Leadership Flashcards
leadership
the ability to influence people towards the attainment of organisational goals
servant leadership
occurs when a leader transcends self-interest to serve others, the organisation and society
authentic leadership
individuals who know and understand themselves, who espouse and act consistently with higher-order ethical values and who empower and inspire others with their openness and authority
interactive leadership
the focus on minimising personal ambition and developing others
level 5 leadership
characterised by an almost complete lack of ego, coupled with a fierce resolve to of what is best for the organisation
humility
being unpretentious and modest rather than arrogant and prideful
traits
the distinguishing personal characteristics of a leader
strengths
natural talents and abilities that have been supported and reinforced with learned knowledge and skills
task-oriented
providing structure, direction, and aiding performance
good for meeting schedules, keeping costs low, achieving production efficiency
task-oriented leader would excel in favourable situations
people-oriented
demonstrating concern, respect, and care for the wellbeing of others
good for developing a cohesive work group through positive interaction facilitation; ensuring employees are satisfied with their jobs
the people-oriented leader would excel in unfavourable situations
contingency approaches
a model of leadership that describes the relationship between leadership styles and specific organisational situations
situational model
a contingency approach to leadership that links the leader’s behavioural style with the task readiness of employees
directive style
used for low readiness followers
directive leader provides detailed goals and instructions, closely monitors operations and performance
coaching style
used for moderate readiness followers
coaching leader provides both task instruction and personal support as needed
supporting style
used for high readiness followers
supporting leader supports, consults with, and develops followers’ skills and confidence
entrusting style
used for very high readiness followers
entrusting leader turns over complete responsibility, with little focus on either task or people needs
substitute leader
a situational variable that makes a leadership style redundant or unnecessary
neutraliser
a situational variable that counteracts a leadership style and prevents the leader from displaying certain behaviours
charismatic leader
a leader who has the ability to inspire and motivate people to do more than they would normally do, despite obstacles and personal sacrifice.
followers are willing to put aside their own interests for the sake of the team, department or organisation. The impact of charismatic leaders normally comes from (1) stating a lofty vision of an imagined future that employees identify with; (2) displaying an ability to understand and empathise with followers; and (3) empowering and trusting subordinates to accomplish results.
subsequently, followers are seduced as they experienced strong feelings towards the mission and the leader; they full-heartedly trust the correctness of the leader’s beliefs and obey willingly.
transformational leader
a leader distinguished by their special ability to bring about innovation and change by recognising their followers’ needs and concerns, providing meaning, challenging people to look at old problems in new ways and acting as role models for new values and behaviours
transformational leaders inspire followers not only to believe in the leader personally, but also to believe in their own potential to imagine and create a better future for the organisation. Transformational leaders create significant change in both their followers and the organisation
transformational leaders have the ability to lead changes in the organisation’s mission, strategy, structure and culture, as well as to promote innovation in products and technologies. Transformational leaders do not rely solely on tangible rules and incentives to control specific transactions with followers. They focus on intangible qualities such as vision, shared values and ideals to build relationships, give larger meaning to diverse activities, and find common ground to enlist followers in the change process.
studies show that transformational leadership has a positive impact on follower development and follower performance. Moreover, transformational leadership skills can be learned, and are not ingrained personality characteristics. In addition, transformational leaders are typically emotionally stable and positively engaged with the world around them, and they have a strong ability to recognise and understand others’ emotions. These characteristics are not surprising, considering that these leaders accomplish change by building networks of positive relationships.
transactional leader
a leader who clarifies employees’ role and task requirements, initiates structure, provides rewards and displays consideration for employees
alienated follower
a person who is an independent, critical thinker but is passive in the organisation
conformist
a follower who participates actively in the organisation but does not use critical thinking skills
pragmatic survivor
a follower who has qualities of all four follower styles, depending on which fits the prevalent situation
passive follower
a person who exhibits neither critical independent thinking nor active participation
effective follower
a critical, independent thinker who actively participates in the organisation
power
the potential ability to influence the behaviour of others
influence
the effect that a person’s actions have on the attitudes, values, beliefs or behaviour of others
legitimate power
power than stems from a formal position in an organisation and the authority granted to it
reward power
power that results from the authority to reward others
coercive power
power that stems from the authority to punish or recommend punishment
expert power
power that stems from special knowledge or skill in tasks performed by employees
referent power
power that results from the characteristics that command employees’ identification, respect and admiration, so that they wish to emulate the leader
interpersonal influence tactics
- use rational persuasion
- help people like you
- rely on the rule of reciprocity
- develop allies
- ask for what you want
- make use of higher authority
examples of leadership traits
- self-confidence
- honest and integrity
optimism - desire to lead
- independence
- intelligent
- sociable
limitations of trait theories
- traits are better predictors of the appearance of leadership (whether someone is seen as a leader) than of effective leadership
- does not take into account situational effects (e.g. a leader with some traits in one situation might not be a leader in another situation that calls for the opposite traits)
- there are limited usefulness for training and development
characteristics of ethical charismatic leader
- use power to serve others
- consider and learn from criticism
- open, two-way communication
- develop and support followers
- stimulate followers to think independently
characteristics of unethical charismatic leader
- use power for personal gain
- censure critical or opposing views
- one-way communication
- insensitive to followers needs
- demands own decisions be accepted without questions
factors influencing obedience
- prestige increases obedience.
- people tend to obey others from other people if they recognise their authority as morally right and / or legally based.
- if a person has the social support of their friend(s) then obedience is less likely.
- the presence of others who are seen to disobey the authority figure reduces the level of obedience.
- the uniform of the authority figure can give them status.
- it is easier to resist the orders from an authority figure if they are not close by.
