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Papers on leadership
Differentiate between leadership and management, using examples from the workplace
A paper on leadership
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The systematic and scholarly study of leadership consumed much of the twentieth century and continues to remain a vital topic of discussion today. Theories abound as to what makes one a good leader and, despite the continued efforts of many, no single operable expression of the meaning of leadership exists. In an attempt to address this issue James Kotterman wrote, “Leadership Versus Management: What’s the Difference.” The following review shall briefly summarize Kotterman’s article and follow with conclusions based on the experiences of this author.
Kotterman begins by highlighting the varying connotations often attached to the terms management and leadership; the former being primarily negative and the latter generally positive. From here he highlights the necessity to more clearly define these two terms and the means by which he shall do so. Kotterman uses the results of numerous management and leadership studies, the majority of data being based on subordinate opinions of role and effectiveness, to draw his comparison and thereby define the key terms. He juxtaposes management and leadership via a set of four processes. These processes are vision establishment, human development and networking, vision execution, and vision outcome (Kotterman, 2006). Following from each of these processes, a set of descriptors is offered for both management and leadership from which Kotterman draws meaning. Kotterman concludes that the two roles vary conceptually but are not necessarily mutually exclusive. Management is essentially task-centered, concerned with physical process, production, budget, and structure. Leadership is primarily human-centered, concentrating on motivation, inspiration, and needs. (Kotterman, 2006). This concl...
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... the nature of power as it relates to the rise of individuals into such positions and Kotterman does this only in a limited fashion.
Having expressed the need to broaden the search for meaning, this work must conclude much as Kotterman does in accepting that the debate over the nature of management and leadership must continue. Moving beyond the respective task and human-centered foci, if one were to conduct a similar analysis concentrating more on studies concerned with leader identification across a broader spectrum it is likely results would be more telling. Rather than examining primarily subordinate responses to aid in classification seek data from all levels of an organization irrespective of position relationships and ask subjects to identify leaders and/or managers. In so doing we may draw ever closer to a definitive meaning of leadership and management.
The topic of leadership has been explored and written about by thousands of authors who are considerably more qualified than I am to write about the subject. However, I’ve always maintained that developing, evolving and articulating one’s own leadership philosophy is an essential part of a professional’s growth. Through academics and experience, I’ve concluded that leadership is a “soft” skill, more art than science, and that leadership principles can be universally applied. As a topic of discussion, leadership can be ambiguous and seldom does everyone agree on a single definition. Organizations and the people they consist of crave leadership, even if not overtly. Undeniably, strong leadership is essential to achieving
“Leadership is an influence relationship among leaders and followers who intend real changes that reflect their mutual purposes” (Rost, 1931). But in today’s time, the styles of leadership are changed every time a new technology is invented or discovered so there is lack of persistency. The only thing which manages to stay constant is the principles of carrying out business activities. There are philosophies and ideologies on leadership which can be used in any time period as they are mostly a reflection of the principles of leadership. Theorists and authors like Hobbes (1679), Lewin (1947) and Aristotle (384–322 B.C.), in their time have produced enough material which can be put into use by modern day leaders and managers. Philosophers like Aristotle, who was known to be one of the most business-oriented and practical philosopher of his time, his work is still used by businesses today because of their relevance as he is interested in defining principles in terms of the ethics of leadership (Santa Clara University). In the essay I have tried to show how leadership has adapted to the changes around them and compared to the past and what circumstances caused need to change it. As a layman, anyone would think that the principles centuries ago will be very different to what we follow now but after studying on Hobbes, Lewin and Aristotle it has made a big impact on my way of thinking because the work produced by them still has more relevance compared to some of the work produced now. I have tried to explain the evolvement of leadership through three aspects which are psychology, sociology and philosophy.
A leader can be defined as a person who influences a group of people, organization, etc. in to achieving a set out or common goal. The aim of this paper is to identify the different approaches to leadership, but there is no single definition of leadership, as it can mean many different things to many people depending of their profession, environment and leadership style (Mielach, 2012).
Throughout this class, we learned that leadership can be defined in many ways by different authors. The definitions depend on many things and different variables. One way of we can attempt to define is through characteristics of the leader, the followers, and the situation (Yukl, 2013). Yukl, 2013 defines leadership as being “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” (Yukl, 2013 p.7). The character of the leader influences situations and followers in different ways. The characteristics of the followers also call for a different type of leadership style
Leadership at times can be a complex topic to delve into and may appear to be a simple and graspable concept for a certain few. Leadership skills are not simply acquired through position, seniority, pay scale, or the amount of titles an individual holds but is a characteristic acquired or is an innate trait for the fortunate few who possess it. Leadership can be misconstrued with management; a manager “manages” the daily operations of a company’s work while a leader envisions, influences, and empowers the individuals around them.
Presently many of us have learned that managers are primarily administrators who have learned to write business plans, utilize their resources and keep track of progress. We must learn that we are not limited by job title, and that means we can utilize our management skills in any position that we are in. We must also know that we can use our leadership skills in the same situations. On the other hand we have also learned that leaders are people who have an impact on those that surround them. The main difference that separates these two roles is that management is a function that must be utilized in any type of business, and leadership is the relationship that the leader has with his followers, which in turn can motivate and energize the organization.
Leadership can be defined as the method in which one influences a group of individuals for a common goal. There have many great leaders in the world but these leaders are not born leaders. One must have willpower and the desire to become an effective leader. These leaders become dependent upon based upon their abilities and their success. A leader is looked upon for guidance and the inspiration to know what the right thing to do is. The theoretical foundations of the research of leadership are firmly supported. To better understand the foundations and understand the focus of leadership, it is essential to have knowledge of the history of leadership, the meaning and concept of leadership, types of leaders and leadership styles, and issues in leadership such as issues with culture and gender. According to Antonakis (2004), “leadership researchers have struggled for most of the last century to put together an integrated, theoretically cohesive view of the nature of leadership, invariably leading to disappointment in those who studied it” (p.4). An overview of the history of leadership is necessary to understand the concept of leadership because it also provides a framework for other areas of leadership. In any conventional group, individuals fill different role and one of those roles must the leader which is essential for the group to achieve it purposes.
Leaders are the individuals who help to create options and opportunities. They help in identifying the choices and solve the problems. They build commitment and coalitions. Leaders do this by inspiring others and working along with them to construct the shared vision of the possibilities and commitments of a better group, organization or community. They engage the followers in such a way that most of the followers become leaders in their own right. The variety of demands of an increasingly complex world very often require that leadership be shared by most of the members of an organization, in appropriate ways for different situations. A leader is the on...
James MacGregor Burns has defined leadership as “leaders inducing the followers to act for certain goals that represent the values and the motivations – the wants and needs, the aspirations and expectations – of both leaders and followers” (Burns 1978. p.19.)
In today’s complex management environment, I believe that the mindset of a manger weigh the same as their views and attitude on the job. Certainly, Jonathan Gosling an established scholar and the director of the Centre for Leadership Studies at the University of Exeter provide an excellent view on the diverse talent requirements in effective management. The main issue identified by the author is the connection between leadership and management. Separation of management and leadership is impractical. However not all good leaders are good managers and vice versa. Gosling, and Mintzberg (2003), argues that management without leadership promotes uninspired behavior, which hinders business activities. On the other hand, leadership devoid of management results in disconnect of actions and ideas. I concur with the author’s argument on the relationship between management and leadership. I believe that good managers should be good leaders too. However, most organizations do not enjoy both the benefits of effective leadership and management. In particular, most organizations lack either of these ...
Leadership and management have several meanings and mean something different to everyone. Leadership has been defined similarly to management from time to time and can be defined by every individual
Stroup, J. (2004). Managing leadership: toward a new and usable understanding of what leadership is and how to manage it. Lincoln, NE. iUniverse, Inc. Retrieved July 20, 2011 from http://managingleadership.com/blog/2008/09/04/great-man-theory/
The title leadership repertoire highlights the necessity of cultivating efficient leadership qualities to evolve as a good leader. Repertoire refers to a reservoir or storage, hence this present chapter profoundly discusses and characterizes the key features a leader has to possess. The four required characters of a leader are like visionary, affiliative, coaching and democratic. But pacesetting and commanding are used with special care.
Leadership and management are two fundamental concepts which are involved in the effective management of organizations. Leadership in my opinion is a complex concept, which includes association of human qualities and the result of their activities. To be a great leader means not only following own visions, but also work towards company’s goals.
Leadership study has seen a continual development of complex models and theories that organisations use to assist the development of managers in becoming truly great leaders. This section of the paper will focus on several aspects of this dynamic to discuss and assess the types of leadership behaviours that Greg Smith (Smith) displays and the influence that has over his followers as it pertains to the situation within the organisation post 2013.