There are multiple views and definitions of leadership. There are also many debates and theories i.e. are you born a leader or can you be taught to be a leader. Some definitions include; ‘the ability to lead’, ‘the only definition of a leader is someone who has followers’ Peter Drucker, and ‘the process by which a person influences others to accomplish an objective’ Akhil Shahani (Learn-to-be-a-leader.com, 2017). These definitions are from people with similar thoughts but also different theories. In this literature review I will also be talking about change. Organizational change has many definitions, for me organizational change is the process by which a business develops its method and objective in order to have a different or improved outcome.
Followers expect greatness from leaders, there needs to be clear reasons for them to follow this particular person. If there is nothing special or different why would they follow them, assuming they have a choice. Qualities in leaders include; competence, knowledgeable insights, a vision and the ability to communicate that vision effectively and professionally and also they must have the capability to build strong teams around them. In the article ‘The Caring Leader – What followers expect of their leaders and why?’ it talks about what followers expect and reasons for it.
This article states leaders should be ‘prepared to stand up for what they believe, against opposition and ridicule.’ (Gabriel, 2014). This proves a great deal is expected from leaders, which shows there must be something special about them. Leaders who are scared of change are seen weak which causes problems with their followers. It is not fair to assume that leaders are weak if they decide not to change either something in a business or to do with the way people are working. Leaders think about the overall outcome, and not about themselves, if they feel that there will be no improvement in the outcome or it would get worse they would have to make the decision to not do anything unless a better solution is found. This should not be seen as a weakness but a strength.
The resistance to change is a key issue for many companies. There are many reasons why companies and leaders don’t want organizational change. Some reasons would include; the loss of control, fear of change, uncertainty over whether the culture will change, that there maybe an increased amount of work or different skills needed which they don’t have.
‘The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is the fear of the unknown.’ (Torben Rick, 2017).
Therefore, every company going through change must acknowledge this basic human emotion and put strategies in place to reassure employees that change can in fact be very beneficial. When organizations are going through organizational or cultural change or changing their business model, then you need effective leadership to make it change, one can’t happen with out the other. The main inhibitor that stops change in a business is that people are scared of change, the leader needs to show that they are aware of their fears and through constant communication keeps telling employees the vision and strategy of the business so they can understand why change is so important.
In the article ‘Resisters at Work’ it states ‘that resisting work includes a mix of compliance … and outright confrontation. Accomodation of resistance is produced by this skilful work and by this mix, and it is all the more accepted by top managers because it allows them to move forward in the face of intra-organizational cultural tensions that could otherwise be very disturbing confrontations.’ (Courpasson, Dany and Clegg, 2012). This illustrates division of power between management and employees. This highlights the need or the importance for leaders to communicate their vision of the future direction or the company over and over again. Only when employees have a buy in to the future of the company will they stop resisting change.
Joseph Raelin offers a different perspective of leadership which is based on a collaborative agency ‘mobilized through engaged social interaction.’ (Raelin, 2014). His focus is no longer on the individual leader but on collective leadership. He views leadership ‘as a practice, it has attempted to free it from its long- standing stimulus–response paradigm toward a more dynamic account that sees leadership as evolving from partners at work and in other community settings creating their own useful and sustainable reality.’ (Raelin, 2014).
Kathie Pelletier introduces the very interesting topic of toxic leadership. We all know good leaders who motivate employees, empower them to achieve their goals and inspire them to do more. But what has not been researched until recently is the impact of a toxic leader. A toxic leader as quoted from Kathie Pelletier includes the qualities of ‘leaders who ridicule their employees in public, force employees to endure physical hardships, and promote divisiveness between work groups or individuals.’ (Pelletier, 2010). This opens up to others that not all leaders are saints and should be forgiven within seconds of doing something bad. It shows that not all leaders should be trusted and seen as angels.
In conclusion, leaders are seen to be very important in an organisation and they are expected to have many qualities. The most important characteristics are courage, ability to make difficult decisions, make the right choice if people aren’t agreeing with you and to have a clear vision of the future direction of the company. Change in an organisation is a very hard concept for some people to understand. Some employees don’t understand why there is a need for things to be changed and they are too scared so the business sticks at a constant rather than improving. If change is handled in a professional way, it can have many benefits for the company.
We now live in a global marketplace and technology and social media are transforming the way we work. No longer can employees be assured of security and routine. In this fast paced changing environment, employees need to get comfortable with the concept of change and good leadership is vital to successful business.