Mastering Leadership

Leadership can be defined as the art of guiding an individual, a group or an organization towards predefined goals. Leadership is generally touted as an art, meaning that it is largely a reflection of the character and style of its possessors. However it must also be remembered that every leader or manager does use a combination of theory and practice in guiding the organization towards achieving its goals. In that context, leadership reflects the leader's values, experience and capabilities in dealing with situations where the outcome is unpredictable and dependent on a host of changing factors and circumstances. Success as a leader would therefore depend on individual responses to a situation that may be novel for the organization. Effective leadership would therefore be a combination of the intellect, energy, courage, temperament and other core values of the leader. However it would be foolish to ignore the distilled wisdom and thoughts of management scientists and practitioners of the discipline in our culture. Leadership is not static but dynamic- it must continually evolve, as the world must keep learning.

The business organizations of today are increasingly affected by the rapid pace of technological, commercial and managerial changes, hitherto incomparable in terms of pace, magnitude, complexity and the absence of certainty. Effective leadership requires a paradigm shift in thinking- the ability to manage (a) overcoming the fear of failure (b) moving out of traditional comfort zones (c) risk taking (d) breaking the mould (e) testing and busting the boundaries and (f) recognizing the need for learning and continual updating of knowledge and understanding.

Is leadership an inborn talent (natural) or can it be taught and learned (nurtured)? While there is no definite conclusion on this point, much has been written to support both arguments. Two well-known theories of leadership are those that have been put forward by John Adair (Functional Leadership Model) and Paul Hersey and Kenneth Blanchard (Situational Leadership Model). Adair defines leadership in terms of its results, namely: 1.Achieving the task.2. Building and maintaining the team.3. Developing the individual. According to Hersey and Blanchard, the concept of 'functioning maturity', underlying situational leadership reflects the degree to which people can - and will - do what is expected of them, in terms of effective job performance. Functioning is thus represented in the form of a progressive continuum of behavior. The application of this theory seeks to determine behavioral characteristics in the role of the leader. Sun-Tzu in his classic work "The Art of War" underlines seven aspects of leadership that can be assessed: 1. Competence and readiness to keep learning open. 2. Sense of purpose and commitment to goals. 3. Self discipline and self respect. 4. Achievement and accomplishments. 5. Sense of accountability and responsibility. 6. Ability to build effective relationships. 7. Readiness to lead by example. Tom Cummings goes on to determine what are the moral and psychological drives behind principle-centered leadership. They are: 1. Avoid 'pain' and hassle (stay in 'comfort zone'). 2. Self-interest (what's in it for me?). 3. Seeking approval and accolades (vanity and self-glorification). 4. Principle of law (what is legal and required, what is illegal). 5. Long term interests (preservation of the business).6. Do what is right to do (the ethical position).

Taking the point of view that leadership is a mass of different skills than can be learned, the leader-in-training passes through four different stages in picking up a skill: (1) unconscious incompetence (2) conscious incompetence (3) conscious competence and (4) unconscious competence. At the last stage, the skilled expert experiences a flow with the nature of the task. Mastery in leadership is a synthesis of IQ, emotional intelligence, experience, acquired competence - and a good fortune. It is also about being able to trigger and mobilize willing synergy and commitment among others in the collective pursuit of changing goals in conditions of uncertainty, insecurity and contradiction. Wisdom in leadership probably begins with the recognition that there is no one 'right' of doing things. Leadership is about balancing the demands of the task with the needs and expectations of the people involved.' In the realm of leadership activity, we move along a continuum from Doing to Improving to Changing and Developing to Integrating and Synthesizing to Mastery. In terms of communication and leadership level, becoming a Master Leader is characterized by peak communication. The leader's 'political' maturity and acumen, ability to influence others and make things happen, within networks of complex organizational and power relationships, is very important. Caroline Egri of the Simon Fraser University, Canada, identifies eight actions, or behaviors, to ensure political survival:1. Enhance your personal power and influence. 2. Increase your centrality and criticality within the business. 3. Raise your visibility around the place. 4. Strengthen and reinforce your relevance in the organization. 5. Increase your flexibility, but preserve your integrity - as a person and as a member of the organization. 6. Use reason, reciprocity and retribution wisely. 7. Learn how to counter them effectively. 8. Empower your people and draw on the strength of your team as an organizational entity. The effectiveness of the leader also depends upon the environment or organizational culture in which he operates. In contrast to the closed 'domain management' culture that characterize older organizations, there is today a move towards an open culture, which is characterized by I)Continually changing, renewing and re-organizing II) Open culture, with the major focus on 'what', not 'who' needs changing III) Interdependent and cross-functionally oriented with high emphasis upon 'networking' communication styles and multidisciplinary working and, thus outputs IV) 'Outwards', as well as 'inwards' leadership and role focus, aimed at seeking coalitions, partnerships and alliances. V) High adaptability and flex in organizational response, work roles and goals and availability of contributive competence - as situations and demands change, with consequent multiplicity of transient 'We's' and 'us's' as teams organically arise, live and 'die' VI) Effective use of systems as stabilizing, consistency - ensuring processes VII) Consequent proactive and reactive versatility and innovation VIII) Shared vision and values largely replace traditional role structures, as 'like minds', and 'kindred spirits' articulate and synthesize new common purpose, missions