Leading and Managing People Essay: Leadership Theories and Practice

This essay analyzes the concept of leadership, focusing on the author's personal leadership model (PLM) and its application in a business context. It explores three key areas: ethics, teamwork, and multiculturalism, emphasizing their importance for effective leadership. The essay delves into various leadership theories, including trait, participative, and contingency theories, and their practical implications for guiding and motivating teams. The author, a production supervisor, outlines their future plans for knowledge enhancement and the importance of adapting to technological changes. The essay also highlights the author's objectives as a leader, emphasizing ethical conduct, fostering teamwork through communication and assessment, and embracing multiculturalism to create a positive and inclusive work environment. The author also outlines the actions they will and will not take as a leader. The essay concludes by reiterating the significance of leadership in achieving organizational goals and the role of the author's leadership approach in fostering a strong and motivated team.

Leading and Managing People
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Table of Contents
Leading and Managing People.....................................................................................................................1
Introduction.................................................................................................................................................3
Perception of leadership and my position...................................................................................................3
Leadership theories.....................................................................................................................................4
Trait theory..............................................................................................................................................4
Participative theory.................................................................................................................................4
Contingency theory.................................................................................................................................4
My future plan.............................................................................................................................................5
My objective as a leader..............................................................................................................................5
My insistence as a leader............................................................................................................................6
My stand as a Leader...................................................................................................................................7
Conclusion...................................................................................................................................................7
References:..................................................................................................................................................9
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Introduction
Leadership is defined as the quality of human being through which a team can be monitored and
motivated to accomplish certain objectives. Leadership is used for the business scenario to
emphasize the personality which can guide, motivate and give direction to the team for the
assignment with specific business objective to accomplish by exercising self-quality of the
required features. (Ward, 2017)
This essay will highlight three major areas of leadership which I use to practice for
accomplishment of my leadership objective to justify Personal Leadership Model or PLM. The
three areas are ethics, teamwork and multiculturalism. Being a supervisor in a business unit, it is
my primary responsibility to lead my team through the traits of these three areas to ensure
accomplishment of business objective by applying proper strategies.
Perception of leadership and my position
Leadership is such quality which enhances the ability of individual to guide the team. The
perception of leadership of my practice is always depending upon trait theory of leadership. This
leadership theory teaches me the qualities to assess my own ability towards coveted results,
integrity, my own ability and direction. (Anon., 2017)
The conception of trait approach has taught me different strengths of this theory of leadership
like its intuitive appeal of leadership. This PLM is run with the perception of its difference for
the special traits they belong to as the followers want to see their leaders as different from
general with the ability to lead the team by the gifted quality. (Northhouse, 2017)
My position in the business unit as a supervisor of the production team demands leadership to
guide the team members with the clarity of business objectives and good knowledge of proper
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strategies to accomplish those objectives. When any new change is coming in the operations, the
team needs clear guidance to adopt that with specific business strategy to accomplish the
changed business objective. For this purpose, I use to place the changed situation to the team,
asking for their own valuable inputs and then decide to implement the strategy adjudging the
strength and weakness of new applicable process.
Leadership theories
Trait theory
This theory is depending upon different traits with necessary skills of leadership, as
demanded by the situation which are focusing on the features of Adaptability of situation,
cautious about social environment, orientation by ambition and accomplishment, assertion
oriented, focused on cooperation and forced with decision making and dependable with
dominance. Basic skills for exercising trait theory of leadership are cleverness, skilled with
concept, creativity, practice of diplomacy and tactfulness, strong communication skill., clear
concept of team effort as per task orientation, focused with persuasion and socially skilled
features. (minds, 2017)
Participative theory
This theory of leadership is sponsoring the concept of participation by the stakeholders instead of
practicing any autocratic practice to ensure leadership. This theory always promotes the concept
of mass listening and collaborative decision. This leadership never sponsors the autocratic theory
of leadership which is mainly driven by the self force to dictate others. (Minds, 2017)
Contingency theory
This theory is based on the assumptions of the ability of leader to face any contingent situation
due to several balancing factors. This theory is promoted with the class of behavioral theories
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which promotes the concept of non-matching of leadership style to be followed universally.
(minds, 2017)
My future plan
The objective of individual always depends upon business objective of the workplace and the
objective of the leader is to ensure successful compliance of the need of the business strategies.
For this purpose, the leader has to make his self escalation through inputs of academic and
professional training. My future plan is to enhance my level of knowledge as per the need of the
situation and transmit my knowledge through sharing with my team in order to make them
understand their future course of action and the way to execute that for accomplishment of
coveted result. Team can only be motivated when they can found their leader is well equipped
with the required level of knowledge and the skill to execute. As a production supervisor, I have
to be well updated about the latest trend of technological changes featuring in the industry in
respect of production process. This enhanced level of knowledge can make me able to
understand the changed scenario of the industry in respect of production process. My team will
look for the required guidance about the changed pattern of production through technological
initiative and thus they can be able to deliver as per coveted level of result when they will be
guided by me.
My objective as a leader
I want to see myself as a leader of well acceptance through the application of Trait theories of
leadership. This theory taught me the objective of PLM as a leader who will run the show with
the entire team taken into confidence. There are three areas as ethics, teamwork and
multiculturalism which are my main areas of concern while practicing leadership.
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Ethics is basic feature for any leader while working for an organization and practicing leadership
for the team. It is the prerequisite for any leader to prove his sustainability for the organization
and the team. Working ethics and leadership ethics obviously differs from each other so far its
importance is concerned. Working ethics can define the integrity of the individual towards his
work, while the leadership ethics always drives an individual to present himself ethically to his
team. (Fernandes, 2017)
Teamwork is another area of concern for practicing leadership for me. Teamwork is required for
any leader to ensure about his image to his subordinates. Being a leader, I have to ensure that the
team should feel free to come to me for any type of problems they face in any aspect. Teamwork
can only be ensured through implementation of planning, assessing and communicating. Being
leader, I have to plan my future course of action, communicate the same to my team and making
assessment of the operation process which is in place by the team. It is the lesson of management
that managers with better teamwork can deliver better result for the organization. To ensure
better teamwork, I have to earn the knowledge of planning, communicating to my team and
assessing their output. (Morley, 2017)
Multiculturalism is another important area which is to be ensured by trait leadership. In present
global context of expatriate workers, different ethnicity and culture of workers are to be taken
into consideration for smooth operation of the organization. Workers from different ethnicity
have their own thoughts and style of delivering output which cannot be generalized. Moreover
multiculturalism is another area which attracts patience and respect for different cultures. As a
leader I have to practice the basic requirements to adhere the needs of multiculturalism. As a
leader I have to practice five values which include politeness, honorable, acceptability, kindness
and patient hearing. These values can make the workers of different cultures friendlier with
obvious adaptation of the work style applicable. (Ruiz, 2016)
My insistence as a leader
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It is my priority to see that the objective of the business is to be honored first. To ensure that, I
have to identify the areas of concern that can add value to the operations of the organization. I
also have to look after the workers for their difficulties so that they can feel my presence to them
as a team member. Micro objectives of workers are to be honored by me so that I can ensure the
accomplishment of macro objective of the organization. Value addition through knowledge
gathering and sharing the same with my team will make my position as a leader stronger. Hence
I will always insist on my enhancement of knowledge base in order to keep my team upgraded
and thus ensure better option of delivering the output for the organization.
My stand as a Leader
Which I should not do- Being a leader I should ensure that my team should feel the ambience of
democracy. I will not insist on any such action which may generate the feeling of mistrust within
the team. At the same time I will not share the personal information of the members of my team
to others as a practice of confidentiality. The interest of the organization will get highest priority
to me, but there is always ample priority for the team members for me. I should not do anything
which can hamper organizational interest as well as individual interest of the team members. As
a leader, I should never indulge in ignoring the multiculturalism of the team members.
Which I should start doing- It is my dream to be the production manager of this business unit in
future. To accomplish my objective, I have to be well equipped with knowledge and team
management. Knowledge base enhancement can make my future strong so far my ability is
concerned. Team management in efficient way can prove me as an effective and successful
leader to run a big team. I should start studying individual psychology to understand my team
better. These future steps will keep my dream alive and one day I will lead the entire production
team of this business with the objective of making this business unit prospers as per future
business objective.
Conclusion
Leadership is such a quality which can make an individual capable of handling the team for the
common objective of the organization. Team is looking for leader for guidance and direction
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along with good personality to understand their problem. Being a believer of trait theory of
leadership, I would practice leadership with special emphasis on ethical practice, teamwork and
multiculturalism. It is the demand of leadership to ensure these three areas are to be honored with
due respect so that trait leadership theory can establish its worth. The business unit where I work
as a production supervisor demands these areas as these will ensure my deliverance to the
organization and to the team as a proper executor of corporate strategies to accomplish objectives
of the business and forma strong team who will believe on me as a true leader to stand beside
them in case of their need. Trait theory of leadership taught me the specific focus areas of
leadership which I will accomplish with my knowledge and inherent quality as a leader.
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References:
Anon., 2017. ORG Module Unit 6: Leadership. [Online] Available at:
http://www.le.ac.uk/oerresources/psychology/organising/page_06.htm [Accessed 25 September 2017].
Fernandes, P., 2017. How to be an ethical leader. [Online] Available at:
http://www.businessnewsdaily.com/5537-how-to-be-ethical-leader.html [Accessed 25 September
2017].
minds, C., 2017. Contingency Theory. [Online] Available at:
http://changingminds.org/disciplines/leadership/styles/participative_leadership.htm [Accessed 30
September 2017].
Minds, C., 2017. Participative theory. [Online] Available at:
http://changingminds.org/disciplines/leadership/styles/participative_leadership.htm [Accessed 30
September 2017].
minds, c., 2017. Trait Theory. [Online] Available at:
http://changingminds.org/disciplines/leadership/theories/trait_theory.htm [Accessed 30 September
2017].
Morley, M., 2017. Teamwork vs. Leadership. [Online] Available at:
http://smallbusiness.chron.com/teamwork-vs-leadership-23315.html [Accessed 25 September 2017].
Northhouse, 2017. Trait Approach. [Online] Available at:
https://www.sagepub.com/sites/default/files/upm-binaries/30933_Northouse_Chapter_2.pdf
[Accessed 25 September 2017].
Ruiz, J., 2016. Five Ways to Effective Multicultural Leadership. [Online] Available at:
https://alderkoten.com/5-ways-to-effective-multicultural-leadership/ [Accessed 25 September 2017].
Ward, S., 2017. Leadership Definition. [Online] Available at: https://www.thebalance.com/leadership-
definition-2948275 [Accessed 25 September 2017].
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