LEADING
What is leading?
Leading is about setting direction and ensuring that that
direction is followed. Leading can apply to leading oneself, other
individuals, groups, organizations and societies. The nature of how
leading is done depends on the context of the situation, one one's
perspective, and on the nature and needs of those involved.
(http://managementhelp.org/leadership)
Leading involves influencing others toward the attainment of
organizational objectives. Effective leading requires the manager to
motivate subordinates, communicate effectively, and effectively use
power. If managers are effective leaders, their subordinates will be
enthusiastic about exerting effort toward the attainment of
organizational objectives.
To become effective at leading, managers must first understand
their subordinates' personalities, values, attitudes, and emotions.
Therefore, the behavioral sciences have made many contributions to the
understanding of this function of management. Personality research and
studies of job attitudes provide important information as to how
managers can most effectively lead subordinates.
Studies of motivation and motivation theory provide important
information about the ways in which workers can be energized to put
forth productive effort. Studies of communication provide direction as
to how managers can effectively and persuasively communicate.
(http://www.enotes.com/management)
How Leaders Influence Others
Leadership, the foundation of the management function of leading,
is the process of influencing others toward the achievement of
organizational goals. Power is the capacity to affect the behavior of
others. Power and influence are critical factors we encounter everyday
in life. It can take place in a family setting, a corporate setting, a
political setting, or a setting amongst friends. Power is defined as
the ability of one person to influence another. The ability to use
influence in ones favor can leave a lasting impression, it can help in
building a strong business or social network and even help in
obtaining the ideal job.
In order for a leader's leadership to be effective, it is
essential for the leader to influence their followers to higher
levels. A leader has the ability to empower others and to change their
lives. People that are under the influence of an empowering leader are
like paper in the hands of a talented artist, no matter what the
people are made of the leader can turn them into something beautiful.
The ability to empower others is one of the keys to personal and
professional success. For an influential leader no matter how much
work they do or how engaging their personality may be, they know that
they can not advance if they cannot work with others. (Maxwell, 2002)
Leaders also know that in order to be influential they have to have a
certain amount of knowledge and experience, but they also are aware
that it does not make a difference how much knowledge or education
that they may have or posses; if they are unable to achieve respect
and results from their people, then they are worthless as a leader.
(Maxwell, 2002)
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Bases of Power
Social psychologists French and Raven(1960)developed a schema of
five bases of power which reflect the different bases or resources
that power holders rely upon in their relationships with others. Often
our power is based on different combinations of these.
Legitimate Power. A person who occupies a higher position has
this power over persons in lower positions within the
organization. (Medina, 2006)
Kings, policemen and managers all have legitimate power. The
legitimacy may come from a higher power, often one with coercive
power. Legitimate power can often, thus, be the acceptable face
of raw power.
A common trap that people in such roles can fall into is to
forget that people are obeying the position, not them. When they
either fall from power or move onto other things, it can be a
puzzling surprise that people who used to fawn at your feet no
long do so.
(http://changingminds.org/explanations/power/french_and_raven)
In a corporate setting, employees comply with the orders of a
manager who relies on legitimate power based on the position in
the organizational hierarchy that the manager holds. Yet,
although employees may comply based on legitimate power, they may
not feel a sense of commitment or cooperation.
(http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/management)
Reward Power. When a person has the ability to give rewards to
anybody who follows orders or request, he is said to have reward
power. Rewards may be classified into two forms: material and
psychic. (Medina, 2006)
Sam Walton, founder of Wal-Mart
Stores, Inc., is an active user of
reward power. Walton relies heavily
on these intangible awards. He said
that "nothing else can quite
substitute for a few well-chosen,
well-timed, sincere words of praise.
They are absolutely free-and worth a
fortune".
Coercive Power. When a person compels another to
others through threats or punishment, he is said
coercive power. Punishment may take the form of
dismissal, or withholding of promotion. (Medina,
comply with
to possess
demotion,
2006)
Coercive power rests in the ability of a
manager to force an employee to comply with an
order through the threat of punishment.
Coercive power typically leads to short-term
compliance, but in the long-run produces
dysfunctional behavior.
In times of economic crisis or threats to the survival of the
organization at large, coercion may come to the forefront.
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Coercive power may also materialize as organizations attempt to
streamline their operations for maximum efficiency. If employees
must be fired, those who fail to conform to the organizational
goals for survival will be the most likely candidates for
termination. The threat of termination for failure to comply, in
turn, is coercive power.
(http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/management)
The Dalai Lama
Referent Power. Referent power derives from
employees' respect for a manager and their
desire to identify with or emulate him or her.
In referent power, the manager leads by
example. Referent power rests heavily on trust.
It often influences employees who may not be
particularly aware that they are modeling their
behavior on that of the manager and using what
they presume he or she would do in such a
situation as a point of reference.
The concept of empowerment in large part rests on referent power.
Referent power may take considerable time to develop and thus may
not prove particularly effective in a workforce with a rapid
turnover of personnel.
(http://www.referenceforbusiness.com/management)
This is the power or ability of people to
attract others, to build strong interpersonal
relationships, to persuade and build loyalty.
This is based on the charisma and
interpersonal skills of the power holder. This
is an example of power within, but it can be
used as power over. Where the world is
becoming more democratic, relying less on
positional power and more on consensus, this
form of power becomes all the more
significant, requiring a deeper focus on
US President Barack Obama
individual empowerment.
(http://www.barefootguide.org/Chapter_3_Handouts)
Expert Power. This refers to the ability to influence someone
regarding a course of action because of specific knowledge,
experience, or expertise. A person may be given the power to make
decisions for others because he is an expert on the particular
subject. (http://www.answers.com/topic/expert-power#ixzz1YH70J1kP)
Expert power is the power people derive from
their skills, knowledge and experience and the
organization’s need for those skills and
expertise. Unlike the others, this type of
power is usually highly specific and limited to
the particular area in which the expert is
trained and qualified. Being well-informed and
up-to-date with useful information is part of
this power. This is also an example of power
within but it can be used as power over
Kim Atienza
(positively or negatively) especially where
expert skills and knowledge are perceived to be desperately
needed. (http://www.barefootguide.org/Chapter_3_Handouts)
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The Nature of Leadership
Leadership is a process whereby an individual influences a group
of individuals to achieve a common goal (Northouse,2007). In its
essence, leadership in an organizational role involves (1)
establishing a clear vision, (2) sharing that vision with others so
that they will follow willingly, (3) providing the information,
knowledge, and methods to realize that vision, and (4) coordinating
and balancing the conflicting interests of all members or
stakeholders. A leader comes to the forefront in case of crisis, and
is able to think and act in creative ways in difficult situations.
Unlike management, leadership flows from the core of a personality and
cannot be taught, although it may be learned and may be enhanced
through coaching or mentoring. (http://www.businessdictionary.com)
Traits of Effective Leaders
According to General Charles C. Krulak of the US Marine Corps,
the following are the traits that leaders should possess to be
effective:
1. Bearing
2. Courage
3. Decisiveness
4. Dependability
5. Endurance
6. Enthusiasm
7. Initiative
8. Integrity
9. Judgment
10. Knowledge
11. Loyalty
12. Sense of Justice
13. Tact
14. Unselfishness
Leadership Skills
Leadership skills are generally regarded as competencies that can
be learned and developed for an effective leadership. The skills
approach should be considered as an extension to leadership traits,
since traits focus on the personality of a leader and to large extent,
form the basis of people-skills.
The three tasks that leaders are expected to perform are (a)
create vision, (b) develop strategy, and (c) lead people. The duties
of leaders are not derived on observations of what leaders do, but
rather on what goal they are expected to achieve. Hence, the next
natural step is to identify the skills required to accomplish the job
of a leader.
Technical skill is knowledge and ability of a person in any type
of process or technique. Examples are the skills learned by
accountants, engineers, word processing operators and toolmakers.
Conceptual skill is the ability to think in terms of models,
frameworks and broad relationship such as long-range plans. A
small group of executives like president, vice president, chief
executive officer holds at higher organizational levels and they
create the organization's goals, overall strategy and operating
policies. (http://www.reportbd.com/articles/134/1)
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Human skill is the ability to effectively work with subordinates,
peers, and bosses. The human skills have large extent and high
complexity, one end is orator and communication skills while the
other end is dealing with multi-party negotiations.
(http://www.practical-management.com)
The figure above illustrates the relationship between leadership
roles and skills. It also emphasizes that technical skills are
more important in the lower management ladder while conceptual
skills are required more at a higher level. It should be noted
that human skills are given equal importance at ALL levels of
management, and perhaps explains why individuals with leadership
traits are able to get into management ladder even if they lack
in technical or conceptual skills.
Behavioral Approaches to Leadership Styles
Different leaders exhibit different patterns of behavior that is
unique and different from other patterns. Such patterns reflect their
leadership styles.
In motivating people, leaders may either use positive leadership
or negative leadership. The former emphasizes rewards which may be
monetary or non-monetary. The latter emphasizes punishment in the
form of reprimand, suspension, or dismissal. Sometimes, leaders
alternately use positive and negative leadership depending on the
characteristics of the individual subordinates.
Leadership styles also vary according to how power is used.
consist of (1) autocratic, (2) participative, and (3) free-rein.
They
Autocratic leadership, also known as authoritarian
leadership, is a leadership style characterized by
individual control over all decisions and little input
from group members. Autocratic leaders typically make
choices based on their own ideas and judgments and
rarely accept advice from followers. Autocratic
leadership involves absolute, authoritarian control
over a group.
( http://psychology.about.com/od/leadership/f/autocratic-leadership)
Participative leadership, also called democratic leadership is a
style of leadership that involves all members of a team in identifying
essential goals and developing procedures or strategies for reach
those goals. From this perspective, participative leadership can be
seen as a leadership style that relies heavily on the leader
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functioning as a facilitator rather than simply issuing orders or
making assignments. This type of involved leadership style can be
utilized in business settings, volunteer organizations and even in the
function of the home. (http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-participativeleadership.htm)
Free rein leadership, also known as delegative leadership and
Laissez-faire, is a style of leadership wherein there is an indirect
supervision of subordinates. It is a form of management supervision
that allows others to function on their own without extensive direct
supervision. People are allowed to prove themselves based upon
accomplishments rather than meeting specific supervisory criteria.
Contingency Approaches to Leadership Styles
The contingency approach to management is based on the idea that
there is no one best way to manage and that to be effective, planning,
organizing, leading, and controlling must be tailored to the
particular circumstances faced by an organization.
Hersey and Blanchard’s Situational Theory is an approach that
focuses a great deal of attention on the characteristics of
followers in determining appropriate leadership behavior.
Fiedler’s Contingency Theory. The starting point for this theory
is the extent to which the leader’s style is task-oriented or
relationship-oriented (people-oriented).
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Path-Goal Theory. This theory suggests a fourfold classification
of leader behaviors. These classifications are the types of
leader behavior the leader can adopt and include supportive,
directive, achievement-oriented, and participative styles.
Supportive leadership involves leader behavior that shows
concern for subordinates’ well-being and personal needs.
Directive leadership occurs when the leader tells
subordinates exactly what they are supposed to do.
Participative leadership means that the leader consults with
his or her subordinates about decisions.
Achievement-oriented leadership occurs when the leader sets
clear and challenging goals for subordinates. (Daft, 2008)
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