K, Subramanian, R, and Strandholm, K. 2001. “Competitive strategy, environmental scanning and performance: A context specific analysis of their relationship. International Journal of Commerce and Management, Vol. 11 No. 1, pp. 1-32 Qiu JH (2008). The Executive Leadership and Performance Management. Taipei: Showwe. Saowalux, P. & Peng, C. (2007). Impact of Leadership Style on Performance: A Study of Six Sigma Professionals in Thailand. International DSI/Asia and Pacific DSI, July, 2007. Taffinder, P. (2006). Leadership Crash Course: How to Create Personal Leadership Value. 2ndEdition, London; GBR Ltd. Tarabishy, A., Solomon, G., Fernald Jr., L.W. & Sashkin, M. (2005). The Entrepreneurial Leader‟s Impact on the Organization‟s Performance in Dynamic Markets. Journal of Private Equity, 8(4): 20-29. Tregoe, B and Freedman, M. 2004. The art and discipline of strategic leadership. New York: Mcgraw-Hill Wheelen, T and Hunger, J. 2002. Strategic management and business policy, Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River Read More