CONCEPT OF LEADERSHIP

“A leader is one who knows the way, goes the way, and shows the way”

-John C. Maxwell

Introduction

Leadership is the art of getting others to want to do something you are convinced should be done. The word
leadership derived from word leith which means “to go”. To lead mean-to be in advance, to be prominent or to
guide others, to be head of an organization, to hold command. Leadership is the quality of an individual’s
behavior whereby he is able to guide the people or their activities towards certain goals.

Leadership refers to an extremely wide range of roles that have profound influence on the world. The range is
so wide, in fact, that sometimes the term leadership seems to include almost everyone. Indeed, some
corporations have adopted the slogan: "Everyone is a leader."

Leadership

Leadership is a process of influencing a group in a particular situation at a given point of time and in a specific
set of circumstances that stimulate people to strive willingly to attain the common objectives and satisfaction
with the type of leadership provided’. (James J. Cribban)

Leadership over human beings is exercised when persons with certain motives and purposes mobilize in
competition or conflict with others, institutional, political, psychological, and others recourses so as to arouse,
engage and satisfy the motives of followers. (James Mac. Gregor Burns , 1978 )

Concept of leadership

1. Leaders are made, not born

Leaders are made not born and to become an effective leader it require a desire and willpower. Good
leaders develop through a never ending process of self-study, education, training, and experience which
will act as a guide throughout the process.

2. Leadership is a set of function, not the role of an individual

To inspire workers into higher levels of teamwork, there are certain things which must be, know, and,
do. These do not come naturally, but are acquired through continual work and study. Good leaders are
continually working and studying to improve their leadership skills; they are NOT resting on their
laurels

3. Different situations require different patterns of leadership functions.

Same solution for different situation and same solution by different individual can not be static it must
be dynamic in nature as every individual is different by their skill, knowledge and capacity.
 4. Leadership functions are more effectively performed when they are distributed within the group.

Distributed relationship is a conceptual and analytic approach to understand how the work of leadership
takes place among the people and in context of a complex organization. Leader must know the
subordinates or the followers to whom he/she is delegating the responsibility as delegation is one of the
main function of effective leadership.

5. Leadership is not synonymous with administration, management or supervision.

Leaders manage and managers lead, but the two activities are not synonymous . Management functions
can potentially provide leadership and Leadership activities can contribute to managing. Nevertheless,
some managers do not lead, and some leaders do not manage.

6. A job does not make a person a leader

Although individual position as a manager, supervisor, etc. gives you the authority to accomplish
certain tasks and objectives in the organization, this power does not make you a leader, it simply makes
you the boss. Leadership differs in that it makes the followers want to achieve high goals, rather than
simply bossing people around. A single task or a job does not make a leader it require a sustain
improvement and skill enhancement to deal as a leader.

7. Person’s behavior determines leadership position

Person’s behaviour is the study of knowledge about how people, individual and group act. This
behaviour can be autocratic, custodial, supportive and collegial. These different behaviour application
in different situation shows the leadership ability and position in individual.

Characteristics of effective leaders

Courage Self Confidence

Enthusiasm

Ability to maintain
Characterstics of Integrity
standards of conduct
and performance leadership

Ability to give and Ability to organize Friendliness

get co-operation and plan work
 Components of Leadership

Leader: Leader must have an honest understanding of who he/she is, what is known, and what can be done.
Also, leader should note that it is the followers, not the leader who determines if a leader is successful. If
followers do not trust or lack confidence in their leader, then they will be uninspired. To be successful, leader
should convince the followers, not superiors, that it is worthy of being followed.

Follower: Different people require different styles of leadership. For example, a new hire requires more
supervision than an experienced employee. A person who lacks motivation requires a different approach than
one with a high degree of motivation. Leader must know people! The fundamental starting point is having a
good understanding of human nature, such as needs, emotions, and motivation. Leaders must come to know
their employees' be, know, and do attributes.

Communication: Lead can be achieved through two-way communication. Moreover, it is nonverbal. For
instance, when you "set the example," that communicates to your people that you would not ask them to
perform anything that you would not be willing to do. What and how leader communicate either builds or harms
the relationship between leaders and their employees.

Situation: All individuals are different .Solution of one situation will not always work for everyone. Individual
must use their judgment to decide the best course of action and the leadership style needed for each situation.
For example, you may need to confront an employee for inappropriate behavior, but if the confrontation is too
late or too early, too harsh or too weak, then the results may prove ineffective. Various forces will affect these
factors. Examples of forces are relationship with seniors, the skill of people, the informal leaders within
organization, and how company is organized.

Leadership skills

Speaking skills Writing skills Skills of comprehension

 Critical analytical skills
Listening skills

Interpersonal skills Political Skills

Decision-making skills Supervisory skills

Functions of leader
A. Primary functions Administrative skills

1) Executive : He is the top coordinator of activities of the group. He determines and execute the policies
and assign the work to other group members.
2) Planner : He decides the ways and means by which the group shall achieve its ends and involve
immediate and long range future steps to the goals.
3) Policy maker: He establishes group goals and policies and they may arise from three sources that is :
(i) from above (higher authority)
(ii) From below (group members )
(iii) Leader himself

4) Expert: Leader is a source of readily available information and skills. In informal and spontaneous
groups , the man who demonstrates the greatest technical knowledge relevant to the group goals becomes
the leader. E.g. A guide on a camp.

5) External group representative (Gatekeeper): He is the official spokesman for the group and outgoing
and incoming communications of the group are channeled through him

6) Controller of internal relations: He governs the group structure and function as the controller of in-
group relations

B.Accessory functions:
1) Exemplar : The leader may serve as a model of behavior for the group members .thus, providing with a
concrete indication of what they should be and what they should do. E.g. Military Leader.
2) Symbol of the group : Leader provides a kind of cognitive focus for group unity and group continuity .
3) Substitute for individual responsibility : The leader plays an important role for the individual member
in relieving him of responsibility for personal decisions and acts that he wishes to avoid.
4) Ideologist : The leader serves as the source of the beliefs, values and norms of the individual members.
5) Father figure : Leader serves as a perfect focus for the positive emotional feelings of the individual. He
is the ideal object for identification, for transference of feelings of submissiveness.
References

1. Bass, B. M. (2008). The Bass handbook of leadership: Theory, research, and managerial
applications (4th ed.). New York: Free Press

2. Northouse, P. G. (2013). Leadership: Theory and practice(6th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.