Unit - V

LEADERSHIP

Leadership
Leadership is an integral part of management and plays a vital role in managerial
operations. Leadership may be defined as the art of influencing and inspiring sub-
ordinates to perform their duties, willingly competently and enthusiastically for
achievement of group objectives. Leadership is the process of influencing the
activities of an individual or a group in efforts towards goals achievement in a
given situation.
Leadership has been defined in different ways by different set of scholars.
Leadership is defined as the ability to influence a group towards the achievement of a vision
or set of goals. Keith Davis observes that, “without leadership, an organization is but a
muddle of men and machines…Leadership transforms potential into reality. It is the ultimate
act which brings to success all the potential that is in an organization and its people”.

In 1938, Chester Bernard gave a new definition of leadership and stated that,
“leadership is the ability of a superior to influence the behaviour of subordinates and
persuade them to follow a particular course of action”. A recent theorist on leadership,
Williams (2005), states that, “leadership is an interactive art in which the leader is dancing
with the context, the problem, the faction, and the objective”.

A person in an organization may assume leadership both in a formal and informal

way. By formal leadership we mean to say that a person assumes leadership role, based on
the position that he holds in an organization and in such form of leadership, the leader is
designated with the title, along with the authority and responsibility to lead the team. In the
second form of leadership, a person assumes leadership without any formal sanction of
authority and duty. That is, in informal leadership, the ability to influence the group arises
outside the formal structure of the organization and people in the organization oblige to
such influence even without the formal influence.

Leadership is quite important for an organization and they act as agents who cope
with change and bring about change for the betterment of the organization. Leaders
establish direction by developing a vision of future for the organization, communicate the
vision to the people in the organization and synchronize them with the organizational vision
and mission, thereby inspire the people to translate the goals, vision and mission into
reality. Thus, leadership is the ultimate act that brings to success all of the potent potential,
that is in an organization and its people.
Definition
“leadership is the ability to get a person to do what you want him to do, when you
want it done, in a way you want it done, because he wants to do it”.
“Leadership is the ability of a superior to influence the behaviour of his
subordinates and persuade them to follow a particular course of labour”.
“Leadership is the ability of a manager to induce subordinates to work with
confidence and zeal”.
According to Peter Drucker “Leadership is shifting of own vision to higher sights,
the raising of man’s performance to higher standards, the building of man’s
personality beyond its normal limitations”.
Importance of Leadership

1. Initiates action- Leader is a person who starts the work by communicating the policies and
plans to the subordinates from where the work actually starts.
2. Motivation- A leader proves to be playing an incentive role in the concern’s working. He
motivates the employees with economic and non-economic rewards and thereby gets the
work from the subordinates.
3. Providing guidance- A leader has to not only supervise but also play a guiding role for the
subordinates. Guidance here means instructing the subordinates the way they have to
perform their work effectively and efficiently
4. Creating confidence- Confidence is an important factor which can be achieved through
expressing the work efforts to the subordinates, explaining them clearly their role and giving
them guidelines to achieve the goals effectively. It is also important to hear the employees
with regards to their complaints and problems.
5. Building morale- Morale denotes willing co-operation of the employees towards their work
and getting them into confidence and winning their trust. A leader can be a morale booster by
achieving full co-operation so that they perform with best of their abilities as they work to
achieve goals.
6. Builds work environment- Management is getting things done from people. An efficient
work environment helps in sound and stable growth. Therefore, human relations should be
kept into mind by a leader. He should have personal contacts with employees and should
listen to their problems and solve them. He should treat employees on humanitarian terms.
7. Co-ordination- Co-ordination can be achieved through reconciling personal interests with
organizational goals. This synchronization can be achieved through proper and effective co-
ordination which should be primary motive of a leader.

Role of a Leader
1. Required at all levels- Leadership is a function which is important at all levels of
management. In the top level, it is important for getting co-operation in formulation of plans
and policies. In the middle and lower level, it is required for interpretation and execution of
plans and programmes framed by the top management. Leadership can be exercised through
guidance and counseling of the subordinates at the time of execution of plans.
2. Representative of the organization- A leader, i.e., a manager is said to be the
representative of the enterprise. He has to represent the concern at seminars, conferences,
general meetings, etc. His role is to communicate the rationale of the enterprise to outside
public. He is also representative of the own department which he leads.
 3. Integrates and reconciles the personal goals with organizational goals- A leader through
leadership traits helps in reconciling/ integrating the personal goals of the employees with the
organizational goals. He is trying to co-ordinate the efforts of people towards a common
purpose and thereby achieves objectives. This can be done only if he can influence and get
willing co-operation and urge to accomplish the objectives.
4. He solicits support- A leader is a manager and besides that he is a person who entertains
and invites support and co-operation of subordinates. This he can do by his personality,
intelligence, maturity and experience which can provide him positive result. In this regard, a
leader has to invite suggestions and if possible implement them into plans and programmes
of enterprise. This way, he can solicit full support of employees which results in willingness to
work and thereby effectiveness in running of a concern.
5. As a friend, philosopher and guide- A leader must possess the three dimensional traits in
him. He can be a friend by sharing the feelings, opinions and desires with the employees. He
can be a philosopher by utilizing his intelligence and experience and thereby guiding the
employees as and when time requires. He can be a guide by supervising and communicating
the employees the plans and policies of top management and secure their co-operation to
achieve the goals of a concern. At times he can also play the role of a counselor by
counseling and a problem-solving approach. He can listen to the problems of the employees
and try to solve them.

Characters of leadership
1. Empathy
2. Consistency
3. Honesty
4. Direction
5. Communication
6. Needs support from all
7. Assume obligation

Style of leadership
 Autocratic leadership: Here, leader command the followers and expects
compliance from them for all the instructions given, leaders are more
dogmatic and positive. They lead by his ability to withhold or give
rewards or punishments. Here, no suggestions from the followers are
entertained and almost to-down approach is seen. They direct others.
They do not allow any participation.
 Democratic leadership: Here leaders consult subordinates and involve
them in decision making. They encourage discussion with the group
leaders believes in two-way communication. They listen to followers;
try to facilitate the decision making.
  Free – Rein leadership: Free – Rein leaders exercises little authority and
give maximum freedom to subordinates while making decisions. It is a
bottom-up approach. Suggestions from the followers are encourage
and rewarded. They give high degree of independence subordinates in
their operations.
 Paternalistic leadership : Under this management style the leader
assumes that his function is fatherly or paternal. Paternalism means
papa knows best. The relationship between the leader and his group is
the same as the relationship between the head of the family and the
members of the family. The leader guides and protects his subordinates
as members of his family.
 Transactional leadership : Transactional leadership styles use
"transactions" between a leader and his or her followers - rewards,
punishments and other exchanges - to get the job done. The leader sets
clear goals, and team members know how they'll be rewarded for their
compliance. This "give and take" leadership style is more concerned
with following established routines and procedures in an efficient
manner, than with making any transformational changes to an
organization.
 Transformational Leadership: In transformational leadership styles, the
leader inspires his or her followers with a vision and then encourages
and empowers them to achieve it. The leader also serves as a role
model for the vision.

Types of leadership
 Autocratic leader
 Intellectual leader
 Liberal leader
 Democratic leade
 Institutional leader
 Paternal leader
 Creative leader
 Inducing leader

Dimension of leadership
1. The pioneering
 2. The energizing
3. The affirming
4. The inclusive
5. The humble
6. The deliberate
7. The resolute
8. The commanding
1. The pioneering dimension: those with the pioneering dimension tend to be action
oriented, adventurous, and drawn to new opportunities. Dynamic and charismatic,
charming others into support, passionate, optimistic, confidence, and creative.
Pioneering leaders would increase their effectiveness through focusing o patience,
humility and consideration in their dealing with others.
2. The energizing dimension: tend to be enthusiastic, spontaneous, outgoing , and
upbeat, unafraid of colourful, new ideas generating them or embracing them,
collaborative, open , expressive and connected. Energizing leaders would increase
effectiveness through being more objective and following through on tasks.
3. The affirming dimension: this dimension tend to be kind and supportive, seeing the
good in others, flexible, open, patient easy going and tolerant, relationship oriented
sincere, affectionate. affirming leaders would increase their effectiveness through
acknowledging other’s flaws, and by confronting problems.
4. The inclusive dimension: this tend to be good listeners who foster collaboration and
understanding, accepting, diplomatic, patient, and dependable, prone to adopt a
cautious methodical pace to ensure thoughtfulness. Inclusive leader would increase
their effectiveness by displaying self confidence and revealing their true feelings.
5. The humble dimension: it tend to be reliable , steady, conscientious, precise and
consistent. Fair minded, practical, diligent, and thorough. Able to discern what
systems and structures would meet others needs.humble leaders would increase
their effectiveness by being decisive, showing a sense of urgency, initiating change,
and speaking up.
6. The deliberate dimension: it tends to be disciplined leaders who provide high quality
outcomes through analysis and planning , systematic, moderately paced, object
problems solvers. Accurate, valuing expertise, logic, and privacy. Deliberate leaders
would increase their effectiveness by acknowledging others’ feeling and looking
beyond data.
7. The resolute dimension: it tends to be tenaciously driven, with passion for
overcoming obstacles. Independent and determined, valuing personal mastery,
accomplishment, and efficient results. Resolute leaders would increase their
effectiveness by focusing on personal warmth, tactful communication, and attention
to others needs.
8. The commanding dimension: it tends to be powerful, decisive leaders who possess a
take charge presence, competitive , driven, assertive, motivated by bottom line
results or victory and able to tenaciously tolerate conflict. commanding leaders
would increase their effectiveness by focusing on patience and empathy.
THEORIES OF LEADERSHIP

In influencing the people in the organization towards the goals of the organization, there
have been various approaches adopted by different set of leaders, as one model may not be
suitable for different organizations with different set of objectives. Moreover, such models
or theories of leadership also depend on the qualities that a leader inherit or display in
managing her/his team. Some of the theories of leadership ranging from conventional
theories to contemporary theories have been dealt with over here, the chief of them being
the following:

 Great Man Theory/Trait Theory

 Behavioural Theories
 Contingency/Situational Theories,
 Transactional Theory of Leadership
 Transformational Theory of Leadership

Great Man Theory/Trait Theory of Leadership:

Some of the leaders in the history have always been identified as strong leaders based on
the qualities or traits that they display. Leaders like Mahatma Gandhi, Indira Gandhi,
Margaret Thatcher, Nelson Mandela, Narayana Murthy of Infosys, Apple‟s Cofounder Steve
Jobs etc. has been identified, based on the traits that they displayed. For instance, when
Margaret Thatcher was the prime minister of the Great Britain, she was regularly described
as a confident, iron-willed, determined and decisive leader. Thus, the trait theories of
leadership consider personal qualities and characteristics that differentiate leaders from
non-leaders (Robbins, Judge, & Sanghi, 2007).

In the beginning, the assumption behind trait theory was that „leaders are born and not
made‟. This concept was popularly known as the „Great Man Theory‟ of leadership. The
great man theory was originally proposed by Thomas Carlyle in 1949 and the assumption
behind this theory is that „great leaders will arise, when there is great need‟. The theory
also assumes that a leader cannot be a normal person and they are different from the
average person in terms of personality traits such as intelligence, perseverance and
ambition. However, a proposition of „Great Woman‟ finds no place, especially in leadership
studies mainly due to the fact that gender issues were out of context, when the theory was
proposed and moreover, it was only male members of the society who were into such
research and such biasness was hardly realized by the people then.

In the period of 1960s, various research studies were made on the traits of a leader and
about 80 traits that a leader could display was identified. The trait theory assumes that
leaders are born with inherited traits and good leaders have the right combination of traits.
In 1974, stogdill identified certain traits and skills that are essential for a leader, which are as
follows:
A comprehensive review of the leadership literature on traits, reveal that one of the
significant approach that was developed was the Big Five Personality Framework. Though
various traits were identified by different studies, it was possible that such traits were
somehow clubbed or subsumed under the Big Five approach. Though the approach seems
to be complex, it offers useful insights. Leaders who are extraverted (individuals who like
being around people and are able to assert themselves), conscientious (individuals who are
disciplined and keep commitments they make), and open (individuals who are creative and
flexible) do seem to have an advantage when it comes to leadership, suggesting that good
leaders do have key traits in common.

In recent years, another trait that has been identified with leadership is the Emotional
Intelligence (EI). Advocates of EI argue that without it, a person can have outstanding
training, a highly analytical mind, a compelling vision, and an endless supply of terrific ideas,
but still not make a great leader. The general assumption is that, empathetic leaders can
sense others‟ needs, listen to what followers say (and don‟t say), and are able to read the
reactions of others.

Behavioural Theories

In the 1940s, apart from the research studies being conducted on the traits displayed by
leaders, research was also conducted on the behaviours exhibited by leaders. The first and
foremost study on leadership was carried out by psychologist, Kurt Lewin and his associates
in 1939 and identified different styles of leadership, viz. autocratic, democratic and laissez-
faire leadership, which has been discussed in the next unit. While the assumption behind
traits theory is that „leaders are born, rather than made‟, behavioural theories assume that
specific behavioural patterns of leaders can be acquired through learning and experience.
While the trait theory concentrates on „what the leaders are‟, the behavioural theories
concentrate on „what the leaders do‟. In this section, four different behavioural pattern of
leadership has been dealt with, which are as follows:

(1) Ohio State Studies

One of the foremost studies that emanated on behavioural theories was the study
made by Ohio State University in 1945 by E.A. Fleishman, E.F. Harris and H.E. Burtt.
The study narrowed the leadership behaviours into two categories, viz. initiating
structure and consideration, under which the various leadership behaviours were
clubbed.
(i) Initiating Structure: Initiating structure refers to the extent to which a leader
is likely to define and structure his or her role and those of employees in the
search for goal attainment. It includes behaviour that attempts to organize
work, work relationships, and goals. A leader with initiating structure is
generally task oriented, with focus on performance of employees and
meeting of deadlines.
(ii) Consideration: As per „consideration‟ category, a leader pays more attention
to the employee of the organization rather than the task and shows concern
for the well-being, comfort and satisfaction of employees. That is, a leader
focuses on the relationships that are characterised by mutual trust, respect
for employees‟ ideas, and regard for their feelings.
The two-factor conceptualization of Ohio Studies has been gaining wide recognition
in recent times.
(2) University of Michigan Studies Similar to the Ohio State University studies, research
on leadership studies was also carried out by the University of Michigan‟s Research
centres, in 1946 by Rensis Likert and his associates. The study made an analysis of
the relationship between leadership behaviours and organizational performances.
Michigan Studies also identified a twofactor component, viz. „
i) employee-oriented leader‟ and „production-oriented leader‟.:
Employee-Oriented Leader: The concern of the employee-oriented leaders were
more on the interpersonal relations with the employees and such leaders paid more
attention on the needs of the employees and accepted the individual differences
among members.
ii) Production-Oriented Leader: The production oriented-leaders paid attention
to the technical aspects of the job or the tasks assigned to the employees,
rather than on employees. Such leaders gave least importance to the group
members, and regarded the employees as only a means to achieve the ends,
that is, the goals of an organization.

It can be found that the two-factor conceptualization of the Ohio study is similar to the two
way dimension of the Michigan studies. While the employee-oriented leadership can be
compared with the „consideration‟ component of Ohio studies, production-oriented
leadership can be compared with „initiating structure‟. While the Ohio studies considered
both its components to be important for effective leadership, the Michigan studies gave
supremacy to the component of „employee-orientation‟ over „production-orientation‟.

(3) The Managerial Grid

Like the Ohio State studies and Michigan studies, the Managerial Grid theory of
leadership was also based on the styles of „concern for people‟ and „concern for
production‟. The Managerial Grid theory of leadership was proposed by Robert
Blake and Jane Mouton in 1964. This theory which is depicted in a graphical form is
also known as the „Leadership Grid Theory‟
The grid is a nine-by-nine matrix which outlines 81 different styles of leadership. The
grid has 9 possible positions along each axis creating 81 different positions in which
the leader‟s style may fall.

Through the Managerial Grid, 5 kinds of Leadership Style was identified, which
include the following:
1. Impoverished, in which there is low concern for people and production (1 by 1)
2. Country Club, wherein the concern for production is low, but for people is high (1
by 9)
3. Task, in which there is high concern for production and low concern for people (9
by 1)
4. Middle of the Road, where there is moderate concern for both the production
and the people (5 by 5)
5. Team, wherein there is high concern for both the people and production (9 by 9).

This theory, thus offers a useful framework for conceptualizing and understanding the
leadership styles. Though behavioural theories make its contribution in understanding
leadership effectiveness, it cannot be considered as the utmost option, to determine the
success of leadership. In other words, it cannot be said with utmost clarity that a leader
depicting a certain kind of leadership traits and behaviours are always successful. At times,
the situational contexts play a strong role in determining the effectiveness of leaders.

Contingency/Situational Theories
Sometimes the success of a leader does not depend upon the qualities, traits and behaviour
of a leader alone. The context in which a leader exhibits her/his skills, traits and behaviour
matters, because same style of functioning may not be suitable for different situations. Thus
the effectiveness of leadership also depends upon situations. Several research studies, when
analyzing the reason for inconsistent results in differing conditions with the same leadership
style, laid their focus on situational variables. This theory views leadership in terms of a
dynamic interaction between a number of situational variables like the leader, the
followers, the task situation, the environment, etc. Some of the noteworthy studies on
situational contexts that gained wide recognition include Fiedler‟s model, Hersey and
Blanchard‟s Situational theory, Leader-Member Exchange theory, Path-Goal theory and
Leader-Participation model, which has been discussed over here.

(1) Fiedler Model Fred Fiedler was the first person to develop a comprehensive model
for the contingency theory of leadership in 1967. The basic premise behind this
theory is that, effective performance of an organization or a group of people in an
organization highly depend upon the style adopted by a leader and the degree to
which a situation gives control to the leader. In order to assess the style followed by
a leader, Fiedler developed „Least-Preferred Coworker‟ (LPC) scale, in which the
leaders were asked to give their preference on the employee with whom they have
least preference to work with. If the least preferred co- worker was described in
favourable terms, such response was rated as ‘relationshiporiented’ and if rated in
unfavourable terms, a leader was regarded as ‘productionoriented’. However, in
contrast, the response derived from such study did not show a clear cut picture, as
some of the responses had a score in the mid range. Through such responses, it was
difficult to classify a leader either as a relationship-oriented or a production oriented
leader, as the scoring was neither high nor low. Fiedler‟s model thus illuminated
attention on a new dimension of leadership studies. Thus through this study, it was
suggested that, if a situation requires a task-oriented leader and the person in that
leadership position is relationship-oriented, either the situation has to be modified
or the leader replaced, if optimal effectiveness is to be achieved (Robbins, Judge, &
Sanghi, 2007).
Based on the results derived, Fiedler has identified three situational factors, viz.
leadermember relations, task structure and position power, which determine
leadership effectiveness. A brief discussion on such situational factors is as follows:
1. Leader-Member Relations: The degree of confidence, trust and respect that
members have on their leader;
2. Task Structure: The degree to which the job assignments are structured or
unstructured;
3. Position Power: The degree of influence a leader has over power variables such
as hiring, firing, discipline, promotions, and salary increases.

Path-Goal Theory
Path-Goal Theory was developed by Martin Evans and Robert House in 1970-71, taking
inputs from the concept of initiating structure and consideration of the Ohio State Studies
and the Expectancy Theory of Motivation. The base behind Path-Goal theory is that
effective leaders clarify the path to help their followers to move forward from their current
position towards achieving the work goals. In this process, the leader reduces the roadblock
that occurs in the path of the followers, and makes their journey easier. Thus, the essence
of path goal theory is that, it is the leader‟s job to provide the followers with the
information, support and other resources, necessary for them to achieve their goals
(Robbins, Judge, & Sanghi, 2007)

This theory identifies four types of leadership behaviour, viz. directive leader, supportive
leader, participative leader and achievement-oriented leader. Unlike Fiedler, who assumes
the leader to follow a fixed leadership style, the theory put forward by House, assumes the
leader to be a flexible person, who can display different kinds of behaviours based on a
given situation. The four types of leadership behaviour, identified by Robert House are as
follows:

1. Directive Leader: A directive leader clarifies the followers of the role expected of
them, schedules the work to be done and gives the needed direction or guidance as
to how to accomplish tasks;
2. Supportive Leader: A supportive leader behaves in an friendly manner with the
followers, and the main concern of the leader is placed on the needs of the
followers, rather than on accomplishing the tasks;
3. Participative Leader: A participative leader involves the followers in the consultation
process and also gets the suggestions or views of the followers, before making a
decision;
4. Achievement-Oriented Leader: An achievement oriented leader set challenging goals
for the followers and expects them to perform at their highest level. The above
mentioned leadership styles under the path-goal theory is contingent upon two
factors such as, characteristics of employees and environmental factors. While
environmental factors include aspects such as task structure, formal authority
system, work group, etc. employee characteristics include aspects like locus of
control, experience, perceived ability, etc.
Transactional Theory of Leadership
The transactional theory of leadership was first discussed by Max Weber in 1947 and
was later developed by Bernard M Bass in 1981. There are several assumptions that
underlie the transactional theory, which are as follows:
 People perform their best when the chain of command is definite and clear.
 Workers are motivated by rewards and punishments.
 Obeying the instructions and commands of the leader is the primary goal of
the followers.
  Subordinates need to be carefully monitored to ensure that expectations are
met.

Under the transactional theory of leadership, the leaders guide or motivate their followers
in the direction of established goals by clarifying role and task requirements. The
characteristic features exhibited by transactional leaders are as follows:

1. Contingent Reward: The leader links the goals of the organization to rewards and
clearly specifies and expectations , provides the needed resources and set SMART
(specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and timely) goals for the subordinates;
2. Management by Exception (Active): The leader actively monitors the performance of
the subordinates, watches and searches for deviations from rules and standards, and
take corrective actions to prevent mistakes;
3. Management by Exception (Passive): In terms of passive management, a leader
intervenes only if standards are not met and even use punishments for poor
performances;
4. Laissez-Faire: In this for, the leader gives an environment to subordinates, where
they can take decisions. In this form, the leader himself abdicates from
responsibilities and avoids making decisions, due to which the followers lack the
direction.

This kind of leadership may not be suitable for all occasions and be suitable, where
organizational problems are quite simple and clearly defined. The transactional leaders tend
to be highly directive and action oriented and their relationship with the foll]owers tends to
be transitory and not based on emotional bonds. In taking this style of leadership, gender
differences exist. Several studies found that, in using transactional leadership style, women
were more likely to focus on the „rewards‟ component, while the men laid their focus on
„punishment‟ component.

Transformational Theory of Leadership

Transformational leadership is also equated to an extent with the charismatic leadership. In

order to bring transformation in the followers‟ or employees‟ interest and reshape their
capacity, one critical component that has been considered essential is the charisma of the
leader. In this form of leadership, a leader inspires her/his followers to transcend their own
self-interests for the betterment of the organization. Transformational leaders pay attention
to the developmental needs and concerns of the followers, and inspire followers to give a
new outlook for the old problems and thus motivate the followers towards achievement of
the goals of the organization, by giving them new perspective. Accordingto Bass and Riggio,
there are four dimensions to the transformational theory of leadership, viz. Idealized
Influence (II), Inspirational Motivation (IM), Intellectual Stimulation (IS) and Individualized
Consideration (IC), which are as follows:
 1. Idealized Influence (II): In this form of leadership, the leaders act as role models for
their subordinates and they exhibit high morals and ethical standards. They further
provide the vision and sense of mission, instill pride amidst the followers and gains
respect and trust;
2. Inspirational Motivation (IM): In this dimension of leadership, leaders inspire their
subordinates in various ways and give meaning to their work and bring new
challenges and enthusiasm. The leader expresses the organizational purposes in
simple terms to the followers and has high expectations on the followers;
3. Intellectual Stimulation (IS): In this form, the leaders stimulate the intellectual ability
of their followers. That is, through new approaches, the leaders try to stimulate the
way of thinking of their subordinates and thus, raise the creativity in them and
promote intelligence, rationality and problem solving skills;
4. Individualized Consideration (IC): The leaders, under this dimension, pay more
attention to the individual needs of development of the subordinates so as to
achieve success (Kuchynkova, 2013).

Research was also made on the gender differences in transformational leadership and it was
found that, women were rated higher than men on most dimensions of transformational
leadership and higher outputs were achieved by women, by following this style of
leadership.

Apart from the above mentioned modern theories of leadership, there have been wide
array of studies that have been taking place on leadership in recent times, which is based on
the concepts of spirituality, authenticity, chaos and complexity, relationality, ethical
leadership, visionary leadership, transcendence, etc. All such analysis on leadership brings in
new dimension to the study of leadership, and is still in the process of evolving a solid
theoretical construct. The emerging theories thus, attempt to accommodate new
organizational structures characterized by more fluid, temporal arrangements, rapidly
changing technologies, increased globalization, and changing workplace demography
(Klenke, 2011). Some of the substitute theories of leadership are of the view that in such
new forms of organization, the need for a single leadership is diminished. However, some of
the studies also suggest that in new forms of organizational structure, the need for a leader
is felt more, because of the newness of the organizational structure and the followers tend
to look at their leaders to make sense of the unfamiliar organizational forms (Klenke, 2011).
MOTIVATION

Motivation is the word derived from the word ’motive’ which means needs, desires,
wants or drives within the individuals. It is the process of stimulating people to actions to
accomplish the goals. In the work goal context the psychological factors stimulating the
people’s behaviour can be -

 desire for money

 success
 recognition
 job-satisfaction
 team work, etc

One of the most important functions of management is to create willingness amongst the
employees to perform in the best of their abilities. Therefore the role of a leader is to
arouse interest in performance of employees in their jobs. The process of motivation
consists of three stages:-

1. A felt need or drive

2. A stimulus in which needs have to be aroused
3. When needs are satisfied, the satisfaction or accomplishment of goals.

Therefore, we can say that motivation is a psychological phenomenon which means needs
and wants of the individuals have to be tackled by framing an incentive plan.

Motivation is a psychological feature that arouses an organism to act towards a

desired goal and elicits, controls, and sustains certain goal directed behaviors. It can be
considered a driving force; a psychological drive that compels or reinforces an action toward
a desired goal. For example, hunger is a motivation that elicits a desire to eat. Motivation
has been shown to have roots in physiological, behavioral, cognitive, and social areas.

Motivation may be rooted in a basic impulse to optimize well-being, minimize

physical pain and maximize pleasure. It can also originate from specific physical needs such
as eating, sleeping or resting, and sex.

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs: Abraham Maslow thought that a person’s

motivational needs can be arranged in a hierarchical manner. In essence, he believed that
once a given level of need is satisfied, it no longer serves to motivate. The next higher level
of need has to be activated in order to motivate the individual Maslow identified five levels
in his need hierarchy.

1. Physiological needs: The needs of hunger, thirst, sleep and sex are physiological
needs. According to the theory, once these basic needs are satisfied, they no longer
motivate.

2. Safety needs: Maslow stressed emotional as well as physical safety. The whole
organization may become a safety – seeking mechanism. For example, membership in a
trade union is a safety need. Once these safety needs are satisfied, they no longer motivate.

3. Love needs: Maslow’s use of the word love has many misleading connotations, such as
sex, which is actually a physiological need. Perhaps a more appropriate word describing this
level would be belongingness or affiliation. Membership in formal and informal work
groups is a belongingness need.

4. Esteem needs: The esteem level represents the higher needs of humans. The needs
for power, achievement, and status can be considered to be part of this level.
5. Needs for self – actualization: This level represents the culmination of all the lower,
intermediate, and higher needs of humans. People, who have become self – actualized, are
self fulfilled and have realized all their potential. Self – actualization is the person’s
motivation to transform perception of self into reality.

Herzberg’s Two – Factor Theory

According to Herzberg, there are satisfiers and dis-satisfiers in a job for the individuals.
Herzberg labeled satisfiers motivators, and he called the dissatisfiers hygiene factors. Taken
together, they became known as Herzberg’s two – factor theory of motivation.

Herzberg’s theory is closely related to Maslow’s need hierarchy. The hygiene factors are
preventive and environmental in nature, and they are roughly equivalent to Maslow’s lower
– level needs.
Herzberg’s Two – factor theory

These hygiene factors prevent dissatisfaction, but they do not lead to satisfaction. By
themselves, the hygiene factors do not motivate. Only the motivators motivate humans on
the job. They are roughly equivalent to Maslow’s higher – level needs. According to the
Herzberg theory, an individual must have a job with a challenging content in order to be
truly motivated

ERG Theory

The most recent extension of the Herzberg and, especially, the Maslow content theories of
work motivation come from the work of Clayton Alderfer. He formulated a need category
model that was more in line with the existing empirical evidence. Similar to Maslow and
Herzberg, he does feel that there is value in categorizing needs and that here is basic
distinction between lower – order needs and higher order needs.

Alderfer identified three groups of core needs; Existence, Relatedness, and Growth (hence
ERG theory). The existence needs are concerned with survival (physiological Well-being).
The relatedness needs stress the importance of interpersonal, social relationships. The
growth needs are concerned with the individual’s intrinsic desire for personal development.

Fig 16. Shows how these groups of needs are related to the Maslow and Herzberg
categories. Obviously, they are very close but the ERG needs do not have strict lines of
democration.

McGregor’s ‘Theory X’ and ‘Theory Y’

Douglas McGregor propounded two contrasting theories of human behavior which he called
theory X and theory Y.

Theory X: Theory X indicates the traditional approach to managerial motivation and

control. It represents old stereotyped and authoritarian management style of motivation. It
suggests that threats of punishment and strict control are the ways to manage people.

Theory Y: Theory Y indicates that if people are properly motivated, they could really be
creative. The main task of management is to unleash the potential in the employees. An
employee who is properly motivated can achieve his goals by directing his own efforts and,
thus, he can help in accomplishing the organizational goals. This theory emphasizes the
satisfaction of need of the workers. It does not rely heavily on the use of authority as an
instrument of command and control. It suggests that decentralization and delegation, job
enlargement, participation and consultative management style are the ways to motivate
people.

Comparison of Theory X and Theory Y

Theory X Theory Y

Based on the assumption that people are Based on the assumption that people like
basically lazy and so shirk work work as children like play

People do not take initiative. They like to People like to take initiative. They seek
be directed. self – direction.

People avoid responsibility whenever People assume responsibility gladly if

possible conditions are favourable.

For getting things done, people must be People do not require close and strict
supervised strictly. supervision for properly performing their
jobs.

Autocratic style of leadership is likely to Democratic or participative style of

be more effective leadership is likely to be more effective.

Applicable to illiterate, unskilled and Applicable to educated and skilled

lower – level workers employees who occupy high positions in
the organizations.

Believes in mental sickness and so Believes in mental health and so positive

negative motivation of employees and intrinsic motivation of employees
McClelland’s Theory

Mc Clelland’s theory of needs is one such theory that explains this process of motivation by
breaking down what and how needs are and how they have to be approached. David
McClelland was an American Psychologist who developed his theory of needs or
Achievement Theory of Motivation which revolves around three important aspects, namely,
Achievement, Power And Affiliation. This theory was developed in the 1960’s and
McClelland’s points out that regardless of our age, sex, race or culture, all of us possess one
of these needs and are driven by it. This theory is also known as the Acquired Needs as
McClelland put forth that the specific needs of an individual are acquired and shaped over
time through the experiences he has had in life.

Psychologist David McClelland advocated Need theory, also popular as Three Needs Theory.
This motivational theory states that the needs for achievement, power,
and affiliation significantly influence the behavior of an individual, which is useful to
understand from a managerial context.

This theory can be considered an extension to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Per McClelland,
every individual has these three types of motivational needs irrespective of their
demography, culture or wealth. These motivation types are driven from real life experiences
and the views of their ethos.
Need for Achievement

The need for achievement as the name itself suggests is the urge to achieve something in
what you do. If you are a lawyer it is the need to win cases and be recognized, if you are a
painter it is the need to paint a famous painting. It is the need that drives a person to work
and even struggle for the objective that he wants to achieve. People who possess high
achievement needs are people who always work to excel by particularly avoiding low
reward low risk situations and difficult to achieve high risk situations.

The individuals motivated by needs for achievement usually have a strong desire of setting
up difficult objectives and accomplishing them. Their preference is to work in the result
oriented work environment and always appreciate any feedback on their work.
Achievement based individuals take calculated risks to reach their goals and may circumvent
both high-risk and low-risk situations. They often prefer working alone. This personality type
believes in a hierarchical structure derived primarily by work based achievements.

Need for power

The need for power is the desire within a person to hold control and authority over another
person and influence and change their decision in accordance with his own needs or desires.
The need to enhance their self esteem and reputation drives these people and they desire
their views and ideas to be accepted and implemented over the views and ideas over
others. These people are strong leaders and can be best suited to leading positions. They
either belong to Personal or Institutional power motivator groups. If they are a personal
power motivator they would have the need to control others and a institutional power
motivator seeks to lead and coordinate a team towards an end.

The individuals motivated by needs for power have a desire to control and influence others.
Competition motivates them and they enjoy winning arguments. Status and recognition is
something they aspire for and do not like being on the losing side. They are self-disciplined
and expect the same from their peers and teams. The do not mind playing a zero-sum game,
where, for one person to win, another must lose and collaboration is not an option. This
motivational type is accompanied by needs for personal prestige, and a better personal
status.

Need for Affiliation

The need for affiliation is urge of a person to have interpersonal and social relationships
with others or a particular set of people. They seek to work in groups by creating friendly
and lasting relationships and has the urge to be liked by others. They tend to like
collaborating with others to competing with them and usually avoids high risk situations and
uncertainty

The individuals motivated by needs for affiliation prefer being part of a group. They like
spending their time socializing and maintaining relationships and possess strong desire to be
loved and accepted. These individuals stick to basics and play by the books without feeling a
need to change things, primarily due to a fear of being rejected. People in this group tend to
adhere to the norms of the culture in that workplace and typically do not change the norms
of the workplace for fear of rejection. Collaboration is the way to work for them
competition remains secondary. They are not risk seekers and are more cautious in their
approach. These individuals work effectively in roles based on social interactions, for
instance, client service and other customer interaction positions.

Vroom’s Expectancy Theory

Motivation is essential when faced with any task in life. In or out of the workplace, it is hard
to commit yourself to work on a given task without the proper motivation. For instance, it
may be difficult to convince yourself to exercise, unless you have the motivation of losing
weight. With a clear goal in front of you (weight loss), your mind may be more willing to
commit to an activity that will be difficult (exercise).

The concept is the same in the workplace. As an owner or manager, you need to make sure
that your employees can expect positive outcomes when they commit to working hard all
day long. Without the expectancy of a reward in some form of fashion, it is unlikely that
your team will commit to putting in the effort needed to produce great work. This might
seem like somewhat of an obvious point, but it is critical to the health and longevity of your
business.

The Theory

In Vroom’s Expectancy Theory, it is stated that individuals are going to select their behaviors
based on the outcomes that they expect as a result of those behaviors. As a simple example,
imagine one of your employees arriving for work in the morning. As the day begins, they
have two basic options – they can choose to work hard all day long, going above and beyond
what is expected in order to help the company grow. Or, alternatively, they can do just
enough to get by, meeting their requirements but going no further. Which path are they
going to choose?

Most likely, they are going to select the path that makes the most sense for them as an
individual based on the rewards available. If the rewards for working hard and working just
hard enough to get by are exactly the same, most people are going to choose to do as little
as possible. After all, what is their motivation to work harder? Only when rewards that are
proportional to the effort given are available will your employees truly have motivation to
strive for their best.
There are three variables laid out within this theory – Expectancy, Instrumentality, and
Valence. Below, we will look at each of these three variables in greater detail.

Expectancy

The expectancy that one has in their job relates to how much they believe that their effort
will result in a desired performance goal. In other words, if you set goals for your team to
reach, they should believe that working hard is going to allow them to reach those goals
successfully. There needs to be a direct correlation between effort and success with regard
to performance. If your employees believe that they won’t be able to reach their goals no
matter how hard they work – whether those goals are too difficult or there are too many
factors out of their control – they are unlikely to give a full effort each and every day.

For you as a manager, it is important to clearly think about the goals you lay out in front of
your team members. These goals should lead to high expectancy – a belief that effort is
going to translate to success. If the goals you map out are not achievable for any number of
reasons, they will fail to motivate your team properly.

Instrumentality

Speaking of achieving goals, this next variable has to do with the belief that a reward will be
waiting when a goal is met. It is one thing for your employees to have goals set in front of
them – but it is another thing for there to be a tangible motivation to hit those goals. The
most obvious example of this kind of motivation is a pay raise.

If your employees can reasonably expect to receive more pay when they are able to hit
performance targets, you are very likely to get their best effort on the job. Other kinds of
rewards can include promotions to higher-ranking positions, or even something as simple as
recognition in front of others.
To feel motivated and confident in this variable, your team needs to be able to trust you
first and foremost. They have to believe that you will follow through with offers of increased
pay or any other kind of reward that is made available when performance standards are
met. Also, the performance standards in question must be well-defined to avoid confusion
and conflict with regard to the judgment of performance.

Valence

When dangling a potential performance award in front of your employees, you need to be
sure that the reward which is offered is something that is actually valued by the workers.
They are only going to be motivated to work hard toward the reward you have offered if
they actually want that reward in the first place. Of course, pay increases or bonuses are a
pretty safe bet, but even those might not be as attractive to some workers as others.

For instance, if you have a team of individuals who are already well-paid for their efforts,
those employees might prefer to receive time off as opposed to a bonus check. The best
way to know what kind of rewards will motivation your team is simply to ask. By gaining
some insight into what kinds of rewards are going to cause your employees to work hard on
a day in and day out basis, you can be sure to tailor your offers to suit their desires.

Power

Power refers to a capacity that A has to influence the behavior of B, so that B acts in accordance with
A’s wishes. This definition implies a potential that need not be actualized to be effective and a
dependency relationship. Power may exist but not be used. It is, therefore, a capacity or potential.
One can have power but not impose it.

Bases of Power

Coercive Power: The coercive power base is defined by French and Raven as being dependent on
fear. One reacts to this power out of fear of the negative results that might occur if one failed to
comply. It rests on the application, or the threat of application, of physical sanctions such as the
infliction of pain, the generation of frustration through restriction of movement, or the controlling
by force of basic physiological or safety needs.

Reward Power :The opposite of coercive power is reward power. People comply with the wishes or
directives of another because doing so produces positive benefits; therefore, one who can distribute
rewards that others view as valuable will have power over those others. These rewards can be
anything that another person values. In an organizational context, we think of money, favorable
performance appraisals, promotions, interesting work assignments, friendly colleagues, important
information, and preferred work shifts or sales territories.

Legitimate Power: In formal groups and organizations, probably the most frequent access to one or
more of the power bases is one’s structural position. This is called legitimate power. It represents
the power a person receives as a result of his or her position in the formal hierarchy of an
organization.

Expert power: Is influence wielded as a result of expertise, special skill, or knowledge. Expertise has
become one of the most powerful sources of influence as the world has become more
technologically oriented. As jobs become more specialized, we become increasingly dependent on
experts to achieve goals. So, while it is generally acknowledged that physicians have expertise and
hence expert power—most of us follow the advice that our doctor gives us—you should also
recognize that computer specialists, tax accountants, solar engineers, industrial psychologists, and
other specialists are able to wield power as a result of their expertise.

Referent Power : The last category of influence that French and Raven identified was referent
power. Its base is identification with a person who has desirable resources or personal traits. If I
admire and identify with you, you can exercise power over me because I want to please you.
Referent power develops out of admiration of another and a desire to be like that person. In a sense,
then, it is a lot like charisma. If you admire someone to the point of modeling your behavior and
attitudes after him or her, this person possesses referent power over you. Referent power explains
why celebrities are paid millions of dollars to endorse products in commercials.

Politics

There has been no shortage of definitions for organizational politics. Essentially, however, they have
focused on the use of power to affect decision making in the organization or on behaviors by
members that are self-serving and organizationally nonsanctioned. For our purposes, we shall define
political behavior in organizations as those activities that are not required as part of one’s formal
role in the organization, but that influence, or attempt to influence, the distribution of advantages
and disadvantages within the organization.

Legitimate political behavior: it refers to normal everyday politics—complaining to your supervisor,

bypassing the chain of command, forming coalitions, obstructing organizational policies or decisions
through inaction or excessive adherence to rules, and developing contacts outside the organization
through one’s professional activities.

illegitimate political behaviors: that violate the implied rules of the game. Those who pursue such
extreme activities are often described as individuals who “play hardball.” Illegitimate activities
include sabotage, whistleblowing, and symbolic protests such as wearing unorthodox dress or
protest buttons, and groups of employees simultaneously calling in sick.