Introduction
The differences between the gender in terms of leadership, if such differences exist, has been a topic of immense interest within the field of discipline. This debate has heated up in recent years as women have begun to assume more high level positions of leadership in the leading firms of not only the United Kingdom, but globally as well. With the rise women politicians and the changing landscape of the global business environment, it is now apparent that the differences in leadership styles exhibited between men and women must be focused upon in order to true understanding and progress to be made in the workplace (Ardala, Alberti, J, & Snipes, 2014).
Styles of Leadership
While women now account for a sizeable percentage of the Western work force, they still hold a disproportionate number of leadership positions. This is gradually changing, but previous research in this area has largely centered on the lack of success that women have had in attaining positions of leadership when compared to men of similar education and experience. The research to this point, then, has sought to analyze the extent to which perceive differences in personality and behavior between men and women account for the lower status that the latter tend to have in the corporate environment (Andersen & Hansoon, 2011). The sociological concept of the glass ceiling still exists as a result of these perceived differences, but that barrier is not being broken through.
Reality is that many psychologists support the notion that there is not so much a difference in leadership style between the genders as their a difference in personality. Women, for example, tend to become stronger leaders, similar to that which is represented by men, because of the numerous obstacles that they must overcome to gain positions of leadership. The perception is that men tend to gain their positions of leadership easier than women. As male leaders typically already have a strong personality, the initial inference was that women would not be as effective because they bring a softer approach to the position. This has since been shown to not be true. For a leader to be effective in today’s workplace, there are certain leadership characteristics traits and abilities that contribute to ultimate success (Andersen & Hansoon, 2011). This same traits and characteristics are equally available to be cultivated by both men and women. In many cases, there are conflicting characteristics that can be equally effective, speaking to the truth that there is not one box that every leader can fit inside of.
While the perception is that male leaders tend to be more action oriented and focus on the task at hand, while women are more likely to illustrate to express empathy throughout the organization and be more responsive to needs, this does not necessarily mean that one style is preferable over another. If a leadership style is utilized correctly to gain the respect of the team or organization, then the individual will ultimately have the affinity to be effective.
Conclusion
In essence, there are differences in style between leaders, be they male or female. These inherent differences do speak to the change in personality represented by men and women, but both can equally be effective in today’s workplace. As organizations look for their next leader, it is now recommended that they look at the type of leader that will fit best within the organization itself. Rather than looking at an individual candidate as male or female, human resources should look at the personality of the person, the styles of leadership represented, and then move to determine the best hire based on who can be optimally effective (Ardala, Alberti, J, & Snipes, 2014). To pigeon hole gender differences as always applying to leadership discounts the notion that each individual personality is different and unique, and this applies to leaders as well.
BIBLOGRAPHY
Andersen, A. and Hansoon, P. (2011). At the end of the road? On differences between women and men in leadership behaviour. Leadership and Organization Development Journal, 32(5), 428-441.
Ardala, J., Alberti, J., and Snipes, R. (2014). An examination of the impact of gender on leadership style and employee job satisfaction in the modern workplace. Journal of Organizational Culture and Conflict, 18(2), 141.
