1. What Is Leadership?

"Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality," Warren Bennis once stated. Great leaders
are often credited with possessing high social intelligence, a zest for change, and above all, the ability
to set their sights on the things that truly merit attention. But those are desirable skills for everyone
else, too.
It is the responsibility of leaders to develop a vision for the people and institutions they guide. They
must establish what matters and explain why, so they can set direction, and inspire others.
But leadership does not depend on one’s title, seniority, or ability to exert power. Leaders can emerge
at any level if they can cultivate a desire in those with whom they collaborate to strive toward a
common goal, which can be accomplished successfully through any number of approaches. And
recent research on leadership skills confirms the increasing importance of inner resources such as
self-awareness and self-mastery.
Leaders are people who do the right thing; managers are people who do things right.– Professor
Warren G. Bennis

The word "leadership" can bring to mind a variety of images. For example:
 A political leader, pursuing a passionate, personal cause.
 An explorer, cutting a path through the jungle for the rest of his group to follow.
 An executive, developing her company's strategy to beat the competition.
Leaders help themselves and others to do the right things. They set direction, build an inspiring
vision, and create something new. Leadership is about mapping out where you need to go to "win" as
a team or an organization; and it is dynamic, exciting, and inspiring.
Yet, while leaders set the direction, they must also use management skills to guide their people to the
right destination, in a smooth and efficient way.
In this article, we'll focus on the process of leadership. In particular, we'll discuss the "transformational
leadership" model, first proposed by James MacGregor Burns and then developed by Bernard Bass.
This model highlights visionary thinking and bringing about change, instead of management
processes that are designed to maintain and steadily improve current performance.

Leadership: a Definition
According to the idea of transformational leadership , an effective leader is a person who does the
following:
1. Creates an inspiring vision of the future.
2. Motivates and inspires people to engage with that vision.
3. Manages delivery of the vision.
4. Coaches and builds a team, so that it is more effective at achieving the vision.
Leadership brings together the skills needed to do these things. We'll look at each element in more
detail.
1. Creating an Inspiring Vision of the Future
In business, a vision is a realistic, convincing and attractive depiction of where you want to be in the
future. Vision provides direction, sets priorities, and provides a marker, so that you can tell that you've
achieved what you wanted to achieve.
To create a vision, leaders focus on an organization's strengths by using tools such as Porter's Five
Forces , PEST Analysis , USP Analysis , Core Competence Analysis and SWOT Analysis to
analyze their current situation. They think about how their industry is likely to evolve, and how their
competitors are likely to behave. They look at how they can innovate successfully , and shape their
businesses and their strategies to succeed in future marketplaces. And they test their visions with
appropriate market research, and by assessing key risks using techniques such as Scenario
Analysis .
Therefore, leadership is proactive – problem solving, looking ahead, and not being satisfied with
things as they are.
 Once they have developed their visions, leaders must make them compelling and convincing.
A compelling vision is one that people can see, feel, understand, and embrace. Effective leaders
provide a rich picture of what the future will look like when their visions have been realized. They tell
inspiring stories , and explain their visions in ways that everyone can relate to.
Here, leadership combines the analytical side of vision creation with the passion of shared values,
creating something that's really meaningful to the people being led.
2. Motivating and Inspiring People
A compelling vision provides the foundation for leadership. But it's leaders' ability to motivate and
inspire people that helps them deliver that vision.
For example, when you start a new project, you will probably have lots of enthusiasm for it, so it's
often easy to win support for it at the beginning. However, it can be difficult to find ways to keep your
vision inspiring after the initial enthusiasm fades, especially if the team or organization needs to make
significant changes in the way that it does things. Leaders recognize this, and they work hard
throughout the project to connect their vision with people's individual needs, goals and aspirations.
One of the key ways they do this is through Expectancy Theory . Effective leaders link together two
different expectations:
1. The expectation that hard work leads to good results.
2. The expectation that good results lead to attractive rewards or incentives.
This motivates people to work hard to achieve success, because they expect to enjoy rewards – both
intrinsic and extrinsic – as a result.
Other approaches include restating the vision in terms of the benefits it will bring to the team's
customers, and taking frequent opportunities to communicate the vision in an attractive and engaging
way.
What's particularly helpful here is when leaders have expert power . People admire and believe in
these leaders because they are expert in what they do. They have credibility, and they've earned the
right to ask people to listen to them and follow them. This makes it much easier for these leaders to
motivate and inspire the people they lead.
Leaders can also motivate and influence people through their natural charisma and appeal, and
through other sources of power , such as the power to pay bonuses or assign tasks to people.
However, good leaders don't rely too much on these types of power to motivate and inspire others.
3. Managing Delivery of the Vision
This is the area of leadership that relates to management .
Leaders must ensure that the work needed to deliver the vision is properly managed – either by
themselves, or by a dedicated manager or team of managers to whom the leader delegates this
responsibility – and they need to ensure that their vision is delivered successfully.
To do this, team members need performance goals that are linked to the team's overall vision. Our
article on Performance Management and KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) explains one way of
doing this, and our Project Management section explains another. And, for day-to-day management
of delivering the vision, the Management By Wandering Around (MBWA) approach helps to ensure
that what should happen, really happens.
Leaders also need to make sure they manage change effectively. This helps to ensure that the
changes needed to deliver the vision are implemented smoothly and thoroughly, with the support and
backing of the people affected.
4. Coaching and Building a Team to Achieve the Vision
Individual and team development are important activities carried out by transformational leaders. To
develop a team, leaders must first understand team dynamics. Several well-established and popular
models describe this, such as Belbin's Team Roles approach, and Bruce Tuckman's Forming,
Storming, Norming, and Performing theory .
A leader will then ensure that team members have the necessary skills and abilities to do their job
and achieve the vision. They do this by giving and receiving feedback regularly, and by training
and coaching people to improve individual and team performance.
 Leadership also includes looking for leadership potential in others. By developing leadership skills
within your team, you create an environment where you can continue success in the long term. And
that's a true measure of great leadership.

2. What Makes a Good Leader ?

A good leader takes the lead. A good leader has personality, courage, clear vision with ambition to
succeed. A good leader encourages the team to perform to their optimum all the time and drives
organisational success.
The MAS Code for Ethical Leadership
Click here to download the MAS Code for Ethical Leadership from our Article Library.
Go to our Video Library to see Professor Mowbray's videos about What Makes a Good
Leader? and Adaptive Leadership versus Transformational Leadership.
What are the attributes and traits of a good leader?
 A good leader has the ability of the ethical person to shine through to leadership
 A good leader has the ability to demonstrate the skills, knowledge and experience to undertake the
tasks expected from him/her, both in terms of the job that is required to be completed, but with
respect to his/her contribution the wider organisation
 A good leader adopts a leadership style that lends itself to ethical considerations, for
example transformational and adaptive styles – both of which engage followers in the decision
making processes
 A good leader has the motivation to prevent harm to anyone
 A good leader ensures a safe place of work for staff
 A good leader has respect for the law and regulations
 A good leader maintains and develops skills, knowledge and experience in themselves and others
 A good leader is objective, fair and reasonable
 A good leader takes responsibility for his own as well as others actions
 A good leader acts with conviction
 A good leader provides clear direction
 A good leader communicates effectively
 A good leader discharges of a Duty of Care to customers, clients and staff

3. The Qualities of a Great Leader

Leaders emerging today likely possess a few key personality traits, including sociability, ambition, and
curiosity—and these traits may be more relevant to the role than intelligence. Successful leaders also
tend to embody integrity and emotional intelligence, characteristics that support cultivation of a fair,
balanced, and satisfied professional team.
For most organizations, the costs of turnover and low morale are too high to be able to tolerate
leaders who misuse power for very long. Every leader develops a unique personal style, informed
both by specific personality traits and a general cultural tone.
Genetics also appear to influence leadership ability, due to inherited personality traits, but
environmental factors such as education play a significant role as well.

Everybody defines leadership differently but I really like the way John C Maxwell defines leadership,
“A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way.” Irrespective of how you
define a leader, he or she can prove to be a difference maker between success and failure. A good
leader has a futuristic vision and knows how to turn his ideas into real-world success stories. In this
article, we take an in-depth look at some of the important leadership qualities that separate good
leaders from a bad one.
1. Honesty and Integrity

The 34th President of United States, Dwight.D.Eisenhower

once said, “The supreme quality of leadership is unquestionably integrity. Without it, no real
success is possible, no matter whether it is on a section gang, a football field, in an army, or in an
office.” Honesty and integrity are two important ingredients which make a good leader. How can you
expect your followers to be honest when you lack these qualities yourself? Leaders succeed when
they stick to their values and core beliefs and without ethics, this will not be possible.
2. Confidence

To be an effective leader, you should be confident enough

to ensure that other follow your commands. If you are unsure about your own decisions and qualities,
then your subordinates will never follow you. As a leader, you have to be oozing with confidence,
show some swagger and assertiveness to gain the respect of your subordinates. This does not mean
that you should be overconfident, but you should at least reflect the degree of confidence required to
ensure that your followers trust you as a leader.
3. Inspire Others

Probably the most difficult job for a leader is to persuade

others to follow. It can only be possible if you inspire your followers by setting a good example. When
the going gets tough, they look up to you and see how you react to the situation. If you handle it well,
they will follow you. As a leader, should think positive and this positive approach should be visible
through your actions. Stay calm under pressure and keep the motivation level up. As John Quincy
Adams puts it, “If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become
more, you are a leader.” If you are successful in inspiring your subordinates, you can easily
overcome any current and future challenge easily.

4. Commitment and Passion

Your teams look up to you and if you want them to give

them their all, you will have to be passionate about it too. When your teammates see you getting your
hands dirty, they will also give their best shot. It will also help you to gain the respect of your
subordinates and infuse new energy in your team members, which helps them to perform better. If
they feel that you are not fully committed or lacks passion, then it would be an uphill task for the
leader to motivate your followers to achieve the goal.
5. Good Communicator

Until you clearly communicate your vision to your team and

tell them the strategy to achieve the goal, it will be very difficult for you to get the results you want.
Simply put, if you are unable to communicate your message effectively to your team, you can never
be a good leader. A good communicator can be a good leader. Words have the power to motivate
people and make them do the unthinkable. If you use them effectively, you can also achieve better
results.

6. Decision-Making Capabilities

Apart from having a futuristic vision, a leader should have

the ability to take the right decision at the right time. Decisions taken by leaders have a profound
impact on masses. A leader should think long and hard before taking a decision but once the decision
is taken, stand by it. Although, most leaders take decisions on their own, but it is highly recommended
that you consult key stakeholders before taking a decision. After all, they are the ones who will benefit
or suffer from your decisions.
7. Accountability

When it comes to accountability, you need to follow the

approach highlighted by Arnold H Glasow when he said, “A good leader takes little more than his
share of the blame and little less than his share of the credit.” Make sure that every one of your
subordinates is accountable for what they are doing. If they do well, give them a pat on the back but if
they struggle, make them realize their mistakes and work together to improve. Holding them
accountable for their actions will create a sense of responsibility among your subordinates and they
will go about the business more seriously.

8. Delegation and Empowerment

You cannot do everything, right. It is important for a leader

to focus on key responsibilities while leaving the rest to others. By that, I mean empowering your
followers and delegating tasks to them. If you continue to micromanage your subordinates, it will
develop a lack of trust and more importantly, you will not be able to focus on important matters, as
you should be. Delegate tasks to your subordinates and see how they perform. Provide them with all
the resources and support they need to achieve the objective and give them a chance to bear the
responsibility.
9. Creativity and Innovation

What separates a leader from a follower? Steve Jobs, the

greatest visionary of our time answers this question this way, “Innovation distinguishes between a
leader and a follower.” In order to get ahead in today’s fast-paced world, a leader must be creative
and innovative at the same time. Creative thinking and constant innovation is what makes you and
your team stand out from the crowd. Think out of the box to come up with unique ideas and turn those
ideas and goals into reality.

10. Empathy

Last but certainly not the least, is empathy. Leaders should

develop empathy with their followers. Unfortunately, most leaders follow a dictatorial style and neglect
empathy altogether. Due to this, they fail to make a closer connection with their followers.
Understanding the problems of your followers and feeling their pain is the first step to become an
effective leader. Even that is not enough until you work hard and provide your followers with the
suitable solution to their problems.

Conclusion
To become a good leader, you must have all these qualities but if you lack some of these qualities,
then you might struggle to make the mark in the world of leadership. You will have to set a good
example for others to follow. That is where your commitment, passion, empathy, honesty and integrity
come into play. Good communication skills and decision-making capabilities also play a vital role in
success and failure of a leader. Lastly, innovation and creative thinking, as well as the futuristic
vision, are a couple of key traits which make a leader stand out.
 Qualities of a Good Leader:

A successful leader secures desired behaviour from his followers. It depends upon the quality of

leadership he is able to provide. A leader to be effective must possess certain basic qualities. A

number of authors have mentioned different qualities which a person should possess to be a good

leader.

Some of the qualities of a good leader are as follows:

1. Good personality.

2. Emotional stability.

3. Sound education and professional competence.

4. Initiatives and creative thinking.

5. Sense of purpose and responsibility.

6. Ability to guide and teach.

7. Good understanding and sound judgment.

8. Communicating skill.

9. Sociable.

10. Objective and flexible approach.

11. Honesty and integrity of character.

12. Self confidence, diligence and industry.

13. Courage to accept responsibility

4. Leadership Skills
1. Communication

As a leader, you need to be able to clearly and succinctly explain to your employees everything from
organizational goals to specific tasks. Leaders must master all forms of communication, including
one-on-one, departmental, and full-staff conversations, as well as communication via the phone,
email, and social media.

A large part of communication involves listening. Therefore, leaders should establish a steady flow of
communication between themselves and their staff or team members, either through an open-door
policy or regular conversations with workers. Leaders should make themselves regularly available to
discuss issues and concerns with employees. Other skills related to communication include:

 Active listening
 Articulating
 Business storytelling
 Clarity
 Concision
 Correspondence
 Editing
 Explaining
 Expression
 Facilitating group conversations
 Nonverbal communication
 Presentation
 Public speaking
 Reading body language
 Reducing ambiguity
 Verbal communication
 Written communication
2. Motivation

Leaders need to inspire their workers to go the extra mile for their organizations; just paying a fair
salary to employees is typically not enough inspiration (although it is important too). There are a
number of ways to motivate your workers: you may build employee self-esteem through recognition
and rewards, or by giving employees new responsibilities to increase their investment in the
company.

Leaders must learn what motivators work best for their employees or team members to encourage
productivity and passion. Skills related to effective motivation include:

 Allowing employee autonomy

 Asking for input
 Assessing the interests of staff
 Convincing
 Mentoring
 Open to employee concerns
 Persuasive
 Providing productive and challenging work
 Providing rewards
 Recognizing others
 Setting effective goals
 Team-building
 Thanking staff
 Understanding employee differences
3. Delegating

Leaders who try to take on too many tasks by themselves will struggle to get anything done. These
leaders often fear that delegating tasks is a sign of weakness, when in fact it is a sign of a strong
leader.

Therefore, you need to identify the skills of each of your employees, and assign duties to each
employee based on his or her skill set. By delegating tasks to staff members, you can focus on other
important tasks. Some skills that make a good delegator include:

 Accepting feedback from employees

 Allotting resources for employees
 Assessing employee strengths and weaknesses
 Defining expectations
 Evaluating employee performance
 Identifying measurable outcomes
 Matching the task to the right employee
 Prioritizing tasks
 Setting expectations
 Teamwork
 Time management
 Training
 Trust in employees
4. Positivity

A positive attitude can go a long way in an office. You should be able to laugh at yourself when
something doesn't go quite as planned; this helps create a happy and healthy work environment,
even during busy, stressful periods.

Simple acts like asking employees about their vacation plans will develop a positive atmosphere in
the office, and raise morale among staff members.

If employees feel that they work in a positive environment, they will be more likely to want to be at
work, and will therefore be more willing to put in the long hours when needed. Some skills that help
make for a positive atmosphere in the workplace include:

 Caring
 Conflict management
 Developing rapport
 Diplomacy
 Encouraging
 Empathetic
 Friendliness
 Helping others
 Humor
 Interpersonal
 Positive reinforcement
 Respect
 Social
5. Trustworthiness

Employees need to be able to feel comfortable coming to their manager or leader with questions and
concerns. It is important for you to demonstrate your integrity – employees will only trust leaders they
respect.

By being open and honest, you will encourage the same sort of honesty in your employees. Here are
some skills and qualities that will help you convey your trustworthiness as a leader:

 Ability to apologize
 Accountability
 Business ethics
 Confidentiality
 Conscientious
 Consistent in behavior towards employees
 Credibility
 Emotional intelligence
 Empathy
 Honesty
 Integrity
 Moral compass
 Reliability
 Respectfulness
 Standing up for what is right
 Thoughtful
6. Creativity

As a leader, you have to make a number of decisions that do not have a clear answer; you therefore
need to be able to think outside of the box.

Learning to try nontraditional solutions, or approaching problems in nontraditional ways, will help you
to solve an otherwise unsolvable problem. Most employees will also be impressed and inspired by a
leader who doesn't always choose the safe, conventional path. Here are some skills related
to creative thinking:

 Analytical
 Cognitive flexibility
 Conceptualization
 Critical thinking
 Curiosity
 Embracing different cultural perspectives
 Foresight
 Identifying patterns
 Imaginative
 Innovative
 Listening to others’ ideas
 Making abstract connections
 Observation
 Open-mindedness
 Problem solving
 Sound judgment
 Synthesizing
 Visionary
7. Feedback

Leaders should constantly look for opportunities to deliver useful information to team members about
their performance. However, there is a fine line between offering employees advice and assistance,
and micromanaging. By teaching employees how to improve their work and make their own
decisions, you will feel more confident delegating tasks to your staff.

Employees will also respect a leader who provides feedback in a clear but empathetic way. Some
skills for giving clear feedback include:

 Being open to receiving feedback

 Building confidence in employees
 Clarity
 Clearly laying out expectations
 Coaching
 Following up
 Frequent feedback
 Listening to employees’ responses
 Mentoring
 Positive reinforcement
 Providing specific advice
 Respectful
8. Responsibility

A leader is responsible for both the successes and failures of his or her team. Therefore, you need to
be willing to accept blame when something does not go correctly.

If your employees see their leader pointing fingers and blaming others, they will lose respect for you.
Accept mistakes and failures, and then devise clear solutions for improvement. Here are some skills
and qualities that help leaders convey their responsibility:

 Acknowledging mistakes
 Being open to customer feedback
 Evaluating best solutions
 Forecasting
 Learning from past mistakes
 Listening to feedback from employees and managers
 Project planning
 Reflectiveness
 Resolving problems
 Transparency
 Trouble shooting
9. Commitment

It is important for leaders to follow through with what they agree to do. You should be willing to put in
the extra hours to complete an assignment; employees will see this commitment and follow your
example.

Similarly, when you promise your staff a reward, such as an office party, you should always follow
through. A leader cannot expect employees to commit to their jobs and their tasks if he or she cannot
do the same. Some skills related to commitment in the workplace include:

 Applying feedback
 Commitment to company objectives
 Determination
 Embracing professional development
 Following through
 Keeping promises
 Passion
 Perseverance
 Prioritization
 Professionalism
 Team player
 Work ethic
 10. Flexibility

Mishaps and last-minute changes always occur at work. Leaders need to be flexible, accepting
whatever changes come their way. Employees will appreciate your ability to accept changes in stride
and creatively problem solve.

Similarly, leaders must be open to suggestions and feedback. If your staff is dissatisfied with an
aspect of the office environment, listen to their concern and be open to making necessary changes.
Employees will appreciate a leader's ability to accept appropriate feedback. Skills related to flexibility
include:

 Ability to learn new skills

 Ability to respond to new problems or issues
 Adaptability
 Improvising
 Negotiating
 Open to feedback
 Recognizing individuals’ strengths and skills
 Treating employees as individuals

5. 4 Different Types of Leadership Styles

The total pattern of leaders’ actions as perceived by their employees is called leadership style. It

represents the leaders’ philosophy, skills and attitudes in practice.

It is necessary to study the different leadership styles from which an appropriate style can be

selected, depending upon the situation in which leadership is to be exercised and the nature of the

followers involved.

Positive and Negative Leaders or Bosses

There are different ways in which leaders approach people to motivate them. If the approach

emphasizes rewards, the leader uses positive leadership. If the approach emphasizes penalties, the
leader is applying negative leadership. Negative leaders should be called bosses rather than leaders.

There are three classes of supervisory techniques – autocratic, participative or consultative and free-

rein and corresponding to these three techniques, there are three management styles – autocratic,

democratic and laissez-faire. To these one more may be added-paternalistic style.

1. Autocratic or Authoritarian leadership

An autocratic leader centralizes power and decision-making in himself. He gives orders, assigns

tasks and duties without consulting the employees. The leader takes full authority and assumes full
responsibility.
Autocratic leadership is negative, based on threats and punishment. Subordinates act as he directs.

He neither cares for their opinions nor permits them to influence the decision. He believes that

because of his authority he alone can decide what is best in a given situation.

Autocratic leadership is based upon close supervision, clear-cut direction and commanding order of

the superior. It facilitates quick decisions, prompt action and unity of direction. It depends on a lesser

degree of delegation. But too much use of authority might result in strikes and industrial disputes. It is

likely to produce frustration and retard the growth of the capacity of employees.

The employees work as hard as is necessary to avoid punishment. They will thus produce the

minimum which will escape punishment.

This leadership style is less likely to be effective because (i) the new generation is more independent

and less submissive and not amenable to rigid control; (ii) people look for ego satisfactions from their

jobs and (iii) revolution of rising expectations changed the attitude of the people.

Autocratic leadership may be divided into three classes:

(A) The hard-boiled autocrat who relies mainly on negative influences uses the force of fear and

punishment in directing his subordinates towards the organisational goals. This is likely to result in

employees becoming resentful.

(B) The benevolent autocrat who relies mainly on positive influences uses the reward and incentives

in directing his subordinates towards the organisational goals. By using praise and pats on the back

he secures the loyalty of subordinates who accept his decisions.

(C) The manipulative autocrat who makes the employees feels that they are participating in decision-

making though the manager himself has taken the decision. McGregor labels this style as Theory X.

2. Democratic or Participative leadership

Participative or democratic leaders decentralise authority. It is characterised by consultation with the

subordinates and their participation in the formulation of plans and policies. He encourages

participation in decision-making.

He leads the subordinates mainly through persuasion and example rather than fear and force.

Sometimes the leader serves as a moderator of the ideas and suggestions from his group. McGregor
labels this style as Theory Y.

Taylor’s scientific management was based on the inability of the ordinary employees to make

effective decisions about their work. Hence the decision-making power was vested with the
management. But recent studies indicate the need for participation by subordinates. The modern

trend favours sharing the responsibility with the employees.

This will foster enthusiasm in them. The employees feel that management is interested in them as

well as in their ideas and suggestions. They will, therefore, place their suggestions for improvement.

Advantages for democratic leadership are as follows: (i) higher motivation and improved morale; (ii)

increased co-operation with the management; (iii) improved job performance; (iv) reduction of

grievances and (v) reduction of absenteeism and employee turnover.

3. The Laissez-faire or Free-rein leadership

Free-rein leaders avoid power and responsibility. The laissez-faire or non-interfering type of leader

passes on the responsibility for decision-making to his subordinates and takes a minimum of initiative

in administration. He gives no direction and allows the group to establish its own goals and work out

its own problems.

The leader plays only a minor role. His idea is that each member of the group when left to himself will

put forth his best effort and the maximum results can be achieved in this way. The leader acts as an

umpire. But as no direction or control is exercised over the people, the organisation is likely to

flounder.

An experiment conducted among Boy Scout Clubs of the USA in 1940 shows autocratic leadership is

likely to rouse antagonism in the group and produce hostility towards the leader. In democratic

groups, the absence of the leader made little difference, while in autocratic groups productive work

dropped to a minimum, when the leader was out of the room.

Democratic leadership is more likely to win the loyalty of the group. The laissez-faire groups also

developed friendly approaches to the leader as in the democratic group. But suggestions from the

groups were very low and they were also less productive.

4. Paternalistic leadership

Under this management style the leader assumes that his function is fatherly or paternal. Paternalism

means papa knows best. The relationship between the leader and his group is the same as the

relationship between the head of the family and the members of the family. The leader guides and
protects his subordinates as members of his family.
As the head of the family he provides his subordinates with good working conditions and fringe

benefits. It is assumed that workers will work harder out of gratitude. This leadership style was

admirably successful in Japan with her peculiar social background.

This leadership style has still been widely prevalent in small firms in India. However, this paternalistic

approach is unlikely to work with mature adult employees, many of whom do not like their interests to

be looked after by a “godfather.” Instead of gratitude, it might generate antagonism and resentment in

the subordinates.

Leadership: Meaning, Characteristics and Functions

Meaning:

Leadership is an important element of the directing function of management. Wherever, there is an

organized group of people working towards a common goal, some type of leadership becomes

essential. “The power of leadership is the power of integrating. The leader stimulates what is best in

us he unites and concentrates what we feel only gropingly and shatteringly. He is a person who gives

form to the uncoarctate energy in every man. The person who influences me most is not he who does

great Deeds, but he who makes me feel that I can do great deeds.” Marry Parker Follet.

Leadership is the ability to build up confidence and zeal among people and to create an urge in them

to be led. To be a successful leader, a manager must possess the qualities of foresight, drive,

initiative, self-confidence and personal integrity. Different situations may demand different types of

leadership.
Definitions:

Leadership has been defined in various ways. Stogdill has rightly remarked that there are almost as

many definitions of leadership as there are people who have tried to define it.

The definitions given by some famous authors and management experts are given below:

1. Koontz and O’Donnell, Leadership is the ability of a manager to induce subordinates to work with

confidence and zeal.

2. Dubin, R.Leadership is the exercise of authority and making of decisions.

3. Allford and Beaty, Leadership is the ability to secure desirable actions from a group of followers
voluntarily, without the use of coercion.
4. George R. Terry, Leadership is the activity of influencing people to strive willingly for group

objectives.

5. Hemphill, J.K., Leadership is the initiation of acts which result in a consistent pattern of group

interaction directed towards the solution of a mutual problem.

6. Jame J.Cribbin, Leadership is a process of influence on a group in a particular situation at a given

point of time, and in a specific set of circumstances that stimulates people to strive willingly to attain

organisational objectives and satisfaction with the type of leadership provided.

7. Peter Drucker, Leadership is not making friends and influencing people, i.e., salesmanship it is the
lifting of man’s visions to higher sights, the raising of man’s personality beyond its normal limitations.

In the various definitions of leadership the emphasis is on the capacity of an individual to influence

and direct group effort towards the achievement of organizational goals. Thus, ‘ we can say that
leadership is the practice of influence that stimulates subordinates or followers to do their best

towards the achievement of desired goals.

Nature and Characteristics of Leadership:

An analysis of the definitions cited above reveals the following important characteristics

of leadership:

1. Leadership is a personal quality.

2. It exists only with followers. If there are no followers, there is no leadership?

3. It is the willingness of people to follow that makes person a leader.

4. Leadership is a process of influence. A leader must be able to influence the behaviour, attitude and

beliefs of his subordinates.

5. It exists only for the realization of common goals.

6. It involves readiness to accept complete responsibility in all situations.

7. Leadership is the function of stimulating the followers to strive willingly to attain organizational

objectives.

8. Leadership styles do change under different circumstances.

9. Leadership is neither bossism nor synonymous with; management.

Formal and informal Leaders:
From the view point of official recognition from top management, leaders may be classified as formal

and informal leaders. A formal leader is one who is formally appointed or elected to direct and control

the activities of the subordinates. He is a person created by the formal structure, enjoys
organizational authority and is accountable to those who have elected him in a formal way. The

formal leader has a two-fold responsibility. On the one hand, he has to fulfill the demands of the

organization, while on the other he is also supposed to help, guide and direct his subordinates in

satisfying their needs and aspirations.

Informal leaders are not formally recognized. They derive authority from the people who are under

their influence. In any organization we can always find some persons who command respect and who

are approached to help, guide and protect the informal leaders have only one task to perform, i.e., to

help their followers in achieving their individual and group goals. Informal leaders are created to

satisfy those needs which are not satisfied by the formal leaders. An organization can make effective

use of informal leaders to strengthen the formal leadership.

6. Leadership Functions:

Following are the important functions of a leader:

1. Setting Goals:

A leader is expected to perform creative function of laying out goals and policies to persuade the

subordinates to work with zeal and confidence.

2. Organizing:

The second function of a leader is to create and shape the organization on scientific lines by

assigning roles appropriate to individual abilities with the view to make its various components to

operate sensitively towards the achievement of enterprise goals.

3. Initiating Action:

The next function of a leader is to take the initiative in all matters of interest to the group. He should

not depend upon others for decision and judgment. He should float new ideas and his decisions

should reflect original thinking.

4. Co-Ordination:

A leader has to reconcile the interests of the individual members of the group with that of the

organization. He has to ensure voluntary co-operation from the group in realizing the common

objectives.
5. Direction and Motivation:

It is the primary function of a leader to guide and direct his group and motivate people to do their best

in the achievement of desired goals, he should build up confidence and zeal in the work group.
6. Link between Management and Workers:

A leader works as a necessary link between the management and the workers. He interprets the

policies and programmes of the management to his subordinates and represents the subordinates’

interests before the management. He can prove effective only when he can act as the true guardian

of the interests of his subordinates.

Importance of Leadership in Management:

The importance of leadership in any group activity is too obvious to be over-emphasized. Wherever,

there is an organized group of people working towards a common goal, some type leadership

becomes essential. Lawrence A. Appley remarked that the time had come to substitute the word

leadership for management.

Although the concern for leadership is as old as recorded history, it has become more acute during

the last few decades due to the complexities of production methods, high degree of specialization and

social changes in the modern organizations. A good dynamic leader is compared to a ‘dynamo

generating energy’ that charges and activates the entire group in such a way that near miracles may

be achieved. The success of an enterprise depends to a great extent, upon effective leadership.’

The importance of leadership can be highlighted from the following:

1. It Improves Motivation and Morale:

Through dynamic leadership managers can improve motivation and morale of their subordinates. A

good leader influences the behaviour of an individual in such a manner that he voluntarily works

towards the achievement of enterprise goals.

2. It Acts as a Motive Power to Group Efforts:

Leadership serves as a motive power to group efforts. It leads the group to a higher level of

performance through its persistent efforts and impact on human relations.

3. It Acts as an Aid to Authority:

The use of authority alone cannot always bring the desired results. Leadership acts as an aid to

authority by influencing, inspiring and initiating action.

4. It is Needed at All Levels of Management:

Leadership plays a pivotal role at all levels of management because in the absence of effective
leadership no management can achieve the desired results.
5. It Rectifies the Imperfectness of the Formal Organisational Relationships:

No organizational structure can provide all types of relationships and people with common interest

may work beyond the confines of formal relationships. Such informal relationships are more effective

in controlling and regulating the behaviour of the subordinates. Effective leadership uses there

informal relationships to accomplish the enterprise goals.

6. It Provides the Basis for Co-operation:

Effective leadership increases the understanding between the subordinates and the management and

promotes co-operation among them.

Process or Techniques of Effective Leadership:

The following are the techniques of effective leadership:

1. The leader should consult the group in framing the policies and lines of action and in initiating any

radical change therein.

2. He should attempt to develop voluntary co-operation from his subordinates in realizing common

objectives.

3. He should exercise authority whenever necessary to implement the policies. He should give clear,

complete and intelligible instructions to his subordinates.

4. He should build-up confidence and zeal in his followers.

5. He should listen to his subordinates properly and appreciate their feelings.

6. He should communicate effectively.

7. He should follow the principle of motivation.

Leadership is an art whereby an individual influences a group of individuals for achieving a common

set of goals. To expand it further, leadership is a process of inter-personal relationships through

which a person attempts to influence the behaviour of others for attainment of pre-determined

objectives. Of the various people, who have defined leadership, influence and attainment of

objectives are the common denominators.

Characteristics of Leadership:

On the basis of an analysis of different definitions, following characteristics of leadership

emerge:
1. Leadership is a process of Influence:

Influence is the ability of an individual to change the behaviour, attitude, and belief of another

individual directly or indirectly. Someone has rightly defined leaderships as the “process of social
influence in which one person can enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a

common task”.
2. Leadership is not one-dimensional:

The Essence of leadership is Followership. Leadership is a systems thinking in multiple dimensions.

In terms of systems thinking, the organizational performers (followers) are must in the leadership

process. Without followers there can be no leadership.

3. Leadership is Multi-faceted:

Leadership is a combination of personality and tangible skills (drive, integrity, self-confidence,

attractive personality, decisiveness, etc), styles (Authoritarian to laissez-faire), and situational factors

(organisation’s internal and external environment, objectives, tasks, resources, and cultural values of

leaders and the followers).

4. Leadership is Goal oriented:

Leadership is “organizing a group of people to achieve a common goal.” Thus, the influence concerns

the goals only. Outside the goals, the concerns are not related to leadership.
5. Leadership is not primarily a Particular Personality Trait:

A trait closely linked to leadership is charisma, but many people who have charisma (for example,

movie actors and sports heroes) are not leaders.

6. Leadership is not primarily a Formal Position:

There have been many great leaders who did not hold high positions—for example, Mahatma

Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr. and—and Anna Hazare . On the other hand there are people who

hold high positions but are not leaders.

7. Leadership is not primarily a Set of Important Objectives:

It involves getting things done.

8. Leadership is not primarily a Set of Behaviours:

Many leadership manuals suggest that leadership involves doing things such as delegating and

providing inspiration and vision; but people who are not leaders can do these things, and some

effective leaders don’t do them at all.

Manager vs. Leader:

Some questions are often being asked – Does a manager has to be a leader too? Does a leader
have to be a manager as well? It is possible to be a boss in a company without being a leader.

Managers are appointed but leaders may be appointed or emerge.

Managers depend upon their positional authority to direct subordinates. Leaders are able to influence

followers beyond their formal authority. Managers are people who do things right and leaders are

people who do the right thing.

Leadership and

management must go hand in hand. They are not the same thing. But they are necessarily linked,

and complementary. Any effort to separate the two is likely to cause more problems than it solves. A

good manager must possess leadership qualities.

It is very right to conclude that task is not only to manage people, but the task is to lead people. And

the goal is to make productive the specific strengths and knowledge of every individual.
Importance of Leadership:
If an organization is flourishing, its members developing, and achieving breakthrough after

breakthrough, then one can be sure about one thing that there is a strong leader at the helm of the
organization. If an organization is failing, the problem again relates to the leader of the organization.

Thus everything rises and falls on leadership.

Leadership is an important function of management which facilitates to maximize efficiency and

effectiveness to achieve organizational goals. Leadership has paramount importance in present

competitive business environment, because with the help of leadership a company will face all the

problems very efficiently.

1. Guides and Inspires Subordinates:

A leader has to not only supervise but also to play a guiding role for the subordinates. Guidance here

means instructing the subordinates the way they have to perform their work effectively and efficiently.

Leadership creates among subordinates a sense of belongingness and commitment. Desire for

achievement is transformed into a passion.

2. Secures Cooperation:

A leader sells rather than tells. He persuades, rather than dictates, and creates enthusiasm among

his subordinates and thus, secures their cooperation.

3. Creates Confidence:

Confidence is an important factor which can be achieved through expressing the work efforts to the

subordinates, explaining them clearly their role and giving them guidelines to achieve the goals

effectively. It is also important to hear the employees with regards to their complaints and problems.
4. Builds Work Environment:

Management is getting things done from people. An efficient work environment helps in sound and

stable growth. Therefore, human relations should be kept into mind by a leader. He should have

personal contacts with employees and should listen to their problems and solve them. He should treat

employees on humanitarian terms.

5. Maintains Discipline:

By turning subordinates into followers, the job of securing order and compliance, becomes easy. He

motivates the employees with economic and non- economic rewards and thereby gets the work from

the subordinates voluntarily. It is this willingness on the part of subordinates which leads to

maintenance of discipline.
6. Facilitates Integration of Organisational and Personal Goals:

A leader is one who is visionary, deciding the destination to be reached. Vision is the source of

organisational objectives. Vision requires synchronisation of goals through integration of personal and

organisational goals.

A leader creates common goals and understanding among subordinates that their personal goals are

related with the attainment of organisational goals. It also leads to coordination.

7. Works as a Change Agent:

No change in thinking, processes, and practices becomes possible without leadership. It is the leader

who convinces actively about the change and making it part and parcel of their working and reducing

resistance to change.
8. Boosts Morale:

Morale denotes willing co-operation of the employees towards their work and getting them into

confidence and winning their trust. A leader can be a morale booster by achieving full co-operation so

that they perform with best of their abilities as they work to achieve goals.
Principles of Leadership:

To help you be, know, and do, follow these eleven principles of leadership:
1. Know Yourself and Seek Self-Improvement:

In order to know yourself, you have to understand your be, know, and do, attributes. Seeking self-

improvement means to continually strengthen your attributes. This can be accomplished through self-

study, formal classes, reflection, and interacting with others.

2. Be Technically Proficient:

As a leader, you must know your job and have a solid familiarity with your employees’ tasks.
3. Seek responsibility and take responsibility for your actions:

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Search for ways to guide your organization to new heights. And when things go wrong, they always

do sooner or later — do not blame others. Analyze the situation, take corrective action, and move on

to the next challenge.

4. Make sound and timely decisions:

Use good problem solving, decision making, and planning tools.

5. Set the example:

Be a good role model for your employees. They must not only hear what they are expected to do, but

also see. We must become the change we want to see – Mahatma Gandhi.
6. Know your people and look out for their well-being:

Know human nature and the importance of sincerely caring for your workers.
7. Keep your workers informed:

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Know how to communicate with not only them, but also seniors and other key people.
8. Develop a sense of responsibility in your workers:

Help to develop good character traits that will help them carry out their professional responsibilities.
9. Ensure that tasks are understood, supervised, and accomplished:

Communication is the key to this responsibility.

10. Train as a team:

Although many so called leaders call their organization, department, section, etc. a team; they are not

really teams…they are just a group of people doing their jobs.

11. Use the full capabilities of your organization:

By developing a team spirit, you will be able to employ your organization, department, section, etc. to

its fullest capabilities.

Theories of Leadership:

During the 20th Century, there has been a great interest in research on leadership. Early leadership

theories focused on what qualities distinguished between leaders and followers (i.e., traits), while

subsequent theories looked at other variables such as behavioural and situational factors and skill

levels.

While many different leadership theories have emerged, most can be classified as one of eight

major types:
1. “Great Man” Theories:

Great man theories assume that the Leaders are born and not made. Great leaders will arise when

there is a great need, like Rama, Krishna, Buddha, Mahatma Gandhi, Eisenhower, and Winston

Churchill.

These theories often portray great leaders as heroic, mythic and destined to rise to leadership when

needed. The term “Great Man” was used because, at the time, leadership was thought of primarily as

a male quality, especially in terms of military leadership.

Early research on leadership was based on the study of people who were already great leaders.

These people were often from the aristocracy, as few from lower classes had the opportunity to lead.
Gender issues were not on the table when the ‘Great Man’ theory was proposed because most

leaders were male.

2. Trait Theories:

Similar in some ways to “Great Man” theories, trait theories assume that People are born with

inherited qualities and traits that make them better suited to leadership. Some traits are particularly

suited to leadership. Trait theories often identify particular personality or behavioral characteristics

shared by leaders. People who make good leaders have the right (or sufficient) combination of traits.

Early research on leadership was based on finding the traits which differentiated leaders from non-

leaders. If we look at Ratan Tata of Tata Sons, Kumar Mangalam Birla of Aditya Birla Group, Azim

Premji of Wipro, Kamath of Infosys, Anand Mahindra of Mahindra and Mahindra, all these leaders

possess some common traits.

The traits are vision, self confidence, simplicity, integrity, and adherence to values. Traits are

matched by skills. There have been many different studies of leadership traits and they agree only in

the general saintly qualities needed to be a leader.

Perhaps a day may come when the researchers will find a ‘leadership gene’. But traits alone do not

explain leadership clearly as situational factors are ignored.

3. Behavioral Theories:

Behavioural theories of leadership are based upon the beliefs that great leaders are made, not born

(a big leap from Trait Theory) and exhibit something unique in their behaviour. Behavioural theories of

leadership do not seek inborn traits or capabilities. Rather, they look at what leaders actually do, like

democratically or autocratically. People can learn to become leaders through learning and

observation. This is the crux behind leadership development programmes.

Three important researches on behavioural theories need mention – University of Iowa studies by

Kurt Lewin (democratic leadership style can contribute good and high quality of work), Ohio State

University Studies by Edwin A. Fleishman in 1945(a leader high on initiating structure – defines his

own and subordinates’ roles to achieve goals; and consideration- mutual trust and respect for

employees’ ideas and feelings); and University of Michigan Studies by Renesis Likert (identified two
types of leadership behaviour – job- centred behaviour and employee-centred behaviour and later on

Black and Mouton developed management grid).

4. Contingency and Situational Theories:

During researches it has been realised that leadership phenomenon is more than isolating a few traits

or behaviours. According to contingency theory, no leadership style is best in all situations. Success

depends upon a number of variables, including the leadership style, capabilities and behaviour of the

followers and other situational factors.

It means a leadership style that is effective in some situations may not be successful in others. This is

the reason that some leaders who seem to have the ‘Midas touch’ in one situation suddenly appear to

be very unsuccessful in another situation.

Situational theory proposes that the best action of the leader depends on a range of situational

factors. An effective leader does not just fall into a single preferred style, different are the situations

different are the styles of decision-making. Factors that affect situational decisions include motivation

and capability of followers.

Contingency theory is similar to situational theory. Both believe in that there is no one right way. But

they differ as the situational theory tends to focus more on the behaviours adopted by the leader,

given situational factors (often about follower behaviour), whereas the contingency theory takes a

broader view that includes contingent factors about leader capability and other variables within the

situation.

In case of situational theory the leaders’ perception of the follower and the situation will affect what

they do rather than the truth of the situation. The leader’s perception of themselves and other factors

such as stress and mood will also modify the leaders’ behaviour.

Four important approaches in isolating key situational variables have been very important. These

studies include – Fiedler’s Contingency Model (leadership effectiveness depends on the proper

match between the leader’s style and the degree to which situation gives control to the leader);

Robert House’ Path-goal theory (leader’s job is to assist followers to attain their goals and to provide

necessary support and direction to ensure compatibility of their goals with that of the organisation –

like E. Sreedharan, of Delhi Metro); Victor Vroom and Phillip Yetton’s leader-participation

model(leader can adapt his style to different situation); and Paul Hersey and Kenneth Blanchard’s
Situational Leadership (a leader must assess the maturity levels of followers to determine which

combination of leader behaviours to use in a given situation.

Types of Leadership:
1. Bureaucratic Leadership:

Bureaucratic leadership follows a close set of standards. Everything is done in an exact, specific way

to ensure safety and/or accuracy. One will often find this leadership role in a situation where the work

environment is dangerous and specific sets of procedures are necessary to ensure safety.

A natural bureaucratic leader will tend to create detailed instructions for other members of a group.

The bureaucratic leadership style is based on following normative rules and adhering to lines of

authority
2. Charismatic leadership:

“Charismatic leadership emphasises primarily the magnetic personality and behaviour of leaders and

their effects on followers, organizations, and society. Sociologists, political historians, and political

scientists have widely accepted the theory of charismatic leadership originally advanced by Weber

(1947). Charisma is regarded as of divine origin or as exemplary, and on the basis of them the

individual concerned is treated as a leader.

Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Lai Bahadur Shashtri, and Mother Teresa were

charismatic leaders. Charismatic leaders inspire via persona, reputation, and communications and

also show courage, competence, and idealistic vision.

Late President John F Kennedy and his look-alike Fmr. President Bill Clinton have often been called

“The most charismatic leaders of 20th century” Another good example would be Adolf Hitler, who

rose from a “Bohemian corporal” to “Herr Fuhrer” due to his ability to captivate people into following

him.
3. Visionary Leadership:

A visionary leader perceives challenges and growth opportunities before they happen, positioning

people to produce extraordinary results that make real contributions to life. Some of the visionary

leaders include – Dalai Lama (for his ability to incorporate new ideas into his traditional framework

while being a messenger for peace and enlightenment for the world), Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson

Mandela (for his courage and conviction and perseverance against all odds to free and unite people

for justice), and President Obama (for his ability to galvanize and inspire people with the vision that
we can transform our consciousness & world). The list is endless.
4. Strategic Leadership:

Strategic leadership refers to a manger’s potential to express a strategic vision for the organization,

and to motivate and persuade others to acquire that vision.

Strategic leadership can also be defined as utilizing strategy in the management of employees. It is

the potential to influence organizational members and to execute organizational change. Strategic

leaders create organizational structure, allocate resources and express strategic vision.

Thus, this type of leadership relates to the role of top management. Strategic leaders work in an

ambiguous environment on very difficult issues that influence and are influenced by occasions and

organizations external to their own.

The main objective of strategic leadership is strategic productivity. Another aim of strategic leadership

is to develop an environment in which employees forecast the organization’s needs in context of their

own job. Strategic leaders encourage the employees in an organization to follow their own ideas.

Strategic leaders make greater use of reward and incentive system for encouraging productive and

quality employees to show much better performance for their organization. Functional strategic

leadership is about inventiveness, perception, and planning to assist an individual in realizing his

objectives and goals.

5. Servant leadership:

The term “Servant Leadership” was coined by Robert K. Greenleaf in The Servant as Leader, an

essay that he first published in 1970. Leaders have a responsibility towards society and those who

are disadvantaged. People who want to help others best do this by leading them. The servant-leader

is servant first and leader next.

The servant leader serves others, rather than others serving the leader. Serving others thus comes

by helping them to achieve and improve. Famous examples of servant leaders include George

Washington (America), Gandhi (India), and Cesar Chavez (Venezuela).

6. Substitutes for Leadership:

The term has been brought to light by Kerr and Jermier in 1978. According to them there are aspects

of the work setting and the people involved that can reduce the need for a leader’s personal

involvement, because leadership is already provided from within. The term substitutes mean the
situation where leader behaviours are replaced by characteristics of subordinates, the task at hand,

and the organisation.

7. Transactional and Transformational Leadership:

Transactional leadership is based upon the assumptions that people are motivated by reward and

punishment (Rational Man), social systems work best with a clear chain of command, when people

have agreed to do a job, a part of the deal is that they cede all authority to their manager, and the

basic purpose of a subordinate is to do what their manager tells them to do.

The style of a transactional leader is that he works through creating clear structures whereby it is

made clear as to what is required of subordinates and the rewards that they get for following orders.

Punishments are not always mentioned, but they are also well- understood and formal systems of

discipline are usually in place.

To begin with, Transactional Leadership negotiates the contract whereby the subordinate is given a

salary and other benefits, and the company gets authority over the subordinate.

While the leader allocates work to a subordinate, they are considered to be fully responsible for it,

whether or not they have the resources or capability to carry it out.

When things go wrong, then the subordinate is considered to be personally at fault, and is punished

for their failure (just as they are rewarded for succeeding).

The leader often uses management by exception, working on the principle that if something is

operating to defined (and hence expected) performance then it does not need attention. Exceptions to

expectation require praise and reward for exceeding expectation, whilst some kind of corrective

action is applied for performance below expectation.

In management versus leadership spectrum, it is more towards the management end. Transactional

leadership is based in contingency, in that reward or punishment is contingent upon performance.

Transactional Leadership is still a popular approach with many managers, despite its limitation of

ignoring complex emotional factors and social values.

When the demand for a skill outstrips the supply, then Transactional Leadership often is insufficient.

Transformational leadership is the answer. It “recognizes and exploits an existing need or demand of

a potential follower… (And) looks for potential motives in followers, seeks to satisfy higher needs, and

engages the full person of the follower”

Transformational leadership is based upon the assumptions that people will follow a person who

inspires them, a person with vision and passion can achieve great things, and the way to get things

done is by injecting enthusiasm and energy.

These leaders are focused on the performance of group members, but also want each person to fulfil

his or her potential. Leaders with this style often have high ethical and moral standards.

Transformational Leadership starts with the development of a vision. This vision may be developed

by the leader, by the senior team or may emerge from a broad series of discussions. The next step is

to constantly sell the vision. While doing so, he must create trust and personal integrity. Along with

selling, the leader finds the way forward.

And finally, transformation leaders remain upfront and central during the action and visible –

constantly doing the rounds, listening, soothing and enthusing.

Transformational Leader seeks to infect and reinfect their followers with a high level of commitment to

the vision. They are people- oriented and believe that success comes first and last through deep and

sustained commitment.

Transformational Leaders are often charismatic, but are not as narcissistic as pure Charismatic

Leaders, who succeed through a belief in themselves rather than a belief in others.

Whilst the Transformational Leader seeks overtly to transform the organization, there is also a tacit

promise to followers that they also will be transformed in some way

One of the traps of Transformational Leadership is that passion and confidence can easily be

mistaken for truth and reality. Paradoxically, the energy that gets people going can also cause them

to give up.

Transformational Leaders also tend to see the big picture, but not the details, where the devil often

lurks. If they do not have people to take care of this level of information, then they are usually doomed

to fail.

Finally, transformational leaders, by definition, seek to transform. When the organization does not

need transforming and people are happy as they are, then such a leader will be frustrated.

It is important for the follower to understand the difference between Charismatic Leaders and

Transformational Leaders. They both are Inspiring and both have a Vision and both are not as caring

about people as followers might want them to be.

Charismatic Leaders are Inspiring in order to lead for their own purpose which may or may not benefit
the organization or people. “It’s all about me.” Transformational Leaders are inspiring in order to

support a shared vision of improvement for the organization and its people.
“It’s all about the organization.” The visions of transformational Leaders are practical and achievable

in order to improve organization. Transformational Leaders often “downsize” the work force to

improve the organization. Transformational Leaders often “downsize” the work force to improve
organizational efficiency for the good of the organization. On the other hand, Charismatic Leaders

abuse or fire persons who do not agree with them, or who question their vision or otherwise inhibit

their personal accomplishment as Leaders improve organizational efficiency for the good of the

organization.

On the other hand, Charismatic Leaders abuse or fire persons who do not agree with them, or who

question their vision or otherwise inhibit their personal accomplishment as Leaders

To conclude, transformational and transactional leadership are not opposite to each other, rather they
are complementary. A great transformational leader has to be a great transactional leader as well.
Leadership Styles:

Before we delve into describing leadership styles, it would be proper to distinguish between types of

leaders and styles of leadership. Type of leader is determined and identified by the “personality”

displayed by the leader in terms of core trait along with other traits and personal qualities being

displayed and used to gain the trust of the people and lead them to commit to undertake the major

task facing the organization.

On the other hand, “style” of leadership is defined and identified by the competencies and skills that

the leader “applies” to guide facilitate and support the people of the organization in their efforts to

accomplish the task.

Leadership style reflects a leader’s decision making behaviour. It is the result of the philosophy,

personality and experience of the leader. Leadership style refers to how decisions are made to

providing direction, implementing plans, and motivating people.

Types of Leadership Styles

Three major leadership styles are:

1. Authoritarian or Autocratic

2. Participative or Democratic

3. Free-rein or Delegate

Authoritarian Style:

When the leaders tell their subordinates/followers at their own what work they want to get done, and

how – it is known as authoritarian or autocratic leadership style.

It works well if the leader is competent and knowledgeable enough to decide about each and every

thing. All decision-making powers are centralised in the leader, as with autocratic leaders. No

suggestions or initiatives from subordinates are acceptable.

Authoritarian or autocratic leadership does not mean using foul language and leading by threats. This

unprofessional style is known as “bossing people around”.

This style should be used only when the leader has all the information and is short of time and the

employees are well motivated. If the leader wants to gain greater commitment and motivate his

subordinates, then it should be used very rarely.

Participative Style:

In the authoritarian style the leader used to say – “I want you to….”, but in participative style the

leader says – “let us work together to solve this problem”.

A Participative Leader, rather than taking autocratic decisions, seeks to involve other people including

subordinates, peers, superiors and other stakeholders in the process.

Here the leader takes his subordinates into confidence about what to do and how to do, but the final

authority vests in the leader. This style can be divided into two – one, where leader consults, and two,

where decision is taken through consensus. Use of this style by a leader is not a sign of weakness.

It is the strength, your subordinates will respect. This style is used when the employees are

knowledgeable and skilful. This style is also known as consultative, empowerment, joint decision-

making, democratic leadership, Management by Objective (MBO) and power-sharing.

It helps in ascertaining and identifying future leaders among the subordinates. Also, it keeps a team’s
spirit and morale high, as the team members feel that their opinions are valued by their leader.
To illustrate, an advertising manager approaches his subordinates on how to promote a particular

product of a company. The team members brain storm over the issue, some suggest print media and

others suggest electronic media. The participative leader takes all these suggestions, and makes a

decision after weighing their pros and cons.

Free-rein Leadership Style:

In this style the leader says – “you take care of the problem”. Final responsibility always remains with

the leader. A free-rein leader does not lead, but leaves the group entirely to itself.

Such a leader allows maximum freedom to subordinates, i.e., they are given a free hand in deciding

their own policies and methods. It is used when the leader has full trust and confidence in the abilities

of his subordinates.

Since a leader cannot do everything. He prioritises the work and delegates certain tasks. This style

may be used but with caution. This style is also known as laissez faire (non-interference in the affairs

of others).

To illustrate, a manager has newly joined a firm. He is still learning how various things move in the

organization. In such a situation, he relies on the suggestions and opinions of his team members and

lets them do the things the way they are used to, till the time he is able to gain sufficient knowledge

and can suggest some more feasible changes.

Forces influencing the Styles:

1. Availability of time

2. Relationships between leader and subordinates (based on trust or on disrespect?)

3. The information is with whom (the leader, employees or both? If the leader knows the problem but

does not have all the information – use participative style)

4. How well the leader knows the task and employees well versed? (Use participative style if the

employees know the job well)

5. Internal Conflicts

6. Levels of stress

7. Type of task (structured, unstructured, complicated or simple?)

8. Systems and procedures (are they well established?)

9. If an employee is just learning the job – use authoritarian style, and if employees know more than

the leader about the job use free-rein style)

Good leaders should be able to master all the styles, to be a better leader. He must be able to use all

the styles depending upon the forces in operation among the leader, followers and the situation. If the

existing procedure is not working go in for authoritarian to establish a new one; if their ideas and input

are to be taken use participative and using delegative style while delegating the procedure to them for

execution. Normally one of styles will be dominant. But bad leaders tend to stick to one style only.

Before deciding which style to use, a leader should ask two questions, the first is to ask what my

leadership style is. This is to focus on what you enjoy, what you might be good at, what strengths and

weaknesses you have.

The second is to ask what leadership style is best for the people, team or organisation that I’m

leading. This is to focus on the needs of the situation, on the criteria for success, on the approach that

will bring about the maximum impact. Modern leadership demands both.
Managerial Grid:

The Managerial Grid, a behavioural leadership model, has been developed by Robert R. Blake and

Jane Mouton. This model originally identified five different leadership styles based on the concern for

people and the concern for production. The optimal leadership style in this model is based on Theory

Y of motivation.

The model is represented as a grid with concern for production (on the X-axis) and concern for

people (on the Y-axis); each axis ranges from 1 (Low) to 9 (High). The resulting leadership styles are

as follows:
a. The indifferent (also called as impoverished) style (1, 1):

Evade and elude or low production/low people. In this style, managers have low concern for both

people and production. This leader is mostly ineffective. Managers use this style to preserve job and

job seniority, protecting themselves by avoiding getting into trouble.

The main concern for the manager is not to be held responsible for any mistakes, which results in

less innovative decisions. The leader has no regard for either work or people.
b. The accommodating (also called as country club) style (1, 9):

Yield and comply or high people/low production. This style has a high concern for people and a low

concern for production. Managers using this style are more concerned about needs and feelings to

the security and comfort of the employees, in hopes that this will increase performance. The resulting

atmosphere is usually friendly, but not necessarily very productive due to lack of direction and control.
C. The dictatorial (also called as produce or perish) style (9, 1):

Control and dominate or high production/low people. With a high concern for production, and a low

concern for people, managers using this style find employee needs unimportant; they provide their

employees with money and expect performance in return.

Managers using this style also pressure their employees through rules and punishments to achieve

the company goals. This dictatorial style is based on Theory X of Douglas McGregor, and is

commonly applied by companies on the edge of real or perceived failure. This style is often used in

cases of crisis management.

d. The status quo (also called as middle-of-the-road) style (5, 5):

Balance and compromise or medium production/medium people. Managers using this style try to

balance between company goals and workers’ needs. By giving some concern to both people and
production, managers who use this style settle for average performance and often believe that this is

the most anyone can expect.

e. The sound (also called as team style) (9, 9):

Contribute and commit or high production/high people. In this style, high concern is paid both to

people and production. As suggested by the propositions of Theory Y, managers choosing to use this

style encourage teamwork and commitment among employees. This method relies heavily on making

employees feel themselves to be constructive parts of the company.

The grid has been evolving continuously. It has added two more leadership styles -the paternalistic

style: prescribe and guide (alternates between the (1,9) and (9,1) locations on the grid- managers

using this style praise and support, but discourage challenges to their thinking ) and Opportunistic

style: exploit and manipulate(does not have a fixed location on the grid- leaders adopt whichever

behaviour offers the greatest personal benefit). These styles were added to the grid theory before

1999.
Contemporary Leadership Issues:

Leadership is probably the single most subject in management getting the most attention of business

leaders. Some of the current issues relating to leadership development are as under;
1. Emotional Intelligence:

Should a leader have high Intelligence Quotient (IQ) and technical intelligence? Off course, they are

necessary. But more important is to possess Emotional Intelligence (EI).

The five components of EI are self-awareness, self- regulation, self-motivation, empathy and social

skills. Without EI one cannot be a great leader. Indira Nooyee has become President of PepsiCo

because she has shown EI.

2. Gender and Leadership:

Does gender make any difference to leadership? Victor vroom and others in their leader-participation

model under contingency theories of leadership find that women managers are significantly more

participative than their male counterparts.

The women managers show more interactive leadership, and thus, better rating from peers,

supervisors, and subordinates. Shikha Sharma of Yes bank and Chanda Kochar of ICICI bank are

examples of women managers and best leaders.

3. Cross-cultural Leadership:

Of late the corporations are appointing expatriates as the CEOs or managers. Very recently, GoAir of

Wadia Group has appointed Giorgio De Roni as its CEO, a former chief Revenue officer of Italian

airline, Air One.

Mahindra and Mahindra also as a matter of policy sends Indian managers to its foreign companies

and managers from foreign companies are put in India-based companies.

The purpose is to train them in different cultures to avoid any culture shock..Culture plays an

important role, and managers must understand the culture of subordinates.

Ratan Tata has rightly pointed a finger at British managers that they are not like Indian managers,

who stay till midnight, if the situation so warrants.

4. Building Trust:

Coca Cola and PepsiCo were accused of pesticides, Reliance Energy of soil pollution, Dow

Chemical’s of Bhopal tragedy, Satyam of accounting fraud, and Indian call centres of encroaching

upon privacy of clients.

All these incidents show the decresing public trust in corporate leaders. Trust involves integrity,

competence, consistency, loyalty, and openness. Trust is very critical to leadership. Knowledge and

information can be accesses by a leader only if he is trust worthy. What people talk about ethical

leadership is the same thing.

The Fundamental Principles of Leadership
by Damarious Page

Managers handle overall business operations and supervisors watch over employees, but leaders are all things at once,
especially in a small business. When you have a role as a leader, other people in your organization should want to follow
your guidance, to help the business satisfy its mission and goals. Kings and queens are born, but leaders are indeed made
and shaped by the ever-changing business environment. The fundamental principles of leadership incorporate both
logic and feeling to successfully guide a small business into long-term solvency and profitability.
Informed
Employees expect leaders at small businesses to have a high degree of knowledge about operations, management and
the industry in general. Subordinates and co-management may lose confidence in a leader's ability if he doesn't
understand the business from top to bottom, front office to back office. Universities, colleges and online schools offer
continuing education courses and certifications in the business knowledge side of running a small operation. A wise
leader needs foresight and insight, and it starts with understanding the data.

Innovative

Some small businesses are technology-averse. When new business innovations emerge, larger corporations are

commonly the first to adopt. Social networking is a relatively recent example, where most large enterprises have created
profiles in various website domains. Small businesses are slowly joining this trend to increase market exposure, but
many smaller operations either don't have staff who can properly leverage this new advertising medium, or don't see
any tangible benefit from going online. Small business leaders should embrace change to stay up with the larger pack, if
not get ahead.

Decisive

Small business owners and managers face yes-and-no questions on a daily basis. Contrast this to larger institutions that
have several leadership layers, including executive management, middle or department management, and employee
supervisors. Decisions are easily delegated and spread across the organization, and a wrong choice has less of an impact.
Small business leaders must be both decisive and correct, or else the entire operation may be adversely affected.
Intelligence and willingness to adapt can facilitate good decision-making.

Loyal

When revenues and profits slip, business managers are faced with tough financial choices that affect personnel as well as

operations. Nonetheless, dedicated employees expect leaders to be loyal and honest. If business is hurting, tell the truth
up front, but make a concerted effort to ensure employee needs are satisfied. In turn the employees, will remain with the
company for the long-haul. Outsourcing and globalization are hot-button issues.

Reserved

Small-business leaders work in close quarters with employees, resulting in a strong personal and professional rapport
throughout the organization. Managers must be careful about being too sociable and extroverted. From a legal
perspective, fraternizing with employees can open a leader up to charges as serious as sexual harassment. A strong
leader should know how to effortlessly boost morale and tactfully diffuse tension without compromising the altitude of
the position of leader and the respect due to it.

Humble
Small business leaders can still demonstrate humility while being reserved and competent. Business owners and
managers may have education, training and experience that trumps regular employees, but everyone is human. Admit
personal mistakes and business errors.

Supportive

Management has to know when to rule with a firm hand, but be supportive when employees need relief from work and

life in general. For example, while reprimanding employees for being tardy, probe for ways to fix the problem, such as
creating a carpool. Send flowers and cards for celebrations, such as weddings, and show sincere respect when an
employee or family member is infirm or passes away. Let employees know that you care about their well-being.