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Perspectives on transactional and transformational leadership
Role of a leader in a society
Essay about employee engagement
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Many leadership researchers and scholars have stated that leaders do not exist without followers. Leadership has been described as the process of influencing, in which a person can enlist the support of others to accomplish a task or goal (Nye, 2010 and Oc & Bashshur, 2013). A leader is one whom others agree to follow, but a follower must be willing to be led. In developing leaderships styles and theories, the traits and behavior of the leaders were considered by Bass (2008). Bass described these styles as transactional and transformational leadership (2008). For the purposes of this short essay, I will discuss two leadership styles, the types of followers, and the autocratic style being used by this organization’s new VP.
Leadership Types:
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As defined by Kellerman (2008), there are five types of followers: bystanders, isolates, participants, activists, and diehards. At any given point, an organization can include members who fall into some or all of these categories. The isolates care very little for their leaders and the organization and generally just want to get the job done and do not respond well to leadership. In fact, isolates resent the idea of leadership. Bystanders on the other hand, are those followers who follow passively, observing from the side, rarely getting involved. They do not resent leadership as the isolates do, but offer very little support to the leaders. Participants care about the group/organization and generally want to make an impact, if they feel that the leader will support them. On the other hand, activists have strong beliefs about the organization and their leaders. If they agree with their leaders, they follow them almost blindly, but if they do not, they work to get rid of their leaders. Those employees with the highest level of engagement within an organization are diehards. If they agree with the path their leaders is taking them down is the right direction, they will follow. However, if they think their leader is destructive, “imposing goals on constituents without their agreement of regard for their long-term welfare” (Padilla et al., 2007, pg.177), then these followers …show more content…
Authoritarian leaders, provide clear expectations about what, when, and how something is to be done. However, these leaders lead with an iron fist, marking a clear delineation between the leaders and the followers (Bass, 2008). This sort of leadership style inherently alienates group members since they feel they have no input on changes being made. Research has shown that employees are less creative and less innovative under this style of leadership (Bass, 2008). A successful leader achieves his goals by granting power to his followers through influence (Nye,
There have been countless books, lectures, and and trainings, and retreats constructed around the idea of cultivating leadership in an individual. However, cultivating individuals’ ability to follow great leadership has received far less attention. Who are these people leading if each person within an organization is being trained to be a leader? The word follower has negative connotations, evoking the images of a weak, uncreative, milquetoast personality. However, Jimmy Collins, in his book, “Creative Followership: In the Shadow of Greatness”, suggests that the ability to be led brings as much creativity, consciousness, and indeed leadership to an organization or team as the leader himself. Great followership is a reflection of great leadership. In this, the follower is just as important as the leader in the relationship. Many great leaders have asserted that a leader with even a modicum of understanding of what drives their subordinates can take their organization to previously undreamt-of heights in creativity and productivity. Collins does not disabuse us of this notion, he does however add that the follower is indispensable agent in this interplay between leader and follower.
Thousands of years ago, leadership, authority, structure, and rules were the basis of the Bible and Hammurabi’s Code. These set in stone that era’s belief in a reward-based system to incentivize people to work, and obey. You followed the rules, you were rewarded; you didn’t, and you were punished. During the classical era of Homer, Plato, Aristotle, and Socrates, great leaders were educated and experienced in strategic planning, goal setting, critical thinking, and having great communication to their followers, who in turn became great leaders themselves. During this era, we begin to see the nuances of an integral part of transformational leadership: the impact your followers can have on your individual success as a leader. Plato said that
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
While transactional leadership relies on a system of rewards and penalties it doesn't provide a lot of in conditions of inspiration to encourage folks to travel past the fundamentals. Given this truth the supporters of transactional leaders may get happy and develop a propensity to attain smallest expectations solely that might facilitate them avoid penalties (Bass, 1990). Therefore the leader and also the follower ar in associate conformity on what the follower would take delivery of achieving the negotiated level of performance (Bass, 1990). The success of such leadership depends on the extent of satisfaction the leader and followers have in following this technique of performance based mostly appraisals (Bass, 1990)
Kelley, R.E. (1992). Followership. In Goethals, G.R., Sorenson, G.J. & Burns, J.M. (Eds.). (2008). Encyclopedia of leadership (pp. 504-513). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage
Have you ever had a leader that inspired you to develop your own leadership traits? “A leader is someone who demonstrates what’s possible” (Mark Yarnell, 2015). There are numerous leadership styles. Each of the numerous leadership styles can be beneficial if utilized in an appropriate means. I have chosen three leaders and their unique leadership styles to discuss in this paper. The unique styles that will be discussed are situational leadership, transformational leadership, and laissez-faire leadership. I will also discuss each leader’s approaches, their fundamental leadership principles, and how each leader used their style within their profession.
In this time of transition and uncertainty, research suggests that transformational leadership is highly effective (Straight, 2006). Leadership research has drifted from emphasis on the competence of leaders to “manage change” to the ability to “transform” organizations. Transformational leaders have attributes and behaviors needed to successfully motivate and empower employees. According to Bernard Bass (1990), transformational leadership occurs when a leader transforms, or changes, his or her followers in three important ways that together result in followers trusting the leader, performing behaviors that contribute to the achievement of organizational goals, and being motivated to perform at a high level. Transformational leaders can achieve greater performance by stimulating innovative ways of thinking and transforming follower’s beliefs and aspirations. Maxwell (Maxwell, 2007) articulates that most of the time, influence is more important than formal power or authority. I agree with him. Influence is very important in organizational and co...
...odology through which leaders oppose the organization of followers. There is no motivation to accept that leaders stand up to this organization short of what followers do, other than in light of the "naturalization" of scholarly sees on the imperviousness to change that see it as a sensation that only influences followers (Imprint and Goldberg, 1999). At the point when one takes a gander at the leadership process from the devotee's side, one may get an alternate picture. At last, followers' engagement with leadership movements is not so much positive for organizations. Activity and impact can actually be utilized to attain objectives that are not authorized by the organization and counter those that are. In this respect, there is no contrast between leadership pushed by leaders and impact pushed by followers: each one can generate either great or terrible results.
Leadership is necessary for a group to accomplish goals. Leadership according to Lamberton and Minor (2014), is the ability to impact people to attain a goal. A leader according to Gaiter (2013), sets direction and influences others to accomplish goals and directs cohesiveness. A leaders’ goal is not just the success of the team but, also the success of individuals on the team, a leader must motivate, inspire and empower others for success (Gaiter, 2013). To accomplish these goals a leader will utilize a leadership style.
Autocratic leadership theory is a part of the behavioural approach. In this leadership theory, leader makes all decisions and uses power to command and control the followers to achieve goal. According to Lewin(1939), “autocratic leaders are associated with high-performing groups, but that close supervision is necessary and feeling of hostility are often present” (p.173). It is incredibly efficient and tasks are completed quickly. Autocratic leadership can be beneficial when decisions need to be making quickly. For example, in emergency situation surgeon uses this theory because the patient’s situation is between life and death and there is no time to discuss with other members. Bass (2008) mentioned in the Leadership styles and theories article, “Autocratic leaders can be effective because they create good structure, and determine what needs to be done. They provide rewards for compliance, but punish disobedience” (Giltinane, 2013, p. 35-37).
In organizations aspiring for growth and continual improvement, relationships are more intricate and alternatives more numerous than the either/or imposition implied by the notion of leaders and followers. Practically no one leads all of the time. Leaders also work as followers; all in all, “everyone uses a portion of their day following and another portion leading” (Galie and Bopst, 2006, p. 11).
Particularly, two members within my group began to emerge as leaders due to their knowledge, skills, as well as experience working with our chosen population. Although I always view them as ‘experts’ in this topic, our group became less focused on our goals and more concerned about the ‘power struggle’ between our two leaders, before we could reach any consensus. Essentially, our group had two authoritarians butting heads and trying to take lead throughout the beginning of the group process. Thus, the other members or ‘followers’ contribution, like mine, seem to not matter unless they adhered to either leaders’ opinions without question. According to Stringer (2014), “Leadership… Is defined according to its function of facilitating organizational and operational processes, rather than defining and controlling them” (p. 31). The researcher further states that active participation is the key to encourage and motivate group members to invest their time and energy to shape the quality of the group's production. Therefore, our group needed to find ways for all members to have a chance to participate fully and apply their individual strengths, in order to enhance our group’s
I was involved in a situation where leadership was ineffective by my director of obstetrics. The topic involved our hiring policy. We had multiple candidates for a nursing position. Due to staffing shortages, this position need filled as soon as possible. My role was assistant nurse manager on night shift. It was myself, the other night shift assistant manager, and our director present for the interview. We had a candidate apply that had a few years of post partum experience, and I worked with her in the past at another facility, though did not recommend her. I kept my opinion quiet, because I always want to be fair. The interview started and was not going well. The candidate did not answer questions well, nor did she look at us in the eyes. She was dressed sloppy and did not possess any professionalism. Towards the end of the interview, the director started to ask when she could start, the compensation, and continued to give her a tour of the unit. The other assistant manager and I could not believe what we were seeing. The director hired her on the spot. This leadership was ineffective in a variety of different ways.
Certainly, an army would not be able to battle in the war without a commander who in charges of the whole strategy. Correspondingly, any organisations cannot function without leaders. Leader is the most substantial element of successful organizations. Becoming outstanding leaders, leadership skill is vital in order to drive the organizations forward. Several leadership principles are extensively used these days. Burns (1978) identified two types of leadership comprise of transactional and transformational leadership. Hence, leaders should be capable to indicate which theory should be applied in accordance with organization’s culture and objectives. This essay aims to evaluate the resemblances and the differences between transactional and transformational leadership as well as the feasibility to utilize a mixture of them by giving the definitions and examples followed by the supporting researches and studies.
The primary problems associated with autocratic management style is people who abuse an autocratic leadership style are often looked at as bossy, controlling, and dictatorial, which can lead to resentment among a group of people. Because autocratic leaders make vast decisions without consulting the group, people in the group tend to dislike that they are unable to contribute ideas. In most instances autocratic leadership often results...