Effective manager leadership profiles

Leadership Profiles/Effective Manager

In the recent years there has been a strong necessity of new managers geared for the needs of the new economy who demonstrate more leadership skills because it is observed that failing organizations are normally 'over-managed' & 'under-led'. The classic managerial work can be compartmentalized as one of "planning, organizing the hierarchy and measuring & controlling" whereas the New Leadership Task consists of (i) "Creating vision and empowering (ii) Aligning the network of relations (iii) Inspiring & coaching." (Leadership vs. Management) The management role is more operational, supervising numerous minute aspects and keeping involved in complex relations, which are daily components of any development work. Leadership on the other hand is providing motivation, creating opportunities, energizing people and making key choices. Therefore the need of the hour is maintaining synergy between the leadership and management responsibilities as the world has a lot of managers and alarming shortage of leaders - real leaders. (Leadership vs. Management)

However, for an organization, there is need for both i.e., managing and leading because "leadership is doing the right things and management is doing things right." (Leadership vs. Management) Both are needed for efficient growth of the organization as leadership risk creates opportunities whereas management strictness converts them into tangible results. To take an example from the legendary Jack Welch, whose goal was to transform GE into the most competitive company of the world through a self-proclaimed revolution by making a turnaround from the obsolete manner of performance and totally reinventing the company. Welch is everything about leadership and not management. In fact he wished to abolish the word 'manager' totally as over the years its meaning has been narrowed down as someone who controls instead of being a facilitator, increases intricacy rather than untangling the situation, acts more like a governor rather than an accelerator. The difference between managers and leaders are that managers communicate amongst themselves, while leaders talk to their employees, permeating them with vision, empowering them to perform at intensities the employees themselves didn't think was achievable. (Leadership vs. Management)

The foremost job of a leader is creation of a vision- observed by Robert L. Swiggett, erstwhile chair of Kollmorgen Corporation. Vision is the leader's ambition for the organization which is the mental image of a probable and desirable future state of the enterprise. The best visions are not only ideal but also unique. In case, a vision conveys an ideal, it communicates a benchmark of excellence and a clear choice of positive values. If the vision in its turn is also unique, it conveys and stirs pride in being exclusive from other organizations. (Leadership Chaper12)

If vision guides the employees from within, another new paradigm 'Results-based leadership' displays the effectiveness of leadership which put a continuous importance of results. Hence effective leadership is attributes multiplied by results. This importance on results stems from the fact that in majority of literature on leadership there is absence of attention towards results. Majority of them concentrate on organizational capabilities like flexibility, mission-aimed or value-based or on leadership competencies like character, trust and competencies and potential. Through helping leaders at every level achieve results, results-based leadership liberates efficiency from limitation of hierarchy and the restrictions of position. Results-based leaders describe results by understanding the needs of the customers. Result-based leadership makes performance management simpler. In the absence of focus on results, leadership measurement becomes hard. Through measurement of results, organizations are helped in several ways ranging from charting growth of leaders and comparing efficacies of leadership in identical roles. (Results- Based Leadership)