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Leadership Theory and the positive effects on an organization

Introduction Leadership is a way of motivating a group to enable them to achieve their aims. It also involves being responsible for the group as a whole. A leader is either appointed by the senior levels of management or elected by the group. However, it has been argued that a leader can not have all the skills required therefore the optimum will be to have as a leader someone who is flexible but when it is required s he will let the leadership to the others.

Leader and Manager Definitions Although no ultimate definition of leadership exists !"uki, #$$#%, the ma&ority of leadership definitions reflect some basic elements, including 'group(, 'influence( and 'goal( !)ryman, *++#%. A general definition would be that 'a leader is someone who influences a group of people towards the achievement of a goal(. ,here are -.s that are related with the term 'leader( and these are/ .eople, .urpose and .erson. A leader is a person that is deeply committed to the goal and s he will try to achieve it even if nobody follows him her. A leader is someone who has a personal vision and in order to achieve it s he needs the help of others. ,he leader should communicate his her vision in such a way that the followers will share it and the goal will become a common goal. ,he leader needs the trust of the followers. 0ome people are more effective than others at influencing people. ,his effectiveness has been attributed to leadership styles, persuasion

# skills and the personal attributes of the leader. A leader is someone that brings big changes and innovations, someone who has handled effectively big crises whereas a manager is someone who improves the effectiveness of an organi1ation at a given place and at a controlled course.

Leader and Bureaucrat differences Leader 0 he is always available 0 he is a good listener 0 he handles effectively difficult situations 0 he simplifies situations 0 he is tolerant 0 he trusts the others 0 he is responsible 0 he gives recognition to the others 0 he prefers the face to face discussions 0 he is stable 0 he admits his her mistakes 0 he is open 0 he keeps his her promises 0 he has a simply decorated office 0 he takes care of the others 0 he is fair 0 he is decisive 0 he is social Bureaucrat 0 he is 'invisible( 0 he is chatty 0 he avoids situations 0 he complicates things 0 he is intolerant 0 he does not trust 0 he looks for scapegoats 0 he presents other people2s work as his hers 0 he prefers memos and reports 0 he is instable 0 he 'never makes mistakes( and blames others 0 he is secretive 0 he never keeps his her promises 0 he has a luxurious office 0 he thinks that only his her superiors are right 0 he lets the committees take decisions 3nsociable 4 isolated 0 he is arrogant Kouzess 5 steps theory According to 5ou1es,there are 6 steps that someone has to follow in order to develop his her leadership abilities/

7limate 4 preparation !preparing a creative environment, have open communication channels, taking risks, accepting new solutions% 7reation of a vision share the vision with the others !don2t pro&ect the past, look at the future% 8evelopment of the others 4 strengthen the team spirit !create and maintain the team, make other people trust the leader, have substantial communication, train, let others participate in the decision9making% 0tep by step planning !has visible values, breaks every issue into smaller ones, sets priority goals% Leading and being a model !the leader should be a model to the others% :ecognition !encourages, expects a lot, develops a fair performance review system, leads%.

The theory of characteristics

According to this theory, someone is born a leader, therefore executives2selection can be based on their characteristics. ,he theory of characteristics is not acceptable. However, in recent years a number of researches came up to the following/ A leader should have the following characteristics/ *. Intelligence #. Initiative -. 0elf 4 confidence

; ;. 'Helicopter( 4 the leader should not only focus on details but s he should see the whole picture. 6. <motional maturity i.e. admitting mistakes, to know what s he wants, being a model to the others. =. <mpathy 4 be in other people2s shoes even if they disagree with him her.

The theory of style .eople work differently in accordance to the style of their managers. ,here are two extreme styles/ ,he Authoritative and the 8emocratic. ,he <xtreme 8emocratic 0tyle is the one where the decision makers are the employees. ,he <xtreme Authoritative 0tyle is the one where the decision maker is the leader. ,his theory has not been verified. It is not clear if productivity leads to the democratic style or vice versa.

Theory X and Theory ,he theory >9 " was proposed by 8ouglas ?c@regor his *+=$ book A,he Human 0ide Bf <nterpriseA. According to ?c@regor that there are two fundamental approaches to managing people. ?any managers tend towards theory x, and generally get poor results. <nlightened managers use theory y, which produces better performance and results, and allows people to grow and develop. Theory x ('authoritarian management' style) ,he average person dislikes work and will avoid it he she can.

6 ,herefore most people must be forced with the threat of punishment to work towards organi1ational ob&ectives. ,he average person prefers to be directedC to avoid responsibilityC is relatively unambitious, and wants security above all else. theory y ('participative management' style) <ffort in work is as natural as work and play. .eople will apply self9control and self9direction in the pursuit of organisational ob&ectives, without external control or the threat of punishment. 7ommitment to ob&ectives is a function of rewards associated with their achievement. .eople usually accept and often seek responsibility. ,he capacity to use a high degree of imagination, ingenuity and creativity in solving organisational problems is widely, not narrowly, distributed in the population. In industry the intellectual potential of the average person is only partly utili1ed.

Characteristics of the x theory manager Dhat are the characteristics of a ,heory > managerE ,ypically some, most or all of these/ results9driven and deadline9driven, to the exclusion of everything else intolerant issues deadlines and ultimatums distant and detached aloof and arrogant

= elitist short temper shouts issues instructions, directions, edicts issues threats to make people follow instructions demands, never asks does not participate does not team9build unconcerned about staff welfare, or morale proud, sometimes to the point of self9destruction one9way communicator poor listener fundamentally insecure and possibly neurotic anti9social vengeful and recriminatory does not thank or praise withholds rewards, and suppresses pay and remunerations levels scrutini1es expenditure to the point of false economy seeks culprits for failures or shortfalls seeks to apportion blame instead of focusing on learning from the experience and preventing recurrence does not invite or welcome suggestions takes criticism badly and likely to retaliate if from below or peer group

I poor at proper delegating 9 but believes they delegate well thinks giving orders is delegating holds on to responsibility but shifts accountability to subordinates relatively unconcerned with investing in anything to gain future improvements unhappy

!iedler"s #ontingency Theory of Leadership ,his theory explains that group performance is a result of the interaction of the leadership style and the situational favorableness. FIn GiedlerAs model, leadership effectiveness is the result of interaction between the style of the leader and the characteristics of the environment in which the leader worksF !@ray, 0tarke #=;%. FAccording to Giedler, an individualAs leadership style depends upon his or her personality and is, thus, fixedF !)edeian, @leuck 6$;%. In order to classify leadership styles, Giedler has developed an index called the least9preferred coworker !L.7% scale. HGiedlerAs logic is that individuals who rate their least preferred coworker in relatively favorable light on these scales derive satisfaction out of interpersonal relationshipC those who rate the coworker in a relatively unfavorable light get satisfaction out of successful task performanceF !@ray, 0tarke #=;%. ,he second ma&or factor in GiedlerAs theory is known as situational favorableness or environmental variable. ,his basically is defined as the degree a situation enables a leader to exert influence over a group. Giedler explains that task structure is the second most important factor in determining structural favorableness. He contends that highly structured tasks, which specify how a

J &ob is to be done in detail provide a leader with more influences over group actions than do unstructured tasks. Ginally, as for position power, leads who have the power to hire and fire, discipline and reward, have more power than those who do not. FAccording to Giedler, a task9orientated style of leadership is more effective than a considerate !relationship9orientated% style under extreme situations, that is, when the situations, is either very favorable !certain% or very unfavorable ! uncertain%F !@annon -=*%. F,he considerate style of leadership seems to be appropriate when the environmental or certain situation is moderately favorable or certain, for example, when !*% leader9member relations are good, !#% the task is unstructured, and !-% position power is weakF !@annon -=#%. GiedlerAs work is not without critics. <vidence suggests that training and experience have an impact in a leaderAs effectiveness. ,here is also some doubt whether the L.7 is a true measure of leadership style.

Beniss theory ,he principle of this theory is / ' the leaders exist for doing the right things(. A leader must/ have a vision communicate trust be able to manage himself It is important to pay attention to the following/ ,he biggest problem in leadership is early success.

+ ,he best quality is the way the leader reacts to the failures.

The $roo% Model Leadership is when someone tries to influence someone else. ,he result is considered successful if the resulting behavior is the desirable one or not.

&ohn 'dairs 'ction #entered Leadership Model Adair set out these core functions of leadership and says they are vital to the Action 7entered Leadership model/ .lanning 9 seeking information, defining tasks, setting goals. Initiating 9 briefing, task allocation, setting standards 7ontrolling 9 maintaining standards, ensuring progress, ongoing decision9making 0upporting 9 individualsA contributions, encouraging, team spirit, reconciling, morale Informing 9 clarifying tasks and plans, updating, receiving feedback and interpreting <valuating 9 feasibility of ideas, performance, enabling self assessment ,he Action 7entred Leadership model must be part of an integrated approach to managing and leading.

Bono%a (levin Model ,his theory is based on the authority of the decision9making and the on the degree of employees2 participation. In this system there are four styles/ ,he .articipative !the leader discusses the issue and the team makes the decisions%

*$ ,he Advisor 4 <mperor !the leader takes the decisions but s he takes advice from his her team% ,he <mperor !s he takes the decisions alone% ,he 0hareholder !gives the authority for the decision making to the team%.

The four leadership style theory ,he four styles are/ ,he Authoritative !the work performance is important, the human factor comes second% ,he .aternalistic !the work performance is important but the leader takes care of the personnel% ,he .articipative !the leader shares his authority with the employees% ,he Kon 4 Interventionist !the leader is not interested neither in the work nor in the people%

Leadership styles According to @oleman !#$$$%, the leadership styles are the following/ Coercive. ,his is the least effective since it erodes employees2 pride. ,he leader here creates terrifies and demeans the employees at the slightest misstep. As a style it can be used in emergency situations. Authoritative. ,he leader has a vision, s he motivate people by showing them how their work fits in the vision of the organi1ation. ,his approach fails when the leader has a team of experts but it is a style which is effective in most business situations.

** Affiliative. ,he leader focuses on strong emotional relations and then he receives the benefits i.e. employees loyalty. 0 he offers positive feedback. As a style it is positive but it should be better used when the leader wants to improve communication and increase morale. Democratic. ,he employees have a say in decisions and how they do their work. As a style, it is positive when the leader is uncertain about the best direction to take and when employees are not competent to offer advice. Pacesetting. ,he leader is very demanding and sets high standards. <mployees feel overwhelmed. ,his style should be used sparingly but it can work well when employees are highly competent. Coaching. ,he leader encourages the employees and s he helps them identify their potential. ,he impact of this style is very positive although from the six styles it is the one used least often. As a style is particularly good when employees are aware of their weaknesses but it does not work well when employees are resistant to change.

The influence of leadership on e%ployees innovation ,here are many researches that show the interrelation of leadership and innovation. 0undbo!*++=% performed case studies in 8anish service firms and concluded that working with a manager of the 'entrepreneurial( type strengthened the entrepreneurial activities of employees. 0cott and )ruce !*++;% demonstrated that when managers expect their employee to be innovative, employees tend to perceive their leader as encouraging and facilitating their innovative efforts and demonstrate more innovative behavior.

*# ,he behaviors shown by leaders and which help innovation are the following/ entrepreneurial style, intellectual stimulation, knowledge diffusion, vision, consultancy, delegation, support for innovation, feedback, recognition, reward, providing resources, monitoring and task assignment !Long and 8en Hartog, #$$I%. ,he leader should listen to the employee2s ideas and implement the best of them since when suggestions are never implemented, employees become demotivated.

#onclusions According to many studies, the more styles that a leader exhibits the better it is since this way s he achieves a best climate and business performance. ,he most effective leader is the one that switches flexibly from one style to the other. <ffective leaders apart from improving business performance, they stimulate innovation. Innovation is the hot issue of our time because it is the best tool to differentiate from the competition and achieve competitive advantage. Ko one is born a leader but s he can become one from the moment s he understands his her strengths and the emotional intelligence competencies which underlie the leadership styles s he is lacking.

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)eferences Axelrod, :.H., )lock .. !#$$#%, Terms of Engagement: Changing the Way We Change Organizations, Ingram .ub 0ervices. )edeian, A. @., @leuck D. G. !*+J-%, Management, 8reyden .ress, 7hicago. )ryman, A. !*++#%, Charisma an !ea ership in Organizations, 0age, London. @annon, ?. L. !*+J#% , Management: "n #ntegrate $rame%or&, Little, )rown, )oston. @oleman 8. !#$$$%, ' Leadership that gets results(, 'arvar (usiness )evie%, ?arch 4 April #$$$.

*; @ray, L. L., 0tarke G., !*+JJ%, Organizational (ehavior: Concepts an "pplications* ?erril, 7olumbus, Bhio. @regor, ?c 8., 7utcher9@ershenfeld !#$$6%, The 'uman +i e of Enterprise,?c@raw9 Hill 7ompanies. Long, 8e ..L.L., Hartog, 8en 8.K., !#$$I%, ' How leaders influence employees2 innovative behaviour(, European ,ournal of #nnovation Management, Mol. *$, Ko. *, pp. ;*9=; 5oo1es, L.?., .osner ).N. !*++6%, The !ea ership Challenge - 'o% to .eep /etting Extraor inary Things 0one in Organizations, Lossey9 )ass, 0an Grancisco. 0cott, 0.@., )ruce, :.A. !*++;%, ' 8eterminants of innovative behavior/ a path model of individual innovation in the workplace(, "ca emy of Management ,ournal1 Mol.-J pp. *;;#9=6. 0undbo, L. !*++=%, ' ,he balancing of empowerment/ a strategic resource based model of organi1ing innovation activities in service and low9tech firms(, Technovation, Mol.*= KoJ, pp -+I9;$+. "uki, @. !#$$#%, !ea ership in Organizations, 6th ed., .rentice9Hall, <nglewood 7liffs, KL.