LEADERSHIP

• Management is about coping with complexity. For example, good management brings
about order and consistency by generating formal plans, designing rigid organizational
structures and monitoring results against the plan.
• Leadership, in contrast, is about coping with change. Leaders establish direction by
developing a vision for the future. Then, they align people by communicating this vision
and by inspiring them to overcome hurdles.
• Leadership is the ability to influence a group towards the achievement of a vision or a set
of goals. The source of this influence may be formal, for example the person’s rank in the
organization, or it may be informal.
• Leadership is the process of influencing the behavior of others to work willingly and
enthusiastically for achieving pre-determined goals.
Roles of leaders
1. Challenge the status quo to bring the change.
2. To create a vision for the future.
3. To inspire organizational members.
4. To motivate employees.
5. Creating confidence.
6. Building morale of the worker.
Theories of Leadership
1. Charismatic Theory
2. Trait Theory
3. Behavioural Theory
4. Situational/Contingency Theory

1. CHARISMATIC THEORY
• Oldest theory of leadership (by Robert House).
• The leader is not made; he/she is born.
• Charisma is a god-gifted attribute which makes someone a leader.

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 • Max Weber: Charisma is a certain quality of an individual personality by virtue of which
he/she is set apart from ordinary people and treated as endowned with supernatural,
superhuman or specifically exceptional powers. These are not accessible to the ordinary
person but are regarded as of divine origin or as exemplary and on the basis of which the
individual concerned is treated as a leader.
• Charismatic leaders are those who inspire followers and have a major impact on their
organizations through their personal vision and energy.

Characteristics of Charismatic Leader

1. Must be a visionary.
2. He is convinced of the course he will defend.
3. Ability to defend.
4. Have self confidence.
5. Referent power. i.e. power to influence.
6. He should be willing to take personal risks.
7. He must be sensitive to follower’s needs.
8. Ability to exhibit behavior which is out of the ordinary.

Assumptions
1. The qualities are inborn and cannot be enhanced through education and learning.
2. The qualities are of a personal nature and cannot be shared by others.
3. Situational factors do not have any influence on them.

2. TRAIT THEORY
• Most common theory.
• Most leaders are defined by their traits.
• The leadership traits are not completely inborn; they can be acquired through learning
and experience.
Main Traits of Successful Leaders
1. Physical and constitutional factors.
2. Personality.

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 3. Intelligence.
4. Self-confidence.
5. Willpower, i.e. will to do something
6. Dominance
7. Surgency: the way the person talks i.e. alertness, originality of individual.
Traits are normally organized along the Big 5 Personality Traits:
1. Extroversion
2. Agreeableness
3. Conscenciousness
4. Emotional stability
5. Openness to experience
A new research is adding a 6th one: Emotional intelligence as a new trait. It brings an element of
empathy.
Characteristics of Empathetic Leader
1. The empathetic leader can sense other’s needs.
2. He can listen to what followers say.
3. He can read the reactions of others.
4. The mere fact that someone cares is more often than not rewarded with loyalty.
Traits: Inner Traits and Acquired Traits
Inner Traits
• Physical features of a person
• Intelligence
Acquired Traits
• Emotional stability
• Attitude
• Human relations
• Empathy
• Objectivity
• Motivating skills
• Communication skills

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• Social skills
3. BEHAVIOURAL THEORY
• Strong leadership is the result of effective role behavior
• Leadership is shown more by acts than by traits.
• Functional behavior of a leader will have a positive influence on followers:
1. Setting clear goals
2. Decision makers
3. Motivation behaviours
4. Raising morale
• Dysfunctional behavior: has negative influence. E.g. refusal to listen to others, lack
of transparency, equity, fairness, emotional instability, poor human relations.
• 2 studies carried out: OHIO State University and University of Michigan

OHIO State University

Initiating Structure Consideration

Initiating Structure: Extent to which a leader is likely to define and structure his or her
role and those of employees for goal achievement.
Initiating Structure: Job Oriented/ Want Output
1. Organized work: defined work relationship
2. Those who assume group tasks. i.e. set standards & meet deadlines
Consideration: Extent to which a person is likely to have job relationships. i.e. concern
for others.
1. Look at mutual trust.
2. Respect views of employees/listen to what they say.
3. Regard for the feeling of others/employees.
4. Have a concern for followers: look for welfare of other beings
5. Go for equal treatment: treat employees at par.

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 MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY

Employee Oriented Production

leaders Oriented leaders

Research at University of Michigan found out that employee oriented leaders yielded higher
group productivity and higher levels of job satisfaction as opposed to production oriented
leaders.

4. CONTINGENCY THEORY/SITUATIONAL THEORY

• This theory states that it is the situation that determines the leadership style

• Developed in war (1920) by German armed forces with the objective to get good generals
under different situations.

• 2 things determine success of leader:

1. Behavior of person

2. Situation where you are

Situation: influences leadership role

Affects skills person needs

Behavior

Follower’s preferences and satisfaction

Situation Theory

1. Fiedler contingency Model 2. Blanchard Model

Fiedler contingency Model

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This model pulls together all the situational variables that affect leadership. It shows the
relationship between the leadership style and the favourableness of the situation. The latter
depends on 3 dimensions:

DIMENSION HIGH LOW

1. Leader member Favourable to leader Not Favourable
relationship
2. The degree of task Favourable to leader Not Favourable
structure
3. Leader’s position Favourable to leader Not Favourable
power

This model tells us that style of leadership a leader adopts depends on whether the situation is
favourable or unfavourable.

2. Blanchard Model

• Also known as life cycle theory of leadership.

• According to Hersey and Blanchard, the leader must match the leadership style as per
the needs of maturity of subordinates.

3. Path Goal Model