Leadership: Theories and

Applications
 Manager and Leader
 Administers  Innovates
 Maintains  Develops
 Focuses on systems &  Focuses on people
structure  Inspires trust
 Relies on control  Long-range view
 Short-range view  Eye on the horizon
 Eye on the bottom line  Originates
 Imitates  Challenges the status quo
 Accepts status quo  Conquers over volatile,
 Surrenders to external turbulent and ambiguous
forces surroundings
 Does things rightly  Does the right things
 What Differentiates a Leader
A Leader sees:
 More
 Farther and
 Before
Others.
 It is not the position that makes a leader
 It is the leader that makes a position.
 In the case of a manager things happen when he
is there;
 In the case of a Leader, things happen even when
he is not there.
 Theories of Leadership

 Trait Theories
 Behavioral Theories
 Contingency Theories
 Trait Theories
 Trait theories differentiate leaders from non-
leaders by focusing on personal qualities and
characteristics
Some common traits of leaders:
 Ambition and energy
 Desire to lead
 Honesty and Integrity
 Self Confidence
 Intelligence
 High self-monitoring
 Job relevant knowledge
 Trait Theories

 Extroversion is the most important trait of effective

leaders
 Extroversion more strongly related to leader
emergence than to leader effectiveness
 Behavioural Theories
Ohio State Studies:
Two dimensions relating to behaviour:
 Initiating structure : Extent to which a leader is
likely to define and structure his/her role and
those of employees for the attainment of goals
 Consideration: The extent to which a leader is
likely to have job relationships characterised by
mutual trust, respect for employees’ ideas and
regard for their feelings
 Has concern for employees comfort, wellbeing,
status and satisfaction
 Behavioural Theories

Michigan Studies:
People Oriented Leader: emphasise interpersonal
relations, take personal interest in the needs of the
employees
Production Oriented Leader: emphasise the
technical and task aspects of the job. Their
concern is accomplishing tasks and employees are
only a means to that end.
 Behavioural Theories

The Managerial Grid (Blake and Mouton):

 Nine possible positions (styles) along each axis on
people orientation and production orientation.
 Managers are found to perform best under 9,9 style
(High on people and production orientation)
 Leader-Member Exchange Theory
 Due to time constraint leaders establish a special
relationship with a small group of their followers.
 These individuals make the in-group
 Leader chooses those members who have similar
attitude and personality characteristics as theirs
 They are trusted, get disproportionate amount of
leader’s attention and special privileges
 Other followers fall into the out-group
 In-group persons get higher performance ratings
and have higher satisfaction than the out-group
members
 PATH-G0AL THEORY

 The leader’s role is to assist followers in attaining their

goals and to provide the necessary direction and/or
support to ensure that their goals are compatible with
the overall objectives of the group or organisation
 Path-Goal Theory
 Directive leadership leads to greater satisfaction when tasks are
ambiguous
 Supportive leadership results in higher performance &
satisfaction when employees are performing structured tasks
 Directive leadership may be ineffective when employees are high
on ability and experience
 Employees with internal locus of control will be more satisfied
with participative type of leadership
 Achievement-oriented leadership will increase employees’
expectancies that effort will lead to high performance when
tasks are ambiguously structured.
 Transactional & Transformational Leader
Transactional Leader:
 Contingent Reward: Recognises accomplishments,
rewards good performance.
 Management by Exception:
 Watches and searches for deviations from rules and
standards, takes corrective action.
Transformational Leader:
 Anticipates future trends
 Inspires followers to understand and embrace a new
vision of possibilities
 Develops others to be leaders
 Contingency Theories

Contingency theories of leadership emerged

because the earlier theories failed to provide
consistent results. The focus therefore shifted to
situational influences.

Fiedler Contingency Model:

Proposes that effective group performance depends
on the proper match between the leader’s style and
the degree to which the situation gives control to the
leader.
 HERSEY AND BLANHARD’S SITUAITONAL
THEORY
 Situational leadership is a contingency theory where
the focus is on the readiness of the followers
 The extent to which people have the ability and
willingness to accomplish a task

 Unable and Unwilling - Clear and specific directions

 Unable but Willing - Task orientation
 Able but Unwilling - Supportive and participative
 Able and Willing - Leader’s role minimal
 Situational Leadership

Follower Readiness: Competence & Motivation

R4 R3 R2 R1
Able and willing Able but unwilling Unable but willing Unable and unwilling

Follower Directed Leader Directed

Leader Behavior
S4 S3 S2 S1
Delegating Understanding Training Telling
Observing Encouraging Explaining Guiding
Fulfilling Collaborating Monitoring Directing

How to do it……
Turn over Find out why the Explain your Provide specific
responsibility reluctance. Share decisions and instructions and
for decisions ideas and help in provide closely supervise
and executing decision making opportunity for performance
clarification
Matching Readiness with Leadership Styles

Readiness Best Style Least Effective Style

Low Telling Empowering

Low to Moderate Selling/ Delegating/

Influencing Involving

Moderate to High Participating/ Influencing

Involving

High Delegating/ Telling

Empowering
 Situational Leadership - Need based
R
E High Relationship/ High on Relationship/
L Low Task High on Task
A
T
I S3: Participating/
O Encouraging S2:Selling/
N Explaining
S
H
I Low Relationship/ Low Relationship/
P Low Task High Task

B
E S4: Delegating/ S1: Telling/
HAV Directing
IUOR Monitoring

Task Behaviour
Dimensions Autocratic Consultative Participative
1. Context Changing Slow changes Relatively
Rapidly Static
2. External Competition High Medium Low
3. Stage Initial (set up) Consolidation Mature
4. Size Small Medium Large
5. Systems and Procedures Unstructured Structured/ Structured
Discretionary
6. Competencies of Leader High Medium Low
7. Leader Acceptability High Medium Low
8. Competencies (Others) Low Medium High
9. Motivation (Others) Low Medium High
10.Trustworthiness (Others) Low Medium High
Leadership and Decision Making
Criteria for Decision Making:

1. Rationality
2. Acceptance

 Rational Emotive Therapy is the method of decision

making where both the above criteria are taken care of.

 Neither being too rational nor too emotional.

 A balance between rationality and acceptance or using
emotions/feelings for making intelligent decisions.
Criteria for Decision Making
QUALITY ACCEPTANCE
1. Information: 1. Conflict Rule
 Relevant
2. Fairness Rule
 Sufficient
3. Acceptance Priority
 Complete
2. Complexity
3. Goal Congruity

TIME AVAILABILITY
 Quality of Decision
Information: If the leader has sufficient relevant
information, he/she can be autocratic, otherwise
consultative or democratic
Complexity of Issue: If complex, should not be
autocratic but consultative or democratic.
Goal Congruence: If there is no goal congruence in the
followers then you cannot be democratic.
 Acceptance of Decision
 Conflict: If there a likelihood that there will be a
conflict if you take a decision autocratically, then you
cannot be autocratic, you have to be consultative/
democratic.
 Fairness: Are you fair in your approach or do people
perceive y0u as fair, then you can be autocratic,
otherwise consultative/democratic.
 Acceptance Priority: Is acceptance of your decision by
your followers important for its implementation, then
you cannot be autocratic. you need to be consultative/
democratic.
Leadership and Decision Making
Decision Styles:
AI : Autocratic. No information sharing, No search for information,
managing with available info. You take your own decision.
AII: Autocratic but may seek some information, speak to a few people.
True facts not shared.
CI: Consultative approach. Problem sharing with relevant individuals
(subordinates) on a one to one basis. Then you take a decision which may
or may not reflect your subordinates views.
CII: Consultative approach. Problem sharing with your subordinates in a
group collectively obtaining their ideas and suggestions. Then you take
the decision which may or may not reflect their views.

GII: Consensus Group Decision-making. You share your problems with

you subordinates in a group. Together you generate and evaluate
alternatives and attempt to reach a consensus. You do not try to influence
the group to adopt “your” solution and you are willing to accept and
implement any solution that has the support of the entire group.
A. Is there a Quality requirement such that one solution
is likely to be more rational than another?
B. Do I have sufficient info to make a Quality Decision?
C. Is the problem structured? (Do I know the questions GII
to ask & where to look for relevant information?)
D. Is acceptance of decision by sub. Critical to effective
Implementation.?
J
N CI
V N
E
R D N AI I
F K
O N
N
N N N
O D
G N
M’ H CII
A E CI
N N
S F N AI
N
G CII CI
B D N
N N E H
C N
M F
CI K
N
O
E N N
D D N
CII
AI J
E N
G
E N F N
L N
E. If you are to make the decision by yourself, is it reasonably N CI CI
certain that it would be accepted by yr subordinates? I
F Do subordinates share the organisational goals?
G N
G. Do you have the domain knowledge to take a quality decision?
N
H. Are sub competent to take a decision?
H CI
I. Are subordinates trustworthy? N
J Are subordinates willing to take responsibility? CII
K. Is conflict among sub likely in a preferred decision?