Differences Between Leadership and Management

Leadership and management are distinct functions that share numerous similar duties, including influencing and working with others to achieve goals. Leadership skills include aligning, inspiring and motivating people, establishing direction, and focusing on potential changes. On the other hand, management abilities accomplish goals and missions and are thus useful in building, planning, and directing organizations' systems. Despite being different, these aspects are necessarily linked and go hand in hand, making them complementary. Non-profit organizations require good leadership and management to solve problems and avoid causing others, so leaders must learn the respective skills. A sustainable and effective non-profit organization requires good leadership and management. These aspects are necessary because managers and leaders make perfect teams that propel the firm’s growth. Leaders create inspiring and motivating strategies that the board and staff follow. They constantly push non-profits and their personnel to work harder and smarter, think bigger and expand their horizons (Cole, 2019). As these front-runners ask hard questions, they also invest in their tasks, creating a teamwork environment that makes staff appreciated for their contributions. Managers add to these functions by creating systems that hold personnel and the board accountable, enabling organizations to reach their goals. They ensure employees know their roles, have the necessary tools, know their stations and are responsible for their actions. Large non-profits may have leaders and managers as separate people, while small entities may use one individual to play the two roles in equal measure. Regardless of the organization’s size, the most important fact is that all people understand the system and are accountable, and acquire inspiration by following a stipulated strategy. Therefore, the staff and board of non-profits need proper leadership and management so that the former can articulate a path, whereas the latter executes, to be effective and sustainable. Leadership can be a natural trait in an individual, but can also be a learned behaviour and characteristic. Multiple studies indicate that some people have a genetic trait that gives them leadership ability, predisposing them to become leaders. However, this conclusion does not mean that other people cannot lead since they can learn leadership skills. People with the need to influence others, such as extroverts, may appear as natural leaders. On the other hand, persons without such personality traits can develop the necessary qualities and effectively play the role. The latter group can easily develop leadership ability through proper training and becoming aware of their strengths and weaknesses. They should commit themselves to the process by setting goals and sharing with a reliable support system (Hunt, Hosking, & Schriesheim, 2014). Other talents that these people may need to match the natural leaders include decision-making ability based on available information, adaptability to change and people skills. Additionally, natural leaders may not have all the leadership traits. For instance, some are creative and good communicators, while others lack the ability to communicate their visions; therefore, leaders can be developed by acquiring the respective traits and behaviour, regardless of innate abilities. 

Conclusion 

Leadership is about leading others through trust, being proactive, influence, inspiration and encouragement to grow. On the other hand, management is an art of coordination and systematic organization of matters effectively. It functions through control, being reactive, activity management and stability establishment. Both aspects are necessary for a non-profit organization because leaders are needed to lead the way, whereas managers create a means for workers to follow. So, incorporating good leadership and management provides the ability to be effective in the short and long-term. Although some people are born with leadership traits, they may still need proper training, like the rest, to work on their weaknesses, which concludes that leaders can be developed. 

References 

Cole, K. (2019). Leadership & management: Theory & practice . South Melbourne, Victoria, Australia: Cengage Learning Australia Pty Limited. 

Hunt, J. G., Hosking, D.-M., & Schriesheim, C. (2014). Leaders and Managers: International Perspectives on Managerial Behavior and Leadership . Saint Louis: Elsevier Science.