Ability

to influence a group toward the achievement of a vision or set of goals Trait theories of Leadership Theories differentiate leaders from non leaders by focusing on personal qualities and characteristics Great leaders Many studies where conducted to identify the leadership traits, 80 were identified Then 5 were finalized Big Five

 studies found that most important trait of effective leadership Results extraversion is related to leader emergence Conscientiousness and openness strong and consistent relationship to leadership Recent studies show that EI is important trait A core component of EI is empathy Empathic leaders can sense others feelings, listen to followers and read them
Extraversion

Based on these, two conclusions: Traits can predict leadership Traits do a better job at predicting the emergence of leaders Fact to be considered: Individuals that exhibits the traits and others consider that person to be a leader, does not necessarily mean that the leader is successful , with his group in achieving goals

 Researchers

wanted to identify the behavior exhibited by specific leaders Anything unique? Ex: successful leaders of Oracle and Siebel systems
(Tom Siebel and Larry Ellison)

were tough talking, intense, autocratic Trait theories assumed that leaders are born, but behavioral theories assume that leaders can be trained
They

 Conducted

at Ohio state University during late

1940s Researchers wanted to identify the dimensions of leadership behavior Started with 1000, then, ended up with 2 categories: 1) initiating structure 2)consideration

initiating structure extent to which a leader is likely to define and structure his or her role and those of employees in the search for goal attainment It includes behavior that attempts to organize work, work relationships, goals

A leader characterized as high in initiating structure =assigns group members to particular tasks, expects workers to maintain definite standards of performance, and emphasizes meeting deadlines 2)consideration: Extent to which a person is likely to have job relationships that are characterized by mutual trust, respect for employees ideas, regard for their feelings

Helps employees with personal problems Friendly , approachable, treats all equally, appreciate,

support

Similar research objectives Came up with two dimensions: 1) Employee oriented 2) production oriented

1) Employee oriented:
emphasize interpersonal relations Took personal interest in the needs of employees Accepted individual differences among members

2) production oriented
Emphasize technical aspects of the job, concern was in

accomplishing tasks, group members were just tools for that

 First

dimension was similar to consideration dimension of Ohio state studies Second was similar to initiating structure Conclusions :
Employee oriented leader are associated with higher

group productivity &greater job satisfaction Production oriented leaders are associated with low group productivity and low job satisfaction Some leaders may have right traitsbut..Ex;hp CE Carly Fiorina

1) Fiedler Model: Fred Fiedler Proposes that effective group performance depends on the proper match between the leaders style and the degree to which the situation gives control to the leader Key factor in success basic leadership style He began by finding out what basic style is Created least preferred coworker (LPC) questionnaire This is to measure whether a person is task oriented or relationship oriented

 LPC

contains questionnaire sets of 16 contrasting adjectives

(ex:pleasant/unpleasant, efficient/inefficient)

It

asks all respondents to think of all the coworkers, they have ever had and to describe the one person they least enjoyed , by rating that person on a scale of 1-8 for all these 16 adjectives.
If the least preferred coworker is described in positive terms

relationship oriented (low ) Else this person is interested in productivity, task oriented

LPC falls outside the theory predictions After the assessment, match the leader with the situation For this , 3 contingency dimensions (will define the key situational factors that determine leadership effectiveness) 1. leader member relations: degree of confidence, respect, and trust , members have in their leader
Medium

task structure degree to which the job assignments are procedurized 3) position power degree of influence a leader as over power factors such as hiring, firing, discipline, promotions, salary hikes Next step: Evaluate the situation in terms of these three variables
2)

leader member relations good, poor

task structure high, low position power strong , weak

 Higher,

all these variables are, effective the leader is and more control leader has.

Cognitive resource Theory: Fiedler reconceptualized his original theory He focused on the role of stress as a form of situational unfavorableness and how a leaders intelligence and experience influence his reactions to stress Essence stress is the enemy of rationality

 Difficult

for leader to think logically when they are under stress Leaders intellectual ability correlate positively under low stress, negative under high stress Experience correlates negatively with performance under low stress and vice versa

 The

essence of the theory is that stress is the enemy of rationality, damaging leaders' ability to think logically and analytically. However, the leader's experience and intelligence can lessen the influence of stress on his (or her) actions: intelligence is the main factor in low-stress situations, whilst experience counts for more during high-stress moments

 Paul

Henry and Ken Blanchard It is incorporated in various leadership training programs at fortune 500 companies SLT is a contingency theory that focuses on the followers Successful leadership is achieved by selecting right leadership style But it is contingent on followers readiness Followers are the ones who accept/reject leaders

 extent to which people have the ability and willingness to accomplish a specific task SLT views the leader follower analogous to that of a parent and child (parent controls child, child becomes more responsible) Most effective leader behavior depends on a followers ability & motivation If followers are unable & willing,leader has to display high task orientation
Readiness

 If
If

followers able& unwilling use supportive & participatory style

they are able & willing not too much action from leader

 Robert

House This theory extracts elements from Ohio state studies initiating structure & consideration, and expectancy theory of motivation Essence it is leaders job to provide followers with the information, support or other resources necessary for them to achieve their goals Leaders have to clarify path to help followers achieve their goals

Robert House identified four leadership behaviors: 1. Directive leader : let followers know what is expected of them, schedules work for them, gives specific guidance 2. Supportive leader: friendly, shows concern for the needs of the followers 3. Participatory leaders : consults with followers 4. Achievement oriented: sets challenging goals and expects followers to perform at their highest House believes that leaders are flexible and can display all of these

All leaders have favorites Theory argues that because of time pressures, leaders establish a special relationship with a small group of their followers These individuals make the group they are trusted, get all good things from leader Other followers fall into outgroup get less attention & other privileges How do they become favorites? Same demographics..attitude, personality traits etc

 Vroom

& Yetton Argues that the way the leader makes decision , is as important as what he decides Developed Leader participation model that relates leadership behavior & participation in decision making This model provides a set of rules that should be followed in determining the form and amount of participation in decision making

 The

model involved seven contingencies & five leadership styles Then they revised this model and came up with 12 contingencies and five same leadership styles
Two

are autocratic (A1 and A2), two are consultative (C1 and C2) and one is Group based (G2).

A1: Leader takes known information and then decides alone. A2: Leader gets information from followers, and then decides alone. C1: Leader shares problem with followers individually, listens to ideas and then decides alone. C2: Leader shares problems with followers as a group, listens to ideas and then decides alone. G2: Leader shares problems with followers as a group and then seeks and accepts consensus agreement.

 For

12 contingency variables, please refer text book, p 434 decision theory