CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION TO LEADERSHIP
1.1. Leadership Definition
There are many diverse definitions of leadership. Leadership is defined as "enabling a group to
engage together in the process of developing, sharing and moving into vision, and then living it out.
"The definition of a leader is someone who has followers." To gain followers requires influence
The ability to influence a group toward the achievement of goals
"Leadership is a function of knowing yourself, having a vision that is well communicated,
building trust among colleagues, and taking effective action to realize your own leadership
potential."
Leadership is not an end in itself, but a means to bring out the best in people, to inspire and to
motivate them to commit their energies, skills and talents to delivering the organization’s vision.
• Managerial leadership involves a process whereby an individual exerts influence upon
others in an organizational context. More critical accounts of leadership tend to focus
upon the hierarchical forms that it gives rise to power relationships including gender
dominance. Leadership is thus defined as a process wherein an individual exercises persuasive
skills.
• The concept of leadership has acquired exceptional pertinence to work organizations
concerned with developing a 'strong' workplace culture and building high-performance teams.
Leadership is also conceptualized as being associated with personality, contingency and power-
relations perspectives and involving group process in organizations.
“It is the process by which one person directs group members toward the attainment of specific
goals”. Leadership means Leading people, Influencing people, commanding people and
guiding people. Leadership is the art of motivating a group of people to act towards achieving a
common goal.
Leadership involves:
(1) Establishing a clear vision,
(2) Sharing that vision with others so that they will follow willingly,
(3) Providing the information, knowledge and methods to realize that vision,
(4) Coordinating and balancing the conflicting interests of all members and stakeholders.

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A leader steps up in times of crisis, and is able to think and act creatively in difficult
situations. Unlike management, leadership cannot be taught, although it may be learned
and enhanced through coaching or mentoring. Someone with great leadership skills today is Bill
Gates who, despite early failures, with continued passion and innovation has driven Microsoft and
the software industry to success.
Among all the ideas and writings about leadership, three aspects stand out: people, influence and goals

1.2 Leadership vs. Management

What is the difference between management and leadership? It is a question that has been asked
more than once and also answered in different ways. The biggest difference between managers
and leaders is the way they motivate the people who work or follow them, and this sets the tone
for most other aspects of what they do.
Many people, by the way, are both. They have management jobs, but they realize that you cannot
buy hearts, especially to follow them down a difficult path, and so act as leaders too. One key
distinction between management and leadership is that we manage things and lead people.
Things include physical assets, processes, and systems. People include customers, external
partners, and people throughout our team or organization (or "internal partners"). When dealing
with things, we talk about a way of doing. In the people realm, we're talking about a way of being.
Managers have subordinates
By definition, managers have subordinates - unless their title is honorary and given as a mark
of seniority, in which case the title is a misnomer and their power over others is other than
formal authority.
Leaders have followers
Leaders do not have subordinates - at least not when they are leading. Many organizational leaders
do have subordinates, but only because they are also managers. But when they want to lead, they
have to give up formal authoritarian control, because to lead is to have followers, and following
is always a voluntary activity.
Distinctions between leadership and management are frequently made, but no universal
agreement exists. Management can be seen as associated with contractual features and more
formal aspects of managing; whereas, in contrast, leadership can be seen as having an emphasis
on the interpersonal side of matters and promoting values. In this respect, leadership promotes a
‘psychological’ rather than formal contract.

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  “There is only one manager, but anyone can be a leader if they act on their good ideas!”
 You manage things; you lead people “Grace Murray Hopper”
 In every moment of life, we both lead and follow “Dee Hock”
 A good leader cannot get too far ahead of his or her followers “Franklin D. Roosevelt
 Not all leaders are managers. Not all managers are leaders. Leaders manage and managers lead
 Kotler believes that most organizations are under led and over managed. He sees both
strong leadership and strong management as necessary for optimal organizational effectiveness.

It is important to make a distinction between the terms “manager” and “leader.” A manager is
one who performs the functions of management (planning, organizing, direction, and
controlling) and occupies a formal position in an organization. For example, the sales manager
is the individual who manages the sales force of the company. A leader, on the other hand,
is anyone who is able to influence others to pursue certain goals.
• Managers do things right, leaders do the right things
• Managers maintain, leaders develop
• Managers rely on control, leaders inspire trust
• Managers have a short-term perspective, leaders have a longer-term perspective
• Managers accept the status-quo; leaders challenge the status-quo
• Managers have an eye on the bottom line; leaders have an eye on the horizon
• Managers imitate, leaders originate
• Managers emulate the classic good soldier, leaders are their own person
• Managers copy, leaders show originality
Difference between leader and manager
Leader’s managers
Innovate Administer
Develop Maintain
Inspire Control
Long term view Short term view
Ask what and why Ask how and when
Originate Initiate
Challenge the status quo Accept the status quo

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 : Effectiveness: Efficiency
 Strategic thinking  Tactical thinking
 Taking appropriate steps in order to
 Good for the organization as well as for the achieve the required objective
 At minimum possible cost and
People maximum possible quality within the
 The capability of producing a desired result. given constraints

 In the era of competition an organization has

to do the right things, i. e those things that
bring competitiveness or strategic success

1.3 What makes effective leader

A Leader Can Be...
Being an effective leader does not always require moving heaven and earth. A leader's role can
vary and be effective in small, yet extremely powerful ways.
• A clarifier, listens, summarizes, and makes things clearer.
• A coach encourages others to develop their skills.
• A facilitator helps the group set goals, make decisions, choose directions, and evaluate progress.
• A delegator helps each group member apply their talents and interests to the group's goals.
• An initiator gets things moving.
• A manager helps coordinate the parts of a project and keeps an eye on progress.
• A mediator helps resolve differences.
• A networker connects people with people and people with ideas to move the project forward.
• A problem-solver suggests solutions and ways to get things done.
• A visionary sees creative solutions, new directions, and possibilities.
Integrity, Think critically, Courage, Solve problems, Initiative, Respect person, Energy,
Listen, optimism, Skillful Communication, Perseverance, Set goals, Balance, Envision future,
Ability to handle stress, Develop oneself, Self-awareness, and Coach others.
Passion
An effective leader is a person with a passion for a cause that is larger than they are. Also, without
passion, a leader will not make the necessary courageous and difficult decisions and carry them
into action. This is not to imply that all decisions are of this nature. But you can be sure, some of
them will be. The leader without a passion for a cause will duck.

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Holder of Values
Leadership implies values. A leader must have values that are life-giving to society. It is the only
kind of leadership we need. This then also implies values that are embedded in respect for others.
So, often we think of people skills or caring about people as being “warm and fuzzy.” A leader can
be of varying ‘warmth and fuzziness,” but a leader has to respect others. You can’t lead without it.
Otherwise we are back to manipulation. Respect means also that one can deal with diversity -- a
critical need for a leader in today’s world -- probably always has been, although diversity may
have been more subtle in the homogenous societies of the past.
Vision
This is a bit different than passion, but in other ways it isn’t separable. If one doesn’t care
about a subject, an issue, a system, and then one won’t spend the time thinking about how it could
or should be different. Thus a leader has to have some ideas about change, about how the future
could be different.
Vision is based on two components that leaders also need: creativity and intellectual drive.
 Creativity
One has to try to think out of the box to have good visions and to come up with effective strategies
that will help advance the vision. I’d also add here the need for a sense of humor. It’s a creative
skill that is in great need by leaders. We should read the funnies more!
 Intellectual Drive and Knowledge
It is believed that a leader has to be a student. In general it is hard for a leader to be around
enough other leaders to pick this up just through discussion, so, a leader has to be a reader
and a learner. Furthermore, we can’t see someone leading in a field they know nothing about.
Confidence and Humility Combined
While one can have a great vision and good ideas for change, and even passion for it, if one
isn’t confident, then action will not occur. Without action, there is no change. Yet, paradoxically,
a leader needs to have humility. No matter how creative and bright one is, often the best ideas and
thinking are going to come from someone else. A leader needs to be able to identify that, have
good people around who have these ideas. This takes humility, or at least lack of egocentricity.
Communicator
None of the above assets will work for a leader if they can’t speak or write in a way to convince
others that they should follow along, join the team, and get on board. All of the above gets to the
old age that a leader knows how to do the right thing and a manager knows how to do things right.

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But a leader has to be a manager, too. We don’t think these skills and abilities can be separated
out very easily. Both need to be in the mix. Thus a leader has to be some of the following, too:
Planner/Organizer
Leader is someone who can see what needs to be done and help the team plan and organize and
then getting it done. Management is getting things done through people. While a writer or other
visionary person may be very influential, even seminal for the cause of change, this is not quite my
definition of a leader. A leader means, someone who is taking action, trying to get others to do
something they want to see done.
Interpersonal Skills
Leaders must have the ability to act in an interpersonally competent manner, yet they also need
to learn the techniques of good listening, honest and open communication, delegating, conflict
resolution skills, etc., to actually get work done and keep the whole movement/organization/project
together.
Other Business Skills
While in some arenas you may be able to get by with only some of these skills or none of them
(if you can hire good enough people to do it for you), generally speaking you must have at least
some skills in financial management, human resources, information management, sales, marketing,
etc.
• Self-assessment: Effective leaders periodically take stock of their personal
strengths and shortcomings. They ask: “What do I like to do? What am I really good at?”
“What are my areas of weakness, and what do I dislike doing?”
Knowing your areas of weakness does not make you weak; on the contrary, it allows you to
delegate to others who have those abilities, in order to achieve the common goal. Rather than
clinging to the false belief that they can do it all, great leaders hire people who complement, rather
than supplement, their skills. Working on your areas of weaknesses will improve your
leadership ability – and recognizing them makes you more human.
• Sharp perception: Do you know how people really perceive you? Effective leaders do. They
have an easy level of honest communication with their teams and their peers, and a thorough
understanding of how they are perceived. Testing others’ perception of you can be as simple
as observing their behavior. Are your co-workers and team members relaxed around you? Does
all conversation stop when you enter the room?
If you really want to know what people think, just ask them. You may receive feedback that

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you’re not listening or showing appreciation as well as you could be. If you’ve established an
environment of honest and open communication, you should be able to ask about your good
qualities and the areas you need to improve on. Your staff will appreciate your effort.
• Responsive to the group’s needs: Being perceptive can also help a leader be more
effective in knowing the needs of the team. Some teams’ value trust over creativity; others
prefer a clear communicator to a great organizer. Building a strong team is easier when you
know the values and goals of each individual, as well as what they need from you as their leader.
• Knowing the organization: Effective leaders know the organization’s overall purpose and
goals, and the agreed-upon strategies to achieve these goals; they also know how their team
fits into the big picture, and the part they play in helping the organization grow and thrive. Full
knowledge of your organization – inside and out – is vital to becoming an effective leader.
1.4 Importance of leadership for good governance and development
Leadership is one of the most important things in society. It helps protect nations and
organizations from harm. It makes business run more efficiently. It allows goals to be reached. In
families, it leads children to become successful and well-adjusted as they grow older.
When it is missing, people and groups often lose their way. They slow down, make the
wrong decisions, and stop functioning. As things go wrong, there is conflict and turmoil.
Leadership requires decision-making that is timely, complete, and correct. In addition, a leader
will implement strategy and deal with problems and hardship. This person will need to understand
people and influence behavior.
Political leaders, we look for someone with strength and personal integrity. Someone who will
fairly represent what we believe in and need. In business, we want the leader who will
understand the business environment and have wisdom to make good decisions. In the home,
families need fathers who will be strong, gentle, and loving. They also, need to be firm and self-
sacrificing. The importance of leadership in the home and in society cannot be overstated.
Leadership is an important function of management which helps to maximize efficiency and to
achieve organizational goals.
The following points justify the importance of leadership in a concern.
 Initiates action- Leader is a person who starts the work by communicating the policies
and plans to the subordinates from where the work actually starts.
 Motivation- A leader proves to be playing an incentive role in the concern’s working. He
motivates the employees with economic and non-economic rewards and thereby gets the work

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from the subordinates.
 providing guidance- A leader has to not only supervise but also play a guiding role for the
subordinates. Guidance here means instructing the subordinates the way they have to perform
their work effectively and efficiently.
 Creating confidence- Confidence is an important factor which can be achieved through
expressing the work efforts to the subordinates, explaining them clearly their role and giving
them guidelines to achieve the goals effectively. It is also important to hear the employees with
regards to their complaints and problems.
 Building morale- Morale denotes willing co-operation of the employees towards their work
and getting them into confidence and winning their trust. A leader can be a morale booster by
achieving full co-operation so that they perform with best of their abilities as they work to
achieve goals.
Builds work environment- Management is getting things done from people. An efficient work
environment helps in sound and stable growth. Therefore, human relations should be kept into
mind by a leader. He should have personal contacts with employees and should listen to their
problems and solve them. He should treat employees on humanitarian terms.
Co-ordination- Co-ordination can be achieved through reconciling personal interests with
organizational goals. This synchronization can be achieved through proper and effective co-
ordination which should be primary motive of a leader.