¶ … leadership style is one of the most important factors that determine cross functional teams' success. Research and practice in the field have revealed several types of leadership theories, such as trait, behavioral, situational contingency, participative, transactional, and transformational theories. Each of these leadership theories introduces several types of leadership styles, amongst which the most frequently met in private and public organizations are autocratic or authoritative leadership, democratic or participative styles, transformational leadership, and others (Ricketts, 2011). It is difficult to determine which of these leadership styles is the most efficient, as the need for a certain style depends on each situation. The table below compares and contrasts three key variables found in these theories. Table 1. Leadership Theories Analysis

Key variable / theory

Trait theories

Behavioral theories

Situational contingency theories

Participative theories

Transactional theories

Transformational theories

Characteristics of leader

Cognitive abilities, social intelligence

Informing, clarifying, monitoring

Flexibility

Democratic

Task oriented

People oriented

Relationship with followers

Motivational

Motivating, recognizing, rewarding

Clarifying

Involves followers in different processes

Rewarding

Team building, motivating, cooperating

Decision making style

Problem solving

Planning, organizing, delegating

Problem solving

Delegating

Strategic thinking

Participative

Information source: Fleenor, J. (2006), Derue, S.et al. (2011), Seyranian, V. (2009).

In order to compare and contrast leadership theories, the selected key variables are: characteristics of the leader, because they dictate the leadership style, leaders' relationship with followers, because the success of each style depends on how this relationship develops, and leaders' decision making style because it is important to identify the styles in which leaders prefer a centralized decision making process, and those that require the participation of their followers (Coutts, 2011). These are key variables that determine the leadership style, and followers' response to it. However, there are numerous variables that can be analyzed in accordance with the studied context or situation in order to determine differences between leadership styles.

In order to exemplify the analysis presented in the table, the transformational leadership style is selected. The situation is represented by a cross functional team charged with improving service to key customers. The leadership style of the team's leader will be analyzed based on a process that has the following steps: identifying the necessities of the team's key customers, identifying the needs of team members, analyzing the leadership style in relationship with the activity of improving customer service.

Identification of key customers' necessities

This is an important step in the analysis process because it allows us to determine the direction towards which the leader's activities must be oriented. There are situations that require a task orientation and situations that require people orientation. Identifying customers' needs is mostly a task oriented activity. This is not something that a transformational leader excels at. However, there are several characteristics that allow a successful transformational leader to manage this situation as efficiently as a transactional leader, which is usually task oriented.

The transformational leader does not necessarily plan and organize this activity. He sets the goals and objectives that must be reached by his team. The leader establishes the strategic direction required in order to improve key customer service (Hall et al., 2013). The participative nature of this type of leader invites his team members to develop solutions that can be used in reaching the established objectives (Ingram, 2014). Although transformational leaders do not necessarily delegate most of their decision making process, they focus on a participative process where team members are encouraged to participate with ideas.

Identification of team member needs

This is another important step of the leadership analysis process. This is because in order to determine how transformational leaders develop strong relationship with their employees, it is important to determine what their needs are and whether the leader is able to satisfy them. This is in strong relationship with the "relationship with followers" key variable. The type of relationship established between the leader and his followers and how the leader manages this relationship determines employees' satisfaction level. Employee satisfaction is an important issue that determines companies' success.

In this case, this is a cross functional team. Cross functional teams are groups of people from different departments working together in order to reach certain objectives (Business Dictionary, 2014). The important issue that must be addressed in such cases is represented by the fact that the different professions of team members do not facilitate the communication process. In other words, team members do not speak the same language (Mind Tools, 2014). This is one of the areas where the importance of leadership can be easily observed.

The transformational leader can play the role of an interpreter...

Transformational leaders have an advantage in such situations because they are people oriented, and this makes it easier for them to develop team unity and to balance power within the team. In a cross functional team, it is more likely that the leader must organize and plan more in comparison with regular teams.
There are numerous skills of transformational leaders that can help develop successful cross functional teams. The fact that this type of leadership is strongly focused on team building helps team members feel more comfortable with each other (Burns, 2012). The level of comfort and communication between team members significantly influences their performance.

In addition to this, transformational leaders are great motivators. In order to efficiently motivate team members, it is important that the leader identifies their needs and preferences. The social skills that characterize transformational leaders allow them to identify these needs and to use them in order to motivate team members.

Analysis of the leadership style in relationship with the situation

The situation in this case is represented by improving key customer service with the help of a cross functional team. In this case, the people orientation of the leader helps him motivate his team in order to identify the areas that must be improved (Hacker & Roberts, 2003). Transformational leaders are characterized by an increased level of trust in their followers. Therefore, the leader allows team members the freedom of identifying the customer service areas that must be improved. The leader uses a decentralized decision making process that is intended to encourage team members to participate with feedback and ideas to the process (Lussier & Achua, 2010). This significantly increases team members' self-confidence, but also their confidence in colleagues' skills, because they are acknowledged by the leader. This type of leadership also focuses on delegating some of the decisions that must be made.

Conclusions

Some of the most important key variables that can be analyzed in relationship with different leadership styles and theories are leaders' characteristics, their relationship with followers, and the decision making style. These are some of the most important factors that determine the leadership style and its application in accordance with different situations. It is important to identify hoe the leadership style influences productivity.

Reference list:

1. Coutts, L. (2011). Leadership in Organizations: Concepts and Theories. Epsi inc. Retrieved January 19, 2014 from http://blog.epsi-inc.com/2012/04/20/leadership-in-organizations-concepts-and-theories-2/.

2. Ingram, D. (2014). Transformational Leadership vs. Transactional Leadership Definition. Hearst Communication. Retrieved January 19, 2014 from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/transformational-leadership-vs.-transactional-leadership-definition-13834.html.

3. Managing Cross Functional Teams (2014). Mind Tools. Retrieved January 19, 2014 from http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTMM_30.htm.

4. Cross-Functional Team (2014). Business Dictionary. Retrieved January 19, 2014 from http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/cross-functional-team.html.

5. Hall, J. et al. (2013). Transformational Leadership: The Transformation of Managers and Associates. University of Florida. Retrieved January 19, 2014 from

6"

http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hr020.

6

. Loussier, R. & Achua, C. (2010). Leadership: Theory, Application and Skill Development. Cengage Learning. Retrieved January 19, 2014 from http://books.google.ro/books?id=7ctnVNMtBQgC&pg=PA176&dq=leadership+theories+key+variables&hl=ro&sa=X&ei=Yf3bUoKqPIm2yAOV0ICABQ&ved=0CDkQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=leadership%20theories%20key%20variables&f=false.

7. Hacker, S. & Roberts, T. (2003). Transformational Leadership: Creating Organizations of Meaning. American Society for Quality. Retrieved January 19, 2014 from http://books.google.ro/books?id=soFmhalpRv4C&printsec=frontcover&dq=transformational+leadership&hl=ro&sa=X&ei=2CLcUqGtCoXuygONl4DACA&ved=0CFYQ6AEwBQ#v=onepage&q=transformational%20leadership&f=false.

8. Burns, J. (2012). Leadership. Retrieved January 19, 2014 from http://books.google.ro/books?id=lhrPS_s7EawC&printsec=frontcover&dq=leadership&hl=ro&sa=X&ei=dyTcUuWNJsWKywPy14HYCw&ved=0CDcQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q=leadership&f=false.

9. Ricketts, C. (2011). Leadership: Personal Development and Career Success. Cengage Learning. Retrieved January 19, 2014 from http://books.google.ro/books?id=jzxCmMzZS6gC&printsec=frontcover&dq=leadership&hl=ro&sa=X&ei=AyXcUqyQGebqywPW6YKQCA&ved=0CGgQ6AEwBw#v=onepage&q=leadership&f=false.

10. Fleenor, J. (2006). Trait Approach to Leadership. Encyclopedia of Industrial and Organizational Psychology. Retrieved January 19, 2014 from

11"

http://www.sagepub.com/northouseintro2e/study/chapter/encyclopedia/encyclopedia2.1.pdf.

11

. Derue, S.et al. (2011). Trait and Behavioral Leadership Theories. Personnel Psychology. Retrieved January 19, 2014 from http://php.scripts.psu.edu/faculty/s/e/seh25/DeRueNahrgangWellmanHumphrey2011.pdf.

12. Seyranian, V. (2009). Contingency Theories of Leadership. Encyclopedia of Group Processes and Intergroup Relations. Retrieved January 19, 2014 from http://www.sagepub.com/northouse6e/study/materials/reference/reference6.1.pdf.