Analysis of Leadership Concepts and the Role of Organizational Models in Shaping Leadership Abilities

Analysis of Leadership Concepts and the Role of Organizational Models in Shaping Leadership Abilities

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Analysis of Leadership Concepts and the Role of Organizational Models in Shaping Leadership Abilities

Introduction

People have varied perspectives on leadership, its style, mode of application and even the outcome of choices that define one as an effective leader. Overall, leadership is both a practical skill and an area that needs in-depth research, especially in understanding the frameworks and models required for success. It is practical in the sense that it encompasses the ability of a person or an entire organization. This ability extends further to the aforementioned entity’s prowess in leading or guiding other individuals or teams of wholeorganizations. However, Yukl (2002) posited that the attempt to bridge the gap between academics and managerial practitioners in anorganizational setting is impeded by a discourse that is biased towards students of leadership at the expense of practicing managers. The need to focus on practicing managers is of critical importance as leadership has evolved into a global phenomenon. The diversity ofglobal cultures correlates to different leadership perspectives and techniques. What proves effective in the Eastern context may not yield similar results in the West and vice versa, hence the need for flexibility to accommodate the shifting demands of leadership. One can argue that while emphasis should be placed on enabling practicing managers to be effective leaders, similar strategies should be used to equip students undertaking leadership training with relevant knowledge and skills needed for success in the fast shifting managerial and organizational contexts. This paper analyses some of the crucial concepts used by successful leaders and how organizational models can shape one’s leadership abilities.

Important Concepts in Successful Leadership

In this paper, three types of leadership conceptsare identified,and they all merge to produce and complement asuccessful leader and overall positive personality that is needed for one to be an effective leader. Each concept has both its strength and weakness. Depending on a person’s personality traits and his or her likes and dislikes, an individual may flourish in one concept and be utterly clueless on the other. It implies the concepts of leadership can define a true leader regarding their chosen approach to practicing leadership effectively.

The first concept identified in this paper is the situational leadership model. Ken Blanchard and Paul Hersey, as an outcome of the work on organizational management behavior, developed this leadership model in 1970. The uniqueness of this model is the fact that there is no definite way to define the ultimate leadership style and that one cannot single out an overall effective leader in every area. It, however, shows that the basis of leadership is on the kind of tasks one does and that in performing these tasks the effectiveness of a leader can be measured.