Being a Good Leader - Essay Example

Leader Analysis Paper al Affiliation November, Introduction Being a good leader is not an automatic process as one has to possess a number of characters that will define him from a follower. Great leaders have been known to be innovative and aggressive when it comes to pushing for the ideologies they feel are the best ones for a given situation. In this analysis we shall address the qualities of a good leader basing our analysis from the interview I did on my former manager who was my senior while working as an intern in Shanghai. The qualities he possessed are well explained in this book and referring to the way he addressed issues it is evident that he possesses the qualities of a good leader. A good leader should be able to persuade and motivate the juniors working under him in tough times to ensure that they are always focused and full of vigor. Organizations are run on set goals and objectives, therefore a good leader will be able to draft good objectives and incorporate all the stakeholders involved in the production or achievement of the goals so that they can work as a team. The leader should bridge the gap between him and the employees so that they can feel as part of the overall plan and pledge to offer their best. The leader should possess good listening skills and be ready to address the problems arising in a supportive and diligent manner. Constructive criticism is welcome in any given situation. This is important when one feels that one of the employees or any staff is not delivering his/her mandate in the expected way. It is therefore wrong to victimize an employee instead of using positive corrective measures that are needed in creating a good environment for the staff and the customers. The leader should be assertive so as to portray a positive image of himself to the employees and also to the society they are interacting with. Presenting a positive personal image ensures that the people looking up to you in the organization trust you and believe that you will be able to accord them the leadership they yearn for. It is important to delegate certain tasks to the juniors in the organization as this creates trust and increases responsibility among the workers. On top of these, a good leader should always have a positive attitude and an optimistic way of addressing problems as the approach he gives may be what it entails to make the projects or the goals achievable or not. An organization often goes through tough times which calls for tough measures to ensure that it does not close its business. In such cases, the leader or the manager should be persevering and always be in the front line to offer solutions instead of being part of the problem. If he is the one who is wrong, it is always wise to accept responsibility and account for the mistakes that one has done. This aspect of honest may be overlooked but is very important as any other employee will follow suit when things go wrong instead of trying to cover things up and causing more errors. Lastly a leader should always take the initiative and ensure that he is flexible enough to adapt to change. Being rigid in an organization only leads to losing the employees or intimidating the ones who feel that change is important. I shall use the leadership aspects learnt in class to do an analysis of the interview I conducted on the manager I worked with while on internship during summer. The following are the responses from the interview questions and the responses of each. Question: Tell me a brief story about your current work as a leader. What company you work for, what is your current role in the company, how long have you been in this role, and a little bit about how you came be in the position you now have. Response: I have worked at Shanghai Media Company for seven years and started as a junior staff only to rise to the rank of an assistant manager and later to the managerial position. I oversee the performance of all employees in the company as well as being the head of all the departments that form the company. I have worked as a manager for two years seven months and I enjoy the new responsibilities that have come with the new position. I was chosen as the assistant manager and later as a manger mainly due to my dedication in my work and always having the initiative to come up with new ideas to fit the company. My interaction with employees and heads in the various departments was also good a factor that facilitated my promotion. Analysis: He started as a junior staff at Shanghai Media Company and since the start he was dedicated to his work and had the initiative to bring helpful changes to the company. Company heads are always keen to identify employees who hold key characteristics such as handling their work diligently and delivering high quality work. In this response it is evident that though he may not have been eying the position of the assistant manager but his performance qualified him to hold it. Relating well with seniors as well as other employees in the work place is a key character of a good leader. A leader should not go picking fights with anyone just because they are in authority or because they can go with it without getting punished. On top of that, it is good for an individual who have the qualities of a leader to come up with well-crafted solutions in cases when disaster is looming. This is one of the aspects that the human resource personnel look for when they want to recruit an individual to assume a managerial or a leadership position in an organization. Question: According to the research on leadership, extraversion (being a person who is outgoing), openness to experience, agreeableness, conscientiousness (dependability and attention to detail), are all associated with better leadership. Which areas do you personally see as important to your leadership and how does it influence you being a better leader in your organization? Response: Over the years I have perfected my skills in leadership. As said earlier I had no management experience when I was accorded the responsibility to as an assistant manager. Through trial and error methods I have come to appreciate being an extravert in leadership. This allows one to welcome new ideas and also agree on them if they are adding value to the objectives and goals set by the organization. Conscientiousness also works in line with being outgoing in allowing new ideas to help in developing the goals of the organization. Analysis: He had no experience in leadership when given the responsibility of leading the organization and managing other employees in the organization. This means that most of the decisions that he made were based on assumptions and many of which were not right. However, over time he came to appreciate the need of being outgoing and the need to welcome new ideas from other people. In any given workplace, it is important to welcome all the ideas and opinions given by various stakeholders who play significant roles in achieving the goals set by the organization. One should not limit his learning and any advice given to him or learnt from any source should always be welcome. No leader can possess all the attributes that define a good leader. One should therefore be open to new experience just like the manager. According to Northouse (2013), a good leader should not fear being criticized if the criticism is positive (p. 106-109). Such criticism is used to improve on ones skills to lead and better the qualities that one may not have polished. Question: What are 3 long-term, inherent, qualities (i.e., what you were born with) do you have as a leader that impacts the willingness of people in your organization to follow you? Response: The major qualities that have helped me as a leader include self-confidence which helps me in making of decisions and addressing issues boldly without being intimidated. I am also determined in my activities and ensure that all the work I do is accomplished to the best of my ability. Integrity and being sociable have also helped me in being accountable to what I do and the mistakes that I do as well as being responsible for the running of the company. I have coupled those with the ones indicated earlier to ensure that I deliver my mandate to the best as indicated in my job description. Analysis: As a manager he has three major qualities that make him the best in delivering his mandate as a manager. He has self-confidence which is an important quality to ensure that other people will be able to subscribe to his ideologies. According to Northouse (2013), self-confidence ensures that the person performs his job without fear and is also critical in expression. A leader who is incapacitated in expressing his views will have major challenges in executing his duties (p.24). A leader should also be intelligent (p. 23). Being intelligent means that the leader will address the problems diligently and also deal with employees in a good way. Being determined ensures that one will act as a role model and other employees can emulate him (p. 25). Being a role model is one important as a leader as its one of the only ways that you can lead by example. The manager has therefore mastered important traits that are important in executing his duties and controlling the activities in the organization. Question: Over your years as a leader, what leadership skills and talents have you specifically set out to improve?  In addition, what steps did you take to improve those areas of your leadership?  What was helpful?  What obstacles did you encounter? Response: Since I had no leadership experience I often resorted to using intimidation on my employees when I wanted anything done. This was very wrong as I came to realize later. Handling different situations in different approaches is critical in leadership. On top of that one should never underestimate the importance of motivating the employees and commending them when their performance is outstanding. Failure to appreciate their deeds will lead to loss of the working spirit and definitely impact negatively on the total output. Analysis: As he says, lacking the skills to handle employees is a major setback that can affect a leader’s performance and limit the achievement of the goals. As Northouse puts it, different approach to the problems facing the company is important in ensuring that the leader is not in loggerheads with the employees. Situational leadership as indicated in the book is a two dimensional thing which is directive and supportive (p. 99). In a given situation, it is therefore important to determine whether the employee should be accorded harshness or the opposite. The manager often used intimidation to pass his antics which is unsupported. On the contrary what is important is to build a rapport with the employees so that the social gap between the two groups is bridged. Once that is done positive criticism on both sides will be welcome and this will improve both parties and hence improve the performance of the company. Question: Some leaders place and emphasis on the task people are assigned to complete. Other leaders place an emphasis on maintaining relationships with the people who report to them. Others place an emphasis on the result of the work accomplished. How would you weight the importance of those criterions? And how does each of these impact your team’s ability to achieve your unit goals? Who influenced you the most in becoming the leader you are today? And what event impacted you the most as a leader? Response: Both are equally important and dependent on each other. The people who are answerable to me may fail to deliver their mandate effectively if our relationship with them is soared. It is therefore important to ensure that the two are balanced to improve performance of the company. In doing this I realize each employee’s strengths to ensure that we use it to enhance his performance and his importance in our team. Analysis: The manager notes that in a leadership position it is not only about ensuring that the tasks that are assigned to the juniors are completed but also ensuring that the relationship with them is healthy. Having a healthy relationship ensures that the employees are free to express their views and they will therefore not hesitate to point out new ways that may help improve the company’s performance. The leader should also yearn to serve more than he wants to be served. The Servant Leadership theory explains that a good leader should always ensure that he serves more not by being forced but because he has the calling to serve (p. 223). This builds a culture of performance in the organization and it is important in achieving the goals and objectives set. Question: Who influenced you the most in terms of being a leader and how they had such an impact on your life? Tell me about a time in your life when you first realized that you could be a real leader. How did you keep that experience a part of who you are as a leader? Response: At first I did not know that I would make a good leader. Though I had been accorded different responsibilities in my previous jobs I never anticipated that one day I would become a manager. However, I appreciated the leadership traits of leaders who were hardworking and who led by example rather than try to impose rules that they could also not follow. When I became a leader I was faced by new challenges and I knew I had to move ahead as there was no option to turn back. Analysis: He explains that one does not always realize that he possesses leadership traits. Though some people will have served in different leadership positions in their lives, some people who can make very good leaders may always stay suppressed and only come to realize they can lead when they are given the responsibility. It is however important to read wide to get new leadership traits that one can use if faced by the challenge of leading a group. Leadership traits and skills are both acquired in our daily interactions as well as inherited. One should be quick to learn his weaknesses and strengths as it’s only in that way that one can be able to handle the responsibilities he faces. Many leaders don’t appreciate being corrected. However, as Northouse puts it, positive criticism should be welcome at all levels as it plays an important role in molding the individuals positively (p. 59). Question: Do you think “trust” is a critical variable in such a team? Why? How trust derives the relationship between you as a leader and your subordinates as the followers? Response: To build a good relationship between me and the employees, it is important to uphold great levels of trust. Trust is not bought but earned and so one has to earn it. In a society that trusts each other, it will be easy to delegate duties and hence help to ease the tasks that are being done. When subordinates trust one’s leadership they will play a great role in ensuring that they perform their duties diligently and effectively. Analysis: As the manager puts it, trust is important in building healthy relationships in an organization. In many situations, it is important to build an environment where the employees will feel secure and open enough to table their views and opinions regarding various situations and circumstances affecting the organization. The ability to freely interact with the employees is only achieved if the leader has built trust with them and they are not fearing that they may be fired if they support a certain course or express their views. On the other hand if the leader is trusting the subordinates it will be easier to delegate some responsibilities to them and this means that the whole task will be eased. The performance of the organization relies on their joint effort and so none should be underestimated or underrated. Question: What particular guiding principles and ways of leading have you adopted to lead your team? And how have you integrated them into your leadership style? Response: My guiding principles are easy. They include discovering, taking charge and serving. Others that I have incorporated in my service include building good relations and being open. These principles have helped me in my work mainly to understand the environment I am in and also to interact well with my subordinates. Analysis: Guiding principles are important leadership. As the manager puts it, it is important to discover. One has to go forth and come up with new ideas and plans that are customized to address the contemporary problems and offer solutions to the problems they are facing. A good leader also need to be visionary. A visionary leader will be able to initiate the setting of goals and objectives that are achievable and facilitate their achievement. The results desired may not be achieved if the leader is not able to take charge. Taking charge means that the person is able to account for the things that are happening and can initiate a change and influence other people to follow it. One does not need to be overly authoritative to take charge. The best way is to have a special way of making people subscribe to your line of thought without struggling. This is what best leaders do. Question: Tell me about a time when you were confronted with an ethical dilemma. What were your guiding beliefs that determine how you approach ethical decision making and behavior? How do others perceive you as an ethical leader and on what would you base those perceptions? Response: I have been faced with ethical dilemmas a number of times but the most significant one is when a friend wanted to use me to solicit a job in the company instead of using the right channel. Knowing that I had direct access to the human resource department the person wanted to use me as the bridge to get a job. I could not allow it since its ethically wrong and at my capacity I would not be able to address a similar act in the future. Analysis: As the manager puts it, employees and the manager are often faced with ethical dilemmas and one is left unsure on the step to take considering the consequences that may follow. Employees are often faced with ethical dilemmas when they see a superior person in the team doing the wrong thing but because they fear they may be ejected from their jobs they hold it. As a manager the temptations are many which include awarding yourself or your friends’ tenders to various contrasts, or having a say in the hiring process in the organization. This is unacceptable and should be accorded the punishment it deserves if proven. Question: Tell me about the mistakes you ever did and a time when you faced a significant challenge. How did you react as a leader? What leadership strategy guided you and worked best? Response: As a leader one has to make mistakes and the best thing is to accept them and learn from them. As I said earlier I corrected my way of addressing my subordinates after I realized that intimidation and cajoling were not the best methods to use. In my service as a leader I have been faced by various challenges but the hardest are when I have to address a certain employee who is not executing his duties correctly and who is not ready to change. This is the greatest nightmare a leader could face and it requires much diligence to avoid a confrontation. Being understanding and patient helps one in such a situation to address the situation. Analysis: Leaders should learn from their mistakes as the manager puts it. Doing a mistake is not that bad, what complicates it is when the person cannot account for it or claim responsibility. Leaders being there as examples should therefore be in the frontline to encourage others to be honest and avoid escaping the responsibility when the unexpected happens. In cases of challenges as the ones he faces, a good leader should analyze the situation and then offer the best advice. This is always a function of his qualities and many leaders may not be able to contain the employees when tension rises. It is therefore important to have the skills and qualities indicated above in leading the individuals in any set up. Read More