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How culture and leadership are linked
Factors that influence leadership
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Much research has been done in order to comprehend the answer to the question “Do Leaders Matter?” In order to decipher this dilemma we will have to distinguish the fine and horrible rationale for leaders. Furthermore, we would have to recognize what it is to be a leader, and give the impression on how people view leaders. Are all leaders instinctive to lead, or do they have to discover the technique? There are many inquiries that can be solicited, but first we need to comprehend some of the dynamics that make up a good leader. Understanding how a good leader maneuvers will allow us to scrutinize some of the biases that revolve around a leader. I will strive to leave no uncertainty in your mind that leader’s do not have an immense influence on performance.
A leader must demonstrate many traits in order to be measured as someone who can truly be an effective difference maker. Many dissimilar authors have differing opinions on who is, or how to become a leader. Jack Welch, former General Electric CEO, believed that in every leader should personify his qualities that he called the 4E’s of leadership. He even created a management training institute in order to give all his managers the proper training in his techniques. “Crotonville, served as a forum for the sharing of the experiences, the aspirations, and, often the frustrations of the tens of thousands of GE leaders who passed through its campus” (Welch). The 4E’s of leadership are energy, energizers, edge, and execute. Someone with energy would wake up every morning with the desire and passion to motivate them through the day. An individual also need to have the capability to energize others in order to over achieve and out perform their peers. You need to have the edge, or d...
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...too much command. If leaders have uncontrollable power with no control then they will most certainly try to hide the disastrous times and elongate the superior. I would have to say that at the end of the day leaders are only as good their employees. This is how I concluded that leaders don’t matter.
Works Cited
Lauer, C. (2008). The 4E Leader: Hack Welch's Winnging Leadership Formula. In The Management Gurus.
New York, New York: Penguin Group.
Pfeffer, J., & Sutton, R. (2006). Are Great leaders in control of Their Companies?. In Hard Facts,
Dangerous Half-Truths And Total Nonsense: Profiting From Evidence-Based Management. Harvard Business Press.
Tichy, N. M., & Ulrich, D. O. (2003). The Leadership Challenge-A Call for the Transformational Leader. In
Classic Readings in Organizational Behavior. (3rd ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thomson Learning.
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.
Avolio, B. J., & Yammarino, F. J. (Eds.). (2013). Transformational and Charismatic Leadership:: the Road Ahead. Emerald Group Publishing.
Mlls, D. Q. (2005). Leadership How to Lead, How to Live. Boston: Harvad Business School Press.
A leader needs to “believe” in oneself and have the confidence that whatever you say will excite and what you do can motivate others. You must be optimistic about what you do, do have some relevance for being in existence. Believe it or not, “leadership begins with you”.
In many formal and informal settings, we have often heard the word “leadership”. Although this term is found in many textbooks, writings, news clippings, college level courses and papers, leadership is a concept that is consistently evolving. Leadership isn’t an attribute that individuals are born with. Although individuals are born with certain characteristics and traits of a leader, those traits are honed throughout the course of a lifetime.
In my life i have encountered many different types of leaders. Some were strong and ruled with an iron fist. Some were weak and failed to lead me. We are all leaders in our own way, some of us are born to take the lead. Most achieve their goal of being a leader but most get pushed back and their leadership is diminished.
Consider for example the conclusion of the Duke University study stating that leadership actions can indeed affect performance if the leader is considered to be responsible and inspirational. In my opinion, this single fact highlights that leadership not only matters but that it also matters who is leading. J. Richard Hackman and Ruth Wageman, were on point when asking the question, under what conditions leaders make a difference. Perhaps the example of the U.S. Military is an example of one of these conditions in which leadership does make a
Kouzes, J. M., & Posner, B. Z. (2012). The leadership challenge: How to make extraordinary
According to Yoder-Wise (2015), a leader can be defined as, “an individual who works with others to develop a clear vision of the preferred future and to make that vision happen” (p 35). As employees, we often have our own ideal of a good leader, which may be influenced by experiences and perception of workplace norms. While one’s opinion of an effective leader may vary, there are several recognized leadership theories. The following will focus on the transformational leadership approach.
Transformational leadership was first identified with
Perhaps the most important qualities of a leader are passion and motivation. Especially when leading a group for a particular cause, a leader must be personally attached to that cause. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., for example, is a legendary leader because he fought for a cause that directly affected him. had he not been pushing for a personal reason, his actions would not have been as passionate. This would have caused a lack in motivation, another essential leadership quality. A leader faces many roadblocks and opposition and thus, must be motivated to continue fighting and leading. A leader’s attitude and opinions are valued by the group and therefore, if a leader is motivated, the group will be, too. The continued actions and successes, no matter how small, which move the group closer to its goal also help its motivation and drive.
Leaders are those who have a great influence on the lives of many people. This is especially relevant in today’s organizations, which face extreme time changes and an increasingly growing complexity (Yukl, 1998).
Throughout my life I have encountered the chance to experience position of being a leader. Being part of groups in university for class presentations, being the organizing secretary of my campus fellowship, being a youth leader in my church and the church admin, also being part of a family. Leaders are charismatic, inspirational and trust worthy. I have gained some important qualities of being a good leader through these experiences. Most of the valuable leadership’s characteristics that I obtained and strengthened are: learn to become a better leader every day, how to be a team player, to be a better listener, to be an effective communicator, to have more patience, not afraid of constructive criticism, to be outspoken, and to be a problem solver. Even though I have gained a lot, I still have more things to learn to become a better leader such as being more assertive, being more disciplined, becoming a better public speaker, and learn how to be realistic and not too optimistic. You are a leader if someone else choses to follow you.
Leadership is one of the most important facets in organizations. In most cases, leaders act with respect to organizational culture as well as the codes of conduct that determine the manner in which leaders relate with subordinates. Leadership entails the use of effective communication skills to get activities done in the workplace and to ensure that employees shelve their individual interests for the sake of their organizations’ shared targets. It is the role of leaders to ensure that consumers attain high quality products and services by making certain that members of their firms’ workforce are fully motivated to work effectively and utilize resources in an efficient manner (Bass, 22). With the increasingly sophisticated nature of the corporate world, leadership should not be based solely on the desire to control and coordinate affairs within the workplace, but leaders should also exhibit positive examples and continually monitor the changing trends in corporate governance to initiate the most relevant guidelines. Competitiveness can only be attained when leaders are in a position to set the right standards in their firms and coordinate affairs appropriately by understanding consumer and employee needs.
Transformational leaders are needed to transform low performing organizations to acceptable to high performance. At other times, the leader is expected to move an organization from a crisis. In order to accomplish these tasks, the leader must overhaul the organization culture or subculture. This task is accomplished by nine ways of transforming others: 1. Raise others awareness. The leader makes others aware of the rewards and how to achieve them, i.e. pride in the job or financial incentives. 2. Help others look beyond self-interest. The transformational leader helps others to look at the “big picture” by describing an entire scenario, i.e. if we hire more employees to do x, we will have to make cuts in other areas. 3. Help people find self-fulfillment. The leader helps others not to focus on minor satisfactions, i.e. getting a job done before the deadline ...