Leadership as Process: Definition, Application, and Future Practice

This assignment delves into the concept of leadership as a process, examining its significance for organizational and business leaders. It begins by defining leadership as an influencing process, emphasizing its role in guiding individuals and groups towards achieving common goals. The assignment then applies this definition to a real-world context, using Indra Nooyi of PepsiCo as an example, highlighting her strategic decisions and leadership style. Finally, it explores the relevance of leadership as a process for future professional practice, particularly in the field of marketing. The assignment emphasizes the importance of adaptability, strategic thinking, and the ability to connect multiple data points for effective decision-making in complex situations. It also incorporates the need for wisdom, composure, perspective, and the fortitude to devote to the right solution.

Running head: MANAGEMENT AND LEADERSHIP
Management and Leadership
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author note

1MANAGEMENT AND LEADERSHIP
Q1.
For any organizational or business leader, leadership is a process that influences
people into willingly do what is to be done for the managers, doing it well along the
way. It is also a process where the leaders set the path or purpose for other people
and gets them to work along with him or her and other people in the same group on
that path with complete commitment and competence. It is extremely influential in
terms of directing the activities of any individual or any group in any given situation
towards the achievement of the set goal, says Platow et al. (2015).
Leaders use leadership as an influencing process for achieving organizational
and individual objectives through various changes. It is all about embodying values,
articulating visions and creating an environment inside which all is achievable. An
organizational or business leader uses leadership to develop and communicate a
vision to a group and see to it that it comes true. A leader is always self-motivated and
this makes other individuals respond to and follow the leader towards organizational
improvement (Platow et al., 2015). The best organizational or business leader are
always motivated by a need of excelling, pursuing it as a passion and a source of
immense satisfaction.
Q2.
Using the concept of leadership as an influencing process, many eminent
leaders have managed to alter the behaviour of the people working under them and
bring out the best in them to achieve a common goal. Leaders use the influencing
process for shaping the resources, including the people involved. One such eminent

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leader who has successfully managed to use this process to gain success for the
organization and its employees is Indra Nooyi from PepsiCo.
Indra Nooyi is famous for taking decisions that have resulted in the positive
enhancement of the organization’s performance. She has taken bold decisions like the
divestiture of fast food restaurants, entering into a merger with Quaker Oats and
acquisition of Tropicana. She is known for her exceptionally sharp talents in turning
plans and ideas into realities. Back in 2010, she redirected one-third of the marketing
budget towards social media campaigns and digital promotions. She is even serious
about taking up community building projects, undertaking grant programs towards
such causes. She has a strong belief in non-monetary rewards, along with the
monetary ones, which can be understood from her regularly sending out hand written
thank-you letters to the family of the company’s top performers. She places huge
stress on the development of future leaders to make sure no one’s absence is felt, in
case any of the top level leaders leave. She is a role model for extreme dedication and
hard work making unreachable heights reachable.
Q3.
Leadership as an influencing process is not a role or a type of person.
Lyubovnikova et al., (2017) says it is when a leader influence others while making
decisions for them and helping them do things to succeed. In the context of my
marketing profession in future, a leader’s main aim should be to better the group.
Instead of thinking about just lining own pockets, the group needs to aim at
cohesiveness and achievement of targets. For using leadership as a process of
achieving success, certain disciplines or factors need to be considered. Interpreting
signals and connecting multiple data points in various ways will be useful for a

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marketing professional in complex, ambiguous situations. Getting locked in a single
view of any issue is not an option. In the marketing profession, a leader must be
always looking for different options for ensuring flexible decision-making. There is a
need of having wisdom, composure, perspective and the fortitude to devote to the
right solution.

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References
Lyubovnikova, J., Legood, A., Turner, N., & Mamakouka, A. (2017). How authentic
leadership influences team performance: The mediating role of team
reflexivity. Journal of business Ethics, 141(1), 59-70.
Platow, M. J., Haslam, S. A., Reicher, S. D., & Steffens, N. K. (2015). There is no
leadership if no-one follows: Why leadership is necessarily a group
process. International Coaching Psychology Review, 10(1), 20-37.