leadership and management blog
UNIT 4 ASSIGMENT 1 LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT BLOG
Introduction
This is a blog discussing leadership and management styles, theories, the advantages disadvantages, different organizational cultures, soft skills and hard skills of leadership and management, and evaluating / criticizing different theory approaches, to organizations today.
Definition of leadership and management
According to Cambridge university leadership is: “the quality or ability that makes a person a leader, or the position of being a leader:”
According to Cambridge university management is: "the group of people responsible for controlling and organizing a company:”
Difference between leadership and management
Leadership is a role which consists of creating a vision for future endeavors and a plan on how to reach them. This must be communicated in a way in which others (employees) are bought in on the ideas, lastly creating an environment that motivates people to want to make those endeavors a reality.
However, management is a role which consists of organizing, staffing, budgeting, planning and problem solving. Taking an organization or a system and making it operate in the way it is supposed to operate and producing goods or services on time as it is intended to be.
Soft vs hard skills
Hard skills can be taught and are based more on technique and skill , e.g., Data analysis, digital marketing and app development. Soft skills, however, are based more on communication e.g. listening skills, team building, and character growth.
Hard skills management
Hard skills of management which are based on skill and technique are e.g., computer skills, being able to operate Microsoft word, excel, social media, typing. Project management hard skills e.g. precise planning, correct budgeting, and scheduling. HR hard skills e.g., employee performance review, payroll and hiring.
Soft skills management
Soft skills of management include communication, e.g., being able to communicate effectively and efficiently with employees, Teamwork, e.g., being able to ensure employees work well together in order to reach a set target. Problem solving e.g., be able to find an effective solution to any issues that may arise. Empathy e.g., be able to prioritize employee well-being over work.
Hard skills leadership
Hard leadership is based on competitiveness, being data-driven and short-term focused. Demanding compliance over free thinking. Also, rules must always be followed without exceptions, and power is enforced over employee relationships.
Soft skills leadership
Soft leadership can be defined as setting goals, influencing employees through encouragement, building strong teams, recognizing employee failure, giving constant motivation to boost employee morale, showing appreciation to employee efforts so they can continue to work harder.
Classical Theorists leadership
Theorist | Leadership Theory |
Burns | Transformational: a transformational leader focuses on transforming others to support one another in the workplace. To encourage, help support and motivate each other and show care to the organization. This leadership style focuses particularly on lifting the mood, motivation and performance of employees. e.g. at big corporations like Google for example this leadership style is used to help employees make the most of their potential within the workplace . This style is most suitable for an organization like google as it relies heavily on only having the highest level of performing workers , only leaving motivation and encouragement as the factors needed to give them an extra push to perform optimally. The problem with transformational leaderships is that it can lead to burn out for employees , leaders can end up practising favouritism by prioritising to work with the higher achieving employees over less achieving ones. According to regent university 'studies have also shown that transformational leadership impacts certain characteristics related to the follower such as empowerment, commitment, self-efficacy beliefs, job satisfaction, trust, and motivation.' ‘bgreg1974’ (2009) Burns' Transformational Leadership Theory. 25 Jul. available at:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwazqM0agys&t=51s (Accessed: 2022). reference this!
|
Bennis, Bass | Transactional: transactional leadership is a leadership style where the superior uses rewards and punishment for employees perform at a high standard. HP is an organisation that practises transactional leadership by awarding employees based on performance. Advantages are that it is a system that is easy for employees to comprehend , it also creates a sense of fairness for employees as they are responsible for any reward they get.
Disadvantages may be that not all rewards given will satisfy all employees , it does not offer effective leadership development for employees with plans on becoming future leaders , too much focus on short term targets meaning no long term plans are in place for organization longevity. In Econstor's journal article it states that 'The penalties, awarded in such a system of managing by exception, have a negative impact on performance and satisfaction. This stems from the fact the leader passively awaits problems before taking any action. By following this strategy, the leader ensures that corrective action is taken when required and in doing so he reinforces the roles and expectations for the followers. Hence, this behaviour represents an important aspect of transactional leadership .' (Bass 1990)
‘MakeMyAssignments.com’(2018) What is Transactional Leadership?.24 Dec. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPwoUO9D54U (Accessed :2022).
reference this!
|
Fielder, Vroom and Yetton, Hersey and Blanchard | Situational/Contingency:
The situational leadership relies on adjusting your leadership style based on employee's needs, instead of your own preferred style.
The contingency theory of leadership states that a leader's effectiveness depends on whether their style suits a particular situation, according to this theory one can be an effective leader in one scenario but not in others. An example is Jack Stahl president of Coca-Cola 1978-2000 applied this leadership style during his time there, after a project failed he realised that it was necessary to adapt to the current situation they were facing and create a plan of action from there.
According to management study guide 'The situation leadership model encourages managers to flexibly use their leadership style based on the situation and thus achieve effective results. Both at the middle managerial level where leaders work closely with people and at higher managerial level where leaders are responsible to a number of people, their approach has an impact on the motivational levels of the organization.' ‘Patricia Jenkinson’(2018) Hersey & Blanchard Situational Leadership style (SLT). 26 Nov. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bAuwgjmF5xc&t=105s (Accessed:2022).
‘Study.com’(2013) Contingency Theory: Definition and Significance to Organizational Behavior .31 Dec. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lCbDRM1IvZY (Accessed:2022) reference this!
|
Conger, Kanungo | Charismatic: The charismatic leadership is a style which has a foundation of good communication skills, persuasiveness, and an element of desirability for the leader to get the best and most that they can out of their employees. An example of an organization that uses transformational leadership is Tesla, the CEO Elon Musk uses characteristics of the transformational leadership style by setting high goals some to even the expectations that it might be impossible. He inspires, motivates and wants others to join him in his journey to keep building & transforming tesla. Elon himself said stated: “People work better when they know what the goal is and why. Advantages are it increases motivation, giving employees a sense of purpose when completing tasks and doing work. Another is that it teaches a form of discipline encouraging employees to always do tasks to the highest quality possible irrespective of mood. On the other hand, there are some disadvantages, e.g., employees feeling that the leader of the organization may set standards too high due to them being driven towards achieving certain targets. Another disadvantage is due to the high performance being put in with work, employees may feel overworked due to not having a healthy work life balance, which in the long term can cause employees to leave and seek less strenuous work elsewhere. According to Duan Hansen it was stated that 'research has shown that followers of charismatic leaders exhibit a sense of group identity (Conger et al., 2000) and that charismatic leaders are able to inspire, motivate, stimulate, and individualize their followers (Dvir et al., 2002). These findings emphasize the individual effects of emotional attachment to the leader and the increased resulting sense of achievement motivation .'
TechnoFunc (2020) Charismatic theory. Available at: https://www.technofunc.com/index.php/leadership-skills-2/leadership-theories/item/charismatic-theory#:~:text=Charismatic%20leadership%20is%20a%20trait,using%20their%20charm%20and%20persuasiveness. (Accessed 2022)
|
Goleman's six styles | Also known as Goleman's the six styles of leadership. Style one coercive leadership, which is a style that is used when a problem needs to be fixed quickly e.g., having to deliver bad news or having to terminate an employee from an organization. Advantages of this style are that work will get done immediately, it also creates an environment where regulations are taken seriously, coercive leaders will appoint appropriate people to suitable positions. Disadvantages however are that coercive leaders will not be highly rated by employees on a personal level, high employee turn over as this style prioritises productivity over employee benefits.
Style two is authoritative style where the leader would give a clear goal and target that needs to be met, however leaves the rest to the employees and expects them to get it done however they deem fit. Advantages of this are they provide a clear goal and vision for employees so they are aware of what tasks need to be done , another advantage is they motivate and inspire employees to reach the specific goals that have been set. Disadvantages are that this style can make employees go against orders due to the nature of how authority communicates to employees. Another disadvantage is that employee morale can be low in the case where ideas are not considered by the party in charge. Style three is the affiliative style in which the leader puts emphasise on giving positive feedback to employees, with little to almost no critical feedback.
Style four is democratic leadership style is when employees' ideas and opinions on certain topics / situations are considered making the organization more relaxed and ambient.
Style five is the pacesetting leadership style is when you set a good example to employees of standards that should be met on a regular basis. In turn expecting the same standard to be reciprocated by them.
Style six is the coaching leadership style, is where management works closer with employees by providing one-to-one support giving extra support to help employees perform better in their work.
Personio (no date) The 6 Goleman Leadership Styles: Which Is Yours? . Available at : https://www.personio.com/hr-lexicon/six-goleman-leadership-styles/ (Accessed 2022)
|
How Classical Theorists leadership theories would apply in the workplace
Situational leadership style | In the workplace situational leadership would consist of superiors within an organization communicating regularly with employees, therefore creating a better work environment and giving employees a feeling of importance. This theory would not be as effective in an organization like Netflix because ,within ‘the keepers test’ Netflix managers reassess employees' performances and decide whether they would fire them or not based on the value they bring to the company. If they bring a good level of value to the company they keep their job, however if they have not contributed enough to set standards, they are at high risk of losing their job. the situational style would be too unpredictable for Netflix , and employees would constantly be changing work patterns making it completely counter productive for them.
Better up (2022) Situational leadership: What it is and how to build it. Available at: https://www.betterup.com/blog/situational-leadership-examples (Accessed 2022)
|
Transformational leadership style | This leadership style would be shown in an example of a manager who is adamant about change happening within the workplace, however also working closely with employees aiding them to make sure set targets of change are met.
Call of the wild (2017) How to Apply Transformational Leadership Skills at Your Company. Available at:
|
Inspirational leadership style | The inspirational leadership style would be shown where a manager would be devoted to helping employees develop their skills and performance within the workplace and applying methods learnt outside of the workplace.
Indeed (2020) How To Practice Inspirational Leadership. Available at:
|
Schmidt /Tannenbaum theory
The Tannenbaum and Schmidt continuum shows the relationship between the freedom that a manager chooses to give a team, and the level of authority used by the manager. As the team's freedom goes up, then the manager's authority goes down.
Classical theorists management
Henri Fayol 14 principles of management
Division of work
Henri believed that division of work was vital in the workplace, as this allowed work to be done to a high standard. Which in turn improves the speed, accuracy and quality of work being done. This principle applied to people of all levels within the hierarchal ladder of the organization.
Authority & responsibility
This principle has two parts, one being authority, meaning the power to able to take decisions. On the other hand, the responsibility which is being obligated to complete a task that has been given to you. These two go hand in hand as management are required to be able to take decisions & also be able to give out tasks to be completed by subordinates within the organization, leaving the subordinate to have accountability for any task that is incomplete or any decision that has not been followed.
Discipline
Fayol believed discipline to be the foundation of an organization, without this nothing could be achieved. Also, he tied in good etiquette and performance contributing to the job being easier to understand. Lastly employees with good etiquette and performance can progress quicker in their careers.
Unit of command
This principle basically states that an employee must follow one manager and only that manager. Multiple managers can create confusion for the employee.
Unity of direction
This principle states that management / employees working in the same job / department must all have an equal target / goal to reach, meaning all must aid each other in order to reach that goal or target in turn making work easier.
Collective interest of individual interest
This principle states that personal interest must be put aside, the organization must all work together to achieve one goal unitedly for the purpose of the organization only.
Remuneration
Fayol believed that a person must be rewarded according to how much effort / work they have done. E.g., if you have worked hard enough to earn a promotion you will earn it.
Centralization
This principle explains that any management/ authority responsible for the decision-making process must remain neutral. However, this may depend on the size of an organization
Scalar chain
This principle states that a clear hierarchal chain must be established for employees to know who their superior is, and anyone they may need to report to when necessary
Order
This principle basically states that an organization must have a positive work atmosphere in order to encourage more productivity.
Equity
All employees must be treated equally and fairly, and it is management's full responsibility to make sure this is in place
Stability of tenure of personnel
An employee of an organization must feel safe in their job. Management must take full responsibility to make sure these things are in place.
Initiative
This principle strongly advises that management must provide employees opportunities to voice any new ideas they may have. In turn, building initiative for employees to start voicing matters more regularly.
Esprit de corpes
Finally, this last principle requires management to make sure that employees all have positive and supportive working relationships with one another. Developing trust and understanding between them would create a more positive work environment.
Impact of Fayol's management theory
Fayol's theory had a huge impact on how management is run today as most of his principles still apply today. despite some of his theories being somewhat outdated it is safe to say that the vast majority is still implemented in organisations today , giving further evidence that Fayol's management theory stood the test of time and is very much still valid today. However in an organisation like Netflix it could be argued that some of these principles of Fayol would not work effectively , as they are more authoritarian with quicker/precise decision making and Netflix is a laissez faire organisation so decision making may take longer as employees are in a position to voice opinions, meaning that an authoritarian management system like Fayol's would fail there.
Scientific- Frederick Taylor
Taylors scientific management theory is summarized into four parts.
Part one is work study, which basically means finding the most efficient techniques for employees to do work and complete it.
Part two is identify, meaning that management must observe the highest performing employees and find a reason as to why they are so efficient at their work.
Part three is training which essentially explains that the remaining employees must be given adequate training in order to match the performance of the others.
Part 4 which is reward meaning to reward employees based on the effort they put in.
Impact of Taylors management theory
The management theory of Taylor could also be argued to be effective through the years , as his theory of scientific management also applies in many organisations today . For example at amazon work is based in a reward to work ratio , which fits in with part 4 of Taylors theory of rewarding employees based on effort. At amazon they use an authoritarian leadership/ management style , which would prove Taylors theory to be effective there as decisions are also made quickly and precisely without employee input.
Management as a function of organizations- Charles Handy
Handy's management theory is split into 4 cultures.
The first is power culture. Power culture is when the position of power is only reserved for a few people within the organisation and they are the only people who can make decisions. This will result in quicker decision making and will attract people who are interested in power-oriented roles
The second is role culture. Role culture focuses specifically on everyone working together, in this type of organization everyone has a role and responsibility in completing tasks & helping the organization move forward. This in turn will require employees to be accountable for their own work, as employees will be assigned to work that fits their credentials respectively.
The third would be task culture. In task culture employees of similar interests are put together to work in teams and given tasks to complete. Decision making is in the hands of employees as well. However, management have little to no control of how tasks are done, only the team leaders themselves can control that factor. One disadvantage is that if the organization have little resources this can cause over competitiveness between teams, in turn becoming counterproductive for the organization.
The fourth is People culture. People culture is a unique style, as it is based on just focusing on helping individuals with their own endeavours without any organizational profit, goals or targets. Meaning that employees/ individuals work and perform at their own pace without any follow up on their projects. This is a very rare style which is not really found in organizations , and would not really work effectively in the long run as there is no structure behind it.
Impact of Handy's management theory
Handy's theory has had a profound impact on management today . His style of leadership and management helped to build a new more vision driven approach to running management or leading an organization. It is quiet evident that most of his theory is fully applicable today as it covers all aspects of the organization , the employees , tasks , roles/responsibilities and power. It is evident that this style would work well in most workplaces , but not all e.g. in an autocratic environment this would give too much power to employees and may not be as structured also . However in democratic work environments this would be a good fit as it gives everyone a say . decision making in this type of environment would take much longer and would not be so precise , due to constant change to appease to the majority.
Porter- Five competitive forces of profitability
Michael Porter had a management theory in which he believed profitability was most important, and profitability is defined into five parts.
Firstly, we are introduced to level of rivalry which simply explains that in the business world everyone is your rival. This means that you are competing against other competitors (other businesses), competing for customers, suppliers, against substitutes and potential newcomers.
The second force is buyers. This force explains how customers play a big role in an organization's reputation/ profitability. If they are not satisfied with customer service, have been given low quality products, they can very easily go to other suppliers in turn causing loss for one company, they can also leave negative reviews about their experience giving them more leverage over the organization.
The third force is suppliers. This force explains how suppliers have power to control price ranges, for example if a company can only afford to buy from one supplier and the rest sell at a price the company cannot afford, the supplier is now in a position of power as they are the only ones who can supply products to keep the company running. Also, if suppliers have unique products that the company heavily relies on this, in turn also increases their leverage and power significantly in the long term.
The fourth is the threat of substitutes. This force explains that other rivalling companies can make substitutes for your product and you may lose out financially. For example, if people buy waffle maker machines, less people are more likely to buy waffles at a shop as it is cheaper to buy the ingredients and make them themselves at home, which would be less profitable for the waffle shops. This is the concept of the threat of substitutes.
The fifth force is threat of entry this explains that in the business world, for example a dessert shop would be competing against other competing dessert shops within its area/ city and against other potential dessert stores that may open within the future. These all become a threat as they can make better sales, have better products, or offer better service than one store.
Theinvestopediateam(2022) Porter's 5 Forces Explained and How to Use the Model.Available at: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/p/porter.asp (Accessed:2022)
Factors that influence the development of culture in organisations
Organizational culture is a company's mission statement and how it affects employee performance and attitudes towards work. E.g. a positive work environment will encourage employees to work harder and perform much more optimally and engagement would be higher. However, in an aggressive work culture productivity of employees will decrease, high employee turnover , creating a negative work relationship for employees.
The importance of organisational culture on performance of different organisations
At Netflix the organisational structure is based on putting employee needs over organisational needs which links them into the laissez faire style , meaning that management is much more relaxed. employees there are able to make their own decisions also have the luxury of being as flexible as needed for their work. It could be argued that this is an unorthodox work culture, however it has proved to be effective due to Netflix being the biggest streaming platforms in the world with 223 million subscribers , it can be concluded that the work culture at Netflix has had a positive impact on performance.
McGregor's theory X and theory Y
Theory X – the majority of employees | Theory Y- the minority of employees |
|
|
Motivational strategy for intrinsic and extrinsic motivation
There are two types of motivation, intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsic means being motivated due to enjoyment and interest, however extrinsic motivation being based on reward and results. Organizations can use different types of motivation strategies to encourage organizational performance one could be intrinsic and the other could be extrinsic.
Intrinsic motivational strategy
Organizations must focus on engaging employees, without engagement employees will be tired and bored of the same repetitive monotonous tasks. This can be done by getting employees to participate in activities which they feel will benefit them in giving them extra knowledge/skills to better their portfolios and add to their experience. Try encouraging employees to participate in team activities as that will aid in building communication skills & increased productivity, building teamwork spirit, and overall constructing a positive workspace. Ensure your employees have a reason to want to stay at your organization, and aid them in having pride in the line of work they operate in.
Extrinsic motivational strategy
In an organization it is also important to ensure targets are being met, and effort through employees is always at a high level and a consistent quality of work is produced. This can be done by setting expectations and deadlines, so employees are aware of when tasks and projects are due, also the expectations set to how work is expected to be done. Promotions to higher positions are viable if employees have proven they are ready to move onto a position of higher responsibility. Cash bonus rewards are also given to those who go above and beyond in terms of work rate and work quality. Offer higher raises if more work is done than is required, allowing employees to spend more frivolously outside of work due to the hard work they have done.
Ryan,R. Deci,E.(2000)Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivations: Classic Definitions and New Directions,pp.7-12. https://selfdeterminationtheory.org/SDT/documents/2000_RyanDeci_IntExtDefs.pdf
Motivational strategy addressing all variables of motivation
Strategies are vital, especially in the case of motivating employees for certain reasons. The variables are also important, especially the independent variables as these are the motivation of the employee when it comes to their job.
One variable to consider would be training. By giving training, especially free training, you are making sure all your employees are adequately trained and can carry out work tasks proficiently without any worries, also the fact it is free of charge also gives your employee the peace of mind that their organization is looking after them by covering the cost. It is also important to constantly re-train employees due to the constant change of laws and regulations so making sure your employees are up to date with training will also help the organization by staying up to date and on time with current changing laws and regulations.
Pay is another variable to be discussed as this is the sole reason you have employees working for you, it is important that pay is issued at the correct day, date and time. If employees are preforming well award them a higher pay, or a bonus this can highly improve their work relationship and give them a feeling of importance which will boost their self-esteem and productivity they may also advertise the job to external candidates telling them they can be offered things they may not be getting offered at their current jobs, putting you head of competition
Promotions can be a good way of getting employees to have some motivation. By promoting employees, it gives them the chance to have self-belief boosted as it puts them in positions, they never imagined they would be able to have. This will in turn encourage employees to work harder as they are in new positions and have extra responsibilities to handle, making them believe the organization has trust in them by giving them more responsibilities. This will also give the organization an external advantage as it shows employees are regularly being moved up the corporate ladder.
Job security is another way of motivating employees to work as it gives them peace of mind that their job is there to stay, and they are not going to be made redundant. This is important as during the current climate, unemployment is high and offering job security can calm a lot of worries for current and future employees, allowing them to take out mortgages and finances which they can be paying off for decades. this can also increase employee retention as it gives employees a reason to stay, which is they have almost no chance of losing their job
Finally, a good work environment is a factor that can also help with motivation. When employees go to work it is important that they feel comfortable at work, a big reason why some employees leave is because of conflict, being bullied/ harassed at work, racism also these all contribute to a bad work environment. This can be fixed by allowing employees to be social on breaks, giving 10-15-minute coffee breaks to allow people to have a chat as people who get along well also work very well. By having a whole team or department who all cooperate well this can really have a big positive effect on productivity and allow tasks to be completed well and quickly due to a competent team working together.
Comments
Post a Comment