OB leadership 1 – Flashcards
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leader
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someone who can influence others and who has managerial authority
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leadership
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-the process of influencing a group to achieve goals
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should all managers be leaders? why or why not?
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yes because leading is one of the four management functions
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4 management functions
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1. leading 2. controlling 3. organizing 4. planning
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early theories of leadership: trait theories
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-the assumption that those who become leaders and do a good job of it possess a special set of traits that distinguish them from others
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what are traits?
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individual characteristics: intelligence, charisma, decisiveness, enthusiasm, strength, bravery, integrity and self-confidence
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traits associated with leadership effectiveness
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-intelligence -energy -self-confidence -dominance -motivation to lead -emotional stability -honesty and integrity -need for achievement
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limitations of the trait approach
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-it is difficult to determine whether the traits make the leader or whether the opportunity for leadership produces the traits -does not tell us what leaders do to influence others successfully -it does not take into account the situation in which leadership occurs -traits alone are not sufficient for successful leadership
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leader motivation scores
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14-27: this implies a low motivation to lead 28-55: this implies some uncertainty over your motivation to lead 56-70: this implies a strong motivation to lead
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blake and mouton's managerial grid
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-draws on both studies (ohio state and Michigan) to access leadership style: *"concern for people"* *"concern for production"*
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blake and mouton's managerial grid: concern for people
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concern for people is consideration and employee orientation
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blake and mouton's managerial grid: concern for production
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concern for production is initiation structure and production-orientation
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blake and mouton's managerial grid: how is style determined?
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style is determined by position on the graph
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blake and mouton's managerial grid categories
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-country club manager -team manager -authority-obedience manager -impoverished manager -middle-of-road manager
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blake and mouton's managerial grid: country club manager
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focuses on people's needs, building relationships -high concern for people -low concern for production Thoughtful attention to the needs of people for satisfying relationship leads to a comfortable, friendly organization atmosphere and work tempo
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blake and mouton's managerial grid: team manager
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focuses on building commitments to shared purpose -high concern for people -high concern for production Work accomplishment is from committed people who have a "common stake" in the organizations purpose. this leads to relationships of trust and respect.
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blake and mouton's managerial grid: authority-obedience manager
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focuses on efficiency of tasks and operations -low concern for people -high concern for production Efficiency in operations results from arranging conditions of work in such a way that human elements interfere to a minimum degree
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blake and mouton's managerial grid: impoverished manager
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focuses on minimum effort to get work done -low concern for people -low concern for production Exertion of minimum effort to get required work done is appropriate to sustain organization membership.
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blake and mouton's managerial grid: middle-of-road manager
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focuses on balancing work output and morale -medium concern for people -medium concern for production Adequate organizational performance is possible through balancing the necessity to get out work with maintaining morale of people at a satisfactory level
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early behavioral theories issues
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-no consistent relationship between leadership behaviour and performance indicators of production, efficiency and satisfaction. -predicting leadership success more complex than isolating a few leader traits or preferable behaviours. -no consideration of situational factors.
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contingency or situational theories
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-While trait and behaviour theories do help us understand leadership, an important component is missing: the context in which the leader exists -Contingency Theory adds this additional aspect to our understanding leadership effectiveness studies
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three key contingency/situational theories
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1. Fiedler's Model 2. Hersey and Blanchard's Situational Leadership Theory 3. Path-Goal Theory
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Fiedler Contingency Model
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-least preferred co-worker (LPC) questionnaire determines leadership style -match leadership style with 3 situational factors (degree to which the situation allows the leader to control and influence)
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Fiedler Contingency Model: high LPC vs. low LPC
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High LPC: relationship oriented Low LPC: task oriented
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Fiedler Contingency Model: 3 situational factors
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1. leader-member relations 2. task structure 3. position power
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Hersey and Blanchard's Situational Theory
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-a model that focuses on follower "readiness" Followers can accept or reject the leader. Effectiveness depends on the followers' response to the leader's actions -a paternal model -four leadership styles -four stages of readiness
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Hersey and Blanchard's Situational Theory: "readiness"
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"Readiness" is the extent to which people have the ability and willingness to accomplish a specific task
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Hersey and Blanchard's Situational Theory: paternal model
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-As the child matures, the adult releases more and more control over the situation -As the workers become more ready, the leader becomes more laissez-faire
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Hersey and Blanchard's Situational Theory: 4 leadership behaviors
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1. Telling (high task, low relationship) 2. Selling (high task, high relationship) 3. Participating (low task, high relationship) 4. Delegating (low task, low relationship)
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when is hersey and blanchard's situational theory most commonly used?
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in corporate training.
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Hersey and Blanchard's Situational Theory: Telling
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follower: unable and unwilling Leader: defines roles and tells people what, how, when, where to do the various tasks
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Hersey and Blanchard's Situational Theory: Selling
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follower: unable but willing leader: provides both directive and supportive behavior
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Hersey and Blanchard's Situational Theory: Participating
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follower: able but unwilling leader: leader and followers share in decision making
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Hersey and Blanchard's Situational Theory: Delegating
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follower: both able and willing leader: a laissez-faire approach will work laissez-faire: the policy of leaving things to take their own course, without interfering
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path goal theory
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-leader behavior --> situational factors --> employee outcomes -determine the outcomes employees want (good pay, job security, interesting work, and autonomy to do one's job, etc.) -4 leadership styles -concerned with two primary classes of situational factors: employee characteristics and environmental factors
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path-goal leadership styles
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-directive -supportive -participative -achievement oriented
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path-goal leadership styles: directive
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Informs subordinates of expectations, gives guidance - Leads to greater satisfaction when tasks are ambiguous or stressful than when they are highly structured and well laid out; - Is likely to be perceived as redundant among employees with high perceived ability or with considerable experience (research dimension is high or low "perceived ability," not a measure of actual high or low ability). - Leads to higher employee satisfaction when there is substantive conflict within a work group. - Will lead to greater satisfaction when employees have an external locus of control.
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path-goal leadership styles: supportive
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Friendly and approachable, shows concern for status, well-being, and needs of subordinates. - Results in high employee performance and satisfaction when employees are performing structured tasks. - Is needed when there are clear and bureaucratic formal authority relationships.
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path-goal leadership styles: participative
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Consults with subordinates, solicits suggestions, takes suggestions into consideration. -Will lead to greater satisfaction when employees have an internal locus of control (they believe they control their own destiny).
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path-goal leadership styles: achievement oriented
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Sets challenging goals, expects subordinates to perform at highest level, continuously seeks improvement in performance, has confidence in highest motivations of employees -Is effective when tasks are ambiguously structured.
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the path-goal theory: employee characteristics
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Different types of employees need or prefer different forms of leadership: -High need for achievers work well under achievement-oriented leadership. -Employees who prefer to be told what do do respond best to directive leadership. -When employees have low task abilities, they will appreciate directive leadership.
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the path-goal theory: environmental factors
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The effectiveness of leadership behaviour depends on the particular work environment: -When tasks are clear and routine, directive leadership is redundant and unnecessary. -When tasks are challenging but ambiguous, directive and participative leadership is effective. -When a job is frustrating or dissatisfying, supportive leadership is most effective.
