Chapter 12 Tuesday March 31 2015 2 22 PM What is leadership 1 Leadership the ability to influence a group toward the achievement of a vision or set of goals The source of this influence may be formal provided by managerial rank in an org Not all leaders are managers Nonsanctioned leadership the ability to influence that arises outside the formal structure of the org Orgs need strong leadership and strong management for optimal effectiveness Leaders who can challenge the status quo create visions of the future and inspire org members to want to achieve the visions Trait Theories Trait theories of leadership theories that consider personal qualities and characteristics that differentiate leaders from non leaders Extraversion is the most important trait of effective leaders but is more strongly related to the way leaders emerge than to their effectiveness Conscientiousness and openness to experience also showed strong relationships to leadership BUT not as strong as extraversion The Big Five can predict leadership Traits do a better job predicting the emergence of leaders and the appearance of leadership than distinguishing between effective and ineffective leaders Behavioral Theories Behavioral theories of leadership theories proposing that specific behaviors differentiate leaders from nonleaders Initiating structure and consideration are most accounted for leadership behavior Initiating structure the extent to which a leader is likely to define and structure his or her role and those of employees in the search for goal attainment Includes behavior that attempts to organize work work relationships and goals Assigns groups members to particular groups Expects workers to maintain definite standards of performance Emphasizes the meeting of deadlines Consideration the extent to which a person s job relationships are characterized by mutual trust respect for employees ideas and regard for their feelings Helps employees with personal problems Friendly and approachable Treats all employees as equals Expresses appreciation and support Employee oriented leader a leader who emphasizes interpersonal relationships takes a personal interest in the needs of employees and accepts individual differences among members similar to initiating structure Production oriented leader a leader who emphasizes the technical or task aspects of the job focusing on accomplishing the group s tasks similar to considerations Contingency Theories The Fiedler Model a model that proposes that effective group performance depends on the proper match between the leader s style and the degree to which the situation gives the leader control Identifying Leadership Style Least preferred co worker LPC questionnaire a questionnaire that identifies the style by measuring whether a person is task or relationship oriented High LPC score relationship oriented Low LPC score interested in productivity and are task oriented Fiedler assumed an individual s leadership style is fixed Ie if a situation requires a task oriented leader and the Org Behavioral Page 1 Fiedler assumed an individual s leadership style is fixed Ie if a situation requires a task oriented leader and the person in the leadership position is relationship oriented either the situation has to be modified or the leader has to be replaced to achieve optimal effectiveness Defining the Situation Fiedler identified 3 contingency or situational dimensions Leader member relations the degree of confidence trust and respect members have in their leader Task structure the degree to which the job assignments are procedurized structured or unstructured Position power the degree of influence a leader has over power variables such as hiring firing discipline promotions and salary increases A very favorable situation in which the leader has a great deal of control might include a payroll manager who is well respected and whose employees have confidence in her goo leader member relations activities that are clear and specific such as wage computation check writing and report filing high task structure Matching Leaders and Situations Task oriented leaders perform better in categories I II III VII or VIII can work better in situations of high and low control Relationship oriented leaders perform better in categories IV V and VI perform best in moderate control situations 2 ways to improve individual leader effectiveness Change the leader to fit the situation Change the situation to fit the leader by restructuring tasks or increasing or decreasing the leader s power to control factors such as salary increases promotions and disciplinary actions Evaluations The LPC questionnaire is not well understood Respondents scores are not stable Contingency variables are complex and difficult for practitioners to assess Other Contingency Theories Situational Leadership Theory SLT focuses on followers readiness Successful leadership depends on selecting the right leadership style contingent on the followers readiness The extent to which they are willing and able to accomplish a specific task Acknowledges the importance of followers and builds on the logic that leaders can compensate for their limited Org Behavioral Page 2 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 1 2 3 Acknowledges the importance of followers and builds on the logic that leaders can compensate for their limited ability and motivation Path Goal Theory The theory that states that it is the leader s job to assist followers in attaining their goals and to provide the necessary direction and or support to ensure that their goals are compatible with the overall objectives of the group or org The leader should be directive or supportive or should demonstrate some other behavior depends on complex analysis of the situation Directive leadership yields greater satisfaction when tasks are ambiguous or stressful than when they are highly structured and well laid Supportive leadership results in high performance and satisfaction when employees are performing structured tasks Directive leadership is likely to be perceived as redundant among employees with high ability or considerable experience Leader Participant model A leadership theory that provides a set of rules to determine the form and amount of participative decision making in different situations The leader behavior must adjust to reflect the task structure Leader Member Exchange LMX Leader member exchange LMX theory a theory that supports leaders creation of in groups and out groups subordinates with in group