Mod 3:
Required Readings for assignment
· Chapter 1 in Leadership: Theory and Practice
Supplemental
· .sagepub.com/northouse5e/study/articles/pdfs/3-Martin.pdf”>Martin, M. J., Aupperle, K. E., and Chen, R. (1996). Strategic leadership and skill usage by academic presidents. The Journal of Leadership Studies, 3(1),139-150.
. Leadership Defined
An audio version of this entire lecture is available. You can listen by using the embedded player below. Or .blackboard.com/bbcswebdav/pid-1688451-dt-content-rid-9353696_2/courses/SEU_MGT560/courseModules_winter2014d/MGT560_3/media/MGT560_Module1_Page1a.mp3″>CLICK HERE to download the file to your computer or portable audio player:
Many definitions exist for the term leadership. As you will see in this course, many different approaches to leadership exist. However, leadership has to do with influence, and the ability for one person to influence others. This does not always have to be positive influence although research shows that positive influence tends to get better results than negative influences.
Leadership is an important component in organizations and society today, because without leaders we would not come together to work toward common goals, because no one would set the direction and motivate and influence us to do so. Leaders can be either formal or informal in nature. The head of an organization such as Microsoft is an example of a formal leader. He/she uses the formal position held to exert influence on others. However, other leaders, such as Martin Luther King, Jr. are informal. These leaders possess no formal title or formal influence over others. Instead, they have a following based on informal leadership. They simply have the drive toward a goal that others also want to be a part of, and they gain a following based on their personality, their goals, their charisma, or some other factor.
KEY POINT: However leadership is defined, and each book will define it a bit differently, one common aspect of leadership is the idea of influence.
II. Power
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Power is a component of influence. Power is actually the capacity to exert influence on another. Position power means that the leader has a formal position within an organization that provides the capacity to influence others. Personal power is more geared toward the informal leader, and this involves having the characteristics of being likeable and knowledgeable, creating an atmosphere where you have influence over others.
We can all think of examples of formal leaders who have formal power over others, and they use it to influence their subordinates. However, they use their power in such a way that they created negative attitudes in their subordinates. For example, if I was a manager at a company, and I wanted my subordinates to do something for me, I could say that they had to do it because I said so and I am the boss. That would be my right as a formal leader with position power. Now, my subordinates may do what I told them to do, but they would not have a great deal of respect for me as a leader, and they would never consider me to be a leader outside of that formal role.
On the other hand, I could meet with my subordinates discuss the need to do something. I could let them know why they needed to accomplish the task, give them input into how to accomplish the task, and let them know I appreciate them. The task would still get accomplished, maybe even faster than using the other method of leadership, and the subordinates would feel that they had a say in the decision. They would accept me as a leader more readily, and they would possibly even consider me to be an informal leader in other roles. This is because I was likeable and knowledgeable in this leadership role instead of demanding and power-hungry.
Many individuals in organizations have informal power, and these individuals can actually have more influence over the people in the organization than the formal leaders. This can easily happen if the formal leaders are using formal power to influence others as opposed to trying to be open and knowledgeable, and including others in the decision making process.
III. Leadership and Management
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We all probably know someone who is a good manager. This person is organized, efficient, can control and manage the day-to-day operations of the organization or department. He or she is very good with the tasks involved in a management position. He or she can plan, control, and organize the department, creating much efficiency in operations. However, this person may not be a good leader. A leader is someone who moves the organization or department forward. A leader is able to see into the future at what could be, and then motivate everyone to move toward that future.
On the other hand, you also may know someone who is a great leader but a poor manager. This person has a lot of vision, can create goals to work toward, and can generate a strong following of people who want to move in that direction. However, when it comes to the planning, organizing, and controlling of the day-to-day operations of the department or organization, this person is not able to handle the load.
This becomes a dilemma, because ideally in a situation where someone is in charge of a department or organization, someone in a formal leadership role, the person needs to be both a good leader and a good manager. Otherwise, the department or organization cannot run as effectively as it should.
IV. Leadership Theories and Approaches
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As you will see from this course, there are many different theories and approaches to leadership. You will take many self-assessments to learn how you fit into several of these theories and approaches. So, you may start to see similarities and difference between each and you may start to wonder which approach is best? That answer, unfortunately, is up to the individual leader, the situation in which the leader is involved in leadership, the culture of the environment, and the organization. So, the answer is that there is no best answer. You may wonder why you need to learn about all of these theories and approaches if there is not one best leadership approach.
As you develop as a leader, what you will want to do is pick up different ideas and tools to make you a better, more successful leader. Learning about each approach, along with taking the self-assessments, will give you some tools to help you in your development. One of the best characteristics that successful leaders have is self-awareness. They understand their own strengths and weaknesses, and they know what they are and are not good at. They know themselves very well, and they tend to really focus on their strengths and use them as their platform for successful leadership. This course will help you to learn about yourself in regard to your leadership abilities, and should provide you with an excellent overview of your strengths and weaknesses. After that, using those strengths to your advantage and trying to improve on the weaknesses will be up to you. These are just some of the tools that will help to develop your leadership ability.
Some thoughts.. from professor
Top of Form
I have had the honor of being in various leadership positions over the years. From owning my own company to working for a large corporation. I know I have been influenced by different styles of leadership with learning from leader that I respected. One thing that I have learned, is respect has to be earned. I also, over my numerous years of study have had great professors and not so great professors that did help me mold my teaching style.
Bottom of Form
Assignment 3:
Provide the five top characteristics of leaders that you would like to adopt in your style within your work organization. How might these traits assist you in strategic planning, problem solving, morale building, and teamwork? What one characteristic is damaging in a leadership position? Defend your position with documented research.
Part 1: The above is part one of the assignment 300 words with references
And if professor asks any question about part 1 the answer should be about 50 words
Part 2: Two replies for two discussions
Each reply 100 words
