CHARISMATIC

LEADERSHIP
Presented to:
Sir Wajid Ali Qadri
Presented by:
Zainab Fayyaz
Maham Imran
Sahar Ibrahim
Ruhma
 What is Leadership?
 “Leadership” is a term that has numerous definitions
and connotations. A leader may be defined by who
he or she is (the personal) and by the
responsibilities, obligations, and tasks he or she is
charged with (the position). Leaders’ authority can
be great or limited and their legitimacy can rest on
moral, rational, or practical foundations.
Background

 When political scientists explain political

phenomena, they often use institutional explanations
such as the party system, regime types, or a state’s
economic position. While these factors are
important, the historical memory of the people does
not usually record a particular electoral rule, judicial
decision, or trade agreement as catalysts of change.
 Rather, it is leaders who guide, organize, mobilize, and
generally influence life at the local, provincial, and
national levels. This does not mean we should solely
rely on the “great man” theory of leadership in which
“great men” make history and are the main or only
causes of real, intended social change. Leaders do in
fact operate within structural and institutional contexts
of a state.
 What is Charisma?
 Lately the word charisma has become widely used and to a large extent
trivialized. The word “Charisma”‫رشمہ‬,,,‫ ) )ک‬means personal excellence,
superb performance of a task, or unexpected success in a difficult
situation. It should be used as a defined concept, not as a trivialized
expression because of its superlative approach. Originally, a theological
(religious) concept, charisma means a gift of God's grace that enables a
human being to perform exceptional tasks. The cause for such an
exceptional performance is believed to rest in an otherworldly power. It
is in reference to this power that a person who is endowed by it is treated
as a leader, whose authority is to be obeyed as if it were the divine
authority itself.
 Introduction
 Max Weber, a German sociologist and theorist, introduced the concept of
charisma into the social sciences, thereby cutting it off from its original
theological meaning. Charisma is now conceived as “any quality of a person
that is regarded as supernatural, superhuman, or at least specifically
exceptional and inaccessible to ordinary people”. Charisma thus becomes a
specific quality attributed to an individual by which his or her perception as
a leader, mode of behavior, the organization of social relations, the character
of domination, and the form of obedience are influenced in a particular way.
Charisma, therefore, is both a specific quality believed to be possessed by
an individual and a specific pattern of social relations.
 Charismatic Leadership
Charismatic leadership is rooted in the personal and behavioral
characteristics of the leader. Such leaders are able to inspire and enthuse
their subordinates through their articulation of an organizational vision
(House, 1977).
Sub-ordinates identify with the vision and accept the leader's values as
their own. Charismatic leaders are able to motivate subordinates to
produce superior performance without the use of formal authority or
power. In some respect, given that charisma is conceptualized as a
personal characteristic of the leader, the emergence of charismatic
leadership might be viewed as a revival of the trait approach to
leadership.”
 “The charismatic leader, by virtue of the extraordinary
personal qualities attributed to him, is able to create a group of
followers who are willing to break established rules. Examples
include Napoleon and Hitler.”
 The foundation of charismatic authority is emotional, not
rational: it rests on trust and faith, both of which can be blind
and uncritical. Unrestrained by custom, rules, or precedent,
the charismatic leader can demand and receive unlimited
power. (Encyclopedia of Britannica)
 Max Weber's Model of Charismatic
leadership
In Economy and Society, Max Weber created three models of legitimacy for
the topic of political obligation and why one should obey the state: tradition,
charisma, and legal-rational. Charismatic authority is a concept of leadership
which involves a type of organization or a type of leadership in which
authority derives from the charisma of the leader. This stands in contrast to
two other types of authority: legal authority and traditional authority. Weber
elaborated some properties of charismatic social relations and their structure.
1. The first property is absolute trust in the leader that is unquestionably the
duty of the followers. The leader demands this duty and claims ultimate
authority; the followers accept this duty and obey the leader's orders. It is
the interaction of a leader and his followers that constitutes this special
relationship.
2. The second property is the dissolving normative
standards by which the behavior of a person is usually
controlled and the acceptance by the followers that such
normative standards are to be dissolved. The more a
charismatic leader aspires toward ultimate authority, the
less he or she can accept normative regulations and
procedural controls. A charismatic social relationship,
therefore, is characterized by deinstitutionalization of
norms and by opposition to traditional values.
 As Weber states:
“There is no system of formal rules, legal principles, and hence no process
of rational judicial decision oriented to them. The genuine charismatic
leader preaches, creates, or demands new obligations.”

3. The third property is the result of the former two. The social group
formed around charismatic leadership is an emotional community bound by
personal devotion toward the leader and organized by his or her agents,
whom the leader chooses according to charismatic qualities. There is no
hierarchy; the leader merely intervenes in general or in individual cases.
 Charismatic qualities
 Charismatic leadership, thus, is much more dependent on the
personality of the leaders who use their personality and
communication style to gain the admiration of followers.
Because of this, more than any other type of leadership style,
charismatic leaders depend on the strength of their personalities
to win over their audience.
 Charismatic leaders are capable of responding intelligently to
social cues. In fact, charismatic leaders’ success stems in part
from their ability to respond to the emotional needs of their
followers.
 Charismatic leadership theory identifies the
extraordinary characteristics that inspire devotion
and motivation in followers and highlights the
relationship between charismatic leaders and their
followers.
 Studies describe charismatic leaders as highly
influential and confident individuals who hold
strong beliefs.
 They are change agents who communicate their vision to
others, set high expectations, attend to the needs of their
followers, and behave in unconventional ways.
 Researchers assert that charismatic leadership tends to
manifest itself in crisis situations, when the leader is of high
authority, when vague and complicated assignments are given,
and when extrinsic rewards are not offered. These
circumstances provide opportunities for charismatic leaders to
implement change and to promote their vision.
 Charismatic leaders are inherently motivated and committed to
setting and meeting their goals.
 They are naturally diplomatic and work in partnership with their
followers to identify organizational issues and undertake challenges
and risks.
 They maintain a collective identity while providing a sense of
direction that helps followers achieve both organizational and
personal goals.
 The primary secret of charisma is that it emerges as a person becomes
authentically real and discovers how to use his or her best qualities of
mind and emotion to enrich the lives of others. It can be in an
organization or anywhere else he or she is working. Charismatic
political leaders tend to be more effective in our political system.
 Strengths of Charismatic Leadership
 Researchers have documented the positive effects of charismatic leadership. For
example,
 They have found that followers of charismatic leaders not only support and trust
their leader but also strive to accomplish their manager’s mission.
 They often learn from their leader and emulate his or her behavior.
 Studies suggest that followers embrace a charismatic leader and his or her mission
because of the leader’s self-confidence, exceptional persona, extraordinary vision,
ideology, and motivation to maximize his or her subordinates’ potential.
 Limitations of Charismatic Leadership
 Despite the amount of research that has been conducted on charismatic
leadership theory, the exact definition of charismatic leadership remains
uncertain.
 Some researchers assert that leaders are considered charismatic only
when followers perceive their leader as possessing extraordinary
characteristics and when followers develop strong ties with their leader.
 Unfortunately, there is not a shared understanding of the fundamental
behaviors of charismatic leadership. Although the majority of studies
on charismatic leadership address leader behaviors, there is presently
no agreement among theorists regarding the essential behaviors of
charismatic leadership.
 Arguments on charismatic leadership
 Some argue that an organization’s vision is created through the collaborative
efforts of leaders and subordinates, and some insist that major transformations
within organizations occur as a result of transformational leaders.
 Still others argue that charismatic leadership is needed during turbulent or
stressful times—for example, when a company experiences a reduction in its
workforce or when an organizational merger occurs.
 Some researchers affirm that charismatic leadership exists when a
leader affects a follower’s attitude and drive, even if the follower does
not characterize the leader as exceptional or charismatic. Alternatively,
others argue that a leader’s traits, followers, and situation collectively
determine whether charismatic qualities are present.
 Some charismatic leaders engage in manipulative behaviors by inflating
situations so as to depict a crisis, reprimanding others for their mishaps,
and overstating their accomplishments. These manipulative behaviors
often create dependent followers and a propensity for leaders to be
viewed as experts.
 In 1985, It was argued that charismatic leadership is romanticized, in the
sense that it is more reflective of followers' emotional responses than of
the leader's personal characteristics or behavior.
 Pastor, Mayo and Shamir (2007) were able to demonstrate that followers'
emotional responses have a significant influence on the perception of a
leader as charismatic; where followers experienced higher levels of
arousal, they were more likely to rate leaders as charismatic.
Famous charismatic leaders
 Quaid-e-Azam
 As Weber's notion states that either
personality or circumstances both function
for charismatic leadership. Quaid e Azam
was led by circumstances that were against
the Muslim’s of subcontinent. All the
Muslim’s followed the leadership of Quaid
e Azam and the attributes of personality led
to the emergence of another new country
for Muslims of sub continent, called as
Pakistan.
 Mahatma Gandhi
 Gandhi throughout his life has been a
shy personality until in South Africa
after an incident with him he came out
in public and addressed people about
cultural and gender discrimination
which identified his charisma actually.
After he moved to India and led a
revolt against British rule in which a
larger population followed him all
because of the charm he possessed.
Charismatic leaders in modern era
 Steve Jobs
 As the CEO of Apple in different stages
of his career, Steve Jobs was able to
bring the world into the 21st century by
motivating his teams to produce their
best work. His authority style, based on
his own charisma, successfully
introduced our world to impressive
music storage, smartphone technology
and cloud computing.
 Barack Obama
 The first African American to become
the president of the United States of
America, Obama is known for his
charismatic and compassionate
leadership style and his oratory skills.
His decision to initiate a series of policy
changes in healthcare and economy has
helped him earn praise from his
supporters.
 Imran Khan
 The famous cricketer who is known for his
extraordinary leadership in the times when he was
the captain of Pakistan cricket team in 190’s.
Today he is running the democracy of Pakistan
and has been elected as the Prime Minister of
Pakistan. Imran Khan has led a huge crowd of
youth in Pakistan all because of the charisma in
his personality. Many people with democratic
knowledge and experience quote that he only on
the basis of charm of his personality has been able
to rule today otherwise he is a new man to the
field of government system of Pakistan with no
resources.
The Development of Transformational Leadership Theory

 Perhaps the study of charismatic leadership

made suitable predictions for the modification
in this theory and lead to the proposal of new
theory on similar grounds. That is
“Transformational leadership.” It may be the
most studied aspect of leadership in modern
academics.