Critical Review of Leadership Articles: Theories and Approaches

This report provides a critical review of three journal articles focused on leadership. The first article examines the balance between performance and development orientation in leadership, analyzing managers' and coworkers' understanding of leadership within an industrial organization. It explores the effectiveness of this balance, particularly in fostering development and adaptive learning. The second article investigates the relationship between service orientation, employee engagement, and perceived leadership style, emphasizing the importance of leaders adapting their styles to maximize influence, especially within the service sector. The third article delves into leadership preferences in multicultural work groups, highlighting the use of transactional and transformational approaches and their impact on motivation and performance across different cultural backgrounds. The review assesses the effectiveness of each leadership approach, offering insights into the diverse aspects of leadership theory and practice. The conclusion summarizes the key findings, highlighting the various leadership styles, approaches, and theories discussed in the three articles.

CRITICAL REVIEW

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................3
Review of article “Leadership as a balancing act between performance- and development-
orientation”..................................................................................................................................3
Review of article “Exploring the relationship between service orientation, employee
engagement and perceived leadership style”..............................................................................4
Review of article “Exploring leadership preferences in multicultural work groups”.................4
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................5
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................6

INTRODUCTION
In this assignment review of three E-Journal Articles on leadership is done. In this all the
leadership approaches, principles and theories that are discussed in the articles will be focused
and will be accessed i.e. whether the leadership approaches, principles and theories discussed are
effective or not.
MAIN BODY
Review of article “Leadership as a balancing act between performance- and development-
orientation”
This article focusses on leadership act balance between performance and development
orientation. It is a study of managers and co-worker's understanding of leadership in an industrial
organization. For this the researcher had conducted 35 interviews with various production
managers, first line mangers and operators and all them has discussed their understanding on
leadership by explaining the type of leadership approach they follow, principles and theories they
believe in. It also focusses on the assumptions of new leaders and their relation as well as
behaviour with their co-workers (Wallo, Ellström and Kock, 2013). The main aim of this article
is to observe companies expectation from new leadership that follows instruction of
organization's actual leadership. In this article it has been described that leadership approach
followed by most of the leaders is to thoroughly involve themselves in the organizations so that
they can get used to working in a team and show consideration towards others. This article
focuses on theory of super leadership i.e. individuals focuses on leading themselves. As this
theory helps in leading a team with both kind of individuals i.e. transformational and
transactional.
However, according to me this new leadership style is not effective enough and also
clashes with the actual leadership and it also does not provide many opportunities for new
leaders so that they can show some changes in their leadership behaviour. According to this case
study it has been clearly explained that balance between logic of development and logic of
performance is important to be balanced so that both development and adaptive learning can be
facilitated within an organization. However, as per my views such types of balance doesn't occur
spontaneously in fact it is important for a leader to develop opportunities for others in order to
increase learning at work place.

Review of article “Exploring the relationship between service orientation, employee engagement
and perceived leadership style”
The main aim of this article is to explore relationship between leaders, employees and
service especially in private sector organization. This article focusses on effectiveness of leaders
who can switch between various leadership styles so that they can maximize their influence on
others. In this full range leadership style theory has been discussed as according to the researcher
effectiveness of leader is only shown when they can easily switch they leadership style and
influence others. This full range theory focusses on all the three range of topologies of
leadership. According to this article most of the time leadership fails because organizations do
not focus on employees however they focus more on customers needs, requirements and cost of
other stakeholders (Popli, and Rizvi, 2015). They should rather focus on employees as they are
the one who will help the company to achieve organizational objectives and will help the
company to delight their customers. In this all kinds of leadership style and their suitability have
been discussed like transformational leadership style is more suitable when adopted by senior
managers. As per my views Even I think that the type of leadership style that should be adopted
by leaders depends upon their designation and the people or employees who follow them. By
switching between type of leadership is not that effective. All the three management levels such
as Lower, middle and senior management level should have three different types of leaders as the
leadership style that is required at those levels is completely different. This will eventually also
help in building relationship between leaders, employees especially in service sector
organizations.
Review of article “Exploring leadership preferences in multicultural work groups”
This article focusses on exploration of leadership preferences in multicultural work
groups. According to this article multicultural work groups consist of mixed leadership
behaviours, many types of leadership theories are used in cultural work groups. Most of the
workforces in Australia uses transactional and transformational approach of leadership. It has
been seen that the mix of both transactional and transformational leadership behaviour is used
more in working environment rather than any one kind of leadership behaviour. This leadership
behaviour has a different effect on motivation and performance of the subordinates of all cultural
background (Brain and Lewis, 2004). This transactional-transformational leadership model helps
in identifying the behaviour and values of leaders towards their subordinates. However, it has

also been observed that leadership style preference of female and male sub ordinates is
completely different which eventually affects their motivation level like leadership preference of
female sub ordinates that they expect from their female leaders is most prominently
transformational that eventually affects their values as well.
However, as per my views mostly managers mostly prefer mix leadership style as mostly
in many organizations the workforce present is multi cultural. This mix leadership style helps in
managing and representing those multi cultural groups present in the workplace. In my opinion if
skills and behaviours of leasers is needed to be improved then it can only be improved with the
help of training and education as it will help in increasing the performance of both leaders and
their sub ordinates. Leadership training is normally of short duration where all the skills of the
leaders are enhanced.
CONCLUSION
From the above assignment it has been summarized that all the three articles consist of
different leadership style, approach, behaviour, theory etc. which helps in leading a team or sub
ordinates of the leader. All the three articles focusses on three different areas such as first articles
focusses on Leadership as a balancing act between performance- and development-orientation,
second article focusses on relationship between service orientation, employee engagement and
perceived leadership style and lastly third article focusses on Exploring leadership preferences in
multicultural work groups.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Wallo, A., Ellström, P.E. and Kock, H., 2013. Leadership as a balancing act between
performance-and development-orientation: A study of managers’ and co-workers’
understanding of leadership in an industrial organisation. Leadership & Organization
Development Journal. 34(3). pp.222-237.
Popli, S. and Rizvi, I.A., 2015. Exploring the relationship between service orientation, employee
engagement and perceived leadership style: a study of managers in the private service
sector organizations in India. Journal of Services Marketing. 29(1). pp.59-70.
Brain, K. and Lewis, D., 2004. Exploring leadership preferences in multicultural workgroups:
An Australian case study. Leadership & Organization Development Journal. 25(3).
pp.263-278.