Paper Topic:

What is a leader?

What is a leader

Introduction

The of leadership has never lost its importance to organizations Today , it acquires special significance because of rapid changes increasing the need for leaders able to cope with a constant stream of challenges . The definition of leadership proves elusive because of the broad nature of the concept . Viewpoints also differ on how individuals become leaders , although most will agree that it is a combination of learned and inborn abilities . Consideration of leadership evolution has important implications to the development of talent within an organization p

What is Leadership

Definition of leadership can include many various points . The most salient of these traits were summarised by the 750 executives polled by CIO Insight magazine as "relationship building "communications skills and "inspiration (Davis , 2003 . Clark (2005 ) defines leadership as a process by which a person influences others to accomplish an objective and directs the organization in a way that makes it more cohesive and coherent . The leader applies various leadership attributes to the process of guiding and inspiring others . The leader 's system of beliefs values , and attitudes shapes the work of subordinates and makes the organization what it is . The presence or absence of a strong leader can account for success or failure of the whole organization or initiative

Paths to Leadership

Formal leadership is essentially different from informal leadership Informal leaders are those that take on the leading role irrespective of whether they have been assigned to it . Their leadership is born out of their personal charisma and other qualities that enable them to influence people . On the contrary , a formal leader is someone designated to the position because of someone else 's decision , for instance , the head of a department appointed from above . Leadership works best when it formal and informal leaders coincide otherwise , the results I have personally observed in the workplace are timid , weak , and ineffective managers more preoccupied with getting the job done rather than empowering people

Scholars proposed a number of theories of leadership development . The Trait Theory posits that leadership will develop naturally in individuals resulting from a combination of inborn traits . The Great Events Theory claims that a crisis or important event may cause a person to rise to the occasion , which brings out extraordinary leadership qualities in an ordinary person (Clark , 2005 . The Transformational Theory relates leadership to personal choice and learned abilities

While all these theories may have value in explaining variety of individual paths to leadership , most people will agree that leadership emerges as a combination of learned and natural-born skills . The innate makings of leaders include high energy , exceptional intelligence extreme persistence , self-confidence and a yearning to influence others (Avolio , 1999 . However , those that do not have the complete inventory of these skills can learn many others that will complement their leadership potential and make them effective leaders . Here belong problem-solving skills , increase in self-confidence , communication ability , integrity , personal ethics etc (Avolio , 1999 . For example managers can develop communication skills that enable them to...

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