Leadership

What is Leadership?

Leadership is persuasion; it involves influencing other people to pursue a common goal or mission that is considered important to the group. Leadership is not domination; leadership requires others to willingly adopt the goals or mission of the group as their own, even for a brief period of time. Leadership requires creating a shared vision, building trust and confidence, and enabling others to act toward a common goal. Fred Fiedler developed a contingency or situational theory of leadership. Fiedler proposed that three important situational dimensions influence the leader's effectiveness: leader-member relations, task complexity/structure, and the power inherent in the leadership position. Fiedler's contingency leadership model implied that leadership style is difficult to change. Paul Hersey and Kenneth Blanchard (coauthor of the One Minute Manager) extended and modified Fiedler's model and articulated a three-dimensional approach for assessing leadership effectiveness. Their situational leadership model suggested that successful leaders do adjust their styles. For Hersey and Blanchard, the key issue in making these leadership style adjustments is follower maturity; in other words, the group member's readiness to perform in a given situation. Hersey and Blanchard also recognize the importance of the leader's task and relationship behaviors, and how the individual's leadership style interfaces with the task situation. Hersey contends that successful leaders are those who can adapt their behavior to meet the demands of their own unique situations. Adaptability is central to this model; the leader must adapt a combination of directive behaviors and supportive behaviors appropriately to the readiness of others to perform specific tasks or functions.

It is beyond the scope of this entry to mention all of the leading theorists who have affected the leadership field. However, it would be remiss to not mention the significant work of Warren Bennis. Bennis is a popular guest speaker and regular presidential advisor whose writings and lectures introduced leadership to a mass audience. An early student of group dynamics in the 1950s, Bennis evolved into a futurist in the 1960s and 1970s. Bennis argues that leadership is not a rare skill or inborn trait; he posits that leaders are made rather than born, and that leaders need not be charismatic or brilliant individuals to be successful. He also contends that leadership is not about control, direction, or manipulation. Bennis believes that effective leaders create compelling visions; elicit trust, optimism, and hope in others; and translate their visions into actionable plans.

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