Derek Sivers gave a brief TED talk entitled “How to start a movement” that is a great example of how important followers are and how they make or break a leader. In his presentation, he discusses the importance of the first follower in launching a movement. The premise is that while a leader may have the courage to stand alone it is the first follower that attracts others to join the organization and stand behind a leader. Followers typically have less authority and influence than their boss does. Followership, however, relates to the role those followers have in supporting the boss and the organization. Interestingly, while not everyone is a leader, every leader is a follower and answerable to someone whether that is a superior officer, a board of directors, or in the case of the United States President, the American people. The best leaders are also truly adept followers. The concept of followership states that good followers understand their leader’s goals and objectives, the pressures he faces, what his strengths and weaknesses are, and perhaps most critically where his blind ...
Küpers, W. (2007). Perspectives on Integrating Leadership and Followership. Retrieved 4 22, 2014, from International Journal of Leadership Studies: http://www.regent.edu/acad/global/publications/ijls/new/vol2iss3/kupers/kupers.htm
It has been stated how the transformational effect of charismatic leaders lead to increased follower motivation (Humphreys, 2009). Due to the various attributes that transformational leaders have, such as charisma and understanding, they are likely to motivate others to follow after the examples that they may display. There is also Effective followership. Effective followership prepares a person to be an Effective leader since being a follower is considered as a prerequisite to leading. According to Humphreys (2009), organizations are comprised of groups of followers and leaders, who are listening and taking direction from one
Therefore the leader must look at ways to get the follower to be on board with the views and ideologies of the organization. With that in mind, leaders must set the right example to move the employee from point A to B. Leaders must embrace the term of being a role model and while they may feel that they are incompetent and lack the experience of a seasoned leader. They must envision themselves as the role model to deflect the perception by the follower they are worthy of following. The follower perception of the leader as a worthy role model is conceptually different than the standard behavior that a leader may demonstrate (Organ et al., 2006) Thus the leader must set the tone through leading by personal example which facilitates the social learning process (Manz & Sims, 1981). (Yaffe & Kark, 2011) Leaders can build trust within the organization so that employees would not question or complain about the leaders decision and trust that even though they may be young, it is in the best interest of
Leadership can be traced back to many ideologies over the history of time. There have been individuals that have achieved great success and accomplishments through inspiring others to believe and follow their leadership. This paper will explain some of the theories that philosophically explain how those great people inspired others to believe in their vision and goals.
However, each of the behaviors can be used individually or collectively as different situations call for different behaviors (Whitener, 2007). Follower characteristics describe how an individual will interpret ...
Maxwell, (2013) explains how the first level of leadership is positional. Followers, who view leaders at this level are motivated by compliance measures, rather than inspiration or desire. The mindset of the follower is that, their job to do what is directed of them, so they obey. Fear and coercion are often motivators for followers at level one. Maxwell, (2013) further explains that, at this level, leaders receive the least amount of the follower’s energy, effort, and mind.
Followership is an active role which, when successful, enhances the performance and effectiveness of a leader. As Uhl-Bien & Pillai (2007) define it, followership is “deferring to the directives, decisions, or desires of another, thereby giving another higher status and legitimacy in determining the course of events”. To do so in an authentic manner, followership requires truth and integrity. This is valid for both the individual’s beliefs, preferences, and feelings, as well as in commitment to the organization and its leadership.
Every organization requires effective followership and leadership to reach peak performance. Effective followers use creativity, intrinsic motivations, and commitment to the organization to ensure its success. In addition, great followers need great leaders to guide them and build them into future leaders. Great leaders understand the importance of various followership styles and traits and use them to benefit the organization while helping followers achieve greatness as well. Futhermore, great followers and leaders strive to continually build on their strengths and weaknesses. With that in mind, strengths and areas of improvement will be discussed in the following paragraphs.
I feel you must be able to follow before you can lead, and sometimes followers have an advantage, because followers observe & pay more attention to their surroundings than leaders do and some leaders rely on their followers for most information. Most leaders don’t teach followers how to follow, they just follow. We all want to be leaders at some point in life for something, and no one wants to be a follower. From further reading the article I analyzed that leaders who can’t risk, can’t lead. We want to give praise and look up to the leaders all the all the time and look down on the followers, because most people think followers are weak individuals who only do what they are told and don’t support their leaders whole heartedly and don’t speak up when something is wrong or a problem or situation arises. In doing further research Ira Chaleff said the followers and leaders share a common purpose being a follower is the best training for a becoming a
Another author that has investigated the followership topic but asserts a few qualifications between her work and others is Kellerman. She characterizes her work as more descriptive than prescriptive as she considers there must be such a variety of variables impacting the followers behaviors that it is hard to be instructive. According to Kellerman (2008), there are two conceivable definitions about followers: “Followers can be defined by their rank: They are subordinates who have less power, authority, and influence then do their superiors”. And “followers can also be defined by their behavior: they go along with what someone else wants and intends”. Kellerman (2008) uses rank and behavior as determinants to characterize followers, focusing
The concept of followership has existed for decades, but only in relatively recent times has the idea received more attention. The dictionary definition of the word “followership” is “the capacity or willingness to support a leader”. In his 1988 book, The Power of Followership, noted followership scholar Robert E. Kelly found this to be lacking.
Just as there can not be ‘too many cooks in the kitchen’ a company cannot run solely on leadership. Without followers, leaders would be unable to get the job done. But do companies understand the importance of their followers/workers and are they giving them the respect they deserve? Barbara Kellerman researched the campaign for Audi car company and their campaign slogan `Never Follow.` The ad ran successfully for five years until 2007 the slogan was finally abandoned. It was so successful because it “tapped into a fear rooted deep in the American psyche” (Kellerman, p3). Who wants to be second best? On the other hand, who wants to diminish their own followers? Kellerman noted that North American culture has the perception that “there is no glory in toeing the line” (p.5). Companies are learning that followers deserve a more positive reputation and that followers are an integral part of the team. Why is it then, that little research has been done on followers and followership?
One of the most important components of leadership is the leader. A leader is responsible for his or her followers and the overall goal of the group or organization. Leaders are the people held accountable or everything that happens, good or bad. On the other hand, the second major component of leadership is the followers. Without followers, a leader would be worthless. Followers make up the backbone of a leader because they are the masses that get goals accomplished. A leader is just one person, but the number of followers is countless. In order to be an effective follower, there are a countless number of characteristics that allow a follower to be the best they can be. Five of these characteristics include a positive attitude, communication skills, being part of the process, being open to new ideas, and patience.
Followers: a non-submissive influencer who have devotion to a task and who 's state of mind is a powerful ingredient for the success of an organization and a leader. Followers create the influence necessary for a leader to have authority. Without it the organization will
Followers plan an active role in the process of leadership. By being a follower, it does not mean that one is inferior to a leader, but that they simply play a different role. Webster’s dictionary defines follow as to come or occur after, but it does not necessarily imply a causal relationship with what goes before. A follower is part of the team. A quarterback cannot win the game without the efforts of the entire team. He can throw or run the ball but without his team members blocking, he will not make the touch down. Much like a game, team players are imperative to the success of the organization.