Leadership Concepts, Characteristics/Nature, Qualities, Styles and Ethics

Subject: Organizational Behaviour

Overview

Note
Things to remember

Concept of leadership

Management is centered on leadership. In essence, it entailed taking the initiative. Employees must be given instructions by someone within the company. The employee must perform their duties to the best of their abilities, and someone must ensure this. Additionally, someone needs to motivate, lead, and direct the employee. As a result, leadership entails setting the course, giving orders, and supervising others. The greater the contribution of subordinates to the objectives of the business, the more effective the leadership process.

The constantly evolving social, economic, political, and technological environments call for leadership that is innovative, creative, and visionary. Leadership in an organization must take on the duty of achieving the organization's goal while also creating an environment that supports superior performance. Therefore, every firm requires capable and successful leaders at all levels, including strong supervisors, middle managers, and general managers. An essential component of effective management is leadership.

Leadership is the capacity to actively persuade people to pursue their objectives in a specific situation. In a given setting, it is directing and influencing followers' behavior toward goal achievement. Leadership is essential to comprehending and forecasting group behavior. The group's leader is the one who forges relationships of trust with the members and gives them guidance toward reaching their objectives.

According to Hersey and Blanchard, "Leadership is the process of influencing the activities of an individual or a group in efforts towards goal attainment in a given situation."

According to Stephen R. Robbins, "Leadership is the ability to influence a group towards the achievement of goals."

In groups, leadership establishes a mission and goals. The task and performance standards are established. It emphasizes followers' needs and expectations. influences objective achievement above all. It serves as the initiator of reality.

According to Stoner, Freeman, and Gilbert (1992), "Leadership is the process of directing and influencing the task-related activities of group member."

Characteristics of Leadership (Nature of Leadership)

The following traits define leadership:

Leadership is a process of influence. Leaders mostly sway flowers by force, inspiration, and reason.
Goal-Directed: Both the leader and followers have the same objectives Leadership motivates followers to work eagerly and enthusiastically toward shared objectives. Thus, it is purpose-driven.
Leadership is a situational skill. The types of leadership are based on the situation.
Leaders have the power to sway people in just one direction. However, the followers lack the power to command the leader.
There are three types of leadership: situational, leader, and follower.
- The leader may be chosen formally or come from among the work groups. He unites and motivates his people to achieve their objectives.
- Those who freely submit to authority and yield to the leader's sway are known as followers. Unimaginable is a leader without followers. Leaders and followers do not engage in conflict.
- It determines whether a leader succeeds or fails. Leadership depends on the circumstances. The situational should be recognized and used by leaders.
- Relationship of reciprocity: The relationship between the leader and the following is always one of reciprocity. A leader shapes the conduct of his or her followers and is also shaped by it. Each person's behavior should be influenced voluntarily rather than through coercion.

Quality of good leadership:

Making organizational life more compassionate and productive requires strong leadership. Some characteristics of effective leaders make them truly transformative. To accomplish their objectives, they bring about changes in the organization, in the people around them, and in the organization itself. A good leader should possess the following traits:

Personal qualities of leader
Following are the personal qualities:
- Physical fitness:
  An effective leader should be personable and upbeat. He ought to be healthy and powerful. Cool head, good conversationalist, and excellent conduct. For rigorous job, he needs a ton of vigor and endurance.
- Self-confidence:
  A competent leader must have had self-assurance and a strong will. In order to maintain the respect of his subordinates, he must maintain his enthusiasm and good humor in the face of challenges.
- Intelligence:
  It is a necessary trait for leadership. A leader should be able to reason clearly, analyze situations accurately, and understand issues plainly. To efficiently manage all of the organization's activities, this is required.
- Vision and foresight:
  A good leader should be able to see possible trends coming and build his policies and programs accordingly. He needs to be capable of making wise decisions at the appropriate moment and with solid judgment.
- Human character
  A man with human character is necessary for a leader. He must have qualities like honesty, loyalty, self-control, and devotion to the company. By using the leader as a metaphorical figure, followers are inspired by the leader's behavior and can grow as people.
- Optimistic outlook:
  A leader should constantly have a positive outlook. When working and making decisions, he shouldn't be gloomy; having a positive view is necessary for making decisions with assurance and dealing with challenging situations.
- Flexible attitude:
  A leader needs to be adaptable or dynamic. It is common knowledge that the environment is changing quickly. A effective leader should be able to change with the environment and adapt both the organization and himself. He needs to adapt the standards, principles, and laws to the needs of the environment.
Managerial qualities
Following are the managerial qualities:
- A clear sense of purpose:
  Having a clear sense of purpose or being able to communicate your vision and mission to others. The organization's executives must be crystal clear about its goals and purpose.
- Ability of Good judgment:
  A leader should have the ability to use good judgment, or the capacity to recognize how one's actions affect others, the organization, as well as clients, suppliers, and the community at large, and to make the appropriate choices at the appropriate times. He should avoid feeling any favoritism, friendliness, or strong ties when making decisions; instead, he should solely take the organization's goals into account.
- Self-knowledge and Technical knowledge:
  Every manager should possess self-knowledge, or the capacity to recognize their own assets and qualities and be aware of how to best utilize them. Technical expertise must to be present throughout the organization. Only skilled leaders are able to provide technical direction. The subordinates in order to do the work in the most efficient and affordable way possible.
- Objectivity:
  Objectivity is the capacity to consider all relevant factors and draw judgments in a fair and unbiased manner.
- Emotional maturity:
  Emotional maturity, or the capacity to value people and respect their opinions.
- Initiative:
  Taking the initiative, or being a self-starter, and getting things done to meet corporate objectives.
- A perpetual desire for learning:
  A constant desire to learn new things or the capacity to do so, as well as the ability to do so while also learning about their own business and acquiring the skills essential to that organization's success.
- Cooperatives:
  Cooperatives, or the capacity to get along with people and promote teamwork to accomplish goals.
- Integrity:
  Integrity, or the capacity to carry out organizational policies and decisions in an honest, reliable, and fair manner.
- Adaptability:
  The leader must be able to adapt to shifting circumstances, or have the capacity to adopt swiftly to new circumstances.
- Knowledge of psychology:
  A leader must interact with his followers in order to comprehend their thoughts, wants, behaviors, and attitudes. In addition, he needs some crucial skills, such as empathy, sociability, self-awareness, and other-awareness.
- Human relation expert:
  A leader must deal with the different stakeholders in the firm, including customers, visitors, employees, suppliers, and shareholders, among others. He must be able to interact with everyone in a nice and friendly manner.

Leadership styles

Leadership is the capacity to actively persuade people to pursue their objectives in a specific situation. In a given setting, it is directing and influencing followers' behavior toward goal achievement. Leadership is essential to comprehending and forecasting group behavior. The group's leader is the one who develops relationships of trust with the participants and provides them with direction in order for them to accomplish their goals.

According to Hersey and Blanchard, "Leadership is the process of influencing the activities of an individual or a group in efforts towards goal attainment in a given situation."

According to Stephen R. Robbins, "Leadership is the ability to influence a group towards the achievement of goals."

According to Stoner, Freeman, and Gilbert (1992), "Leadership is the process of directing and influencing the task-related activities of group member."

Leadership philosophies vary greatly amongst leaders and throughout organizations. The ideology, opinions, personality, and experience of each leader vary greatly. A lot also depends on the culture and characteristics of the organization; certain organizations are more supportive than others to the growth of effective leadership styles. There are four primary leadership philosophies:

Authoritarian
Paternalistic
Democratic,
Laissez-faire.

These four leadership philosophies all lie on a spectrum between the two extremes.

Autocratic leadership style:

People follow autocratic leaders because they can be trusted. They direct with little to no chance of having an impact on the choice. They might make use of the power, status, and fear that come with being part of their group. Position or the ability of the person to accomplish goals. They complete tasks in their own manner without worrying for the opinions or views of others. They frequently claimed credit for success while blaming their subordinates for failure. Because autocratic leaders have unrestricted power, they have a natural tendency to retain a disproportionate amount of influence and power over decisions. The subordinates receive little to no input. As a result, misinterpretations may frequently happen, leading to expensive errors and wasteful practices, humiliating subordinates. This leadership style essentially kills initiatives and subordinates. A leader must apply constant pressure and direction to this style in order to overcome the passive opposition of the team members. In general, using this strategy to get a team to perform at its best is not a good idea. However, this approach could be suitable when immediate action is required or when subordinates truly favor this approach.

Democratic style:

Leaders who employ this method conduct themselves very differently. You might have had the good fortune to work for a boss who told their staff, "These are the results we need to accomplish; this is the task to be completed. Together, let's decide the best course of action. Let's decide what we're going to do, then. Such a leader would operate democratically or collaboratively.

Leaders encourage open communication and conversation. They rely more on rewards than on penalties. Trust in the connection grows, promoting two-way communication. At all levels of management, there is a high degree of trust between subordinates and the leader, giving employees a great deal of power over their work. Overall, democratic leadership encourages personal development, encourages taking initiative, and fosters responsibility.

By getting the greatest knowledge, suggestions, and experiences from their staff, these leaders have an advantage. As a result, their staff tends to have better attitudes or produce more effectively. The subordinates feel personally successful and accomplished. This technique runs the danger of being time-consuming at times. A complicated breakdown of management control may be the outcome of excessive debate and lack of agreement.

Concept of managerial ethics

When some thought is paid to creating basic ground principles, a complicated workplace can be transformed into a less complicated environment. Companies that have managerial ethics or rules in place give managers a clear blueprint to follow when faced with difficult choices. It takes some fundamental knowledge of what ethics are, examples of possible inclusions, and suggestions for how to implement managerial ethics in the workplace to create a managerial code of conduct.

Definition of Ethics

Ethics are often the moral principles that guide or regulate a person's or a group of people's behavior in terms of what is right and wrong. These moral codes are always based on accepted ideals and ideas, albeit they may vary from culture to culture. Basically, ethics define permissible behaviors and choices and direct the way to a specific path of action. A manager operating in a workplace must adhere to a set of rules known as managerial ethics.

Examples of Ethics

Managerial ethics often cover two distinct domains, namely:

Principles. Managerial ethics that are founded on principles typically define what is just and moral in the context of the workplace and may contain details about departmental boundaries.
Policy. Conflicts of interest, how to react appropriately when given presents from clients or partners, or how to handle confidential information are all examples of policy-based managerial ethics.

Violations of Ethics

When a clash of values is posed, reference managerial ethics are always necessary. Enron is a prime example of a breach of managerial ethics, even though it was lawful for Enron's executive managers to encourage staff members to buy company stock. It was an obvious and certain violation of the management ethical principles that the managers were always willing to be bound by regarding the treatment and protection of his employees. However, the managers knew that would lose value once Enron's financial troubles were known. Last but not least, CEOs broke fundamental managerial principles since they were acting in their personal interests.

Establishing of managerial ethics

A group or individual within a firm is constantly subject to internal and external regulations that are governed by managerial ethics. Conflicts between individuals or groups and the organization, division, or department as a whole are the main source of ethical difficulties. Companies that have established a set of values and norms that managers are aware of and regularly refer to during the workday have built an ethical framework on which managers may work with ease and make the best choices at the appropriate times. Enhancing managerial ethics training through role playing, case studies, and group discussions may create the groundwork for moral conduct.

Bibliography

AGRAWAL, DR. GOVIND RAM.Organization Relations. Bhotahity, Kathmandu: M.K. Publishers & Distributors , 2013. text book.

Prem R. Pant, Ph. D. "PRINCEIPLES OF MANAGEMET." kathmandu: Buddha Academic Publisher and Distributors Pvt. Ltd., 2010. text book. 17 jun 2016.