Defining Leadership: A Review of Past, Present, and Future Ideas [PDF]

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DEFINING LEADERSHIP: A REVIEW OF PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE IDEAS Fairholm's Perspectives on Leadership Aligned with the Literature Review



T HE LEADERSHIP CHALLENGE Leadership is not about personality; it’s about behavior—an observable set of skills and abilities. And when we first set out to discover what great leaders actually do when they are at their personal best, we collected thousands of stories from ordinary people—the experiences they recalled when asked to think of a peak leadership experience. Despite differences in culture, gender, age, and other variables, these “Personal Best” stories revealed similar patterns of behavior. In fact, we discovered that when leaders are at their personal best there are five core practices common to all: they Model the Way, Inspire a Shared Vision, Challenge the Process, Enable Others to Act, and last but certainly not least, they Encourage the Heart. Three decades later, The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership® model continues to prove its effectiveness as a clear, evidence-based path to achieving the extraordinary—for individuals, teams, organizations, and communities. It turns the abstract concept of leadership into easy-to-grasp Practices and behaviors that can be taught and learned by anyone willing to step up and accept the challenge to lead. As measured and validated by the Leadership Practices Inventory (LPI)—one



of the most widely used leadership assessment instruments in the world—ongoing studies consistently confirm that The Five Practices and our assessment tools are positively related to both the effectiveness of leaders and the level of commitment, engagement, and satisfaction of those that follow.  Model the Way Leaders establish principles concerning the way people (constituents, peers, colleagues, and customers alike) should be treated and the way goals should be pursued. They create standards of excellence and then set an example for others to follow. Because the prospect of complex change can overwhelm people and stifle action, they set interim goals so that people can achieve small wins as they work toward larger objectives. They unravel bureaucracy when it impedes action; they put up signposts when people are unsure of where to go or how to get there; and they create opportunities for victory.  Inspire a Shared Vision Leaders passionately believe that they can make a difference. They envision the future, creating an ideal and unique image of what the organization can become. Through their magnetism and quiet persuasion, leaders enlist others in their dreams. They breathe life into their visions and get people to see exciting possibilities for the future.  Challenge the Process Leaders search for opportunities to change the status quo. They look for innovative ways to improve the organization. In doing so, they experiment and take risks. And because leaders know that risk taking involves mistakes and failures, they accept the inevitable disappointments as learning opportunities.  Enable Others to Act Leaders foster collaboration and build spirited teams. They actively involve others. Leaders understand that mutual respect is what sustains extraordinary efforts; they strive to create an atmosphere of trust and human dignity. They strengthen others, making each person feel capable and powerful.



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Encourage the Heart Accomplishing extraordinary things in organizations is hard work. To keep hope and determination alive, leaders recognize



A PROCESS FOR CHANGING ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE Definition of Organizational Culture Culture is a potential predictor of other organizational outcomes (e.g., effectiveness) in the former perspective, whereas in the latter perspective it is a concept to be explained independent of any other phenomenon. Measuring Organizational Culture through Competing Values The Competing Values Framework has proven to be a helpful framework for assessing and profiling the dominant cultures of organizations because it helps individuals identify the underlying cultural dynamics that exist in their organizations. Culture Types  The clan culture, is typified as a friendly place to work where people share a lot of themselves.  adhocracy culture. It is characterized as a dynamic, entrepreneurial, and creative workplace.  A market culture in the lower right quadrant is a results-oriented workplace. Leaders are hard-driving producers, directors, and competitors.  hierarchy culture, is characterized as a formalized and structured place to work. Procedures and well-defined processes govern what people do. Profiling Organizational Culture The manner in which organizational culture is described and experienced by individuals, in other words, is congruent with the dimensions of the competing values framework. The key to assessing organizational culture, therefore, is to identify aspects of the organization that reflect its key values and assumptions and then give individuals an opportunity to respond to these cues. A Process for Changing Organizational Culture 1. Clarifying meaning. 2. Identifying stories. 3. Determining strategic initiatives.



contributions that individuals make. In every winning team, the members need to share in the rewards of their efforts, so leaders celebrate accomplishments. They make people feel like heroes. 4. Identifying small wins. 5. Craft metrics, measures, and milestones. 6. Communication and symbols. 7. Leadership development. The organization implemented activities such as the following to help ensure that sufficient bench strength existed in their leadership ranks to lead the transformed organizational culture: 1. on-going 360 feedback processes with sponsorship and coaching 2. formal mentoring by (mainly) senior executives 3. management development and training programs 4. assigned reading material outside the normal work-related material 5. attendance at professional conferences each year 6. a formalized support group for high potential leaders 7. developmental and stretch assignments at work 8. non-work service opportunities aimed at giving back to the community.



WHAT IS AN ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE Culture is a unique characteristic of any organization. While the phenomenon of organizational culture is difficult to define succinctly, understanding it can help a manager predict how his or her organization is likely to respond to different situations; to assess the difficulties that the organization might experience as it confronts a changing future; and to identify the priority issues for the leadership to address as they prepare the organization to compete for the future. Culture is the result of common learning experiences. The Antecedents of Culture Essentially, there was a time in every organization’s history when its members first encountered a problem or a challenge that they needed to resolve. Culture as a Tool of the General Manager Strong culture is one of the most powerful tools that a skilled manager can wield. As his or her organization grows, it soon becomes impossible for the general manager personally to be involved in every important decision, such as who to hire or promote, when to kill an ageing product line, or whether to bid or not bid on a particular order. Culture, Capabilities and Disabilities The general manager’s dilemma is that while culture is a powerful tool for consistently pursuing a particular set of goals, culture can constitute a disability at times when change is critical to addressing new competitive or technological challenges from unexpected directions. When Understanding an Organization’s Culture Is Particularly Important Schein discusses four specific instances in which it is extremely important for a manager to understand an organization’s culture in a rigorous, detailed way. These include: 1) when he or she first joins a new organization as a manager; 2) when one company acquires another; 3) when the manager is coordinating the efforts of different functional groups within his or her organization; and 4) when the manager is confronting the need to fundamentally change the company’s strategic direction, and by implication, its culture. What to Look for When Joining a Different Company



When encountering a new culture, its visible manifestations have a powerful impact on the observer. New managers should especially be careful to observe when such tone or behavior is actually “purposive and patterned.” Evaluating Culture in Mergers and Acquisitions When one company decides to acquire another, it typically pays a substantial premium over the book value. With this premium price, the acquiring firm is purchasing three classes of factors that historically have contributed to the acquired company’s historical performance: its resources, its processes, and its business model, with the priorities embedded therein. The resources including people, technology, products, facilities and equipment, information, cash, brands, and relationships with customers, distributors and suppliers are the easiest to observe



and evaluate. But much of what has driven the acquired organization’s historical performance its capabilities and disabilities historically has resulted from its processes and decision making criteria. The Role of Cultural Differences in Managing Cross-Functional Processes Often there are several cultures operating within the larger organization. There can be managerial culture, nationality- or geography-based culture, occupationally-based culture, functional unit culture and business unit culture. When Strategic and Cultural Change are Required Schein’s research has important implications for managers who confront the challenge of fundamental strategic and organizational change.