Theories of Leadership Styles
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From a scholarly perspective, leadership is defined as the process of directing and influencing the task-related activities of group members (Stoner and Wankel, 1986). By their willingness to accept directions, group members help to define the status of leaders and to facilitate the leadership process. Implicit in the concept of leadership is the notion of power and the conjoint idea of influence, as leaders must be able to employ power in order to exercise influence over the behaviors of their subordinates (Stoner and Wankel, 1986). Leadership is regarded by most management theorists as a key ingredient in the success of failure of any corporate or group venture; it may well be the key factor in group cohesion and integrity, as well as goal and objective achievement (Cribbin, 1982). Given these views of leadership, this report will describe several alternative theories of leadership styles and their strengths and weaknesses. Effective leaders have been described as individuals who are capable of renewing the organizations which they lead, effectively communicating organizational goals and objectives, and possessed of the competencies members perceive as necessary to lead the organization to the heights of its vision (Beatty & Ulrich, 2000). Leaders must be credible and the members of their organization must be able to trust in the word of their leaders. If leaders to not inspire or maintain trust, members will be unwilling to accept the leader's vision or values and unw
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Another major proposition of the theory is that the behavior of the leader is motivational when it enhances subordinates' environment or satisfaction and performance through coaching, directing, supporting and rewarding. The leader influences the "paths" between behavior and work or personal goals by defining position and task roles, enlisting the assistance of group members, promoting cohesiveness and team effort, reducing stresses and making expectations clear (Koontz, O'Donnell, and Weihrich, 1985).
Both of these leadership models emphasize flexibility as critical to leadership success. Both consider the effect of behavior and environment as complementary aspects of leadership development. Both recognize the motivational impact of leader behaviors and actions. Contingency or situational leadership, however, predates path-goal leadership and has been more rigorously tested in both laboratory and real-world settings. Path-goal leadership is very much an offshoot of Fiedler's more complex theory and draws heavily upon his constructs.
Managers of an organization must be prepared to anticipate and adapt to change by keeping in touch with the organization's customers and the external environment in which the organization functions
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Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 3968
Approximate Pages = 16 (250 words per page)
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