The Leadership Challange by James Kouzes and Barry Posner

BOOK REVIEW : THE LEADERSHIP CHALLENGE

Kouzes and Posner (2003 ) try to simplify the of leadership that has confounded man over a period of time . The book intends to identify the vital role of leadership in human organizations . The techniques and laws mentioned in the book were rooted on years of comprehensive studies that were actually carried out by the authors . The authors started a research project in 1983 that aims to understand what people do in leading others

What makes their study unique is that they asked ordinary people about their

extraordinary experiences . This comes within the real context of the book which is to strengthen and uplift the spirits of the everyday person challenged with the task of leading others , whether it is on the job , in the community , or at home . The book 's (1983 ) central theme is about leadership with how ordinary people practice it and in the process become efficient leaders who get extraordinary things done in their organizations

Kouzes and Posner (2003 ) believe that leadership is a reciprocal process between those who intend to lead and those who wish to become followers . To emphasize the significance of this approach , Kouzes and Posner (2003 ) allotted an entire chapter representing the dynamics of the relationship between the leader and the follower . Among the dynamics of this relationship is the belief that the constituents have of their leader , which the authors have powerfully summarized at the start of the chapter quoting Brian Carroll 'Without credibility , you can 't lead

The authors work hard to eradicate many of the widespread myths of leadership such as the opinion of the leader being a so called Robin Hood , luring a band of followers with courageous acts , or that of the leader being an imagined vision with Merlin-like powers and perhaps the most deadly myth of all , that leadership is devoted only for the few chosen ones

Kouzes and Posner (2003 ) at the end of their study conclude that leadership is actually a collection of noticeable , learnable customs which can be learned by anyone with the longing to lead effectively

The authors discussed 'challenging the process ' during the initial part of the book . This practice is meant to continually question and conceivably purify every activity within the organization

Regardless of whether one entirely conforms with the thought of the authors ' on Five Practices And Ten Commitments of Leadership and the accompanying examples , one is obliged to compromise that this noticeably rich and detailed , yet easy-to-read book , offers nutritious food for thought and hones our understanding of a challenge that most of us face today - the leadership challenge - and essentially provides us the tools for meeting this challenge head on

The book is basically an inspiring read which presents a good number of examples . The main strengths of the book are its enthusiasm and advocacy of integrity , values and taking people with you when you administer major change . The book came out at a time when management was made the scapegoat for...