UNIT 9

LEADERSHIP: CONCEPT AND Communication:

Meaning, Nature and
THEORIES* Process

Structure
9.0 Objectives
9.1 Introduction
9.2 Meaning and Definitions
9.3 Styles of Leadership
9.4 Theories of Leadership
9.5 Leadership Skills
9.6 Conclusion
9.7 Glossary
9.8 References
9.9 Answers to Check Your Progress Exercises

9.0 OBJECTIVES
After reading this Unit, you should be able to:
• Know the meaning and definitions of leadership;
• Explain the styles of leadership;
• Understand different theories of leadership; and
• Identify the skills of effective leadership.

9.1 INTRODUCTION
The success or failure of an organisation largely depends on its leadership.
All organisations, big or small, simple or complex, need effective leadership.
Unlike many other themes in the field of organisational behaviour, there are
a number of studies and a considerable body and knowledge on leadership.
A leader has to persuade, influence, encourage, energise and motivate people
to achieve the objectives of an organisation. Thus, leadership is the process
of influencing the activities of individuals or groups to achieve the goals of
organisation. The first and the foremost task of management in every organisation
is to provide leadership that is expected to direct, control and coordinate the
activities of a group of persons with a view to achieving the desired goals of the
organisation.
An interesting addition to contemporary leadership studies is the ability of a
leader to motivate and persuade his team members to do something which they
do not want to do initially, but gradually, they start involving themselves with
dedication in these activities which facilitate the achievement of organisational

107
*
Contributed by Dr. Ch.C.Prasad, Assistant Director, Dr. B.R.Ambedkar Open University, Hyderabad.
Organisational goals. Thus, leadership skills also include the persuasive powers to convert an
Behaviour: Major unwillingness into a willingness of the employees or followers. In this Unit we
Facets
shall discuss conceptual aspects of leadership in an organisational context.

9.2 MEANING AND DEFINITIONS

The dictionary meaning of leadership is to guide others, to be head of an
organisation or to hold command. Leadership has been variously defined as an
attribute of personality, a positional characteristic and an attitude of behaviour.
A leader is partly a manager as he performs quite a few managerial functions.
The distinguishing feature of leadership is its ability to persuade others to seek
defined objectives.
The importance of leadership lies in the fact that leaders have not only to motivate
their followers but also arouse in them an interest to work for the realisation of
the goals of organisation. Further, an interesting distinction between leadership
and management has been given by an eminent behavioural scientist, Warren
Bennis (2010), who on the dust cover of his famous book Leaders, mentioned:
“Leaders do the right things, managers do them right.” What Bennis implied
was that leaders have to be visionary, good policy-makers and sound decision-
makers, while managers are expected to execute such vision, policies and
decisions systematically and methodically.
This appears to be a convincing distinction, but we should keep in mind that
leaders have also to perform managerial roles, while the managers have also to
undertake leadership roles. Both the roles are not exclusive, but interrelated and
inter-dependant.
According to Mc Farland (1969), “Leadership is a process of interpersonal
influence by which executive or manager influence the activities of others in
choosing and attaining given goal”.
“Koontz O’ Donnell (1984) observes: “Leadership means influencing people to
follow the achievement of common goals. It is the ability to exert interpersonal
influence by means of communication towards the achievement of goals”.
According to the Encyclopaedia of Social Sciences, “Leadership is a relation
function between individual and group around some common interest and
behaving in a manner directed or determined by them”.
Chester James and Orlando comment: “Leadership is a social influence process
in which the leader seeks the voluntary participation of subordinates in an effort
to reach organisational objectives”.
Theo Haimann, observes: “Leadership can be defined as the process by which
an executive imaginatively directs, guides and influences the work of others in
choosing and attaining specified goals by mediating between individual and
organisation in such a manner that both will obtain maximum satisfaction”.
According to Relph M Stogdill, “Leadership is a process of directing and
influencing the task related activities of group members”.
Although many specific definitions (Jain & Saakshi, 2008) could be cited, most
would be influenced by the theoretical orientation adopted. Besides influence,
108
leadership can be defined in terms of group processes, personality, compliance, Leadership: Concept
particular behaviours, persuasion, power, goal achievement, interaction, role- and Theories
differentiation, initiation of structure and combination of two or more of these.

9.3 STYLES OF LEADERSHIP

The style an executive selects greatly influences his effectiveness as a leader.
Leadership style influences the motivation of subordinates in the achievement
of organisational goals. Leaders adopt different styles at different points of
times depending on the situation. Inappropriate styles may cause irreparable
damage as the employees may feel dissatisfied and resentful. Broadly, three
leadership styles are identified viz. autocratic, participative and laissez faire.
Each of the styles has both advantages and disadvantages. We shall now briefly
discuss each of these styles:
Autocratic Style
In this style, authority is concentrated in the hands of the leader. It is the leader
who decides policies and modifies them according to his own wishes. This
type of leader expects unquestioned acceptance of his or her leadership by
the subordinates. It is very difficult to anticipate the behaviour of autocratic
leaders. Such a leader tends to be private and remains aloof from the group. He
considers himself superior and all his colleagues as inferior, inexperienced and
ignorant. This type of leadership has the advantage of quick decision- making,
but it causes pain to the employees and results in dissatisfaction.
Participative Style
This style is also called ‘democratic’ style of leadership. In this style, leaders
obtain the cooperation of employees in achieving organisational goals. They
allow the employees to participate in the decision-making process. All policies
and decisions are arrived at through group deliberations The leader encourages
and assists his colleagues and only suggests alternatives instead of dictating
the final decisions or policies. The members of the group enjoy considerable
freedom. Participative style leads to improved employee-employer relations,
higher morale and greater job satisfaction. It also reduces the burden on the
leader. Major problems in this style are dilution of quality and more time
consumed in the formulation of policies and decisions. The consultative process
naturally becomes time-consuming.
Laissez-faire Style
In this type of leadership, the organisation does not depend on the leader to
provide external motivation. The employees motivate themselves. They enjoy
greater freedom and leader’s participation in decision-making is minimal. The
leader only assumes the role of one of the members of the organisation. This
style of leadership has an advantage of giving freedom and independence to
employees. The basic problem in this style is an absence of strong leader to
direct and control the teams. Employees generally miss guidance and motivation
in such a style of leadership.

109
Organisational Check Your Progress 1
Behaviour: Major
Facets Note: i) Use the space given below for your answers.
ii) Check your answers with those given at the end of the Unit.
1. Explain about meaning and definitions of leadership.
......………………….……………………………………………………..
......………………….……………………………………………………..
......………………….……………………………………………………..
......………………….……………………………………………………..
2. State different types of leadership.
......………………….……………………………………………………..
......………………….……………………………………………………..
......………………….……………………………………………………..
......………………….……………………………………………………..

9.4 THEORIES OF LEADERSHIP

Leadership has several distinct theoretical bases. At first, leaders were seen as
either ‘born’ or ‘made’. The ‘great person’ theory implied that individuals were
born with certain traits. Dissatisfied with this approach, researchers shifted their
emphasis on the group leadership. In the group approach, leadership is viewed
more in terms of the leader’s behaviour and his relationship with his followers.
Later, the situation began to receive increased attention in leadership theory.
Now a leader is viewed as a product of the times and the situations. The person
with particular qualities or traits that a situation requires will emerge as a leader.
The following sections examine different theories of leadership:
Trait Theory
This theoretical approach is related to characteristics or traits that are required
for a person to become as leader. This theory is known as “great man” theory
assuming that leaders are born with certain special necessary traits for leadership.
Ordway Tead and Chester I.Barnard are prominent trait theorists. Ordway
Tead has brought out ten qualities of a leaders viz. 1) Physical and nervous
energy 2) A sense of purpose and direction 3) Enthusiasm 4) Friendliness
and affection 5) Integrity 6) Technical mastery 7) Decisiveness 8) Intelligence
9) Teaching skill and 10) Faith. Chester I.Barnard indicates two categories of
leadership traits. The first category includes outstanding qualities in respect of
physique, skill, technology, perception, knowledge, memory and imagination.
These qualities are expected to command the subordinates’ admiration. The
second category includes the individual merits of determination, persistence,
endurance and courage.
Researchers do not welcome trait theory due to its low analytical value. But
still the theory is alive with changed focus. Now the emphasis has shifted from
110
personality traits to job related skills, such as technical, professional, conceptual Leadership: Concept
and human skills needed for effective management. and Theories

Group and Exchange Theory

This theory has roots in social psychology. It assumes that there must be a
positive and harmonious relationship between the leaders and followers to
accomplish group goals. Chester Barnard was key proponent of this theory.
According to this theory, leadership is an exchange process between the leader
and followers. This theory strongly believes that the leader and his followers
affect and influence each other.
Contingency Theory
The lacunas in the trait theory have led to the formulation of this theory. The
theory stresses the significance of situational variables that affect leadership
roles, skills, behaviour and followers’ performance and satisfaction. Fred
Fiedler proposed a widely recognised situation-based or contingency theory
for leadership effectiveness. This model contains the relationship between
leadership style and the favourableness of the situation.
Fiedler was convinced that the favourableness of the situation in combination
with the leadership style determines leadership effectiveness. In simple terms,
this theory proposes that people become leaders not only because of the
attributes of their personalities but also because of various situational factors
and interaction between leaders and situations. This means that there is nothing
automatic or good in leadership styles; leadership effectiveness depends upon
various factors.
Path Goal Theory
This theory of leadership was developed by Robert House. It describes the most
effective leaders as those who help subordinates achieve both the enterprise
goals as well as their personal goals. Personal goals of subordinates includes
money, promotion, opportunity of growth and development. Leaders of this
theory remove obstacles to performance, increase opportunities for personal
satisfaction in work performance by reducing unnecessary stress and strain.
In addition to the above traditional leadership theories, a number of modern
theories have emerged in recent years. The following section provides an
overview of these theories.
Charismatic Theory
This theory is also attributed to the work of Robert House. He suggests that
charismatic leaders are characterised by self-confidence and trust in subordinates,
high expectation for subordinates, ideological vision and the use of personal
example. Followers of the charismatic leaders identify with the leader and the
mission of the leader, exhibit extreme loyalty to and confidence in the leader,
emulate leader’s values and behaviour, and derive self-esteem from their
relationship with the leader. Charismatic leaders have superior oratorial and
persuasive skills and technical expertise, and foster attitudinal, behavioural, and
emotional changes among their followers.
111
Organisational Transformational Theory
Behaviour: Major
Facets This theory is based on transforming the values, beliefs and needs of their
followers by the leader. Such a leadership facilitates superior performance in
organisations that are facing demands for renewal and change. The organisation
fosters transformational leadership through the processes of recruitment,
selection, promotion, training and development. It has a positive impact on
health, well-being, and effective performance of the organisation. Empirical
research studies highlight that transformational leaders more frequently employ
legitimising tactics and engender higher levels of identification and have better
performance.
Social Learning Theory
This theory is model for the continuous and reciprocal interaction between the
leader, the environment and behaviour itself. This model is called Situation
Organism Behaviour Consequence (S–O–B–C) model. Subordinates are
actively involved in the process and together with the leader they concentrate
on their own and each other’s behaviour, environmental contingences and
their mediating behaviour and cognitions. In this approach, the leader and the
subordinate have a negotiable, interactive relationship and are consciously
aware of how they can modify each other’s behaviour by giving or holding
back desired rewards.
Substitutes Theory
This theory was proposed by Kerr Jermier. It suggests certain substitutes or
neutralisers for leadership. Substitutes that make leader behaviour unnecessary
and redundant, whereas neutralisers prevent the leader from behaving in certain
way or which counteract a behaviour. These substitutes or neutralisers can
be found among subordinates, tasks, and organisation characteristics. Those
subordinates who don’t particularly care about organisational rewards will
neutralise both supportive / relationship and instrumental / task leadership
attempts. There are also a number of organisational characteristics that substitute
for or neutralised leadership.
Rensis Likert’s Leadership Model
Rensis Likert and his associates at the University of Michigan have studied the
patterns and styles of leaders. Likert developed certain approaches to leadership
behaviour. He propounded four systems of leadership or management. They
are:
(i) System-I: Exploitative-Authoritative Management. In this type,
managers are highly autocratic. Besides they have little trust in their
subordinates. They motivate people through fear and punishment. They
centralise decision-making at the top.
(ii) System-II: Benevolent-Authoritative Management. In this system,
managers trust their subordinates. They motivate people through rewards,
fear and punishment. They invite ideas and opinions from their subordinates
and allow them some delegation of decision making powers.

112
(iii) System-III: Consultative Management. In this system, managers do not Leadership: Concept
have complete confidence and trust in their subordinates. They usually try to and Theories
make use of subordinates’ ideas and opinions. They motivate subordinates
through rewards and resort to punishment. They act in consultation with
their subordinates and allow some specific decisions to be taken at the
lower levels.
(iv) System-IV: Participative-Management. In this system, managers have
complete trust and confidence in their subordinates in all matters. They
always consult them and get their ideas and opinions and use them. They
give economic rewards and encourage decision-making at all levels of the
organisation.
Of the four systems of management of leadership, Liker found that those
managers who applied the System-IV approach had the greatest success as
leaders. He believed that their success was due to the participativeness of the
subordinates in the management of affairs.

9.5 LEADERSHIP SKILLS

Leadership styles, roles and activities are closely related to leadership skills.
The research on leaders’ traits has given way to attempts to identify leaders’
skills. The following is a list of suggested leadership skills that are considered
critical to success in the global economy:
i. Cultural Flexibility: This skill refers to cultural awareness and sensitivity.
Leaders must have the skills not only to manage but also to recognise and
celebrate the value of diversity in their organisations.
ii. Communication Skills: Effective leadership must be able to communicate
in written form, orally and non-verbally.
iii. HRD Skills: These skills include developing a learning climate, designing
training programmes, transmitting information and experience, assessing
results, providing career counselling and creating organisational change.
iv. Creativity: Leaders must possess skills like problem-solving, innovation
and creativity to face the external competition. They should develop
congenial atmosphere to encourage these skills among the organisation
employees.
v. Self-management Learning: This skill refers to the need for continuous
learning of new knowledge and skills. In this time of dramatical change and
chaos, leaders must undergo continues change themselves. They must be
self-learners.
Effectiveness of leaders is critical to organisational survival and success. There
are at least three major views on the determinants of leadership effectiveness.
One view is that effectiveness is a function of the personal qualities or traits of
individuals who assume the role of leadership. Although these qualities do not
generate effectiveness, all we can say is that they increase the probability of
leadership effectiveness.

113
Organisational The second view is that leadership effectiveness is not a matter of what
Behaviour: Major leaders are but rather a matter of what they do and how they behave. This
Facets
is known as the behavioural approach. The two most important dimensions
of the behaviour of leaders are the productivity-orientation and the employee
satisfaction orientation. Leaders who score very high in both these dimensions
are considered to be very effective. They give equal importance to the tasks and
goals of the organisation and their employees. Effective leaders do regard high
productivity and employee satisfaction as complementary to each other.
The third view is that leadership is a function of interaction among at least
three variables: The leader, the group of followers and the task situation. This is
known as situational or contingency theory of leadership. Here effectiveness is
defined in terms of the performance of the group followers. It is determined by
the qualities of the leader, his authority or power position, the aspirants, attitude
and skills of group members and the complexity of the relations. Leadership
effectiveness in this context depends upon the ability of the leader to adopt
different behavioural styles to address different situations. There is no one best
leadership style for all situations. The leader tends to be more effective if he
possesses high authority or power, good formal and information relations and
clarity in task structure.
Check your progress 2
Note: i. Use the space given below for your answers.
ii. Check your answers with those given at the end of the Unit.
1. Write about Rensis Likert’s leadership models.
......………………….……………………………………………………..
......………………….……………………………………………………..
......………………….……………………………………………………..
......………………….……………………………………………………..
2. State some of the leadership skills.
......………………….……………………………………………………..
......………………….……………………………………………………..
......………………….……………………………………………………..
......………………….……………………………………………………..

9.6 CONCLUSION
The success or failure of an organisation largely depends on its leadership.
The importance of leadership lies in the fact that leaders have not only to
motivate their followers or subordinates but arouse in them interest to work for
the realisation of organisational goals. The leaders adopt different styles like
autocratic, participative and laissez faire, depending on the situation.
There are several distinct theoretical bases for leadership. The important theories
114 of leadership include trait theory, group and exchange theory, contingency
theory, path–goal theory, charismatic theory, transformational theory, social Leadership: Concept
learning theory and substitutes theory. Rensis Likert developed four systems and Theories
of management. Leadership styles, roles and activities are closely related to
leadership skills. Leadership skills like cultural flexibility, communication
skills, HRD skills, creativity, self management of learning etc. are critical to
success in the global economy. Effective and efficient leaders are necessary for
organisational survival and success.
Most theories of leadership above have developed in the Western organisations.
They cannot be applied in the same format in a developing country like
India and, more particularly in government organisations. India, because
of its long colonial history and monarchical pattern of governance, has been
characterised by centralised, hierarchical and authoritarian structures as well
as leadership styles. Democracy within a government organisation is a rare
phenomenon in India and in most developing countries. Hence, a combination
of various leadership styles, keeping in view the nature of the organisation and
the competence of subordinates, needs to be evolved and adopted in public
administrative systems.

9.7 GLOSSARY
Autocratic Style : In this style of leadership, the leader has the
absolute authority to take decisions.
Participative Style : In this style of leadership, the employees
participate in the decision-making process.
Laissez-faire Style : The employee have full freedom to take
decisions, leaders participation in decision
making is minimal.
Trait Theory : According to this theory, leaders have inborn
qualities.
Situational Theory : According to this theory, leadership emerges
from situation and is influenced by situation.
Group Theory : According to this theory, a person is accepted
as a leader as long as he/she satisfies the needs
of the groups.

9.8 REFERENCES
Barnrd, C.I. (1948). Organization and Management. Cambridge: Harvard
University Press.
Bennis, W. (2010). Still Surprised: A Memoir of a Life in Leadership. San
Francisco, USA: Jossey-Bass.
McFarland, A. S. (1969). Power and Leadership in Plural Systems. Stanford:
Stanford University Press.
Hicks, H.G. & Gullett, C.R. (1975). Organizations: Theory and Behavior. New
York: McGraw Hill.
115
Organisational Jain, N.C. & Saakshi. (2008). Management Theory and Practice (2nd ed.). New
Behaviour: Major Delhi: AITBS Publishers.
Facets
Koontz, H. & O’Donnell, C. (1984). Essentials of Management. New Delhi:
Tata-Mc Grow Hill.
Luthans, F. (1977). Organizational Behaviour. New York: McGraw Hill.
Millett, J.D. (1954). Management in the Public Service. New York: McGraw.
Nigro, F.A. & Nigro, L.G. (1973). Modern Public Administration. New York:
Harper and Row.
Pfiffner, J.M. & Frank P.Sherwood (1968). Administrative Organization. New
Delhi: Prentice Hall of India.

9.9 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

EXERCISES
Check Your Progress Exercise 1
1. Your answer should include the following points:
• Leadership is to guide others, to be head of an organisation to hold
command.
• Leadership has been variously defined to mean an attribute of personality,
a positional characteristic and an attitude of behaviour.
2. Your answer should include the following points:
• Autocratic Style.
• Participative Style.
• Laissez-faire Style.
Check Your Progress Exercise 2
1. Your answer should include the following points:
• System-I: Exploitative-Authoritative Management.
• System-II: Benevolent-Authoritative Management.
• System-III: Consultative Management.
• System-IV Participative-Management.
2. Your answer should include the following points:
• Cultural Flexibility.
• Communication Skills.
• HRD Skills.
• Creativity.

116 • Self-management-Learning.