Exclusive vs Inclusive Styles of Leadership

Inclusive leadership enables many people to take part in decision-making, to be part of the process of finding solutions and leading an organization. It is equivalent to a democratization of leadership and in the modern environment it can work very well at producing positive results so long as those taking part in the inclusive process bring quality features -- such as motivation, creativity, innovation, and ability. However, in some cases exclusive leadership still has a place in the modern environment. Exclusive leadership posits the idea that some leadership decisions must be made solely by the leader. The leader can invite suggestions and seek out opinions, but in the end, the say is his. In the modern era, it appears that as a society we are rounding a corner and moving back towards the idea of exclusive leadership. President-Elect Trump won the White House, for instance, by promoting the idea that the country lacked leadership and that he would bring what was lacking. His style of exclusive leadership appeals to followers who want a strong leader who is willing to make informed decisions and see to it that his decisions are implemented effectively.

Exclusive leadership promotes the idea of accountability (the leader is accountable to stakeholders) and responsibility (the leader is responsible for making the right decisions for the whole, the organization). As Zombardo, Breckenridge and Moghaddam (2013) show, this line of thinking is in keeping with the psychology of society that promotes heroism and the concept of the heroic leader -- a concept that exclusive leaders can utilize to foster movement to their cause. In this sense, exclusive leadership does still have a place in modern society because there are still followers and leaders and not everyone wants to be part of the decision-making process. The modern environment has not eliminated the psychological need or desire among followers for a king, a CEO, a leader who is willing to "be the boss" (Dahiru, Pihie, 2016).

References

Dahiru, A., Pihie, Z. (2016). Modelling of entrepreneurial leadership for effectiveness of schools. Middle-East Journal of Scientific Research, 24(4): 1371-1375.

Zambardo, P., Breckenridge, J., Moghaddam, F. (2013). Exclusive and inclusive visions of heroism and democracy. Current Psychology, 32(3): 221-233.

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Respect for diverse cultural preferences and beliefs should be a major factor in the governing style and behavior of the inclusive leader. As Doh and Quigley (2014) note, inclusive leadership that takes into consideration cultural diversity can be a very effective approach especially in cross-cultural situations (for example, in international business dealings). Even in domestic dealings, cross-cultural situations are more and more likely to occur in the 21st century as globalization and migration continue. Thus, it is a major part of being an inclusive leader to consider the diverse ways that culture and beliefs might impact a direction that the organization chooses to take. Knott, Mak and Neill (2013) indicate that cultural awareness helps to produce greater productivity among teams working together.

However, there can come a point at which diversity and culture wield too much influence and yield ambiguity and diminished productivity as a result. This is one reason why exclusive leadership remains very much an actual part of leadership in the modern environment. At the point wherein a decision must be made, culture and diversity must cease to be providers of input and the leader must make a decision based on the facts at hand. As populism and nationalism grow in cultures around the world, leaders could see a benefit in reducing the impact of diversity in the decision-making process as they aim to please their popular support base. Thus, if cultural diversity threatens to undermine the support and stakeholders that benefit from the company, the leader will have to decide whether or not pleasing stakeholders or pleasing the politically correct ideal of cultural diversity and inclusivity is more important.

References

Doh, J., Quigley, N. (2014). Responsible leadership and stakeholder management:

Influence pathways and organizational outcomes. Academy of Management Perspectives, 28(3): 255-274.

Knott, V., Mak, A., Neill, J. (2013). Teaching intercultural competencies in introductory psychology via application of the excellence in cultural experiential learning and leadership model. Australian Journal of Psychology, 65(1): 46-53.