Effective leadership is essential in advancing overall possibilities of success, especially in an organizational setting. One such leadership approach considered in successful companies and organizations is ‘multi-party’ leadership. Multi-party leadership highlights the need to shift from an authoritarian leadership environment towards an environment where leaders accept the influence they receive from other parties (Dinh et al., 2014). To some extent, multi-party leadership is somewhat similar to the democratic leadership model, as it establishes a front for group thinking as opposed to individualistic thinking. The expectation is that this would serve as a guarantee that the decisions leaders make are most likely influenced by advice from their followers (Tsai, 2011). The objective of this report is to depict leadership as a “multi-party” concept and develop a model showing how other parties influence one actual leader in an organization.
Leadership as a “Multi-Party” Concept
Leadership can be considered as a ‘multi-party’ concept based on several key aspects that define the characters of the leader in question. Firstly, the multi-party aspect of leadership occurs in cases where leaders genuinely seek others’ opinions, especially when intending to make decisions (Chin et al., 2019). Ronald Riggio in a video Our Current Research Projects mentioned that leaders often find themselves in situations where they are expected to make strategic decisions, which are viewed as being necessary for a company or organization (Riggio, 2013). In such cases, the effectiveness of the leader can only be seen if they embrace the opinions presented by others. Joseph Trimble in a TED Talk on Culture and Leadership emphasizes on the need to avoid what can be described as the alpha male context of a leader where a leader uses their position to build on authority rather than serve their followers (Trimble, 2015). The view is that the system would help create an environment through which leaders are able to function in a much more effective manner.
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Secondly, leadership can be viewed as a ‘multi-party’ concept in instances where leaders effectively delegate tasks. Leaders have a key responsibility of collecting all ideas, as well as putting them in an open group discussion, which would be of value in task delegation. The video Leading Leadership Research: A Framework for Research and Practice by David Day discuses that leaders are equally expected to know the strengths and weaknesses of their followers as a way of ensuring that they delegate tasks in an effective way (Day, 2016a). Success in ‘multi-party’ depends solely on the ability for leaders to embrace their followers, irrespective of their strengths or weaknesses. David Day in a video on Developing Your Leaders: Linking Short-Term Change to Long-Term Success states that leadership development is influenced by specific aspects, such as time and different levels of analysis (Day, 2016b).
Lastly, leadership is defined as a ‘multi-party’ concept in cases where leaders have trusting followers, who they believe is in a position to deliver on their projected responsibilities. Lack of trust acts as one of the key contributors to failure in leadership, as it becomes much harder for a leader to work towards a specific goal or objective. Linda Dragoni, an Associate Professor, talks about leadership literature suggesting that some of the literature often define leader based on the influence that a leader may receive from the outside environment (Dragoni, 2016). Dragoni suggests that leadership can be evaluated as an influence process to determine the extent to which a leader’s influence may determine the quality of leadership projected. On the other hand, the followers are able to work towards the vision that a leader puts in place; thus, creating a shift in the overall structure of leadership towards an approach in which different parties are wholly involved, especially when making decisions.
Leadership Model Depicting Influence
An example of a leadership model that depicts how one actual leader in an organization is influenced or developed by a network of stakeholders with whom they interact is the democratic model. In the democratic model, a leader thrives on feedback from stakeholders, which defines the decisions that they intend to make. Chris Day in a video Leadership Research at The University of Nottingham explained that the leadership model places emphasis on asking for opinion, ideas, and constructive criticism for stakeholders with an aim of determining specific areas of improvement (Day, 2012). The video on New Findings in Culture and Leadership How Denison Research Can Enhance Your Engagements capitalized on the fact that leaders adopting this model are experts in breeding consensus, which can be achieved through communication and inspiration (Kotrba & Guidroz, 2011). This means that leaders are expected to shift their attention towards the ‘multi-party’ leadership approach with the view being that this would help change their abilities to deliver. The model (as depicted in the figure below) reflects on the interactions between leaders and stakeholders, with the view being that this would help change the way a leader functions in a workplace environment. The functioning of a leader, in this model, is defined through shared responsibility, shared leadership, shared purpose, shared expertise and shared data. All these functions determine the overall structure of leadership, which can be viewed from a ‘multi-party’ perspective.
Democratic Leadership Model
Conclusion
Leadership is a key factor that defines possibilities of success or failure of an organization. Leadership can be viewed from multiple perspectives, each of which plays a critical role in defining clear objectives that leaders ought to consider. The view of leadership as a ‘multi-party’ concept reflects on the understanding that leaders do not always act as individuals. Instead, leaders are influenced and developed by those that they interact with, which advances their capacities to make effective decisions. In some cases, this would mean that leaders would focus on the views, opinions, and ideas that they receive from different parties to define their capacities to deliver on best possible outcomes.
References
Chin, T. L., Yap Peng Lok, S., & Kee Peng Kong, P. (2019). Does transformational leadership influence employee engagement. Global Business & Management Research , 11 (2), 92-97.
Day, C. (2012). Leadership research at the University of Nottingham [Video File]. YouTube . https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NtLTqefmyfU
Day, D. (2016b). Developing your leaders: Linking short-term change to long-term success [Video File]. YouTube . https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MixqmSU-PtI
Day, D. (2016a). Leading Leadership Research: A Framework for Research and Practice [video File]. YouTube . https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUuaQutOrHc
Dinh, J. E., Lord, R. G., Gardner, W. L., Meuser, J. D., Liden, R. C., & Hu, J. (2014). Leadership theory and research in the new millennium: Current theoretical trends and changing perspectives. The Leadership Quarterly , 25 (1), 36-62.
Dragoni, L. (2016). Lessons for leadership scholars: Where can you take your research? [Video File]. YouTube . https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fwvJBd7ewh0
Kotrba, L. & Guidroz, A. (2011). New findings in culture and leadership how denison research can enhance your engagements [Video File]. YouTube . https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0VPrakPAP4s
Riggio, R. (2013). Our current research projects [Video File]. YouTube . https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YSXWqVta3nA
Trimble, J. (2015). Culture and leadership [Video File]. YouTube . https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fuHj3jsBdKE
Tsai, Y. (2011). Relationship between organizational culture, leadership behavior and job satisfaction. BMC health services research , 11 (1), 98.
