19 Aug 2022

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Narcissistic Leadership: Everything You Need to Know

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Introduction 

Leadership is one of the critical factors that determine the success of any organization, regardless of whether it is private or public. It is through leadership that the management of an organization can enhance efficiency which achieving the set goals and objectives. Thus, effective management skills rely a lot on the management style of a manager. However, people have different leadership styles, which are mainly influenced by the behavior and personality of individuals. It is, therefore, possible for leaders working in the same department to have different leadership styles. Some of the most common leadership styles are narcissistic and covenant, which always contrasts one another, particularly based on the trait of a leader. It is important to understand the traits of the two leadership style to help in differentiating them and some of the possible impact they have in an organization. Unlike covenant leadership, people always have a negative perception on narcissistic leaders, even though they may have some benefits to followers and the organization that they lead. Although narcissistic and covenant leaders differ regarding traits, they have both positive and native impact on an organization, even though the latter is more favored than the former leadership style. 

Narcissistic Leadership 

Narcissism, which is mainly characterized by self-love and view, is increasingly becoming one of the major leadership styles that is embraced in many parts of the world. Narcissistic leadership style is particularly becoming popular in individualized western countries that initially opposed it as a bad type of leadership. Currently, a significant number of people associate narcissistic with prototypical leaders because of some of its favorable characteristics such as confidence and extraversion, which are admirable. Although narcissistic leadership seems to be new, the concept of narcissism can be traced back to more than a century ago when scholars like Freud first introduced it. According to recent statistics, narcissism is increasing among young adults across the globe ( Nevicka et al ., 2018) . The election of the current US president, Donald Trump, in 2016, was a clear indication that narcissism is now embraced in modern society. Thus, it is necessary to explore narcissistic leadership style, especially its common characteristics or traits and impact on the society. 

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Narcissistic leaders are believed to have many negative traits that may affect the interpersonal relationship and the overall performance of an organization. Some of the major traits of a narcissistic leader include lack of empathy, high sense of entitlement, excessive desire to be admired by others, and not willing and ready to take any kind of criticism, even when it is constructive and useful to an organization or a team of followers ( Nevicka et al ., 2018) . Narcissistic leaders have strong desires to be admired, and they strive to attract other people through various tactics. To attract admiration from others, narcissistic leaders always strive to perfect their communication and articulation skills while at the same time focusing on personal physical appearance. According to Mayfield and Mayfield (2017), although the trait can be perceived negatively by some people, it makes narcissistic to be skillful orators who can communicate effectively. Clear and effective communication is vital in any leadership style ( De Vries, Bakker-Pieper & Oostenveld, 2010) . At the same time, narcissistic leaders are known to be people who are not receptive to criticism. Mostly, narcissistic leaders are highly sensitive, particularly to harsh criticism. They are not able to easily tolerate constructive criticism, including dissenting opinion. In some cases, narcissistic leaders do not tolerate people who speak negative opinions. Interestingly, narcissistic leaders are excessively critical of other people because of their desires to achieve perfection. 

However, some positive traits are possessed by narcissistic leaders. First, they are known to show a high level of consistency because they have a strong set of values and principles that they strictly adhere to regardless of the situation. Secondly, narcissistic leaders are visionary, as they are often able to see the bigger picture. Many narcissistic leaders can see the future and set a clear vision. Thirdly, they are determined to leave behind a strong legacy, which may enhance the growth of a group or organization ( Nevicka et al ., 2018) . Despite the positive traits, the habit of narcissistic leaders to be self-centered and seek for dominance predisposes them to be bad leaders who are abusive and destructive. Thus, many narcissistic leaders always show hostile verbal and non-verbal behaviors. Based on the analysis of the traits of narcissistic leaders, narcissism can have both positive and negative impact on the organization, including followers. 

Covenant Leadership 

The concept of covenant leadership is mainly associated with biblical teaching. Specifically, the covenantal leadership style is based on the Old Testament that talks about a shared community. The leadership style is attributed to Moses Pava who argued that is lives always interconnected and that the responsibility of an individual extends to the larger community or society. Also, Pava maintained that people have a moral and ethical obligation to one another ( Fischer, 2017) . The leadership style is based on the notion that a leader and his or her followers should have a covenant in which each has a responsibility and duty to one another. A covenant is a relationship that is primarily based on mutual respect and respect, including values and virtues that make individuals be bond together, particularly by an ethical purpose. Covenant leadership style, therefore, is not only based on ethical responsibility but it also involves the establishment of a covenant between leaders and their followers ( Fischer, 2017) . Covenant leaders have a sacred duty to their followers and working towards achieving their interests. 

First, one of the main traits of a covenant leader is the duty and responsibility to serve others. The main responsibility of a servant leader is to serve followers and be accountable to them. Covenant leaders are dedicated to serve, empower, and develop followers. Covenant leaders accept that every individual is unique and people should be treated with a lot of dignity and respect. Covenant leaders are ready to serve followers to guide them toward realizing their potential. Covenant leadership is mainly based on serving others ( Fischer, 2017). The second trait of a covenant leader is mutual accountability and care. To achieve mutual accountability, covenant leaders embrace a participative decision-making process by ensuring that every follower has a meaningful contribution to the decisions made and the success of the organization or team. Leading by example is the third major trait of a covenant leader. Covenant leaders lead in doing what is expected of followers, specifically by exemplifying their values and virtues while employees to embrace and practice integrity ( Fischer, 2017) . 

Also, covenant leaders constantly teach followers because they believe that is the best way to enhance improvement and encourage people to succeed. Besides, they believe that providing timely feedback and coaching followers is essential for personal and organizational growth. Apart from teaching, covenant leaders empower followers, primarily by providing enough resources as well as authority that are required to achieve the set goals and objectives ( Fischer, 2017) . Further, according to Fischer (2017), e mpowering followers is an ethical obligation of a covenant leader because it enhances success. Also, covenant leadership is based on honesty and truth, including humility. Thus, the trait of covenant leaders and narcissistic leaders are contrasting because the former is people-based while the latter is individual-based. A covenant leader is focusing on serving the needs and interests of others while a narcissistic leader is mainly pursuing personal interests and he or she is incentives to the needs of others. 

The Organizational Impact of Narcissistic leaders and Covenant Leaders 

Narcissistic leaders have a significant impact on employees in an organization, mainly because of negative perception attributed to their leadership styles. Narcissistic leaders always affect the productivity of employees in an organization because they are insensitive to the motions and needs of employees, leading to counterproductive work behaviors in the workplace ( Braun, 2017) . The leaders also have low engagement tendencies, and employees are not always willing to share their thoughts and ideas, which may delay decision-making and reduce creativity and innovation in an organization. Thus, narcissistic leaders undermine innovative behaviors in the organization, which may hinder success and sustainability. Therefore, narcissistic leaders have a negative impact on employee outcome. However, some employees have been able to succeed under narcissistic leadership. Employees who can exercise personal control under narcissistic leadership have managed to achieve a successful career growth ( Nevicka et al ., 2011) . The relationship between narcissistic leaders and employees in an organization is always tense, and this may end up affecting productivity and overall success. 

Teamwork is a critical factor that has a substantial influence on the success of any organization across the globe. Nonetheless, teamwork requires sound leadership. Narcissistic leaders often emerge as leaders in a team because of the strong desire to lead others and leave a strong legacy that can satisfy their egos. Narcissistic leaders, however, do not achieve any significant success in a team because of the poor interpersonal relationship and unwillingness to listen and embrace the divergent opinion of team members ( Braun, 2017) . Narcissistic leaders, despite the strong desire to lead teams to success, do not encourage the culture of teamwork in an organization. 

Narcissistic leaders may help organizations to take some risk that can result in organizational success. Narcissistic leaders are always willing to take risks, even though they may not be ready to accept opportunity losses ( Braun, 2017) . Their strong in-group orientation mainly influences the desire to take risks. According to Braun (2017), t aking appropriate risks may make an organization to succeed. Nevertheless, the risk-taking must be strategic and viable. Lack of clear goals and objectives among narcissistic leaders can be a challenge when it comes to risk-taking in an organization. Hence, the desire by narcissistic leaders to take risks can lead to the success or failure of an organization. 

Narcissistic leaders can improve organizational image significantly. The actions of narcissistic leaders are always outward oriented. They are more likely to engage in activities that that enhances the organization's external image. For instance, to improve their moral feeling of superiority, narcissistic leaders are more likely to engage in corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices, which are increasingly becoming important in the modern business environment. Consequently, narcissistic leaders can improve the earnings-per-share (EPS), as well as stock prices, resulting in the success of an organization ( Braun, 2017) . However, the outward orientation of narcissistic leaders makes them be insensitive to the needs and interests of shareholders in an organization. Narcissistic leaders have both positive and negative impact on an organization. 

Like narcissistic leaders, covenant leaders also have a substantial impact on organizations that they lead. Covenant leaders can create purpose and momentum in an organization, leading to long-term and sustainable success. Unlike narcissistic leaders, covenant leaders can gain the trust and respect of employees in an organization while at the same time providing them with a common mission and vision that are required to give clear direction ( Fredah & Perkins, 2012) . Fredah and Perkins (2012) point out that e ngaging employees in key decision-making help in creating a common purpose and collective responsibility that enhance the success of an organization. Also, covenant leaders can create a common purpose in an organization by building synergy, particularly by acknowledging the work and contribution of other players like employees and managers. Covenant leaders, therefore, can lead employees towards the achievement of a common goal, leading to the success of an organization. 

Covenant leaders can attract highly qualified and competent employees to an organization while reducing turnover significantly. Covenant leaders can understand the worth, abilities, and skills of every employee in an organization. Besides, they motivate employees to utilize their gifts and abilities to achieve their potential, as well as their performance in the organization ( Moisan, 2004) . Acknowledging or recognizing the abilities and contribution of others is one of the most effective motivation strategies that leaders can use to enhance the success of an organization. By contrast, narcissistic leaders can rarely recognize the contribution of employees in an organization, leading to poor motivation. Humility is a trait that makes covenant leaders recognize the abilities and contribution of employees in an organization ( Moisan, 2004) . 

Covenant leaders also create a positive and favorable working environment in an organization. Employees always feel that their needs and interests are addressed when they are working under a covenant leader. Employees are always free to share their thoughts and ideas with others, including the manager or leaders. At the same time, a covenant leader ensures that employees can access all the resources that they need to accomplish the assigned tasks and responsibilities. According to the findings of a study that was conducted by Lankeshwara (2016), the work environment has a significant influence on the performance of employees in an organization. Also, employees are motivated to achieve the set goals and objectives when they can get appropriate supervisory support and relevant resources that are needed to accomplish the assigned task (Cui & Hu, 2012). Covenant leaders can provide favorable working and support that are required to improve the performance of employees. 

Also, covenant leaders are likely to create a culture of accountability and transparency in an organization. Covenant leaders always encourage their followers to be accountable for their actions and decisions and encourage them to take personal responsibility. Employees are likely to make the right and ethical decisions when accountability culture is cultivated in the organization ( Moisan, 2004). As a result, the organization is not likely to face many noncompliance issues that may be costly and leads to a negative organizational image. However, covenant leadership style is not effective in the time of emergency because it hinders quick decision-making. Thus, the leadership style does not apply in some situations. 

Covenant Leadership Development Plan in the Organization 

The above analysis shows that narcissistic is not one of the best leadership styles. Therefore, as a chief of police in large local police organization, I would like to change the leadership style from narcissistic and covenant. The first step that I will take to implement covenant leadership in the organization is to make my followers or employees recognize, understand, and internalize that the previous leadership style was not correct and it should be changed to covenant leadership style, which is effective and highly beneficial. Sometimes it is not easy to change the status quo or the culture that already exists in an organization. Even though narcissistic leadership is largely perceived to be ineffective, it may be embraced by some people in the police organization. Hence, to avoid resistance while developing covenant leadership, I will involve employees in the leadership change process. 

Secondly, I will encourage employees to embrace the covenant of honesty among themselves to reduce misunderstanding and possible conflict that can emerge in the police organization. Honesty or truth is one of the virtues that every Christian should embrace, and it is one of the main concepts that are taught in the Bible. Employees in the organization will be encouraged to honestly share their feelings, thoughts, and opinion and be able, to tell the truth, all the time. Besides, I will create a communal working environment where people are encouraged to work in a team to achieve a common purpose. The police department requires a lot of teamwork ( Dean & Gottschalk, 2013) . Therefore, as a leader in the police organization, I will strive to lead by examples by striving to have a beneficial and effective interpersonal relationship with employees. Employees will be encouraged to be free with one another and be ready to work together. 

Also, I will empower employees and give them the authority to make independent decisions, especially when they faced situations that require immediate attention. Based on Christian principles, all human beings are equal before God, and they have equal abilities ( Kohm, 2008) . Therefore, even though I am the chief police officer, I believe that junior officers can make logical and rational decisions. Junior police officers will have the freedom to make their own decisions without consulting their leaders ( Flynn & Herrington, 2015) . However, they will be held accountable for their choices. Besides, employees will be encouraged to embrace divergent or dissenting opinion. I will also help employees in the organization to freely voice their concerns, even if I may not agree with them on some issues. I believe that the covenant leadership style will enhance the success of the organization. 

Conclusion 

People have different leadership styles, which are primarily influenced by their personality and environment. Narcissistic leadership style is not always approved by many people, even though it can be applied successfully in some circumstances or situations. Covenant leadership style, on the other hand, is approved and embraced by many people because of its many positive characteristics. Narcissistic leadership style has a significant negative impact on the organization, although it improves the organizational image. On the contrary, covenant leadership style has many benefits to an organization. Leaders should use an appropriate leadership style that fit a given situation to enhance the success of an organization. 

References 

Braun, S. (2017). Leader narcissism and outcomes in organizations: a review at multiple levels of analysis and implications for future research. Frontiers in Psychology , 8(2)

Cui, X., & Hu, J. (2012). A literature review on organization culture and corporate performance. International Journal of Business Administration , 3 (2), 28-38. 

De Vries, R. E., Bakker-Pieper, A., & Oostenveld, W. (2010). Leadership= communication? The relations of leaders' communication styles with leadership styles, knowledge sharing, and leadership outcomes. Journal of business and psychology , 25 (3), 367-380. 

Dean, G., & Gottschalk, P. (2013). Police leadership roles: An empirical study of management attitudes. International Journal of Law and Management , 55 (4), 304-317. 

Fischer, K. J. (2017). The Power of the Covenant Idea for Leadership, Reform, and Ethical Behavior. The Journal of Values-Based Leadership , 10 (2), 13-18. 

Flynn, E. A., & Herrington, V. (2015). New Perspectives in Policing . Retrieved from https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/248573.pdf 

Fredah, M. B. A., & Perkins, V. (2012). Narcissism in Organizational Leadership. Cell , 269(4) , 250-0773. 

Kohm, L. M. (2008). A Christian perspective on gender equality. Duke J. Gender L. & Pol'y , 15(3) , 339-363. 

Lankeshwara, P. (2016). A study on the impact of workplace environment on employee’s performance: With reference to the Brandix Intimate Apparel-Awissawella. International Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies , 3 (1). 

Mayfield, J., & Mayfield, M. (2017). Leadership communication: Reflecting, engaging, and innovating. International Journal of Business Communication , 54(1). 

Moisan, L. J. (2004). Leadership is a covenant. Journal of Business Disciplines , 2(1) , 1527-1151. 

Nevicka, B., De Hoogh, A. H., Den Hartog, D. N., & Belschak, F. D. (2018). Narcissistic leaders and their victims: followers low on self-esteem and low on core self-evaluations suffer most. Frontiers in psychology , 9 (3). 

Nevicka, B., Ten Velden, F. S., De Hoogh, A. H., & Van Vianen, A. E. (2011). Reality at odds with perceptions: Narcissistic leaders and group performance. Psychological Science , 22 (10), 1259-1264. 

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StudyBounty. (2023, September 15). Narcissistic Leadership: Everything You Need to Know.
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