Leadership and Management: A Comparative Analysis

This paper explores the concepts of leadership and management, highlighting their distinct roles and characteristics within an organizational context. It examines the traits, skills, and styles associated with effective leadership, discussing how these qualities can be developed. The paper also delves into the differences between leadership and management, emphasizing the importance of both for organizational success. Finally, it draws upon personal experiences and academic theories to provide insights into the practical application of leadership principles.

BUSINESS LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT
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Table of Contents
Introduction:...............................................................................................................................3
1. What is involved in being a successful leader?......................................................................3
2. Can good leadership be developed, and if so, how?..............................................................5
3. What distinguishes leadership from management?................................................................7
4. What have you learnt about leadership from your own experiences, on this course and
elsewhere?..................................................................................................................................9
Conclusion................................................................................................................................11
Reference List..........................................................................................................................12
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Individual
RelationalContextual
Introduction:
Leadership is the quality that the management of a business organisation incorporates, which
helps the organisation to achieve the goals, take challenges in business, maintain a proper and
efficient workforce. Leaders are responsible to take decisions that will help the organisation
to grow and outperform in the market. Furthermore, it can be said that leadership directs the
organisation towards specific goals. On the other hand, management of an organisation are
the directors who effectively take decisions about companies future and sets goals for the
organisation.
This discussion focuses on the role of leadership and management that helps an organisation
to gain success.
1. What is involved in being a successful leader?
A successful leader pursues few traits, objectives and skills that depict their ability of being
the leader. A successful leader involves three approaches which are Individual, Contextual
and Relational.
Figure 1: Approaches of leadership
(Source: Northouse, 2018)
Individual Approach:
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Every successful leader requires having some traits and skills, which helps them to work
more effectively. In order to ensure the self assessment of the leadership skills one needs to
perform the big five inventory test that will highlight the actual abilities of the individual
and state whether they can be a successful leader or not. The traits present in the individual
portray the intelligence, self-confidence, determination level as well as integrity and
sociability levels. The big five inventory test sheds light on the neuroticism factors,
extraversion factors, openness factor, agreeableness and conscientiousness factors of an
individual (Kayiş et al., 2016). For being a successful leader one needs to undergo the test
which will help them identify their strengths and weaknesses. Another trait theory that a
leader pursues is the Stogdill’s Traits, which helps in identification of the personality traits
that an individual has and can be used in situations requiring effective leadership. Great man
theory on the other hand assumes that every leader does not require to have inherited traits
and a leader can come up whenever there is a need for them (Straker, 2017).
The skills that help in identification of leadership abilities are Kartz three skills model and
skill based model. The three skill model depicts that a leader needs to have three skills which
involve technical abilities, human abilities and conceptual abilities. According to this model,
skills are needed to be approached by the leaders themselves. Skill based model on the other
hand highlights whether the individual has problem solving abilities or not and sheds light on
their special skills (Northouse, 2018).
The leadership styles that the individual needs to follow for being a successful leader is
Lewin’s leadership grid. According to this model one needs to mark them self using one of
the three leadership styles which are autocratic, democratic and Laissez Faire. This model
emphasizes on the factor that an individual must either be able to take quick decisions,
encourage innovations and support their staffs (Penney et al., 2015).
Contextual approach:
This approach mainly focuses on situational approach towards leadership, contingency model
and lastly the Path goal theory.
Situational approach:
This requires the leaders to match up with their assistants and focus on situational leadership
and adapts the leadership style which fits with the situations (Harrison, 2018). The leaders’ at
first needs to diagnose the context and then chose the style of leadership.
Contingency theory on the other hand sheds light on the effectiveness of the leaders by their
choosing of the leadership style. This theory emphasizes on the analysis of leadership style
and variables.
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Path goal theory:
Path goal theory focuses on enhancing the performance of the work force as well as on the
motivational principles. A successful leader involves the role of identifying the organisational
goals, adapting leadership to lead the organisation towards the goal and lastly compete with
the challenges and bring up recognitions for well performing employees.
Relational approach of leadership that is in involved in a successful leader is the leadership
style the individuals choose, which includes servant leadership, transformational
leadership and lastly the leader member exchange theory (Ghasabeh et al., 2015).
Servant leadership:
This involves the relation between the servant and the leader and focuses on how the leader
puts the requirements and opinions of the leaders before other factors.
Transformational leadership is the process that changes the perspective of an individual
and influences the leaders to work with more efficiency in order to get the best results and
achieve more than the desired objective. This leadership mainly makes the leaders concerned
about organisational values and helps in setting up the organisation in the long run (Ghasabeh
et al., 2015).
On the other hand leader member exchange theory depicts leadership as a process which
gets better after the involvement of both the leaders and the other members.
A successful leaders need to have the above mentioned skills, traits and leadership styles as
the combination of the above three approaches help the leaders to be more successful.
Successful leaders often require integrating proper relationship between the management and
the employees and adapting to any situations (Ghasabeh et al., 2015).
2. Can good leadership be developed, and if so, how?
In order to develop a proper leadership there are few perspectives that needs to be considered.
The perspective includes, Individual, contextual and relational.
Individual perspectives:
This perspective depicts that in order to develop good leadership one needs to pursue certain
traits, skills and styles in them, which eventually influences their leadership abilities. Traits
however are very difficult to develop. In order to develop traits one must perform the Big five
inventory test, which will help the individuals to shed light on their personal abilities and
certify whether they can be a successful leader or not (Northouse, 2018). Furthermore, the
Stogdill’s traits help the individual to identify their personality traits and states how they can
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use it situational contexts. The great man theory is another trait that establishes the
effectiveness of the leaders. This theory depicts the fact that leaders can develop their traits
according to suitable situations. However, the skills that a leader requires can be developed
with time. The common leadership skills that a leader needs to develop in order to transform
them to a good leader are leading the team with passion, establishing proper communication,
fulfilling their commitments towards the team, Building relationship among the team
members to practise collaborative workforce, have proper decision making skills. A leader
needs to possess all these leadership skills so that they can be able to manage situations and
transform them self to an efficient leadership. On the other hand, Leadership styles are the
mirror that reflects the efficiency and capability of a leader and developing proper leadership
style helps a leader to be a good leader with time (Penney et al., 2015). The common
leadership styles are autocratic, democratic and Laissez Faire leadership according to Lewin.
However, there are more leadership styles used by leaders which include strategic leadership,
transformational, cross-cultural and many more. Furthermore, the efficiency of the leaders is
denoted by their choice of leadership styles for any situations. The leaders who have the
ability to choose proper leadership style according to the situations prove them self to be a
proper leader.
Contextual perspective:
Every leader needs to have the ability to adjust the leadership style which is perfect for the
situation. To be a good leader one needs to motivate the team and understand their views and
opinions at the same time. A good leader needs to provide the exact information to the team
and help the organisation with effectiveness. A contextual perspective of a leader that needs
focus in order to transform into a proper leader includes the ability of the leader to adapt in
any situation (Harrison, 2018). It also influences the leaders to learn from their past mistakes
and use those for future. A leader must be able to build up a proper relationship among the
employer and employees of the organisation. A good leader can be developed with the help
of few other factors that include patience level, understanding, and cooperative nature. A
good leader often requires keeping their calm even at hard times; this makes them able to
manage any situation.
Relational perspective:
This perspective relates the ability of the leader with others and highlights the characteristics
that make the leader the best. This perspective requires the leaders to use their skills, styles
and traits as well as patience and understanding to bring out the best in them. Sometimes, a
leader in order to prove their efficiency needs to choose the leadership styles such as servant
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leadership which will motivate the team and prove their efficacy (Matthews, 2015). In order
to be a successful leader, an individual must emphasize on the existing productivity of the
organisation and highlight ways that will influence the future productivity of the organisation.
Leadership as a process is the effort an individual puts in the team to increase the profit of the
company. Leadership also includes efforts of the individuals that help the company to reach
the desired objective. A proper leader is the one who understands the opinions and views of
the workforce as well as the management and helps both of them to reach towards profit. A
good leader also needs to have ability to work with effectiveness under challenging situations
and control their emotions; this helps them to get over any situation with the help of their
intuitions (Joseph et al., 2015).
3. What distinguishes leadership from management?
Management and leadership are both required to run an organization successfully. The roles
of mangers in the management department and leaders are very different from each other.
The process in an organization which includes reaching of the company goals within the
stipulated time period can be called as management (Bolden, 2016). There are three main
characteristics of management; it includes process of related or continuous activities.
Management involves itself in reaching the goals of the organization and the department of
management in an organization has to optimally use the resources that are available to them.
The function of management consists of four factors namely planning, organizing,
influencing and controlling. The management is responsible for planning the course of work,
the division of work between the different departments in an organization. Management
should be responsible for outlining the work. The next function of management is
organization (Johnston and Marshall, 2016). Organization creates mechanisms which put the
various plans into prompt action. The tasks that are given out to the employees to perform are
organized by the management. The management is also responsible for holding various
official events inside an organization. Motivating and influencing the employees in the
organization is another work of the management. It is very important to motivate the
employees so that they give their cent percent output. The management should provide
direction to the employees, so that the goals of the organization get fulfilled. Controlling is
another function of the management. The management should gather information regarding
the performance of the employees. Required changes should be taken by the management (H.
Kerzner and H.R. Kerzner, 2017).
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Leadership can be defined as directing the employees in the organization according to the
instructions of the management. Leadership is required when a group of people is aiming in
to achieve a common goal. It is the responsibility of the leader to integrate all these people
and look into the fact of accomplishment of the goal (Tourish, 2014). Some people are born
leaders and some have to develop the qualities of being a good leader. There are some
qualities that a leader should possess. A leader should set goals for his or her team. All the
goals and policies for the effective working of the tem should be put forward by the leader.
Co-ordination is another criterion, leaders have to look into. The leaders should be
responsible for the reconciliation of the interests of the employees so that common objective
can be met (Washington et al., 2014). A leader acts as bridge between the management and
the employees in the organization. Leaders should be good in motivating people. Good
communication skill should be another trait of an able leader. Leaders should be empathetic
towards the employees. When the employees are in crisis, it is the responsibility of the
leaders to lift them up from crisis (Donate and de Pablo, 2015).
There are many differences that lie between leadership and management. The differences are
given below:
Management Leadership
 People in the management are rational
and good problem solvers
 Leaders often have a personality
which is mercurial and brilliant
 Management people have great
analysis and persistence skills
 Leaders have great level of
imagination
 Management is task-oriented  Leaders are people oriented
 Management is good at managing
people
 Leaders are good at leading people
 Aversing risk is the nature of
the ,management
 Taking risks is an attribute of the
leaders
 Management are involved in decision
making
 Leaders are facilitative when it comes
to decision making
 There are subordinates to managers in  Leaders report to the management
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an organization
 The style of the management is
usually dictorial, autocratic and
transactional
 The leaders follow a style which is
consultative, participative and
transformational
 The work of the management is to
create strategies and policies
 Leaders look into problems and come
up with solutions
Figure 2: Difference between Leadership and Management
(Source: Lussier and Achua, 2015)
The above table explains the tangible differences between leadership and management. The
summary which can be derived from the above table is the roles of management and the roles
of a leader are very different in an organization. The approach of both is also very different.
When I was working in an organization, a problem cropped up. The problem was regarding
the work division of within the employees. In this situation, the management had no role to
play. I was the team leader there, and I was at fault. After this incident I learnt it is very
important to divide work equally among the employees to ensure smooth running of the
organization.
4. What have you learnt about leadership from your own experiences, on this course
and elsewhere?
In due course of assignment completion, I have gained certain personal learning experiences
about the traits of a leader and leadership. A team leader has to have many traits to be
successful. In an organization, an employee gets awarded for success but when failure comes,
the burden is given on the leaders. Some people are born leaders, and some have to develop
the traits of successful leadership. Leaders have the capability to turn average employees to
exceptional ones with proper guidance and training. The traits I have learnt about successful
leadership are: a leader should have good communication skills. All the ideas and working
process should be very well communicated to the employees. Leaders should not take
decisions in a hurry. People, who are good leaders, examine the situation closely and then
take a final call. Good leaders coordinate with the management for the smooth working of the
organization. Situations in organization keep on changing. So, it is the responsible of the
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leaders to accept the quick changes and see that the work is not getting hampered. Leaders
should be optimistic in nature. The employees look up to leaders. It is the responsibility of the
leaders to motivate and inspire the employees. Leaders should very well know the tactics of
controlling their emotions. In the organization, I was working with, was offered the post of a
team leader. As a team lead, I had to hold team meetings and presentations. My
communication and presentation skill are not good. So, at the first I was very uncomfortable
in holding team meets. I was anxious about presenting a coherent and good presentation.
My team members did not respond well to my team meets and I was very serious in those
meets. However, as time passed, I got accustomed to taking up team meets. As a result, my
communication skills improved. I maintained a light and approaching demeanour towards my
team members so that they feel comfortable interacting with me. The information I conveyed
to my members went on smoothly. As I developed my communication skill, the efficiency of
my team increased. I started talking to all the members of my team. This improved my
professional relation with them. With the help of effective communication skills I was able to
develop my leadership skills.
Though this assignment I came across many theories of leadership which helped me improve
my leadership skills. Some of theories that have been discussed in this assignment are ‘the
great man theory’, trait theory, behavioural theories, contingency theory, transactional
leadership theory and transformational leadership theory (Lussier and Achua, 2015). The
experiences that I had in the organization I worked with, I took help of the frameworks of the
contigency theory. The contingency theory can be again divided into situational approach,
contingency model and path-goal theory. The contingency model suggests that, leadership
cannot be implemented in one single style or approach. The leaders should act according to
the changing scenario of the organization. Situational approach states that a leader in an
organization needs to change according to the situation (Peter, 2018). When there are slow
changes occurring in a situation, the changes made can be nil or slow. When situations are
changing moderately, the decisions taken can have a moderate pace. In an organization, when
the situations are changing drastically, it is the responsibility of the leaders to make quick
changes. In such a situation, if the decisions are not taken quickly, it might hamper the
working of the employees. In my organization where I worked, I always used the situational
approach to tackle situations. This made it easy to me takes quick and correct decisions.
Taking appropriate decision made me gain trust of the employees and this maintained a
healthy working atmosphere in the organization.
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Conclusion
In this assignment, many vital points have been decided which provides us a clear picture
regarding the roles of a manager and a leader in an organizational setup. The qualities and the
roles of a leader are very different from the roles of a manager. Likewise, the concepts of
leadership and management are also very different. An organization needs both effective
management and leadership to function effectively. After concluding this assignment, it can
be said that some people are born leaders and some have to cultivate the traits of leadership.
All the members in a team should be motivated by the team lead so that the work goes on
smoothly. The management is responsible for making rules, while the implementation of the
rules and regulations is the responsibility of the leader. It is very important for the
management to take up effective strategies, so that the team leaders can guide the employees
in the correct direction. Through this assignment and my personal experience I have learnt
about the qualities that makes a person a good leader. I also learnt about the responsibilities
of a manger as well.
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