Leadership development: Summary
Chapter 1: Introduction to leadership development
I. Why care about leadership?
1.1 WHY THIS COURSE?
In the past, many of the daily decisions (small or big) were usually made for us. For
example, it was the parents that chose the study of their children, or the church was telling
you how you should behave with your partner, or even your boss was telling you each day
what you need to accomplish by the end of the day. Today, it is a whole different story, we
have many choices to choose from, more freedom. This goes hand in hand with times of
volatility, uncertainty, complexity,… everything changes so rapidly that everyone needs to
develop a strong inner self that keeps us focused on what we need, what we feel, also to
take the responsibility of our lives. Leadership is therefore important in all areas of our lives.
1.2 WHY THIS COURSE FOR MASTER STUDENTS ECONOMICS?
As a manager/leader, it is important to develop leadership skills as it has a strong impact on
the effectiveness, efficiency of the organization in which we will work.
The CEO of the company has a tremendous impact on the teams it works with but the whole
organization as well. “The energy needed for organizational change starts at C-level, with
the CEO as a crucial driver for effective change and strategy implementation.”
In VUCA times (volatile, uncertain, complex, ambitious), it is important that our
batteries/energy is high so that we can deal with all the changes that come into our path. It is
important on different levels: for the people, but also
the system, the structure and the processes.
Therefore, the CEO has a direct impact on the
energy of the organization but also an indirect
impact through strategy, culture, system and
structure. All combined, you can end up with an
effective implementation along with individual
engagement and then operational excellence.
> Strong leadership: It means having (1) clear and inspiring ambitions, (2) little ego and a
lot of emotional maturity, flexibility, (3) cultivating strong team dynamics, (4) strong
commitment to really change and act and (5) given each other's real mandates to
change/act.
Level 5 leadership makes a huge difference in
turning “good” organizations into “great” ones.
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,But how can we reach/develop level 5 of leadership? This requires being able and willing to
put ego aside and focus on a higher purpose and contribution via:
- Self reflection and personal development
- Positive mentors and examples
- Supporting family and friends
- A strong sense of personal purpose, chosen or often activated after a drastic life
event
II. What is leadership development?
2.1 LEADERSHIP VERSUS MANAGEMENT
Management is much more about planning,
organizing, problem solving, controlling whereas
leadership is more about how can we motivate
people, which direction are we going, what is our
vision, what are our goals, how can we align people
and inspire them? Therefore leadership is a lot
about setting the goals, making sure people are
engaged to accomplish the goals and management
is more about making sure the goals are met.
Another vision highlights the fact that leadership is a
much older domain than management. Management
was developed throughout the industrialisation
period whereas leadership was studied for centuries
and throughout many different domains.
“Management is doing things right, leadership is doing the right things.”
Leadership and management also have similarities. Both are
about having impact, influence. It is about having goals and
attaining those goals through a work team. Both are therefore
needed in organizations. They can complement one another.
We talk about value added if they work hand in hand.
Headship is about having the power/authority in an
organization/team/project to perform leadership or
management skills and also do you want to? It is the third
dimension. You can act as a manager, yet not being one and
it is the same thing with leadership.
2.2 KEY ESSENTIALS OF LEADERSHIP
- It involves influence, impact and persuasion
- It is a-group thing (followers and leaders) and it is about the context in which it
happens.
- All about common goals (setting and attaining)
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, - It is a complex and multilayered process
Is leadership a trait or an ability? Is it nature or nurture? Leadership or leadership
development? Sometimes we talk about a “born leader” or a “natural leader”, and it has a
part of truth: some people have a natural advantage, a talent and others do not. However,
there are many types of leadership. We should think of leadership as something that
depends on our unique traits, unique competences, our unique leadership style. In the end, it
merely depends on whether your leadership style matches the challenge, the people, the
context or not? And if not, can you develop it?
2.3 EVOLUTION OF LEADERSHIP
Leadership was firstly addressed as something that is based on your personality and on who
you are. Yet, at that moment we were thinking of it with a strong aspect of control, which is
more linked to management skills. This idea had broadened into influence, and behaviors.
This means that you can learn it. When we look at the traits of personality of someone, this
is not something you can change, you just inherit them.
Leadership behaviors are also predictors of leadership effectiveness. There is also a huge
emphasis on the group approach and the need for harmony among each person. Therefore,
linking this to the situation you are working on. Afterwards, there was this emphasis on the
relational view point, the nature of relation between leaders and followers. And finally, in the
most recent years, we focus on the moral dimension.
III. How to develop leadership?
“There are as many leadership types as there are leaders.”
There are many theories which express how those different leadership types are developed.
Those theories might talk about leadership role or leadership style:
> Leadership role (What you do): This is actually what you do in a leadership position. It is
about the responsibilities and tasks you decide to take on. It is more linked to concrete
behaviors and competencies (what you have, what you have learned, what you can see,…).
> Leadership style (How you do it): This is more about how you typically lead in a
leadership position. It is linked to your unique style as a red thread in a particular leadership
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, position. It is also linked to one’s identity, values or to one’s being. It is a more holistic
approach to look at leadership. It is based on your attitude, your mindset, the energy you
bring.
For examples: Compassionate leadership, directive leadership, responsible leadership,
sensitive leadership, transformational leadership, inclusive leadership, authoritarian
leadership, connecting leadership, regenerative leadership…
3.1 SITUATIONAL THEORIES: THE CONTINGENCY MODELS OF LEADERSHIP
From the 1960s onward, we were looking for more harmony even among scholars because
there were too many models, visions,…so the question was how can we integrate the
different visions into a more valid model that is more in line with reality? What was also
important is that the scholars felt a more open view on leadership, so not just about control
and power but more about impact and influence. It was also about what are the criteria and
parameters to know which type of leadership is more effective in a particular situation. In this
perspective, new integrated models and theories arose, which are known as contingency
models of leadership.
As a wrap up, this means that there is no single best style of leadership, but rather that the
most effective leadership behavior depends on the context and the people involved. This
includes variables such as the type of task, job, challenge, product, goal but also the type of
person, system that leads (leader) and the one that is to be led (follower).
1. Earliest models: Examples
- Douglas McGregor’s Theory X and Theory Y
- Blake & Mouton with the managerial grid model
- Fiedler contingency model of leadership
- Hersey & Blanchard with the situational leadership model
- Path-goal theory by House
2. Situational leadership’ II model by Blanchard
“The right leadership at the right time”
Diagnose an individual’s development level (based on two
dimensions) on a specific goal or task in terms of:
1. Competence (knowledge and skills)
2. Commitment (confidence and motivation)
D1: At the beginning, there is low competence since the person is new to the task but
motivation is high (intrinsic).
D2: Gaining competence but it is time consuming which may translate into frustration, which
negatively affects motivation.
D3: After learning, competence is higher but the commitment is still fluctuating.
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