Leadership Styles

Introduction
Leadership is one of the most important needs in any organization. Leaders provide guidance, support, vision, direction, decision-making, and accountability. They inspire workers and help to motivate them by fulfilling their needs and incentivizing them whenever possible (Gerhart & Fang, 2013). However, as there are all different styles of leadership that can be employed, it is important to understand the different options and approaches that may be utilized as well as the circumstances under which they are most likely to be most effective. This paper will define and describe four styles of leadership, discuss how they would apply in four different case studies, and finally identify which leadership style best fits my own personal style of leadership.
Transformational Leadership
Description
Transformational leadership focuses on motivating people to embrace change by inspiring them with a vision, explaining the purpose or need for the change in a logical manner, and providing the workers with the support they need to buy in to the change and make it a reality (Nawaz & Khan, 2016; Warrick, 2011). Transformational leaders have to be able to communicate well, connect with people, and—most importantly—articulate the vision required for the change in an ordered and logical way so that it appeals to rationally-minded workers.
Case Study
Advice for Harold
From a transformational leadership perspective, Harold needs to be more engaged with his workers in terms of opening up a two-way flow of communication. When he first arrived, he started making top-down changes without first obtaining feedback from his workers. As Kotter (2012) shows, it is essential that for a transformational leader feedback be obtained from workers before any big changes are made: that way the leader knows what the workers need and the workers feel empowered and that they have a stake in the decision-making process because they have been asked for their input.
A Clear Vision
Harold had a clear vision but he was not able to implement it effectively because he never received complete buy in from the workers and never really supported the workers enough for the vision to be embraced by one and all. Pockets of resistance developed in the form of suspicion and mistrust towards Harold. The workers failed to understand him: he drove a foreign car yet worked for an American car manufacturer. This sent mixed signals, which served to muddy his vision. To say one thing but do another is to communicate poorly. A clear vision has to be communicated in words as well as actions (Kotter, 2002).
Effective at Change?
To be effective as a social architect and change agent, one has to have a degree of social and emotional intelligence (George, 2000). Harold lacked this and did not demonstrate any sense of being able to read or understand or sympathize with his workers. This in turn led to a gap between them and him, which did not facilitate the change management process. In order to be more effective at change, Harold should have developed and used more social and emotional intelligence skills to help communicate his vision, promote buy in, and motivate his workers.
Strengths
The strengths of this style are that allows the leader to be himself and to use his special talents and skills to tap into what people need around him (Kotter, 2002). The leader using this style can assess for himself what the workers require and then set about giving that in a manner that he is best suited for. The transformational leadership style embraces the idea that a certain amount of character and charisma is required of the leader in order for this style to be effective—and for leaders who have both character and charisma it can be tremendously effective (Northouse, 2018).
Limitations
This style of leadership is rather general in terms of how it is taught. It does not provide a clear or strict set of guidelines on what a leader should do, as in a set of steps like what can be found in Kotter’s 8-step model of change management (Kotter, 2002). Thus, it is fairly open-ended, which can viewed as a limitation for leaders who need a bit of guidance in order to fulfill their duties.
Authentic Leadership
Description
Authentic leadership is based on the idea that transparency and trust promote positive relationships between leaders and followers and that if a leader shows that he is acting morally and ethically in an open and honest manner, he will earn the respect of followers and they will imitate his genuine approach to honest work (Boekhorst, 2015). As Northouse (2015) notes, authentic leadership is helpful for building trust in a company. When it comes time to motivate workers, the genuine example of a good and moral leader will do just that. Authentic leaders generally present themselves as are, without trying to fake like they are anything other than what they know themselves to be.
Case Study
The Role of Self-Awareness
For Sally, self-awareness was the bedrock of her story of leadership. By accepting herself as she was, she was able to become the person she wanted to be—a writer. Before accepting herself, she struggled to see herself as anything. But recognizing the fact that she did want the free lifestyle of a writer allowed her to take chances and go where the winds of change blew her. By living this life she found some truths that others needed to hear and was able to relay them, and for that she was recognized as a leader with something genuine to offer.
Sally’s Authenticity
The authenticity of sally’s leadership could be described as her ability to sit back and observe, see and reflect on what she had experienced. She added nothing to what she saw but simply reflected everything she took in. Her writing was a mirror image of what she observed. By being fair, honest, and accurate she earned both confidence for herself and high praise from others when her book become a success. Everyone wanted more insight and sought her out for advice because they could tell that with her they were getting an honest person. Thus, her authenticity style of leadership was one in which all she had to do was tell the truth and people appreciated her for it.
The Mantle of Leadership
Sally took on the mantle of leadership at the end of the case study and this description was important for her leadership because it was like taking on the passing of the torch. She would now be the one to light the one for others, to draw their attention to certain things, to show them what they were missing. She took on the mantle because she had been there, had done that, had experienced what others had not, had been the fly on the wall in rooms others would never see. She could tell and she did tell what needed to be told. Thus, she took on the mantle of leadership, which was important for her as a leader to do. It is important for every leader to take on this mantle as it marks them formally as a leader (Northouse, 2018).
Strengths
The strengths of this leadership style are that it promotes honesty, integrity, openness and transparency in the workplace. The more authentic a leader is shown to be, the more moral the workplace culture is likely to be (Northouse, 2015). Thus, this leadership style is great for building a solid workplace environment. It is also good for the leader who seeks to be as true to himself as possible and who believes that by being true to oneself one cannot go wrong by others.
Limitations
The limitations of this style are that it is hard to measure its actual positive psychological effect and that its moral component is not clearly defined. For a leader to engage in authentic leadership he has to bring with him a sense of morality and what it means to be open and ethical. The style itself does not provide a guide on how to do this or what psychological outcomes to expect (Northouse, 2015).
Servant Leadership
Description
Servant leadership is about being altruistic and putting the needs of others before oneself. If one is going to be a servant leader it means that one is putting oneself at the service of one’s followers. As De Vries (1998) shows, servant leaders tend to get out of the way so that the workers they hire can do their jobs. Their focus is on making sure their followers have everything they need to succeed and then trusting that they will go out there and perform accordingly.
Case Study
The Servant Leader Behaviors of Mrs. Noble
Mrs. Noble demonstrated several servant leadership behaviors: she picked up the student’s homework and delivered it to teachers when the student was in a car wreck; she donated to the cancer drive for each student; she helped students apply for college and could always answer their questions; she helped students who struggled with the dress code and never judged them; she was always putting the student body first and basically disappeared as a person so that the school could be the most important thing in her life. Through her service and dedication to the school she became a leader and role model for others.
Mrs. Noble’s Followers
The followers of Mrs. Noble were all the students of Essex High School. They may not have realized it even then but they all turned to her for answers, for support, for guidance, and for whatever kind of assistance they needed. She was the one who genuinely made the school function. Without her, the school would not have had a soul. She supplied that soul, the heart, and even the mind: she was the real school spirit that animated the place and gave the students someone to turn to.
Outcomes
Mrs. Noble was able to empower her students and that is one of the most important outcomes that a servant leader can hope to achieve. By supporting them and nurturing them and fulfilling their needs, the servant leader ultimately aims to get the followers to a point where they can become self-actualized. Mrs. Noble did this by making sure they all went on to college and were able to thus succeed in life. By doing this, she achieved the greatest outcome of the servant leader model.
Someone like Mrs. Noble
In my old workplace, there was a manager who truly put all the workers’ needs first even though he had his own duties and tasks. This manager understood that he was in a position where the workers would look to him for help, and he was always willing to provide that help even if it meant he would have to stay later to finish his job. For him the job did not have a clock. He worked because work was needed and he dedicated himself to the work and that showed to everyone else. We all appreciated his sacrifice—and that is what servant leadership essentially is: the sacrifice of the self so that others can have their needs met.
Strengths
The main strength of servant leadership is that it promotes a moral and ethical workplace culture where altruism can flourish. It fosters charity, kindness, appreciation and respect for others. It is effective because it is grounded in the concept of paying it forward. The leader leads by example and shows that when you love one’s neighbor good things happen for all. It is a style of leadership that helps in the cultivation of long-term relationships (Northouse, 2015) and that can effect a truly positive workplace culture.
Limitations
Its main limitation is that it ultimately is somewhat idealistic and unrealistic and does not actually foster real leadership. The servant leader is focused more on putting others first and so does not actually do any leading (Nawaz & Khan, 2016; Northouse, 2015). He is more of a supporter or facilitator so to say that one is a servant leader is somewhat contradictory in a way, which is why this leadership style tends to be disregarded at times by leaders. It is not recognized as being leader-like because it does not emphasize decision-making or the communication of a vision.
Team Leadership
Description
The team leader is one who provides direction and guidance for a group of period who are tasked with carrying out a specific objective (Northouse, 2015). The team leader identifies the goal, clears the path, and assists the team members in achieving the objective. The various duties of the team leader include (Morgeson, DeRue & Karam, 2010):
1. Defining the task—i.e., identify the objective or goal of the team
2. Planning the work—i.e., identify the means by which the goal may be achieved and identify risks and threats that could arise, in which case contingency plans have to be available
3. Briefing the group—i.e., give instructions to the team, get the members introduced, create a supportive working environment, and get the ball rolling
4. Controlling the process—i.e., maximize the potential of all members of the team by giving them what they need to succeed
5. Evaluating outcomes—i.e., use metrics to measure performance and to see how effectively goals are being met
6. Motivating the team—i.e., implement internal and external motivators to inspire the team members to strive towards their objectives
7. Organizing the individuals—i.e., provide guidance, issue tasks, and put people in specific roles wherein their strengths will be utilized most effectively for the team and the organization
8. Setting the standard—i.e., be the perfect example of how the individual team members should behave by communicating effectively, demonstrating support and consideration for others, and engaging in positive behavior that others will want to follow (Morgeson, DeRue & Karam, 2010).
Case Study
The Effectiveness of the Team
The effectiveness of the team of health care workers overseeing and providing the health care for cancer patients is rather poor. The team members are not communicating very well and no one is happy or satisfied with the outcomes of the team work. There is no real respect shown among the team members as the doctors think they know everything while the social workers feel they are being slighted. The team is not achieving its primary goal of providing quality care to the patient because the patient feels like he is misunderstood by this team of so-called professionals. They fact that they are not collaborating well is a big indication that they are not really interested in the patient so much as they are in themselves.
Level and Function
The level at which this team is experiencing the main problems is at the leadership level. The leader is not communicating a vision or clearing the path but instead is allowing obstacles of resentment to get in the way. The team should be listening to one another rather than a few making decisions while others feel marginalized (Northouse, 2018). This is the team leader’s fault. The team leader has to be the one to set the table and prepare the stage, and that is not happening with this case study. The individuals are doing whatever they want.
Taking Action
I would take action by intervening and reiterating, first of all, the primary goal of the team, which is to provide quality care to the patient. Then I would make sure that every team member understands his role and task and how his or her goal aligns with the overall goal of the team. Then I would want everyone to communicate more effectively by being inclusive and respectful. Then I would help everyone to stay on task and to work towards the goals that have been defined rather than deviating off course into some action that they want to pursue.
Strengths
The strengths of the team leadership style are that it gives the team a decision maker and allows the team to know where to turn to get started (Northouse, 2015). The team leader can identify the goals of the team and keep the team on the right path to success. The team leader can facilitate communicate and foster good relationships as well, which is crucial for a team to work well.
Limitations
Team leaders can “overestimate their effectiveness” at times (Northouse, 2015, p. 385). They may not always have the ability to bring a team together in the best manner and may be hampered by other demands from higher-ups. Furthermore, the team leadership style does not come with a general ideal of how a leader should behave but rather offers the steps that are most important for the leader to take.
Leadership Model That Best Fits My Own Personal Style
The leadership model that best fits my own personal style is a hybrid combination of transformational, authentic and servant leadership. All three of these styles share a lot in common so it should not be a surprise that one could identify with all three. However, each also offers some unique approaches to leadership that I admire.
First off, I admire transformational leadership because it gets to the heart of what it means to lead: it is about communicating a vision and inspiring others (De Vries, 1998). Servant leaders essentially do the same thing but they are more subtle and less direct in their approach (Northouse, 2015). They communicate a vision by way of example rather than by words. Although the transformational leader can also communicate the ideal by his example—however, in those cases he is also typically engaging in authentic leadership as well. That means he is impressing others and inspiring them by his authenticity, genuine desire to be good, and an ability to reflect the values that the organization wants to see instilled in all the workers.
Second, I admire servant leadership style because it is about focusing on the needs of others and doing whatever is required to help them succeed. This is also an aspect of transformational leadership in that transformational leaders have to provide support for individuals when needed (De Vries, 1998). It is a little different, however, in the sense that the servant leader is basically entirely dedicated to the needs of others.
Third, I admire authentic leadership because I think a leader should be true, open, good and honest. For one to be effective in leading he ultimately has to have all these qualities (Boekhorst, 2015). One may succeed in leading for a while without them but ultimately things will go badly, as the case of Enron shows. Those leaders though they were very crafty and did not have to worry about conventional theories of leadership. In the end, they drove their company into the ground with their shell games and they went to jail. That is the opposite of what it means to be an authentic leader.
In my hybrid model of leadership, I combine transformational leadership with servant and authentic leadership. I like to communicate the vision with words and then I like to demonstrate the vision in action and through my own example. I like to support others, inspire them and motivate them to strive for the ideal, but I also like to do this in small subtle ways so that I can get out of the way and let them go about becoming self-actualized. I also like to sit back and observe and see what I see and use this information to better understand what is going on. By immersing myself in the culture of my followers I can better have a sense of how their issues are impacting their work and then I can develop ideas about how to address those issues. Because I always aim to be fair and honest people come to appreciate what I have to offer and look to me as a leader who has been there and done that. I appreciate the respect in turn and together with my followers I try to become the leader they need.

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