Write an Essay on Strategic Management & Leadership?
The following report is on strategic management and leadership which an organization needs to strengthen in order to grow in future. It discusses the links to strategic management and leadership and follows it up by evaluating the aspect of management and leadership styles. The report ends with evaluation of the skills a leader requires and offers a set of suggestions for a leader who wishes to grow in the coming future.
Strategic Management is a process which involves formulation as well as implementation of major goals and the initiatives which are taken by the top management of any company on behalf of its owners. These decisions are based on consideration of the resources and the assessment of the internal and external environments within the organization. Leadership plays a crucial role in helping the organization achieve its goals and objectives. When leadership is combined with strategic management it offers vision, purpose, direction and the context for success to the organization (AF n.d.). It facilitates outside-the-box thinking for generating future growth. The entire process of Strategic management backed by effective leadership is not all about micromanaging the business strategies. If we refer to the case study for national car Rental Company which is looking forward to expand, strategic management aided by effective leadership would provide an umbrella under which the entire organization would devise appropriate strategies in an attempt to create value i.e. future mid-level managers to lead the company (MBA Desertions 2012).
The overall importance of linking the process of strategic management of the company with the mid-level managers is very important for the company as it looks forward to expand and has a situation where it would need to replace on-third of its mid-level managers in the coming year. The company needs to retain its employees and offer them growth opportunities with the effort of improving the skill levels and other competencies. The company here aims at coaching the existing employees in regards to the future possibilities and plans of the business. It needs to inspire them to come up and take the roles of mid-level managers and get them trained by the experienced managers who are expected to leave the company after retirement. Linking the entire strategic management process with the leadership requirements of the future would allow the car rental company to improve its organizational performance, besides create, communicate and implement the changes required for future expansion of the operations (UNISA 2012). The managers would need to be make decisions independently for the benefit of the organization and lead to high performing teams. It should be well understood that in today’s world, the skills of the leader plays a crucial role in achieving the strategic objectives of a company.
The style of leadership which has been prevalent in the organization seems to be persuasive in nature. This has had a significant impact on the organization and the culture within. It is evident from the results obtained from the research conducted which revealed only 40$ for mid-managers to move ahead for leadership roles. Moreover, there seems to be a lack of communication or proper training and development program. This is reflected by the fact that leaders took about 1-1.5 years before they fully were acquitted and confident about their responsibilities. There seems to be a lack of motivation or proper growth planning as a part of strategic management within the organization. It is reflected by the fact that whenever employees were awarded additional responsibilities they showed concerns and the fear to fail which led to a lot of stress and underperformance (Tamrack Community 2000).
Another aspect which reflects this is the fact that supervisors or mid-managers were not so interested or motivated for climbing up the ladder and taking the roles of leadership at higher levels, despite performing good they seemed to be content with whatever they were doing and the position they were holding. Hence, these revelations were reflecting the impact of ineffective strategic management within the company which was affecting the leadership at most of the managerial levels. The management style which seems to be sort of persuasive seems to be largely ineffective and not much motivating to the existing human capital within the company. It was also reflecting in the strategic decision making process of the company where it was only the top management which was responsible and there was no efforts from the leaders at managerial role or mid-level managers who were contributing (Innovation 2009).
There are 5 Major styles of leadership and they are:
Democratic: This kind of leadership style is very important when the things are going well in the company or it is looking forward to expand like the car rental company in the case study. Here, the top management which foresees its mid-level managers retiring within the next 5-8 years need to sit down with the employees, talk with them, and evaluate the contributions of each of its employees. It would help them in preparing the managers for the coming years and retaining them at important positions (CCL 2011).
Visionary: In this kind of leadership a company needs to show the targets it wishes to achieve in the coming future. The leader here takes everyone on board and makes sure that each and every member of the organization is well informed regarding their roles.
Coach and train: Here the leader prepares future leaders and managers. The subordinates are trained and prepared to take up the roles of managerial positions when the leaders leave or reach higher levels of management.
Autocratic: Autocratic leaders are those who impose their decisions and it is seen that this kind of leadership style is in practice in scenarios where, the company is going through bad times or is not having an effective managerial team (Faile Ireland, n.d.).
Bureaucratic: It is believed that bureaucracy bogs down many businesses and makes it poor in terms of leadership styles. This kind of leadership style is prevalent in businesses where large sum of money is involved or it is a matter of human health or safety.
Transformational leadership is defined as a situation where leaders along with their followers raise each other to higher levels in terms of values and motivations. As per Burns, (Burns, 1978, p. 4) the result of transformational leadership is the relationship of mutual simulation as well as elevation which converts the followers into leaders and might convert the leader into moral agents. This brings about a positive impact in the organization’s strategy where a transformational leader changes the interests of his subordinates and creates awareness as well as acceptance for different purposes as well as missions of the organisation (ETSU 2009).
A transformational leader inspires the loyalty among its subordinates and creates an inspiring vision for the future. He or she is able to motivate the people in buying and delivering over the vision set by the organization and also ensures that the strategic objectives of the organization is delivered. Further it also facilitates in building stronger, trust based relationship contributing to increased efficiency and better coordination for team work within the organization (JOE 1975).
On the other hand transactional leadership is more concerned for maintenance of normal flow of operations. A transformational leader uses his disciplinary powers and a range of incentives for motivating the employees to perform at their optimal levels. The term transactional means that this kind of a leader plays a crucial role in motivating the subordinates by the process of exchanging rewards for performance. For an organization a transactional leader would not strategically guide the organization towards the process of market leadership but the managers would majorly be concerned for making sure that the entire operations within the organization moves in a smooth and well channelized manner (Rose Hulman n.d.).
A leadership strategy which supports organizational direction includes a large number of factors such as efficiency, innovation, reliability, human resources and adaptation. Moreover, these factors vary with their relevance which depends majorly upon the kind or stage of business development. For a start-up the leadership strategy needs to be largely autocratic in nature. The leaders who are the founders and have their plans for expanding the business avenues in future need to be authoritative to implement their proposed plans and make their leaders ready as well as well-equipped for the coming future. On the other hand for an organisation which is already established it would be advised to have a participative kind of management and leadership strategy which is substantiated by democratic approach. It would be a great idea to keep the employees involved in the decision making process so that they feel valued and put more efforts for gaining better results for the organization. A sense of motivation and collective team effort would enable an established organization to grow to higher levels and achieved better results (Promeng 2010).
In the growing age of globalization where companies are going global the need of the hour is face generic challenges i.e. operating virtual organizations, managing diverse workforce, withstand different kind of economic climates, maintain ethics and CSR responsibilities, manage diverse teams, ensure regulatory compliance, etc. Leaders of the future need to be well equipped and skilled to take care of the changing diversity and the new environment which is expected to get stronger in the coming future (Ken Blanchard n.d.).
In order to stay competitive in the future work environments, leadership would play a crucial role. The future plan for development would need to comprise of the following areas:
Flexibility and operations globally: The leaders of future need to have the skill of working from remote locations and manage workforce of the company from various areas. Virtual organizations as its termed as would need leaders with the ability of better communication skills and ability to work with teams from different parts of the world.
Work with teams and diverse workforce: With increased globalization, it indeed needs the leader to be well equipped to work in teams and with a diverse workforce. A leader would need to take the employees on board and ensure that their views and participation is taken into consideration for each and every decisions the company makes (EFST 2010).
Knowledgeable: CSR and other legal avenues are among the most important areas which ensure that the organization works in a smooth and effective manner. A leader would need to make sure that the proposed policies and initiatives by the organization is implemented which means he needs to be well aware and updated with the laws as well as CSR obligations of the company.
A leader of the future would need to be charming and motivating enough to engage his or her employees to work towards a common goal. In order to do so the leader needs to make sure that he develops and equips himself for the required set of activities which can only be done by development of certain leadership skills (AF 1998).
Lead by example: A leader if wishes to inspire his or her employees and motivate them to work as expected would need to lead by example. It is one of the most essential skills which can do wonders to employee motivation and engage them to contribute as a team (Sage Pub 2010).
Communicate: Communication skills are the basis through which tasks are assigned and carried away. A leader of the future who wishes to engage his or her employees and enhance their efforts as a team would need to have a great skill for communicating. This can be possible only when he has a proper set of both verbal and written communication skills which passes the message in the required manner.
Apathy and a patient listener: A leader needs to have the characteristic of being able to value his or her employees. Understanding and getting to know the cause of concerns or may be what an employee wishes or is about to speak would do a world of good when trying to get work done. A leader would also need to ensure that he is a patient listener and pays heeds to the suggestions which the employees make. This motivates them and encourages them to be participative (MC n.d.).
Conclusion
To conclude we can say that an organization is built with a team that has a leader to supervise the entire set of activities. A leader is a link between the management and its employees and makes sure that things are operated in a manner desired. A strong leader adds value to the entire process within the organization and makes sure that the plans and initiatives of the management is well implemented. In the coming future it is advised that organizations integrate the strategic management process of their organization with the right set of leadership styles and focus on building leaders from within the organization.
References
AF, Strategic Leadership vs. Strategic Management: Untying The Gordian Knot, accessed on 21st April 2015, https://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/army-usawc/murphyarticlefeb02c.pdf
MBA Desertions 2012, Link Between Strategic Management & Leadership, viewed on 21st April 2015, https://mbadissertations.blogspot.in/2012/09/link-between-strategic-management.html
UNISA 2012, The relationship between strategic leadership and strategic alignment in high-performing companies in South Africa, accessed on 21st April 2015,https://uir.unisa.ac.za/bitstream/handle/10500/5847/Dissertation_lear.pdf?sequence=1
Tamrack Community 2000, Understanding the Difference Between Management and Leadershipby Michael Maccoby, accessed on 21st April 2015, https://tamarackcommunity.ca/downloads/CCI_downloads/cl_mgmtldrshp.pdf
Innovation 2009, Leadership and Organizational Strategy, accessed on 21st April 2015, https://www.innovation.cc/scholarly-style/fairholm3.pdf
CCL 2011, Bridging the Strategy/Performance Gap How Leadership Strategy Drives Business Results, accessed on 21st April 2015, https://www.ccl.org/Leadership/pdf/research/BridgingTheStrategy.pdf
Faile Ireland, A guide to help you review your interpersonal skills and leadership style, accessed on 21st April 2015, https://www.failteireland.ie/FailteIreland/media/WebsiteStructure/Documents/2_Develop_Your_Business/1_StartGrow_Your_Business/Leadership-Skills.pdf
ETSU 2009, Leadership Theories and Styles, accessed on 21st April 2015, https://www.etsu.edu/ahsc/documents/Leadership_Theories.pdf
JOE 1975, Leadership Styles- a key to effectiveness, accessed on 21st April 2015, https://www.joe.org/joe/1975november/1975-6-a1.pdf
Rose Hulman, Leadership Styles, accessed on 21st April 2015, https://www.rose-hulman.edu/StudentAffairs/ra/files/CLSK/PDF/Section%20Three%20Campus%20Involvement%20&%20Leadership/Leadership%20Styles.pdf
Promeng 2010, Leadership Skills, accessed on 21st April 2015, https://promeng.eu/downloads/training-materials/ebooks/soft-skills/leadership-skills.pdf
Ken Blanchard, Critical Leadership Skills Key Traits That Can Make or Break today’s Leadersa, ccessed on 21st April 2015, https://www.kenblanchard.com/img/pub/pdf_critical_leadership_skills.pdf
EFST 2010, Traits, Skills, Leadership styles of managers in Croatian Firms, accessed on 21st April 2015, https://www.efst.hr/management/Vol15No2-2010/4-Juras%20finalno.pdf
AF 1998, Leadership Styles for 5 stages of radical change, accessed on 21st April 2015,https://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/dau/reardon.pdf
Sage Pub 2010, Leadership Knowledge and Skills: The Essentials for Effectiveness, accessed on 21st April 2015,https://www.sagepub.in/upm-data/7330_weller_ch_1.pdf
MC, Leadership Traits and Behaviors, accessed on 21st April 2015,https://www.mc.edu/rotc/files/5813/1471/7331/MSL_201_L10a_Leadership_Traits__Behaviors.pdf
Essay Writing Service Features
Our Experience
No matter how complex your assignment is, we can find the right professional for your specific task. Contact Essay is an essay writing company that hires only the smartest minds to help you with your projects. Our expertise allows us to provide students with high-quality academic writing, editing & proofreading services.
Free Features
Free revision policy
$10Free bibliography & reference
$8Free title page
$8Free formatting
$8How Our Essay Writing Service Works
First, you will need to complete an order form. It's not difficult but, in case there is anything you find not to be clear, you may always call us so that we can guide you through it. On the order form, you will need to include some basic information concerning your order: subject, topic, number of pages, etc. We also encourage our clients to upload any relevant information or sources that will help.
Complete the order form
Once we have all the information and instructions that we need, we select the most suitable writer for your assignment. While everything seems to be clear, the writer, who has complete knowledge of the subject, may need clarification from you. It is at that point that you would receive a call or email from us.
Writer’s assignment
As soon as the writer has finished, it will be delivered both to the website and to your email address so that you will not miss it. If your deadline is close at hand, we will place a call to you to make sure that you receive the paper on time.
Completing the order and download