NOTE: Free essay sample provided on this page should be used for references or sample purposes only. The sample essay is available to anyone, so any direct quoting without mentioning the source will be considered plagiarism by schools, colleges and universities that use plagiarism detection software. To get a completely brand-new, plagiarism-free essay, please use our essay writing service.
One click instant price quote
... as the flow of events and circumstances surrounding a group. To put it simply, the leader was a person who was in the right place at the right time. Rather than a great man causing a great event to happen, the situational approach claims that great events are the product of historical forces that are gong to happen whether specific leaders are present or not (Adair, 1984, p. 8) Unfortunately, this theory still didnt answer, why one member of a group emerged as the leader, rather than another, or why one particular leader proved to be a better leader in some situations than another. The emergence of a related theory, the interactions approach, attempted to explain the existing anomalies.
The integrationist theory proposed that both the characteristics of the individual, and the situation in which the group found itself, accounted for whom would become the leader. Resulting from this theory was the view that leaders are both born and made, due to the leader requiring certain abilities and skill, but as the situation and the needs of the group changed, so to the person acceptable as leader changed. Developing such abilities and skills requires no position of authority but does require commitment to self, commitment to the organization and its employees, action, and thoughtful, on-going self-assessment. Such a program of personal development, ideally begun as a part of the formal education process, can assist significantly in learning how to influence others, up, down, and across the organization. Thus, one can learn how to become what Cohen (1990) has called an uncrowned leader, a person who exerts influence over others but lacks positional authority. It takes many hours of research to provide a strong research paper however this essay touches only the surface.
The functions of a Leader are many and varied. Its hard to say the one theory is better than the other because as my research shows, it takes more than one approach to accomplish a task with overall proficiency. From upper management to the first line supervisor, each situation, each environment, and each group of people requires a different approach. In some circumstances a leader is considered to be a leader only if he / she knows the organizational structure well and knows how to execute a plan. By reviewing the theories of the previously mentioned theories, the term leader doesnt necessarily mean he / she is a leader. Therefore a leader can have more than one meaning and the theories of leadership may need to be more refined.
However this essay focuses more on the standard process of identification of a leader and the theories that identify such. If a leader is trainable to understand that different approaches are needed for different situations, then a leader can succeed. However if a born leader hasn't had the exposure to an array of situations, then he / she will not be effective. It stands to reason regarding a leader is born is that a leader may be born but if that person isn't exposed to an array to various situations and factors, then that born leader will become a failure.
However I agree a leader may be born and a follower is a follower but a follower can influence other followers especially if that person has charisma such as wiser experience, cultured education, and mature personality. So a leader may be born but a follower by my own experience Ive seen followers who are leaders and assist leaders to perform their best. Therefore sometimes a leader and follower can complement each other thus strengthening the environment and or situation. Therefore my own observations show that there are ranks of leaders and ranks of followers. Each side of the line can have leadership. Theories are many but now that we have all these theories, it may appear that we need more research to better recognize the leaders not recognized by the standard approach.
Like wise, the skills of leadership and follower ship are also complimentary. An individual cannot develop his leadership skills without having developed his follower ship skills first. Followers learn the importance that teamwork, cohesiveness, and subordination have in the accomplishment of goals. Additionally, when an individual does obtain a leadership position, the experience he gains in following provides a basis to make better decisions. The first major area of leadership is developing self-awareness. In developing self-awareness, one must first obtain the assessment of others.
A major source of this assessment is feedback. Careful attention to attitudes, comments and performance of subordinates offer great insight into the effectiveness of a leader. Listening to thoughts and opinions of fellow leaders is another major source. Honesty is the key to both sources of information in that the individual must not disregard negative aspects of his own leadership qualities. He must realize his own faults and shortcomings.
The second step in self-awareness is to create a features list. A features list is done by the leader himself and is made up of at least five good leadership traits and at least five bad ones. A leaders inability to come up with five or more traits in either category means a severe lack of self-awareness. The purpose of the features list is to keep the leader aware of his own qualities.
As the individual develops as a leader, he should continuously create new features lists to ensure his own self-awareness. Once the individual has accurately assessed his own qualities, it is then time to implement improvements. A plan of action is the basis of this implementation. The plan should include creating a list of goals that enhance good qualities and make changes to bad ones. The leader must then make strides in realizing these goals. Like the features list, the individuals plan of action should change as he develops as a leader.
The next area of leadership understands people. It is essential that a leader understand that each of his subordinates is different, with different drives, dreams, and ambitions. To classify subordinates into a particular group is to deprive them of their individuality and ignore their particular needs. Understanding each subordinates needs is the key to motivating them. In assessing the needs of subordinates, a leader must be able to recognize what level each individual is on in Maslows hierarchy of needs. The hierarchy of needs is divided into five levels: the need for food, clothing, and shelter; personal safety and a source of income; family, friends, and caring relationships; self-confidence, creativity and individual achievement; meaning and purpose.
In determining the level at which an individual is on, the leader can then help that individual in ascending to the next. The outcome is improved performance on the part of the worker. While this is not the only form of motivating people, it is the most effective in long term motivation. Put more practically, a leader can motivate an individuals performance not only by explaining the advantages to the company, but also the advantages to that individuals job security and advancement.
By nature, humans seek to attain a better quality of life. For this reason, another effective form of motivation is rewarding. Individuals pay attention to doing a job well when they have personal interests as a result of the outcome. The job becomes beneficial to their own profits and not just the companys. Balancing the use of rewards is very important. Too many offers of rewards result in disappointment and lack of motivation when one is not offered.
Leaders must realize that rewards are only temporary forms of motivation that are not successful in long term leadership. The difficult task of managing power and authority is the third area of successful leadership. While understanding the authority of his position, a leader must also be open to the thoughts and ideas of his subordinates. Disregard for opinions is a sign of a weak leader who is afraid of being undermined and therefor hides behind his power. Leaders express leadership through three basic leadership styles: democratic, autocratic, and permissive.
The democratic style of leadership is based on a mutual respect and treating everyone equal, regardless of seniority or position. The leader still maintains authority, but others are able to be active participants in finding solutions to problems. Autocratic leadership provides a strong, undisputed style of leadership that is effective when dealing with controversial issues. Bibliography: Adair, J. (1984) The Skills of Leadership. Gower, Aldershot Kant's, England Adler, R. B. & Rodman, G. (1991) Understanding Human Communication.
Holt Rhinehart & Winston. , Fort Worth, Texas Cohen, W. A. (1990). The art of the leader. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Guzzo, R. , Jackson, S. &mKatzell, R. (1981). Meta-analysis. In L.
Cummings &mB. Star (Eds. ), Research in organizational behavior (pp. 407 - 722). Greenwich, CT: JAI Press. Hunter, J. &m Hirsh, H. (1987). Applications of meta-analysis. In C.
Cooper &mJ. Robertson (Eds. ), International review of industrial and organizational psychology. London: John Wiley. Russell Sage Foundation (1991). Meta-analysis for explanation: A casebook. New York: Russell Sage Foundation Wrights man, L.
S. (1977) Social Psychology. 2 nd Edition. , Brooks/Cole. , Monterey, California Zaleznik, A. (1992) Managers & Leaders: Are they different? Harvard Business Review, March/April 1992. p. 126 - 135.
Free research essays on topics related to: style of leadership, long term, plan of action, major source, meta analysis
Research essay sample on Style Of Leadership Plan Of Action
