TRANSCRIPT

Linh: Helloo, I am Linh, I’ll be the MC for today academic talk show

Nghi: Hello everyone, I’m Nghi. Today, I’ll act as MC to host the talk show.

Nghi and Linh: Welcome to our “Leadership” talk show

Nghi: Now we have a short video. Let’s watch it with us and guess the main topic. And also
please tell us your opinion about the video.
Leadership and effective collaboration.

Linh: So anyone, have you already got your answer? Please raise your hand, so what is your answer?

Nghi: Today we have invited 4 guests to join this talk show, so they can share more experience
and give us advice on how to become a good leader.

Linh: First of all, we have the co-founder, chairman, and CEO of the Vietnamese technology
company FPT Corporation. Can you guess who is that? That’s right! He is Truong Gia Binh.

Nghi: The second one is a Vietnamese businesswoman, the CEO of VietJet Air,[1]
President of Sovico Group, and Vice President of HDBank. Please welcome Mrs.
Nguyễn Thị Phương Thảo.

Linh: Waymark is an internet marketing company that specializes in videos founded in 2021.
The company allows its clients to scale the impact of their videos through video storytelling.
Effective videos can increase sales and improve marketing's reach. Waymark provides video
templates to make content creation easier. And we are happy to have Nguyen Ngoc An the
CEO of Waymark

Nghi: SeekOut is a recruiting platform that uses artificial intelligence to help employers
find the talent they're looking for. As of June 2022, SeekOut has accumulated over 780
million public job-seeker profiles, including 39 million developer profiles and 101
million expert profiles. SeekOut has tools that analyze talent pools to help hiring
managers make more informed decisions. ( founded in 2017). We really appreciate the
presence of Seekout’s CEO today. Quỳnh Phương
Linh: Personally, A leader is someone who inspires passion and motivation in followers. A
leader is someone with a vision and the path to realizing it. A leader is someone who ensures
their team has support and tools to achieve their goals. So what does it mean to be a leader, an
can you share your view?
An: “The nature of leadership”

Nghi: I have one question for you, An. In the military, the environment is required to be
led by a strong boss. But what if bosslessness and self-organization are far more
effective and powerful than what traditional management might carry out?

An: Answer.

Nghi: Four approaches that are in tune with leadership for today’s turbulent times are
Level 5 leadership, servant leadership, authentic leadership, and interactive leadership,
which has been associated with women’s style of leading. So we really hear more details
about level 5 leadership and other types of leadership, can you share more with us ?

An: Answer.

Linh: Hundreds of books and articles have been written in recent years about the differences
between management and leadership. Good management is essential in organizations, yet
managers have to be leaders too, because distinctive qualities are associated with management
and leadership that provide different strengths for the organization. Tran, please let me know
what you think about having leadership skills and management skills?

Trân: Answer
First of all, thanks for inviting me guys. I think the most important thing if you want to be a successful
leader is the ability to distinguish the difference between leadership and management. Leadership and
management reflect two sets of qualities and skills that provide different benefits for the organization.
● Management promotes stability and efficient organizing to meet current commitments,
whereas leadership often inspires engagement and organizational change to meet new
conditions.
● Both leadership and management are important to organizations and people can learn to be
good leaders and managers.

Linh: When he was hired as CEO of Google, Eric Schmidt applied both skilled
management and good leadership to take the startup to the next growth stage. can you
share his leadership principles?

Trân: Answer
Eric Schmidt, he is really a good CEO, his achievements can show the talent of management
and leadership skill of him. His leadership principles can be summarized in the following five
precepts:
1. Get to know your employees.
2. Create new ways to reward and promote high performers.
3. Let employees own the problems that you want them to solve.
4. Allow people to function outside the hierarchy.
5. Have employees’ performance reviewed by someone whom they respect for their
objectivity
That's all the principle he applied to take GG to the next stage of growth . He realizes that Leadership cannot replace
management but it should be in addition to management.Good mgm is needed to help organization meet current
commitments while good leadership is needed to move organization into the future .
Nghi: Every manager has a limited capacity; those who become good leaders are the
ones who tap into their key strengths that can make a difference. Does “Traits” play an
important role in determining whether that person is a good leader or not ?

Trân: Answer
Hmm, I saw that early there are many efforts to understand leadership success that focus on the
leader’s traits. But generally , early research found a weak relationship between traits and leadership
success. Traits distinguish personal characteristics, such as intelligence, self-confidence, energy, and
independence. As you can see on the screen, here is a table of personal characteristics that has
received the greatest research support. However, a trait or set of a trait depends on the leadership
situation. It means a trait is considered positive can sometimes have negative consequences

● For example, optimism is a highly desirable trait for a leader. Leaders need to be able
to see possibilities where others see problems and to instill in others a sense of hope
for a better future. However, optimism can also lull leaders into laziness and
overconfidence, causing them to miss danger signals and underestimate risks
The thing that I think plays an important role in determining whether a person can be a leader or not is
strengths . Strengths are natural talents and abilities supported and reinforced with learned knowledge
and skills. Every manager has a limited capacity; those who become good leaders are the ones who
tap into their key strengths that can make a difference. Effective leadership isn’t about having the
“right” traits, but rather about finding the strengths that one can best exemplify and apply as a leader.

Linh: Looking at the behavior of leaders and how it might contribute to leadership
success or failure. We have 2 basic leadership behaviors identified as important for
leadership attention to tasks and attention to people.

Trân: answer
As we know, we have 2 basic leadership behaviors identified as important for leadership
attention to tasks and attention to people.
● Early research program on leadership behaviors was conducted by Ohio States , they
identified 2 leadership behaviors as concentration and initiating structure.
Consideration falls in the category of people-oriented behavior while initiating
structure is the degree of task behavior.
● In the meantime, University of Michigan also researches leadership behaviors, they
call employee-centered leadership and job-centered leadership. In term of employee
center , leaders interested in their subordinates as people, they encourage workers
participation in organizational goal-setting process whereas job-centered leader , they
emphasized technical aspects of job, set job standards and close supervision of
subordinates
Building on the work of that, Robert Blake and Jane Mouton proposed a two-dimensional
theory which is called the leadership grid. It is a two-dimensional leadership model that
measures managers based on two behavioral dimensions: their concern for production and
their concern for people to categorize leaders in one of five different leadership styles(
Impoverished, Produce of Perish, Middle of the Road, Country Club and Management Team )
. Among these 5 styles of leadership, Management Team is considered the most effective and
is recommended for leaders because all members of the organization work together to
accomplish their tasks .

Nghi: We have two different leadership styles, once known as hard-nosed managers,
once known as supportive and patient managers. But both of them are considered good
leaders. So how can two people with widely different styles both be effective leaders?

Phương:Both leadership styles have their strengths and can be effective depending on
the context and the needs of the team or organization. What matters most is the leader’s
ability to understand their team, adapt their approach, and employ the right style at the
right time. Effective leaders are flexible and capable of adjusting their leadership style
based on the situation, the individuals involved, and the desired outcomes.

Ultimately, leadership effectiveness is not solely determined by a specific style but by the
leader’s ability to inspire, motivate, and achieve results while considering the unique
dynamics of the team and the organization.

Linh: So how the organizational situation influence leader effectiveness ?

Phương: Theorganizational situation influences leader effectiveness by

shaping the expectations, priorities, and challenges that leaders face.
Factors such as organizational culture, goals and strategy, team dynamics,
organizational structure and processes, and the external environment all
impact how leaders need to adapt their behaviors and strategies to be
effective in their roles.

Nghi: So can you tell more about the situational model of leadership ?

Phương: The situational model of leadership, also known as the situational leadership
theory, suggests that effective leadership is contingent upon the specific situation at
hand. It emphasizes that leaders should adapt their style based on the needs of their
followers. The model considers two key dimensions: task behavior and relationship
behavior. Task behavior refers to providing direction, while relationship behavior focuses
on support and nurturing. The model proposes different leadership styles based on the
maturity levels of followers, ranging from directing to delegating. Effective leaders
assess the situation and adjust their behaviors accordingly to best support their
followers' development and achieve desired outcomes.

Linh: and the two more models of leadership

Phương: TFielder's Contingency Theory: Developed by Fred E. Fiedler, this theory states that
effective leadership depends on the interaction between a leader's style and the situational favorability.
Leadership style refers to task-oriented or relationship-oriented approaches. Situational favorability is
determined by leader-member relations, task structure, and positional power. The theory suggests that
matching leadership style to the situation leads to greater effectiveness.

Situational Substitutes for Leadership: This concept proposes that certain factors in a situation can
substitute for or diminish the need for leadership. Factors like task structure, group cohesion,
professionalism, and intrinsic satisfaction can reduce the impact of a leader's behavior or make their
influence unnecessary. While leadership is still important, these substitutes can lessen its necessity in
specific circumstances..

Linh: I think a top manager is not only the one who gets bogged down in the work but also cares
about the staff’s feelings and expectations. They set an example for their staff to follow. Two
types of them are charismatic and transformational.

Phương: Charismatic Leadership: Charismatic leaders inspire and influence through their personal
qualities, vision, and persuasive communication skills. They create emotional connections, have a
compelling vision, and develop personalized relationships with followers.

Transformational Leadership: Transformational leaders inspire followers to exceed their self-interests

and achieve extraordinary outcomes. They have a visionary orientation, stimulate intellectual growth,
provide individualized consideration, and motivate through inspiration and purpose.

In summary, charismatic leadership emphasizes the leader's personal qualities and charm, while
transformational leadership focuses on inspiring and transforming followers through vision,
intellectual stimulation, and individualized support.
Indeed, effective top managers are not only concerned with the operational
aspects of their work but also prioritize the well-being and expectations of
their staff. They understand the importance of setting an example and
inspiring their employees to achieve their best. Charismatic and
transformational leadership are two types of leadership styles often
associated with top managers in this regard.

Nghi: Besides a good leader, an effective follower is still needed, because leaders can accomplish
nothing without effective followers. So how can we define who is a good follower or not ?

Tú Anh: First of all, I want to share a little bit about the definition of Followership
- Followership is an ability or willingness to follow a leader
- Leaders can accomplish nothing without effective followers → Leadership matters, but
without effective followers, no organization can survive.
● There are top five qualities desired in each are as follows:
- Both leaders and followers are an honest and competent people.
-In contrast, there may be some differences, but overall, many of the qualities that define a good
follower are the same qualities as those possessed by a good leader.
● And these are other qualities and skills that improve followership and also leadership
● Look at these products, anyone can tell me who is the founder of them?
- That is Steve Jobs: an American entrepreneur and co-founder of Apple Inc. He played a
pivotal role in revolutionizing the personal computer and smartphone industries. Despite
facing challenges, he left a lasting impact on the world of technology.
- What brought Steve Jobs success was not only his leadership but also his effective
followership. He was able to learn from others and adapt his approach when necessary. This
ability to be both a leader and a follower was essential resulting as his blooming development.
- Before Job's passing out in 2011, he strongly conveyed that Tim Cook was his successor. And
as we have seen, Tim Cook is a typical representative of effective followers who devote a lot
of dedication to Apple Inc.
- This chart illustrate Apple revenue from 2004 to 2023 which experiences a fluctuation
continuously, but overall, we can see that columns tend to increase.
Under his leadership, this group has brought many significant achievements in domestic and
foreign revenue. Apple products are accessible to all ages and are hardly outdated over time.

● This examples best exemplifies the sustainable relationship between follower and leader
- Leaders and followers are one team
- Effective followers make productive leaders, and effective leaders build productive followers
- Without followers, there are no leaders
- Each leader was once a follower
- Leaders and followers are influenced by each other
- Followers and leaders should have a similar set of characteristics
● One model of followership is illustrated that came up with five follower styles, which are
categorized according to two dimensions, as shown in the exhibit.
The first dimension is the quality of independent, critical thinking versus dependent, uncritical
thinking.
 ● Base on this model, we can divide into 5 types of followership
- The alienated follower is a passive, yet independent, critical thinker. Alienated
followers are able to think independently, but they do not participate in developing solutions
to the problems or deficiencies that they see.
- The conformist participates actively organizations with the boss but doesn’t use
critical-thinking skills in his or her behavior. A conformist is concerned only with avoiding
conflict → This follower style might reflect an individual’s over-dependent attitude toward
authority
- The passive follower exhibits neither critical, independent thinking nor active
participation. Being passive and uncritical, these people show neither initiative nor a sense of
responsibility → This style is the results of a micromanaging boss who encourage passive
behavior
- The effective follower is both a critical, independent thinker and active in the
organization. They develop an equitable relationship with their leaders and do not try to avoid
risk or conflict.
- The pragmatic survivor has qualities of all four extremes—depending on which style
fits with the prevalent situation. This type of person uses whatever style best benefits his or
her own position and minimizes risk.

Linh: Both followers and leaders use power and influence to get things done in organizations.
Can you differentiate the two effects of power and influence?

Tú Anh: I want to clarify something about the misunderstanding of power and influence by some
people

- Power is the potential ability to influence the behavior of others.

- Influence is the effect that a person’s actions have on the attitudes, values, beliefs, or
behavior of others
- Most discussions of power include five types that are available to leaders, and these
can be categorized as either hard power or soft power.
● This table show the differences between these two definitions
● Let’s watch the video together about boss and leader, which the majority of people think they
are similar with each other.
- A boss typically exercises authority and commands obedience. They focus primarily
on the delegation of tasks and monitoring performance
- A leader is someone who inspires, motivates, and influences others. They prioritize
building relationships, fostering collaboration, and empowering their team members
to reach their full potential

Nghi: So how many types of power are available to leaders ?

Tú Anh: There are two types of power which is considered hard position power and soft personal
power
● Hard power is power that stems largely from a person’s position of authority and includes
legitimate, reward, and coercive power
There are 3 forms of position power used by managers to change employee behavior
 - Legitimate Power is the power coming from a formal management position in an
organization and the authority granted to it.
- Reward Power stems from the authority to bestow rewards on other people. Managers
can use rewards to influence subordinates’ behavior.
- Coercive Power refers to the authority to punish or recommend punishment.
● Soft power includes expert power and referent power, which are based on personal
characteristics and interpersonal relationships more than on a position of authority
- Expert power: results from a person’s special knowledge or skill regarding the tasks being
performed by subordinates (both followers and leaders can possess expert power)
- Referent power: comes from an individual’s personal characteristics that command others’
identification, respect, and admiration so that they wish to emulate that individual. (Referent
power is most visible in the area of charismatic leadership

Linh: What are the strategies that leaders use to influence their followers?

Trân: answer
Before answering this question, I would like to provide for you guys more information about other
sources of power. There are additional sources of power that are not linked to a particular person or
position, but rather to the role that an individual plays in the overall functioning of the organization.
These important sources include personal effort, relationships with others, and information
● Personal Effort: People who show initiative, work beyond what is expected of them, take on
undesirable but important projects, and show interest in learning about the organization and
industry often gain power as a result.For example:Stephen Holmes
● Network of Relationships: People who are enmeshed in a network of relationships have
greater power. A leader or employee with many relationships knows what’s going on in the
organization and industry, whereas one who has few interpersonal connections is often in the
dark about important activities or changes
● Information: is a primary business resource, and people who have access to information and
control over how and to whom it is distributed are typically powerful
Coming back to the problem, from my viewpoint, Leaders often use a combination of influence
strategies, and people who are perceived as having greater power and influence typically are those
who use a wider variety of tactics.
There are six interpersonal influence tactics for Leaders