MGMT1101: Leadership Management Profile: Theories and Application

This report delves into the multifaceted realm of leadership management, commencing with an exploration of trait theory, examining personal attributes such as interpersonal skills, decision-making, and charisma, and identifying the significance of risk-taking. It then transitions to a comparative analysis of situational, transformational, and servant leadership styles, highlighting the effectiveness of servant leadership. The report further presents case studies of leaders, including Mother Teresa and Adolf Hitler, illustrating the positive and negative impacts of power and influence. Various leadership scenarios are analyzed using models like the Hersey-Blanchard model and the Path-Goal model, proposing suitable leadership styles for different situations. The report culminates in a personal leadership profile, outlining key characteristics such as leading by example, exhibiting integrity, effective communication, taking hard decisions, and motivating and inspiring others. The assignment draws on a range of scholarly sources to support its analysis.

Running head: LEADERSHIP MANAGEMENT
Leadership Management
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author Note:

Trait Theory
1) Some of the traits of me from trait theory are as follows :
 Interpersonal skills –The interpersonal skills is one of the trait in trait theory,
which relates to understanding of human behaviour (Dinh et al., 2014). The
interpersonal skills can be utilized in knowing the concern of the employees,
which is leading to their dissatisfaction. In my earlier company where I worked as
team leader there was growing concern about the dissatisfaction of employees and
they were not motivated to work, utilizing my interpersonal skills I motivated
them to persist with the company.
 Decision-making – Decision-making is the trait of trait theory, which can be
utilized (Fleeson & Jayawickreme, 2015). In the situation of adversity that
included decrease in sales in an organization where I worked earlier, the decision-
making ability was effective to devise strategy to overcome issues like drop of
sales (Pettigrew, 2014).
 Charisma –A charismatic leader can influence the employees so that they are
more committed to the organizational activities. Being the team leader of the
present organization I am working, my charismatic attributes improve the morale
of the employees of an organization and help to achieve the goals of the
organization.
2) One key trait or characteristic that is absent in the trait theory but its utilization would
help to become an effective leader is :

 Taking Risks- Taking Risk is one of the trait that is not mentioned in trait theory
but it is very key aspect of leadership (Woodman et al., 2013). A good leader
always has the ability to foresee some plans or strategy, which may seems risky
but at the end, it benefits the organization. Therefore, it is necessary to be creative
and possess the ability to take calculative risks.
3) I possess several traits or characteristics that are required to become a successful and
effective leader. Some of the key traits possessed by me which defines me as a effective
and efficient leader to help the organization to overcome atrocities and reach its goals and
objectives are :
 Decision making power- Decision making power is the most important attribute
of an effective leader, it enables them to make tough decisions when the
circumstance demands.
 Communication skills –In an organization, it is important that the employees
from upper level to lower level management are well aware of the goals,
objectives, success and failure of the organization. For this, a proper
communication is required between management leaders and employees.
 Team building skills –Team building skills is an important attribute of effective
leaders. It is important to support employees, which would facilitate their progress
to attain the goals of organization.
Situational, transformational and Servant Leadership
1) In a situational leadership the current scenario is assessed and changes are made in the
leadership approach considering the involvement of the people and the task present in

hand .The situational leadership deals with the current or present circumstances in order
to obtain best short-term outcome (McCleskey, 2014). A situational leader analyzes the
situation thoroughly before implementing any action or solution by considering factors
like service problems, product error and customer complaints.
If a company encounters changes, adoption of a transformational style facilitates the
leaders and then employees to make a transition or shift from one state to another state.
The transformational leaders influence the employees under them and motivate them with
their charismatic traits (Yukl, 2013). The situation of transformational leadership comes
into effect when there is a scenario of producing new products or providing new
services .It is the transformational leader who communicates the new direction.
Transformational and Servant Leadership are quite similar to each other in
working .Servant leadership is a leadership philosophy that is different from traditional
leadership. In Servant leadership the service of customer is given more priority
(Giltinane, 2013) .It is concerned with the success of the stakeholders that includes the
employees ,customers ,society and others.
2) The Servant Leadership is the most effective leadership style among the Situational,
Transformational and Servant Leadership style .The Servant leadership is unique and
different from traditional leadership approaches. In Servant leadership styles the
stakeholders of the organization are given more priority (Bryman, 2013).This is essential
as proper efficiency of the stakeholders in an organization determines the success or
failures of an organization and achieving the goals and objectives of the organization.
3) I was associated with an NGO (Non Government Organization) which used to engage in
works of charity and social responsibility. I came across a woman, who was the head of

the NGO, she used perform various activities that includes charity work and other social
services .She was the leader who is truly the exhibitor of Servant Leadership. Because of
her Samaritan activities and social work, she gained mass popularity in short span of
time.
Identify a Leader
The leader who has used power and influence in a positive way was Mother Teresa. She was a
situational leader .She used to help people according to situation. If someone were deprived of
food, she would offer her food, or provide shelter to the homeless. She would always found a
remedy to help people according to situation.
The leader who has used power and influence in a harmful way was Adolf Hitler. He was a
German politician and the leader of Nazi party He used his authority and power in harmful way
and was responsible for the mass killing of the Jews. After Hitler rose to power in Germany, he
passed a law pertaining to which the Jews were excluded from the civil society. He was a leader
who professed dictatorship. Due to his detrimental policies and approach he was hated by many
sections of the society.
Leadership Scenarios
1) Hersey-Blanchard Model is one of the models of situational leadership (Meirovich & Gu,
2015). In this model the leader, adjust their leadership styles based on the follower
maturity, which is determined by the confidence and ability of the group, which is to be
lead .In the scenario of leading the group as a team leader where the group members are

motivated as well as competent. I would opt for the Delegating style of leadership. In this
style of leadership, I would allow the group to take responsibility of taking decisions.
2) In the scenario where I am the department head and it comes to notice that one
inexperienced employee is not following assigned tasks even though he is eager to learn,
I would consider following the directive style of leadership. This style is adopted from
the Path-Goal Model (Malik, 2013) .This style would be effective considering the
employee noit experienced, it should be made clear what is expected of him.
3) Using the trait theory the traits expected from a General Manager of a restaurant or bar
considering the scenario of decreased sales and low employee motivation are as follows:
 Charismatic traits –This trait would influence the employees to follow the
attribute of the General Manager and opt not leave the restaurant or brand be
committed to the organization.
 Decision making skills- The decision making skills of the General Manger would
help the restaurant or bar to come out of the adverse situation like decreased sales
by taking appropriate decisions in order to increase sales of restaurant or bar .
 Interpersonal skills –The interpersonal skills of the General Manager would help
them to communicate with the employees and solve the issue troubling them so
that they can be happy and satisfied.
4) In the scenario when a employee is underperforming and lacking confidence, the
leadership style which should \be considered is supportive style of leadership. This
leadership style is one of the style followed in Path-Goal Model. In this approach the
leader shows concern to the employees by being friendly and approachable so that he is
confident to perform.

5) In the scenario where the employees are unsure of the tasks they are supposed to do and it
results in conflicts, the best leadership style to follow is directive style .The directive
style approach is part of the Path-Goal Model (Alanazi, Alharthey & Rasli, 2013). This
style is effective when the employees are unsure about their tasks and goals.
Personal Leadership Profile
As a potential and future leader I would like to imbibe and develop some key characteristics in
me that would help me to become a effective and influencing leader in future .Some of the key
attributes which I would desire to develop are as follows:
Lead by Example
It is the job of an effective leader to lead from front so that the subordinates can follow
the leader. It is the duty of a leader to set right examples in order to gain respect from the
member of the group or subordinates. The leader should set standards, which would build the
trust so that the team would follow the example.
Exhibit Integrity
The leaders with integrity have the conviction of what is right and what is wrong. They
are respected for their attributes of being ethical, consistent genuine and also principled
(Bauman, 2013).The leaders with integrity exhibit strong sense of character and are honest in
their work. By displaying integrity, these leaders gain respect from the employees.
Effective Communications
One of the important attribute of an effective leader is communicating clearly and
tactfully .The communication includes not only listening with gross attention an d responding

aptly. It also involves clearing doubts, creating new ideas, asking interesting queries and sharing
crucial information.
Taking Hard Decisions
An efficient leader should have the ability to think out of the box, he should be capable
enough to take bold decision in order to achieve the goals and objectives of an organization
(Shapiro & Stefkovich, 2016). During tough situation, an effective leader should be capable to
take hard decisions with conviction and taking responsibility of that decision.
Motivating and Inspiring
The most important traits of a leaders are motivation and inspiration (Whitaker,
Whitaker & Lumpa, 2013).They use these traits in order to drive their team forward with
inspiration and motivation .It is necessary to show concern to the employees by the leaders of
any organization in order to assess their strengths, needs and priorities .
I hope that these attributes in me ,if they are developed and honed would be crucial for
me to become a future leader and impact positively to the people under me as well as the society.

References
Alanazi, T. R., Alharthey, B. K., & Rasli, A. (2013). Overview of path-goal leadership
theory. Sains Humanika, 64(2).
Bauman, D. C. (2013). Leadership and the three faces of integrity. The Leadership
Quarterly, 24(3), 414-426.
Bryman, A. (2013). Leadership and Organizations (RLE: Organizations). Routledge.
Dinh, J. E., Lord, R. G., Gardner, W. L., Meuser, J. D., Liden, R. C., & Hu, J. (2014). Leadership
theory and research in the new millennium: Current theoretical trends and changing
perspectives. The Leadership Quarterly, 25(1), 36-62.
Fleeson, W., & Jayawickreme, E. (2015). Whole trait theory. Journal of Research in
Personality, 56, 82-92.
Giltinane, C. L. (2013). Leadership styles and theories. Nursing Standard, 27(41).
Malik, S. H. (2013). Relationship between Leader Behaviors and Employees' Job Satisfaction: A
Path-Goal Approach. Pakistan Journal of Commerce & Social Sciences, 7(1).
McCleskey, J. A. (2014). Situational, transformational, and transactional leadership and
leadership development. Journal of Business Studies Quarterly, 5(4), 117.
Meirovich, G., & Gu, J. (2015). Empirical and Theoretical Validity of Hersey-Blanchard’s
Contingency Model. Journal of Applied Management and Entrepreneurship, 20(3), 56-
73.

Pettigrew, A. M. (2014). The politics of organizational decision-making. Routledge.
Shapiro, J. P., & Stefkovich, J. A. (2016). Ethical leadership and decision making in education:
Applying theoretical perspectives to complex dilemmas. Routledge.
Whitaker, B., Whitaker, T., & Lumpa, D. (2013). Motivating & inspiring teachers: The
educational leader's guide for building staff morale. Routledge.
Woodman, T., Barlow, M., Bandura, C., Hill, M., Kupciw, D., & MacGregor, A. (2013). Not all
risks are equal: the risk taking inventory for high-risk sports. Journal of sport and
exercise psychology, 35(5), 479-492.
Yukl, G. A. (2013). Leadership in organizations. Pearson Education India.