Skills Model of Leadership

Question 1

Three skill approach (Katz)

Answer 1

a) technical skills
- knowledge about how to work with specific things
- important in order to be proficient in certain activity

b) human skills
- knowledge about how to work with people
- important in order to be sensitive to needs

c) conceptual skills
- knowledge about how to work with ideas
- important in order to have visions and solve problems

Question 2

Capability approach (Mumford, Zaccaro, Harding)

Answer 2

1) individual attributes
- general cognitive capability: persons’ intelligence
- crystallized cognitive ability: ideas and mental abilities people learn through experience
- motivation: willingness to tackle complex problems, willingness to express dominance, commitment to social good
- personality: any characteristic that helps cope with complex organizational situations

2) competencies
- problem solving skill: ability to solve new and unusual, ill-defined organizational problems
- social judgements skills: capacity to understand people and social systems (Perspective taking, Social perceptiveness/- performance, Behavioral flexibility)
- knowledge: accumulation of information, define and attempt to solve complex problems

3) leadership outcome
- effective problem solving: originality, effectiveness
- performance of leader