1. Skills Approach AGED 3153

2. Leadership has a harder job to do than just choose sides. It must bring sides together. ~Jesse Jackson Thought of the day…

3. Overview Defining skills Skills approach perspective Three-skill approach Skills-based model How the skills approach works

4. Defining Skills Leadership Skills

5. Skills Approach Description Skills can be acquired Can train and develop them Katz “skills of an effective administrator” Harvard Business Review, 1955 Three-skill approach Mumford and colleagues 1990s studies brought recognition of skills approach

6. Three-Skill Approach (Katz) Includes skills Leaders need all

7. Technical Skills Having knowledge about & being proficient in a specific type of work or activity Essential role in producing actual products Most important at lower management levels.

8. Human Skills Having knowledge about & being able to work with people Important at all levels.

9. Conceptual Skills: Abilities to work with ideas & concepts Central to creating a vision & strategic plan for an organization Most important at upper management levels.

10. Management Skills Necessary technical humanconceptual Skills Needed technical human conceptual technicalhuman conceptual

11. Summary Skills: use of one’s knowledge and competencies Skills can be acquired Three skill approach Technical hands-on Human people Conceptual vision/ ideas

12. For next class… Complete the Skills Inventory on page 65 of Northouse. Be prepared to discuss results in class.

13. Skills Model Mumford and colleagues U.S. Army and Department of Defense 1990s Develop a comprehensive theory of leadership new measures & tools were used  assessed skills, experiences and work situations.

14. Skills Model Questions included What accounts for why some leaders are good problem solvers and other are not? What specific skills do high-performing leaders exhibit? Capability model

15. 5 components of Skill Model Individual attributes Competencies Leadership outcomes Career Experiences Environmental influences

16. Skills Model Individual Attributes Competencies Leadership Outcomes general cog. ability crystallized cog. ability motivation personality problem-solving skills social judgment skills knowledge effective problem- solving performance Career Experiences Environmental Influence

17. Individual Attributes “person’s intelligence” linked to biology not experience “acquired intelligence” linked to experience doesn’t diminish in adulthood General cognitive ability Crystallized cognitive ability

18. Individual Attributes Leaders must be: willingness dominance social good Impacts development of your leadership skills. Related to leader performance. MotivationPersonality

19. Competency Skills Problem solving creative ability to solve new & unusual organizational problems Social judgment capacity to understand people & social systems perspective taking social perceptiveness, behavioral flexibility social performance

20. Competency Skills Knowledge accumulation of information & mental structures used to organize info.

21. Leadership Outcomes Effective problem solving originality & quality of solutions Logical, effective, unique and go beyond the problem Performance how well the leader has done her/his job. positive evaluations

22. Career Experiences Influence knowledge/skills Improved by: challenging job assignments mentoring appropriate training hands-on experience

23. Environmental influences Lie outside the leader’s competencies characteristics experiences Outside the leader’s control

24. What strengths of the skills approach make it acceptable to you?

25. What weaknesses of the skill approach do you see?

26. How can we apply this approach?

27. Summary Mumford and Colleagues study Competencies are the core Leadership outcomes are results Individual attributes, career experiences and environmental factors all play role Skill approach is leader-centered Provides skill set necessary for effective leadership Doesn’t clearly explain impact of different skill levels Important for leadership development