MANA 6310 - LEADERSHIP IN MANAGEMENT FINAL EXAMINATION Question 1: (50 points - 400-500 words) What does it mean to be a servant leader and does it match the leadership philosophy presented by Kouzes and Posner in our text? Question 2: (50 points - 400-500 words) What are the principles you have personally learned in this course that have impacted or will impact your leadership in your workplace, home, church, and community? In other words, what do you take away from this course that will make you a better leader? Model the Way Leaders establish principles concerning the way people (constituents, peers, colleagues, and customers alike) should be treated and the way goals should be pursued. They create standards of excellence and then set an example for others to follow. Because the prospect of complex change can overwhelm people and stifle action, they set interim goals so that people can achieve small wins as they work toward larger objectives. They unravel bureaucracy when it impedes action; they put up signposts when people are unsure of where to go or how to get there; and they create opportunities for victory. Inspire a Shared Vision Leaders passionately believe that they can make a difference. They envision the future, creating an ideal and unique image of what the organization can become. Through their magnetism and quiet persuasion, leaders enlist others in their dreams. They breathe life into their visions and get people to see exciting possibilities for the future. Challenge the Process Leaders search for opportunities to change the status quo. They look for innovative ways to improve the organization. In doing so, they experiment and take risks. And because leaders know that risk taking involves mistakes and failures, they accept the inevitable disappointments as learning opportunities. Enable Others to Act Leaders foster collaboration and build spirited teams. They actively involve others. Leaders understand that mutual respect is what sustains extraordinary efforts; they strive to create an atmosphere of trust and human dignity. They strengthen others, making each person feel capable and powerful. Encourage the Heart Accomplishing extraordinary things in organizations is hard work. To keep hope and determination alive, leaders recognize contributions that individuals make. In every winning team, the members need to share in the rewards of their efforts, so leaders celebrate accomplishments. They make people feel like heroes. What does it mean to be a servant leader and does it match the leadership philosophy presented by Kouzes and Posner in our text? Servant leadership is both a leadership philosophy and set of leadership practices. Traditional leadership generally involves the accumulation and exercise of power by one at the \"top of the pyramid.\" By comparison, the servant-leader shares power, puts the needs of others first and helps people develop and perform as highly as possible. According to Robert K. Greenleaf (1970) the servant-leader is servant first... It begins with the natural feeling that one wants to serve, to serve first. Then conscious choice brings one to aspire to lead. That person is sharply different from one who is leader first, perhaps because of the need to assuage an unusual power drive or to acquire material possessions...The leader-first and the servant-first are two extreme types. Between them there are shadings and blends that are part of the infinite variety of human nature. The difference manifests itself in the care taken by the servant-first to make sure that other people's highest priority needs are being served. Greenleaf said that "the servant-leader is servant first." By that he meant that that the desire to serve, the "servant's heart," is a fundamental characteristic of a servant-leader. It is not about being servile, it is about wanting to help others. It is about identifying and meeting the needs of colleagues, customers, and communities. The most common division of leadership styles is the distinction between autocratic, participative and laissez-faire leadership styles. The authoritarian style of leadership requires clearly defined tasks and monitoring their execution and results. The decision-making responsibility rests with the executive. In contrast to the autocratic, the practice of a participative leadership style involves employees in decision-making. More extensive tasks are delegated. The employee's influence and responsibility increases. The laissez-faire style of leadership is negligible in practice. Servant leadership can be most likely associated with the participative leadership style. The authoritarian leadership style does not correspond to the guiding principle. The highest priority of a servant leader is to encourage, support and enable subordinates to unfold their full potential and abilities. This leads to an obligation to delegate responsibility and engage in participative decision-making. In the managerial grid model of Blake and Mouton, the participative style of leadership is presented as the approach with the greatest possible performance and employee satisfaction. However, there is the question whether a leadership style can be declared as universal and universally applicable. Situational contexts are not considered. The servant leadership approach goes beyond employee-related behavior and calls for a rethinking of the hierarchical relationship between leaders and subordinates. This does not mean that the ideal of a participative style in any situation is to be enforced, but that the focus of leadership responsibilities is the promotion of performance and satisfaction of employees. According to James Kouzes and Barry Posner, leaders get people moving. They energize and mobilize. They take people and organizations to places they have never been before. Leadership is not a fad, and the leadership challenge never goes away. Therefore, their philosophical approach to leadership is in line with the servant leadership approach. What are the principles you have personally learned in this course that have impacted or will impact your leadership in your workplace, home, church, and community? In other words, what do you take away from this course that will make you a better leader? I have learnt several leadership principles in the course, which include the following; Great leadership begins with the person, not the position. Before you can lead others, you must first manage yourself. Leadership is not so much a position you hold as it is a set of disciplines and behaviors you practice, the first and most fundamental of which is self-discipline. A leader without self-discipline is a disaster waiting to happen. Great leadership is about your level of influence, not your level of authority. People follow the leader first and the vision second. If people aren't committed to you, they will not be committed to the vision you communicate. Always seek to have your level of influence exceed your level of authority. Indeed, your influence is your authority. You establish your personal credibility and authority by consistently living your core values and demonstrating that you are a person others can trust. Become a person other people want to follow. Great leaders are as good at listening as they are at communicating. People want their leaders to listen. Leaders don't have to agree, but they do need to listen and seek to understand. People want to be understood at two levels: intellectual and emotional. At the intellectual level people want the leader to understand what they are saying. At the emotional level people want the leader to understand what they are feeling. Again, listening is not about agreeing with people. It is about respecting them and paying attention to them. People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care. Great leadership is about wisdom, not intelligence. There are plenty of smart people in positions of leadership. What we need are wise leaders. Our world has an over-abundance of information, but we have a scarcity of real wisdom. Wise leaders have insight, that is, they see beyond the obvious. Why? Because they are looking! Before you can lead, you must first learn to follow. Great leaders are great followers. They are humble. They do not always need to be in charge. They understand the impact of great followership. If you don't understand the dynamics of following, then you don't understand the dynamics of leading. Many people in positions of authority are ineffective leaders precisely because they are not good followers. Great leaders create stability and drive change. Effective leaders build and maintain a changeless core. From that foundation they drive continuous change and improvement. The changeless core is a deep, unwavering commitment to shared values that gives people meaning and identity beyond their role in the organization and beyond the circumstances the organization or its people may be facing. The commitment to continuous change derives from the leader's recognition that success requires constant adjustment and continuous improvement. Today's world deals ruthlessly with people and organizations who fail to adapt and change. Great leaders use their power by giving it to others. Effective leaders are a source of power and energy for people, teams, and the organization. They encourage the heart. They understand that power is not a zero-sum game. The more a leader empowers others, the stronger and more effective the leader and the team become. Effective leadership requires courage. Lots of courage. References Brandon, John. "Personality Doesn't Determine Leadership Ability". Inc. (magazine). Retrieved 6th May 2016. Greenleaf, R. (1991). The servant as leader ([Rev. Ed.). Indianapolis, IN: Robert K. Greenleaf Center. Posner, James M. Kouzes, Barry Z. (2003). The Leadership Challenge Workbook (1st Ed.). Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 0787971782. What does it mean to be a servant leader and does it match the leadership philosophy presented by Kouzes and Posner in our text? Servant leadership is both a leadership philosophy and set of leadership practices. Traditional leadership generally involves the accumulation and exercise of power by one at the \"top of the pyramid.\" By comparison, the servant-leader shares power, puts the needs of others first and helps people develop and perform as highly as possible. According to Robert K. Greenleaf (1970) the servant-leader is servant first... It begins with the natural feeling that one wants to serve, to serve first. Then conscious choice brings one to aspire to lead. That person is sharply different from one who is leader first, perhaps because of the need to assuage an unusual power drive or to acquire material possessions...The leader-first and the servant-first are two extreme types. Between them there are shadings and blends that are part of the infinite variety of human nature. The difference manifests itself in the care taken by the servant-first to make sure that other people's highest priority needs are being served. Greenleaf said that "the servant-leader is servant first." By that he meant that that the desire to serve, the "servant's heart," is a fundamental characteristic of a servant-leader. It is not about being servile, it is about wanting to help others. It is about identifying and meeting the needs of colleagues, customers, and communities. The most common division of leadership styles is the distinction between autocratic, participative and laissez-faire leadership styles. The authoritarian style of leadership requires clearly defined tasks and monitoring their execution and results. The decision-making responsibility rests with the executive. In contrast to the autocratic, the practice of a participative leadership style involves employees in decision-making. More extensive tasks are delegated. The employee's influence and responsibility increases. The laissez-faire style of leadership is negligible in practice. Servant leadership can be most likely associated with the participative leadership style. The authoritarian leadership style does not correspond to the guiding principle. The highest priority of a servant leader is to encourage, support and enable subordinates to unfold their full potential and abilities. This leads to an obligation to delegate responsibility and engage in participative decision-making. In the managerial grid model of Blake and Mouton, the participative style of leadership is presented as the approach with the greatest possible performance and employee satisfaction. However, there is the question whether a leadership style can be declared as universal and universally applicable. Situational contexts are not considered. The servant leadership approach goes beyond employee-related behavior and calls for a rethinking of the hierarchical relationship between leaders and subordinates. This does not mean that the ideal of a participative style in any situation is to be enforced, but that the focus of leadership responsibilities is the promotion of performance and satisfaction of employees. According to James Kouzes and Barry Posner, leaders get people moving. They energize and mobilize. They take people and organizations to places they have never been before. Leadership is not a fad, and the leadership challenge never goes away. Therefore, their philosophical approach to leadership is in line with the servant leadership approach. What are the principles you have personally learned in this course that have impacted or will impact your leadership in your workplace, home, church, and community? In other words, what do you take away from this course that will make you a better leader? I have learnt several leadership principles in the course, which include the following; Great leadership begins with the person, not the position. Before you can lead others, you must first manage yourself. Leadership is not so much a position you hold as it is a set of disciplines and behaviors you practice, the first and most fundamental of which is self-discipline. A leader without self-discipline is a disaster waiting to happen. Great leadership is about your level of influence, not your level of authority. People follow the leader first and the vision second. If people aren't committed to you, they will not be committed to the vision you communicate. Always seek to have your level of influence exceed your level of authority. Indeed, your influence is your authority. You establish your personal credibility and authority by consistently living your core values and demonstrating that you are a person others can trust. Become a person other people want to follow. Great leaders are as good at listening as they are at communicating. People want their leaders to listen. Leaders don't have to agree, but they do need to listen and seek to understand. People want to be understood at two levels: intellectual and emotional. At the intellectual level people want the leader to understand what they are saying. At the emotional level people want the leader to understand what they are feeling. Again, listening is not about agreeing with people. It is about respecting them and paying attention to them. People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care. Great leadership is about wisdom, not intelligence. There are plenty of smart people in positions of leadership. What we need are wise leaders. Our world has an over-abundance of information, but we have a scarcity of real wisdom. Wise leaders have insight, that is, they see beyond the obvious. Why? Because they are looking! Before you can lead, you must first learn to follow. Great leaders are great followers. They are humble. They do not always need to be in charge. They understand the impact of great followership. If you don't understand the dynamics of following, then you don't understand the dynamics of leading. Many people in positions of authority are ineffective leaders precisely because they are not good followers. Great leaders create stability and drive change. Effective leaders build and maintain a changeless core. From that foundation they drive continuous change and improvement. The changeless core is a deep, unwavering commitment to shared values that gives people meaning and identity beyond their role in the organization and beyond the circumstances the organization or its people may be facing. The commitment to continuous change derives from the leader's recognition that success requires constant adjustment and continuous improvement. Today's world deals ruthlessly with people and organizations who fail to adapt and change. Great leaders use their power by giving it to others. Effective leaders are a source of power and energy for people, teams, and the organization. They encourage the heart. They understand that power is not a zero-sum game. The more a leader empowers others, the stronger and more effective the leader and the team become. Effective leadership requires courage. Lots of courage. References Brandon, John. "Personality Doesn't Determine Leadership Ability". Inc. (magazine). Retrieved 6th May 2016. Greenleaf, R. (1991). The servant as leader ([Rev. Ed.). Indianapolis, IN: Robert K. Greenleaf Center. Posner, James M. Kouzes, Barry Z. (2003). The Leadership Challenge Workbook (1st Ed.). Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 0787971782