Effectiveness of Leadership

1. Why is it so difficult to measure the effectiveness of leadership in an organization?

Leadership has been defined as the process of directing the behaviors of people in the organization toward the accomplishment common objectives that are set by the organization. There are however deferent definition of leadership just as there are different definitions and thought concerning what effectiveness of leadership entails.  Measuring effectiveness of a leader is hard because leadership style among individuals is varied. This means that the effectiveness of the leader will be determined by the methodologies that the leader uses to handle handles the situation. Other criterion of measuring effectiveness of leaders is by his ability to motivate and influence people to change in a certain way within an organization. This will mean that his effectiveness will be measured by his ability to receive positive results even if he exerts leader is negative influence on his followers (V.S.Bagad, 2009 p. 53).

2. What criteria do you use to determine the effectiveness of leaders?

The methods of measuring effectiveness are also varied. Among the ways that ways that effectiveness of leaders is defined is based on the consequences and outcomes that are used as the criterion for measuring effectiveness of leadership. These may include group performance, attainment of group objectives, group survival, group growth, the capacity of the group to deal with crisis and the commitment that the subordinates feel towards the group. Effectiveness is therefore not measured by the actions of the group but also on the contributions of individual members of the group (V.S.Bagad, 2009 p. 59).

3. Do you agree with the idea there is a difference between leadership and management? Why or why not?

Leadership and management are two very interrelated concepts. This is because those in top managerial positions will need leadership skills to enable them to deal effectively with those working under them. The main difference that exists between management and leadership is on their respective roles. The management aspect of the organization is charged with the responsibility of coordination of and the direction of human capital towards the achievement of the corporate goals; the leadership aspect of management on the other hand will be concerned with the motivation of human resource to achieve these objects. Leadership is therefore a necessary trait for every manager if the organization is to achieve its objectives through human resource. To motivate the employees, the manager will include such incentives as promotions and adoption of such styles of leadership as transformational and transactional leadership styles to help the employees reach their potential.

According to Drucker, the roles of a manager are those of setting objectives, organisation of the work, communication and putting yardsticks for what counts as successfuly completed tasks. On the other hand, the roles of  leaders on involves alligning people, communicating the goals, seeking commitmenta and building teams.

The basic skills that are required by management to perform are technical skils, people skills that help the manager maintain cordination within the member sof a team,conceptual skil or the skill that will enable him fromulate uideas in his head on the direction of the organisation as a whole (Hunt, 1984).

4. Which one of the ten Mintzberg's Managerial Roles in the Yukl text best describes your current manager/leader and why ?

Mintzberg's tried to categorise the activiuties that mangers actuallky do in their day to day management possitions. These were informational roles, decision-Making Roles and Interpersonal Roles. Information roles pertain receiving and tranmiting informatio within the organisation thjrough monitoring or scanning the source of the information, disseminating the information to people both within the organisation and outside it (Bagad, 2009 p. 16).  .

Decision roles of the manager involves making choices between alternatives. As such, the manager is an entreprenuer who i scherged with allocating scarce resources to competing needs. He also makes important decisions when the the organisation is faces with disputes/ disturbances and negotiates the organisation out of those situations (Bagad, 2009 p 17)..

The interpersonal roles involves developing and maintaining positive relatoionships with others. As such the manager is a fiugure head, charged with the responsibility of leading others and maintaining contacts within an outside the organisation who provide helpful information (Bagad, 2009 p. 18).

The roles that my mabnager is involved with include decision roles such as when faced with employee unrests , interpersonal roles such as leading the organisation towards attaining the organisation's objectives by drawing plans and guides ofhow those goals will be attained  and information role such as through dissemination infrmation to the employees regarding company policies and other procedures of doing things.

5. Should group participants make decisions or should such responsibilities be reserved for leaders only? Can followers be led effectively when those followers participate in group decision processes?

The extent to which the group participates in making decision sdepend on the leadereship style exersiced a leader. The common leadership styles are  autocratic, bureaucratic, democratic  leadership styles and team and one on one leadership styles (Fox & Wissink, 2004 p. 95). The democratic leader, i svoted by the other members of the group and allow discussions among the members of the  group. The the auhthorian leader on th eother hand will make all the important decisions. Alllowing the members of the group to mae decisions is important because gives the members the feeling of belonging and motivetes them to achieve theohrganisations goals.

6. There are many types of power and sources of power demonstrated every day?

The major sources of power in any social group are legitimate power, reward power, coercive power expert power and reference power. he first three power bases are derived from the power holder's position and the authority that the position gives them to influence others while the others are based on the special attributes of the power holder  (Hunt, 1984).

As a football captain, my powers are legitimate and are based on the agreement between the team members on what my role s will be and the authority towards the team members such as to suspend players who don't come top practice.