Leadership: A Critical Perspective - University Essay

This essay offers a critical perspective on leadership, exploring various leadership styles. The author begins by defining leadership and emphasizing the importance of self-assessment, highlighting parameters such as contingency, charisma, transformation, and situational awareness. The essay then delves into different leadership styles, including transformational, contingency, charismatic, and situational leadership, providing detailed explanations and examples of each. The author expresses a preference for transformational leadership, advocating for empowering individuals. A discussion with another individual, Amir, further explores the strengths and weaknesses of different leadership styles, with Amir favoring situational leadership. The essay concludes with references to support the arguments presented, providing a comprehensive overview of leadership concepts and styles.

Running head: LEADERSHIP A CRITICAL PERSPECTIVE
Leadership a Critical Perspective
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author’s Note

1LEADERSHIP A CRITICAL PERSPECTIVE
According to me, Leadership is a quality by which one can motivate and encourage
others to complete an Assignment. For that self-assessment is very important, which is based on
few parameters such as Contingency, Charisma, Transformation and situation. A relevant self-
assessment will determine the personality needed to be consistent and impactful. Self-assessing
different leadership quality is necessary as it gives an overview about the personality of the
leader (Soieb, Othman & D'Silva, 2013).
Transformational Leadership encourages the subordinate to achieve goal pre-sated by
the organization, proficient methods are figured for that. In this leadership style, the art of
motivation is used to encourage an employee. It is an effective leadership tool where leader work
together with the employees empowering them in the process. Collectivism is supported and
individual empowerment help accomplish exceptional and momentous outcome. In Contingency
Leadership, a draft is made to identify the potential overcoming and laying a decisive plan to
execute a decision in effective manner. This leadership style forecast the person’s behavior and
formulates a plan on the basis of the circumstance in hand. This leadership style is competent to
assess aspect of the present situation and making a strategic contingency plan for future
circumstances. Charisma of a leader plays an important part in the Charismatic type of
leadership. As the employees will be driven by the sheer charisma of the leader and will follow
them wherever the leader leads them. Charismatic leader can sell their dream quite easily to the
employee and in return, the employee works hard to make the leader happy (Saleem, 2015).
Charismatic leadership is the leadership style where the leader sweeps the employee to do the
work using influence or charisma. Charismatic leadership style involves qualities to catch
attention and persuasion. Situational Leadership style reflects the versatility of the leader; they
are effective to mould themselves in the advancing level. They can adapt easily to a situation and
have the potential to face any adversities. Situational leadership is portrayed as that kind of
leadership where the leader’s attitude, to face and overcome adversity is commendable (Pierro et
al., 2013).
I strongly agree that, leaders are someone who takes major decision regarding every
aspect of an employee both in term of professional and in production. They help the crowd to
understand and overcome any situation, they are the mediator to solve an issue and form
coalition wherever needed. They are persuasive and sometimes authoritative. They can imprint
outcome, in the mind of their followers. In addition, illustrate sense of achievement before even
achieving it. Leaders are drastic thinker and dreamer with self-driven motivation to overcome
adversities. They have irresistible confidence and personality; they are active listener and idealist
(Wong & Laschinger, 2013). They can coup up their followers to believe in the unthinkable and
unachievable; they will lead from the front and will show other how to do. Leaders are visionary
and work for the empowerment of everyone he/she works with. I think transformational
leadership will suit me the best as I favor empowering people around me more than pure
moneymaking scheme (Du et al., 2013).
What do you think Amir, what is your partake on the topic?

2LEADERSHIP A CRITICAL PERSPECTIVE
Amir: I agree that the leader should posses certain skill that will distinguish them from
the rest of the crowd. “A leader is born and not made”, (Choudhary, Akhtar & Zaheer, 2013).
The qualities that you deciphered are undoubtedly the major traits that a leader should posses. He
should be decorated with certain attributes to help lead and address the crowd. I am amazed that
there are so many leadership styles and it is hard to address or recognize only one leadership
style. However, I strongly believe that Situational leadership style will be effective in every
format, as the leader will be well prepared for any and every situation. They can handle any
situation, as they will have contingency plan for each situation. Transformational leadership is
have a huge setback of misusing the influence, the leader have on the follower. Loss of
inspiration can be another setback in transformational leadership style. Over emphasis on an
individual to derive outcome can be termed as a major setback in this style of leadership. If I
have to choose a leadership style for myself, then am certain that I will choose Situation
Leadership over Transformational Leadership anytime.

3LEADERSHIP A CRITICAL PERSPECTIVE
Reference
Choudhary, A. I., Akhtar, S. A., & Zaheer, A. (2013). Impact of transformational and servant
leadership on organizational performance: A comparative analysis. Journal of Business
Ethics, 116(2), 433-440.
Du, S., Swaen, V., Lindgreen, A., & Sen, S. (2013). The roles of leadership styles in corporate
social responsibility. Journal of business ethics, 114(1), 155-169.
Pierro, A., Raven, B. H., Amato, C., & Bélanger, J. J. (2013). Bases of social power, leadership
styles, and organizational commitment. International Journal of Psychology, 48(6),
1122-1134.
Saleem, H. (2015). The impact of leadership styles on job satisfaction and mediating role of
perceived organizational politics. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 172, 563-
569.
Soieb, A. Z. M., Othman, J., & D'Silva, J. L. (2013). The effects of perceived leadership styles
and organizational citizenship behaviour on employee engagement: The mediating role of
conflict management. International Journal of Business and Management, 8(8), 91.
Wong, C. A., & Laschinger, H. K. (2013). Authentic leadership, performance, and job
satisfaction: the mediating role of empowerment. Journal of advanced nursing, 69(4),
947-959.