Leadership Case

Introduction

Executives or high level managers use every component of the management process to build up a successful organization or business. One of the parts of the management process is leading. "Leading is the process of inspiring others to work hard to accomplish important tasks" (Campling et al.2008 p.120). This essay will show how transformational leadership is more effective than transactional leadership in improving organizational performance. It will also include some fragments from 3 journal articles that will help supporting the point of view, some real-life experience will also be include in the essay to prove this could be useful in real life situation.

Part A

Some people argue that the most effective way of leadership is focusing in reaching a high efficiency in the work being done without paying much attention to the working force or the employees. However, if a leader acts with a high concern for people, establishing a good relationship with them, and caring about their feelings better results could be obtained. These are the characteristic behaviours of a transformational leader. "Leadership does not seem to have any of the qualities of a profession, but like the professions, we expect leaders to serve the interest of others in an un-self interest fashion" (Ciulla 2009). In this journal, the writer states that the leader should focus in the interests of others without looking for its self interest first. As a contrast, the writer tells us the story of Nero playing his fiddle while Rome was burning and give us an important definition. "Care means attention to what is going on in the world and emotional concern about the well-being of others", "However, care is not just about the self, it is also about attention, solicitude, and active involvement with others".(Ciulla 2009). As proved by these quotes, the writer also thinks that a good leader should care about the people that look at him as a symbol or "hero" that helps them accomplish their goals and make the best possible decision in any kind of work they are doing.

People think that by telling people the work they need to do and by when they need to do it, they will achieve a better performance by people. On the other hand, some people think that transformational leadership is the best alternative made by leaders to achieve certain goals. "Although all the factors are important in making a great leader, the two which stand out are empathy and social skill as it relates to employment relationships"(Karnes as cited in Goleman 2004: 5) Empathy is, ''The ability to understand the emotional make-up of other people, and the skill in treating people according to their emotional reactions''. "This is extremely important because employees want to work for a company that understands them and their needs, listen to their problems, and is not overly judgmental. They seek a dialogue with employers, and want to collaborate on issues" (Karnes 2008). "Employees are smart, and can see right through a person who is trying to appease them. They want real relationships, real networks, and real leaders. " (Karnes as cited in Goleman 2004: 5). The article states that employees are searching to establish good relationships with their leaders, that are not only appearances but that are real so that they can feel they have make a bond with them and work together on the solution of problems.

In addition, we can also see that Transformational leadership is also effective in the healthcare literature. "TFL(transformational leadership) has been proposed and supported as the most successful among the three leadership styles (Bass, 1990; Bass and Avolio, 2000; Bass and Riggio, 2006; Tichy and Ulrich, 1984). The charisma-inspiration dimension of the TFL style, which emphasizes leadership behaviors that provide ''followers with a clear sense of purpose that is energizing and a role model for ethical conduct which builds identification with the leader and her/his articulated vision'' (Bass and Avolio, 2000; p. 29), most closely matches Kotter's (1990) task requirements needed to facilitate organizational change. The charisma-inspiration dimension of TFL also aligns well with Grabowski and Roberts (1997) theory regarding the typical decision-making style found in leaders of HROs."(K.L McFadden, S.C Henegan, C.R Gowen III,2009). We can see how the writers describe transformational leadership as the very effective, as leaders with these traits have a clear purpose, inspire charisma using an ethical conduct. Transformational leadership "Is positively associated with patient security culture" (K.L McFadden, S.C Henegan, C.R Gowen III,2009)

Part