Leadership Theories and Styles

This assignment delves into the realm of leadership theories and styles. It requires students to analyze different theoretical perspectives on leadership, such as trait theory, behavioral theories, transformational leadership, and authentic leadership. The analysis should encompass the strengths and limitations of each theory and how they influence organizational behavior. Furthermore, students need to examine contemporary leadership challenges in a globalized world and discuss the application of relevant leadership styles to address these complexities.

Running head: LITERATURE REVIEW ON 21ST CENTURY LEADERSHIP
Literature review on 21st century leadership
Name of the student:
Name of the university:
Author note:

1LITERATURE REVIEW ON 21ST CENTURY LEADERSHIP
Table of Contents
Introduction:....................................................................................................................................2
Key competencies for 21st century leaders:....................................................................................3
Relationship with classic leadership capabilities:............................................................................5
Contributing factors to the transition in leadership styles:..............................................................7
Comparison of academic research on this topic:.............................................................................9
Conclusion:....................................................................................................................................10
Reference list:................................................................................................................................11

2LITERATURE REVIEW ON 21ST CENTURY LEADERSHIP
Introduction:
In the current age, the extreme predomination of competition in the corporate world has
made survival extremely difficult in the dynamic economy. And hence, there is need for modern
corporate competencies in the professionals so that they can continue to sustain in the market
overcoming all the challenges and hurdles that are presented in the path. One of those core
competencies that the corporate professionals need to have in their arsenal before anything else
for optimal scope of growth in the corporate world is adequate leadership capabilities. It has to
be mentioned in this context that the corporate domain functions in the team environment in the
current age, and the path for progress in the corporate world can only be attained through
adequate leadership skills (Chhokar, Brodbeck and House 2013).
Leadership is not by any means a novel concept, the term leadership is age old; and it can
be stated that with time the concept of leadership has changed considerably as well. There can be
found vast differences in the basic understanding of leadership capabilities in the current age
from what it used to be in the past century. For instance, according to Warren Bennis, he defined
the leadership competencies to be the capability to materialize visions into reality. And on the
other hand a rather modern argument on leadership had been provided by Bill Gates, who stated
leaders of the next century to be the ones empowering others (Schein 2010). This assignment
will attempt to review the literature on the topic of leadership in the context of 21st century and
attempt draw a link between the transitions that has occurred in the leadership competencies
from the traditional leadership concepts and the leadership competencies required in the 21st
century.

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Key competencies for 21st century leaders:
In the current scenario of organizational structures, it is crucially important for the
corporate professionals to understand the importance of the modern leadership competencies in
order to be able to address the leadership needs and requirements that the professionals can use
for their advantage. There are a few modern competencies that can be discussed in the context of
21st century leadership, although the most vital element of modern leadership capabilities is the
transformational leadership capabilities. First and foremost, in the current age of leadership,
emphasizing on both interpersonal and intrapersonal competencies is crucial. First and foremost
leadership competency that the future leaders in the organizational sector need to emphasize on
is the critical thinking and decision making skills. Johansen (2012), has discussed on this
context that the importance of critically analyzing the advantages and disadvantages of an
opportunity that presents itself to the leaders. In the current age of competition, the business
organizations need to stay one step ahead at all times to retain and expand their consumer base
and hence, if the leader of a particular corporate team is not capable of recognizing the right
opportunities, it is close to impossible for the corporate organization to continue to sustain in the
market.
Along with that, another core competency that the millennial leaders must have in their
arsenal can be the art of effective communication. According to the DuBrin (2015),
communication is a key pursuit that is an essential element of the corporate world. The corporate
world functions on the basis of a co-operative collaboration of different employees and without
effective communication between them it is completely impossible for them to attain the mutual
understanding to make the optimal use of an opportunity and perform in a successful and
efficient manner. Along with that, it also needs to be mentioned that in the age of multinational

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business companies, a large base of employees with differential understanding and behavioral
characteristics are required to work in a collaborative manner. In such a situation 21st century
leader needs to employ the art of assertive communication with mutual respect which will not
offend the employees but will also propel him or her to perform in the required manner (Charan,
Drotter and Noel 2010).
According to Wheatley (2011), another key competency for the modern organizational
leaders is the conflict resolution skills. As mentioned above in the age of multinational business
corporation, the employee base is often multicultural and as a result with a myriad of
interpersonal conflict is inevitable. According to the authors, the responsibility of sustaining the
organizational culture and equilibrium within the microenvironment of a team falls on the
leaders. And hence, having adequate conflict resolution skills are essential for the modern
organizational leaders. Lastly, the last set of attributes that has been argued to be necessary for
the 21st century leaders is the motivational and inspirational power (Holt and Marques 2012).
In simplified note, leadership can be defined as the phenomenon of influencing others which
results in maximization and optimal utilization of efforts invested by others towards the
achievement of a singular goal. According to Lloyd-Walker and Walker (2011), it has to be
mentioned that there are innumerable challenges that the corporate employees need to face on a
daily basis, and hence, these challenges often serve as demotivating hurdles in the path of
professional satisfaction for an employee. The motivation and inspiration that helps an employee
to overcome and then move forward from such a hurdle comes from a leader itself. It has to be
understood the responsibility of the entire team of employees, whether guiding them in the right
path or motivating them to be efficient and successful comes from the leaders, and hence the
modern leaders need to be compassionate and inspirational so that the rest of eth employees can

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discover a role model in their leaders and can move forward towards professional excellence
(Bell 2010).
Relationship with classic leadership capabilities:
There is a vast difference between the classic leadership styles and theories and the
contemporary approaches to leadership, which has become a prerequisite in case of 21st century
organizational world. According to the article by Wren (2013), there have been a few core
leadership strategies that have dominated the past century. For instance, the very first traditional
leadership approach that has been abundantly used by a vast variety of traditional leaders is the
autocratic leadership. According to the Holt and Marques (2012), the most important transition
that has been discovered between the traditional leadership competencies and the modern
leadership styles is the inclination towards the transformational leadership styles.
Elaborating more on the traditional leadership styles, the inference from the trait theory
can be drawn. Trait theories describe leadership to be innate personality traits that distinguishes
between leaders and non- leaders. As explained by the Derue et al. (2011), the trait theory
discusses the concept of effectual leadership situations emphasizing only on the wellbeing of the
public. Whereas in the current age, the transformational leadership style enables organizational
leaders to guide the followers or team members to the path of performance excellence all the
while safeguarding the best interest of the employees (Ismail et al. 2011). Hence it can be
suggested that the contemporary transformational leadership is more suitable for organizational
culture as it takes into account all the broad elements or variables of organizational domain.
If we consider the behavior theory for discussing the traditional leadership styles, there
are three different leadership styles that can be discussed. According to the Giltinane (2013), the

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authoritarian style of leadership is where the leaders have a fundamental unshakeable vision
directed only at the personal goal that the leader needs to achieve. In case of autocratic
leadership, the leader will not take into account the grievances or needs of the employees; rather
he will only focus on the organizational benefits. The next leadership behavior is the paternalistic
leadership style, here the leader will have the behavioral characteristics of a parent and will
safeguard the wellbeing of the employees more than the overall well being of the organization.
Here the leader will take into consideration the benefits and safety of the employees or
subordinates and will take actions that facilitate the benefits of the employees, although as
explained by Skakon et al. (2010), the parental leader can very easily incorporate favoritism or
partiality, which has the potential to destroy the equilibrium of the organization culture in the
team. The last traditional leadership style which can be discussed in the context of behavioral
leadership theories is the democratic leadership style. As per the Wren (2013), the democratic
leaders take the approach that is completely different to that of the autocratic or authoritarian
leaders. In this case the decision making abilities are equally shared by the leaders with the
employees as well, so that the shared vision of both the employees can co-align with that of the
leader and excellent performance and productivity can be achieved for the organization.
It can be mentioned in this context that the democratic leadership style comes the closest
to the contemporary leadership styles like transformational leadership; there is a fundamental
link between a traditional democratic leader and a transformational leaders (Ismail et al. 2011).
In both the cases, the democratic leader will take into account the needs and requirements of the
employees or the following subordinates before a critical decision is taken in the team or
organization. Similarly a transformational leader will understand the shortcomings of the
employees and attempt to integrate the vision of progress within the employees all the while

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motivating them and involving them equally in the entire process. On the other hand, there is a
vast difference between the contemporary transformational leadership, an overall necessity in
case of 21st century leadership, and the autocratic and parental leadership. The autocratic
leadership eliminates the employee wellbeing and shared decision making completely, whereas,
the parental mode of leadership eliminates the fairness and organizational benefits altogether
(Hansen and Villadsen 2010).
Contributing factors to the transition in leadership styles:
The modern leadership competencies have witnessed a steady change from the traditional
methods of the past century. It has changed from the harsh autocratic to useless parental
leadership modes in the past to the more contemporary leadership techniques of the current age.
However, there are various external and internal factors that have actively been contributing to
the steady process of change. The very first contributing factor that has had the most influence in
the organizational leadership domain is the change in the organizational culture and the business
process management activities due to globalization. According to the Antonakis and Day (2017),
the impact of the integration of different international concepts has made the corporate world
highly critical and multicultural. Hence, in order to retain harmonious and effective productivity
it is crucial for a leader to understand the cultural differences, changed business requirements
and custom principles. Bello (2012) has discussed that in order to survive in the changes that
globalization has initiated in the corporate world, changes in the leadership style had been
inevitable. On agreement, authors have discussed that the onset of globalization has brought
forward a myriad of complications and adversities in the business world, that inevitably led to a
number of interpersonal conflicts and risks, which could be only managed through a changed

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leadership approach so that the employees can be inspired to adapt to the change rather than
shying away from it.
Another factor that needs to be discussed in this context is the global financial crisis and
its impact on the economy and its stability. According to Crane and Matten (2016), in the
brewing financial crisis, there are two key responsibilities that the leaders will have to perform
for their respective organizations. One of these responsibilities includes keeping the company
afloat in the ever changing economy and the second responsibility is to restore the sustainability
of the company in the market until the economy is recovered. In order to attain that, the
organizations need to employ maximal employee engagement, which has been argued to be the
most important aid in a crisis situation for any organization. However, in any crisis situation
employee engagement can only be facilitated with effective motivational leadership in place.
According to Eagly and Chin (2010), the 21st century is witness to a vast array of
technological innovations that has changed the corporate world in each and every sector of its
operations. As opined by the authors, the technological innovations in the corporate industry has
a number of implications in the operational management of the organization as well which
inevitably puts the responsibility of the streamlining of all sectors of business process
management for the organization. Hence, the leadership competencies have also changed in
accordance with the technologically driven business operation sectors emphasizing on the
optimal utilization of different technologies. Lastly, the impact of market competition in the
current age of corporate world also needs to be discussed as well along with its impact on the
corporate leadership environment. It has to be understood in this context, that competition is a
highly threatening element in the corporate world and there is need for an organizational leader
who will be able to correctly identify opportunities, facilitate adequate change management and

9LITERATURE REVIEW ON 21ST CENTURY LEADERSHIP
be motivational towards the employees so that they can overcome the challenging environment
facilitated by the excessive competition. Hence in order for the organizational leaders to be
capable to achieve these leadership goals the approach also needed to change to a more
transformational sector (Chhokar, Brodbeck and House 2013).
Comparison of academic research on this topic:
The process of development has been noted to be faster for the ones that are responsible
for their own pace of progress. The 21st century is in need for a leadership that is responsible,
motivational and compassionate by all means. As discussed above in this review, the leadership
approaches have changes significantly over the years and hence there is a considerable pool of
literature that has devoted time and other resources in the discovery of the pattern of this
transition in leadership styles. There are different schools of thoughts regarding the adequate
leadership style which is the most applicable for the 21st century corporate scenario. Whereas,
one of the school of thoughts entertain the ideologies that the 21st century leadership needs to be
multidisciplinary, taking all the complex and globalized domains into consideration. In
agreement to this school of thoughts, authors indicated the multidimensional factors for the 21st
century leaders to incorporate principled guidance, interpersonal management, communicational
prowess, team-working capabilities, and adequate decision making. On the other hand, a second
most influential school of thought in this context indicates an amalgamation of a few specific
soft skills are the key to becoming the all powerful future leaders. The authors in agreement to
this school of thoughts elaborate that the flexibility and self approaching capabilities in the
leaders will help them shine in the 21st century corporate scenario. On a more elaborative note,
the cultural understanding, opportunity identification and molding capacity, insights on the

10LITERATURE REVIEW ON 21ST CENTURY LEADERSHIP
emerging corporate trends and motivational or persuasive power is the fundamental requirement
in the future leaders to cope with the changing economy (Wegge et al. 2010).
Conclusion:
On a concluding note, it can be said that there have been many a key events or
contributing factors that have culminated towards the drastic changes that are prevalent in the
present corporate scenario. As a result the corporate leadership has also changed drastically as
well. In the present age the organizational leaders need to be efficient in almost every attribute
associated with corporate competencies. Along with that the 21st century modern leaders need to
critically analytical so that they can identify opportunities and then can optimally utilize it to the
benefit of both the organization and the subordinate employees. Furthermore, the modern
organizational leaders of today need to be a role model so that they can motivate and inspire the
employees adequately. Hence, the need for a transition towards a transformational leadership
approach had been necessary for the modern leaders who can link expertise, experience,
compassion and foresight together in a culmination that will help to administer a vision of
change in the employees which will enhance the productivity, performance and quality related
issues for the organization; and along with that will be able to overcome any challenge or risk
with co-operative collaboration and effective communication.

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Reference list:
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Bell, S., 2010. Project-based learning for the 21st century: Skills for the future. The Clearing
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Bello, S.M., 2012. Impact of ethical leadership on employee job performance. International
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Charan, R., Drotter, S. and Noel, J., 2010. The leadership pipeline: How to build the leadership
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Chhokar, J.S., Brodbeck, F.C. and House, R.J. eds., 2013. Culture and leadership across the
world: The GLOBE book of in-depth studies of 25 societies. Routledge.
Crane, A. and Matten, D., 2016. Business ethics: Managing corporate citizenship and
sustainability in the age of globalization. Oxford University Press.
Derue, D.S., Nahrgang, J.D., Wellman, N.E.D. and Humphrey, S.E., 2011. Trait and behavioral
theories of leadership: An integration and meta‐analytic test of their relative validity. Personnel
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DuBrin, A.J., 2015. Leadership: Research findings, practice, and skills. Nelson Education.
Eagly, A.H. and Chin, J.L., 2010. Diversity and leadership in a changing world. American
psychologist, 65(3), p.216.

12LITERATURE REVIEW ON 21ST CENTURY LEADERSHIP
Giltinane, C.L., 2013. Leadership styles and theories. Nursing Standard (through 2013), 27(41),
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