Leader Philosophy

Leader Philosophy Introduction Ray (2006) observes that each organization in the current operational environment requires leaders who are holistic. This is because organizations not only operate with constrained resources, but also within an increasingly competitive and challenging environment. A substantial number of managerial theorists and experts argue that organizational leadership is crucial for success in organizations.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Leader Philosophy specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Effective organizational leadership is often drawn from the personalities and behaviours of organizational leaders. This means that organizational leaders are the determinants of the orientation of leadership in any given organization. Therefore, the value of leadership in an organization and the successful attainment of organizational goals through organizational activities are often facilitated by organizational leaders. In orde r to effectively facilitate organizational functions, organizational leaders ought to possess or rather adhere to a number of leadership principles. A combination of key leadership principles is a vital source of leadership philosophy. Leadership principles are a combination of character traits, resounding personalities and even behaviours that help organizational leaders to propel their organizations toward greater heights. There are numerous examples of leaders in the corporate world, who have utilized leadership principles and helped organizations to gain stronger corporate positions (Ray 2006). In this paper, it is argued that leadership principles are the main pillars upon which effective organizational leadership is built. This paper explores five key principles of leadership that can be utilized by an organization to build a leadership philosophy. The paper justifies the leadership principles by borrowing from behavioural theories, as well as founded examples of corporate lea ders who have utilized the principles to build legacies in corporate leadership. Linking leadership to leadership principles Before exploring leadership principles, it is vital to understand leadership from the perspective of an organization. Leadership is a combination of methods of management, which guides a given organization by offering it a given direction. This implies that leadership is not an event, but an activity. It entails the continuous combination of methods of overseeing the operations of an organization. In this case, methods refer to the series of practices that can be equated to the principles of leadership. Therefore, organizational leaders must be proactive in overseeing the processes and functions of the organization through the application of diverse principles of leadership. According to the behavioural theories of leadership, organizational leadership entails the management of people with diverse personalities.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Therefore, the application of a single principle can hardly result in the successful implementation of organizational objectives. Leadership, especially when it applies to an organization, entails the management of people, processes and assets. Therefore, leaders ought to possess a combination of different principles of leadership, which helps them to capture the critical attributes of leadership in the organization. Of greater significance is the ability of the leader to combine the diverse principles of leadership. Organizational leaders must be vigilant enough and know the most appropriate time to focus on a given principle of leadership. This is because organizations undergo various cycles, thus a given cycle in the performance of an organization may require a deeper application of a certain principle of leadership (Ray 2006). The principles of leadership are often attained th rough the leadership behaviours or traits of a leader. Leadership traits are vital for the development of leadership principles and effective leadership. This is the reason why some organizations prosper, while others do not perform remarkably. When they are effectively developed, leadership principles act as a basis on which organizational leaders implement the functions of the organization. In other words, leadership principles encourage best practice in the utilization of organizational resources to discharge organizational functions. When this is done, the leadership of an organization comes out as the main benchmark tool for organizational performance. This is how the leadership philosophy is derived from organizational leadership. The ability of a leader to set and enforce a given practice in the organization depends upon the principle of leadership that is set and used by the leader. Therefore, it can be said that the quality of leadership in an organization is a summation of the various principles of leadership that are embraced by the leadership of the organization. Therefore, leadership principles are the key determinants of the nature and quality of leadership in most organizations (Ray 2006). Leadership principles Leadership is a quality of management that is developed by organizational leaders. Organizational leaders develop their leadership competency by applying certain principles of leadership in their organizations. There is a wide range of leadership theories that have been theorized and discussed by a large number of leadership theorists.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on Leader Philosophy specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Self-awareness According to Greg and Roni (2012), one of the most critical principles of leadership is self-awareness. Leaders must create conditions upon which organizational success is founded. One of the means through which such conditions are created is t he development of self-confidence by the leader. Self confidence is a behavioural trait of leadership that has been widely adopted by leaders in the seemingly challenging organizational environment. Self-awareness implies that a leader should be fully aware of his or her personality and use the personality to drive the organization to success. It can be likened to the ability of leaders to take risks while making investments. Confidence is one of the key features self-awareness. Confidence aids a leader to understand the essence of convincing organizational leaders to take risks of investing in certain courses. Organizational leaders are critical assets in as far as the formulation of critical organizational decisions is concerned (Greg Roni 2012). This is what can enable them instil belief in organizational members and other stakeholders of the organization that they are leading. It is argued that confidence plays a great role in the success of the leader. However, this only comes true when the leader himself understands the essence of confidence in their success, as well as the success of other members in the organization. Confidence helps a leader to look at challenges from a positive inclination. A leader ought to pay full attention to all the people, processes and situations in the organization in which he or she is leading. Confidence in the leader becomes stronger when the leader pays attention to all people, processes and situations within the organization (Greg Roni 2012). When the leader successfully handles several situations in the organization, the confidence of the leader grows (Tamkin et al. 2010). The quality of self-awareness grows from the organizational leader to the organizational teams throughout the organization. A substantial number of outstanding organizational leaders are often reported to spend most of their time with organizational teams. By virtue of spending time with organizational teams, talking to them, organizational leaders help instil courage and confidence in the organizational members. This inspires organizational members to increase their input when discharging their roles and duties in the organization. Richard Branson, who is one of the most renowned leaders in the corporate world, is reported to spend most of the time talking to and sharing experiences with organizational teams. Being a master of communication, Branson keeps informing the employees of the tasks they are supposed to discharge.Advertising Looking for essay on business economics? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Branson has perfected this principle of leadership is such a way that his physical presence instils determination among the employees of the Virgin Group. This quality even goes beyond the employees of the company. Branson exudes the confidence of the organization among the media and the wider corporate world. Through the practice of the quality of the principle of self-awareness, Branson has come out as one of the most confident leaders. He has managed to attract the attention of the media and the customers, thereby enhancing corporate growth and expansion of the Virgin Group of Companies (Leadership Resource Group 2012). Visionary evangelism The second principle of organizational leadership is visionary evangelism. Organizational success lies in the ability of the organization to develop a vision and mould organizational activities towards the fulfilment of the organization’s vision. The vision of the organization is the foundation for success in the organization. According to James and Lahti (2011), organizational vision often depicts the idealized future state of that organization. The vision of an organization has a long impact on the long-term existence and performance of an organization than organizational strategies. Organizational strategies are founded on the vision of the organizations. This justifies the need for organizations to develop visions. More often than not, the vision of an organization is formulated by the leadership of that organization. To this effect, therefore, it is the responsibility of organizational leaders to communicate the vision of the organization both internally and externally. For any leader to be successful, he must be in a position to see beyond the normal or prevailing operations of the organization. This implies that the leader must be able to see the organization from the past, present and future. From this argument, it can be said that one of the most daunting tasks of organizational leadership is leading the organization into the future. This can only be attained when the leader of an organization crafts a sound vision for the organization. Therefore, visionary evangelism begins with the development of the vision (Lahti 2011). Zaccaro and Banks (2001) observed that a substantial number of organizations in the contemporary corporate world have been revising and readjusting their visions so as to capture the prevailing , as well as the probable future challenges. This point emphasizes on need for organizations to develop sound visions. The development of a sound vision could be a simple task. However, the main hurdle lies in the ability of the organization to communicate and implement organizational activities in line with the vision. This is what often separates the leadership of an organization from the other. The most pressing question that ought to be asked is how the leader of an organization can improve the image and the position of the organization through being the main advocate o f the organization’s vision. The first thing that should be done by the leader of an organization is to master the vision of an organization. An organizational leader frequently communicates with the public about the organization. The vision of an organization is a symbolic factor in the building of the culture of an organization. Through the embrace of the vision of an organization, the organizational leader helps an organization to gain a given identification in the market and the industry in which the organization operates (Zaccaro Banks 2001). Lussier and Achua (2010) opined that there are several known organizations that have portrayed the ability of leading through vision. One such example is notable in the leadership of Apple Incorporated under the leadership of Steve Jobs. During his tenure as the leader of the company, Jobs managed to instil the culture of innovation through crafting and enforcing the vision, which entailed creativity and innovation. Steve Jobs was at the centre of every activity in the organization, which was meant to propel the organization towards meeting its key objective of driving the market through innovation (Daft Lane 2008). Responsibility One of the most ignored, yet a critical principle of organizational leadership is responsibility. The principle of responsibility is closely related to accountability. The two qualities work in close relation. Responsibility in leadership begins with the search for ways through which the performance of an organization can be enhanced. It then trickles down to the acceptance of blame and correction, when the decisions or strategies hit the tough end. Therefore, responsibility is an elaborate quality of leadership. It entails the establishment of the workable strategies for the organization, as well as accountability for the outcomes of the strategies that are applied in the organization. The question of responsibility in leadership resonates from the fact that leaders are trusted wi th both the human and material sources of organizations. Therefore, they are supposed to account for the existence and application of these resources in organizational work and the subsequent outcomes (Epitropaki Martin 2005). This can be likened to the exercise of auditing in organizations, where organizational leaders often require explaining how they utilized organizational resources in meeting organizational objectives. However, sometimes the principle of responsibility in leadership is mistaken with the vice of covering up the negative aspects of organizational performance. This is a critical area of leadership basing on the argument that organizational leaders are supposed to be ambassadors of their organizations. Any person who is given the responsibility to spearhead a certain course becomes the main championing factor for that course (Hinrichs et al. 2012). The rationale behind the action of failing to expose aspects of negative performance within organizations is that the y may taint the image of the organization among the public. Therefore, any practices with such an intention could as well be termed as an act of irresponsibility in leadership. Responsibility calls for a complete observation and explanation of processes and actions taken by the organization. Risks and uncertainties are often accepted by organizations. As organizations keep operating, they can hardly avoid risks. Risks cause organizations to sway from their plans, thus they may fail to meet some of the goals. The essence of true responsibility in leadership is portrayed at the time when organizations are facing difficulties (Smith Sharma 2002). During this period, most leaders tend to dissociate themselves from the happenings. The sense of true leadership and the quality of responsibility is replicated at a point where organizational leaders are willing to stand the organization. Leaders are supposed to explain the causes of the wrong happenings and try to devise solutions to such s ituations (Hinrichs et al. 2012). According to Masi and Cooke (2000), empowerment is not only a responsibility of a leader, but also an important tool through which organizations attain desired relations between organizational leaders and their subordinates. The quality of a leader is often determined by the organizational employees. Employees or subordinates value leaders who engage them in leadership. The embrace of the culture of empowerment by organizational leaders helps to attain participatory or inclusive leadership. This is a behavioural tactic of organizational leadership. It creates the sense of ownership within the subordinates. Subordinates are motivated by the fact that they are given knowledge and responsibility to administer organizational factors. For quite a long time, organizations have used the quality of empowerment to manage performance. The practice of empowerment enhances the relationship between leaders and the subordinates. Empowerment can also begin by the virtue of the establishment of workable relationship between a leader and the employees. Such relationships result to psychological empowerment. This form of empowerment increases the level of employee commitment to the organization (Masi Cooke 2000). The other form of empowerment that is perhaps the most valid form of leadership in the contemporary times is offering employees autonomy and resources. Modern leadership values the equipping of organizational subordinates with all the desired resources and the necessary additional support, including skills and leaving the subordinates to discharge their duties, devoid of a lot of supervision. Employees are often left to work on organizational projects without much subordination from the leadership. Under such a case, organizational leadership only comes in at the latter stages, probably to assess the work that has been done by organizational employees (Masi Cooke 2000). This is the most desired principle of leadership that has been u sed by the leadership of organizations such as Microsoft Corporation. In Microsoft, Bill Gates believes in the principle of empowering organizational teams, which leads to invention. Empowerment is a principle that has proven to be effective in leading project work within organizations. The main challenge with the enforcement of subordinate empowerment is that organizations’ subordinates may take advantage of this, thereby failing to discharge organizational functions as required (Bednarz 2011). Tamkin, Pearson, Hirsh and Constable (2010) ascertained that true leaders believe in the growth of people and the organization though performance. One of the fundamental functions of organizational leadership is to spearhead the performance of tasks within the organization. However, this may be disputed by people who see leadership as an aspect of ensuring that the set processes and procedures are followed by organizational members. While this has some sort of truth, it is termed as a n archaic perspective of exercising leadership. The prevailing environment of management calls for transformational and transactional leadership. Transformational leadership dwells on bringing about change (Mannarelli 2006). Change is brought about through the continued observation of practices and making adjustments that are meant to improve the quality of performance. Leaders are assessed in terms of the amount of change that they bring about during their tenure. A sound leader has to be able to master the ability of each person within his circle of leadership. Different people have different abilities. This is because the ability of an individual is determined by a number of things among them the level of skills, the quality of resources and personal motivation among others. Through group and individual engagement with people, a leader becomes able to unlock the full potential of people. This aids to nurture the long-term value of the people in the organization, thereby enhancing the performance of the organization. Outstanding leaders learn how to mould the performance of people through the creation of growth opportunities. This often begins with the creation of trust between the leader and the people. When there is no trust in the leader, it becomes difficult for organizational leaders to create a learning environment (Tamkin et al. 2010). Communication is also a critical concept of leadership. Therefore, an outstanding leader must learn how to foster communication in the organizations. It is argued that communication is a critical concept of conveying messages to the subordinates. Through communication, the leader also gets feedback from the subordinates. Of relevance in organizational communication is the fostering of a communicating organization. By a communicating organization, it means that the leader has to open the channels of communication between him and the subordinates. At the same time, there must be communication between the subordinates as t his is one way through which the subordinates improve in the discharge of their duties. The offer of trust, which is one of the vital elements of encouraging performance in organizational teams, begins with communication. Outstanding leaders must go up to all odds to ensure that they foster interaction within the organization. Communication is the link through which trusting relationships are formed in the organization. Trusting relationships encourage honest interactions that are quite fruitful for the organization (de Vries, Bakker-Pieper Oostenveld 2010). As mentioned earlier, outstanding leaders must encourage open communication. Open communication here means that there should be clear channels of communication, where the leader can give instructions and receive feedback from the people. This implies that the gaps that can prevent organizational subordinates from communicating to the leader must be sealed. However, open communication is the quality of leadership, which only wor ks in organizations that embrace democratic principles of leadership. However, it has been observed that most organizations are adopting the democratic principles of leadership. Also, organizations that are still old to bureaucracy encourage feedback communication (Tamkin et al. 2010). Conclusion Leadership is a critical determinant of success in every facet of management. It is argued that leadership is an attribute of management, which is developed by a leader. This paper has explored the principles of leadership that can be used to develop a leadership philosophy by a leader. Leadership principles that have been explored in this paper include the pursuance of open communication, growth of people through performance, empowerment of self and subordinates, exercising responsibility and accountability, the embrace of visionary evangelism, and the exercise of self-awareness. In the paper, it has been observed that leadership is something that is developed through the combination of di verse attributes of management. In other words, it argues that no single attribute can form satisfactory leadership. This makes leadership a comprehensive exercise, thereby calling from the combination of different principles of leadership. As noted in the discussion, leadership principles are developed from the behaviours and traits of leaders. Therefore, there are a substantial number of leadership principles that can act as a basis upon which a leader can develop a sound leadership philosophy. These leadership principles interact, thereby enabling the leader to attain a desirable leadership philosophy. Reference List Bednarz, T 2011, Fostering an empowered organization. Web. Daft, RL Lane, PG 2008, The leadership experience, Thomson/South-Western, Mason, OH. de Vries, RE, Bakker-Pieper, A Oostenveld, W 2010, ‘Leadership = Communication? The relations of leaders’ communication styles with leadership styles, knowledge sharing and leadership outcomes’, Journal of Business Psychology, vol. 25 no. 3, pp. 67–380. Epitropaki, O Martin, R 2005, From ideal to real: A longitudinal study of the role of implicit leadership theories on leader–member exchanges and employee outcomes, Journal of Applied Psychology, 90, pp. 659–676. 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