Skills and Attributes Needed for Leadership

This article discusses the skills and attributes required for effective leadership, the difference between leadership and management, and ways to motivate staff to achieve objectives. It also includes a SMART objective for Accor Hotels UK and explains how Maslow's hierarchy of needs, Hertzberg's two factors, and McGregor's X & Y theory can be used to motivate staff.

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2.1 Explain the skills and attributes needed for leadership
Q1. Elaborate on at least 5 skills and attributes required for effective leadership.
Effective skills and attributes for leadership are as follows:
The most important requirement is the self-awareness. When a person realizes who he
or she is and what they are capable of, they are able to achieve incredible feats. Once a person
who they are, it is easier to understand what they want to do and never lose motivation for it.
After getting the motivation from within, it is also important to get a clear understanding of
the situation (Black 2015). This is important because it would help during the matters of
quick thinking and fast decision making especially in business sectors.
Once a person possesses the key requirement of making correct and fast decisions,
then it is time to build a strong relationship with the team and the subordinates. As a leader, it
is very much essential to know the people that he or she would be leading. A strong
relationship between a leader and the team creates a mutual bond of understanding and
therefore creates a pathway to success. After creating a mutual bond with the team, it is the
leader’s duty to inspire the team so that it provides productive results (Sethuraman and
Suresh 2014). By inspiring the team to get a better understanding of what they have to do,
this creates a strong system in between the entire team and the leader that possess passion and
commitment towards the work.
It is also very much important to possess the skill of adaptability. In business sectors,
no one knows for sure that what is going to happen in the future of the business. Therefore, it
is important for a leader to adapt in any situation to make the better out of it.
2.2 Explain the difference between leadership and management

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Q2. Defining Leadership
Perhaps the biggest difference between leadership and management is that leadership
focuses on influencing people so that the result leads to a target that can be achieve together.
Leadership is a small part of management. However, management on the other hand is the art
managing people or things in the best way possible (Fairhurst and Connaughton 2014).
Management is use in any kind of professional fields because for a business, management is a
necessity.
Q 3. Explain 4 differences between leaders and managers.
MANAGERS LEADERS
Managers mainly focus on the target
of archiving goals and taking the best
of situations to meet the objective.
Leaders on the other hand inspire the team
and the people so that the visions and ideas
target by them are paved into reality.
Managers on the other hand deal with
the refining system and the entire
structure of the company to function
better.
Leaders deal with innovation. It is their key
and they deals with change in the business
and tackle them.
Managers normally mimic the actions Leaders have originality. They always think

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they learn from others. outside the box and develop new personality.
The job of the managers is to control
risks or problems.
Leaders always explore and do not hesitate to
try new things for success. Even if is a risk.
Managers work for short-term goals
and meet targets on an interval basis.
Leaders always go for the long run and they
are visionaries.
2.3 Compare leadership styles for different situations
Q4 ) Using Huneyager and Heckman theory identify the most appropriate leadership
style. Provide reasons for your choice.
‘The manager of a travel agency tells his staff to work on a new holiday package to
London. The holiday package must be completed within 2 days to ensure they have
sufficient time to advertise. The manager does not provide any guidance to his staff. He
forces them to work overtime with no additional pay so that the package is ready within the
deadline.’
In the above situation, the Huneryager and Heckman theory has been used to identify
a situation. Among the four leadership style of the Huneryager and Heckman theory, over
here the Dictatorial style has been used (Uzokwe, Olaifa, and Ohaeri 2015). This is because

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the manger of the travel agency has forced the workers to work overtime as well as not giving
them any extra payment for their effort.
Q5 ) Using Rensis Likert theory, identify the most appropriate leadership style. Provide
reasons for your choice.
‘The manager of an airline marketing department is conducting a meeting with his staff.
The airline has just launched a new route to Oslo and wants the marketing team to come
up with some innovative marketing ideas. After listening to their ideas, the manager makes
the final decision on how the new route should be marketed.’
In the above situation, the Rensis Likert theory has been used to identify a situation.
Among the four leadership style of the Rensis Likert theory, over here the Exploitative-
authoritative theory has been used. This is because the manager made a meeting with the staff
about the new route to Olso and was open to ideas from the team (Willits, Theodori, and
Luloff 2016). After listening the new ideas, he makes a decision based on that.
Q6 ) Using the Ashridge theory, identify the most appropriate leadership style. Provide
reasons for your choice.
‘The manager of an airline sales department and his staff are discussing the various
methods of dealing with unhappy customers. They have a long discussion where all
employees provide different suggestions, ideas and methods. The final decision is a mutual
decision where all staff including the manager agree upon.’
In the above situation, the Ashridge theory has been used to identify a situation.
Among the four leadership style of the Ashridge theory, over here the Autocratic style of

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leadership has been used. This is because the manager and the staff made a discussion to sort-
list the reasons why the customers can be unhappy. After putting many ideas to the table, in
the all of them agree on a final decision together.
Q7) Compare the 3 styles you have selected above.
Identify the main factors and Show similarities and /or differences, advantages and/or
disadvantages
Huneyager and
Heckman theory
Rensis Likert theory Ashridge theory
Dictatorial Exploitative
authoritative
Tells (autocratic)
In this kind of
leadership, the goals are
achieved any means.
Even if the subordinates
are forced to work.
In this kind of
leadership, the
subordinates does have
the option to discuss
about the matter with
their leader, and make a
joint decision.
In this kind of
leadership, the decisions
are based jointly. All the
ideas are put on the
table and then a final
decision is made by the
leader.
2.4 Explain ways to motivate staff to achieve objectives

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Q8) Write a SMART objective (with reference to your chosen company)
Using at least 2 motivation theories, explain ways on how you can motivate staff to
achieve the objective.
Smart Objectives:
A SMART objective for the Accor Hotels UK would to specifically target and
retain guests for customers and understand which time of the year the hotel would be
expecting the most customers (Zakariazadeh, Jadid and Siano 2014). By
understanding the peak season when the hotel is booked more than other periods, they
hotel can work its promotion accordingly.
Two motivational theories for the staff would be:
- Be active and professional for the customers who would visits the hotel for a stay. By
receiving professional training from the managers and the team leader, the staff can
understand what are the key areas where they can improve.
- Also by providing the staff the proper psychological, social and safety needs they will
be motivated towards their work as they would trust the hotel business and know what
they have a prospect and a career scope here.
Explain Theories and ways on how you can motivate staff to achieve the
objective.
 Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
By using Maslow’s hierarchy theory, it can be understood that there are also needs for the
staff (Datta 2014). Once they get the necessary requirements for their own needs such as

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physiological, safety, social, esteem, self-actualization, they will be satisfied and be able to
perform their work much better without any kind of dissatisfaction or doubts towards the
business.
 Hertzberg’s two factors (hygiene – motivator)
By using the Hertzberg’s factors, it is stated that just by removing the issues concerning
dissatisfaction will not provide satisfaction to a person. Just like that, adding the factors of
satisfaction will not provide the issues concerning job dissatisfaction (Ozguner and Ozguner
2014). Therefore to make a complete solution for an employee, the entire structure of the
company should also be fixed like proper wages, better policies, biased environment for all
cultures and of course sob security.
 McGregor ( X & Y theory)
The X & Y theory is used to identify which employee is happy and who is not. By
conducting a survey and differentiating characteristics of two different people (Lawter,
Kopelman and Prottas 2015). It is by contrasting the differences the survey actually gives out
the information what the people are like and which areas they are satisfied or dissatisfied.

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REFERENCES
Black, S.A., 2015. Qualities of effective leadership in higher education. Open Journal of
Leadership, 4(02), p.54.
Datta, Y., 2014. Maslow’s hierarchy of basic needs: An ecological view. Oxford Journal: An
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Fairhurst, G.T. and Connaughton, S.L., 2014. Leadership: A communicative
perspective. Leadership, 10(1), pp.7-35.
Lawter, L., Kopelman, R.J. and Prottas, D.J., 2015. McGregor's theory X/Y and job
performance: A multilevel, multi-source analysis.
Ozguner, Z. and Ozguner, M., 2014. A managerial point of view on the relationship between
of Maslow's hierarchy of needs and Herzberg's dual factor theory. International Journal of
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Sethuraman, K. and Suresh, J., 2014. Effective leadership styles. International Business
Research, 7(9), p.165.
Uzokwe, C.C., Olaifa, T.P. and Ohaeri, C.S., 2015. Research Paper Utilization Of Human
Relation As Strategies For Enhancement Of Staff Productivity In Nigeria: A Case Study Of
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Willits, F.K., Theodori, G.L. and Luloff, A.E., 2016. Another look at Likert scales. Journal of
Rural Social Sciences, 31(3), p.126.
Zakariazadeh, A., Jadid, S. and Siano, P., 2014. Multi-objective scheduling of electric
vehicles in smart distribution system. Energy Conversion and Management, 79, pp.43-53.