Leadership is projection of personality — that combination of persuasion,

compulsion and example — that makes other people do what you want
them to do. Industry must find natural leaders, train them in the technique
of management and give them an opportunity to lead. – Field Marshall Sir
William Slim

A manager develops people. Through the way he manages he makes it

easy or difficult for them to develop themselves. He directs people or
misdirects them. He brings out what is in them or he stifles them. – Peter
Drucker

Leadership is undoubtedly the most widely discussed, written about and

researched topics in the area of general management. The process of leading
is one of the four management functions. P.F. Drucker has opined that
leadership is one of those elusive attributes that separate effective managers
from less effective ones.

Definition of Leadership:
It has to be noted at the outset that leadership derives from power and is
similar to — yet distinct from — management. We may first suggest a
definition of leadership and discuss various issues connected with this
strategic aspect of management.

It is not that easy to suggest a useful definition of leadership, because it is

connected with three related concepts: power, influence and authority.

Power refers to the potential ability of a manager to affect the behaviour of

others and is generally related to the control of valued or scarce resources.
The manager is said to be exerting influence when he consciously or
unconsciously exercises power to affect the behaviour or attitudes of someone
else.

Authority refers to the power created and granted by an organisation. If, for
instance, the organisation chart specifies that X is the boss, and Y is the
subordinate, X i s said to have authority over y.

However, what is most important is that subordinates must acknowledge

and accept the authority of their superior for it to be really meaningful. Within
the context of the organisation, X also has power and influence. Outside the
organisation, he might not have any power or influence over Y at all.
Like management, leadership has been defined in many different ways by
many different people. In a narrow sense, leadership is defined as the
directing of the activities of immediate subordinates. Chester Barnard
(1938) has persuasively argued that an essential role of a manager is to
act as a leader and expand the range of acceptance- the range of directives
that subordinates will accept readily and enthusiastically.

In a broad sense, managerial leadership encompasses several additional

roles, such as developing the organisation’s planning and control systems,
designing an organisational structure appropriate for the tasks undertaken
and acting as a spokesperson for the organisation.

The central theme running through most of the definitions is that leadership
is a process of influencing individual and group activities to set a goal
and/or to achieve a goal. In fact, whenever one person influences an
individual or group towards accomplishing an objective, leadership occurs.
It is a process involving the leader, the led (group or individual) and a
particular goal or situation. Needless to say, it is behavioural in nature and
involves personal interaction.

Leadership is usually defined as the skillful use of power. Leaders have

power which is often used to influence others. They may or may not have
authority. Management and leadership may and often do overlap to a
considerable extent. So to understand the pros and cons of leadership, we
have explained, at the outset, the concept of power and see how it serves
as a foundation for leadership.

Kinds of Power:

1. Legitimate Power:

This type of powers granted through the organisational hierarchy.

In fact, the power that occupying each position confers is part of the
way that position is defined. Thus, legitimate power is the same as
authority and, therefore, it is quite obvious that all managers have
legitimate power over their subordinates.
2. Reward Power:

This is the power to give or withhold rewards. Rewards that are likely
to be under the control of an individual manager include salary
increases, bonuses, promotion recommenda•tions, praise, recognition
and interesting job assignments.

3. Coercive Power:

This is the power to force compliance via psychological, emotional or

physical threat. In a typical organisation, however, the available means of
coercion are limited by such things as verbal reprimands, written
reprimands, disciplinary layoffs, fines, demotion and termination.

4. Referent Power:

While legitimate, reward and coercive power are relatively concrete and
grounded in objective facets of organisation life, represent power is more
abstract. Such power derives from identification, imitation or charisma. This
means that followers may react favourably because they identify in some way
with a leader, who may be like them in personality, background or attitudes.

5. Expert Power:

Such power is derived from information expertise. A manager who knows how
to deal with an eccentric but important customer has expert power over
anyone who needs that information.
Impoítance of leadeíship foí Oíganizational
Excellence
ľhe classic model of the good oíganizational leadeí is the top executive in
the oíganizational management who diíects and who is in contíol of all
aspects of the opeíations of the oíganization. ľhis top executive leadeí
opeíates thíough a hieíaíchy
of management and the oíganization had a faiíly well defined stíuctuíe. ľhis type
of leadeíship has some good points and it suívived thíoughout most of the 20th
centuíy.

ľhe oíganization of today does not have the luxuíy of stability since it faces
an eveí incíeasing change in maíkets, customeís and technology. It needs to
accept, adopt and implement changes in the business model accoíding to
changing tíends, technologies, customeí píefeíences and futuíe conceíns.
Fuítheí, the coíe business of the oíganization is constantly undeí thíeat today
fíom the newcomeís to the maíketplace who aíe having a diffeíent business
paíadigm. Hence the oíganization cannot affoíd to depend upon the
leadeíship of individual oí/and a small team of senioí executives to meet this
challenge. ľhe oíganization needs to haíness the ideas, skills, eneígy, and
enthusiasm of the entiíe team foí success. Foí meeting of new challenges,
this new concept and píactice of leadeíship has evolved, wheíe line manageís
have taken oveí the leadeíship íole along with the top executive and his
small team of senioí executives.

Leadership is an important factor for making an organization successful. It is the art or process of
influencing people to perform assigned tasks willingly, efficiently and competently. Without leadership a
line manager simply cannot be effective. Leadership of the line managers transforms potential into
reality. When good leadership is in place in the organization, it can be felt throughout the entire
organization. With good leadership, organizational culture is not forced but developed. Communication
is effective and open. Everyone understands the vision and goals of the organization, and everyone has
input into how they can be improved. People feel that they are an important part of the organization
and they give their best for the success of the organization.

The leadership In the organization is to meet the three challenges. The first challenge is to provide a
shared vision of where the organisation is heading and what its purpose is (the mission). The second
challenge is to set objectives, that is, to convert the strategic vision and directional course into specific
performance outcomes for each key area which leaders deem important for success. The third
challenge in providing strategic direction is to generate and develop a strategy that will determine how
to achieve the objectives. Strategic direction is imperative in identifying a systematic intervention that
will provide the most leverage to the organisation, as an organisation cannot focus on everything all of
the time.

Line manager leaders are a key human resource in the organization. These leaders develop better
people under them and the two together develop better products which can compete effectively with
the products offered by the competitors. We generally think of organizations competing by means of
their products, but today organizations probably compete more by means of the quality of their line
manager leaders than their products.
High performance of people in the organization is the focal point for achieving success. This
high performance can be secured only if there is effective leadership qualities available with the
lines managers.

As group efforts and teamwork are essential for realizing the organizational goals, leadership becomes
vital for the execution of work. Through leadership, line managers can influence people under them to
adopt a cooperative and wholesome attitude for successful work accomplishment. Their leadership
motivates the people to a higher level of performance through their strong human relations.

Leadership is an important function of management which helps to maximize efficiency and to achieve
organizational goals. In fact leadership is an essential part and a crucial component of effective
management. A remarkable leadership behaviour stresses upon building an environment in which each
and every employee develops and excels. It has the potential to influence and drive the group efforts
towards the accomplishment of goals. Line managers must have traits of a leader. They must possess
leadership qualities. With leadership qualities line managers can develop and begin strategies that build
and sustain competitive advantage.
The following are some of the ways which demonstrate the importance of leadership for the
achievement of the organizational excellence.

1. One of the first steps that the leaders in the organization need to undertake is to establish why the
organization exists and what it wants to achieve. Leaders are to clarify and communicate the vision
and mission of the organization to the people. This vision and mission effectively provides employees
with an understanding of the organizational direction and allows them to clearly understand their roles
and responsibilities.

2. Leaders communicate the policies and plans to the people of the organization. They are to imbibe
the values and the culture of the organization since these play an important role in ensuring the
achievement of the organizational goals.

3. Leaders provide a structured approach. The structured approach is able to generate a plan of
action that most effectively meets the organizational goals. An inclusive planning process also
provides the opportunity for people to identify, contribute to, understand and achieve well defined
objectives.

4. The commitment and enthusiasm of leaders shape the common goals of the organization and
provides inspiration and motivation for people to perform at a high level.

5. Leaders provide encouragement to people for openly contributing and discussing new ideas in a
positive environment and make use of their diverse experience and ideas to improve the
organization.

6. Leaders have an open and engaging relationship with the people. This relationship demonstrates
that the people are valued as an integral part of the organization, creates a sense of ownership among
people, and develops a closer alignment between individual and organizational objectives.

7. Good leadership can help the organization remain focused during a time of crisis, reminding
the people of their achievements and encourage them to set short term, achievable goals.

8. There are differences between leadership and management functions. Leadership provides direction,
encouragement and inspiration to motivate a team to achieve organizational success. Management is
primarily an organizational role, coordinating the efforts of the people and the allocation of resources
to maximize efficiency in achieving identified goals.

9. Leadership and management are closely linked functions. Both the functions are complimentary to
each other. Without efficient management, the direction set by a leader risks being unsustainable.
Similarly, management exercised without effective leadership perpetuates current activities and
directions, without adaptation to meet strategic goals and without optimizing the performance of
the organization.
10. Leadership and management operate hand in hand. To be a good manager, line managers require
leadership skills, and an effective leader depends on the management skills for achieving the goals and
objectives.

11. Effective leadership of the line managers requires leadership qualities in them. These qualities are to
be visible by their actions in the context and circumstances of different situations. Line managers with
effective leadership qualities exhibit (Fig 1) a combination of some of the following qualities.

Fig 1 Leadership qualities of line managers

These qualities are described below.

Future vision- Successful leadership involves creating a well founded vision of what can be achieved in
the future and the best way to approach it.

Integrity – Effective leaders often place great importance on ethical values. They always do the right
things even if these things are difficult. In general, leaders with integrity are honest, truthful, fair,
reliable and do not let their emotions affect their ability to do their job.

Self confidence – Good and strong leaders have a firm belief in their abilities. They generally remain
confident at all the times and demonstrate the ability to handle challenges and pressures.

Commitment – Successful leadership is impossible without firm commitment. Good leaders remain
focused and dedicated towards their objectives and goals.

Creativity – Effective line managers with the leadership qualities are creative in their approach. They
develop new ideas to resolve current issues and implement them effectively to prevent future
recurrences.

Communication skill – Communication skill is vital for effective leadership. Lines managers with
leadership qualities are usually very clear, effective and influential in communication and knows its
importance for achieving success. They continuously improve their communication skills and learn new
ways to remain effective in a constantly changing organizational environment.

Enthusiasm – Effective leadership normally requires a proactive approach towards people, problems
and possibilities. It is able to stimulate and evoke excitement amongst people so that the organizational
goals can be achieved in an energetic manner.

Self awareness and adaptability – Line managers who are skilful leaders exhibit an understanding of
their own values, skills, strengths and weaknesses. They are often flexible and willing to continually
improve their knowledge and skills to meet new challenges.

Decision making capabilities – This is the capability to exploit opportunities and to make sound
decisions which benefits the organization. Line managers with leadership qualities have the capabilities
for making sound decisions.

Openness – Line managers with effective leadership qualities listen openly to the ideas, suggestions and
opinions of their people. They are willing to adopt new ways of doing things if they believe it will be
beneficial for the organisation. They focus on creating a positive environment of mutual respect and
trust that enables the organization to be well prepared for new challenges.
Ability to understand people – Good leadership amongst line managers requires a clear understanding
of human behaviour and the ability to develop open and honest relationships with the people to
understand their abilities, concerns, interests and motivations.

Ability to inspire and motivate – Leadership requires line managers to be charismatic, highly organized,
and very motivational in their interaction with the people. They develop a culture of hard work and
commitment, inspiring and motivating the people to give their best to the organization.

Business understanding – Line managers with leadership qualities strive to have a clear understanding
of their business, the environment in which they operate and their competitors. They develop an
awareness of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats for their business and focus on
maximizing resources to their full potential.

Managing organizational change – The role of a leader is crucial for managing organizational
change, The process of organizational change is very complex and challenging and a competent and
effective leadership is required to manage the situation.

Leadership determines excellent organizational performance. Leadership success in the implementation

of the strategy is manifested in a conducive organizational climate, a reward strategy that is linked to
strategic objectives, flexible structures that support business demands, and an effective organizational
culture that influence behaviour in the right direction. The ultimate desired end results manifest itself in
aligned individual and organizational performance.