Leadership

The leadership process Leadership=is a process of motivation The leadership process Leadership is the process of influencing group activities toward the achievement of goals. Two important elements of this definition. Leadership involves a relationship between two or more people in which influence and power are unevenly distributed. Leaders do not exist in isolation. You are only a leader if someone is following you. This implies that followers consent to be influenced.

Distinguish between managing and leading. Trait Behavior Universal GREATMAN: Universal Leadership traits OHIO STATE Universal Leadership behavior Situational FIEDLER: Situational Leadership traits VROOM: Situational –contingent leadership behavior

Leadership Types Benard Bates Transactional (MANAGER) Contingent reward Management by exception Laissez faire Transformational (A leader is transformational) Charisma Inspiration Stimulation Individualism The two are separate, but a good leader is both

Sources of Leadership Power French and Ravens 5 sources of Power. 1. Legitimate - power from org. structure 2. Reward - ability to provide rewards 3. Coercive - avoiding punishment 4. Referent - because of admiration and respect. 5. Expert - because of knowledge and skill Expert power can payoff for everyone in the long run. Good experts don’t horde their expertise. In the beginning creates job security, but in the long run it does not, because person is less challenged to obtain new expertise. You won’t rely on all of these sources of power equally in all situations

Leadership Models or Theories Trait Theories: Leaders with the needed characteristics (i.e. physical abilities, height, etc.) are more effective. Behavioral Approaches: Focuses on observable leadership behaviors that differentiate good and bad leaders. Universal Theories: Believe that there is one best leader regardless of the situation Contingency/Situational Theories: The most effective traits or behaviors depend on the situation.

Universal Leadership Traits The initial work in the leadership area focused on identifying a leadership profile. A listing of traits that characterize a good leader. The goal was simplistic. If you could identify specific leadership traits then identifying good leaders would be easy.

Universal Leadership Traits... Historically called “Great Man Theory” Research studies only found moderate success. Some traits that seem to differentiate a leader from a follower include... Energy, Intelligence, Knowledge, Dominance, Self Confidence However, the relationship is moderate and should not be relied upon as the sole determinant of effective leadership behavior.

Situation - Contingent Leadership Traits (Fiedler) The affective leader is determined by the degree of match between a dominant trait of the leader and the favorableness of the situation. The Dominant trait is whether or not a leader is relationship-oriented or task-oriented. You are either TASK Oriented or RELATIONSHIP Oriented, you cannot be oriented towards both because they are traits. Whereas with behaviors, someone can exhibit many different behaviors

Situation - Contingent Leadership Traits... Relationship Oriented - The person has as his/her goal the fostering of interpersonal relationships. Without these the task would not be accomplished. Task Oriented - task completion is the goal. Worrying about interpersonal relationships can get in the way of task accomplishment.

In order to assess this trait, Fiedler developed the LPC scale In order to assess this trait, Fiedler developed the LPC scale. (Least Preferred Co-worker Scale). Each person fills out a 16 item questionnaire concerning your least preferred co-worker. Complete and score your copy of the LPC.

LPC results... Leaders who describe their LPC in favorable terms are considered to be relationship oriented. Low LPC individuals are those with low scores and are task oriented. This scale seems to work well with high LPC individuals in that high scores usually indicate a high need for interpersonal relationships. However, a low score cannot be pinned down. Relationship managers can MUCK UP a highly favorable situation or a highly unfavorable situation. Relationship managers do well int he middle ground when the situation is not perfect, but is not a complete disaster (according to Fiedler)

Situational Favorableness Defined as the extent to which the leader has control and influence. in other words the leader feels they can control group outcomes Determined by a combination of leader-member relations, task structural, and position power. According to the Chart, a task leader is better for highly favorable and highly unfavorable situations and a relationship oriented leader is better for moderate situations.

Implications of Fiedler’s Theory Both relationships and task oriented leaders perform well under certain situations but not others. Therefore, outstanding leaders in one position may get promoted into a different situation where they may fail. i.e. first line supervisor to dept. head. Change from a structured to unstructured task.

Implications of Fiedler’s Theory... An organization can change the effectiveness of a leader by altering the favorableness of the leader’s situation. i.e. reduce task ambiguity increase power base.

Universal Leadership Behaviors Most of the work in this area was conducted by the leadership Group at Ohio State University. Their goal was to identify dimensions of leadership behavior that led to the successful accomplishment of goals. They identified 2 dimensions of leader behavior Consideration and Initiating Structure

Universal Leadership Behaviors... Consideration - extent to which leaders are likely to have job relationships characterized by mutual trust, two-way communication, respect for subordinate feelings and ideas.

Universal Leadership Behaviors... Initiating Structure - Extent to which leaders are likely to define and structure their roles and those of their subordination. Emphasize planning, scheduling, assigning tasks, emphasizing deadlines etc. Most research tried to identify the relationship between consideration and initiating structure and subordinate satisfaction and performance.

Complete the LBDQ and score it… Going back to Fiedler: Traits are inherent and there is not much you can do about them, that is why you can be either TASK OREINTED or RELATIONSHIP ORIENTED but not both. Behaviors on the other can be be changed, which is a good thing ****Team managers rule with empowerment not with Authority***

Blake-Mouton Theory: An application of Behavior Theory This model and its detail can be found in the supplement Blake-Mouton Theory: An application of Behavior Theory 1,9 9,9 5.5 is considered to be the minimum level of effectiveness over time 5,5 1,1 9,1

According to Blake and Mouton, the goal is to get to 9,9 leadership 9,9 leadership can be reached through selection and or training!

Situational - Contingent Leadership Behavior Theories Effective leadership is determined by a combination of leadership behavior and the particular situation the leader is in. The 2 most popular are House’s Path-Goal Theory and The Vroom and Yetton Normative Model (see handouts)

Path-Goal Theory Developed by HOUSE Suggests that a leader must select a style most appropriate to the particular situation. Contends that subordinates react favorably to a leader only to the extent that they perceive this person as helping them to progress toward goals and clarifying actual paths to rewards. **Ask your employees “what do you want to do next?”

How can leaders accomplish these tasks. It depends… How can leaders accomplish these tasks? It depends…..Four Possible Styles: Supportive Leadership - Considering needs, concern for welfare creating a friendly climate. Directive Leadership - Specific guidance, enforcing rules, scheduling and setting standards. Similar to the Ohio State model:

Participative Leadership - Consulting with subordinates Good leaders can use all four styles depending on the situation How can leaders accomplish these tasks? It depends…..Four Possible Styles: Participative Leadership - Consulting with subordinates Achievement - Oriented Leadership - Setting challenging goals, emphasizing excellence shown confidence in employees reaching goals. In contrast to Fiedler, House believes that the same leader can practice 4 styles at varying times and varying situations. Excellent possibility for test question Compare and Contrast Fielder and House

Professor likes the VROOM MODEL Vroom-Yetton-Jago etc. Normative Model (this model can be found in supplement 14-7) Five decision making styles can be chosen by the leader based on a systematic assessment of the situation. These styles include… AI-Autocratic (YOU SOLVE THE PROBELM) AII-Autocratic CI-Consultative CII-Consultative GII-Group (Share the problem with subordinates) ****Conesus does not mea that everyone agrees 100% on the decision, but does mean that everyone agrees to support the decision