When I think of leadership and what it means to be a good leader, one person in my life stands out to me; Mrs. Cynthia Kelly. I feel she embodies the essence of what I have come to learn about good leadership and she demonstrates her passion for nurturing her followers to be the best that they can, in a multitude of different contexts and environments. Mrs. Kelly has just been promoted to the title of Director of Events at Ellen Michael’s Presents (EMP), Inc. (an events planning company) in Los Gatos, California. This position was created exclusively for her by CEO Ellen Michaels, to allow Mrs. Michaels to semi retire and to adjust the management of the recently expanded company and oversight of all of its employees to now rest on Mrs. Kelly’s shoulders. Mrs. Kelly is now responsible for the multi-million dollar company that she has been a part of for close to 14 years. EMP has been a premier global events planning company for over 25 years and has managed to grow 30% in the last several years, despite the recession and global cutbacks of companies towards the event planning business. EMP is a relatively small company, with a core employee base of around 20 (not including outside vendors), however they deliver top of the line service and quality that few larger corporations can match and the values at EMP are unparalleled. “Our goal is to deliver outstanding events that project your culture, fulfill your objectives, gain your trust, and exceed your expectations” (EMP mission statement)(C. Kelly, personal communication, November 15, 2013). This statement reflects Mrs. Kelly’s commitment and dedication to providing the highest quality of service to not only her clients, but to her employees as well. She lives by this creed and ... ... middle of paper ... ...eated specifically for her so that she could run the main business while the owners semi-retired. She also is highly qualified and is an expert in her field and therefore, may hold some expert power as well. People look up to her and seek out her wisdom and advice, but it is her personality and treatment of them that they look to more than her title. She does not hire inside members (just outside vendors for events), nor does she control raises or promotions (Mrs. Michaels still holds that power), yet she does hold some reward power in the fact that she always ensures that people get the credit they deserve and a recommendation from her to Mrs. Michaels would prove to be very valuable. Overall, I believe Mrs. Kelly to be a very effective leader in that she is adaptable, well organized, well respected and genuinely cares for her followers and the work that she does.
The challenging process of being a leader worth following is an arduous task. Yet, in the book the Five Dysfunctions of a Team, the fictional leader Katherine seemingly demonstrates it with an effortless ease. She established her position as a leader while standing her ground, and encouraging group engagement. Katherine also showcases high emotional intelligence with well thought out responses. Constant reevaluation of her team leads to astounding team building and development. All of these individual traits enabled her to not just be a great CEO, but a leader. A leader which would propel DecisionTech forward, among its competitors.
Leadership & Direction. (1997, May 11). Retrieved April 6, 2011, from Big Dog & Little Dog's
Throughout history, there have been great leaders: civil rights leaders, business leaders, and spiritual leaders who have inspired millions. Leaders and visionaries such as John Lennon or Martin Luther King Jr. fought for unity, love, and made an impact on people through their speeches or songs. Watching these great men touch the hearts of millions has brought out a desire for me to become a C.E.O. and an important leader in the life of others. Not only do leaders have knowledge in politics, in emotional values, and spread a certain message or “vision” to their followers or co-workers, but they have certain special characteristics which make them great leaders or heroes. So, what makes these people different from you and me? Could it be that they are better looking? Perhaps they speak in parables or give great speeches? People have often said to me that a good leader is a person who guides both physically and mentally. Going to the job shadowing program has given me an opportunity to broaden my view on how efficient and effective a good leader can be in the work place. Something that has been shown to me in my many interviews with the board of directors has been that every leader must have the capability to have integrity, listen, a vision, and must be responsible.
Kouzes, J., & Posner, B., (2007). The leadership challenge, (4th ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-
My leadership style is primarily participative. Consultation contributes to more effective decisions leveraging the collective wisdom of the group, and, by soliciting their input, a greater degree of personal interest and satisfaction from participants (Yukl, 2013, p. 107). No one has all the answers, but together, in an open and trusting environment, all of us can collaborate toward a solution (Bennis, 2009, p. 133). Consultation and delegation within a shared philosophical framework serves to build support, personal investment, and leadership capacity amongst participants (Yukl, 2013, p. 384).
Chad Miller, manager of Buffalo Wild Wings in Dubuque, excellently showcases leadership characteristics each time I work with him. Throughout my one and a half years working underneath him, I have witnessed many great exchanges of leadership from Chad to customers, employees, and his other managers. He remains professional, shows his passion for the sports within the restaurant, as well as the food and atmosphere, clearly communicates effectively, and has inspired many people to move up within the company. However, another great example of leadership comes from the Director of Student Life, Diversity, and Leadership of Northeast Iowa Community College, Kara Popp. She exudes professionalism, while maintaining a light atmosphere during the time I work with her. Her communication style clearly shows her passion for the school by consistently instilling excitement and enthusiasm into her audiences. As president underneath of Kara, I have transformed into a proper leader. Although my previous leadership experience, as an 18 year old manager at a McDonald’s restaurant, showed my immaturity throughout my tenure, but beca...
Leaders do not just appear out of thin air and automatically start making great things happen in the world. A leader must learn from prior leaders or role models that they are surrounded by that they look up to. Not everyone can be a leader, only some people have the correct characteristics it takes to lead others in the right direction. Those who do great things, for example volunteering at a homeless shelter, are not leaders. Many people mistake a “great person” as being a leader, which is completely incorrect (Kouzes and Posner, p. 3). While playing an active role in your community is a positive thing it does not make someone a leader of that community. All leaders have a group of people they have inspiration too and that is a good way of determining who your personal leaders are. My mother, brother, and grandfather are my leaders because I have always looked up to them and tried to mimic some of the great things that I have seen them do. My mother has always been an independent women with goals and an action plan to accomplish those set goals. Stephen, my elder brother, is outgoing and tends to have a leveled head when it comes to evaluating stressful situations. My grandfather is the most caring person I know and he is amazing at keeping situations under control in order to please everyone. These are all the qualities I want to combine into my own leadership style. I know I am not a efficient leader of these actions yet, but I plan on growing into this as I more on into my career, fulfill my set goals, and adjust to the curve-balls that life throws at me.
Leaders: Strategies for Taking Charge is an organizational management book written by Warren Bennis and Burt Nanus for those who aim to become better leaders. The authors emphasize that having executive positions or being a manager does not automatically make one a leader. A leader is one who inspires his staff, help them find purpose in their work, and effectively implement their plans. They separate the book not quite into chapters on different topics, but rather by four strategies that they have determined are vital for any leader to take on. The strategies are effectively concluded as attention through vision, meaning through communication, trust through positioning, and the deployment of self. A prominent feature of Leaders is the various
Leadership is a complex idea that is often is hard to define. Everyone seems to have different characteristics that they feel contribute to a good leader. Even though there is no straightforward definition of leadership, there are still certain personality traits, behaviors, skills, and motivators that people admire in a leader. The best example to show how leaders utilize these characteristics is to examine a prominent figure in pop culture, such as Beyoncé. Her life is transparent enough that we can analyze her leadership skills, and how they change in any given situation. Beyoncé’s impact as a leader will be analyzed in three different categories.
Introduction Through identification and ongoing assessment of her leadership style and ability, this leader is able to develop and understand her own strengths and limitations in order to grow and develop into a more effective leader. The aim of this paper is to provide an overview of servant leadership, contingency, and path-goal styles of leadership to gain an understanding of current leadership models, identify this author’s style of leadership, and explore why leadership is important to organizations, society, and this author. A Personal Model of Leadership Servant leadership was a term that was first used by Keifner Greenleaf (1970) in his first essay, The Servant as Leader (as cited by Crippen, C., 2005). Greenleaf based his essay on his belief that a servant leader is a servant first, and explained that it would begin with the natural urge to serve and then the leader would make a conscious choice to become a leader, in doing so he makes the choice to ensure that others needs are met first (2005 ). As a servant leader develops he should always keep aware of those who he serves and strive to ensure that they are becoming healthier, wiser, freer, have an increase in autonomy, and become more like servants themselves (2005).
This case study demonstrates a young woman leader, Toby Johnson, who used to serve in the military as a pilot and attended Harvard Business School, joined PepsiCo’s Leadership Development Program (LDP), and was working in the management team at the Williamsport plant. She determined to forge ahead, and led the plant to achieve the Level 3 CI and also won the Doolin Award, which the Williamsport plant had never achieved before. The problem that Johnson encounters currently is that if the plant should continue to forge ahead and achieve the ultimate Level 4 CI, which will cost huge amount of money and efforts with the risk of her sudden leave of plant.
Leaders, an individual that people look up to for direction, inspiration, and guidance in life. Passion, influential, reliability, a vision, etc. These traits along with many more, are the things that make leaders great and successful. Everyone has different personality traits that make us capable of being leaders in this world and I learned that throughout this course. Everyone is different, whether good or bad, ethical or unethical, everyone has a leadership style all their own. “If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader (John Quincy Adams).”
Although there are many outstanding, albeit necessary qualities of a good leader, it is the leader’s beliefs in which greatness is given its first breath, fostered by action, and spread throughout the institution. A great leader believes in encouraging, not destroying; in setting the precedence instead of yielding to prominence ; in collaboration, not division; in giving, not taking; and in having high standards and volunteering to be the first of many to be held to them. A great leader does not take advantage of the people being lead, but instead, creates an advantage for the people by giving them the opportunities to lead. Only when people take ownership of an institution will passion be cultivated, action be taken, and greatness be achieved.
In her current position, she is responsible for six RN’s, three licensed practical nurses (LPN), five CNA’s and two support staff members. They are currently looking to add several more positions to the payroll. Martinez joined this agency two...
Kouzes, J. M., & Posner, B. Z. (2012). The leadership challenge: How to make extraordinary