Introduction
Executive performance depends on management styles. As such, leadership and management figures in an organization could either be driven by aspiration or inspiration. However, for a business to be successful there is a need for inspiring leadership skills. Inspiration results in leaders that are charismatic and dynamic, where there is a natural connection with the people. Such leaders ensure that their workers are innovative and creative. On the other hand, aspirational leaders may also be charismatic but depend more on market share, size, geographic spread, and influence more than creativity and innovation.
Explain the skills and attributes needed for leadership in your chosen organization.
There are several skills needed by a human resource manager in my organization. Organization is needed as a skill since human resource management requires orderly approaches ranging from file management to proper time management. Multitasking, on the other hand, will be needed to deal with the recruitment processes, intermittent leave requests, and personal issues of the employees. They also require negotiation skills from the different opposing views from employees (Khoshaba, 2006).
Communication skills are also vital for human resource managers since they act as the bridge between the upper management and the extensive pool of employees. Human resource managers also have to be discrete since they are considered to be the conscience of the company due to the confidentiality of the information at their disposal. They must also have a dual focus in order to advocate for employee rights and at the same time enforce the policies from the top management (Knights and Kerfoot, 2004). They must be effective at conflict resolution because not all people get along with each other and productivity requires people to work together civilly. Finally, they must manage the changes that set in their industry.
Explain the difference between leadership and management in your chosen organization.
Good managers do not automatically become good leaders and the reverse also holds. Leaders empower, promote, and influence the behavior of the people who follow them. There are several characteristics that make strong leaders (Becker and Gerhart, 1996). Firstly, they show integrity and honesty in order to have their followers believe and invest in the journey of the leader is taking them. Secondly, they have a vision in that they know where they are positioned and where they would like to end up. They enroll their team into planning a path for the future. Thirdly, they inspire their followers by making sure that they maintain the bigger picture in their minds to execute their roles. Fourthly, they have the ability to change the status quo and are not afraid to do things differently and thinking outside the box. Finally, they have excellent communication skills to keep the team informed of their journey, identity, destination and any challenges and roadblocks they may encounter along the way (Khoshaba, 2006).
On the other hand, managers have people working for them to achieve objectives and goals and at the same time maintain an equilibrium in the workplace. There are several characteristics that make strong managers. Firstly, they are able to execute vision by breaking it down into a map that can be followed by the team members. Secondly, they are able to direct the working efforts and review the needed resources as well as anticipate the needs required along the way for goal execution (Kallio, et al., 2015). Thirdly, they are able to establish working regulations, standards, processes, and operating procedures. Finally, managers are well-focused into looking after their members, their requirements, as well as listening and involving them in most of the management decisions.
Compare two leadership styles that best resolve the two situations.
Transactional and transformational leadership best resolve the two scenarios presented in the question. Transactional leadership is aimed at maintaining the normal flow of operations. The leaders exchange rewards for performance. On the other hand, transformational leadership goes beyond the day-to-day procedures of working to the next level of success and performance. The transformational leaders set goals to push their subordinates to higher and improved performances. They also provide growth opportunities for each and every employee (Jost, 2015). However, both styles of leadership ensure that the management of the groups does not compromise the interest of the company. For the first scenario where the data from human resource reveals consistent lateness of an employee, the best leadership style to use is transformational leadership. The late employee should be engaged at a personal level (Dvir, et al., 2002). The two styles of leadership address the problems that could be resulting in lateness and use charisma and persuasion to ensure that the interest of the company and that of the employee are met. As such, the employee is able to align themselves with the goals of the company.
For the second scenario, transactional leadership is the best approach to address the issues that make the group hit their target. The leadership style ensures that the group is rewarded for its performance (Delaney and Huselid, 1996). Transactional leadership would appeal to the group to have their target as a clear goal and embrace their vision powerfully and with precision.
Motivation techniques for the scenarios
For the two scenarios, there are different motivation techniques that can be put in place. In the first scenario where a worker is consistently late, it is good to verbalize your disappointment to spark the need to become more motivated in showing up early at work. One could also be proactive and show the employee that you are tired, not with them, but with their behavior (Dean and Bowen, 1994). As such, one will not react in anger and the employee will be motivated to change their behavior and restore their reputation. It would also be effective to come up with an action plan to identify the cause of excessive tardiness. In some instances, the employee could have a medical condition. As such, there would be a need to have a flexible work schedule for them and that would consequently motivate them to work extra hard when they are in the workplace. Finally, there is a need to show the employee that their privacy is respected (Brown, 2015). The private and difficult issues should be discussed in private as opposed to confronting them out in the public. The employee would feel a sense of self-worth and make an attempt to change their lateness behavior.
In the second scenario where a group narrowly misses its target, the following motivational techniques would suffice. First, identify what the employees in that group value. As such, the incentives made would match with their desires. For instance, an old group of workers would prefer gift vouchers to a spa while the young members would prefer monthly dinners (Baird and Meshoulam, 1988). Second, it is important to always make public recognition in meetings and also in the office working bays. It is always good to give a positive feedback in order to guide them to reach their targets and goals.
Bibliography
Baird, L. and Meshoulam, I., 1988. Managing two fits of strategic human resource management. Academy of Management review, 13(1), pp.116-128.
Becker, B. and Gerhart, B., 1996. The impact of human resource management on organizational performance: Progress and prospects. Academy of management journal, 39(4), pp.779-801.
Brown, A.D., 2015. Identities and identity work in organizations. International Journal of Management Reviews, 17(1), pp.20-40.
Dean, J.W. and Bowen, D.E., 1994. Management theory and total quality: improving research and practice through theory development. Academy of management review, 19(3), pp.392-418.
Delaney, J.T. and Huselid, M.A., 1996. The impact of human resource management practices on perceptions of organizational performance. Academy of Management journal, 39(4), pp.949-969.
Dvir, T., Eden, D., Avolio, B.J. and Shamir, B., 2002. Impact of transformational leadership on follower development and performance: A field experiment. Academy of management journal, 45(4), pp.735-744.
Jost, P.J., 2014. The Economics of Motivation and Organization: An Introduction. Cheltenham, UK; Northampton, MA: Edward Elgar.
Kallio, K.M., Kallio, T.J., Tienari, J. and Hyvönen, T., 2015. Ethos at stake: Performance management and academic work in universities. Human Relations, 69(3).
Khoshaba, T., 2006. Management of employee performance. Frenchs Forest, N.S.W.: Pearson Education Australia.
Knights, D. and Kerfoot, D., 2004. Between Representations and Subjectivity: Gender Binaries and the Politics of Organizational Transformation. Gender, Work & Organization. 11(4), 430-454.
