LEADERSHIP STYLES IN CORPORATE

LEADERSHIP DEFINED

Leadership is complex. It is not something easily defined, nor can it be explained by simple gimmicks (Kotter, 1988) or parlor tricks. According to Peter Northouse (2010) Leadership is a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal. Based on this definition leadership can be described as what you do and how you do it to affect change. According to James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner, Leadership development is self-developmentThe quest for leadership is first an inner quest to discover who you are. Through self-development comes the confidence needed to lead. Self-confidence is really awareness of faith in your own powers. These powers become clear and strong as you work to identify and develop them (Kouzes & Posner, 2007, p. 344). Based on the framework of self-awareness and self-development the more talents are identified, the greater the organizational potential (Clifton & Harter, 2003). It is in this self-centric environment that leadership and culture are created. According to Kouzes and Posner (2007) everyone in the organization can be a leader regardless of position or title. It is the leaders who create culture (Schein, 2010). Therefore, culture is the aggregate of all members of an organization.

LEADERSHIP STYLES
Since the beginning of time man has been trying to figure out what leadership characteristics make the best leader. Over the years several styles have been defined to help better clarify the impact of a leaders style within an organization. With how quickly the world is changing, in order to remain competitive in the work environment it is vital to understand the framework of leadership and how the differing styles affect the cultural impacts of the organization (van Eeden, Cilliers, & van Deventer, 2008).

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STYLE APPROACH
One of the researchers at the forefront of leadership studies was Ralph M. Stogdill. While at Ohio State University, Stogdill (1957) along with Alvin E. Coons, studied leadership vociferously and postulated that there are two primary elements of leadership: 1) Initiating structure, which deals with task behavior. 2) Consideration for workers, which concerns relationships. Robert S. Blake and Jane S. Mouton further clarified (1967) their previous research from 6 years previous that leadership conduct should be viewed in a threedimensional plane rather than the previously defined two-dimensional plane. According to Blake there are three definitive planes; 1) the horizontal axis focuses on production; 2) the vertical axis deals with concern for people; and 3) the thickness or depth of a given style (Blake & Mouton, 1967). Similar in nature to Stogdills definition of leadership, Blake and Mouton enhanced the current thought with the added dimension. Figure 1 depicts the three-dimensional managerial grid as represented by Blake and Mouton. The managerial grid is based on a set of coordinates. In the lower left corner (1,1) the style has the least concern for people and production. The upper left corner (1,9) has high concern for people, but low concern to production. The lower right corner (9,1) has high concern for production, but low concern to people. The upper right corner (9,9) has both a high concern for people and production. In the middle (5,5) it is a middle-of-the-road style that seeks balance of production and people (Blake & Mouton, 1966). Each of these styles can be used to motivate and control others by showing interest and using praise, or negatively, criticizing and using punishment (Blake & Mouton, 1966). According to Blake (1966) a careless or even controlling manipulative manager can change the culture and tempo of the organization by utilizing and understanding the different styles indicated on the Grid. Figure 1. The Three-Dimensional Managerial (Leadership) Grid (Blake & Mouton, 1967)

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THREE MAJOR LEADERSHIP STYLES

Although there are several theories and styles of leadership, there are three styles that have been studied and considered the major leadership styles: 1) laissez-faire, 2) transactional, and 3) transformational (Avolio, 2011; Bass & Stogdill, 1990; Zagorsek, Dimovski, & Skerlavaj, 2009). The three major leadership styles can be considered on a continuum where the least people concerned style is laissez-faire, and the transformational is designed to help employees achieve their goals (Antonakis, Avolio, & Sivasubramaniam, 2003). Although the studies have focused primarily on leadership traits, it is believed that the more effective leaders have a combination of the three styles as depicted by Bass (van Eeden, et al., 2008). Bernard Bass and Bruce Avolio developed the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ and MLQ 5X) to measure where along the leadership continuum a leader resides as it relates to employee satisfaction. Laissez-faire Leadership The term laissez-faire in French literally means to let people do as they choose (Merriam-Webster Inc., 2005). This style of non-leadership has not been studied as fervently as other leadership styles, but it is an active method of leading nevertheless (Skogstad, Einarsen, Torsheim, Aasland, & Hetland, 2007). Bernard M. Bass and Bruce J. Avolio (1990) have defined laissez-faire leadership as: the absence of leadership, the avoidance of intervention, or both. With Laissezfaire (Avoiding) leadership, there are generally neither transactions nor agreements with followers. Decisions are often delayed; feedback, rewards, and involvement are absent; and there is no attempt to motivate followers or to recognize and satisfy their needs (p. 20). This form of leadership can be destructive to the organizational culture. Anders Skogstadet al., (2007) state that the laissez-faire leader creates an environment that elicits increased employee role stressors, role conflict and ambiguity, high conflict, and bullying techniques. The overall impact of this leadership type is a detriment to the organizational culture as a whole.

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One form of non-leadership is leading by bullying (Skogstad, et al., 2007). Julian Burkeet al., (2005) state that leaders who are abusive, aggressive, or punitive are a clear source of stress for individuals in the workplace (p. 99). Figure 2. Path diagram of leadership style affect on employees. Adapted from The Destructiveness of Laissez-Faire Leadership Behavior, by Skogstad, A., Einarsen, S. l., Torsheim, T. r., Aasland, M. S., & Hetland, H. (2007), Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 12(1), 80-92. doi: 10.1037/1076-8998.12.1.80 Transactional Leadership Transactional leadership is rooted in the belief that leaders exchange promises of rewards and benefits to subordinates for the subordinates fulfillment of agreements with the leader (Bass & Stogdill, 1990, p. 53). The leadership style is one in which the leader does not individualize employee needs, nor do they focus on employee development (Northouse, 2010). Rather, employees are rewarded based on performance (Sarros, Gray, & Densten, 2002). There are three main styles of transactional leadership: contingent reward, active management-by-exception, and passive management by exception (Northouse, 2010;Sarros, et al., 2002). Contingent reward is based on a set of goals and deliverables. As an employee achieves their goals, their reward is contingent on how well they met or exceeded the stated goals. Contingent goals could be set based on piece-rate work, or longer term goals. A key to employee success is to set realistic goals that both the employee and leader agree upon (Hollander, 1978). Management-by-exception is either active or passive. In this style the leader only acts, or manages, when there is an issue or behavior that needs correcting or commending. Leonard Reber, the head of a drafting department at a manufacturing firm is an example of this leadership style: He assigns projects to each of his people, with instructions to come to him if they have any problems. And they do. But he never goes to them, or hears from them when no problems arise (Bensahel, 1975). Although this tends to be successful in curbing improper behavior or techniques, it does not recognize those in the organization that are exceeding expectations.

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Active management-by-exception is conceptualized by a manager who scours reports, or listens for actions that are not within policy, then approaches the employee with changes. The swiftness of corrective action based on open, fair communication is good, appropriate, and helps change culture by eliciting open dialog (Connors & Smith, 1999;Patterson, 2002). Passive management-by-exception tends to materialize in a manner that is not upfront and immediate. This style is apparent when a manager does not say anything to the employee until a yearly review (Northouse, 2010) and can be damaging in the long run. According to Bass (1990) the passive approach is a prescription for mediocrity. Both of these styles, active and passive, although can be effective, also have risks associated. When management-by-exception is exercised it can create a culture that is based on negative feedback and in turn lowers employee morale (Bensahel, 1975). Transactional leaders also do not appear to be concerned with the emotional needs of their employees (Bass, 1990). Transformational Leadership To transform is to change and morph an entity into something different. Bass (1990) expressed that transformational leadership: occurs when leaders broaden and elevate the interests of their employees, when they generate awareness and acceptance of the purposes and mission of the group, and when they stir their employees to look beyond their own self-interest for the good of the group. This leadership style tends to focus on the organizational objectives by building employee commitment (Stone, Russell, & Patterson, 2004; Yukl, 2002). Based on the research of James MacGregor Burns (Burns, 1978), and then later Bernard M. Bass (Bass, 1990; Bass & Avolio, 1990, 1994; Bass & U.S. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences., 1996; Northouse, 2010; van Eeden, et al., 2008) there are several traits that comprise transformational leadership: idealized influence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individualized consideration. It is a combination of these factors that create transformational leadership. Idealized influence is also known as charisma (Bass, 1990) and is at the heart of this leadership style. Bass believed that:
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Transformational leadership can be learned, and it can and should be the subject of management training and development. Research has shown that leaders at all levels can be trained to be charismatic in both verbal and nonverbal performance (Bass, 1990). When employees respect, admire, and trust the leader (van Eeden, et al., 2008) they are more apt to follow the leaders directives and requests. The leaders become role models that employees desire to follow and thus have a higher degree of trust in their leaders (Stone, et al., 2004). Change brings about fear, anxiety, and frustration. Employees must trust their leader so as to be comforted during the elements of change (Kotter, 1996). Idealized influence leaders also have the ability to have employees feel part of the organization, and thus cultural development, by having a shared vision (Jung & Avolio, 2000). When leaders listen to their employees and followers, and are enthusiastically encouraging them to be successful in the vision, the organization will be more effective. In The Leadership Challenge, Kouzes and Posner (2007) postulate that it is imperative to enlist others as they appeal to common ideals and animate the vision. Successfully engaging in these two essentials can produce very powerful results. In our research we found that when leaders effectively communicate a vision whether its to one person, a small group, or a large organization constituents report significantly higher levels of job satisfaction, motivation, commitment, loyalty, team spirit, productivity, and profitability (p. 133). The inspirational motivator is able to stimulate excitement through a shared vision and motivation (Northouse, 2010; Stone, et al., 2004; van Eeden, et al., 2008). Like a motivational speaker, the leader elicits an emotional bond between the leader, employees, and the organization. Through various communication methods, including written correspondence, one-on-one chats, team meetings, or company wide presentations, leaders communicate their vision, goals, and expectations (van Eeden, et al., 2008). Through these inspirational communications the leader builds relationships which create cultural bonds (Stone, et al., 2004). Communication isnt just important inside the organization. According to Kouzes and Posner (2007): leaders who are dedicated to getting extraordinary things done are open to receiving ideas from anyone and anywhereBecause they never turn their backs
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on what is happening outside the boundaries of their organizations, exemplary leaders are not caught by surprise when the waves of change roll in (pp. 181-182). Those leaders who communicate well, and elicit an emotional response from their employees foster enthusiasm throughout the organization by shifting values of all parties toward a common goal (Stone, et al., 2004). The intellectual stimulation factor of transformational leaders stimulate their followers efforts to be innovative and creative by questioning assumptions, refraining problems, and approaching old situations in new ways (Bass, 1998, pp. 5-6). It is in this constant search of innovation, both individual and organizationally, that leaders encourage people to stretch and grow (Kouzes & Posner, 2007). This type of leadership inspires employees to think outside of the box and search for new ways of doing business and solving problems. Intellectual stimulation promotes intelligence, rationality, and careful problem solving (Bass, 1990). When employees make mistakes the leader should not publically criticize to punish (Bass, 1990; Stone, et al., 2004). Instead the leader solicits and encourages employees to be creative, which builds organizational community in solving problems (Bass, 1998). Employees, and leaders, are encouraged to question process on the path towards greater innovation. Questioning the status quo is not only for leaders. Effective leaders create a climate in which others feel comfortable doing the same. If your organization is going to be the best it can be, everyone has to feel comfortable in speaking up and taking the initiative (Kouzes & Posner, 2007, p. 186). Employees who do this should not be made to feel ashamed or punished if their ideas do not match with the leaders preconceived ideas or processes (Bass, 1990, 1998; Bass & Riggio, 2006). The final aspect of transformational leadership is that of individualized consideration. In this factor the leader acts as a coach and mentor to the individual employee (Northouse, 2010). By doing this the leader encourages individuals to achieve and grow (Avolio & Bass, 2002) through constant communication, listening, and feedback (Bass, 1998;Connors & Smith, 1999).

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During the coaching phase the leader may delegate tasks (not to be confused with transactional leadership) that cause the employee to grow and be challenged (Bass, 1998;Northouse, 2010). Edgar H. Schein described this phenomenon as learning: A paradox of learning leadership is that the leader must be able not only to lead but also to listen, to involve the group in achieving its own insights into its cultural dilemmas, and to be genuinely participative in his or her approach to learning and changeThe leader must recognize that, in the end, cognitive redefinition must occur inside the heads of many members of the organization, and that will happen only if they are actively involved in the process (Schein, 2010, pp. 382-383). It is the individuals who make of the organization and its culture. When the leader sets the precedence and expectation, by creating a culture of openness and transformation, the organization will grow through higher levels of motivation (van Eeden, et al., 2008). Leaders who utilized transformational leadership tend to have employees and followers who trust and respect their leaders and therefor are willing to follow and yield power to them(Stone, et al., 2004). Studies have suggested that leaders who exercise transformational leadership are perceived to be more effective than the leaders who only demonstrate transactional leadership (Lowe & Galen Kroeck, 1996; Northouse, 2010). Functional Attributes 1) Idealized influence/charisma Accompanying Attributes Vision Trust Respect Risk-sharing Integrity Modeling Commitment to goals Communication Enthusiasm Rationality Problem solving Personal attention Mentoring Listening
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2) Inspirational motivation

3) Intellectual stimulation 4) Individualized consideration

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Empowerment Table 1. Transformational Leadership Attributes. Adapted from Stone, A. G., Russell, R. F., & Patterson, K. (2004). Transformational versus servant leadership: A difference in leader focus. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 25(4), 349-361.

SERVANT LEADERSHIP
Similar in nature to transformational leadership, servant leadership focuses on strengthening employees and followers. Introduced by Robert K. Greenleaf (1977) this form of leadership believes that a leader is only in their respective position to serve those he or she leads. As a leader focuses on developing people rather than profits, organizational goals will be achieved (Stone, et al., 2004). Chasing profits is peripheral; the real point of business is to serve as one of the institutions through which society develops and exercises the capacity for constructive action (Harvey, 2001, pp. 38-39). In other words, businesses exist to develop people and societal solutions. Since leaders are focused so heavily on employee development, employees and followers tend to have a higher trust in the leader (Stone, et al., 2004). Servant leadership and transformational leadership are similar in many facets and leader attributes. Table 2 lists some of the attributes of a servant leader. Functional Attributes Vision Honesty, integrity Trust Service Modeling Pioneering Appreciation of others Empowerment Accompanying Attributes Communication Credibility Competence Stewardship Visibility Influence Persuasion Listening Encouragement Teaching Delegation
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Table 2. Servant Leadership Attributes. Adapted from Stone, A. G., Russell, R. F., & Patterson, K. (2004). Transformational versus servant leadership: A difference in leader focus. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 25(4), 349-361. Although transformational leadership and servant leadership are similar in many aspects, their main difference is the focus of the leader (Stone, et al., 2004). Greenleaf (1977) believes that the purpose of the leader is to serve the followers, develop their talents, and help them to become future servants. The transformational leader is focused on developing the organization (Stone, et al., 2004). Both are follower centric, and both tend to have organizational cultures built around trust and innovation.

CULTURE BY LEADERSHIP
The creation of organizational culture is based on and defined by the leadership styles of the organization. The connection between culture and leadership is clearest in organizational cultures and microcultures. What we end up calling a culture in such systems is usually the result of the embedding of what a founder or leader has imposed on a group that has worked out (Schein, 2010). Simply stated, culture is based on the tone and style of leadership. Each leadership style, every decision, and every person affects organizational culture.

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Four Factors of Leadership There are four major factors in leadership (U.S. Army, 1983):

Leader You must have an honest understanding of who you are, what you know, and what you can do. Also, note that it is the followers, not the leader or someone else who determines if the leader is successful. If they do not trust or lack confidence in their leader, then they will be uninspired. To be successful you have to convince your followers, not yourself or your superiors, that you are worthy of being followed. Followers

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Different people require different styles of leadership. For example, a new hire requires more supervision than an experienced employee. A person who lacks motivation requires a different approach than one with a high degree of motivation. You must know your people! The fundamental starting point is having a good understanding of human nature, such as needs, emotions, and motivation. You must come to know your employees' be, know, and do attributes. Communication You lead through two-way communication. Much of it is nonverbal. For instance, when you set the example, that communicates to your people that you would not ask them to perform anything that you would not be willing to do. What and how you communicate either builds or harms the relationship between you and your employees. Situation All situations are different. What you do in one situation will not always work in another. You must use your judgment to decide the best course of action and the leadership style needed for each situation. For example, you may need to confront an employee for inappropriate behavior, but if the confrontation is too late or too early, too harsh or too weak, then the results may prove ineffective. Also note that the situation normally has a greater effect on a leader's action than his or her traits. This is because while traits may have an impressive stability over a period of time, they have little consistency across situations (Mischel, 1968). This is why a number of leadership scholars think the Process Theory of Leadership is a more accurate than the Trait Theory of Leadership. Various forces will affect these four factors. Examples of forces are your relationship with your seniors, the skill of your followers, the informal leaders within your organization, and how your organization is organized. Boss or Leader? Although your position as a manager, supervisor, lead, etc. gives you the authority to accomplish certain tasks and objectives in the organization (called Assigned Leadership), this power does not make you a leader, it simply makes you the boss (Rowe, 2007). Leadership differs in that it makes the
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followers want to achieve high goals (called Emergent Leadership), rather than simply bossing people around (Rowe, 2007). Thus you get Assigned Leadership by your position and you display Emergent Leadership by influencing people to do great things.

Bass' Theory of Leadership Bass' theory of leadership states that there are three basic ways to explain how people become leaders (Stogdill, 1989; Bass, 1990). The first two explain the leadership development for a small number of people. These theories are:

Some personality traits may lead people naturally into leadership roles. This is the Trait Theory. A crisis or important event may cause a person to rise to the occasion, which brings out extraordinary leadership qualities in an ordinary person. This is the Great Events Theory. People can choose to become leaders. People can learn leadership skills. This is the Transformational or Process Leadership Theory. It is the most widely accepted theory today and the premise on which this guide is based.

Total Leadership
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What makes a person want to follow a leader? People want to be guided by those they respect and who have a clear sense of direction. To gain respect, they must be ethical. A sense of direction is achieved by conveying a strong vision of the future. When a person is deciding if she respects you as a leader, she does not think about your attributes, rather, she observes what you do so that she can know who you really are. She uses this observation to tell if you are an honorable and trusted leader or a self-serving person who misuses authority to look good and get promoted. Self-serving leaders are not as effective because their employees only obey them, not follow them. They succeed in many areas because they present a good image to their seniors at the expense of their workers. Be Know Do

The basis of good leadership is honorable character and selfless service to your organization. In your employees' eyes, your leadership is everything you do that effects the organization's objectives and their well-being. Respected leaders concentrate on (U.S. Army, 1983):

what they are [be] (such as beliefs and character) what they know (such as job, tasks, and human nature) what they do (such as implementing, motivating, and providing direction).

What makes a person want to follow a leader? People want to be guided by those they respect and who have a clear sense of direction. To gain respect, they must be ethical. A sense of direction is achieved by conveying a strong vision of the future. The Two Most Important Keys to Effective Leadership According to a study by the Hay Group, a global management consultancy, there are 75 key components of employee satisfaction (Lamb, McKee, 2004). They found that:

Trust and confidence in top leadership was the single most reliable predictor of employee satisfaction in an organization. Effective communication by leadership in three critical areas was the key to winning organizational trust and confidence:
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1. Helping employees understand the company's overall business strategy. 2. Helping employees understand how they contribute to achieving key business objectives. 3. Sharing information with employees on both how the company is doing and how an employee's own division is doing relative to strategic business objectives. So in a nutshell you must be trustworthy and you have to be able to communicate a vision of where the organization needs to go. The next section, Principles of Leadership, ties in closely with this key concept. Principles of Leadership To help you be, know, and do, follow these eleven principles of leadership (U.S. Army, 1983). The later chapters in this Leadership guide expand on these principles and provide tools for implementing them: 1. Know yourself and seek self-improvement - In order to know yourself, you have to understand your be, know, and do, attributes. Seeking selfimprovement means continually strengthening your attributes. This can be accomplished through self-study, formal classes, reflection, and interacting with others. 2. Be technically proficient - As a leader, you must know your job and have a solid familiarity with your employees' tasks. 3. Seek responsibility and take responsibility for your actions - Search for ways to guide your organization to new heights. And when things go wrong, they always do sooner or later do not blame others. Analyze the situation, take corrective action, and move on to the next challenge. 4. Make sound and timely decisions - Use good problem solving, decision making, and planning tools. 5. Set the example - Be a good role model for your employees. They must not only hear what they are expected to do, but also see. We must become the change we want to see - Mahatma Gandhi 6. Know your people and look out for their well-being - Know human nature and the importance of sincerely caring for your workers. 7. Keep your workers informed - Know how to communicate with not only them, but also seniors and other key people.

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8. Develop a sense of responsibility in your workers - Help to develop good character traits that will help them carry out their professional responsibilities. 9. Ensure that tasks are understood, supervised, and accomplished Communication is the key to this responsibility. 10.Train as a team - Although many so called leaders call their organization, department, section, etc. a team; they are not really teams...they are just a group of people doing their jobs. 11.Use the full capabilities of your organization - By developing a team spirit, you will be able to employ your organization, department, section, etc. to its fullest capabilities. Attributes of Leadership If you are a leader who can be trusted, then those around you will grow to respect you. To be such a leader, there is a Leadership Framework to guide you: BE KNOW DO BE a professional. Examples: Be loyal to the organization, perform selfless service, take personal responsibility. BE a professional who possess good character traits. Examples: Honesty, competence, candor, commitment, integrity, courage, straightforwardness, imagination. KNOW the four factors of leadership follower, leader, communication, situation. KNOW yourself. Examples: strengths and weakness of your character, knowledge, and skills. KNOW human nature. Examples: Human needs, emotions, and how people respond to stress. KNOW your job. Examples: be proficient and be able to train others in their tasks. KNOW your organization. Examples: where to go for help, its climate and culture, who the unofficial leaders are.
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DO provide direction. Examples: goal setting, problem solving, decision making, planning. DO implement. Examples: communicating, coordinating, supervising, evaluating. DO motivate. Examples: develop morale and esprit de corps in the organization, train, coach, counsel. Environment Every organization has a particular work environment, which dictates to a considerable degree how its leaders respond to problems and opportunities. This is brought about by its heritage of past leaders and its present leaders. Goals, Values, and Concepts Leaders exert influence on the environment via three types of actions: 1. The goals and performance standards they establish. 2. The values they establish for the organization. 3. The business and people concepts they establish. Successful organizations have leaders who set high standards and goals across the entire spectrum, such as strategies, market leadership, plans, meetings and presentations, productivity, quality, and reliability. Values reflect the concern the organization has for its employees, customers, investors, vendors, and surrounding community. These values define the manner in how business will be conducted. Concepts define what products or services the organization will offer and the methods and processes for conducting business. These goals, values, and concepts make up the organization's personality or how the organization is observed by both outsiders and insiders. This personality defines the roles, relationships, rewards, and rites that take place. Roles and Relationships

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Roles are the positions that are defined by a set of expectations about behavior of any job incumbent. Each role has a set of tasks and responsibilities that may or may not be spelled out. Roles have a powerful effect on behavior for several reasons, to include money being paid for the performance of the role, there is prestige attached to a role, and a sense of accomplishment or challenge. Relationships are determined by a role's tasks. While some tasks are performed alone, most are carried out in relationship with others. The tasks will determine who the role-holder is required to interact with, how often, and towards what end. Also, normally the greater the interaction, the greater the liking. This in turn leads to more frequent interaction. In human behavior, its hard to like someone whom we have no contact with, and we tend to seek out those we like. People tend to do what they are rewarded for, and friendship is a powerful reward. Many tasks and behaviors that are associated with a role are brought about by these relationships. That is, new task and behaviors are expected of the present role-holder because a strong relationship was developed in the past, either by that role-holder or a prior role-holder. Culture and Climate There are two distinct forces that dictate how to act within an organization: culture and climate. Each organization has its own distinctive culture. It is a combination of the founders, past leadership, current leadership, crises, events, history, and size (Newstrom, Davis, 1993). This results in rites: the routines, rituals, and the way we do things. These rites impact individual behavior on what it takes to be in good standing (the norm) and directs the appropriate behavior for each circumstance. The climate is the feel of the organization, the individual and shared perceptions and attitudes of the organization's members (Ivancevich, Konopaske, Matteson, 2007). While the culture is the deeply rooted nature of the organization that is a result of long-held formal and informal systems, rules, traditions, and customs; climate is a short-term phenomenon created by the current leadership. Climate represents the beliefs about the feel of the organization by its members. This individual perception of the feel of the organization comes from what the people believe about the activities that

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occur in the organization. These activities influence both individual and team motivation and satisfaction, such as:

How well does the leader clarify the priorities and goals of the organization? What is expected of us? What is the system of recognition, rewards, and punishments in the organization? How competent are the leaders? Are leaders free to make decisions? What will happen if I make a mistake?

Organizational climate is directly related to the leadership and management style of the leader, based on the values, attributes, skills, and actions, as well as the priorities of the leader. Compare this to ethical climate the feel of the organization about the activities that have ethical content or those aspects of the work environment that constitute ethical behavior. The ethical climate is the feel about whether we do things right; or the feel of whether we behave the way we ought to behave. The behavior (character) of the leader is the most important factor that impacts the climate. On the other hand, culture is a long-term, complex phenomenon. Culture represents the shared expectations and self-image of the organization. The mature values that create tradition or the way we do things here. Things are done differently in every organization. The collective vision and common folklore that define the institution are a reflection of culture. Individual leaders, cannot easily create or change culture because culture is a part of the organization. Culture influences the characteristics of the climate by its effect on the actions and thought processes of the leader. But, everything you do as a leader will affect the climate of the organization. For information on culture, see Long-Term Short-Term Orientation The Process of Great Leadership The road to great leadership (Kouzes & Posner, 1987) that is common to successful leaders:

Challenge the process - First, find a process that you believe needs to be improved the most. Inspire a shared vision - Next, share your vision in words that can be understood by your followers.
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Enable others to act - Give them the tools and methods to solve the problem. Model the way - When the process gets tough, get your hands dirty. A boss tells others what to do, a leader shows that it can be done. Encourage the heart - Share the glory with your followers' hearts, while keeping the pains within your own.

Next Steps Go to the next chapter: The Four Pillars: Leadership, Management, Command, and Control

Return to the main Leadership Site Perform a Leadership Activity: Leadership Self-Assessment Survey (short version) Leadership Self-Assessment Survey (long version) Culture and Climate References Bass, Bernard (1990). From transactional to transformational leadership: learning to share the vision. Organizational Dynamics, 18, (3), Winter, 1990, 19-31. Ivancevich, J., Konopaske, R., Matteson, M. (2007). Organizational Behavior and Management. New York: McGraw-Hill Irwin.
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Jago, A. G. (1982). Leadership: Perspectives in theory and research. Management Science, 28(3), 315-336. Kouzes, James M. & Posner, Barry Z. (1987). The Leadership Challenge. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Lamb, L. F., McKee, K. B. (2004). Applied Public Relations: Cases in Stakeholder Management. Mahwah, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Routledge. Mischel, W. 1968. Personality and Assessment . New York: Wiley. Newstrom, J. & Davis, K. (1993). Organization Behavior: Human Behavior at Work. New York: McGraw-Hill. Northouse, G. (2007). Leadership theory and practice. (3rd ed.) Thousand Oak, London, New Delhe, Sage Publications, Inc. Rowe, W. G. (2007). Cases in Leadership. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications Stogdill, R. M.(1989). Stogdill's Handbook of Leadership: A Survey of Theory and Research. Bass, B. (ed.) New York: Free Press. U.S. Army. (October 1983). Military Leadership (FM 22-100). Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. S

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