Leadership Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words - 2

Leadership - Essay Example Moreover, good leadership engenders the quality of inspiration over coercion; choosing to allow for the possibility of trailblazing new ideas rather than merely following a prescriptive playbook of actions based upon needs. Further, leadership, although prized and likely a commodity that is lacking within the current professional and political world, is not often appreciated within many of the largest multinational corporations throughout the world. This is of course due to the fact that oftentimes management is expected to be carried out utilizing a rather formulaic approach that does not rely upon the leadership capacity or imagination of the individual. However, leadership itself entails a great deal more than mere direction. Corollary parts of trust, belief, and mutual understanding between people are necessary components that cannot and should not be diminished. With respect to what leadership means to me, the answer to this deviates slightly from the textbook definition of what defines leadership. In this way, leadership must engender a great deal of selflessness, tacit yet clearly discernible levels of trust, and the continual dedication to considering the needs of those under your supervision prior to your own needs (Mutalib & Ghani, 2013). As a function of defining and understanding these nuanced concepts to a greater degree, the following analysis will focus upon understanding the following quote: â€Å"A leader’s true test is his or her ability to inspire behavioural changes required to transform organizational performance throughout the ranks† (Caldwell et al., 2012). This will in turn be analyzed leveraging an appreciation for the many schools of management theory that have existed and been promoted throughout the years; attempting to gain a level of oversight with regards to how leadership is viewed as a transformational process through which greater degrees of cohesion and increasing levels of utility/profitability can be engaged. B efore delving into the step-by-step discussion of how the different management theories relate to an interpretation of leadership within the current model, it must be understood that leadership and management are two distinctly interconnected concepts. Whereas management refers to the actual process of accomplishing tasks, focusing resources, and mitigating risks, leadership engenders a more nuanced and personal understanding of how a given individual can encourage cooperation and respect within the employees/stakeholders in question (Mayer et al., 2012). By much the same token, management has a number of roles and functions whereas leadership is not judged by easily quantifiable metrics. For instance, management roles and functions can include, but are not limited to, decision-making, problem-solving, motivation, influencing, negotiating, delegation, and communication. This is not meant to state that leadership does not engender many of the same requirements. However, leadership is something that should not be understood to exist wholly separate from the management process. Rather, the two, in an ideal interpretation and application, must exist side-by-side as a means of providing the best overall product and experience to all individuals involved within the process (Muethel et al., 2012). In such a way, one of the best means of measuring effective leadership is to seek to engage with effective management and ensure that these determinants are met first and foremost. Only once effective management is realized, can true leadership tickets form. This is not to state that leadership must follow managerial process and/or theory 100% of the time. Rather, past instances have proven that many times there is a market deviation from standard managerial protocol and the