Leadership is a crucial aspect within an organization, regardless if it applies in the professional front or simple community associations. If an effective leader leads an organization, then the members become successful in the sense that they perform well according to expectations of the project. However, if a team is led by a leader who does not think about his subordinates and is the type who gives orders instead of leading the group to the right direction, then the team will perform worse than they actually can. A leader’s work and management style plays a huge role in making the leadership position effective.
Certain personality traits make some people better suited for the role of the leader. While some people lead by giving commands to their subordinates, some leaders opt for a different method which encourages the participation and involvement of the team members in goals setting and decision making. This management style is called participative leadership, which considers the input of employees in consideration before coming up with the final decision (Cherry). The involvement of the team members in the decision making process makes it a useful management method in the business scenario. Since there is involvement and contribution from team members, the more the employees exhibit commitment to the company’s goals when they feel they are considered as important members of the group.
In a participative leadership environment, “people are less competitive and more collaborative when they are working on joint goals” (“Participative Leadership”). Instead of feeling threatened by another individual’s efforts, employees become more proactive, open, and supportive of the company’s initiatives. However, although there is employee participation in the decision making process, the manager still has the option to bestow or refuse involvement to the team. This means that the manager still has the decision on the level of influence employees are given. Thus, despite the involvement of employees in all aspects of the managerial process, the manager or the leader still has the responsibility of making the final decision.
An example where participative leadership method proves to be a success is when a company takes on outsourced IT projects. All team leaders involved in the research and development group are involved in the planning, execution, testing, and completion stages to ensure that everyone are on the same level of understanding when it comes to commitments the department will provide the client. A project manager initiates the team meetings by discussing the project, including the budget issues. Team members such as the software developers, quality assurance and testers, software engineers, usability, and technical writers, among others, are encouraged to share their ideas and thoughts about the project. After a couple of brainstorming sessions, the project manager comes up with a draft of the proposal for the client. When the client approves, individual assignments and deliverables are assigned to the teams and they all begin working towards the success of the project. Because employees are kept in the loop when it comes to completion of the project, everyone involved in the project shows enthusiasm and commitment to their project roles and responsibilities. In this case, both the manager and the team members become successful as the group achieves its targets, project is implemented successfully, and members attain their own individual goals.
In my case, I am a volunteer member of the anti-drugs crusade for the youths in our community. As a member, I see that our leaders are effective in handling the organization’s members, activities, and funds, among others. What makes them effective is how they are able to explain the goals, mission, and vision of the organization and keep the level of interest, awareness, and commitment of members high. As a result, I can say that changing this strategy is not an option I would recommend to our leaders. This is because our organizational leaders employ the participative leadership style which makes everyone in the group feel significant, thus, increasing the members’ self-worth. In addition, members do not feel that leaders are wielding power over other members because of how they (the leaders) are able to influence the members’ actions by improving the morale of the individuals. In turn, this encourages a team atmosphere whereby everyone is able to share their ideas and discuss conflicts openly. As a result, this leadership style encourages innovative thinking and creativity in members as we recognize that our feedback and ideas are important, appreciated, and put into action. Because we feel empowered, the more we buy into new ideas and innovations that leaders introduce to the organization.
On the other hand, not all organizations and members are fortunate to experience the same treatment from their company leaders. Some employees are turning into cynics as they try to determine the real motives of management. Thus, what managers must understand is how to change their leadership approach to keep employees motivated, loyal, and satisfied with their work environment. This is where becoming a transformational leader can help tremendously in re-establishing employee trust without sacrificing ethics, values, and principles.
Caldwell et al. (2012, p. 176) defines transformative leadership as "an ethically based leadership model that integrates a commitment to values and outcomes by optimizing the long-term interests of stakeholders and society and honoring the moral duties owed by organizations to their stakeholders." In other words, transformational leadership is a technique that aids people adjust their perspectives about change itself. It makes people accept the notion of wanting “to improve and to be led" (Hall et al., 2012). It integrates the idea of servant leadership (Caldwell et al., 2012, p. 180), which is about committing to the welfare of others above self. To do this, a transformational leader evaluates the stakeholders' motivations, indulge their needs, and show importance to these stakeholders. In this leadership style, the focus is placed more on the followers than on the leaders. On the other hand, transactional leadership emphasizes on the role of supervisors and group performance in order to determine the success of an endeavor. Often, this method is used in business environments where leaders and employees are rewarded for projects completed successfully, and are chastised for failures in the project (Cherry). Of these two methods, transformational leadership is what will be a more efficient method to apply in our organization because as it shares almost the same concepts and values as participative leadership. Applying transactional leadership to our organization will not prove to be successful because we all work voluntarily for the youths, thus, we do not need a rewards system to help others.
An effective organization leader helps in empowering his or her followers to make decisions that benefits the organization, has high moral values, listens to opinions of others with the aim of coming up with an solution, is a visionary, sets a good example when it comes to initiation and implementation of changes, and ensures that everyone in the organization contribute to the betterment of the organization, and subsequently, the individual’s own personal improvement (Hall et al., 2012).
In our organization, the leaders present the organizations goals, mission, and vision, and ensure that each one has a good understanding of what these means and how it will affect the organization, the community, the youths, and the individual himself. Leaders employ the participative leadership style and encourage everyone to share their knowledge and experiences when coming up with projects and solutions to problems. Members are usually divided into groups that focus on different demographics to help the organization come up with a clearer picture of how to provide assistance to youths and the members of the organization.
If I were to change anything in the organization, I would encourage more socialization activities for the members so that they also develop deeper relationships among other volunteers. While the organization’s management is successful in keeping the youths out of the streets or doing drugs, members who deal with drug addicted youths bear the burden of listening, rehabilitating, and encouraging the youths to lead a drug-free life, which could be emotionally and mentally draining for the volunteers.
References
Caldwell, C., Dixon, R. D., Floyd, L. A., Chaudoin, J., Post, J., and Cheokas, G. (2012). Transformative leadership: Achieving unparalleled success. Journal of Business Ethics. 109(2): 175-187
Cherry, Kendra. (n.d.). Leadership theories: The 8 major leadership theories. About.com. Retrieved from http://psychology.about.com/od/leadership/p/leadtheories.htm
Hall, J., Johnson, S., Wysocki, A., and Kepner, K. (2012). Transformational leadership: The transformation of managers and associate. EDIS. Retrieved from http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hr020
“Participative leadership.” (n.d.). ChangingMinds.org. Retrieved from http://changingminds.org/disciplines/leadership/styles/participative_leadership.htm
