Introduction
People have varied perspectives on leadership, its style, mode of application and even the outcome of choices that define one as an effective leader. Overall, leadership is both a practical skill and an area that needs in-depth research, especially in understanding the frameworks and models required for success. It is practical in the sense that it encompasses the ability of a person or an entire organization. This ability extends further to the aforementioned entity’s prowess in leading or guiding other individuals or teams of whole organizations. However, Yukl (2001) posited that the attempt to bridge the gap between academics and managerial practitioners in an organizational setting is impeded by a discourse that is biased towards students of leadership at the expense of practicing managers. The need to focus on practicing managers is of critical importance as leadership has evolved into a global phenomenon. The diversity of global cultures correlates to different leadership perspectives and techniques. What proves effective in the Eastern context may not yield similar results in the West and vice versa, hence the need for flexibility to accommodate the shifting demands of leadership. One can argue that while emphasis should be placed on enabling practicing managers to be effective leaders, similar strategies should be used to equip students undertaking leadership training with relevant knowledge and skills needed for success in the fast shifting managerial and organizational contexts. This paper analyses some of the crucial concepts used by successful leaders and how organizational models can shape one’s leadership abilities.
Important Concepts in Successful Leadership
In this paper, three types of leadership concepts are identified, and they all merge to produce and complement a successful leader and overall positive personality that is needed for one to be an effective leader. Each concept has both its strength and weakness. Depending on a person’s personality traits and his or her likes and dislikes, an individual may flourish in one concept and be utterly clueless on the other. It implies the concepts of leadership can define a true leader regarding their chosen approach to practicing leadership effectively.
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The first concept identified in this paper is the situational leadership model . This leadership model was developed in 1970 by Ken Blanchard and Paul Hersey as an outcome of the work on organizational management behavior. The uniqueness of this model is the fact that there is no definite way to define the ultimate leadership style and that one cannot single out an overall effective leader in every area. It, however, shows that the basis of leadership is on the kind of tasks one does and that in performing these tasks the effectiveness of a leader can be measured.
According to Mujtaba and Sungkhawan (2011), situational leadership has significance in the management of diversity to ensure that productivity is prioritized over the management of personalities and biases that define the society and individuals. Based on this understanding, this model of leadership is chosen because it allows a leader to manage each situation as it develops. The choice is corroborated by the fact that the original situational leadership model was based on the relationship between leaders and followers, and serves as an overall framework that analyzes situations based on factors such as guidance amount and the direction that leaders give, social and emotional support that leaders provide, and the level of preparation seen in performing tasks that are unique, have an objective and are functional.
Therefore, leaders who are more attuned to situational leadership possess innate traits that are exhibited in their overall character. There are four critical and common attributes that every situational leader should have. These characteristics include diagnosis, adaptation, communication, and advancement. Diagnosis, in this case, means that as a situational leader, one has to influence the situation effectively through understanding and proper interpretation. Adaptation takes the form of adjusting behavior to match situational contingencies and other challenges that impede implementation of successful leadership. Communication helps in the interaction with other subordinates and helpful advisors to facilitate understanding and acceptance of situational circumstances. Effective implementation of all these steps is followed by advancement, whereby the leader needs to employ practical means in the management of the movement. With this kind of leadership, one learns the art of directing, coaching, support and delegation (Mujtaba & Sungkhawan, 2011). This leadership model is of particular importance in situations that matter and the ones that truly test the strength of character.
The second concept identified as an influencer of successful leadership is the organizational culture model . The exploration of the idea of organizational culture is linked to three theoretical perspectives of integration, differentiation, and fragmentation. Such approaches do not reflect in any way a black or white stance or a right and wrong approach but they reflect and express differing worldviews that show a distinct advantage and disadvantage on the efficiency of this concept. The focus of integration studies relies on the understanding that cultural aspects have the consistency to self-propagate and largely reinforce each other subsequently leading to a mutually symbiotic relationship. Therefore, in the presence of unwarranted deviations, the perspective on integration sees them as shortcomings and not weaknesses and effectively remedies them. This is an excellent trait to have when it comes to the development of effective leadership strategies. In having a leadership tendency that sees an opportunity in every weakness, most followers respect and value the direction in which their leaders take them. Moreover, the followers are more willing to partake in achieving the goals and covering the milestones set by such leaders. Overall, the organizational model defines a way in which members of different organizations relate to one another in their work and the outside world as opposed to other organizations and members. It is evident that task culture is the most suited leadership model in the concept of organizational culture. The task culture model allows the formation of teams to address a specific objective. Such teams are not defined by fixed power dynamics as leadership is dependent on the composition of the teams regarding skills and personalities. The task culture model allows learning in a team as leadership may be shared and can be a crucial platform for leaders who are new to the organization to understand the working culture of the organization.
Emerging evidence shows that organizational culture is becoming central to organizational performance not just in human resource management and alignment of employees and organizational goals, but also in aiding innovation, a critical aspect of organizational survival. According to Hogan and Coote (2014), Schein’s model is the best framework for understanding layers of organizational culture that include values and norms, behaviors, and artifacts. These factors can be influenced to support processes that aid innovation. Therefore, it is imperative that successful leaders must be knowledgeable about the micro and macro culture aspects of the organization they are responsible for to ensure that they act as agents of change to instill a culture that nurtures innovations for competitiveness and survival. Adoption of task culture model over other models such as power culture or person culture, which centralizes power on an individual, is the first important step to successful leadership using organizational culture model.
The Role of Organizational Models in Shaping Leadership Abilities
Analysis of different concepts of leadership can influence one’s perspective of what comprises successful leadership. The situational leadership model, when examined lightly, may fail to reflect the actual challenges faced by a leader using this approach. Situations are always difficult to manage, and the use of the model reveals the interconnection between leadership models. For instance, management of a situation may occur due to the need to assign or align tasks required for accomplishing a particular project. However, the process of doing so brings into perspective the importance of organizational culture which proves to be effective depending on the culture model to be adopted. Regardless of the leadership model chosen, it is evident that power dynamics rely heavily on Harrison’s (1972) organizational ideologies that are drivers of leadership namely: power orientation, orientation according to the role, task orientation, and the personal orientation. These beliefs are defined by high and low power centralizations and low and high formalization, implying that under specific organizational culture, a leader may lose their power if it interferes with goal accomplishment. For instance, Harrison posited that in task or achievement oriented leadership, nothing is allowed to hinder the process of accomplishing the task at hand. Any authority established to be an impediment is swept aside because the task is of fundamental importance.
Though ideologies such as power orientation and role orientation have high centralization of power, they are not a guarantee to successful leadership. Power is sometimes necessary, but not in instances where collaborative decision making is needed to accomplish a particular task. Even the most authoritarian leaders can find their wings clipped in organizational cultures that encourage task or achievement orientation. On the other hand, such leaders can thrive in settings where power orientation is acceptable, but they face the risk of failure because such an approach serves to entrench the status quo locking the doors to the much-needed change. However, the situational and organizational culture concepts both highlight the need for a culture that breeds mutual trust between an individual and the organization. Under such contexts, people get a sense of being valued as human beings and not just components of the system.
Analysis of Personal Leadership Skills
Questions on leadership present leadership enthusiasts with a thirsting awareness to know and discern the inherent attributes that great leaders possess. Is it the courage of a leader that makes them exceptional or is it their business acumen, ability to organize or expert knowledge? The level 5 leadership framework identifies different levels in which a leader has to present themselves to develop an integrity that serves to elevate their status to a level that brings success and operational achievement. In these levels are my strengths as a leader. Level one of the five levels leadership certification comprises of individuals with high capabilities. Not only does this portray my strengths, but it also underscores the ability I have on utilizing highly calculable and focused talent. I understand the need for quality contributions as a leader in my work and achieving the status of a successful leader. The framework has also enabled me to recognize my strength as a skilled contributor as I am not only competent in giving directions and guidance, but also in working in a team. I am confident that I can perform exceptionally where leadership concepts discussed herein apply, especially in task orientation where power dynamics are undefined.
The 5 level leadership framework has also enabled me to recognize the importance of an inspirational leader in building mutual trust with subordinates and team members. However, one should be aware that technical or other contributions are mandatory for one to inspire their team or else they will be found lacking and wanting and may face difficulty in enforcing their leadership concepts. I have also demonstrated competency levels required of a leader as per the framework, as showcased by my ability to organize groups and effectively guide the process of goal attainment on schedule using allocated resources while demonstrating exceptional levels of professionalism. I believe that this particular strength is what every leader needs because, at the end of the day, they need to exert their leadership authority regardless of the organizational culture of leadership model they are using. I have also demonstrated the ability to develop clear objectives informed by a clear vision of the goals to be achieved, a strength I believe is crucial especially in settings where a leader is needed to be a change agent, a predicament faced by most organizational leaders in the modern era because they are focused on transforming and survival through organizational culture that perpetrates innovation.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the one concept that I relied on the most was the one on situational leadership. Since we live in a highly dynamic and drastically progressive world where the lines are not always drawn definitively, changes have become part and parcel of organizational life. As such, situational leadership teaches the importance of maintaining acute awareness that has repeatedly proven significant in the creation of strengths that immensely boost areas of high performance in organizations and other sectors. In addition, situational leadership aids in providing conducive and highly effective conversational build up and as such creates excellent relations with followers, which in turn makes the process of delegation simple and straight to the point. This helped immensely in building me up as a leader in that I was able to culture a personality that epitomized sound leadership skills. Therefore, this concept largely helped me in leveraging my strength as a charismatic leader who values skillful contribution and as such effects inspirational leadership and an overall positive mentality of achievement. On the same note, this concept has aided me in the minimization of weaknesses such as cognitive dissonance that leads a person to reluctance in making certain important and highly influential decisions.
References
Harrison, R. (1972). Understanding your organization’s character (pp. 119-28). Vol. 50, May/June 1972: Harvard Business Review.
Hogan, S. J., & Coote, L. V. (2014). Organizational culture, innovation, and performance: A test of Schein's model. Journal of Business Research , 67 (8), 1609-1621.
Mujtaba, B. G., & Sungkhawan, J. (2011). Situational leadership and diversity management coaching skills. Journal of Diversity Management (JDM) , 4 (1), 1-12.
Yukl, G. A. (2001). Leadership in organizations. National College for School of Leadership. Retrieved 15/06/2017 from: http://www.academia.edu/download/26015119/media-f7b-97-randd-leaders-business-yukl.pdf
