The Concept of Leadership and Management

The Concept of Leadership and Management

Introduction (150)

Leadership and management concept have played a significant role in a particular organization in the realization of the set vision and mission (Lopez, 2014). The two terms are often considered as synonyms, but in real meaning, there have different meanings. The leadership and management they need to go hand in hand for a firm to register exponential positive outcome, along with other resources. Leadership is a process where an executive can direct, guide, and influence the behavior and work of others towards the accomplishment of specific goals in a particular setting (Thorpe, 2016). The management refers to the act of organizing and coordinating the prime activities of an organization to achieve defined objectives. When the concept is merged, they produce a full and extensive meaning that is critical in business growth and development. The primary focus of the paper will focus on the differences and similarities between leaders and managers, give an example of individuals with excellent managerial and leadership skills. Also, the article will focus on individuals with poor managerial skills and the effects of skills a manager/leader may have on an individual.

The differences and similarities of Leaders and Managers (500)

In the overall setting of an organization, there are significant differences and similarities between the leaders and managers (Algahtani, 2014). The first difference is that leaders create a vision, whereas managers develop goals. The leaders have an essential role in painting a picture of what they observe to yield fruits and inspire in engaging people to turn the vision into reality. The leaders have adequate knowledge on how to activate people to work as a team to accomplish more of work than individuals working autonomously.

On the other hand, the managers focus on setting, measuring, and attainment of goals by either controlling situations to reach or exceed their objectives. The second difference is that leaders are change agents, while managers maintain the status quo (Lunenburg, 2011). The leaders embrace change by accepting the fact that changes to the system ground stable waves while managers uphold what works, reefing systems, structures, and processes to mold them and become better.

Thirdly, the leaders play a critical role in taking risks while the managers control risk. Leaders are always in a position of trying a new thing with the mind that failure is a route for success, while managers work to minimize risks. The managers seek to avoid or control issues apart from embracing them. Fourthly, the leaders make efforts to build healthy relationships by focusing on people/stakeholders spend time with them to realize their stipulated vision. The managers concentrate on structures that are vital in setting and attaining goals (Algahtani, 2014). They also focus on analytical and ensures structures are in good condition to achieve the desired consequences. The fifth difference is that the leaders they coach and managers direct. Leaders primarily know the individuals who work for them, and they are optimistic about the worker’s potentiality, where the managers assign tasks and give directives on how to accomplish them. Other differences include, leaders create fans where managers have employees, leaders grow individually, and the managers rely on existing and proven skills, and among others.

In leadership and management, similarities between the leaders and managers have been realized, all directed towards registering better performance of an organization (Algahtani, 2014). The most common analogy is that both managers and leaders work with people or group teams that they supervise and give guidelines. The second similarity is that both they create solid grounds for an organization and functional system that are meant to achieve a goal. The leaders and managers have the role of influencing the work structure and environment to facilitate workers to have a friendly atmosphere in the realization of a positive outcome. The other similarity is that leaders and managers all locate available resources in a way that can be utilized effectively and efficiently to attain the set goals and objectives (Lunenburg, 2011). Other similarities involve both rely on effective communication and use of metrics to measure performance to determine the position of an organization.

A person with Good Leadership and Managerial Skills, and Individuals with Poor Managerial Skills (400)

An organization’s success substantially depends on the leadership abilities of its managers, where some of the skills of leadership can be learned, and others are character traits. The leaders are generally the figureheads of a particular firm. For a good reason, they depend on the reliable management team that is well coordinated to ensure everyone understands the role or task assigned Carmichael et al., (2011). A person with excellent leadership skills is the one who can ground an effective communication. The ability to communicate is deemed an essential leadership skill by many that help in strategizing. Effective communication enables a leader to communicate with the workers, understand the task and role assigned for them in the realization of the company’s vision and mission. The other example of a person with good leadership should have the quality of building a healthy relationship. A good leader should encourage strong working associations between team members, clients, producers, and other involved groups (Armstrong, 2016). Another example of an individual who has excellent leadership skills is the one who is innovative and aware of the business environment. For example, an individual should have the ability to recognize ideas and create changes to improve workflow for better performance.

Individuals with excellent management skills are the ones who can create healthy working relationships with the workers at all levels through high-quality links and respectful engagement. Healthy relationships are primarily associated with various aspects that help to understand the role each worker plays in an organization. Prioritizing tasks effectively for oneself and the team are also excellent management skills (Riggio, 2017). As such, it enables effective decision making by considering multiple factors such as uniting people together to solve problems. Another example of a person with excellent management skills is the one who uses emotional intelligence. The emotional intelligence is all about self-awareness, self-control, motivation, and social skills required to behave maturely, wise, and empathetic to the people surrounding them.

In business, the business may fail to grow due to poor managerial and leadership skills. Some of the examples of individuals with poor managerial skills will be portrayed by poor communication and decision making.  Failure to communicate with the team leads to unclear expression of what is required, the aspect that has a negative effect of attainment of intended goals and objectives (Armstrong, 2016). Stubbornness and unwillingness to listen and adapt are elements of poor managerial skills. An individual/manager who is unready to listen to feedback and adjust to change always leads to a failing team. Suggestions from groups are the critical first source of information to the changes that can lead to growth and development. Also, a bad attitude or lack of honesty are signs of poor managerial skills. For example, if the boss is sour, cranky, and unpleasant, the vital company’s subjects are always left addressed.

The Effect of Managerial/Leadership Skills to Individuals. (300)

Leadership and management skills play a critical role in influencing how individuals or teamwork operate. The excellent management and leadership skills have portrayed positive results towards the exponential growth of a business. The inferior management and leadership skill have impacted individuals negatively, thus poor performance of the company. Excellent leadership and management skills trickle done positive values (Thorpe, 2016). For instance, when a leader or manager portrays positive features like decisiveness, integrity/honesty, employees are encouraged to work harder to achieve the organization’s goals. The other impact of proper management and leadership skills on an individual is that morale is mainly improved that increases productivity. The confidence of an individual gives birth to additional features, such as trust increment and better communication. Excellent leadership and management skills make an individual understand the company’s objectives clearly, which inspires a feeling of camaraderie, and individual acts positively towards the company set vision for attainment (Riggio, 2017). Ultimately, poor managerial and leadership skills hurt an individual, where they hinder effective communication; the morale of an individual is drastically lowered. Other aspects, such as individual talents and innovations that may be beneficial to an organization, become untouched, affecting the entire firm. The poor skills they don’t stipulate the tasks and roles expected by each individual, who becomes completely confused and the work end up being unaccomplished

Conclusion. (150)

Leadership and management play a pivotal role in business growth and continuity. The leadership incorporates essential aspects of influencing, motivating, inspiring, creating, and monitoring. Planning, organizing, staffing, coordinating, and controlling are the main aspects that involve management. The two terms they primarily work hand-in-hand to platform stable settings for communicating, solving emerging problems, and making decisions that are beneficial to an organization. Several differences and similarities have been recognized regarding managers and leaders. These differences and similarities don’t deter any performance of a business, but they make sure each leader or manager plays his/her role in producing a comprehensive and positive performance. The leadership and management skills are an essential part of the business in recognizing the gap and other necessary resources needed in an organization. The skills portrayed by management and leadership they have a various impact that affects an individual or organization either positively or negatively. Excellent leadership and management skills have proved to improve morale, trust, and a tremendous increase in productivity.

References

Lunenburg, F. C. (2011). Leadership versus management: A crucial distinction—at least in theory. International Journal of Management, Business, and Administration, 14(1), 1-4.

Lopez, R. (2014). The relationship between leadership and management: Instructional approaches and its connections to organizational growth. Journal of Business Studies Quarterly, 6(1), 98.

Algahtani, D. A. (2014). Are Leadership and Management Different? A Review. Journal of Management Policies and Practices, 2(3). doi:10.15640/jmpp.v2n3a4

Carmichael, J. L., Collins, C., Emsell, P., & Haydon, J. (2011). Leadership and Management Development. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Thorpe, R. (2016). Gower Handbook of Leadership and Management Development. doi:10.4324/9781315585703

Armstrong, M. (2016). Armstrong’s handbook of management and leadership for HR: Developing practical people skills for better leadership and management. Kogan Page Publishers.

Riggio, R. E. (2017). Management and Leadership. Oxford Handbooks Online. doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780198708612.013.15