Importance of Transformational Leadership in Change Management

Running head: LEADERSHIP AND CHANGE
LEADERSHIP AND CHANGE
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Introduction
According to Alimo-Metcalfe et al. (2013), Leadership is considered as the potential
or the skill in a leader which provides operations and inspirational oversight, objectives and
other services to the employees as well as the organization as a whole. The study explores on
the transformational leadership style, which is considered to be a highly suitable for change
situations in the organization. The transformational leadership style attempts to encourage,
motivate and inspire the employees of the organization to innovate and change for the future
success of the organization. The transformational leadership style is often implemented by
setting an example by the leader to the employees by initiating a strong sense of ownership,
independence, corporate culture in the organization. The transformational leadership style is
mainly aspired to rather than realised. The primary purpose of this report is to analyze the
importance of effective leadership approach during the process of initiating change in the
organization. The study attempts to explore on the available literature for the purpose of
identifying the suitable leadership style for the change situation in the organization. The
objective of the paper is to look critically on the transactional leadership styles and its impact
on the change situation in the organization. Lastly, the style concludes with the
appropriateness of the leadership approach in the organization and summarizes the study.
Literature review
Leadership during change management
According to Grimm (2013), Leadership is mainly concerned with the qualities
present in the leaders of the organization. During the previous years, it has been believed that

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it the qualities and the skills of a leader which makes huge difference in the effectiveness of
the organization. In the opinion of John et al. (2015), the entire organization depends in the
leaders not only for problem solving but for to help the organization to a high level of
motivation and morale. It is believed that every leader share one common leadership trait that
is their passion to lead. However, according to Northouse (2016), the individual qualities of a
leader also matters and the effectiveness of a leadership quality is often based on various
contextual and situational factors in which the leaders are exposed to. As per research,
leadership is driven not only by the individual qualities but also what the demands are from
outside. As argued by By, Hughes and Ford (2016), Leadership is a crucial part in the
organization and therefore, it needs to consider various temporal changes in the pattern of
behaviour of the leader and the dynamic nature of task undertaken by them as well
conceptualizing the effectiveness of the leadership style. The success of the business
organization highly depends on the effectiveness of the leadership in the organization and the
development of the teams through every level in the organization. According to John et al.
(2015), Leadership is mainly aimed for initiating change in the organization and creating high
performing teams in the organization. It was mentioned by Aruma et al. (2017), effective
leadership approach in the organization has implications on the efficiency of the organization
in both negative and positive way. A leader is often known to be a mentor who focuses on
motivating the employees of the organization and maintaining the productivity in the
organization while optimally managing the values and morale of the organization. However,
as argued by Kazmi and Naaranoja (2013), an effective leader must have the skill and
potential to reflect the core beliefs and values of the organization, the management’s ethics,
the values of the organization and the personality type. Additionally, it was mentioned by

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John et al. (2015), the employees and the team members must consider the leader to be the
role model who increases the motivation level of the employee and pay off exponentially in
the long run.
Effect of leadership on facilitation and implementation of change
As stated by Aruma et al. (2017), implementing change in the organization essentially
requires the support and engagement of all the employees present in the organization. The
employees need to change their behaviours from the past and the ways for performing the
job; It is argued that various groups and teams in the organization has been more likely to
adapt the change by sharing the norm of valuing innovation with the advancement of
technology and as per the changing external and internal environment of the business.
Moreover, it is believed by John et al. (2015), that the business organization and the existing
groups must essentially support the risk taking and support new ideas and creativity in the
organization. It is the role of the leaders in the organization to support the employees with
new ideas and creativity. They play an important role by engaging with the employees and
supporting them to adapt to the changes for the future growth and possibility of the
organization. When the teams and groups of the organization are positively oriented towards
change with the help of effective leaders it can positively impact the organization.
Furthermore, it was argued by Buckner et al. (2014), it is highly essential to concentrate on
other factors which are detrimental to the adaptability of change in the organization. It
includes healthy working environment, ready available of essential equipments and
machinery at the right time and the right place, a balance between loyalty and engagement,
acceptance and independence. However, many researchers and writers including Aruma et al.
(2017), are of the opinion that there are various barriers and resistance to change in the