Leadership Esentials

Although some people treat the term's "manager ship" and "leadership" as synonyms, the two should be distinguished. As a matter of fact, there can be leaders of completely unorganized groups, but there can be managers, as conceived here, only where organized structures create roles. (Main, 1987) Separating leadership from manager ship has important analytical advantages. It permits leadership to be singled out for study without the encumbrance of qualifications relating to the more general issue of manager ship.

Leadership is an important aspect of managing. (Kotler, 1990) As this paper will show the ability to lead effectively is one of the keys to being an effective manager, also, undertaking the other essentials of managing-doing the entire managerial job-has an important bearing on ensuring that a manager will be an effective leader. Managers must exercise all the function of their role in order to combine human and material resources to achieve objectives. The key to doing this is the existence of a clear role and a degree of discretion or authority to support manager's actions.

The essence of leadership is follower ship. (Haller & Til, 1982) In other words, it is the willingness of people to follow that makes a person a leader. Moreover, people tend to follow those whom they see as providing a means of achieving their own desires, wants, and needs.

Leadership and motivation are closely interconnected. By understanding motivation, one can appreciate better what people want and why they act as they do. Also, as noted in the previous chapter, leaders may not only respond to subordinates, motivations but also arouse or dampen them by means of the organizational climate they develop. Both these factors are as important to leadership as they are to manager ship.

Defining Leadership:

Leadership has different meaning to various authors. (Bass, 1981) Leadership is defined as influence, that is, the art or process of influencing people so that they will strive willingly and enthusiastically toward the achievement of group goals ideally, people should be encouraged to develop not only willingness to work but also willingness to work with zeal and confidence. Zeal is ardor, earnestness, and intensity in the execution of work; confidence reflects experience and technical ability. Leaders act to help a group attain objectives through the maximum application of its capabilities. They do not stand behind a group to push and prod, they place themselves before the group as they facilitate progress and inspire the group to accomplish organizational goals.