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Chapter 13

This chapter on leadership processes and the next on great leaders’ styles, activities, and skills are an appropriate conclusion to the study of organizational behavior. Leadership is the focus and conduit of most of the other areas of organizational behavior. The first half of this chapter deals with the definition and classical background. The last half then presents the major theoretical processes of leadership. Particular attention is devoted to both traditional and modern theories of leadership.

This chapter presents and analyzes the processes of leadership. The classic research studies on leadership set the stage for the theoretical development of leadership. The trait theories concentrate on the leaders themselves and through the years showed little promise for either the understanding of the leadership process or the relationship with effective leadership performance. Recently, however, there is renewed research interest indicating a significant relationship with the “Big Five” personality traits and effective leadership. There is also emerging interest in the statelike positive organizational behavior capacities (i.e., hope, optimism, resiliency, emotional intelligence, and, especially, self-efficacy) and effective leaders, and there is continuing concern with leader skills and competencies. The group and exchange theories emphasize the importance of followers, and although the leader-member exchange (or LMX) model still generates considerable research, the group and exchange theories in general are recognized to be only partial theories. The traditionally recognized theories of leadership tend to be more situationally or contextually based. In particular, Fiedler’s classic contingency model made a significant contribution to leadership theory and to the practice of human resource management. The path-goal approach also made an important contribution to leadership understanding. It incorporates expectancy motivation concepts. All the traditional theories of leadership continue to provide understanding and a foundation for the practice of leadership in today’s organizations. However, in recent years a number of alternative theories have emerged to supplement and, mostly, facilitate better understanding of the various processes of effective leadership. In particular, the charismatic and transformational, and to a much lesser extent, the substitutes approach have received attention. Charismatic leaders (characterized as having qualities beyond the usual appointed leader) get extraordinary commitment and performance from followers. The charismatic leaders, however, as a group are considered only a subsection of the larger group of transformational leaders characterized by idealized influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individualized consideration. These transformational leaders are felt to be especially suited to today’s organizations as they experience dramatic change. The substitutes approach recognizes that certain subordinate, task, and organizational characteristics may substitute for or neutralize the impact that leader behavior has on subordinate performance and satisfaction. All of these leadership theories continue to be researched to provide a better understanding of the complexities involved and to make the applications to practice more effective. Recently, to recognize the unprecedented challenges now facing organizational leaders, we have proposed authentic leadership theory. This approach draws from our positive organizational behavior and psychological capital approach (see Chapter 7) and Avolio’s transformational/full-range leadership. The authentic leader is true to him- or herself and others and possesses considerable positive psychological capital, is transparent, moral/ethical, and future-oriented, and gives priority to developing associates to be leaders. Finally, studies of international leadership indicate the importance of recognizing differences and similarities both across cultures and within cultures. The GLOBE project in particular is an example of a very comprehensive research program designed to discover the nature of leader effectiveness by identifying both universal and culture-specific dimensions that are associated with effective leadership processes.

Chapter 14

This chapter is concerned with leadership styles (the way leaders/managers influence followers/ employees), activities (what leaders/managers do in their day-to-day jobs), skills (how leaders/ managers can be effective), and development. Leadership styles have been studied the longest and are derived from both the classic and modern leadership theories and research. Examples of classic approaches to leadership styles include Hersey and Blanchard’s situational, or life-cycle, model. Such approaches to style have been around for a long time and still have implications for the practice. For example, Hersey and Blanchard’s approach shows how well managers can match the appropriate style with the maturity level of the group being led. However, such approaches to style lack the research backup to make sustainable contributions to effective evidence-based practice. By contrast, spurred on by recent ethical debacles and economic crisis, authentic leadership theory and positive, authentic styles, that involve self-awareness, transparency, trust, and psychological capital, are receiving attention. The emerging research on this approach shows promise of being able to contribute to a new evidence-based leadership style to help meet contemporary challenges. The shift in focus from styles to roles and activities reflects a more direct empirical emphasis on what leaders really do. Through observational research methodology, Mintzberg identified interpersonal (figurehead, leader, liaison), informational (monitor, disseminator, spokesperson), and decisional (entrepreneur, disturbance handler, resource allocator, negotiator) roles. Closely related is the observational study of leader/manager activities. The author’s (Luthans) Real Managers Study investigated the question of what leaders/managers do in their day-to-day activities and what successful and effective leaders/managers do. It was found that the managers spend about a third of their time and effort in communication activities, a third in traditional management activities, a fifth in human resource management activities, and a fifth in networking activities. The analysis of successful managers (those rapidly promoted) found that networking made the biggest relative contribution to their rise and human resource management activities the least. In contrast, however, the analysis of effective managers (those with satisfied and committed subordinates and high-performing units) found that communication and human resource management activities made the largest relative contribution, and networking, the least. This difference between successful and effective managers has considerable implications for how one gets ahead in an organization (networking that involves socializing/politicking and interacting with outsiders) and the reward systems of organizations (the effective managers may not be promoted as fast as the politically savvy ones). The last part of the chapter is concerned with leadership skills—how leaders behave and perform effectively, and leadership development. Although there are many skills, such as cultural flexibility, communication, creativity, and self-management of learning, again the more evidence-based skills identified by Whetten and Cameron are the most effective and sustainable. Their personal skills model, involving developing self-awareness, managing stress, and solving problems creatively, and the interpersonal skills model, involving communicating supportively, gaining power and influence, motivating others, and managing conflict, are especially comprehensive and effective. Recently, leadership development, especially centered on competencies, authentic leadership development (ALD), and coaching, has been receiving increased attention in research and is being translated into evidence-based effective practice. Finally, the more widely recognized organizational behavior techniques found in other chapters (for example, training, job design, and behavioral management) can also provide evidence-based development techniques for effective leadership.