Running Head: Exploring the Nature and Importance of Leadership

Exploring the Nature and Importance of Leadership Alex Bondar Siena Heights University LDR 601 Leadership James W. Loughran, Ph.D.

Exploring the Nature and Importance of Leadership

Exploring the Nature and Importance of Leadership Introduction Siena Heights University has a mission to assist people to become more competent, purposeful and ethical (Graduate student handbook, pg. 4) in order for the individual to live an ethical and professional life. This fits like hand in glove with the concept of leadership. To live your life in the most ethical, competent and purposeful way possible means that you understand the true qualities of leadership. Leaders act as motivators, coaches and team builders for the people who follow them. Furthermore, leadership is the ability to create positive change within people who work for an organization in order to help facilitate change and achieve the organizations goals. Without leaders, organizations would struggle to be innovative and stay competitive within the fast paced and always changing global marketplace. Being a leader means facing the demands of reality and living your life in such a way that you can make a positive impact on those around you. Ethical To be an ethical leader means that you act with humility and that people trust you to make the right decisions. Siena Heights teaches its students to respect the dignity of all (Graduate student handbook, pg. 4) and being an ethical leader means doing just that. When you act in an ethical way you also develop trust within your followers. People who look up to you as a leader trust that you are doing the right thing. Leading by example will help develop mutual trust between the leader and his or her followers. Acting ethically one hundred percent of the time will ensure trust and respect for the leader from his or her followers and this is very important for any organization to have.

Exploring the Nature and Importance of Leadership

Competent A competent leader is a leader that has expert knowledge in a certain field. Someone who is competent as a leader knows that in order to achieve results one has to know what he or she is doing. Siena Heights University teaches its students to become competent leaders through rigorous course work and discipline. Before you can become a competent leader you have to develop a passion for what you do and put your best effort into your work. Siena Heights University teaches its students to develop a passion for knowledge and to have resilience when it comes to overcoming obstacles. These are valuable leadership assets to have and organizations will value these traits. Purposeful Being purposeful means knowing what you want to achieve in life. In an organizational setting this means understanding the goals of your organization and working towards achieving those goals. A purposeful leader is one that can successfully guide the organization towards achieving its goals and develop that same sense of purpose within all of the employees under the direct supervision of that leader. A sense of purpose is one of the most important aspects in a leader because it creates a passion for success and it motivates the employees to do the same. Conclusion Leaders are an important part of any organization that wants to be successful. Leaders have a vision for success and can define areas for improvement within an organization. Most importantly, great leaders are able to positively influence all employees under their supervision and facilitate positive change. Siena Heights University, through its degree in Organizational Leadership develops students to become successful leaders and facilitators of

Exploring the Nature and Importance of Leadership

positive change within an organization. Siena Heights University teaches its students to live an ethical, competent and purposeful life and this is the perfect formula for creating a successful leader that can inspire and lead by example.

Exploring the Nature and Importance of Leadership

References Dubrin, A. (2010). Leadership: Research findings, practice, and skills. (6th ed.). Mason: Nelson Education, Ltd. Harris, R. (2012). Leadership education as character development: Best practices from 21 years of helping graduates live purposeful lives. Journal of College and Character, 13, 1- 12. Retrieved from http://dx.doi.org/10.1515/jcc-2012-1947 Harold, J. (1995). Journal of business ethics. The ethical leader: an ascetic construct, 14, 867-874. Graduate Student Handbook. Opportunity Siena Heights University. Adrian, MI