ASSIGNMENT LEADERSHIP & CHANGE MANAGEMENT ANSWER ANY TWO ASSIGNMENT ONLY

QUESTION 1

(1) What is leadership? State and explain four (4) different leadership styles that are being practised in todays world of management.

What is leadership
Leadership is, most fundamentally, about changes. What leaders do is create the systems and organizations that managers need, and, eventually, elevate them up to a whole new level or . . . change in some basic ways to take advantage of new opportunities. John P. Kotter Leadership has long been a major area of interest among social scientists and in particular psychologists. However, the field of leadership in organisations seemed to be in a trough in the early 1980s. For some time there has been a feeling that the field had lacked an agreed upon framework (a paradigm) within which research took place and that the findings of a century of research were trivial or contradictory. Nonetheless, new approaches continued to surface (e.g. Hunt et al. 1982) but the field seemed to lack coherence and there was a sense of despondency about its future direction. There was even a call for the temporary abandonment of the concept (Miner 1982), but such extreme views did not find many adherents, because, for all the undoubted problems with the area in those years, the notion of leadership is one that continued to attract generations of writers, in large part because we tend to view leadership as an important feature of everyday and organizational behaviour. Leadership, as one might anticipate, is not an easy concept to define. Its widespread currency and use in everyday life as an explanation affects the way it is defined and indeed probably makes it more difficult to define than a concept that is invented as an abstraction ab initio (Latin term meaning "from the beginning"). Gary Yukl (2006) defines leadership as the process of influencing others to understand and agree about what needs to be done and how to do it, and the process of facilitating individual and collective efforts to accomplish shared objectives. Peter Northouse (2010) defines leadership as a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal. These definitions suggest several components central to the phenomenon of leadership. Some of them are as follows:

(a) Leadership is a process, (b) Leadership involves influencing others, (c) Leadership happens within the context of a group, (d) Leadership involves goal attainment, and (e) These goals are shared by leaders and their followers. The very act of defining leadership as a process suggests that leadership is not a characteristic or trait with which only a few certain people are endowed at birth. The Great man theory (Carlyle, 1888) concurs with the statement mentioned above. It assumes that the capacity for leadership is inherent that great leaders are born not made. These theories often portray great leaders as heroic, mythic and destined to rise to leadership when needed. The term "Great Man" is used because, at the time, leadership was thought of primarily as a male quality, especially in terms of military leadership. Heads of organizationsbe they popes, presidents, generals, CEOs, or general secretaries must coordinate their followers to produce desired actions and outcomes. Their tools include coercion, incentives, and persuasion, but in what combination and to what effect leaders rely on these tools are variable. Look into the soul of any great leader and you will find a good leader. But if only that were the case! Some leaders, those who crave and bathe in the spotlight, are in fact not so great. Others, who are highly effective (and modest) and possess the five key characteristics this author describes, are good leaders first and foremostwhich is what, in the end, makes them great! Look into the soul of any great leader and you will find a good leader. But if only that were the case! Some leaders, those who crave and bathe in the spotlight, are in fact not so great. Others, who are highly effective (and modest) and possess the five key characteristics this author describes, are good leaders first and foremostwhich is what, in the end, makes them great! Difference between Management and Leadership: Leadership is similar to, and different from, management. They both involve influencing people. They both require working with people. Both are concerned with the achievement of common goals. However, leadership and management are different on more dimensions than they are similar. Zaleznik (1977) believes that managers and leaders are very distinct, and being one precludes being the other. He argues that managers are reactive, and while they are willing to work with people to solve problems, they do so with minimal emotional involvement. On the other hand, leaders are emotionally involved and seek to shape ideas instead of reacting to others ideas. Managers limit choice, while leaders work to expand the number of alternatives to problems that have plagued an organization for a long period of time. Leaders change peoples attitudes, while managers only change their behaviour. Mintzberg (1998) contends that managers lead by using a cerebral face. This face stresses calculation, views an organization as components of a portfolio, and operates with words and numbers of rationality. He suggests that leaders lead by using an insightful face. This face stresses commitment, views organizations with an integrative perspective, and is rooted in the images and feel of integrity.

He argues that managers need to be two faced. They need to simultaneously be managers and leaders. Kotter (1998) argues that organizations are over managed and under led. However, strong leadership with weak management is no better and may be worse. He suggests that organizations need strong leadership and strong management. Managers are needed to handle complexity by instituting planning and budgeting, organizing and staffing, and controlling and problem solving. Leaders are needed to handle change through setting a direction, aligning people, and motivating and inspiring people. He argues that organizations need people who can do boththey need leader-managers. Leadership is; promoting new directions by example or advocating by a better way. It works through influence, not by making decisions for people. On the other hand management can be defined as getting things done in a way that makes best use of all resources. All employees can promote new directions. Leadership can be shown bottom-up or sideways. Northouse (2006) observes a tendency pro status quo present in management, while leadership is essentially committed to social change. He associates leadership with vision, inspiration,

Adapting Your Approach to Leadership In business, a leadership style called "transformational leadership" is often the most effective approach to use. Transformational leaders have integrity, they inspire people with a shared vision of the future, they set clear goals and motivate people towards them, they manage delivery, and they communicate well with their teams. (You can find out more about transformational leadership at the end of this article.) However, leadership is not "one size fits all" thing; often, you must adapt your style to fit a situation or a specific group. This is why it's useful to gain a thorough understanding of other leadership styles; after all, the more approaches you're familiar with, the more tools you'll be able to use to lead effectively. LEADERSHIP STYLES

1. Transactional Leadership
This leadership style starts with the idea that team members agree to obey their leader when they accept a job. The "transaction" usually involves the organization paying team members in return for their effort and compliance. The leader has a right to "punish" team members if their work doesn't meet an appropriate standard. Although this might sound controlling and paternalistic, transactional leadership offers some benefits. For one, this leadership style clarifies everyone's roles and responsibilities. Another benefit is that, because transactional leadership judges team members on performance, people who are ambitious or who are motivated by external rewards including compensation often thrive. The downside of this leadership style is that team members can do little to improve their job satisfaction. It can feel stifling, and it can lead to high staff turnover. Transactional leadership is really a type of management, not a true leadership style, because the focus is on short-term tasks. It has serious limitations for knowledge-based or creative work. However, it can be effective in other situations.

2. Autocratic Leadership
Autocratic leadership is an extreme form of transactional leadership, where leaders have complete power over their people. Staff and team members have little opportunity to make suggestions, even if these would be in the team's or the organization's best interest. The benefit of autocratic leadership is that it's incredibly efficient. Decisions are made quickly, and work gets done. The downside is that most people resent being treated this way. Therefore, autocratic leadership often leads to high levels of absenteeism and high staff turnover. However, the style can be effective for some routine and unskilled jobs: in these situations, the advantages of control may outweigh the disadvantages. Autocratic leadership is often best used in crises, when decisions must be made quickly and without dissent. For instance, the military often uses an autocratic leadership style; top commanders are responsible for quickly making complex decisions, which allows troops to focus their attention and energy on performing their allotted tasks and missions.

3. Bureaucratic Leadership
Bureaucratic leaders work "by the book." They follow rules rigorously, and ensure that their people follow procedures precisely. This is an appropriate leadership style for work involving serious safety risks (such as working with machinery, with toxic substances, or at dangerous heights) or where large sums of money are involved. Bureaucratic leadership is also useful in organizations where employees do routine tasks (as in manufacturing). The downside of this leadership style is that it's ineffective in teams and organizations that rely on flexibility, creativity, or innovation. Much of the time, bureaucratic leaders achieve their position because of their ability to conform to and uphold rules, not because of their qualifications or expertise. This can cause resentment when team members don't value their expertise or advice.

4. Charismatic Leadership
A charismatic leadership style can resemble transformational leadership because these leaders inspire enthusiasm in their teams and are energetic in motivating others to move forward. This excitement and commitment from teams is an enormous benefit. The difference between charismatic leaders and transformational leaders lies in their intention. Transformational leaders want to transform their teams and organizations. Charismatic leaders are often focused on themselves, and may not want to change anything. The downside to charismatic leaders is that they can believe more in themselves than in their teams. This can create the risk that a project or even an entire organization might collapse if the leader leaves. A charismatic leader might believe that she can do no wrong, even when others are warning her about the path she's on; this feeling of invincibility can ruin a team or an organization. Also, in the followers' eyes, success is directly connected to the presence of the charismatic leader. As such, charismatic leadership carries great responsibility, and it needs a long-term commitment from the leader.

(ii) Describe the Path-Goal theory of leadership and discuss how the four leadership styles described under the theory might assist or hinder in the process of leading people using this model of leadership.

DEFINITION The Path-Goal Theory of Leadership was developed to describe the way that leaders encourage and support their followers in achieving the goals they have been set by making the path that they should take clear and easy. In particular, leaders: Clarify the path so subordinates know which way to go. Remove roadblocks that are stopping them going there. Increasing the rewards along the route. Leaders can take a strong or limited approach in these. In clarifying the path, they may be directive or give vague hints. In removing roadblocks, they may scour the path or help the follower move the bigger blocks. In increasing rewards, they may give occasional encouragement or pave the way with gold.

Using the Path Goal Leadership Theory Path goal leadership is a very personal theory. For instance, sometimes I feel like life is constantly dangling a carrot from a stick right in front of my face. It may bother me a little, but it doesnt stop me from going after it. Thats the great thing about goals, no matter how long they stay in front of you, is that you keep going after them. The path goal leadership theory plays on this concept. It is the strategy of leadership that makes the leaders task to motivate and clarify the groups goals, essentially making them a coach. This interpretation holds that the leader empowers the group to reach their goals, and ensures that they share an awareness of what those goals are. As the leader you are not only charged with giving your team the carrot, but making sure that carrot is what they really want (and that they can eventually get it.) What it means: Path goal leadership theory encourages a strong communication about goals and direction, with a strong relationship between the leader and the group. With a clear set of requirements and providing the tools to complete them, the leader can build a string of successes toward the end target. There are four roles the leader can play within this theory (as defined by Robert House, an organizational theorist who first coined the term.) These subsets of leadership style in the path goal theory are adaptable to different situations and not mutually exclusive, so leaders can adjust to fit their needs.

The four styles:

In achievement-oriented leadership, the leader sets challenging goals for followers, expects them to perform at their highest level, and shows confidence in their ability to succeed. In directive leadership, the leader lets followers know what is expected of them and tells them how to perform their tasks. It is a highly structured form of the path goal leadership theory. Participative leadership involves leaders consulting with followers and asking for their suggestions before making a decision. It is similar to the democratic leadership style. In supportive leadership, the leader is friendly and approachable. The leader shows concern for the followers psychological well being, making the team members more comfortable to pursue their own goals.

How to use it: If you have a good understanding of what the needs of the group are, then you can adapt to the styles as the situation demands: Achievement oriented works best when the staff suffers from lack of challenge and boredom.

Directive leadership helps workers cope with otherwise vague and unclear job responsibilities Participative leadership is effective in situations where the follower is making poor decisions or improper procedure and the leader can take steps to help them improve. Supportive leadership is useful with a team that is new, inexperienced, or otherwise lacking confidence. When working with a team that has lost motivation, or whose goals have become unclear through a significant change in the environment, path goal leadership is a great way to get everyone back on agreeable terms. With ease to visualize goals, and the direction to achieve them, you can create a sort of small-scale mission that is easier to communicate to the team and get buy in for.

QUESTION 2

A Good manager without good leadership skills will face continual challenges in motivating his/her team and producing results. Looking at the situation in your organization, state the activities is already in place and what other activities remain to be done in terms of developing leadership skills to achieve the desired results.
What makes a good leader is the use of effective management skills such as spending 50 percent or more of their time listening carefully. Great leaders understand that some of the best leadership qualities entail listening to others with undivided attention. When was the last time you actually listened single-mindedly to one of your staff members? Can you remember when you last listened to someone without interruptions or distractions from either telephone calls or drop-in visitors, when you just focused intently on the person speaking with you, ignoring all else? The Most Essential Leadership Qualities Integrity is perhaps the most valued and respected quality of leadership and one of the most importantmanagement skills you need to attain. By saying what youll do and then doing what you say, you will build trust around your team. Do you stand up and speak out for what you believe? Do you demonstrate the courage to stay the course when the going gets tough and the outcome looks uncertain? What makes a good leader is the ability to stay calm and in control, especially when everyone around them is wondering whether its the right decision or if it was a mistake to commit to a particular course of action. When you exude confidence in yourself, in the decision, and in the people around you, you instill the same feelings and attitudes in others. Leaders have what is called courageous patience. Between the decision and the result, there is always a period of uncertainty when no one knows if the effort is going to be successful. To be a successful leader, you must strive to have these essential leadership qualities. If you have lived with this feeling many times in your career, youre in good company. What Makes a Good Leader? To be successful as a leader, you need a combination of two ingredients: character and competence. You need to be a person of integrity. Someone people trust and are willing to follow. To be trusted in business, you must be trustworthy. You must believe in yourself, your company, the essential goodness of your products and services, and in your people. You need to believe that you are offering an excellent product or service in every way, one that makes a difference in the lives of your customers. You must lead by example and obtain management skills that inspire others to join you in the exciting project of building a great company. At the same time, you must become excellent at the key capabilities and functions of leadership and set yourself on a course of continuous improvement throughout your career.

How to grow: Leadership development, Id like to start with a metaphor. Leadership is a lot like golf (I imagine Im not much of a golfer) in that it takes some dedicated effort and motivation to become a true star. But like golf, or any other skill, reaching that stardom is not out of reach. It just takes effort. There are so many people that need to lead, but so few who consider taking the steps to improve their skills at leading. Just by searching for a way to improve, you are ahead of the game. Tools for Developing Leaders: There are many tools that an aspiring leader can use to develop their fundamentals, their leadership awareness, and even some flashy new tricks: Leadership Seminars: Leadership is starting to find its way into college curriculums. Unfortunately, a lot of us missed the chance to get that formal education. Luckily we have an alternative. Leadership seminars are classes that are geared toward polishing your skills in a classroom like setting. They can vary in quality and methodology (a lot like books on the topic), but some of them can be very worthwhile. Look for one from an author or organization you trust, or better yet, one that comes with a referral. Consider contacting your HR or Organizational Development department for recommendations. They may even help you pay for them. Leadership Conferences: We do some of our best thinking in groups. Being able to bounce ideas off one another usually makes the end result better than the sum of the parts. Leadership conferences help people who actively pursue the field of leadership share their views and hammer out best practices. If you are professionally invested in the development of better leadership practices, possibly in training some of your own staff, these sorts of conferences can benefit your growth immensely. Leadership development conferences offer great opportunities if you can find the right people. Look into organizations that fill the right need, and review the schedule of events carefully. Leadership Books: Books are usually the first line of defense against leadership ignorance. But there are almost as many books as there are leadership specialties, so its important to identity which is the most helpful; a clinical study of leadership might be in order if you are looking to create a training program for managers, but something a little more personal could be for you if you just want some perspective for yourself.

Here are some of the different types of leadership texts: Parables: Every since we were little we were taught important lessons through stories. There is no reason leadership should be any different. By using stories that illustrate their point in practical and noticeable terms, the reader can almost experience the situation being described. Inspiration: These books can put you in the right frame of mind to learn think about leadership development. Case Studies: Learning from history is almost as good as experience. The added upside is you get to see how things turned out without the pesky experimentation. Biography: Learning about the great leaders of the past can be a great step forward on your own path to leadership development. How-to: These books are the most direct, and that can make them incredibly useful. If you know what youre looking for and need a straight-forward answer, a how-to might fit the bill. Leadership Articles: Articles might be the most time-effective solution to your leadership questions. They are usually very focused and direct, and they address one distinct issue. If you have enough information to decide what it is exactly that you need help with, they can be the key. Leadership development has a lot to do with building a strong set of tools to solve problems, and brief articles can provide them. In addition to be more focused, they also read quickly. This means you dont have to pore over an entire encyclopedia on leadership to get to the point you needed to have your breakthrough, epiphany, or blinding psychotic insight (whichever term you prefer)