Why Study Management and Leadership?
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| Figure: 1 |
The Question above is one of the most discussed topics in the business world, in fact not only in the business world it is discussed widely in many areas all over the world. People expect good leadership from our politicians and management from business people. But both of the qualities are required by the politicians as well as business people to succeed in their respective environments.
"Leadership is different from management, but not for the reasons most people think. Leadership isn’t mystical and mysterious. It has nothing to do with having “charisma” or other exotic personality traits. It is not the province of a chosen few. Nor is leadership necessarily better than management or a replacement for it. Rather, leadership and management are two distinctive and complementary systems of action. Each has its own function and characteristic activities. Both are necessary for success in an increasingly complex and volatile business environment." (Kotter, 1990)
As John P. Kotter mentions above Leadership and Management has its own distinctive characteristics and it works well when it is used together in a balanced manner.
Leadership
Leadership is all about bringing change in any environment. Most of the time the change might not be interesting to others but the leader sees it through. A successful leader will communicate his or her idea across the people and motivates them to achieve the desired goal. |
| Figure: 2 |
"My job is not to be easy on people. My job is to take these great people we have and to push them and make them even better." (Jobs, 2008)
Leaders are visionaries who are innovative, They lead with passion and make all the followers passionate in achieving the goal.
Management
Management is all about achieving the desired goal by controlling. Good managers ensure that the company goals are met by planning, budgeting, organising, and controlling. |
| Figure: 3 |
Conclusion
The relationship between Leadership and management is very significant. Both rely on each other. Just having a vision will not suffice to achieve the vision and just having good management skills will not take the business anywhere. Need to possess both skills and qualities to succeed in this competitive world.
From a personal perspective, Managers are recognised quickly as it is easy to monitor and measure but on the other hand, Leadership is not an easy thing to identify and measure. Unless an opportunity is given it is difficult to identify good leaders. Most of the organisation run within a parameter, these barriers or controls overshadows the potentials of a good emerging leader as they are bound by routine work and the system.
Not everyone can be good at both leading and managing. Some people have the capacity to become excellent managers but not strong leaders. Others have great leadership potential but, for a variety of reasons, have great difficulty becoming strong managers. Smart companies value both kinds of people and work hard to make them a part of the team. (Kotter, 1990)
Managers promote stability while leaders press for change and only organizations that embrace both sides of that contradiction can thrive in turbulent times. (Kotter, 1990)
Organisations need to strive to have a good balance between Leadership and Management. Without these two elements, organisations will tend to fail. It is vital to keep both aspects in a well-balanced way to achieve the highest result.
References
John P. Kotter, 1990. What Leaders Really Do. BEST OF HBR
https://edition.cnn.com/2012/10/04/tech/innovation/steve-jobs-quotes/index.html
Image sources:
Figure 1: Peoplematters.in
Figure 2: inc.com
Figure 3: Shutterstock
From a personal perspective, Managers are recognised quickly as it is easy to monitor and measure but on the other hand, Leadership is not an easy thing to identify and measure. Unless an opportunity is given it is difficult to identify good leaders. Most of the organisation run within a parameter, these barriers or controls overshadows the potentials of a good emerging leader as they are bound by routine work and the system.
Not everyone can be good at both leading and managing. Some people have the capacity to become excellent managers but not strong leaders. Others have great leadership potential but, for a variety of reasons, have great difficulty becoming strong managers. Smart companies value both kinds of people and work hard to make them a part of the team. (Kotter, 1990)
Managers promote stability while leaders press for change and only organizations that embrace both sides of that contradiction can thrive in turbulent times. (Kotter, 1990)
Organisations need to strive to have a good balance between Leadership and Management. Without these two elements, organisations will tend to fail. It is vital to keep both aspects in a well-balanced way to achieve the highest result.
References
John P. Kotter, 1990. What Leaders Really Do. BEST OF HBR
https://edition.cnn.com/2012/10/04/tech/innovation/steve-jobs-quotes/index.html
Image sources:
Figure 1: Peoplematters.in
Figure 2: inc.com
Figure 3: Shutterstock
