Contemporary Leadership

This report will focus on the concept of leadership and the role which leadership plays in the society. The report will take into consideration the life as well as the career of Frank Kennedy. The report will begin by giving an overview of the early life of Kennedy and the early career of Kennedy in the navy. The report will also provide an overview of the political career of Kennedy and his political activities. Finally, the report will conclude with a discussion of the style of leadership of Kennedy and his contribution towards the society.

Running head: CONTEMPOARY LEADERSHIP
Contemporary Leadership
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author’s Note:

1CONTEMPORARY LEADERSHIP
Executive Summary
This report will focus on the concept of leadership and the role which leadership plays in the
society. The report will take into consideration the life as well as the career of Frank
Kennedy. The report will begin by giving an overview of the early life of Kennedy and the
early career of Kennedy in the navy. The report will also provide an overview of the political
career of Kennedy and his political activities. Finally, the report will conclude with a
discussion of the style of leadership of Kennedy and his contribution towards the society.

2CONTEMPORARY LEADERSHIP
Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................3
John F. Kennedy.........................................................................................................................4
Early life and Career..................................................................................................................5
Naval and Early Political Career................................................................................................5
Activities as the President of the United States of America......................................................6
Style of leadership......................................................................................................................7
Conclusion..................................................................................................................................8
References................................................................................................................................10

3CONTEMPORARY LEADERSHIP
Introduction
“Good leaders have vision and inspire others to help them turn vision into reality. Great
leaders create more leaders, not followers. Great leaders have vision, share vision, and inspire
others to create their own.”
The above quoted lines of the author Roy T. Bennet from his famous work “The Light
in the Heart” gives an overview of the concept of leadership and the role of an effective in the
present day context. Leadership forms an important part of not only the various business
organizations but also in the political framework of any nation as well (McCleskey 2014).
The concept of leadership can be defined as the “ability or the capability of the individuals to
lead others towards the achievement of their desired goals as well s objectives or the goals
and the objectives set by the business organization concerned” (Yukl 2012). In the opinion of
Chester Bernard, “Leadership is the ability of a superior to influence the behavior of a
subordinate or group and persuade them to follow a particular course of action”. However, a
more pertinent definition of the concept of leadership was provided by the 16th century Italian
dramatist Machiavelli in his famous play “The Prince” when he said “Leadership is a matter
of intelligence, trustworthiness, humaneness, courage, and discipline ... Reliance on
intelligence alone results in rebelliousness. Exercise of humaneness alone results in
weakness. Fixation on trust results in folly. Dependence on the strength of courage results in
violence. Excessive discipline and sternness in command result in cruelty. When one has all
five virtues together, each appropriate to its function, then one can be a leader”. Therefore, it
can be said that the concept of leadership has different interpretations in the various diverse
walks of life (Chemers 2014).

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John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy is one of the most popular names not only in the genre of the
American politics but in the genre of world politics as well. He is more famous as the “35th
President of the United States of America” (Jfklibrary.org. 2018). He is widely considered as
one of the major proponents of the concept of peace and is widely known for the effective
leadership which he provided after the “Second World War” (George 2012). His words on
the “first anniversary of the Alliance for Progress, 13 March 1962” are significant to note in
this particular context when he said that “those who make peaceful revolution impossible will
make violent revolution inevitable” (Jfklibrary.org. 2018). He is also known as a champion of
the human rights of the individuals not only in the nation of the United States of America but
in a global context (George 2012). It is a reflection of the contributions made by him as the
President of the United States of America that he was awarded the various medals and
honorary awards like “Navy and Marine Corps Medal; Purple Heart Medal; American
Defense Service Medal; American Campaign Medal; Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with
three 3⁄16" bronze stars; and the World War II Victory Medal” (Jfklibrary.org. 2018). The
words of James Forrestal the then “Secretary of the Navy” are significant in this particular
context “For extremely heroic conduct as Commanding Officer of Motor Torpedo Boat 109
following the collision and sinking of that vessel in the Pacific War area on August 1–2,
1943. Unmindful of personal danger, Lieutenant (then Lieutenant, Junior Grade) Kennedy
unhesitatingly braved the difficulties and hazards of darkness to direct rescue operations,
swimming many hours to secure aid and food after he had succeeded in getting his crew
ashore. His outstanding courage, endurance and leadership contributed to the saving of
several lives and were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval
Service” (Jfklibrary.org. 2018).

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Early life and Career
Kennedy was born in the year 1917 at the “83 Beals Street in suburban Brookline,
Massachusetts” (Jfklibrary.org. 2018). He hailed from a very intellectual as well as liberal
family with his “Joseph Patrick Joe Kennedy” being a politician as well as a businessman and
his mother “Rose Elizabeth Fitzgerald Kennedy” being a philanthropist (Ions 2013). He
received his early schooling from the “St. Aidan's Church” and later went on to graduate
from the Harvard College after dropping out of the Princeton College due to heath issues
(Jfklibrary.org. 2018). It is significant to note that as a student Kennedy loved to indulge in
extra-curricular activities like swimming, horse riding, football, golf and other sports.
Furthermore, after graduating he joined his brother as well as father to work at the “American
embassy in London” (Ions 2013). It is from here on that the political journey of Kennedy
began. It is significant to note that Kennedy since his early childhood has an inclination
towards politics on the score of his family background as most of his family members were
involved in politics (Ions 2013). It is a reflection of this that most of this that in his colleges
years he participated in the various political events of the students.
Naval and Early Political Career
Kennedy’s defense career began with his association with the “Officer Candidate
School” (Ions 2013). However, it is significant to note that he was debarred from the army on
account of his poor health. In the year 1941, he joined the “Office of Naval Intelligence” and
it is from here on that his naval career began (Packenham 2015). The most significant naval
activities of Kennedy include his leading of the “three Huckins PT boats—PT-98, PT-99, and
PT-101”. However, after the death of his father he left the naval services and started as a
newspaper correspondent at the “Hearst Newspapers” (Jfklibrary.org. 2018).

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The father of Kennedy was a key player in the political environment of the United
States of America and therefore he was elected to represent the interests of the Congress in
the Presidential elections (Packenham 2015). However, after his premature death the
responsibility feel on the shoulders of Frank Kennedy. It is significant to note that with the
help of his family’s political connections and also with their financing he was able to win “12
percent of the vote, defeating ten other candidates” (Packenham 2015). Furthermore, he
repeated the same feat in the next general elections in the “1946 elections” (Schlesinger
2012). He served in the “House of Commons” for six years and announced his nomination for
the 1960 “Democratic presidential nomination” (Schlesinger 2012). It is significant to note
that after winning in this particular general Presidential election he became the “youngest
person (43) ever elected to the presidency, though Theodore Roosevelt was a year younger at
42 when he automatically assumed the office after William McKinley's assassination in
1901” (Carty 2016).
Activities as the President of the United States of America
In his Presidential speech Kennedy said “Ask not what your country can do for you;
ask what you can do for your country” (Jfklibrary.org. 2018). These words of Kennedy
provide a pertinent account of the kind of Presidential style which he was to follow in his
reign as the 35th President of the nation (Carty 2016). It is significant to note that he was one
of the major proponents of the “civil rights” of the individuals of the nation during his
election campaign and even after his selection as the president of the nation (Burns 2016).
Furthermore, in his presidential speech he even urged the citizens of the nation to fight
against the “common enemies of man: tyranny, poverty, disease, and war itself”
(Jfklibrary.org. 2018). Moreover, he also added that “All this will not be finished in the first
one hundred days. Nor will it be finished in the first one thousand days, nor in the life of this

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Administration, nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet. …. whether you are citizens
of America or citizens of the world, ask of us here the same high standards of strength and
sacrifice which we ask of you” (Jfklibrary.org. 2018). In addition to these, Kennedy is also
known for his various economic reforms particularly in the genre of the economic taxes. The
foreign policy of Kennedy was “dominated by American confrontations with the Soviet
Union, manifested by proxy contests in the early stage of the Cold War” (Burns 2016). He is
also known for his successful campaign in the nation of Cuba which overthrew the reign of
the Communists in the nation. This particular campaign of Kennedy is popularly known by
the name of “Bay of Pigs Invasion” (Burns 2016). Moreover, he is also known as an active
proponent of the concept of peace and strove much to establish peace in the various
conflicting nations of South-east Asia.
Style of leadership
In the opinion of many scholars the political career of Kennedy is a manifesto of the
“situational style of leadership”. In the opinion of Paul Hersey and Ken Blanchard, “The
situational leadership theory refers to those leaders who adopt different leadership styles
according to the situation and the development level of their team members”(Sabato and
Sabato 2018). The basic precept of this particular style of leadership style is that “Effective
leadership is task-relevant, and the most successful leaders are those who adapt their
leadership style to the Performance Readiness (ability and willingness) of the individual or
group they are attempting to lead or influence” (Sabato and Sabato 2018). It is significant to
note that a situational leader is the one who acts as per the individual situations and tries to
resolve the issues at hand by doing the thing which is right for the situation. This becomes
apparent when the political career of Kennedy is taken into consideration. It is significant to
note that the decision to enter the political arena was totally a situational one after the death

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of his father (Sabato and Sabato 2018). In addition to this, the various campaigns of Kennedy
like the “Bay of Pigs Invasion” or his foreign policies towards the nations of Russia and Cuba
are a reflection of this particular style of leadership of his (Obolensky 2017). Furthermore, his
insistence on the concepts of civil rights and the various precepts of peace were also the
requirements of the situation. The creation of the “Peace Corps” is a reflection of this
particular style of leadership. Furthermore, it is also significant to note that he used the
concept of motivation to help the other members of his cabinet to perform in a much better
manner than they had been used to doing in the earlier interim periods (McCleskey 2014).
Moreover, he strove to improve the working condition of the lives of the citizens of the
nation of the United States of America and passed various important legislations for the
improvement of the lives of the citizens of the nation (McCleskey 2014). Therefore, it can be
said that the leadership as well as the Presidential reign of Kennedy strove to improve the
lives of the citizens of the United States of America in a way which the Presidential reign of
no other President has done in the past barring perhaps only the reign of Abraham Lincoln.
Conclusion
To conclude, leadership forms an important part of the lives of the individuals not
only in the field of business but also in the field of political activities as well. It is significant
to note that there are various styles of leadership and the effectiveness of a particular style
depends on the situation or the scenario in which they are being used. Furthermore, the role
of a leader in the society is very important as his or her activities not only influence his own
individual life or the lives of the people who are in immediate touch with him or her but the
lives of the general population as a whole. This becomes significant when the life as well as
the career of the President of the United States of America is taken into consideration. His
life as well as political career are not only important from the perspective of the political

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aspects but also on the score of the various activities related to the human rights as well as
economic reforms which he did for the citizens of the nation of the United States of America.

10CONTEMPORARY LEADERSHIP
References
Burns, J.M., 2016. John Kennedy: a political profile. Open Road Media.
Carty, T., 2016. A Catholic in the White House?: Religion, Politics, and John F. Kennedy's
Presidential Campaign. Springer.
Chemers, M., 2014. An integrative theory of leadership. Psychology Press.
George, A., 2012. The assassination of John F. Kennedy: Political trauma and American
memory. Routledge.
Ions, E., 2013. The Politics of John F. Kennedy (Routledge Library Editions: Political
Science Volume 1). Routledge.
Jfklibrary.org. 2018. Life of John F. Kennedy - John F. Kennedy Presidential Library &
Museum. [online] Available at: https://www.jfklibrary.org/JFK/Life-of-John-F-Kennedy.aspx
[Accessed 16 Apr. 2018].
McCleskey, J.A., 2014. Situational, transformational, and transactional leadership and
leadership development. Journal of Business Studies Quarterly, 5(4), p.117.
Obolensky, N., 2017. Complex adaptive leadership: Embracing paradox and uncertainty.
Routledge.
Packenham, R.A., 2015. Liberal America and the Third World: Political development ideas
in foreign aid and social science. Princeton University Press.
Sabato, L. and Sabato, L. 2018. Lead like John F. Kennedy. [online] Washington Post.
Available at: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/on-leadership/wp/2013/11/20/lead-like-
john-f-kennedy/?utm_term=.291b48b8bdda [Accessed 16 Apr. 2018].

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Schlesinger, A.M., 2012. Robert Kennedy and his times. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
Yukl, G., 2012. Effective leadership behavior: What we know and what questions need more
attention. The Academy of Management Perspectives, 26(4), pp.66-85.