Academic Essay and Portfolio on Leadership Styles and Qualities

This academic essay and portfolio discusses the importance of leadership skills and qualities for university students to become efficient employees. It also explores different leadership styles and qualities and provides a project plan and skill audit for improving leadership skills.

Running head: ACADEMIC ESSAY AND PORTFOLIO
Academic Essay and Portfolio
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author’s Note

1ACADEMIC ESSAY AND PORTFOLIO
Table of Contents
Task 1: Academic essay on style of leadership...............................................................................2
Task 2: Portfolio of professional practices......................................................................................3
2.1 Concept map:.............................................................................................................................3
2.2 Project Plan:...............................................................................................................................4
2.3 Reflective journal:.....................................................................................................................6
2.4 Skill audit:..................................................................................................................................6
Reference List:.................................................................................................................................8

2ACADEMIC ESSAY AND PORTFOLIO
Task 1: Academic essay on style of leadership
Good academic result is not only effective in order to become an efficient support at the
workplace. University students are from different cultural backgrounds and attitudes from
various geographical backgrounds. In order to become an efficient employee, university should
have appropriate leadership skill and competency level (Northouse 2014). As per the case study,
conducted in this very specific study it has been observed that leadership skill plays the most
significant role in order to direct the organization and its services towards right path. Based on
business scenario and different situations, the organizational experts tend to decide appropriate
leadership style. Participative form of leadership style helps the employees in sharing their own
point of view in front of business leaders. As a result, the leaders get the scope of getting
collective decision making regarding meeting the business goal (Reem, Kitsantas and Maddox
2014). In addition, the interpersonal communication between the business leaders and employees
is very much cooperative. Employees tend to show their enthusiastic zeal while providing
services towards the organization.
Autocratic form of leadership enables the business leaders in imposing their own decision
on the employees (Frich et al. 2015). With the help of an effective leadership style, the manager
intends to direct the employees towards services. While overcoming any kind of sudden
organizational crisis the business experts would have to follow autocratic decision immediately
to manage the situation (West et al. 2014). Transformational form of leadership style implies that
the business experts tend to transform their form of leadership as per situation demands. In this
very specific leadership style, the leaders tend to follow participative form of leadership style as
well as autocratic form of leadership style as per situation on business.

3ACADEMIC ESSAY AND PORTFOLIO
Leadership skill
Efficient employee along with services
Leadership quality
Business profitability
However, university students after doing their courses on management need to get in-
depth knowledge about the importance of leadership skills and qualities. Otherwise, they would
not be able to grab the business objectives (Kouzes 2014). However, in order to become an
efficient employee, the students need to acquire proper knowledge and information about the
importance of effective leadership skill and competency. It can be thus evaluated that based on
business scenario and different situations, the organizational experts tend to decide appropriate
leadership style (Gurdjian, Halbeisen and Lane 2014). Participative form of leadership style
helps the employees in sharing their own point of view in front of business leaders.
Task 2: Portfolio of professional practices
2.1 Concept map:
Figure: Concept map on leadership styles and qualities
(Source: As Created by the Author)

4ACADEMIC ESSAY AND PORTFOLIO
Based on the concept map mentioned above it can be summarized that university students
should acquire proper leadership skill and quality within the help of which they can meet
organizational demands (Trastek, Hamilton and Niles 2014). On the other hand, it can also be
stated that proper leadership quality helps in reaching ultimate business goal. In order to become
an efficient employee, university should have appropriate leadership skill and competency level.
It can be stated that interpersonal communication between the business leaders and employees is
very much cooperative. Employees tend to show their enthusiastic zeal while providing services
towards the organization (Lin et al. 2015). Superior quality of services and effective leadership
skills can enhance employee performances that can ultimately reflect in reaching organizational
goals and objectives.
2.2 Project Plan:
In order to manage and enhance leadership skill and qualities the activities that should be
conducted are as follows:
Main activities/ stages 1st-2nd
Week
3rd- 4th
Week
5th- 6th
Week
7th-8th
Week
9th-
10th
Week
11th-
12th
Week
Duration
Gather group members
together
1st December
Maintain effective
communication with the
colleagues
2nd
December
Collect regular feedback 3rd December

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from the employees
regarding progress of
their performances
Maintain effective
interaction with the
employees
4th December
Deliver the solution
within stipulated
deadline
5th December
Collect feedback from
the stakeholders as well
as service users
6th December
Gather feedback from
the employees about
their satisfaction level
7th
December
Review the performance
rate of employees
8th
December
Identify their drawbacks 9th
December
Make effective action
plan for overcoming the
draw back
10th
December
Provide better services 11th

6ACADEMIC ESSAY AND PORTFOLIO
December
Table: Project Plan for managing leadership skills
(Source: As Created by the author)
2.3 Reflective journal:
In this very specific part, I would like to reflect my specific leadership skills and qualities
as an efficient business leader. I have however observed that as a leader I am efficient enough in
resolving the issues of employees facing at the workplace. My communication skill is very much
fluent with the help of which I can easily convey the messages that I want to transit towards
target employees. On the other hand, I have excellent capability of overcoming workplace
hazards. My emotional intelligence skill and capability is high with the help of which I can treat
the problems of employees with sympathetic outlook. However, these all are my positive aspects
as a business leader that can help me immensely in enhancing my management capability.
However, in order to become a successful manager I need to improve some of the most
important qualities as well. The qualities include multilingual competency, time management
skill and decision-making skill. With the help of multi-lingual competency, I can easily interact
with those persons who have even language barrier. With the help of proper decision-making
skill as well as time management skill, I can deliver the services within proper stipulated time.
Naturally, the entire process of work becomes very much smooth and systematic which reflects
on customer satisfaction. s

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2.4 Skill audit:
Based on my drawback as an efficient leader I would like to make an action plan for
improving my skills and capabilities.
Areas of improvement Activities Duration
Multilingual flexibility In order to gain multilingual skill
I would like to attend a training
and development session with the
help of which I can grab my
capabilities in different
languages.
6months
Decision making skill and time
management skill
In order to enhance decision-
making skill I need to deal with
numerous practical
environments.
6months
Technological competency I need to attend training for
enhancing my technological skill
and competency.
6months

8ACADEMIC ESSAY AND PORTFOLIO
Reference List:
Frich, J.C., Brewster, A.L., Cherlin, E.J. and Bradley, E.H., 2015. Leadership development
programs for physicians: a systematic review. Journal of general internal medicine, 30(5),
pp.656-674.
Gurdjian, P., Halbeisen, T. and Lane, K., 2014. Why leadership-development programs
fail. McKinsey Quarterly, 1(1), pp.121-126.
Kouzes, J.M., 2014. The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership-Technology (Vol. 292). John
Wiley & Sons.
Lin, P.Y., MacLennan, S., Hunt, N. and Cox, T., 2015. The influences of nursing
transformational leadership style on the quality of nurses’ working lives in Taiwan: a cross-
sectional quantitative stu
Northouse, P.G., 2014. Introduction to leadership: Concepts and practice. Sage.
Reem, A.D., Kitsantas, P. and Maddox, P.J., 2014. The impact of residency programs on new
nurse graduates' clinical decision-making and leadership skills: A systematic review. Nurse
Education Today, 34(6), pp.1024-1028.
Trastek, V.F., Hamilton, N.W. and Niles, E.E., 2014, March. Leadership models in health care—
a case for servant leadership. In Mayo Clinic Proceedings (Vol. 89, No. 3, pp. 374-381).
Elsevier.

9ACADEMIC ESSAY AND PORTFOLIO
West, M., Lyubovnikova, J., Eckert, R. and Denis, J.L., 2014. Collective leadership for cultures
of high quality health care. Journal of Organizational Effectiveness: People and
Performance, 1(3), pp.240-260.