FREE ESSAY ON LEADERS/MANAGERS EFFECTIVE ON ORGANIZATIONS.

LEADERS/MANAGERS EFFECTIVE ON ORGANIZATIONS.

Leaders/Managers effective on organizations.
I have so many ideas of what an effective leader should be that I often feel overwhelmed
and cannot imagine how I will become the 'ideal' leader that I want to be. There are many
ingredients of effective leadership styles. I have read several books and articles on
leadership and management. I have also participated in a few leadership
training/education modules offered through my employers. There are many theories on what
makes an effective leader. In my research I have discovered that there is many leadership
styles and most are effective if used in the right situations. Information on the subject
of leadership is plenty with some resources being quite in-depth, but most describe a
specific type of leadership. I did find one book that was both easy to understand and
made a lot of sense. In the book, Leadership and the One-Minute Manager, the theory and
use of Situational Leadership is described. I think that this style of leadership is most
effective. It describes that different forms of leadership are needed in different
situations. The book defines leadership style as "how you behave when you are trying to
influence the performance of someone else" (p. 46). Therefore, one of the most important
ingredients of any leader would be flexibility. The second most important ingredient
would be understanding when to use a specific leadership style. The four basic leadership
styles described are directing, coaching, supporting and delegating. 
The directing leadership style would be needed for new hires, or less competent employees
that show commitment and a desire to be productive. The employees at this development
level would require very clear directions, and a lot of supervision. The atmosphere must
be controlled and structured until these employees develop some competence.
The coaching style would be useful for existing employees who have lost their sense of
commitment. These types of employees may still be inexperienced or may have been
incorrectly supervised leading to their loss of commitment. Coaching style will also be
useful on employees who need praise to build their self-esteem. The coaching style
provides some direction with plenty of support. Support is important in building
confidences and praise is needed to boost self-esteem. If the employee 's confidence and
self esteem is increased their commitment to the company and their ability to complete
job duties will increase. This will ultimately improve the employee's productivity and
morale.
The third style of leadership is supporting. Supporting is similar to the coaching style
but employees are not in need of direction. The employees who require a supportive leader
already have the skills and knowledge of their job duties but either lacks motivation or
confidence. This type of employee requires a lot of praise to encourage motivation and
improve confidences.
The fourth style is delegating. Delegating allows the leader to turn over some
responsibilities to employees who demonstrate both excellent job knowledge and the
ability to work well with little supervision or support. This style would seem to be the
ideal style, if you have a team of employees that all work well, are responsible and are
committed to you and the company. All you have to do is release some authority and resist
the urge to make all the decisions. Unfortunately, since the leader is ultimately
responsible for the job tasks completion, it is often hard to delegate because of the
need to ensure that the job is done right.
Situational leadership suggests that you combine the four basic leadership styles. The
leader must diagnose the situation and determine which leadership style will be the most
effective. I feel that this theory is the most accurate since all employees do not have
the same abilities or characteristics. Because of this, you will need to lead them using
different techniques.
I do believe that effective leaders must share some personality characteristics. As
described above, an effective leader must be flexible. They must also have a caring,
respectful and responsible attitude. They must have a participative approach to
management and be willing to share power. Leaders must be continuous learners and never
feel that they know everything. Leaders are usually calm and never make decisions from
the hip. Each decision must be carefully planned and each option researched. Thus,
patience is a characteristic of an effective leader. Effective leaders have also been
described as visionaries, being able to foresee the results of their planning and
successful obtainment of their goals. 
Are leaders born or made? I have read many articles where this issue has been the hot
topic being debated. I know that long ago many theorist felt that great leaders where
born not made. Some today still think this way, but I think most have decided that
effective leaders can be developed through education and training. I feel that some
people may be born natural leaders, but without proper education and experience this
potential may not get reached. I also feel that one's life experiences and paths can
develop characteristics in people that could help them become effective leaders.
I believe that not all managers are good leaders. I worked with a manager that was great
at the operational side of the business but she was not an effective leader. She felt
that everyone should be treated the same and expected the same productivity and accuracy
out of each employee. The drive that she placed on meeting the operational objectives
with disregard for the human culture only backfired. Instead of getting better results
they worsened. Morale became an issue, as well as, absences, stress related illnesses and
conflicts between co-workers. I believe these were all a result from the manager's
ineffective leadership skills. 
In searching the web for information on leadership, I came across thousands of companies
and consulting firms that offer many development and training programs that will help
build employee's leadership abilities. I hope that leadership skills can be taught, since
I have been striving to develop myself into an effective leader. Changing your ideas
about leadership is the easy part, developing the appropriate characteristics are quite
difficult and require much determination.
Leadership development and training programs help the organization by equipping the
employees with skills they will not obtain in their own work environment, but are very
much needed. This in turn will create employees that are more knowledgeable in leading
and better able to assist in meeting the organization's goals. Since effective leadership
is a positive qualification in any employee, the company can only gain from offering
these types of programs. Employees who are offered these programs by their employers may
feel a more positive association with the company. Companies that show a concern for
their employee's personal growth may find that employees will feel obligated to do a
better job for the company
Bibliography
Works Cited
Blanchard, Kenneth, Patricia Zigarmi, and Drea Zigarmi. Leadership and the One Minute
Manager. New York: William Morrow and Company, Inc., 1995.
Kelly, Kevin, "You can't Make Leaders." Business Week 07 Dec. 1998: Enterprise My
Company. Business Week Online Archives.
Maccoby, Michael, The Leader. New York: Simon and Schuster, 1981.