The dictionary defines management as being in charge, controlling, administrating, handling. Leadership is defined as being the principal or “front-runner”
• A leader
• A situation
• A group of people
These 3 components have led to 3 theories on leadership.
The Leader – Trait Theory
Do you believe that leaders are born and not made? Well, this is basically what the trait theory is – people are born with certain traits that make them a good leader. Therefore, a born leader would emerge naturally within any group because they would have the traits or qualities necessary to be a leader.
However, over the years this theory has lost some credence and others have gained greater credibility. There are certain things you can do to improve your trait leadership. You need to improve your abilities and work on areas you know are weaker than others, such as:
• Ability to see opportunities
• Adaptability
• Analysis
• Communication
• Decision-making
• Enthusiasm
The Situation – Situational Theory
There is no such thing as a born leader but there are a whole variety of characteristics that might make a person a good leader, which people have a mixture of. In any situation the person best suited to that situation will emerge as the leader. This theory says that leaders rise to power. There are 3 sources of power that a leader can build on: position; personality and expertise.
You can improve your situational leadership by developing power or authority relevant to situations you commonly find yourself in:
• Take advantage of training
• Keep up-to-date
• Find out about areas you are weak in
• Learn from others by talking
• Keep close to your boss
• Think ahead
The Group – Functional Theory
This third theory on leadership, based on John Adair’s work, says that any group has a number of functions it needs to perform – a number of needs that need to be fulfilled. The leader will be the one who can best satisfy those needs. These are in three categories: team, task and individual needs.
Team: The group of people needs to be drawn together and organised so they co-operate with each other.
Task[: The task the group is faced with needs to be achieved
Individual: Individuals need to be recognised and utilised appropriately – they need to use their skills and talents when they can.
A good leader will concentrate on all three functions or needs. Too much attention on one, will be at the expense of another. Here lies again the difference between a manager and a leader. By balancing these three components of functional leadership the leader can best satisfy the needs of the group to improve team, individual and organisation performance. To improve your functional leadership, concentrate on:
Task
• Set standards
• Monitor and evaluate performance
Team
• Communicate
• Encourage co-operation and compromise in the event of differences between staff
Individual
• Encourage people to get involved
• Get to know people
• Delegate
• Make criticism constructive
• Develop peoples skills
