Visionary Leadership

Visionary leadership: The mental image of the future and leadership
VISIONARY LEADERSHIP:
The mental image of the future and leadership
Edgardo José Herrera
Doctorate Leadership and Innovation

PTH440-840 The leader, his calling and his vision and Identity
Logos Christian University
Professor: Dr. María Pilar Zalazar

Tuesday, February 15, 2022
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Summary
Our research presents an analysis of visionary and innovative leadership from the point of view
of the importance of vision. Specifically, the study shows the role that vision plays in the
different dimensions of leadership. Effective visionary and innovative leadership consists of
important elements to realize the vision in the organization. One of them is communication and
interpersonal relationships in the environment of visionary and innovative leadership. The
understanding between leadership concepts and their effects on the organization. The ability
of innovative leadership to develop the organization's staff or team is based on shared vision.
In addition, various theoretical implications of leadership and practices derived at the level of
various organizations are discussed. The approach is left open for the reader to examine in
their own sphere the value that vision plays in visionary leadership.
Keywords
Control, communication, culture of innovation, management, influencing, planning,
organizational theories, vision.
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INTRODUCTION
This research examines the strategic role of vision in leadership, through organizational results.
Based on previous research, a global model is proposed through which we verify: 1) The
importance of vision, 2) The positive effects of shared vision in the organization through
organizational learning, 3) Visionary leadership and innovation in meeting the objectives of said
organization. Our research reveals the power of vision in leadership and the decision to manage
processes in leadership.
The ultimate goal is to understand visionary leadership as a process that the organizational
leader has to attract and enable members to achieve innovation in the process of realizing the
organization's vision.
The exercise of responsibilities over a set of activities in an organization is about leadership. An
organization can execute only if the heart and soul of the leader is immersed in the
organization(Larry Bossidy and Charan Ram, 2002) . It will depend on the leadership skills to
project the organizational vision(Drucker, 1996) , towards the team that will meet the proposed
objectives of the organization (James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner, 1988) .
Such administrative achievements are the product of a mental vision communicated at all levels
of the organization. Therefore, the role that vision plays in leadership is vital for development,
meeting objectives to fulfill the organizational mission.
Today the world and contemporary market in which we live is full of stories of men and women
who dreamed of an idea.(Barna, The Power of Vision, 1992) , which they shared through a
vision that captivated the minds and motivated the organization's team members to realize the
organization's vision(James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner, 1988) .
One of the clearest examples of vision in leadership occurred in 1978 when Lee Anthony
Iacocca turned around the Chrysler automobile company that was considering declaring
bankruptcy.(Howes, 2019) . Iacocca analyzed Chrysler's financial context and formulated an
action plan where banking institutions, Chrysler workers and automotive sales organizations
would have severe cuts.(Networks, 2010) .
Through this plan, Iacocca convinced the federal government of a $1.5 billion dollar bailout,
which he paid seven years ahead of schedule.(Woutat, 2019) . The rescue that Iacocca led of
Chrysler, this platform based on a diverse portfolio of automobiles that are still active today
such as the Jeep and the minivan, remain the backbone of the company today(Smith, 2019) .
The essential elements for developing and implementing visionary leadership require vision,
inspiration, and passion. However, we should not minimize the role of vision and leadership
with management.(Daniel Hermosilla, Alberto Amurtio, Silva da Costa, Dario Paez, 2016) .
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An organization that enjoys excellent results is one that recognizes that vision without a
compass that guides objectives that complement the development of the members of the
organization and in turn achieve the indicators indicated to achieve the vision. (Drucker, 1996) .
These are the results of a shared vision. Visionary leadership not only seeks to achieve the
proposed objectives, but also promotes the team's participation in personal growth and as a
result guides them towards innovation within the organization. (James M. Kouzes and Barry Z.
Posner, 1988) .
Leadership is the coordination of people as we reiterated previously. Management is a set of
policies and actions that lead to carrying out the mission of an organization(Chiesa, 2018) . As a
result, visionary leadership assists members of the organization to plan within the framework of
the organization's objectives and goals.
Finally, it is important to highlight the crucial role of visionary leadership. Who has the ability to
communicate a clear and practical vision (Barna, 2008) . In its essence, visionary leadership
communicates the vision where the values of the organization are present in elements of
planning, organization, innovation and inspiration for the fulfillment of the organizational
vision.
THE IMPORTANCE OF VISION

There are numerous articles, blogs, magazines, podcasts and books on the topic of corporate
vision. The corporate vision is the main of the most important pillars of an organization that
enjoys a prestigious brand, a vigorous economy and that sustains high-performance growth.
This leads us to the question: What is vision? What is the objective of a vision?
There are many definitions of vision. Let's see among many definitions that of Kouzes, Posner,
Meyer-Cuno and Drucker. Kouzes and Posner define vision as follows: “We define vision as an
ideal and unique image of the future.” (James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner, 1988) . While
Doug Meyer-Cuno simply defines vision as “vision is what, where, or who you want the
company to become.” (Meyer-Cuno, 2021) .
The distinction between an attainable and non-possible vision is not in the design of said vision,
but in the understanding of the elements that lead to the realization of the vision.
In the book “From Vision to Reality,” Jesse and Drea identified three significant elements of a
compelling vision.(Blanchard, 2010) :
● Meaningful Purpose : What business is one in?

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● Image of the Future : What will the future be like if it is successful?

● Clear Values : What guides your behavior and decisions
daily?
Successful visionary leadership conceives and employs these elements to provide inspiration
and be enduring when the vision is shared. Furthermore, organizational leadership models
contribute to the development or not of the corporate vision. For some organizations, the
vision is based on some stage of maintenance, expansion and executive empowerment, where
the vision does not reach its maximum deployment due to corporate jealousy and a toxic work
atmosphere.
The economist Dr. Jorge Tarzijan M, in his book Fundamentals of Business Strategy, four stages
of the evolution of strategic thinking(Tarziján, 2008) :
● The first stage is focused on financial planning.

● The second stage, long-term financial planning, thinking
strategic was guided, fundamentally, by a functional vision
of the company is characterized by having a more global vision of the
strategy unifying each of the business areas.
● The third stage is characterized by focusing on learning
organizational and analysis of the business environment.
● The fourth stage of strategic thinking is characterized by focusing
in organizational learning and analysis of the business environment.
Successful visionary leadership operates under strategic thinking by Dr. Tarzijan, these
elements to provide an enduring foundation and guidance when the vision is shared.
For their part, Kouzes, Posner and Meyer-Cuno are based on the corporate leadership model
focused on execution. This context is based on the theory of industrial administration, which is
the approach to the technique of business rationalization or the approach to business
governance.(María Olivia Palafox Soto, Sergio Ochoa Jiménez y Carlos Armando Jacobo-
Hernández, 2020) .
For Henry Fayoi, the corporate governance approach must pay its greatest attention to
administration, which is the most important of the six main elements that is the administrative
function.
The administrative function based on Fayoi's theory is formulated in the following scoop:
“forecasting, organization, coordination, and control are undoubtedly part of administration,
according to the current concept of this term”(Federick Winslow Taylor and Henry Fayoi , 1981)
.
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Based on this theory the vision is conceived in the main sphere of the organization. The role of
leadership is to share the future with the members of the organization in order to achieve high-
performance teams to produce the established goals. In this work environment, interpersonal
relationships were not the main energy, but rather the profit in the production of matter at the
cost of the workers' labor force.
This brings us to the theory of industrial sociology by Elton Mayo. The sociologist and
psychologist Mayo was able to verify through the Hawthorne experiment that psychological
conditions affect productivity in the industrial environment, in other words, industries did not
reach their maximum production not because of the lack of trained personnel, tools and raw
materials, but due to poor interpersonal relationships(Daniel Bell, 1947) .
Leadership Henry Fayoi valued organizational control systems more because they ensure more
work production based on control and management knowledge in the organization.(Ing. Ruth
Sabrina Rojas Dávila y Ing. Carlos Luis Torres Briones, 2017) .
While Elton Mayo's theory of management systems controls the organization, it should focus
on relating to its staff as part of the management values in the organization. This theory
establishes the foundation as the core of human value in the organization. The proposed
objectives will be achieved in an atmosphere where the employer understands the appreciation
of its staff, for greater performance and productivity. The characteristics of a valued staff show
the following characteristics: they amplify their commitment, they take ownership of their
functions, they double their effort, they feel satisfied and all of which leads to them being
happier with their work.(Business, 2022) .
Organizational vision theories depend on the concept of leadership that the organization uses.
Each organization is based on one of these forms of autocratic, laissez faire, democratic and
transformational leadership that will determine the future of the organizational vision.
Likewise, we can deduce that each of these forms of leadership with respect to vision is likely
that most organizational leaders do not have a vision that drives their organization because
they are oriented towards achieving administrative and financial objectives.(George Barna with
Bill Dallas, 2009) .
However, it should be noted that the objective of the vision is to galvanize the entire company's
staff towards the desired future. The purpose of every organization is to channel the energy of
the organization's members to establish an effective, high-performing organization that can
articulate the purpose and direction of the organization.
The father of Management Peter Drucker recognizes the vital performance of vision in an
organization when he said:
“Leadership is raising a person's vision to high goals, raising the

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performance of a person at a higher level, build a

personality beyond its normal limitations.”(AZQuotes.com, 2022) .
Likewise, vision appears as the common center of the organization's culture. The objective of
the vision is the statement made by the organization to state specifically and quantitatively
what the future of the organization would be.
LEADERSHIP AND COMMUNICATION
Determining an effective vision requires an important component, which is communication.

All successful leadership understands the importance of efficient communication between
corporate leadership and the members of the corporation. So what is efficient communication?
The Universidad de Oriente in Cancún defines effective communication as the ability to listen to
and understand all of the information and data that is received.(Oriente, 2022) .
Simultaneously, in the organizational context there is also effective communication in
organizational communication. Business management benefits from organizational
communication because through it the plans and strategies that execute the productivity,
quality and integration of the collective work of the organization are projected.
Organizational communication is used to guide the following important parts of the
organizational vision: dealing with unexpected changes, planning and coordinating the
objectives set by the organization, controlling the organization's operating systems to
complement policy and regulatory tasks that support daily operations. of an
organization(QuestionPro, 2022) . We could define organizational communication as the
consideration, analysis and criticism of the role of communication in organizational contexts.
(Osorio, 2016) .
On the contrary, Mario Rizo Rivas establishes six principles that are essential to guarantee
efficient and effective organizational communication.(Rivas, 2014) :
1. Clarity in ideas . May he who communicates the vision be clear

the objective that is to be achieved.
2. Sensitive . That the message transmits emotions and feelings with empathy.
3. Kind . Let the leader treat others with courtesy. Positive.
May the message be full of optimism for a better future for all.
4. Congruent . That coherence is transmitted between what the leader says, thinks,
feel and do.
5. Compelling . That the message is capable of convincing the majority
of his collaborators.
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6. Understandable for everyone . So much in the language (simple and without

technicalities)
as in the content can be easily understood.
Organizational communication takes the responsibility of communicating the company's vision
until the staff is empowered by the organizational vision.
In conclusion, we have put together some of the most relevant points about the importance of
vision. The vision must be conceived by the leader of the organization. Leadership must
understand the importance of their organization's environment within the framework of the
personnel who belong to said organization. The vision must galvanize the staff to achieve the
highest performance of the work team.
Communication after presenting the outlook for the company's future is what establishes the
company's organizational culture. Organizational communication is important because it is the
tool that facilitates the clarity of strategic plans to successfully achieve the objectives that make
the vision achievable.
THE POSITIVE EFFECTS OF SHARED VISION

The most effective leaders have the potential to see the organization's present in context as it
is, create and positively communicate a shared plan that guides toward a future that culminates
in the realization of the vision. What is often overlooked in discussions about the relationship
between leadership and shared vision are the elements of a successful leader.
In a revealing study, Tom Melohn president and Garner Beckett of the North American Tool and
Die (NATD) packaged goods tool and die industry performed poorly before acquiring the
company. In an eight-year period, Melohn and Beckett increased sales by 750 percent, reduced
annual losses from 27 percent to 4 percent, and opened a second plant. (James M. Kouzes and
Barry Z. Posner, 1988) .
Melohn and Beckett developed a plan that had three stages. These three stages were to grow
the company's dividends. Second, distribute profits with employees in the industry. And third,
create a fun work atmosphere in the industry (James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner, 1988).
The economic problems that NATD faced at that time in the tool and die industry were
significant.(Altarum, 2002) ;(Deanna Tanner Okun, Jennifer A. Hillman, Lynn M. Bragg, Marcia E.
Miller, Stephen Koplan, Robert A. Rogowsky, and Vern Simpson, 2002) :
• foreign competition.
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• technological improvements that reduce the barrier for others to enter the
market
• lower demand from automotive companies due to the reduction in
number of new vehicles, greater integration of parts and greater
transfer of parts.
• tool producers can produce many types of TDM
of medium and high precision and can produce TDM in short lead times.
Successful visionary leaders like Melohn and Beckett exhibit the core elements of a high-
performance organization: an organizational vision, a shared vision, and communication with
customers, engineers, and employees.
Therefore, this essay will first address three questions: What are the elements of successful
leadership? What is shared vision? Why is shared vision important? and then we will contend
with the relationship between the importance and role of shared vision.
The elements of successful leadership
Visionary leadership is a two-way process. What happens among the organization's personnel.
It is not done by an isolated person. One of the most common business phenomena is when
successful companies face major changes in their organization, they often fail to respond
effectively.
Donald Sull, author of the book “ Simple Rules: How to Thrive in a Complex World ” and
professor at MIT, provides an excellent example of an organization's inability to adapt to the
onslaught of competitors, new products, technologies, and marketing strategies that they
facilitate the erosion of the organization in the aspects of sales, staff morale and the
devaluation of the company(Sull, 1999) .
The most practical way to respond to an organization's inability to adapt in today's globalization
is through visionary leadership consisting of elements of successful leadership. What are the
elements of successful leadership?
Max Landsberg suggests that leadership must have the essence of leadership. This essence is
the ability to create a vision, inspire and drive the organization's staff.(Landsberg, 2000) .
Vision Impulsar
Liderazgo Inspiracion
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Visionary leadership must be creative and able to create a vision that appeals to the
organization's staff within the framework of the organization's established policies. Most
organizations are not led by policies, plans and analysis. But because of the transcendental
traits that visionary leadership possesses.
The successful visionary leadership style recognizes the value of interpersonal relationships to
achieve short- and long-term success. The visionary leader builds strong relationships in two
aspects: First, he facilitates contact with other members of the organization to assist them in
fulfilling their assignment.(Larry Bossidy & Ram Charan, 2002) . Ultimately, it builds enduring
relationships that require regular interactions that provide encouragement for organizational
personnel to collaborate with one another.(James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner, 1988) .
The visionary leader also recognizes the need to develop people to achieve their maximum high
performance. This can only happen through genuine concern and care for the staff under your
lordship.(James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner, 1988) . This leadership style recognizes the
background and value of continuing education in the technological community of
entrepreneurs of our time.(Drucker, 1996) .
This implies that visionary leadership contemplates the need to create an atmosphere of
personal growth in the leadership framework because it recognizes that leadership traits can be
learned. Mentors and advisors are valuable in the visionary leader's arsenal because he
understands that they assist in navigating the system in the organization.(James M. Kouzes and
Barry Z. Posner, 1988) .
An example of the value of counselors and mentors is Timothy M. Lupinacci, president of Baker
Donelson, a law firm that created a transition committee to help develop leadership in the
organization.
Chairman Lupinacci and the committee identified five key areas of growth in the Baker
Donelson staff. Among other areas of focus, the Leadership Development Subcommittee
described the key characteristics and traits of successful leaders.(Lupinacci, 2019) . These are
the important characteristics and traits that Baker Donelson's commission of advisors and
mentors externalized:
Effective communication Trustworthy Decisive

Independent thinker Positive Modesty
Conflict resolution Visionary Build the team
Good to see Grateful Adaptable
Encouraging the heart
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Visionary-dynamic leaders see beyond the present and plan strategically for the long term. They
engage their team with collaborative vision that captures the hearts and minds of the
organization's staff and its customers.
The characteristics of visionary and effective leadership can be seen in James Mc Curry and
Gary Kusin founders of the company Babbage's, which would later be known as GameStop in
1984. Babbage's operated under the strategic growth business unit of Barnes & Nobel.
Babbage's specialized in computer software and applications. When in 1987 he ventured into
the “ video game ” entertainment program segment for Atari.(Museum, 1996) and the multi-
billion dollar company Nintendo(Levy, 2021) .
Through merger acquisitions and bidding wars B&N continues to amalgamate small gaming
retailers such as Jolt Online Gaming, Micromania, Free Record Shop, Software Etc, Eden Prairie
and Funco(Zippia, 2022) .
In 2000, GameStop revolutionized the video game industry by being the first to introduce the
concept of trading. At this time GameStop had more than 5,200 stores in 14 nations around
the world. The vision of the future of video games that James Mc Curry and Gary Kusin
envisioned was correct. The role that video games would play in the fiber of modern society as
the first choice of entertainment is notable over the subsequent decades.
On the other side of the vision, GameStop's next vice presidents such as Dan DeMatteo, Ryan
Cohen, Joe Gorman and others from GameStop's mobile business unit. The general vision was
to share the video game experience in every home. GameStop's subsequent leaders recognized
that the video game industry was changing at an alarming pace, therefore, they wanted to lead
GameStop to adapt with the coming changes.
They adopted GameStop to electronic trading platforms. Now the company would have a
commercial presence through e-commerce platforms. Now, from a mobile phone, the buyer
has the merchandise offered by GameStop available without time or distance limitations.
At GameStop, Joe Gorman created and developed a business unit dedicated to new strategic
growth, leveraging the B&N company's core strengths in tangential businesses. GameStop has
effectively used a business model based on the retail sale of new and used electronic games.
The case allows the instructor to develop the strategies that GameStop used to consolidate its
gaming retail business in the country.
The visionary leadership of GameStop founders James Mc Curry and Gary Kusin were shared
with those who came after them. These had the elements of the essence of visionary
leadership. In turn, the new visionary leaders incorporated the characteristics of shared
leadership with the organization.
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GameStop's history shows adaptation to market changes and demands over time. The
transcendental traits shared by Lupinacci are the essence of successful visionary leadership that
serves as a bridge to the shared vision in the organization.
In closing, the elements of successful leadership such as vision, motivation and drive are the
essence of leadership that every successful leader must have. These leaders recognize the
value of communication to foster stable and strong working relationships in the organization.
These in turn make clear the role of developing these relationships through continuing
education. Mentoring and career counseling perform the function of improving common
development for the well-being of the workforce in the organizational framework. In the case
of B&N, we can conclude that B&N's leadership is visionary and dynamic, they saw beyond the
present and planned strategically for the long term to position their company where they are.
GameStop leaders discovered the consumer's need for an application accessible through smart
modules to purchase video games without having to go to the store to obtain it.
What is shared vision?
Successful visionary leadership is the way in which this process is carried out from how it
relates to the organization's staff and its customers. Many of the organizational efforts that
propose successful visionary leadership are not based on simply having a relationship with
goals, resources, processes and budgets. Instead, they analyze the reasons for the problems
that hinder harmony towards the desired growth and develop adaptable solutions in the
executive and operational governance of the organization.
Often, these same leaders add value to the organization's staff, without making the process
useless. According to Prachi Juneja, there are three traits that make leadership effective.
(Juneja, 2015) .
To take the first trait, successful visionary leaders who have their values and beliefs deeply held
would be able to withstand the pressures and tests of their values and principles.
The second trait of successful visionary leadership is the ability to be visionary and have a sense
of future possibilities. The point here is that successful visionary leaders are effective people
who are sought out by the organization's staff because they inspire confidence to guide them
into the future, and therefore, leaders must have visionary capabilities to re-establish this need
in the organization.
The third trait is successful visionary leaders who are very effective in personal relationships.
Since most leaders understand the value of interpersonal relationships in the organization they
realize the relationships one builds with those with whom one encounters; Effectiveness in
personal relationships distinguishes true leaders from the rest.
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The process of successful visionary leadership is maintaining healthy relationships with the
organization's staff in order to communicate and share the vision with all members of the
organization.
Rosario Almenara Diaz and Beatrice Avolio Alecchi in the newspaper “ International Review, ”
are right about the importance of the interpersonal relationships they have in the workplace
and how they can influence the organization, they describe the following data(Rosario
Almenara Diaz, March 4, 2017) :
● They can improve the productivity of co-workers and managers.

● The organization's ability to attract and retain the best staff.
● The stability of organizational performance and organizational capacity
to adapt to environmental changes.
During the 2000s, a study analyzed the role of interpersonal relationships where they studied
the behavior of individuals, groups and organizations to improve their efficiency.(Robbins, S.
P.,Judge, T. A., 2009) . Visionary leaders do not underestimate interpersonal relationships in the
workplace, because they understand the close relationship that exists between a high-
performing organization and a poor-performing organization.
For this reason, high-performance visionary leaders share the vision with the organization's
management and staff. Understanding the original vision of the creator of the organization and
the alignments to follow to achieve the marked future. So the value of shared vision is of
greater importance. What is shared vision?
Shared vision is when all people have a similar image, they are interested in it being equitable
and not about someone in particular.(SENGE, 1992) .
Numerous studies have shown that most visions are created by one or a group of people to
impose organizational efforts on the rest of the staff. This form is the common leadership of
many organizations.
However, in successful visionary leadership or transformational leadership with reference to
shared vision is interested in the commitment of the organization's staff that reflects their
personality in the corporate vision for the good of the future of the corporation.(SENGE, 1992) .
Building a shared vision is important because it requires three important aspects (SENGE,
1992) :
● Mental models . Mental models emphasize openness

necessary to expose the limitations of our current way
to see the world.
● Team learning . Team learning develops
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the abilities of groups of people to seek a more figure

broad that transcends individual perspectives.
● The personal domain to perform your personal . Personal mastery encourages
the personal motivation to continually learn as our

acts affect the world.
In the vision shared by visionary leadership there is a common strength, because the staff found
that their common interests are represented in the vision of the organization and the
integration of their ideas forms a result that is considerably greater than the simple sum of the
independent visions.
The basis of shared vision is the visionary leader's genuine interest in interpersonal
relationships. It is through it that visionary leadership understands the need to break down
mental models, to assist staff with personal development through continuing education to
improve personal actions in the workplace.
The example of a shared vision can be distinguished in the innovation of the Robinhood
company. Globalization and the development of modern technologies such as ETrade, Forex,
Robinhood, Webull are causing changes in financial markets(Anna Warchlewska, Alfred Janc,
Rafał Iwański, March 2021 ) .
In the 90s, transactions were executed through fiber optic lines, supercomputers and complex
programs by financial institutions that could have access to these technologies. It was not until
2013 when Vladimir Tenev, 33, and Baiju Bhatt, 35, fitted the digital platform Robinhood into
the complex puzzle of Wall Street.
Robinhood's driving idea was to “democratize finance for everyone.” Three key elements
helped the Robinhood app achieve the vision of its new company(Jeff Kauflin, Antoine Gara and
Sergei Klebnikov, 2020) :
● Its application was free.
● Easy to use.
● addictive.
During 2020, Robinhood in trading volume on the online platform 139% percent revenue gains
valued at 60 billion dollars more than its competitors such as TD Ameritrade, E-Trade and
Charles Schwab(Jeff Kauflin, Antoine Gara and Sergei Klebnikov, 2020) . Robinhood's profit was
based on sales of its customers' trading data to Wall Street.
On the other side of the coin, the digital platform is designed for the Robinhood user to use like
a video game.(Tierney, 2021) . Tenev and Bhatt were able to achieve the proposed vision
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because they shared their vision with friends, clients and colleagues in the digital industry.
Here we can notice that the vision is composed of different ideas that are forged and make the
vision a reality. The visionary leadership of Tenev and Bhatt, they envisioned that their vision
would adapt to the realities of the market without losing sight of the original vision.
So we conclude that shared vision is the strength and common interest of the organization and
its staff that are represented in the organization's vision. The basis for building a shared vision
is mental models, team learning, and personal mastery to perform by the organization's staff.
The essence that unifies the shared vision is the interpersonal relationships in the organization.
Through them, successful visionary leadership discovers the needs, values and desires of the
organization's personnel. The company Robinhood who specializes in the democratization of
finance through the exchange and purchase of shares. It is one of the examples of leadership
and innovation of our time.
VISIONARY LEADERSHIP AND INNOVATION

The visionary and innovative leader is capable of seeing the future, effectively communicating a
shared vision in communion with the values and desires of his or her organization's staff. The
definition of leadership is very extensive in the literature of economics, politics, sociology and in
ecclesiology. According to academics on the subject, there are approximately more than 1,400
definitions in leadership literature.(Volckmann, 2012) . Bernard Bass notes the variety in the
definition of leadership is due to researchers' interest in accommodating the definition of
leadership to their research.(Bass, 1990) .
The leading exponents of leadership theory agree that the concept of leadership has evolved
from Thomas Carlyle to our times with John C. Maxwell. The concept between leadership and
transformational leadership from the point of these two theories of organizational leadership
shows where industries deposited their organizational values.
As long as the definition of leadership incorporates the elements that capture the essence of
leadership to achieve the initially visualized purpose. In the journal Psychological Bulletin,
Ralph M. Stogdill rightly states that leadership is more about influencing the activity than over
the members of a group (Stogdill, 1950). Ralph Stogdill defines leadership as “the process (act)
of influencing the activities of an organized group in its efforts to establish goals and achieve
them” (Stogdill, 1950).
However, from the point of view of innovative leadership, specifically transformational
leadership. For transformational leadership, achieving the objectives of the organization are
rooted in the development of each individual to reach their full potential. Therefore, the
organization will receive maximum benefits such as a productive culture based on innovation,
healthy interpersonal relationships, and greater staff retention. The theory of transformational
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leadership is based on the idea that leadership can be cultivated in people, but this idea is
contrary to the theory of the “great man” by Thomas Carlyle in the 18th century.
In addition, the “great man” theory by historian Thomas Carlyle proposed that the salient
characteristics in historical figures who influenced history were born from these attributes. In
other words, for the historian Carlyle the “great man” is born and not made.
Thomas Carlyle's hypothesis influenced the way leadership was perceived from the other
sciences' view of leadership. According to Carlyle, effective leaders are those endowed with
divine inspiration and the right characteristics (Spector, 2016).
Although Carlyle's ideas continued to be predominant, other experts in the field of leadership
point out that these leaders are a product of the socio-historical context of their time.
Table 1.1 Definition of leadership. Main authors
Definition of leadership Transformational Leadership Author

The act or an instance of driving Webster
The great man gifted with divine Thomas Carlyle
inspiration and suitable
characteristics.
The process (act) of influencing the Ralph M. Stogdill
activities of an organized group in its
efforts to establish goals and achieve
them
The only definition of a leader is Leadership is taking an individual Peter Drucker
someone who has followers. perspective to the next level, to help others
break the limits of oneself, to achieve
greater achievement.
Transformational leadership is a process in James
which “leaders and followers help each MacGregor Burns
other advance to a higher level of morale
and motivation.”
Leadership is influence - nothing John C. Maxwell
more, nothing less."
A leadership style in which the leader Business

identifies the necessary change creates a Dictionary
vision to guide the change through
inspiration and executes the change with
the commitment of group members.
Leadership is the ability to translate Warren Bennis
vision into reality.
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For some authors such as John C. Maxwell in his book The 360° Leader starts from the premise
that leadership is learned because leadership is influence. Every leader for John C. Maxwell,
James M. Burns and Warren Bennis the leader is followed by the people. It is followed because
it has main elements such as vision, interpersonal relationships, shared communication,
knowing how to organize an effective and high-performance team among many.
While others view the visionary leader as an innovator because in his gaze toward the future he
can visualize paradigm shifts and trends to adapt his organization.
John C. Maxwell's book Leader 360° describes leadership in three dimensions in the
organization. It can be governed from any point in the organization: from the bottom up, from
the top down or horizontally. Human relationships at every level of the organization require
time and learning. Successful visionary leaders do not assume, but rather recognize the
reasons why the organization's personnel follow them.
Maxwell highlights that people follow leaders for five reasons(Maxwell, 2005) :
● The leader dominates the highest position in the hierarchy.
● The leader has a relationship with subordinates that is not
linked to status.
● The employee wants to be part of the leader's team because it produces
results.
● The employee wants to grow as an individual and learn new skills.
● The employee respects the leader's judgment and personality.
Elements such as communication flow, organizational culture, and leadership behavior assist
the visionary and innovative leader in effectively navigating management personnel as Maxwell
and others explain.(Maxwell, 2005) .
A culture of innovation
Visionary leadership knows its organizational contour(Pervaiz K. Ahmed, Charles D. Shepherd,

Leticia Ramos Garza, & Claudia Ramos Garza, 2010) . The work environment of the organization
is one of the main factors that will determine the achievements of the organization, therefore,
visionary leaders give it the greatest importance.(Aguas, 2021) . For this reason, visionary
leaders capitalize on the creation of an innovative culture to dispel elements and attitudes that
hinder the development of vision, shared vision and staff development.
The members who make up a high-performance organization recognize the leadership
characteristics that their leaders exhibit in a high-performance culture.(Learning, 2007) .
“Culture is an important predictor of organizational performance.” (Discovery Learning, 2007)
18
However, the characteristics that Leader 360° leadership exhibit are not limited to these alone.
A characteristic of the innovative leader is that he creates and sustains a culture of innovation
One aspect of an innovative leader is Steve Jobs of the Apple company. Steve Jobs was an
innovator because he was creative and thought outside the organizational quadrant. The
invention of the iPod, where he connected music, design and technology, is one of several
examples of his innovative leadership. At Apple, the culture of innovation among high-
performance teams and organizational leadership was evident during the Steve Jobs years
because he created a culture of innovation in the organization.
The culture of an organization determines its performance(Learning, 2007) . This culture will
stimulate all levels of the organization and will be guarded and promoted by the innovative
leader.
A study conducted with organizations in the telecommunications industry revealed 10
distinctive behaviors that distinguish innovative leaders(Jack Zenger and Joseph Folkman, 2014)
.
10 distinctive behaviors emerged that distinguish this group as leaders in innovation.
1. Strategic vision:
The most effective innovative leaders have the ability to describe
his vision for the future vividly. For example, one person said
about her boss that "she is excellent at painting a clear picture of destiny,
and his team is working to figure out how to get there.”
2. Customer Focus:
For these leaders, it is fascinating to know what the customer is interested in,
so they try to get into your mind and ask a lot of questions
about your wants and needs.
3. Climate of mutual trust:
Innovation often carries risks, because not all innovative ideas
they are successful. Innovative leaders establish warm, collaborative relationships
with
19
their team and make sure their colleagues know they will support them if
something goes wrong or if they make an accidental mistake.
4. Loyalty to the organization and the customer:
The most important thing is not to satisfy bosses or senior executives,
but to do the right thing to protect the company and its consumers.
5. Upward communication:
An innovative leader believes that the best ideas come from below,
so they create a culture that takes ideas from the first level of the organization
and they are always receptive, replacing severity with jokes, laughter,
optimism and energy.
6. Persuasion:
These people are highly effective when they want to convince others.
to accept your ideas. They do not achieve this by forcing their beliefs but
presenting them with enthusiasm and conviction, so that the team follows them
without saying a word
7. Flexible goals:
The goals set by these leaders do not lead people
simply to work more, but to find new ways of
achieve these lofty goals.
8. Emphasize speed:
Speed is very important and experiments and
prototypes rather than long studies supervised by very numerous committees.
9. Frank communication:
Innovative leaders are described as people who provide
honest feedback, which can sometimes even be abrupt.
His subordinates feel that they can always count on getting
direct responses from their bosses.
10. Inspiration:
Innovation cannot exist without inspiration, which arises from finding
a sense of purpose and meaning in the work being done.
20
These behaviors revealed in this study by Zenger and Folkman make us notice the difference
between leadership with quick and ephemeral results. While innovative leadership after
observing and questioning to establish the route towards a healthy and integrated
organization(Jack Zenger and Joseph Folkman, 2014) . Another way to distinguish a leader and
a visionary leader is the ability to innovate. Not all leaders are visionaries, nor are all visionary
leaders innovators.
On the other hand, the UC Innovation Center considers that the visionary and innovative leader
must possess the following characteristics(Catolica, 2022) :
● Innovators question
Although it may be obvious to many, an innovative
challenges the status quo, asks more than the average by opening countless
possibilities and questions the traditional way of doing things,
regardless of whether these are carried out well, because according to their
way of thinking, you can always do better.
● Innovators observe
is that they are excellent observers. Along with solving problems
of everyday life, they pay special attention to getting to know their clients,
delving into your habits, needs and desires.
● Innovators connect
Through networking, the art of expanding our circles of relationships
both personal and professional, seek to create networks of contacts,
because they understand that they can represent a tremendous future
opportunity.
● Innovators experiment
This type of profile seeks to test your ideas, learn from mistakes,
refine your models, iterate again incrementally, and
Along with this, live new experiences.
For this reason, innovative leaders take their teams to another level than simply achieving
financial goals and recognition. It is a culture change that the innovative leader creates on
behalf of others with their consent. This understanding of innovative leadership fits into the
modern concept of leadership, which gives the organization's leader and staff the process to
achieve the desired future.
Conclusion
21
In this exploration of visionary and innovative leadership, a global model was proposed through
which we verified: first, the importance of vision, second, the positive effects of shared vision in
the organization through organizational learning, and finally, Visionary leadership and
innovation in meeting objectives in the organization.
The 21st century global marketplace requires visionary leadership. What determines successful
leadership is vision. The effectiveness of visionary leadership is based on a global mind,
innovation, ability to create and lead change. These leaders recognize the value of shared
communication with the organization's staff.
The visionary leader exercises the function of developing the individual competencies of the
organization's staff to create a culture of innovation based on the individual community. This
leadership is based on innovation assisting staff with mentors and advisors to elevate staff to
their maximum capacity.
Then we understood that shared vision is the strength and common interest of the organization
and its staff that are represented in the vision of the organization. The basis for building a
shared vision is mental models, team learning, and personal mastery to perform by the
organization's staff. The essence that unifies the shared vision is the interpersonal relationships
Finally, it has been shown that the differences between leadership and innovative leadership.
The effectiveness of the characteristics that innovative leadership possesses. These concepts
are constantly evolving, but we could accept their definition of leadership, which is influence.
Innovative leadership not only shares a vision with the organization's staff, but also creates a
culture of innovation based on well-determined behaviors in the organization.
The development of an organization's staff is closely related to innovative leadership and
transformational leadership. In light of this analysis, innovative and transformational leadership
will place more emphasis on long-term practices, in addition to short-term skill development.
Work community benefit is one of the main objectives for innovative leadership to make the
organizational vision a reality. These observations are no less important in the study of
leadership theories and differences, as well as in the study of visionary leadership and
innovative leadership.
22
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Visionary leadership: The mental image of the future and leadership

Edgardo José Herrera

Doctorate Leadership and Innovation

Professor: Dr. María Pilar Zalazar

THE IMPORTANCE OF VISION

● Meaningful Purpose : What business is one in?

● Image of the Future : What will the future be like if it is successful?

● The first stage is focused on financial planning.

“Leadership is raising a person's vision to high goals, raising the

performance of a person at a higher level, build a

LEADERSHIP AND COMMUNICATION

Determining an effective vision requires an important component, which is communication.

1. Clarity in ideas . May he who communicates the vision be clear

6. Understandable for everyone . So much in the language (simple and without

THE POSITIVE EFFECTS OF SHARED VISION

Effective communication Trustworthy Decisive

What is shared vision?

● They can improve the productivity of co-workers and managers.

● Mental models . Mental models emphasize openness

the abilities of groups of people to seek a more figure

the personal motivation to continually learn as our

VISIONARY LEADERSHIP AND INNOVATION

Table 1.1 Definition of leadership. Main authors

Definition of leadership Transformational Leadership Author

A leadership style in which the leader Business

Visionary leadership knows its organizational contour(Pervaiz K. Ahmed, Charles D. Shepherd,

10 distinctive behaviors emerged that distinguish this group as leaders in innovation.

Barna, G. (1992). The Power of Vision. Ventura, California: Regal Books.

Business, E. (2022). 10 cualidades del empleado ideal. Madrid, España.

Lupinacci, T. M. (2019). Key Characteristics of Effective Leadership: Women's Initiative Newsletter –

Maxwell, J. C. (2005). Lider de 360. Nashville, TN: Grupo Nelson.

Museum, C. H. (1996). Atari’s Roller-Coaster Ride. Retrieved from Computer Hisotory:

Osorio, J. C. (2016, Mayo 28). Emprendices. Retrieved from emprendices.com:

QuestionPro. (2022, January 27). Comunicación organizacional: Definición, tipos y características.

SENGE, P. M. (1992). LA QUINTA DISCIPLINA: El arte y la práctica de la organización abierta al

Tarziján, J. (2008). Fundamentos de estrategia empresarial. Elementos esenciales de la estrategia

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