Organisational Leadership to be in Vogue
Many people today are seeking to understand -- and many people are writing about -- the concepts and practices of leadership. There are a great many reasons for the strong popularity of the topic, including that people, groups and organizations are faced with changes like never before. Effective leadership is required to understand and navigate through the many changes.
There has been an explosion of literature about leadership lately. Leading is a very human activity -- we're all human -- so there are many people who consider themselves experts on leadership. Unfortunately, many people make strong assertions about leadership without ever really understanding a great deal about leadership. Understanding leadership requires more than reading a few articles or fantasizing about what great leaders should be. The contents of this topic aim to give the reader a broad understanding of the background, contexts and approaches to leadership.
The particular competencies (knowledge, skills and abilities) or qualities that a person needs in order to lead at a particular time in an organization depend on a variety of factors, including:
Whether that person is leading one other individual, a group or a large organization;
The extent of leadership skills that person already has;
That person's basic nature and values (competencies should be chosen that are in accordance with that nature and those values);
Whether the group or organization is for-profit or nonprofit, new or long-established, and large or small;
The particular culture (or values and associated behaviors) of whomever is being led
The above considerations can make it very challenging when trying to determine what competencies someone should have in order to be a better leader. Perhaps that's why leadership training programs in institutions typically assert a set of standard competencies, for example, decision making, problem solving, managing power and influence, and building trust.
If the reader had the opportunity to review a variety of leadership development programs, he or she would notice a wide variety of approaches to categorizing topics. Don't get hung up on the "right" way to categorize the topics.
Leading in successively larger contexts (from individuals to groups to organization-wide efforts) requires successively larger sets of competencies. For example, "core" competencies are the minimum needed in leading others, whether other individuals, in groups or organization-wide efforts. To really be effective at leading other individuals, one should have the core competencies plus certain other competencies to lead individuals
Leadership Styles
In theory, the ideal scenario is for a leader to have infinite flexibility. That means you are able to adapt your leadership style according to the situation and/or the state of the team - eg: to be an executive leader when a team is Forming but to be a participative leader when a team is Performing.
This need to change one's leadership style according to the circumstances is one of the fundamental principles underlying popular models such as Situational.
However, modern leadership theory has begun to realize that the perfect, flexible leader does not exist. Everyone has strengths and weakness, and there is a need to strike a balance using the individual's preferred styles and meeting the needs of the situation. The modern goal is to develop 'good enough' leadership.
The former is driven by need, the latter by talent. Organizations need leaders who will support the organizational culture and aims. For them, therefore, leadership development involves:
Identifying the leadership characteristics and/or profile of people who will enhance organizational performance
Selecting/recruiting individuals whose character, skills and potential closely match that profile
Developing the particular skills/abilities within those individuals so they can fulfil their leadership potential within the organization
For example, leadership in the emergency services requires strong executive and management skills. However, if you, as an individual, are seeking to develop into a position of leadership then you need to build on your own natural talents - trying to be a type of leader that is unnatural for you can lead to stress, executive burnout and poor performance. That is, you need to:
Discover your natural leadership style and qualities
Develop those qualities into tangible skills
Find a role or organization that matches your leadership talents, where what you have to offer will be valued.
It is better to be a conservative rather than liberal spender.
It is better to be feared than loved. One can be feared without being hated.
The end justifies the means.
Cunningness is preferable to integrity.
Take opportunities to give dramatic rewards or punishments so they will be talked about.
Offer help to parties that are less powerful than you.
Do not take common cause with parties more powerful than you.
Use counselors that are truthful, but who have a narrow focus.
Acting impetuously is preferable to cautiously.
Seek a reputation of severity instead of softness.
Use care not to offend the powerful or those subservient to you.
Many people today are seeking to understand -- and many people are writing about -- the concepts and practices of leadership. There are a great many reasons for the strong popularity of the topic, including that people, groups and organizations are faced with changes like never before. Effective leadership is required to understand and navigate through the many changes.
There has been an explosion of literature about leadership lately. Leading is a very human activity -- we're all human -- so there are many people who consider themselves experts on leadership. Unfortunately, many people make strong assertions about leadership without ever really understanding a great deal about leadership. Understanding leadership requires more than reading a few articles or fantasizing about what great leaders should be. The contents of this topic aim to give the reader a broad understanding of the background, contexts and approaches to leadership.
The particular competencies (knowledge, skills and abilities) or qualities that a person needs in order to lead at a particular time in an organization depend on a variety of factors, including:
Whether that person is leading one other individual, a group or a large organization;
The extent of leadership skills that person already has;
That person's basic nature and values (competencies should be chosen that are in accordance with that nature and those values);
Whether the group or organization is for-profit or nonprofit, new or long-established, and large or small;
The particular culture (or values and associated behaviors) of whomever is being led
The above considerations can make it very challenging when trying to determine what competencies someone should have in order to be a better leader. Perhaps that's why leadership training programs in institutions typically assert a set of standard competencies, for example, decision making, problem solving, managing power and influence, and building trust.
If the reader had the opportunity to review a variety of leadership development programs, he or she would notice a wide variety of approaches to categorizing topics. Don't get hung up on the "right" way to categorize the topics.
Leading in successively larger contexts (from individuals to groups to organization-wide efforts) requires successively larger sets of competencies. For example, "core" competencies are the minimum needed in leading others, whether other individuals, in groups or organization-wide efforts. To really be effective at leading other individuals, one should have the core competencies plus certain other competencies to lead individuals
Leadership Styles
In theory, the ideal scenario is for a leader to have infinite flexibility. That means you are able to adapt your leadership style according to the situation and/or the state of the team - eg: to be an executive leader when a team is Forming but to be a participative leader when a team is Performing.
This need to change one's leadership style according to the circumstances is one of the fundamental principles underlying popular models such as Situational.
However, modern leadership theory has begun to realize that the perfect, flexible leader does not exist. Everyone has strengths and weakness, and there is a need to strike a balance using the individual's preferred styles and meeting the needs of the situation. The modern goal is to develop 'good enough' leadership.
The former is driven by need, the latter by talent. Organizations need leaders who will support the organizational culture and aims. For them, therefore, leadership development involves:
Identifying the leadership characteristics and/or profile of people who will enhance organizational performance
Selecting/recruiting individuals whose character, skills and potential closely match that profile
Developing the particular skills/abilities within those individuals so they can fulfil their leadership potential within the organization
For example, leadership in the emergency services requires strong executive and management skills. However, if you, as an individual, are seeking to develop into a position of leadership then you need to build on your own natural talents - trying to be a type of leader that is unnatural for you can lead to stress, executive burnout and poor performance. That is, you need to:
Discover your natural leadership style and qualities
Develop those qualities into tangible skills
Find a role or organization that matches your leadership talents, where what you have to offer will be valued.
It is better to be a conservative rather than liberal spender.
It is better to be feared than loved. One can be feared without being hated.
The end justifies the means.
Cunningness is preferable to integrity.
Take opportunities to give dramatic rewards or punishments so they will be talked about.
Offer help to parties that are less powerful than you.
Do not take common cause with parties more powerful than you.
Use counselors that are truthful, but who have a narrow focus.
Acting impetuously is preferable to cautiously.
Seek a reputation of severity instead of softness.
Use care not to offend the powerful or those subservient to you.