Relationship between Innovation and Transformational Leadership

This essay discusses the relationship between innovation and transformational leadership in organizations. It explains how transformational leaders can stimulate creativity and innovation among employees, and how their leadership style affects the attitudes and performance of employees. The essay provides practical examples of transformational leaders such as Jeff Bezos, Tim Cook, and Sundar Pichai.

Question 2
Answer:
1. Introduction
The concept of transformational leadership is mainly based on the ways by which the leaders
of the organizations collaborate with their subordinates to identify the change that is required in
the different processes. The employees are provided with high levels of motivation from the
leaders who follow this style. This further helps in increasing the motivation levels and the
morale of the employees. The different methods used in transformational leadership are
connected with the views or the goals of the organization. The leaders in the organizations prove
to be a role model to the various employees (Chan & Liu, 2016).
The transformational leadership style is thereby based on the ability that is possessed by the
leaders to manage the changes and further create vision which can be followed by the employees.
The leaders can motivate the employees to work together towards the common that they must
create a positive atmosphere in the organization (Para-González, Jimenez-Jimenez & Martínez-
Lorente, 2018).
2. Discussion about the Relationship between Innovation and
transformational Leadership:
The transformational style of leader is capable of developing relationships with the
employees which are effective in nature. The leadership style thereby plays a significant role in
the increase of levels of innovation and creativity in the organization Callan Ayoko Saunders( , , ,
aulsen& P , 2013). The creativity levels of the company are supported by various organizational
aspects which include, freedom and autonomy, task meaning and challenge, team-cooperation
and friendliness and levels of creativity and leadership support. Bolden (2016) says that there a
correlation between the leadership and management practices with the organizational
developments. Management practices can be in terms of the way the leaders interact with the
workers, and the influence they cast upon the employees, for instance, if they can be servant
leaders unter et al(H , ., 2013). Such conducts of managers can significantly change the emotions
and trust of the workers in a significant way hou Ma Cheng ia(Z , , , & X , 2014). The levels of the
interactions which occur in the various work-related groups of the organizations and the quality
of the interactions also affect the creativity of employees (Chen et al., 2014).

The leaders following the transformational style try to provide intellectual stimulation to the
employees or their subordinates. The general thinking process of the followers are changed, and
they are further motivated to think in an “out of the box” or creative manner. The leaders in this
case have a positive relationship with the creative thinking of the followers. The followers are
easily able to provide their complete trust to the transformational leaders. The demands and the
needs of the employees are considered by the transformational leaders in a serious manner. The
unique qualities of the employees are totally known to them and they try to nurture these
qualities for the overall benefits of the organization (Dong et al., 2017).
3. Attitudes of the Employees:
The attitudes of employees are also affected by the leaders who follow the transformational
style. These leaders thereby influence the performance that is depicted by the employees in the
organization. The levels of innovation in the employees are perfectly stimulated with the help of
appropriate transformational leadership. The perceptions that are held by the managers related to
the leadership in the organization affects the capabilities that are possessed by that leader. The
various factors that are possessed by the transformational leaders include, charisma, inspiration,
intellectual stimulation and individualised consideration Dumdum owe Avolio( , L , & , 2013). The
capacity of the firm related to the absorption of the various changes that take place in the
external environment are all based on the skills related to the employees (Engelen et al., 2015).
The transformational leaders are also able to stimulate the process of transfer of the knowledge
among themselves. The innovative behaviour and the creative ideas of the employees are
promoted by the transformational style of leaders. Human resource managers can foster
creativity and innovation among the workers either through direct supervision or through
encouraging self-leadership among the workers (Wisse, Barelds, & ietzschel, 2015; Ma Prieto &
Pilar Perez-Santana, 2014; Taştan, 2013). The wellbeing of the employees and the fulfilment of
their specific needs are a major part of the operations of the organization in the global industry.
The work culture that is created by transformational leaders helps the employees to feel safe and
protected from any kind of external problems Mujki ehi Rahimi usi( ć, Š ć, ć, & J ć, 2014). The
creative efforts that are taken by the employees and the innovation that they can bring the
process of work is supported by the transformational leaders (Henker, Sonnentag & Unger,
2015).

The performance of the various teams in the organizations is also affected in a huge manner by
the transformational process of leadership. The fast changes that occur in the external
environment of the organization require innovative and creative work processes in the
organization. The constant pressure that is faced by the organizations to change the process by
which they continue the work-based process further leads to innovations in the systems. The
organizations can be provided with a new life by the leaders who are dedicated towards the job
that they perform (İşcan, Ersarı & Naktiyok, 2014).
The size of the organization is directly linked with the innovation related steps that are taken by
the management. For instance, with the help of technological advances, the managers can make
the employees to be innovate and creative thereby enhancing their performance (Camisón &
Villar-López, 2014; Kehoe & Wright, 2013). The long-term sustainability of the operations of an
organization is also based on the high levels of innovation that are involved in the work process.
The huge challenges that are faced by the organizations in the modern business environment can
be faced only if the leaders are effective and cooperative in nature (Jaiswal & Dhar, 2015).
The leaders who follow the transformational style are thereby considered to be much more
effective as compared to the leaders who follow the other styles. The organizational learning
related process is also facilitated by the transformational leaders. The performance that is shown
by the employees and the effect that this performance has on the overall operations of the
organization is easily measured by the cooperative nature of the transformational leaders
(Mokhber, bin Wan Ismail & Vakilbashi, 2015).
The practical application of transformational leadership in the modern organizations can be
explained with the help of a leader of a famous online retail organization named Amazon. The
leadership style that has been applied by Jeff Bezos in the organization has created a different
image of the leader in the industry (Jiang, Gu & Wang, 2015). The levels of innovation and the
revenues of the organization have been increased with the help of the effective leadership style
that has been implemented by Jeff Bezos. The main concept that has been applied by Bezos in
the organization is “Customer is the king”.
The leader has always given utmost importance to the customers as they are the major part of the
entire operations of the organization. The CEO is totally obsessed by the levels satisfaction that
is to be provided to the customers. The desires and the needs of the customers are taken utmost
care by the leader and the employees need to work accordingly (Jiang & Chen, 2018). The leader

is also totally involved in the work process of the organization and the levels of innovation in the
organization is also increased with the help provided by him.
4. Examples of Leadership:
Bezos has proved to be a huge example of a transformational leader who has truly
transformed his idea into a successful organization in the industry. The business of the
organization has also been increased to the highest levels under the supervision of Bezos
(Kasemsap, 2017).
Another example that can help in understanding the application of transformational leadership is
Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple. The Steve Jobs was replaced by Tim Cook as the CEO of Apple
after his death. The leadership style that was followed by Tim Cook was totally different from
that of Jeff Bezos. The innovation related activities of Apple have always been high and the
entry of Tim Cook further improved the work culture in the organization to a large extent. The
levels of innovation in Apple further increased with the assistance of the diverse teams that were
formulated in the organization (Khalili, 2016). The diverse teams in the organization consisted of
people who had different mind sets and were able to provide different ideas as well. The
requirement of thinkers in the organization was recognized easily by the leaders. The main
requirement that was recognized in the organization was, diversity of the thoughts, diversity
related to the style which can be implemented in an easy manner (Kraft & Bausch, 2015).
The third and final example that can be provided with respect to the usage of transformational
leadership is the Sundar Pichai, the leader and the CEO of Google. The innovative attempts were
made by Pichai in Google even before he was made the CEO of Google. The leader had played
an important in the formation and development of many new software and programs of the
company. Pichai is known in the industry for his transformational and cooperative style of
leadership (Li, Mitchell & Boyle, 2016).
Policies and the leadership style that has been followed by Pichai has helped him in gaining the
trust of the employees or his subordinates. The robust process of recruitment that was undertaken
by Google has also been successful in attracting the best of the candidates for the various
positions that were offered. The innovative minds and the creativity of the employees were
nurtured in an effective manner by the leader and this further led to the increase of revenues of
the organization (Mittal & Dhar, 2015).

5. Conclusion
The essay is thereby concluded by stating that the leaders following the transformational style
have an important role to play in the organization. The relationship that has been established
between the innovation levels and the transformational style of leadership has been clearly
depicted with the help of the practical examples that have been provided.