Module 8 Leading

Leading

• is the management function which involves influencing others to engage in work behaviors necessary to reach organizational goals.

• indicates that a person of group of persons tasked with managing a groups must assume the role performed by leaders

How leaders influence others

• Engineer managers are expected to maintain effective work forces

• because of the power they possess

• Power refers to the ability of a leader to exert force on another

Bases of Power

1. Legitimate

2. Reward

3. Coercive

4. Referent

5. Expert

Legitimate power

who occupies a higher position has legitimate power over person in lower positions within the organization

Reward power

has the ability to give rewards to anybody who follows orders or request. It can be material and psychic.

Coercive Power

compels another to comply with orders through threats or punishment may take the form of demotion, dismissal, withholding of promotion

Referent power

When a person can get a compliance from another because the latter would want to be identified with the former

Expert power

provide specialized information regarding their specific lines of expertise

The nature of Leadership

• the process of influencing and supporting others to work enthusiastically toward achieving objectives

• One cannot expect a unit to achieve objectives in the absence of effective leadership.

• Even if a leader is present, but if he is noy functioning properly, no unit or division objectives can be expected to achieve

Traits of Effective Leader

1. A high level of personal drive

2. The desire to lead

3. Personal integrity

4. Self confidence

5. Analytical ability or judgement

6. Knowledge of the company industry or technology

7. Charisma

8. Creativity

9. Flexibility

Personal Drive

as willing to accept responsibility, possess vigor, initiative, persistence and health.

The Desire to Lead

They are some persons who have all the qualifications for leadership yet they could not become leaders because they lack one special requirement

Personal Integrity

• A person who is well regarded by others as one who has integrity possesses one trait of a leader.

• Integrity means and includes honesty, honor, incorruptibility, rectitude, righteousness, uprightness, and similar virtues.

Self Confidence

• The activities of leaders require moves that will produce the needed outputs.

• The steps of conceptualizing, organizing, and implementing will be completed if sustained efforts are made.

• Self confidence is necessary for the moves to be continuous and precise.

Analytical Ability

A leader with the sufficient skill to determine the root cause of the problem may be able to help the subordinate to improve his production.

Knowledge of Company, Industry or Technology

A leader who is well informed about his company, the industry where the company belongs and the technology utilized by the industry, will be in a better position to provide directions to his unit.

Charisma

The person is said to have charisma when a person has sufficient personal magnetism that leads people to follow his directives.

Creativity

the ability to combine existing data, experience and pre conditions from various sources in such a way that the results will be subjectively regarded as new, valuable, innovative, and as a direct solution to an identified problem situation.

Flexibility

• People differ in the way they do their work

• One will adopt a different method from another persons method

• A leader who allows this situation as long as the required outputs are produced

Leadership Skills

1. Technical skills

2. Human skills

3. Conceptual skills

These skills are used in varying degrees at different management levels.

Technical skills

to enable him to understand and make decision about work processes, activities, and technology.

Human skill

the ability of a leader to deal with people, both inside and outside the organization.

Conceptual skills

the ability to think in abstract terms to see how parts fit together to form the whole

Behavioral Approaches to Leadership Style (the total pattern of behavior)

1. According to the ways leader approach people to motivate them

2. According to the way the leader uses power

3. According to the leaders orientation toward task and people

Ways Leader Approach people

1. Positive leadership - leaders approach emphasizes rewards

2. Negative leadership - when punishment is emphasized

Ways Leader uses Power

1. Autocratic

2. Participative

3. Free-rein

Autocratic Leaders

• Leaders who make decision themselves without consulting subordinates

Participative Leaders

• Leader openly invites his subordinates to participate or share in decision, policy making and operation methods

• Advantages: generates lot of ideas and increased support for decisions and the reduction of the chance that they will be unexpectedly undermined

• Disadvantage is that it is time consuming and frustrating people who prefer to see a quick decision reached

Free-rein Leaders

• Leaders who set objectives and allow employees or subordinates relative freedom to do whatever it takes to accomplish these objectives.

• Most applicable to certain organizations manned by professionals like doctors and engineers.

Employee orientation

when he considers employee as human beings of intrinsic importance and with individual and personal need to satisfy

Task orientation

if he places stress on production and the technical aspects of the job and the employees are viewed as the means of getting the work done.

Contingency Approaches to Leadership Style

1. Fiedler’s Contingency Model

2. Hersey and Blanchards Situational Leadership Model

3. Path Goal Model of Leadership

4. Vrooms Decision Making Model