Management

Introduction

Over the last few decades, there has been a long-standing debate in academic circles and literature about whether or not leadership is similar to or different from management. Indeed, some scholars believe that there is a clear and explicit distinction between the two terms (Zaleznik, 1977; Bennis and Nanus, 1985; Kumle and Kelly, 1999). Others argue that leaders and managers are merely two faces of the same medal and should therefore be considered as a single whole (Fayol, 1916; Barnard, 1938). And yet others are persuaded that while management and leadership do differ, they also share many similarities as leaders and mangers often exert congruent functions (Yukl, 1999; Hay and Hodgkinson, 2006). Consequently, the argument remains unresolved and the confusion persists.

From a pragmatic point of view, failing to differentiate leadership from management brings forth a misunderstanding over the roles and responsibilities of each. For instance, Kotterman (2006) argues that using the two terms interchangeably can create complications in appraising, examining, evaluating, employing or advertising for leaders and managers. Furthermore, confusing the two concepts may also hamper organizational leadership and management development programmes (Zaleznik, 1977). To put simply, management and leadership are complementary concepts that are both essential for organizational success (Darling et al., 2007). Yet, most corporations have too many managers and too few leaders (Kotter, 1990). On the other hand, having an abundance of leaders with many different visions can also be detrimental as it may confuse followers and decrease their motivation (Kotterman, 2006). Therefore, it is crucial for organizations to be able to distinguish b...

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...of their employees and achieve organizational excellence.

Limitations and Way Forward

To conclude, while the main focus of this essay was on transformational leadership, it is important to keep in mind that other models to explain this concept also exist. For instance, Stogdill and Coons (1957) examine leadership from a task-relationship behavioural aspect, while Tannenbaum and Schmidt (1958) characterize leadership from a power-sharing perspective. It is therefore imperative to conduct further research on discerning leadership from management using other approaches in order to fully understand the difference between the two terms. Additional studies can also aid businesses in their leadership and management training programmes, allowing them to develop the right skills in people for the appropriate jobs and thus further contributing to their organizational success.