SITXHRM402 Lead and manage people
Topic 1 Model high standards
Overview
At the end of this topic you should be able to:
· make individual performance a positive role model for others
· show support for and commitment to organisation goals in day-to-day work performance
· treat people with integrity, respect and empathy
Introduction
The art of leadership has been researched and studied by many people, particularly during the last 50 years.Karpin (1995) inEnterprising Nation statesthat although there has been acontinuous search since 1900, for what makes a good leader, there is still no comprehensive theory of leadership, no clear knowledge or definition about what good leaders do that is unique, or understanding of how to select leaders.
What we do know isthat in the modern working environment the key to effective leadership is finding and using a style that is appropriate to the situation and the people involved.
Whilst your position as a manager, supervisor or team leader might give you the authority to accomplish certain tasks and objectives within your organisation, this authority does not necessarily make you a leader. Leaders have an enormous influence on a work group’s performance and therefore a direct effect on their organisation’s success. Effectiveleadership is worth more thantechnologyand infrastructure.
The challenges that today’s dynamic environment presents makes effective leadership even more important than before. In fact, leadership is now a core competency that all managers must possess.
The good news is that studies show thateffective leaders can be made. By having the will and the desire to develop leadership attributes, and by focusing on facilitating the skills development and capability of others in your workplace, you can become an effective leader. Follow a continuous improvement and professional development plan and, no matter what position you occupy, you will find people willing to follow you and work with you, and you will become a leader.
The knowledge you will gain from this topic will get you started, but throughout your career you should continue to focus on and learn about developingyour leadership abilities.
Watch a video
Watch this videoand takea moment to reflect on the qualities and behaviours of 4 people you believe are good leaders.
· What makes these people that you have selected good leaders?
· How do they motivate people?
· What has been their effect on people / workplace due to their leadership qualities?
· What do you believe are the specific characteristics that have made these peoplepositive leaders?
Feedback: Qualities and behaviours of someone you think is a good leader.
Did you short listthe following qualities and behaviours?
· inspires
· encourages
· supports
· leads by example
· pushes for change
· excellent interpersonal skills
· participates
· people focus
It would be fair to say that skilled leaders use a leadership style that matches the group situation. Different leadership styles and behaviour can be effective, depending on the development levels of workers.
A good leadercan bea positive role model bypossessing high standards of performance and behaviour. They may beassertive, have strong values and beliefs, which they are not afraid to reveal to others in the workplace. They can stand by their decisions, have high ethical standards, a strong character andbe credible. They will most probablypossess a great deal of knowledge and skills. In all likelihood they will bean expert at what they do in their chosen career, and achieve consistently high outcomes for the organisation. They may be the person who pulls in the greatest number of new clients or who tops the sales chart, year after year.
A good leader can see the big picture, which means that they can see the end result of where they want the organisation and team to go. Many people do not have this capacity; they are focused only on the day-to-day tasks that they need to perform.Leadersfacilitate and nurture the team and will inspire others to do what is to be done because they want to do it, and to achieve their own personal best.
Leaders
It is doubtful that someone is ‘a born leader’. While they may have abilities that develop from a young age which help them to become effective leaders, it is generally accepted that leadership is a skill that can be developed.
As a manager you must provide leadership for your team. The effectiveness of this leadership will vary depending on your level of skill and understanding of leadership concepts. There are several styles of leadership ranging from authoritarian through to compliant and we will discuss leadership styles later in this topic. Each has its purpose and appropriate application. The aim is to develop the style that best suits your situation.
While leaders are generally seen as officials with formal authority, effective leadership can also be an informal process. A leader’s behaviour and attitude will have an impact on the team’s motivation and overall job satisfaction.The leader’s style has the ability to build or destroy the motivation and attitude of the team.
Leaders have an enormous influence on performance and therefore a direct effect on their organisation's success.
A definition
There are a wide range of definitions of the concept of leadership and the role of a leader. The Oxford dictionary defines leadership as the action of leading a group of people or an organisation, or the ability to do this.Otherdictionary definitions identifyleadershipas having the capacity to lead or one that provides guidance by going in front, or causes others to go with them.
In areview of leadership theory, Northouse (2004) identified four common themes that run through much of leadership theory:
1) Leadership is a process
2) Leadership involves influence
3) Leadership occurs in a group context
4) Leadership involves the attainment of goals.
Based on this study,leadership was defined as ‘a process whereby an individual influences a group or individuals to achieve a common goal’. However, as stated in the introduction to this topic, there is still noclear knowledge or definitionthat encapsulates all the facets of leadership.We must accept there will be a range of different interpretations and perceptions of leadership and what leaders do.
Thecharacteristics of the word 'leadership':
Activity
Interview one or more leaders you know from your workplace or an organisation that you are familiar with. Ask about what they consider to be the personal qualities and behaviours of effective leaders.
You could make an audio recording of the interview, or write up your notes in a report. In particular, you might ask them how they:
· accomplish what they do?
· get people motivated?
· get everyone ‘on the same page’?
· make sure information is clearly communicated?
· find out what their ‘followers’ are thinking and doing?
· encourageand support people through challenges?
Take a momentto think about what you think effective leadership is.
Feedback: Effective leadership
‘Effective Leadership’is the ability to achieve goals through the efforts of others while maintaining their cooperation, loyalty, respect and confidence.
OR
In an organisation, ‘Effective Leadership’is about achieving enterprise goals through the work of others.
OR
‘Effective Leaders’ harness people’s energies; they guide, coachand support them in their efforts, and see that they have what they need to do their jobs to the best of their ability.
OR
‘Effective Leaders’ express goals clearly and precisely, so that others work willingly and cooperatively towards achieving them. More than this, effective leaders supply the vision and overall sense of purpose that inspires people and gives their work a special significance.
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Leading or managing
Is therea distinction between leaders and managers?A leaderdoesn’t require any managerial position to act as a leader. On the other hand, an effective manager must havetraits of aleader. By virtue of his position, a manager has to provide leadership to his group. Leadership ispart of a manager’sfunction. Harvard's John Kotter states that leadership is an important part of management, but only a part; management also requires planning, organising, staffing, and controlling. Management produces a degree of predictability and order. Leadership produces change.
A person can be a leader by virtue of qualities within. For example: leader of a club, class, welfare association, social organisation, etc. Therefore, it is true to say that, “All managers are leaders, but all leaders are not managers.”
John HaiIey (2006) states thatin practice, leadership and management are integral parts of the same job. Both these activities need to be balanced and matched to the demands of the situation. He states that leadership is not just restricted to top management. Leadership skills are needed at a departmental and team level.Hailey states that effective leaders have to demonstrate some managerial skills, and good managers display leadership qualities. There is no rigid formula as to the degree that these skills or attributes are used or displayed. In practice it depends on the judgement of the individual involved and the context in which they find themselves.
Management
The term management refers to the process of coordinating and integrating work in order to achieve organisational or enterprise goals.
So from this definition, anyone who is responsible for achieving goals through others is a manager.
The majorityof organisationsincorporate varied management titles, such as team leaders, section heads, coordinators, first-line managers or simply managers. Thus the career path for most workers is to be promoted to supervisorthen to manager.
A management career path could look like this:
Management functions
Today's business environment is very different than it was 20 years ago, especially when consideringtechnological changes that have occurredin recent years. Information technology (IT) has changed the way the world does business and has had a great effect on traditional management functions. Management no longer has to rely on manual processes and a paper trail to perform everyday transactions. IT has automated many of these key management activities. For example, e-mail has accelerated communication while the internet allows instant access to branch offices, bank accounts and information.Information technology increases work productivity and frees up employees time to spend on value added services
While traditional functions of managementstill remain highlyrelevant in decision making and strategic planning, increasing technology means that managers must adjust to more variablesand changing environments.
Here are the basicfunctions of management:
Management functions: Planning; Organising; Leading; Controlling
Try to think about these functionsas a process where each step builds on the others. Managers must first plan, then organise according to that plan, lead others to work towards the plan, and finally evaluate the effectiveness of the plan. These four functions must be performed properly and, when done well, become the reason for organisational success.
Watch a video
Kathleen Dodaro, PhD, is a visionary leader and notable business woman with over 25 years of human resource administration, strategic management, training, and program development experience. Her areas of specialisation are employment law, recruitment, retention, and leadership development.
Watch a video of Dr Kathleen Dodaro being interviewedabout the differences between management and leadership andthe four main functions and responsibilities of management.
Contents of video
Dr Kathleen Dodaro talks about the four main functions and responsibilities of management. Here is a summary of each.
Planning
Setting goals for the team and deciding how they can be reached. Includes defining goals, establishing strategies and developing plans to coordinate activities.
For example, a goal may be (for staff of a travel agency which specialises in travel to Russia and Scandinavia) to ensure that all sales staff are adequately trained, and have comprehensive destination and product knowledge.
Organising
Who, what and when are the main aspects of organising?
Determining what tasks are to be done, who is to do them, how the tasks are to be grouped, who reports to whom, and where decisions are to be made. Ensuring adequate budget and time allocated to achieve goals. Ensuring resources are there for the team to perform their tasks.
Continuing with the previous example, the staff may need training. You will need to decide who will identify the training needs and conduct the training. You will also need to decide how and when the training will occur. You might decide to run a session and/or compile information packs for distribution to staff.
Leading/directing
People need to be motivated.
Includes motivating followers/staff, directing others, selecting most effective communication channels and resolving conflicts.
A manager's role is to provide direction and to influence the staff, as individuals and as a team, to work towards the goals developed.
They need to consider:
· What will motivate the team and the individuals?
· How will the different personalities within the team be catered for?
· Can some of the highly knowledgeable team members help train the new selling staff?
Controlling/monitoring
Controlling and monitoring involves checking on progress.
Monitoring activities to ensure they are being accomplished as planned and correcting any significant deviations.
In our example above, the manager might ask each staff member whether they have the adequate destination and product knowledge to competently do their job.
Although not compulsory, if you wish to read further material about leaders and managers, refer to the text Management Theory and Practice (details below)
Management roles & skills
So far we've learnt that Leadership and Management operate hand in hand. To be a good manager requires leadership skills, and an effective leader will be reliant on applying their own and others' management skills to achieve their vision.
Activity
Research a supervisory or management role in the event industry. Compile a brief job description, identifying some of the key tasks and responsibilities of the role:
Try www.seek.com.au or www.mycareer.com.au for current advertised roles.
Feedback
Did you identify some of the tasks associated with the following functions of management?