Management And Leadership

Leadership and Management are two notions that are often used interchangeably. However, these words actually describe two different concepts. For this paper, I am going to try to discuss these differences and explain why both terms are thought to be similar.

Leadership is just one of the many assets a successful manager must possess. Care must be taken in distinguishing between the two concepts. The main aim of a manager is to maximize the output of the organization through administrative implementation. To achieve this, managers must undertake the following functions:

* Organization

* Planning

* Staffing

* Directing

* Controlling

Leadership is just one important component of the directing function. A manager

cannot just be a leader, he also needs formal authority to be effective. "For any quality initiative to take hold, senior management must be involved and act as a role model. This involvement cannot be delegated"(Predpall, 30).

In some circumstances, leadership is not required. For example, self-motivated groups may not require a single leader and may find leaders dominating. The fact that a leader is not always required proves that leadership is just an asset and is not essential.

Managers think incrementally, while leaders think radically. "Managers do things right, while leaders do the right thing" (Pascale, 65). This means that managers do things by the book and follow company policy, while leaders follow their own intuition, which may in turn be of more benefit to the company. A leader is more emotional than a manager. "Men are governed by their emotions rather than their intelligence" (Fenton, 113). This quote illustrates why teams choose to follow leaders.

"Leaders stand out by being different. They question assumption and are suspicious of tradition. They seek out the truth and make decisions based on fact, not prejudice. They have a preference for innovation" (Fenton, 113).

Often with small groups, it is not the manager who emerges as the leader. In many cases it is a subordinate member with specific talents who leads the group in a certain direction. "Leaders must let vision, strategies, goals, and values be the guide-post for action and behavior rather than attempting to control others" (Predpall, 31).

When a natural leader emerges in a group containing a manager, conflict may arise if they have different views. When a manager sees the group looking towards someone else for leadership he may feel his authority is being questioned.

Groups are often more loyal to a leader than a manager. The leader taking responsibility in areas such as creates this loyalty:

* Taking the blame when things go wrong.

* Celebrating