Consider Social Work Practice in a Social Service Agency working with homeless
Earlier in the course, you were asked to informally evaluate your leadership skills and qualities. In this Final Project, you use formal assessment tools to identify your areas of strength and areas in which you need further development. You may use the results of this self-assessment to develop a plan to gain the skills and experiences that will help you move toward achieving your short- and long-term professional goals and objectives.
Using the assessment tools provided in Introduction to Leadership: Concepts and Practice, conduct a self-assessment of your own leadership characteristics, style, and skills. Complete at least four assessment tools for this self-assessment. In addition, select one tool to give to a colleague or supervisor so he or she can assess your leadership skills.
Final Project (2–4 pages in APA format)
Evaluate your current leadership characteristics, style, and skills based on the assessment tools you and your colleague/supervisor completed. Be sure to:
- Include actual results or summaries of the results you collected using these tools
- Identify personal leadership strengths as well as areas for improvement
- Include references to the leadership concepts covered in this course and relevant issues related to ethics, diversity, and power in the organizational setting
C H A P T E R
2
Determining Your Own
Leadership Style
Personally I am always ready to learn, although I do not always like being taught.
Sir Winston Churchill
This chapter introduces the influence of personality and physiology on leadership dynamics. Students are in-
troduced to various leadership and personality assessment tests. After completing the assessment tests, students
are asked to write a summary essay integrating findings of their own leader and personality outcomes. This sum-
mary, and the tests that precede it, assist students in identifying a penchant for certain leadership styles presented
later in the text. The assessments will assist students in understanding and relating to theories, models, and evo-
lutionary trends discussed later in this text and in the literature.
L E A R N I N G O B J E C T I V E S
1. Name and describe at least four assessments related to leadership.
2. Explain your personality type, leadership style, principles, and foundational skills as informed by
leadership and leadership-related assessment instruments.
3. Produce results of at least four leadership related assessments and prepare and apply those results to your
leadership persona.
4. Identify and distinguish your leadership style, principles, and foundational skills (both strengths and
weaknesses) based on the results obtained from leadership-related assessment instruments.
5. Based on self-assessments of your personality type, leadership style, principles, and foundational skills,
devise a plan to improve your weaknesses while leveraging or enhancing your strengths.
6. Critique and interpret your unique leadership persona and relate your leadership persona with examples
from your life experiences.
I N T R O D U C T I O N
The first step in improving your ability to lead people in health organizations is to understand yourself. To take
that first step, gaining an understanding of your personality type, leadership style, and associated leadership
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skills is paramount. It matters what you know, who you know, and, perhaps most importantly, what you know
about yourself!1 This chapter starts the journey to understand yourself. As part of this effort, by identifying your
strengths, weaknesses, and propensities, you can work to become a better leader by adding knowledge, skills, and
abilities to your leadership “toolbox.” This is a lifelong endeavor. Just as you have a dominant personality (the
personality you naturally have), so you also have a dominant leadership style, a dominant conflict management
style, and so forth. Even so, you can learn, practice, and master other styles, which then become part of your
repertoire to lead people and manage resources.
To begin your journey to understanding yourself, this chapter introduces a variety of assessment-related
topics: the Myers–Briggs personality indicator, “introvertedness” and “extrovertedness” (Type A/B personality
indicators), creative and empirical thinkers (left- and right-brain thinkers), and the propensity to lead and
learn through visual, auditory, reading, or kinesthetic (VARK) constructs. Prior to completing the leadership-
related assessments, students are asked to complete the enneagram diagnostic to discern whether their per-
sonal motivational objectives mirror those of traditional leaders. The supplement to this text, available at
http://www.jblearning.com/catalog/9780763781514/, provides additional assessments as well.
The final assessments focus on the test taker’s propensity and affiliation in relationship to traditional lead-
ership or traditional managerial roles. Other assessments provide diagnostics that evaluate risk taking, charisma,
vision, and empirical leadership characteristics. This chapter also discusses the constant battle a leader experi-
ences between his or her natural predispositions and the precepts taught in leadership training and mechanical
execution. While we do not present these tests as a panacea for leadership diagnosis, we do suggest that certain
ability–job fit characteristics may become clearer after completing these self-assessments.
K N O W T H Y S E L F : W H A T K I N D O F L E A D E R A R E Y O U ?
Newt Gingrich, the former Republican Speaker of the U.S. House of Representative, once said of former Demo-
cratic President Bill Clinton that he did not like to talk with Clinton for too long a period of time, because after a
while he began to agree with him.2 Although former White House Press Secretary George Stephanopoulos may
have made this comment jovially in his book All Too Human, the statement was fundamentally accurate in more
ways than one. President Clinton was widely admired for his natural charisma, political savvy, and social skills that
inspired followership and easy friendship. The same might not be true of his spouse, Secretary of State Hillary Clin-
ton,3 who has grown and matured in political creditability through nearly two decades of on-the-job leader train-
ing coupled with personal and professional self-development. What one leader possesses intrinsically and
naturally, the other honed through application of best practices and understanding of leadership styles, princi-
ples, and skills. In other words, some leaders have natural abilities, while others must work to learn those abilities.
All leaders—regardless of their natural abilities, experience, education, and training—must be aware of
their own personal areas for improvement so that they can grow and become more successful. As a result, we
ask you to consider the following questions:
j What kind of leader are you?
j What are your strengths and weaknesses?
j Are you aware of how those strengths and weaknesses support or fail to support your leadership style?
Traits of Leaders
There is an ongoing debate, within both the literature and professional practice, over whether leaders are born
or made. This argument centers on the premise that those qualities that make leaders successful cannot be
taught. Such qualities might include ambition, motivation, and a strong work ethic.
There is a general agreement in the literature that these qualities are inherent within individuals who
emerge as leaders in the organizational workplace. Certainly, many great leaders of our time have possessed these
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qualities. However, qualities—or traits—of motivation, ambition, and work ethic are difficult to measure by
themselves. Most often, proxy outcomes are assigned to these qualities as justification for the presence of these
traits. Such proxy variables might include education (if the individual is motivated, he or she might pursue
higher education for an advanced degree), number of hours worked, or number of jobs held at one time, all of
which might lead outside agents to conclude that the individual possesses a strong work ethic. While motiva-
tion and ambition are certainly good qualities for leaders to possess, they are not by themselves precursors to
successful leader outcomes.
Take, for example, the “Ponzi scheme” created by former tycoon Bernard Madoff.4 Well known as an ex-
tremely ambitious and motivated individual, Madoff became the architect of the greatest financial scam in U.S.
history.5 Clearly, ambition and motivation are not by themselves traits of leadership.
Another example might be Adolf Hitler. Using basic leadership theories of followership and transforma-
tion, Hitler might effectively be designated a leader through the example of his successful rebuilding of Germany
after World War I. Nevertheless, to refer to Hitler as a leader—after considering the totality of his “work”—is
insulting to the profession of leadership. No, Hitler does not occupy a position in the highly regarded field of
leaders. He was, at best, a despot and a dictator.6 Leaders must be moral actors.
We will discuss this definition of leadership later in this text. For now, we point out that new leader mod-
els have emerged in the field of leadership that screen out dictators and despots from the honored study of those
individuals who have earned the designation of leader.
Personality Profiling in Action
From 2004 through 2007, the Program Director of Baylor University’s joint master’s degree in health adminis-
tration (MHA) and master’s degree in business administration (MBA) program conducted a series of person-
ality assessments on members of the entering graduate class.7 One of the personality self-assessments was the
VARK test.8 This self-completed survey provides users with a profile of their unique learning preferences. The
scores profile an individual as having a predisposition for learning through visual, auditory, reading/writing, and
kinesthetic (i.e., doing) constructs or modalities.
In the past, it has been suggested that those individuals who score low in the auditory predisposition on
the VARK test may have difficulty in the graduate and post-graduate setting, as oral lectures are the preferred
method of delivering information in the traditional classroom. To test this hypothesis, 165 graduate students in
Baylor’s MHA/MBA program (approximately 41 in each class) were followed through four years of classroom
dynamics. Table 2–1 profiles the outcomes for these graduate students.
Table 2–1 suggests some common traits are associated with graduate students selected to attend a tradi-
tional full-time university. While discrepancies are common, and reasonable variance is assumed between scores
within the bounded rationality of standard personality diagnosis, in 2006, only two students identified them-
selves as having a preferred learning modality associated with listening to lectures (auditory). In the other years,
the number of auditory learners was consistent and steady over time, which suggested this learning style pref-
erence might be a shared trait among graduate classes in traditional academia. Furthermore, the percentage of
students who preferred the reading/writing and visual styles stayed relatively consistent over the years.
Know Thyself: What Kind of Leader Are You? 27
TABLE 2–1 VARK Learning Outcomes at Baylor University’s MHA/MBA Program (n = 164)
VARK Test 2004 VARK Test 2005 VARK Test 2006 VARK Test 2007
Aural 9 Aural 2 Aural 9 Aural 9
Kinesthetic (doing) 8 Kinesthetic (doing) 22 Kinesthetic (doing) 12 Kinesthetic (doing) 10
Read/write 8 Read/write 10 Read/write 8 Read/write 8
Visual 18 Visual 9 Visual 11 Visual 12
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The data recorded in 2005 were unique insofar as the class had no stabilizers for auditory learning. As a re-
sult, the class as a whole often became frustrated and irascible when faced with the prospect of long lectures. The
feedback received on end of course evaluations for professors who refused to change or modify their teaching
methods from lecture to case study was extremely poor (n = 2.8 on a 5-point scale). As the program director,
Dr. Coppola would continually make recommendations to the faculty to modify teaching styles for the benefit
of the class. Those faculty members who did modify their teaching practices for the second term received sig-
nificantly higher end-of-course evaluations (n = 3.8 on a 5-point scale). Those faculty members who did not
modify their teaching practice continued to receive poor feedback for their entire teaching year with those stu-
dents. Knowing how the students learned was helpful to the professors—and it made them better educators.
Health leaders can apply the same information to their leadership styles and adapt their message delivery to their
subordinates’ propensities.
This small example demonstrates two points. First, personality profiling does provide insights into leading
people that can result in positive outcomes. Second, those professors who were savvy and aware of how their
teaching practice (i.e., their leadership style) was affecting the students were able to adapt and modify situations
to create win-win opportunities for both themselves and the students.
The Importance of Understanding Personalities in the Workforce
The average worker will change jobs seven to nine times over the course of his or her career. The decision to de-
part a current place of employment may be based on advancement opportunities or dissatisfaction with the cur-
rent work environment. Whatever the specific reason given, the pursuit of new leadership opportunities is often
driven by the seeker’s interest in matching his or her educational and work history against published criteria
about a new job. However, matching only past experience and educational accomplishments will not produce
a positive outcome when seeking to match skills with available openings.9
Personality dynamics influence success in the workplace in many ways. Performance, personal satisfaction,
and outcomes are all enhanced when the employee and the work environment are in alignment—that is, when
there is synchronization with personality. Synchronization is a process that includes many dimensions of an in-
dividual’s abilities, such as education and experience, ability to learn, mental “hard-wiring,” personality arche-
types, leadership dynamics, and physical abilities.10 Understanding the personalities of subordinates, peers, and
superiors in the health organization is important for health leaders. This understanding informs the health
leader as to others’ expectations and provides insights into motivation, competitiveness, team building, coali-
tion building, and interpersonal relationships and communication.
Leadership and Personality Self-Assessment
This section identifies some of the more popularly available personality and leadership self-assessments avail-
able on the Internet (World Wide Web). These sites provide free leadership and personality self-assessments that
are highly commensurate with many of the private and for-profit assessments that can be purchased. In fact, for
many large for-profit organizations, personality screening is a necessary precursor to being offered a position in
the company. Many large-scale organizations have found that a basic interview and reference checking are just
small parts of a larger interview process. Personality assessment via computerized testing is becoming more com-
mon, as organizations have realized that most all references provided by candidates result in positive narratives.
Additionally, a favorable half-day interview may not provide the organization with a complete picture of the in-
dividual’s predisposition for participatory, autocratic, and authoritarian leadership styles or level of mastery of
critical leadership skills such as communication.
Many organizations are weary of the litigation potential when an individual is hired, only to then be ter-
minated for failing to get along with coworkers or adapt to existing workplace dynamics. As a result, personal-
ity self-assessment has become a piece of the overall picture of the job candidate developed by organizations
prior to making a final offer of employment. As such, it is incumbent on early careerists to not only become
aware of their own personality archetype, but also to gain some experience with personality assessment prior to
any real-world screening process so that nervousness and second guessing does not present itself during the ac-
tual corporate screening process.
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Upon completing each one of these personality diagnostics, the test taker is supplied with a free assessment
of his or her scores by the hosting Web site. While there are often no right or wrong answers, and all tests are
subject to issues of reliability and validity, many of these assessments, if taken consistently over the period of sev-
eral weeks or months, will provide similar responses over time.
Drs. Ledlow and Coppola suggest that for use in the university course setting, four to six self-assessments
should be completed, based on the learning outcomes of the course. Upon completing these assessments, you
should write a two- to three-page integrated self-assessment based on the diagnostic outcomes. This essay should
list professional strengths for the career field that the test taker is about to enter, as well as areas of potential pro-
fessional development where weaknesses are identified. One last note: Everyone—leader and follower alike—
has weaknesses and areas of career and professional performance that can be improved.
The following section is exciting and fun, but can also be scary and anxiety provoking. The goal is to “know
thyself” as a health leader, and to learn to identify and leverage your strengths while shoring up your weaknesses
to create more potential for great leadership—your great leadership—in the health industry. The assessments
can be found at the reference attached to each section’s heading.
L E A D E R A N D P E R S O N A L I T Y A S S E S S M E N T S
Emotional Intelligence11
Emotional intelligence (EI) is one of the more difficult concepts for individuals to understand, improve, and
master. It is based on a variety of non-intellectual factors that can influence behavior. Some leaders are unaware
of how their emotional intelligence affects their superiors and subordinates. In fact, many individuals will reas-
sign negative outcomes and behaviors to those around them and be completely unaware of their personal effect
on others’ actions.12, 13
Emotional intelligence is a relatively new concept in leadership, having only been studied since the early
1980s.14 Many definitions of EI can be found in the literature. Notably, the Institute for Health and Human po-
tential defines EI as the ability or capacity to perceive, assess, and manage the emotions of oneself and of others.
EI might also be thought of as having “street smarts.” Street smarts are those characteristics most often possessed
by highly charismatic leaders that allow them to exercise savvy and poise in controlling relationships among out-
side agents and stakeholders. Executives possessing this ability have a better understanding of how to manage
the complex relationships in teams and foster positive relationships with rivals while attaining control and col-
legiality among organizational members. Fostering EI in organizations and teams is an essential factor in suc-
cessful organizations and should not be overlooked.15
Emotional intelligence might also be defined as having a high locus of control. Those individuals with a
high locus of control are able to process, receive, and transmit information absent of emotional content, and be-
lieve that they control their own destiny and future. For example, an individual having worked very hard on a
business case analysis (BCA) that is not approved by his or her boss during a large staff meeting should refrain
from an emotional outburst in front of other staff members. Likewise, leaders with high EI levels would refrain
from displaying a threatening demeanor when asked to support positions of contention in an organization with
subordinate employees of a differing opinion. The four salient constructs of the emotional intelligence model
are (1) self-awareness, (2) self-management, (3) social awareness, and (4) social skills.16 These constructs are
slanted toward the relational or “art” aspect of leadership. At the same time, these constructs can and should
merge to form a secondary level of “intelligence” that is ever present and that monitors the technical and rela-
tionship orientations of the leader. Conscious engagement and mastery leads to subconscious implementation;
this is the internal gyroscope that many successful leaders learn to depend upon. “Those who use the emotional
intelligence framework to guide their thoughts and actions may find it easier to create trust in relationships, har-
ness energy under pressure, and sharpen their ability to make sound decisions—in other words, they increase
their potential for success in the workplace.”17 The dynamic culture leader connects the four emotional intelli-
gence constructs together with this “internal gyroscope” to analyze himself or herself and the organization, and
to merge the appropriate levels of science and art in creating an organizational culture that can withstand ever-
changing environmental challenges.18
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Hemisphere Dominance19
The hemisphere dominance personality assessment indicates the brain hemisphere (right or left) that domi-
nates in the test taker. Most professionals are aware there is a dominant side of the brain; however, these same
professionals are often unaware of the influence this hard-wiring has on the day-to-day activities of profes-
sional performance. For example, “right-brained” individuals tend to be more creative. Professionals with
dominant right brains may be best suited for creating new product and service lines, developing long-range
strategic plans, and forecasting threats on the environmental horizon. In contrast, “left-brained” individuals
are more detail oriented, methodical, and calculating. They prefer implementing strategic plans over develop-
ing them. While it is difficult to change one’s predisposition for creativeness versus detail orientation, creative
thinkers can make specific adjustments in their daily business of work to become more organized, while more
concrete thinkers can exercise creative elements of their brain by engaging in more creative arts such as writ-
ing, music, or art.
Jungian Assessments 20
Scholars have suggested that all individuals are born with a personality archetype. Over the years, family, soci-
ety, and the environment all exert influences on this archetype. Working professionals should be aware of their
natural predispositions (as measured by Jungian assessments) so that certain characteristics can be leveraged, or
weaknesses avoided. The most popular assessment of this kind is the Myers–Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI),
which has been a reliable source of documenting personality since World War II. The MBTI focuses on four di-
mensions of personality: extraversion or introversion, sensing or intuition, thinking or feeling, and judging or
perceiving.21–23 (Two preferences are identified in each dimension.) The MBTI results indicate the test taker’s
preferred style and remain fairly stable throughout a person’s career.
Extroverts prefer the company and collaboration of teams, while introverts prefer comfort zones that involve
the interaction of just a few people. Extroverts tend to be “charged” by other people and interaction with oth-
ers, whereas introverts tend to be “charged” by quiet reflection and isolated activities. Extroverts can be alone
and function very well, just as introverts can be with other people for long periods and function very well. Ex-
troverts tend to be more assertive, while introverts have refined listening skills.
Sensing individuals seek empirical affirmation from the environment—that is, reassurance that history
plays a critical role in today’s decision and will impact tomorrow. Intuitive personality types prefer more latent
cues from the environment for decision making and, at the extreme, ignore the past.
Thinking individuals tend to be very strong at execution, while the strength of feeling individuals resides
with interaction. Logic and cause-and-effect reasoning are valued by the thinking profile, whereas emotion and
the impact of decisions on the organization are important to the feeling-oriented individual.
Judging people carefully weigh all of the options and alternatives. They tend to be more structured in their
approaches to implementation. In contrast, perceiving individuals find confidence in their own heuristics (rules
of thumb with which to make decisions) and prior knowledge for decision making. Perceiving individuals tend
to be more spontaneous.
Type A and B Personality Indicators 24
In the 1940s and 1950s, when personality archetypes and behavior theories were emerging as seminal fields of
study to add to the trait theory literature, it was posited that people were hard-wired to fit into one of three neat,
clear-cut clean predispositions for the purposes of personality classification—namely, Type A, Type B, and Type
A/B individuals.25
Type A individuals are competitive, inquisitive, and easily bored with routine; they have a “short fuse,” of-
ten feel impatient, and may be aggressive. These individuals may also have a difficult time relaxing, staying fo-
cused on details, and maintaining stability in any one place for long periods of time. Type B people are the direct
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opposite: They can relax easily, tend to maintain focus on activities and projects, see stability as comforting, and
can be perceived as more social and easygoing.26
Type A/B individuals may present characteristics of both personality traits and present characteristics in ei-
ther dimension depending on environment, circumstance, and mood. Type A/B personalities are said to be bal-
anced personalities and can find comfort in a variety of situations.
While there is no direct evidence that any of the personal predispositions aids in leadership development
and success, a growing body of work suggests that Type A individuals have higher burnout and mortality rates.27
There is general agreement in the literature that individuals are predisposed to present behaviors in either the
Type A or B modality. Even so, it may be possible for individuals to switch over and mimic personality charac-
teristics and behaviors of the other dynamic based on their education, work stimulus, and coping skills.
Knowing which archetype best defines an individual creates leverage in the workplace. Successful Type B
individuals will know when to “turn on” and become excited and committed to projects and ventures. This pos-
ture can be mimicked until the work is completed. Likewise, Type A individuals can present a high locus of con-
trol and know when to mitigate their own emotions and instincts to perform more cooperatively in groupwork
and interdisciplinary team dynamics.
The VARK Test 28
As mentioned earlier in this chapter, a VARK assessment provides an insight into an individual’s predisposition
toward a particular learning style. Most people have a dominant learning style, a secondary style, a tertiary style,
and a least preferred style. Some individuals may also have high abilities in more than one style. While the VARK
test may seem somewhat oriented to university education, all organizations have a set of continuing education
and professional development competencies that must be achieved for an individual to advance or maintain em-
ployment in the workplace. By knowing which specific modality fosters a higher learning outcome for himself
or herself, an individual can maximize use of his or her discretionary time to focus on those events that promote
the greatest transfer of information. Such examples of different professional development activities might in-
clude on-site conferences, webinars, distance learning, traditional education, and personal self-development
through reading, listening to audio books, or working on computer-based problems or games.
While learning styles change over time, prudent early careerists will conduct a personal self-assessment of
their own preferred learning modality. It is important for young leaders to know that potential organizations
may or may not appreciate individual learning styles. For example, if an individual is an auditory learner in an
organization that emphasizes verbal communication, the probability for successful synchronization between
that individual and the organization should be enhanced. Conversely, an auditory learner in an environment
where mass reading of policy and procedure statements is necessary may not fare as well. Thus health leaders
should be aware of their preferred methods of learning—that is, whether they emphasize visual, aural, reading,
or kinesthetic traits. Other assessments use the terms “visual verbal” (reading), “visual nonverbal” (“visual” re-
ferring to pictures, figures, and graphs), “auditory” (aural), and “learning by doing” (kinesthetic) to describe the
learning style preferences. Collectively, these characteristics are referred to as VARK.29
Visual learners prefer graphs, pictures, and flowcharts to help them understand complex phenomena. These
learners feel most comfortable surrounded by blueprints and matrixes, but may be distracted by debates and de-
cision discussions.
Aural learners are stimulated by conversation and debate. These learners may often be more interested in
the discussion of decision making than decision making itself. They “think out loud” and may often use other
employees as sounding boards for new ideas.
Reading and writing (R/W) learning preference is a common characteristic among healthcare executives.
These individuals prefer cross-referencing written material, writing summaries, and e-mailing thoughts. They
do well with complex tasks and multitasking.
Kinesthetic learners require practical exercises, a hands-on approach, or meticulous simulation to learn ef-
ficiently. These learners prefer learning through experience over alternative preparatory methods. However,
they are rapid processors of information in an on-the-job environment. Kinesthetic learners are also more com-
fortable with ambiguity.
Leader and Personality Assessments 31
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The New Enneagram Test 30
Enneagrams are said to be natural encodings in neural tissue in everyone’s brain that provide a physical predis-
position to behave a certain way based on environmental stimulus. Similar to left- and right-brain dominance,
the way in which the brain forms relationships within itself to process information is unique.31 As a result, it is
incumbent on health leaders to be aware of these visceral tendencies to see if there is any opportunity for pro-
fessional development or self-awareness.
Enneagrams identify the test taker’s natural inclination toward behavior. The results can be classified into
nine primary constructs or types: Reformer, Helper, Motivator, Romantic, Thinker, Skeptic, Adventurers,
Leader, and Peacemaker.32–35
The Reformer is the perfectionist and obedient child who must do everything right. Individuals with this
tendency prefer that others get along with them and prefer to dictate terms in groups and interdisciplinary
teams. This behavior stands in contrast to that of the Helper, who will seek to engage in supportive relationships
with others so as to gain favor and acceptance.
The Motivator is the high achiever who seeks to pull those around him or her toward success. This indi-
vidual may not try to conform those around him or her to the Motivator’s own standards of excellence; rather,
the Motivator will pull those in his or her inner circle toward goals and objectives.
The Romantic strives for warm and collegial connections with those in the workplace. Words of approba-
tion are very important to the Romantic, as individuals with this tendency do not thrive in a critical atmosphere.
The Romantic may work well in small groups of known colleagues, but may have difficulty in new environments.
The Thinker sees the world as “over-stimulating” and confusing, and will need privacy to contemplate ac-
tions in the environment. Type B personalities are most often thinkers. Thinkers will often be plain-spoken and
direct, and they sometimes communicate without tact. However, they are often detail oriented and factually ac-
curate. They leave little room for discrepancy or speculation. When a Thinker finally speaks, there often is little
room for alternative positions and opinions.
The Skeptic is eager to investigate life and propositions. Skeptics, sometimes called challengers, have a great
lust for life and a keen intellectual curiosity. They are most often Type A archetypes, challenge institutionalism,
and may demonstrate creative and right-brain thinking. At the same time, they have a need for social integra-
tion and can be tactful and wary of irritating relationships.
The Adventurer wants excitement, pleasure, and fun. Individuals in this category see work as a game; how-
ever, they can have difficulty organizing activities and projects themselves. They prefer stimulating conversation
over the labor of work, and they prefer to be the center of attention without taking responsibility. The Adven-
turer is an odd mix of a charismatic personality coupled with a degree of avoidance behavior. He or she may be
the “idea person” in the organization who wants someone else to produce the concepts that he or she has sug-
gested. A difficult archetype to pin down, the Adventurer may succeed best when surrounded by talented sub-
ordinate personnel.
The Leader archetype is not always presented in some assessments, as researchers believe that the leader-
ship construct is a composite of several modalities coupled with environmental opportunities. However, in
many enneagram tests, the Leader may not be the individual who inspires followership or who occupies a di-
rector role in project management; rather, the Leader in this case may be called the “Asserter.” Asserters have
strong personalities and are direct, self-reliant, and seemingly unfettered by the opinions of those around them.
At the same time, the Leader can be supportive of those close to him or her.
Peacemakers do not want to be part of the spotlight, nor do they think of themselves as important or spe-
cial to the group dynamic. They tend to avoid prominent leadership roles and prefer to “hide in plain sight” by
neither confronting antagonists nor supporting commonly agreed-upon direction. Far from being lazy, the
Peacemaker can provide a neutral sense of direction between competing priorities and introduce new ones if
carefully coddled and treated well within the group dynamic.
Dynamic Culture Leadership Alignment Assessment 36
Individual assessment is important, as is a leadership team evaluation. An accurate assessment can yield many
positive results, including the ability of the team to better align itself to bring real diversity of style, skills, expe-
32 CHAPTER 2 ■ Determining Your Own Leadership Style
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rience, and abilities into the health organization. In this model, which is discussed later in this text, cultural and
individual diversity are valued because they enable the organization to better respond to dynamic organizational
and external environments. A diverse leadership team brings robustness to solving organizational problems as
long as focus and adherence to team goals are maintained.
An assessment that looks at leadership as a team, across organizational levels, operating environments, and
external environment needs, is especially valuable.37 This assessment intends to evaluate the leadership styles and
propensities of the leadership group of an organization, the organization’s operating style, and the perceived ex-
ternal environment expectations of the organization. It can also be used as an individual assessment for leader-
ship, management, technical (science) and art (relationships) propensities, communication, planning, decision
alignment, employee enhancement, and knowledge management constructs.
Figures 2–1 and 2–2 illustrate the use of such an assessment tool for a leadership team of a hospital. Two
continua are defined: leadership–management and science–art. The leadership–management continuum dis-
tinctions were presented in Chapter 1. The science–art continuum assesses leaders in terms of their preferences
for technical skills and abilities (science) such as forecasting, analysis, budgeting, decision making, and related
capabilities, by comparing them to relational skills and abilities (art) such as interpersonal relationships, team
building, and related capabilities.
The reliability of the assessment tool and model are moderately strong in Figures 2–1 and 2–2, which il-
lustrate the results with a sample size of 85 leaders from four different hospitals, two different university col-
leges, and a U.S. Army Medical Department Regional Command (Department of Defense). Graduate
students—a total of 58—have taken this assessment as well. Thus the total number taking this assessment for
purposes of internal reliability is n = 143. Although this is not a very large number, early results with this tool
appear promising. The preliminary internal reliability and internal consistency measures are near or above rea-
sonable levels; for example, Cronbach’s coefficient alpha measures were between .68 and .89 (where .7 is rea-
sonable for the social sciences and .77 is strong or good) for the constructs of the model.
Leader and Personality Assessments 33
Leadership and Management Team Composite Style
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Art
Management
Science
Leadership
FIGURE 2–1 Dynamic Culture Leadership Assessment: Community Hospital Leadership Team Style
Source: Ledlow, G., & Cwiek, M. (2005). The process of leading: Assessment and comparison of leadership team
style, operating climate and expectation of the external environment. Proceedings of Global Business and Tech-
nology Association, Lisbon, Portugal.
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Studer Group38
The Studer Group is a leadership and organizational consulting firm with a large hospital clientele. The “Leader
as Coach” assessment is a quick evaluation of the test taker’s coaching propensity. The instrument groups the
assessment outcomes into one of three categories: high, middle, or low coaching capability.
Other Leadership Assessments
Many other leadership and leadership-related assessments are available on the World Wide Web. However,
health leaders must be able to separate research-based assessments from those that are not empirically based.
Does the assessment discuss or reveal internal consistency or reliability measures such as Cronbach’s coefficient
alpha (where .7 is reasonable, .77 is good, .8 to .89 is very good, and .9 and higher is excellent) or other measures
of the assessment’s credibility? Does the assessment have ecological validity or does it make sense or justify the
real world?
Another way to look at the value of an assessment tool is in terms of its usefulness. An assessment’s use-
fulness is in question if decisions, increased knowledge, or increased self-awareness cannot be achieved through
use of the assessment. Of course, some assessments are wonderful as “ice breakers” to get subordinates, peers,
superiors, and multilevel groups to talk about themselves and learn about others with whom they work in the
health organization. Some assessments are great ways to encourage people to open up at meetings where they
do not know one another very well, for early stages of team building, and other group activities where people
must “gel” to accomplish a task or a set of tasks.
Can you distinguish research-based assessments and useful assessments from fun or “ice breaker” assess-
ments? The following assessments are presented for your review.
34 CHAPTER 2 ■ Determining Your Own Leadership Style
Comparison of Team Style, Actual Organization Operation Style, and
Required Environment Style
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
Leadership
Art
Management
Science
Leadership and management team range of
scores
Leadership and management team composite
organization operation range of scores
Leadership and management team composite
of organization’s operating environment
FIGURE 2–2 Dynamic Culture Leadership Assessment: Comparison of Leadership Team Style,
Operating Style, and External Environment Requirements for a Community Hospital
Source: Ledlow, G., & Cwiek, M. (2005). The process of leading: Assessment and comparison of leadership team
style, operating climate and expectation of the external environment. Proceedings of Global Business and Tech-
nology Association, Lisbon, Portugal.
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Leadership Diagnostics 39
This assessment is more speculative in nature. It evaluates a leader’s potential to be a “twenty-first-century
leader” based on several constructs such as team building.
Anthony J. Mayo 40
This assessment determines whether the test taker is one of three leadership types: the entrepreneur, the man-
ager, or the charismatic. Based on a book about brilliant leaders, it compares the test taker to successful con-
temporary leaders from several industries.
Dale Kurow 41
This assessment evaluates leadership skills from a direct superior-to-subordinate basis. Also, individual leader-
ship questions support the evaluation for this dichotomous assessment.
Price Group42
Are you more of a leader or a manager? This assessment tries to answer this question based on a series of skills-
and actions-based questions.
T H E R E L A T I O N S H I P B E T W E E N P E R S O N A L I T Y
A R C H E T Y P E A N D L E A D E R S H I P
The research is in agreement that personality archetypes do affect leadership style, success, and outcomes in the
workplace.43–45 While difficult to manage without a high degree of self-awareness, the first step in any leader-
ship development process is to recognize potential weaknesses or areas for improvement. Some of this under-
standing will come with experience. Other professional development areas will present themselves with personal
self-recognition. This chapter has provided some tools for the latter kind of diagnosis.
By the time many students get to college, they have already established certain predispositions toward one
or more of the personality archetypes presented in this book. Simple predispositions may be perceived as habits
at first, such as reading alone or studying to music. These habits, or preferred predispositions, may provide clues
to early discovery of mental hard-wiring. Social networking and competing in sports and intramurals may sug-
gest a tendency toward Type A behavior, whereas preferring the company of small groups of intimate friends
and social clubs may suggest a predisposition for Type B behaviors.
If an individual aspires to become a CEO of a large and munificent healthcare organization and is predis-
posed to Type B personality traits, he or she must either reconsider entering into a career field where high ex-
ternal presence is mandatory or gradually exercise those areas of the individual’s personality that may be lying
dormant, but are open to cultivation. Remember—leadership styles, knowledge, skills, and abilities can be
learned as well as enhanced. Malcolm Gladwell, in his book Outliers: The Story of Success, suggests that 10,000
hours of practice, experience, trial and error, and self-discovery are required to become a master or an expert in
anything, with rare exception to this standard.46 Gladwell also states that the average graduate student has an in-
telligence quotient (IQ) of 115 or higher47; this point suggests that you are intellectually poised to learn and mas-
ter health leadership whether you are innately gifted or just willing to learn.
S T R A T E G I E S T O M A X I M I Z E Y O U R N A T U R E – V E R S U S – N U R T U R E
L E A D E R S H I P S T A T E O F B E I N G
Numerous strategies are available to early careerists to help them cultivate dormant personality capabilities. For
example, joining professional organizations is critical for success, as they provide opportunities for exercising
leadership skills in closed and friendly environments that may not have direct visibility in the workplace. For in-
stance, if an individual is predisposed to be a Skeptic, volunteering to support a continuing health education
event with a local professional organization can provide the opportunity to be a follower without the pressure
of being scrutinized in terms of professional outcomes that may end up in a performance appraisal in the
Strategies to Maximize Your Nature-Versus-Nurture Leadership State of Being 35
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workplace. The classroom setting is uniquely suited for trial and error; mistakes are used to learn and improve
rather than having negative career implications. Take advantage of the classroom environment to practice lead-
ership by volunteering for group leader roles, community service project leadership, and similar opportunities.
Find ways to lead people in a useful endeavor and find ways to manage resources in useful endeavors; build up
your experience to achieve the 10,000 hours of practice!
Within the workplace, early careerists can seek out professional mentors not in their direct supervisory
chain who can provide both education and candid professional development advice from a non-performance
appraisal perspective. While joining a professional organization may provide an opportunity for mentorship,
many large organizations now have formal mentor programs where mentees can be paired up with volunteer
mentors in a structured environment.
Self-development and self-directed learning may be the easiest method for individuals to gain a perspec-
tive on how to develop and cultivate dormant leader traits. Many professional development books include self-
diagnostic scales that provide tools and strategies to augment leader skills.
Finally, the value of self-awareness and acceptance cannot be underscored in this chapter. While none of
the assessments in this chapter are by themselves 100 percent valid and reliable predictors of personality traits
and leadership skills, they should be considered one part in your personal puzzle. The synthesis of these assess-
ments should form an initial picture of your current situation—a situation you can improve and develop into
a great health leader. To ignore these assessments because you are not pleased with the outcome is essentially
paramount to ignoring your own potential.
S U M M A R Y
This chapter provided a small sample of minimal diagnostic self-examinations that provide usable information
for professional development in a course setting. While the authors do not recommend taking all of these as-
sessments, when completed under the supervision of your course director, these evaluations will support the
learning outcomes of your program.
Following successful completion of several of these assessments, students should conduct an analysis and
look for trends and patterns that may reveal areas of personality dominance or personality void. You might then
write a paper integrating your personal findings into one composite essay. The final essay should include a per-
sonal plan to hone existing traits while also cultivating knowledge, skills, and abilities that may present themselves
for development later. Ideally, the course director, executive in residence, or professional community leader will
then sit down with each student and provide a mentoring session aimed at leadership and career success.
Strong personalities with high levels of education dominate the health environment. As a person progresses
up the corporate ladder, he or she will encounter new and different personality types at all levels. Leaders will
most likely have to develop different personality skill sets to foster and cultivate relationships in the various en-
vironments in which they work. Knowing oneself will provide an edge for success and a platform for improve-
ment and mastery of leadership.
D I S C U S S I O N Q U E S T I O N S
1. Describe four leadership, leadership-related, or personality assessments that were most informative for
you. Did other students select the same assessments? Why or why not?
2. Distinguish the various typologies (categories) used in personality assessments and personality archetype
assessments and explain the differences associated with the various “types.”
3. Relate two or more assessments from this chapter to your personal situation: Were the assessment results
complementary or contradictory? Why do you think these results occurred?
4. From the assessments (two or more), identify the health leader most appealing to you (a real leader or a
fictitious one whom you create). Using the assessments’ constructs and typologies, why is that health leader
appealing?
36 CHAPTER 2 ■ Determining Your Own Leadership Style
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5. Compile and categorize your assessment results, summarize the results, and tell the group your plan for
leadership mastery.
6. Appraise the empirical strength of the various assessment instruments, critique two or more assessments,
and justify your critique.
E X E R C I S E S
1. Name and describe at least four assessments related to leadership you used, in two pages or less.
2. Explain your leadership style, principles, and foundational skills as related to leadership assessment in-
struments, using at least four assessments, in a three-page essay.
3. Produce results of at least four leadership-related assessments, apply those results to your leadership per-
sona, and attach the results to your three-page essay from Exercise 2.
4. Identify and distinguish your leadership style, principles, and foundational skills strengths and weaknesses
based on your leadership-related assessments’ results, in a two-page document attached to your essay and
results document.
5. Based on self-assessments of your personality style, leadership style, principles, and foundational skills, de-
vise a plan to improve your weaknesses while leveraging or enhancing your strengths. Add this work to your
essay, results, and strengths and weaknesses document.
6. Critique and interpret your unique leadership persona, and relate your leadership persona to examples
from your life experiences in a two- to three-page document. Attach this work to your previous work. Re-
turn and read this document once a month until you have achieved your goals for improving your leader-
ship capabilities.
R E F E R E N C E S
1. Ledlow, G., & Cwiek, M. (2005, July). The process of leading: Assessment and comparison of leadership team style, op-
erating climate and expectation of the external environment. Proceedings of the Global Business and Technology Associa-
tion, Lisbon, Portugal.
2. Stephanopoulos, G. (1999). All too human: A political education. Boston: Little, Brown.
3. Kellerman, G. (2008). Leadership lessons from Hillary Clinton’s election results. Conversation Starter, Harvard Business
Publishing. Retrieved June 22, 2009, from http://conversationstarter.hbsp.com/2008/02/leadership_lessons_
from_hillar.html.
4. Healy, J. (2009, June 29). Madoff sentenced to 150 years for Ponzi scheme. The New York Times. Retrieved June 29, 2009,
from http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/30/business/30madoff.html?_r=1&hp.
5. Lambiet, J. (2008, December 12). Bernie Madoff’s arrest sent tremors into Palm Beach, Palm Beach Daily. Retrieved De-
cember 12, 2008, from http://www.palmbeachdailynews.com/news/content/news/2008/12/12/ponzi1212.html.
6. Coppola, M. N. (2004). A propositional perspective of leadership: Is the wrong head on the model? Journal of Interna-
tional Research in Business Disciplines, Business Research Yearbook, International Academy of Business Disciplines, 11,
620–625.
7. Coppola, M. N. (2008). Observations and outcomes of graduate students based on VARK profiling. White paper, Fort
Sam Houston, San Antonio, TX.
8. Fleming, N. D., & Mills, C. (1992). Not another inventory, rather a catalyst for reflection, to improve the Academy. Acad-
emy of Management Journal, 11, 137.
9. Coppola, M. N., & Carini, G. (2006, March/April). Ability job–fit self-assessment. Healthcare Executive, pp. 60–63.
10. Coppola & Carini, note 9.
11. Retrieved July 20, 2009, from http://www.queendom.com/tests/access_page/index.htm?idRegTest=1121.
12. Kluemper, D. H. (2008). Trait emotional intelligence: The impact of core-self evaluations and social desirability. Per-
sonality and Individual Differences, 44(6), 1402–1412.
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© Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC
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© Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC
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© Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC
NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION
© Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC
NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION
© Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC
NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION
© Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC
NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION
© Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC
NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION
© Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC
NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION
© Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC
NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION
© Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC
NOT FOR SALE OR DISTRIBUTION
© Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC
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© Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC
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© Jones & Bartlett Learning, LLC
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13. Smith, L., Ciarrochi, J., & Heaven, P. C. L. (2008). The stability and change of trait emotional intelligence, conflict com-
munication patterns, and relationship satisfaction: A one-year longitudinal study. Personality and Individual Differences,
45, 738–743.
14. Gardner, H. (1983). Frames of mind. New York: Basic Books.
15. Cherniss, C., & Adler, M. (2000). Promoting emotional intelligence in organizations. Washington, DC: American Society
for Training and Development.
16. Lanser, E. G. (2000). Why you should care about your emotional intelligence: strategies for honing important emotional
competencies. Healthcare Executive, 15(6), 7– 9.
17. Lanser, note 17, p. 9.
18. Ledlow & Cwiek, note 1.
19. Retrieved July 20, 2009, from http://www.mindmedia.com/brainworks/profiler.
20. Carl Jung was a notable Swiss psychiatrist and influential scholar for his work in personalities in the late 19th and 20th
centuries. Retrieved July 20, 2009, from http://www.humanmetrics.com/cgi-win/JTypes2.asp.
21. McCrae, R. R., & Costa, P. T. (1989). Reinterpreting the Myers–Briggs Type Indicator from the perspective of the five-
factor model of personality. Journal of Personality, 57, 17–40.
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71–74.
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sulting Psychologists Press.
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25. Jenkins, C. D., Zyzanski, S. J., & Roseman, R. H. (1971). Progress towards validation of a computer-scored test for the
Type A coronary-prone behaviour pattern. Psychosomatic Medicine, 33, 193–202.
26. Kuiper, N. A., & Martin, R. A. (1989). Type A behavior: A social cognition motivational perspective. In Gordon H. Bower
(Ed.), The psychology of learning and motivation: Advances in research and theory (Vol. 24, pp. 311–341). New York: Aca-
demic Press.
27. Friedman, M., & Rosenman, R. H. (1974). Type A behavior and your heart. New York: Knopf.
28. Retrieved July 20, 2009, from http://www.vark-learn.com/english/page.asp?p=questionnaire.
29. Fleming, N. D. (2001). Teaching and learning styles: VARK strategies. Honolulu Community College.
30. Retrieved July 20, 2009, from http://www.9types.com/newtest/homepage.actual.html.
31. Riso, D. R., & Hudson, R. (1996). Personality types: Using the enneagram for self-discovery. Boston, MA: Houghton
Mifflin.
32. Palmer, H. (1995). The pocket enneagram: Understanding the 9 types of people. San Francisco, CA: Harper Press.
33. Putnoi, J. (2000). Senses wide open. Berkeley, CA: Ulysses Press.
34. The nine types. Retrieved June 26, 2009, from http://www.9types.com/index.php.
35. Introduction to engrams. Retrieved June 26, 2009, from http://www.eclecticenergies.com/enneagram/introduction.php.
36. http://www.jblearning.com/catalog/9780763781514/ or contact Dr. Gerald Ledlow at gledlow@georgiasouthern.edu.
37. Conger, J., & Toegel, G. (2002). A story of missed opportunities: Qualitative methods for leadership research and prac-
tice. In K. W. Parry & J. R. Meindl (Eds.), Grounding leadership theory and research: Issues, perspectives, and methods (pp.
175–197). Greenwich, CT: Information Age Publishing.
38. Retrieved July 8, 2009, from http://www.studergroup.com/tools_andknowledge/tools/index.dot.
39. Retrieved July 20, 2009, from http://www.coachingandmentoring.com/Quiz/21stmanager.html.
40. Retrieved July 20, 2009, from http://www.fastcompany.com/articles/2005/08/quiz.html.
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42. Retrieved July 20, 2009, from http://www.pricegroupleadership.com/tl_quiz.shtml.
43. Judge, T. A., & Bono, J. E. (2000). Five-factor model of personality and transformational leadership. Journal of Applied
Psychology, 85, 751–765.
44. Chemers, M. M., Watson, C. B., & May, S. T. (2000). Dispositional Affect and leadership effectiveness: A comparison of
self-esteem, optimism, and efficacy. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 26, 267–277.
45. Rychlak, J. F. (1963). Personality correlates of leadership among first level managers. Psychological Reports, 12, 43–52.
46. Gladwell, M. (2008). Outliers: The story of success. New York: Little, Brown.
47. Gladwell, note 46.
38 CHAPTER 2 ■ Determining Your Own Leadership Style
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Introduction to Leadership
Fourth Edition
2
To Madison and Isla
3
Introduction to Leadership
Concepts and Practice
Fourth Edition
Peter G. Northouse
Western Michigan University
4
FOR INFORMATION:
SAGE Publications, Inc.
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Copyright © 20
18
by SAGE Publications, Inc.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or
by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any
information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the
publisher.
Printed in the United States of America
ISBN: 9
7
8-1-
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30
08-2
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This book is printed on acid-free paper.
Acquisitions Editor: Maggie Stanley
Development Editor: Lauren Holmes
Editorial Assistant: Neda Dallal
eLearning Editor: Katie Ancheta
Production Editor: Libby Larson
Copy Editor: Melinda Masson
Typesetter: C&M Digitals (P) Ltd.
Proofreader: Theresa Kay
Indexer: Wendy Allex
Cover Designer: Gail Buschman
Marketing Manager: Ashlee Blunk
6
Brief Contents
Preface
About the Author
1.
Understanding Leadership
2. Recognizing Your Traits
3. Engaging
Strengths
4. Understanding Philosophy and Styles
5. Attending to Tasks and Relationships
6. Developing Leadership Skills
7. Creating a Vision
8. Establishing a Constructive Climate
9. Embracing Diversity and Inclusion
10. Listening to Out-Group Members
11
. Managing Conflict
12
. Addressing Ethics in Leadership
13. Overcoming Obstacles
Glossary
Index
7
Detailed Contents
Preface
About the Author
1. Understanding Leadership
Introduction
Leadership Explained
“Leadership Is a Trait”
“Leadership Is an Ability”
“Leadership Is a Skill”
“Leadership Is a Behavior”
“Leadership Is a Relationship”
“Leadership Is an Influence Process”
Global Leadership Attributes
The Dark Side of Leadership
Leadership Snapshot: Indra Nooyi
Summary
Application
1.1 Case Study
1.2 Conceptualizing Leadership Questionnaire
1.3 Observational Exercise
1.4 Reflection and Action Worksheet
References
2. Recognizing Your Traits
Introduction
Leadership Traits Explained
Intelligence
Confidence
Charisma
Determination
Sociability
Integrity
Leadership Snapshot: Nelson Mandela
Leadership Traits in Practice
George Washington (
17
32
–1
79
9)
Winston Churchill (18
74
–
19
65
)
Mother Teresa (1
91
0–19
97
)
Bill Gates (1
95
5–)
Oprah Winfrey (19
54
–)
Summary
Application
2.1 Case Study
2.2 Leadership Traits Questionnaire
2.3 Observational Exercise
2.4 Reflection and Action Worksheet
8
References
3. Engaging Strengths
Introduction
Strengths-Based Leadership Explained
Historical Background
Identifying and Measuring Strengths
Strengths-Based Leadership in Practice
Discovering Your Strengths
Developing Your Strengths
Addressing Your Weaknesses
Leadership Snapshot: Steve Jobs
Recognizing and Engaging the Strengths of Others
Fostering a Positive Strengths-Based Environment
Summary
Application
3.1 Case Study
3.2 Leadership Strengths Questionnaire
3.3 Observational Exercise
3.4 Reflection and Action Worksheet
References
4. Understanding Philosophy and Styles
Introduction
Leadership Philosophy Explained
Theory X
Theory Y
Leadership Styles Explained
Authoritarian Leadership Style
Democratic Leadership Style
Laissez-Faire Leadership Style
Leadership Snapshot: Victoria Ransom
Leadership Styles in Practice
Summary
Application
4.1 Case Study
4.2 Leadership Styles Questionnaire
4.3 Observational Exercise
4.4 Reflection and Action Worksheet
References
5. Attending to Tasks and Relationships
Introduction
Task and Relationship Styles Explained
Task Style
Relationship Style
Leadership Snapshot: Mick Wilz
Task and Relationship Styles in Practice
Task Leadership
9
Relationship Leadership
Summary
Application
5.1 Case Study
5.2 Task and Relationship Questionnaire
5.3 Observational Exercise
5.4 Reflection and Action Worksheet
References
6. Developing Leadership Skills
Introduction
Administrative Skills Explained
Administrative Skills in Practice
Interpersonal Skills Explained
Interpersonal Skills in Practice
Leadership Snapshot: Coquese Washington
Conceptual Skills Explained
Conceptual Skills in Practice
Summary
Application
6.1 Case Study
6.2 Leadership Skills Questionnaire
6.3 Observational Exercise
6.4 Reflection and Action Worksheet
References
7. Creating a Vision
Introduction
Vision Explained
A Picture
A Change
Values
Leadership Snapshot: Rosalie Giffoniello
A Map
A Challenge
Vision in Practice
Articulating a Vision
Implementing a Vision
Summary
Application
7.1 Case Study
7.2 Leadership Vision Questionnaire
7.3 Observational Exercise
7.4 Reflection and Action Worksheet
References
8. Establishing a Constructive Climate
Introduction
Constructive Climate Explained
10
Climate in Practice
Providing Structure
Clarifying Norms
Building Cohesiveness
Promoting Standards of Excellence
Leadership Snapshot: Meg Whitman
Summary
Application
8.1 Case Study
8.2 Organizational Climate Questionnaire
8.3 Observational Exercise
8.4 Reflection and Action Worksheet
References
9. Embracing Diversity and Inclusion
Introduction
Diversity and Inclusion Explained
Definitions
Brief Historical Perspective
Inclusion Framework
Leadership Snapshot: Ursula Burns
Diversity and Inclusion in Practice
Model of Inclusive Practices
Leader Practices That Advance Diversity and Inclusion
Barriers to Embracing Diversity and Inclusion
Summary
Application
9.1 Case Study
9.2 Cultural Diversity Awareness Questionnaire
9.3 Observational Exercise
9.4 Reflection and Action Worksheet
References
10. Listening to Out-Group Members
Introduction
Out-Group Members Explained
How Out-Groups Form
The Impact of Out-Group Members
Out-Group Members in Practice
Strategy 1: Listen to Out-Group Members
Strategy 2: Show Empathy to Out-Group Members
Strategy 3: Recognize the Unique Contributions of Out-Group
Members
Strategy 4: Help Out-Group Members Feel Included
Strategy 5: Create a Special Relationship With Out-Group Members
Strategy 6: Give Out-Group Members a Voice and Empower Them to
Act
Leadership Snapshot: Abraham Lincoln
11
Summary
Application
10.1 Case Study
10.2 Building Community Questionnaire
10.3 Observational Exercise
10.4 Reflection and Action Worksheet
References
11. Managing Conflict
Introduction
Conflict Explained
Communication and Conflict
Conflict on the Content Level
Leadership Snapshot: Humaira Bachal
Conflict on the Relational Level
Managing Conflict in Practice
Fisher and Ury Approach to Conflict
Communication Strategies for Conflict Resolution
Kilmann and Thomas Styles of Approaching Conflict
Summary
Application
11.1 Case Study
11.2 Conflict Style Questionnaire
11.3 Observational Exercise
11.4 Reflection and Action Worksheet
References
12. Addressing Ethics in Leadership
Introduction
Leadership Ethics Explained
Leadership Ethics in Practice
1. The Character of the Leader
2. The Actions of the Leader
Leadership Snapshot: Warren Buffett and Bill and Melinda Gates
3. The Goals of the Leader
4. The Honesty of the Leader
5. The Power of the Leader
6. The Values of the Leader
Culture and Leadership Ethics
Summary
Application
12.1 Case Study
12.2 Sample Items From the Ethical Leadership Style Questionnaire
12.3 Observational Exercise
12.4 Reflection and Action Worksheet
References
13. Overcoming Obstacles
Introduction
12
Obstacles Explained
Overcoming Obstacles in Practice
Obstacle 1: Unclear Goals
Obstacle 2: Unclear
Directions
Obstacle 3: Low Motivation
Leadership Snapshot: Bill Courtney
Obstacle 4: Complex Tasks
Obstacle 5: Simple Tasks
Obstacle 6: Low Involvement
Obstacle 7: Lack of a Challenge
Summary
Application
13.1 Case Study
13.2 Path–Goal Styles Questionnaire
13.3 Observational Exercise
13.4 Reflection and Action Worksheet
References
Glossary
Index
13
Preface
Leadership is a salient topic today. Given the volatility of global events and our
national political climate, it is even more important now than it was when the third
edition of this book was published. The public remains fascinated by who leaders are
and what leaders do. People want to know what accounts for good leadership and how
to become good leaders. Despite this strong interest in leadership, there are very few
books that clearly describe the complexities of practicing leadership. I have written
Introduction to Leadership: Concepts and Practice to fill this void.
Each chapter describes a fundamental principle of leadership and how it relates in
practice to becoming an effective leader. These fundamentals are illustrated through
examples, profiles of effective leaders, and case studies. The text comprises 13
chapters: Chapter 1, “Understanding Leadership,” analyzes how different
definitions of leadership have an impact on the practice of leadership. Chapter 2,
“Recognizing Your Traits,” examines leadership traits found to be important in social
science research and explores the leadership traits of a select group of historical and
contemporary leaders. Chapter 3, “Engaging Strengths,” discusses the emerging
field of strengths-based leadership, looking at how several assessment tools can help
one to recognize his or her own strengths and those of others and then put those
strengths to work as an effective leader. Chapter 4, “Understanding Philosophy and
Styles,” explores how a person’s view of people, work, and human nature forms a
personal philosophy of leadership and how this relates to three commonly observed
styles of leadership: authoritarian, democratic, and laissez-faire. Chapter 5,
“Attending to Tasks and Relationships,” describes how leaders can integrate and
optimize task and relationship behaviors in their leadership role. Chapter 6,
“Developing Leadership Skills,” considers three types of leadership skills:
administrative, interpersonal, and conceptual. Chapter 7, “Creating a Vision,”
explores the characteristics of a vision and how a vision is expressed and
implemented. Chapter 8, “Establishing a Constructive Climate,” focuses on how
important it is for leaders who are running groups or organizations to provide
structure, clarify norms, build cohesiveness, and promote standards of excellence.
Chapter 9, “Embracing Diversity and Inclusion,” discusses the importance of
inclusive leadership and the barriers that can be encountered when trying to embrace
diversity and inclusion. Chapter 10, “Listening to Out-Group Members,” explores
the nature of out-groups, their impact, and ways leaders should respond to out-group
members. Chapter 11, “Managing Conflict,” addresses the question of how we can
manage conflict and produce positive change. Chapter 12, “Addressing Ethics in
Leadership,” explores six factors that are related directly to ethical leadership:
character, actions, goals, honesty, power, and values. Finally, Chapter 13,
“Overcoming Obstacles,” addresses seven obstacles that subordinates may face and
how a leader can help to overcome these.
New to This Edition
14
This edition retains the chapters of the previous edition but has been expanded and
enhanced in several ways:
First and foremost, it includes a new chapter on diversity and inclusion that
examines the nature of diversity and inclusion, provides a model of inclusive
behavior, describes communication practices to improve inclusion, and identifies
barriers to effective inclusive leadership.
Second, this edition premieres the Ethical Leadership Style Questionnaire, a
self-assessment instrument that allows readers to learn what their ethical
leadership behaviors tend to be. The questionnaire in this book is an abridged
edition of a longer, more comprehensive assessment available to readers online.
Third, several chapters include a look at the dark side of leadership in terms of
the approaches explored in the book.
Fourth, new case studies, examples, and research are integrated throughout the
book.
Fifth, this edition includes new “Ask the Author” videos that show Peter
Northouse answering student questions.
Special Features
Introduction to Leadership: Concepts and Practice is designed to help the reader
understand how to become a better leader. While the book is grounded in leadership
theory, it describes the basics of leadership in an understandable and user-friendly way.
Each chapter focuses on a fundamental aspect of leadership, discusses how it can be
applied in real leadership situations, and provides a relevant profile of a leader.
Perhaps the most notable features of this book are the four applied activities included
in every chapter, which allow the reader to explore leadership concepts and real-world
applications:
Case studies illustrate the leadership concepts discussed in the chapter. At the
end of each case, thought-provoking questions help the reader analyze the case
using ideas presented in the chapter.
Self-assessment questionnaires help the reader determine his or her own
leadership style and preferences. Students may want to complete this
questionnaire before reading the chapter’s content. By completing the
questionnaire first, the reader will be more aware of how the chapter’s content
specifically applies to his or her leadership tendencies.
Observational exercises guide the reader in examining behaviors of leaders
from his or her life experiences.
Reflection and action worksheets stimulate the reader to reflect on his or her
leadership style and identify actions to take to become more effective.
Audience
A practice-oriented book, Introduction to Leadership: Concepts and Practice is
15
written in a user-friendly style appropriate for introductory leadership courses across
disciplines. Specifically, it is well suited for programs in leadership studies and
leadership courses in schools of agriculture, allied health, business, management,
communication, education, engineering, military science, public administration,
nursing, political science, social work, and religion. In addition, this book is
appropriate for programs in continuing education, corporate training, executive
development, in-service training, and government training. It is also useful for student
extracurricular activities.
Digital Resources
SAGE coursepacks allow instructors to import high-quality online resources directly
into Blackboard, Canvas, Moodle, or Brightspace by Desire2Learn (D2L) in an
intuitive, simple format. Instructors who do not use an LMS platform can still access
many of the online resources by visiting edge.sagepub.com/northouseintro4e.
SAGE coursepacks include, for each chapter:
A diverse range of test items with pretests, posttests, and test banks built on
Bloom’s Taxonomy and AACSB standards, available with ExamView test
generation
Assignable SAGE Premium Video (available via the interactive eBook version,
linked through SAGE coursepacks) that includes insights from Peter G.
Northouse and other leadership experts, with corresponding multimedia
assessment options that automatically feed to a gradebook
A comprehensive Media Guide for the video resources
Discussion questions to help launch classroom interaction
SAGE journal articles to show how scholarship relates to chapter concepts
Editable, chapter-specific PowerPoint® slides that offer flexibility when creating
multimedia lectures
Sample course syllabi with suggested models for structuring a leadership course
Lecture notes that summarize key concepts for each chapter
Ideas for class activities that can be used in class to reinforce active learning
Web exercises that direct students to useful websites to complete creative
activities and reinforce learning
Suggested films to facilitate showing examples of leadership in action
Case notes that include case summaries, analyses, and sample answers to case
questions
The Reflection and Action Worksheets and Observational Exercises from the
text in downloadable Word document format for more flexibility in using these
resources
Tables and figures from the textbook
SAGE edge for students at edge.sagepub.com/northouseintro4e enhances learning in
an easy-to-use environment that offers, for each chapter, learning objectives, action
plans to track progress, mobile-friendly flashcards and practice quizzes, SAGE
16
Premium Video featuring author Peter G. Northouse, additional multimedia resources,
and selected SAGE journal articles to strengthen learning.
Interactive eBook
An interactive eBook version of the text is available for students to provide a
contemporary, multimedia-integrated presentation for learning. In addition to a fully
electronic textbook, students can link directly to “Ask the Author” video, audio,
additional enrichment readings from SAGE journals titles, and other relevant
resources, bringing the subject matter to life in a way a traditional print text cannot.
The interactive eBook features exclusive Interactive Leadership Assessments to
help students strengthen their leadership abilities by providing them with
individualized feedback based on their responses to each questionnaire. After
completing each questionnaire, a student using the interactive eBook will receive an
in-depth analysis of her or his scores as well as personalized, pragmatic suggestions
for further developing her or his leadership.
You can find the eBook icons in the print and electronic versions of the text. Below is
a guide to the icons:
“Ask the Author” video icon
SAGE journal article icon
Video icon
Web icon
Acknowledgments
I would like to express my appreciation to many individuals who directly or indirectly
played a role in the development of this book. First, I would like to thank the many
people at SAGE Publications, in particular my editor, Maggie Stanley, who along with
her leadership team (Liz Thornton, Lauren Holmes, Neda Dallal, Katie Ancheta,
Ashlee Blunk, Georgia Mclaughlin, and Gail Buschman) has competently guided this
revision from the beginning review phase through the production phase. In addition, I
would like to thank copy editor Melinda Masson and production editor Libby Larson.
In their own unique ways, each of these people made valuable contributions that
enhanced the overall quality of the book. Collectively, they are an extraordinary team
17
that demonstrates the very highest standards of excellence in all that they do.
For their thoughtful and constructive feedback on this latest edition, I would like to
thank the following reviewers:
Jens Beyer, Hochschule Anhalt Standort Bernburg
Carl Blencke, University of Central Florida
Roger Clark, NWN Corporation
Dan Cunningham, McDaniel College
D. Keith Gurley, University of Alabama at Birmingham
Sat Ananda Hayden, University of Southern Mississippi
Sharon Kabes, Southwest Minnesota State University
Lorin Leone, Independence University
Douglas Micklich, Illinois State University
Bryan Patterson, Johnson C. Smith University, Northeastern University
Robert W. Robertson, Independence University
Lou L. Sabina, Stetson University
Stephanie Schnurr, University of Warwick
Douglas Threet, Foothill College
Simone Wesner, Birkbeck, University of London
Paula White, Independence University
Cecilia Williams, Independence University
For comprehensive reviews of past editions, I would like to thank the following
reviewers:
Maureen Baldwin, Saint Ambrose University
Barry L. Boyd, Texas A&M University
Susan Bramlett Epps, East Tennessee State University
Linda L. Brennan, Mercer University
Shannon Brown, Benedictine University
Lisa Burgoon, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Tom Butkiewicz, University of Redlands
Patricia Cane, Klamath Community College
Stephen C. Carlson, Piedmont College
Melissa K. Carsten, Winthrop University
James R. “Chip” Coldren Jr., Governors State University
Barbara Collins, Cabrini College
Stacey A. Cook, College of Marin
Ronald J. Cugno, Nova Southeastern University
Greg Czyszczon, James Madison University
Douglas Davenport, Truman State University
Edward Desmarais, Salem State College
Marco Dowell, California State University, Dominguez Hills
Tiffany Erk, Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana
Leon Fraser, Rutgers Business School
18
Jim Fullerton, Idaho State University
Jennifer Garcia, Saint Leo University
Don Green, Lincoln Christian University
Francesca Grippa, Northeastern University
Yael Hellman, Woodbury University
Vanessa Hill, University of Louisiana at Lafayette
Martha A. Hunt, NHTI—Concord’s Community College
Jean Gabriel Jolivet, Southwestern College
Ruth Klein, Le Moyne College
Renee Kosiarek, North Central College
Robert Larison, Eastern Oregon University
Karen A. Longman, Azusa Pacific University
Maureen Majury, Bellevue Community College
James L. Morrison, University of Delaware
Terry W. Mullins, University of North Carolina at Greensboro
Jane Murtaugh, College of DuPage
Joanne E. Nottingham, University of North Carolina, Wilmington
Ramona Ortega-Liston, University of Akron
Ron Parlett, Nova Southeastern University
Bruce Peterson, Sonoma State University
Joseph W. T. Pugh, Immaculata University
Deana Raffo, Middle Tennessee State University
Melody Rawlings, Northern Kentucky University
Bronte H. Reynolds, California State University, Northridge
Louis Rubino, California State University, Northridge
Laurie A. Schreiner, Azusa Pacific University
Thomas Shields, University of Richmond
Pearl Sims, Peabody College of Vanderbilt University
Bruce Tucker, Santa Fe Community College
Mary Tucker, Ohio University
John Tummons, University of Missouri
Sameer Vaidya, Texas Wesleyan University
Natalie N. Walker, Seminole State College
Amy Wilson, University at Buffalo
Laurie Woodward, University of South Florida
Critiques by these reviewers were invaluable in helping to focus my thinking and
writing during the revision process.
I would like to thank Dr. Bernardo Ferdman for his helpful comments and suggestions
on the “Embracing Diversity and Inclusion” chapter, and Terry Hammink for his
assistance in the construction and scoring of the Ethical Leadership Style
Questionnaire and James Ludema for his support.
For their outstanding work in developing creative resources for this edition, I am
grateful to Isolde Anderson of Hope College, Matthew Creasy of the University of
19
Delaware, Jeff Paul of the University of Tulsa, Lou Sabina of Stetson University,
Andrea Smith-Hunter of Siena College, and Douglas Threet of Foothill College.
Finally, I wish to thank Marie Lee for her thorough editing and commitment and
Laurel Northouse for her editorial insights and extraordinary support. It takes a lot of
dedicated people to write a book, and I feel fortunate to have those people in my life.
In the electronic edition of the book you have purchased, there are several icons that reference links
(videos, journal articles) to additional content. Though the electronic edition links are not live, all
content referenced may be accessed at edge.sagepub.com/northouseintro4e . This URL is referenced at
several points throughout your electronic edition.
20
About the Author
Peter G. Northouse,
PhD, is Professor Emeritus of Communication in the School of Communication
at Western Michigan University. In addition to publications in professional
journals, he is the author of Leadership: Theory and Practice (now in its seventh
edition) and coauthor of Health Communication: Strategies for Health
Professionals (now in its third edition) and Leadership Case Studies in
Education. His scholarly and curricular interests include models of leadership,
leadership assessment, ethical leadership, and leadership and group dynamics.
For more than 30 years, he has taught undergraduate and graduate courses in
leadership, interpersonal communication, and organizational communication on
both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Currently, he is a consultant and
lecturer on trends in leadership research, leadership development, and leadership
education. He holds a doctorate in speech communication from the University of
21
Denver, and master’s and bachelor’s degrees in communication education from
Michigan State University.
22
1 Understanding Leadership
Introduction
This book is about what it takes to be a leader. Everyone, at some time in life, is asked
to be a leader, whether to lead a classroom discussion, coach a children’s soccer team,
or direct a fund-raising campaign. Many situations require leadership. A leader may
have a high profile (e.g., an elected public official) or a low profile (e.g., a volunteer
leader in Big Brothers Big Sisters), but in every situation there are leadership demands
placed on the individual who is the leader. Being a leader is challenging, exciting, and
rewarding, and carries with it many responsibilities. This chapter discusses different
ways of looking at leadership and their impacts on what it means to be a leader.
What is Leadership?
Leadership Explained
At the outset, it is important to address a basic question: What is leadership? Scholars
who study leadership have struggled with this question for many decades and have
written a great deal about the nature of leadership (Antonakis, Cianciolo, & Sternberg,
2004; Bass, 19
90
; Conger & Riggio, 2007). (See Box 1.1.)
In leadership literature, more than
100
different definitions of leadership have been
identified (Rost, 1
99
1). Despite these many definitions, a number of concepts are
recognized by most people as accurately reflecting what it is to be a leader.
Leadership Basics
“Leadership Is a Trait”
First, leadership is thought of as a trait. A trait is a distinguishing quality of an
individual, which is often inherited. Defining leadership as a trait means that each
individual brings to the table certain qualities that influence the way he or she leads.
Some leaders are confident, some are decisive, and still others are outgoing and
sociable. Saying that leadership is a trait places a great deal of emphasis on the leader
and on the leader’s special gifts. It follows the often-expressed belief “leaders are
born, not made.” Some argue that focusing on traits makes leadership an elitist
enterprise because it implies that only a few people with special talents will lead.
Although there may be some truth to this argument, it can also be argued that all of us
are born with a wide array of unique traits and that many of these traits can have a
positive impact on our leadership. It also may be possible to modify or change some
traits.
23
Through the years, researchers have identified a multitude of traits that are associated
with leadership. In Chapter 2 we will discuss some key leadership traits, and in
Chapter 3 we will explain how strength-based leadership is a variation of trait
leadership. Although there are many important leadership traits, what is most
important for leaders is having the required traits that a particular situation demands.
For example, a chaotic emergency room at a hospital requires a leader who is
insightful and decisive and can bring calm to the situation. Conversely, a high school
classroom in which students are bored demands a teacher who is inspiring and
creative. Effective leadership results when the leader engages the right traits in the
right place at the right time.
“Leadership Is an Ability”
In addition to being thought of as a trait, leadership is conceptualized as an ability. A
person who has leadership ability is able to be a leader—that is, has the capacity to
lead. While the term ability frequently refers to a natural capacity, ability can be
acquired. For example, some people are naturally good at public speaking, while
others rehearse to become comfortable speaking in public. Similarly, some people
have the natural physical ability to excel in a sport, while others develop their athletic
capacity through exercise and practice. In leadership, some people have the natural
ability to lead, while others develop their leadership abilities through hard work and
practice.
Box 1.1 The Evolution of Leadership
Leadership has long intrigued humankind and has been the topic of extensive literature for
centuries. The earliest writings include philosophies of leadership such as Machiavelli’s The Prince
(15
31
/2005) and biographies of great leaders. With the development of the social sciences during
the 20th century, inquiry into leadership became prolific. Studies on leadership have emerged from
every discipline “that has had some interest in the subject of leadership: anthropology, business
administration, educational administration, history, military science, nursing administration,
organizational behavior, philosophy, political science, public administration, psychology, sociology,
and theology” (Rost, 1991, p.
45
).
As a result, there are many different leadership approaches and theories. While the words are often
used interchangeably, approaches and theories are different conceptually. An approach is a general
way of thinking about a phenomenon, not necessarily based on empirical research. A theory
usually includes a set of hypotheses, principles, or laws that explain a given phenomenon. Theories
are more refined and can provide a predictive framework in analyzing the phenomenon. For
example, the spiritual leadership approach is a conceptualization of leadership that does not yet
have a body of empirical research to validate it, while contingency leadership theory has a refined
set of propositions based on the results of multiple research studies.
Not unlike fashion, approaches to leadership have evolved, changed focus and direction, and built
upon one another during the past century. To understand this evolution, a brief historical view can
be helpful:
Trait Approach
The early trait approach theories were called “Great Man” theories because they focused on
identifying the innate qualities and characteristics possessed by great social, political, and military
24
leaders such as Catherine the Great, Mohandas Gandhi, Abraham Lincoln, Moses, and Joan of Arc.
Studies of leadership traits were especially strong from 1900 to the early 19
40
s and enjoyed a
renewed emphasis beginning in the 19
70
s as researchers began to examine visionary and
charismatic leadership. In the 19
80
s, researchers linked leadership to the “Big Five” personality
factors while interest in emotional intelligence as a trait gained favor in the 1990s. (For a
discussion of emotional intelligence as a leadership skill, see Chapter 6, pages 1
26
–1
27
.)
Behavior Approach
In the late 1
93
0s, leadership research began to focus on behavior—what leaders do and how they
act. Groundbreaking studies by researchers at The Ohio State University and the University of
Michigan in the 1
94
0s and 1950s analyzed how leaders acted in small group situations. Behavior
approach theories hit their heyday in the early 19
60
s with Blake and Moulton’s (19
64
) work
exploring how managers use task and relationship behaviors in the organizational setting.
Situational Approach
The premise of this approach is that different situations demand different kinds of leadership.
Serious examination of situational approach theories began in the late 1
96
0s by Hersey and
Blanchard (19
69
) and Reddin (19
67
). Situational approaches continued to be refined and revised
from the 1970s through the 1990s (Vecchio, 19
87
). One of these, path–goal theory, examines how
leaders use employee motivation to enhance performance and satisfaction. Another approach,
contingency theory, focuses on the match between the leader’s style and specific situational
variables.
Relational Approach
In the 1990s, researchers began examining the nature of relations between leaders and followers.
This research ultimately evolved into the leader–member exchange (LMX) theory. LMX theory
predicts that high-quality relations generate more positive leader outcomes than low-quality
relations. Research in the relational approach to leadership continues to generate moderate
interest today.
“New Leadership” Approach
When these approaches began appearing in the mid-1
98
0s—three decades ago—they were, and
continue to be, called “new leadership” approaches (Bryman, 19
92
). Beginning with the work of
Bass (19
85
, 1990), leadership studies generated visionary or charismatic leadership theories. From
these approaches developed transformational leadership theory, which describes leadership as a
process that changes people and organizations.
Emerging Leadership Approaches
A diverse range of approaches to leadership is emerging during the 21st century:
Adaptive leadership examines how leaders help people address problems, face challenges,
and adapt to change. Adaptive leadership stresses that the leaders don’t solve the problems,
but rather encourage others to do the problem solving and adapt to change.
Authentic leadership is an approach that looks at the authenticity of leaders and their
leadership and is currently enjoying strong interest.
Spiritual leadership considers how leaders use values, a sense of “calling,” and
membership to motivate followers.
Servant leadership emphasizes the “caring principle” with leaders as “servants” who focus
on their followers’ needs in order to help these followers become more autonomous,
knowledgeable, and like servants themselves.
Gender-based studies, which have gained much momentum as women continue to become
25
more dominant in the workforce, especially on a global level, view how one’s gender affects
and differentiates one’s leadership.
The historical timeline in Figure 1.1 is not intended to represent these approaches as separate and
distinct eras, only to disappear from the picture when a new theory appears. Instead, many of these
theories occur concurrently, building upon one another. Even when a certain approach’s period of
popularity has waned, the theory continues to influence further study and the development of new
leadership approaches.
Figure 1.1 Development of Leadership Theories Through History
Source: Adapted from Antonakis, J., Cianciolo, A. T., & Sternberg, R. J. (Eds.).
(2004). The nature of leadership. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, p. 7.
Key Theories
An example of leadership as ability is the legendary University of California at Los
Angeles basketball coach John Wooden, whose teams won seven consecutive National
Collegiate Athletic Association titles. Described first as a teacher and then as a coach,
Wooden implemented four laws of learning into his coaching: explanation,
demonstration, imitation, and repetition. His goal was to teach players how to do the
right thing instinctively under great pressure. Less visible or well known, but also an
example of leadership as ability, is the unheralded but highly effective restaurant
manager who, through years of experience and learning, is able to create a successful,
award-winning restaurant. In both of these examples, it is the individuals’ abilities that
create outstanding leadership.
“Leadership Is a Skill”
Third, leadership is a skill. Conceptualized as a skill, leadership is a competency
developed to accomplish a task effectively. Skilled leaders are competent people who
know the means and methods for carrying out their responsibilities. For example, a
skilled leader in a fund-raising campaign knows every step and procedure in the fund-
26
raising process and is able to use this knowledge to run an effective campaign. In
short, skilled leaders are competent—they know what they need to do, and they know
how to do it.
Describing leadership as a skill makes leadership available to everyone because skills
are competencies that people can learn or develop. Even without natural leadership
ability, people can improve their leadership with practice, instruction, and feedback
from others. Viewed as a skill, leadership can be studied and learned. If you are
capable of learning from experience, you can acquire leadership.
“Leadership Is a Behavior”
Leadership is also a behavior. It is what leaders do when they are in a leadership role.
The behavioral dimension is concerned with how leaders act toward others in various
situations. Unlike traits, abilities, and skills, leadership behaviors are observable.
When someone leads, we see that person’s leadership behavior.
Leadership Behaviors
Research on leadership has shown that leaders engage primarily in two kinds of
general behaviors: task behaviors and process behaviors. Task behaviors are used by
leaders to get the job done (e.g., a leader prepares an agenda for a meeting). Process
behaviors are used by leaders to help people feel comfortable with other group
members and at ease in the situations in which they find themselves (e.g., a leader
helps individuals in a group to feel included). Since leadership requires both task and
process behaviors, the challenge for leaders is to know the best way to combine them
in their efforts to reach a goal.
“Leadership Is a Relationship”
Another, and a somewhat unusual, way to think about leadership is as a relationship.
From this perspective, leadership is centered on the communication between leaders
and followers rather than on the unique qualities of the leader. Thought of as a
relationship, leadership becomes a process of collaboration that occurs between
leaders and followers (Rost, 1991). A leader affects and is affected by followers, and
both leader and followers are affected in turn by the situation that surrounds them.
This approach emphasizes that leadership is not a linear one-way event, but rather an
interactive event. In traditional leadership, authority is often top down; in the
interactive type of leadership, authority and influence are shared. When leadership is
defined in this manner, it becomes available to everyone. It is not restricted to the
formally designated leader in a group.
27
Leadership and Change
Thinking of leadership as a relationship suggests that leaders must include followers
and their interests in the process of leadership. A leader needs to be fully aware of the
followers and the followers’ interests, ideas, positions, attitudes, and motivations. In
addition, this approach has an ethical overtone because it stresses the need for leaders
to work with followers to achieve their mutual purposes. Stressing mutuality lessens
the possibility that leaders might act toward followers in ways that are forced or
unethical. It also increases the possibility that leaders and followers will work together
toward a common good (Rost, 1991).
“Leadership Is an Influence Process”
A final way of thinking about leadership is as an influence process. This is the
perspective that will be emphasized in this book.
Leadership is a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to
achieve a common goal.
Leadership Development
Defining leadership as an influence process means that it is not a trait or an ability that
resides in the leader, but rather an interactive event that occurs between the leader and
the followers. Influence is central to the process of leadership because leaders affect
followers. Leaders direct their energies toward influencing individuals to achieve
something together. Stressing common goals gives leadership an ethical dimension
because it lessens the possibility that leaders might act toward followers in ways that
use coercion or are unethical.
Finally, in explaining what leadership is, it is important to make a distinction between
leadership and management. In discussing what leadership is and can be, the concepts
of leadership and management sometimes overlap. Both leadership and management
involve influence, but leadership is about seeking constructive change, and
management is about establishing order. For example, it is often said that “managers
are people who do things right, and leaders are people who do the right thing.” Since
both leaders and managers are engaged in influencing people toward goal
accomplishment, our discussion in this book will treat the roles of managers and
leaders similarly and not emphasize the differences between them.
Global Leadership Attributes
We probably all wonder at the differences in leadership around the world. Why do
some countries gravitate toward the distributed leadership of a democracy, while
28
others seem content with the hierarchical leadership of a monarchy or dictatorship?
The definition and concepts of leadership outlined in this chapter are from an
American perspective. If you were to travel to nations across the world, you would no
doubt encounter different views of leadership specific to those ethnic and political
cultures.
Universal Leadership Attributes
In 2004, Robert House led a group of 160 researchers in an ambitious study to increase
our understanding of the impact culture has on leadership effectiveness. The GLOBE
(Global Leadership and Organizational Behavior Effectiveness) studies drew on the
input of 17,000 people in
62
countries in determining how leadership varies across the
world. Among the many findings generated by the GLOBE studies was the
identification of positive and negative leadership characteristics that are universally
accepted worldwide (see Table 1.1).
Table 1.1
Source: Adapted from House, R. J., Hanges, P. J., Javidan, M., Dorfman, P. W., & Gupta, V. (Eds.).
(2004). Culture, leadership, and organizations: The GLOBE study of 62 societies. Thousand Oaks, CA:
Sage, pp. 6
77
–6
78
. Reprinted with permission.
The Dark Side of Leadership
Those same characteristics and behaviors that distinguish leadership can also be used
29
by leaders in nonpositive ways (Conger, 1990). The dark side of leadership is the
destructive side of leadership where a leader uses his or her influence or power for
personal ends. Lipman-Blumen (2005) suggests that such leaders are “toxic,” where
their leadership leaves their followers worse off than they found them, often violating
the basic human rights of others and playing to their followers’ basest fears. Dark
leadership is able to thrive when three conditions exist, according to Padilla, Hogan,
and Kaiser (2007): a destructive leader, susceptible followers, and a conducive
environment. Destructive leaders will prevail when the checks and balances of an
organization are weak and the rules of the institution are ineffective. While many cite
Adolf Hitler as the prime example of the dark side of leadership, there are many
current examples in the world today from the regime of Bashar al-Assad in Syria,
whose leadership has led to violent civil war that has left hundreds of thousands dead,
to religious extremist groups, such as ISIS and al-Qaeda, who use their followers to
engage in mass murder of innocents.
The Dark Side of Leadership
The meaning of leadership is complex and includes many dimensions. For some
people, leadership is a trait or an ability, for others it is a skill or a behavior, and for
still others it is a relationship or a process. In reality, leadership probably includes
components of all of these dimensions. Each dimension explains a facet of leadership.
Destructive Leadership
In considering these various definitions of leadership and based on the results of your
Conceptualizing Leadership Questionnaire (page 14), which dimension seems closest
to how you think of leadership? How would you define leadership? Answers to these
questions are important because how you think about leadership will strongly influence
how you practice leadership.
There is a strong demand for effective leadership in society today. This demand exists
at the local and community levels, as well as at the national level, in this country and
abroad. People feel the need for leadership in all aspects of their lives. They want
leaders in their personal lives, at school, in the work setting, and even in their spiritual
lives. Everywhere you turn, people are expressing a need for strong leadership.
When people ask for leadership in a particular situation, it is not always clear exactly
what they want. For the most part, however, they want effective leadership. Effective
leadership is intended influence that creates change for the greater good. Leadership
uses positive means to achieve positive outcomes. Furthermore, people want leaders
who listen to and understand their needs and who can relate to their circumstances.
The challenge for each of us is to be prepared to lead when we are asked to be the
leader.
30
Leadership Snapshot: Indra Nooyi, CEO, PepsiCo
Mark Wilson/Staff/Getty Images News/Getty Images
The daughter of a conservative, middle-class family in southern India, Indra Nooyi didn’t seem
destined to one day run one of the world’s largest snack food and beverage companies. But Nooyi
does just that as the CEO and president of PepsiCo, making her one of the top female executives in
the United States and probably the highest-ranking woman of Indian heritage in corporate America.
Nooyi, who grew up in Madras (now Chennai), India, admits she always pushed social
conventions. She played on an all-girls cricket team and was a guitarist in a rock band at a time
when it was deemed inappropriate for Indian girls to do such things. Despite graduating from
college with bachelor’s degrees in chemistry, math, and physics from Madras Christian College in
1974 and a master of business administration from the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta,
Nooyi was reportedly remembered for being only a “mediocre student” (Pandey, 2006).
Nooyi’s first job after college was for Tootal, a British textile company in India, but she was hired
away as a brand manager for Johnson & Johnson to oversee the company’s Stayfree account in
India. It was a job that would have challenged the most seasoned marketing executive because, at
the time, advertising women’s feminine products was not allowed in her country (Murray, 2004).
31
By 1978, Nooyi felt she needed more preparation for the business world and applied to and was
accepted to the Yale School of Management in the United States. To her surprise, her parents
agreed to let her go, although it would essentially make her an unmarriageable commodity in her
culture. She received financial aid from Yale, but still struggled to make ends meet, working as an
overnight receptionist. She didn’t have the money to buy a business suit, so she wore her traditional
sari to work and later in job interviews, choosing to be herself rather than adhere to expected
cultural norms.
Nooyi did not earn an MBA from Yale, choosing instead to get a master’s degree in public and
private management. Her first jobs after graduation were for the prestigious Boston Consulting
Group and Motorola. In 1990, she joined ASEA Brown Boveri (ABB), a Swiss-Swedish industrial
conglomerate. Her success in directing ABB’s North American operations caught the attention of
PepsiCo CEO Wayne Calloway who wooed her away to become his company’s chief strategist.
Nooyi quickly left her mark at PepsiCo. She was the chief deal maker for two of PepsiCo’s most
important acquisitions: the Tropicana orange juice brand in 1998 and Quaker Oats in 2001. The
Quaker Oats deal added a huge range of cereals and snack foods to the PepsiCo empire. Nooyi also
helped the company acquire beverage maker SoBe, beating out a competing offer from Coca-Cola.
Her deal-making talents elevated her to the job of PepsiCo’s chief financial officer in 2000, and a
year later she was given the title of president.
Nooyi’s vision for PepsiCo—that “for any part of the day, we will have a little snack for you”
(Byrnes, 2001)—has been implemented through development of new products and acquisitions.
The company now sells a wide range of foods and beverages from Cap’n Crunch and Doritos to
Mountain Dew and Gatorade. The company’s 18 brands are sold in 200 countries, and it employs
198,000 people worldwide.
But the strategist in Nooyi has also foreseen the effect that growing lifestyle diseases such as
obesity could have on her company. Again, she has chosen to follow an unconventional path,
looking to create healthier products in an industry dominated by salt, fat, and sugar. She invested
heavily in the creation of a research and development lab that took five years to complete, drawing
criticism from stockholders and industry analysts. So far, the investment has had some success:
PepsiCo introduced a “mid-calorie” cola, Pepsi True, which has 30% less sugar and uses stevia
extract instead of artificial sweeteners, and has created potato chips that taste just as salty as the
original but have less sodium. The company has also introduced a new line of craft sodas called
Stubborn Soda, which contain natural flavors and sugarcane instead of high-fructose corn syrup.
Summary
All of us at some time in our lives will be asked to show leadership. When you are
asked to be the leader, it will be both demanding and rewarding. How you approach
leadership is strongly influenced by your definitions of and beliefs about leadership.
Through the years, writers have defined leadership in a multitude of ways. It is a
complex, multidimensional process that is often conceptualized in a variety of ways by
different people. Some of the most common ways of looking at leadership are as a
trait, as an ability, as a skill, as a behavior, as a relationship, and as a process. The way
you think about leadership will influence the way you practice leadership.
Glossary Terms
ability 2
adaptive leadership 4
approach 3
32
authentic leadership 4
behavior approach 3
“Big Five” personality factors 3
contingency theory 4
dark side of leadership 9
emotional intelligence 3
gender-based studies 4
“Great Man” theories 3
leader–member exchange (LMX) theory 4
leadership 7
path–goal theory 4
process behaviors 6
relational approach 4
relationship behaviors 3
servant leadership 4
situational approach 4
skill 5
spiritual leadership 4
task behaviors 3, 6
theory 3
trait 2
trait approach 3
transformational leadership theory 4
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Application
1.1 Case Study: King of the Hill
Denny Hill’s career as a high school swimming coach didn’t start out well. The seniors on his team
quit in the first season because he required them to come to all the workouts. The team only won
three meets the whole season. That was 40 years ago. Since that time, the high school chemistry
teacher’s success as a swimming coach has been extraordinary; his winnings include more than 900
boys’ and girls’ dual meets and a phenomenal 31 state titles.
Denny is noted for creating a team effort out of what is usually considered an individual sport. He
begins every season with a team sleepover, followed by “Hell Week,” a two-week grueling regimen
in which team members swim at least 5 miles a workout and 10 miles a day. He acknowledges this
is a bonding experience for the swimmers, regardless of their skill, because they are “all in the
same boat.”
Denny passes the mantle of leadership onto his team members. Seniors are expected to be mature
leaders who inform the freshmen of the team goals and expectations. Juniors are to be role models,
while sophomores serve as quiet leaders who are still learning but have a foundation in the team
33
culture. Even the freshmen members have a job: They are required to pay attention to the coaches
and other team members as they learn the team’s culture and what’s expected.
Denny holds a 20-minute team meeting each Monday where every member has the opportunity to
present a rose or a complaint to anyone on the team including the coaches. He is tough on
swimmers and makes them work, but when they need support he is always there to put an arm
around them. Denny also uses humor, often making jokes that help take the edge off long, hard
workouts.
And despite his teams’ successes, Denny isn’t about winning; he’s more about preparing to win—
telling his swimmers that by preparing to win, everything takes care of itself. When you do win, he
says, you’ve done it the right way.
Questions
1. What leadership traits account for Denny Hill’s success?
2. How would you describe Denny Hill’s leadership abilities?
3. Leadership includes administrative skills, interpersonal skills, and conceptual skills. How
does Denny Hill stack up on these skills?
4. How does Denny Hill integrate task and relationship behaviors in his leadership?
5. From a relational perspective, how would you describe Denny Hill’s leadership?
6. In what way does Denny Hill’s coaching exemplify leadership as an influence process?
1.2 Conceptualizing Leadership Questionnaire
Purpose
1. To identify how you view leadership
2. To explore your perceptions of different aspects of leadership
Directions
1. Consider for a moment your own impressions of the word leadership. Based on your
experiences with leaders in your lifetime, what is leadership?
2. Using the scale below, indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree with the following
statements about leadership.
34
Scoring
1. Sum scores on items 1, 7, 13, and 19 (trait emphasis)
2. Sum scores on items 2, 8, 14, and 20 (ability emphasis)
3. Sum scores on items 3, 9, 15, and 21 (skill emphasis)
35
4. Sum scores on items 4, 10, 16, and 22 (behavior emphasis)
5. Sum scores on items 5, 11, 17, and 23 (relationship emphasis)
6. Sum scores on items 6, 12, 18, and 24 (process emphasis)
Total Scores
1. Trait emphasis: _________________
2. Ability emphasis: ________________
3. Skill emphasis: __________________
4. Behavior emphasis: ______________
5. Relationship emphasis: ___________
6. Process emphasis: _______________
Scoring Interpretation
The scores you received on this questionnaire provide information about how you define and view
leadership. The emphasis you give to the various dimensions of leadership has implications for
how you approach the leadership process. For example, if your highest score is for trait emphasis,
it suggests that you emphasize the role of the leader and the leader’s special gifts in the leadership
process. However, if your highest score is for relationship emphasis, it indicates that you think
leadership is centered on the communication between leaders and followers, rather than on the
unique qualities of the leader. By comparing your scores, you can gain an understanding of the
aspects of leadership that you find most important and least important. The way you think about
leadership will influence how you practice leadership.
Improve Your Leadership Skills
If you have the interactive eBook version of this text, log in to access the interactive leadership
assessment. After completing this chapter’s questionnaire, you will receive individualized feedback
and practical suggestions for further strengthening your leadership based on your responses in this
questionnaire.
Visit edge.sagepub.com/northouseintro4e for a downloadable version of this questionnaire.
1.3 Observational Exercise
Defining Leadership
Purpose
1. To develop an understanding of the complexity of leadership
2. To become aware of the different ways people define leadership
Directions
1. In this exercise, select five people you know and interview them about leadership.
2. Ask each person to give you his or her definition of leadership, and to describe his or her
personal beliefs about effective leadership.
3. Record each person’s response on a separate sheet of paper.
Person #1 (name) __________________________________________
Person #2 (name) _________________________________________
Person #3 (name) _________________________________________
Person #4 (name) _________________________________________
Person #5 (name) _________________________________________
36
Questions
1. What differences did you observe in how these people define leadership?
2. What seems to be the most common definition of leadership?
3. In what ways did people describe leadership differently from the definitions in Chapter 1,
“Understanding Leadership”?
4. Of the people interviewed, whose definition comes closest to your own? Why?
Visit edge.sagepub.com/northouseintro4e for a downloadable version of this exercise.
1.4 Reflection and Action Worksheet
Understanding Leadership
Reflection
1. Each of us has our own unique way of thinking about leadership. What leaders or people
have influenced you in your thinking about leadership? Discuss what leadership means to
you and give your definition of leadership.
2. What do the scores you received on the Conceptualizing Leadership Questionnaire suggest
about your perspective on leadership? Of the six dimensions on the questionnaire (trait,
ability, skill, behavior, relationship, and process), which one is the most similar to your own
perspective? Which one is least like your own perspective?
3. Do you think leadership is something everyone can learn to do, or do you think it is a
natural ability reserved for a few? Explain your answer.
Action
1. Based on the interviews you conducted with others about leadership, how could you
incorporate others’ ideas about leadership into your own leadership?
2. Treating leadership as a relationship has ethical implications. How could adding the
relationship approach to your leadership make you a better leader? Discuss.
3. Think about your own leadership. Identify one trait, ability, skill, or behavior that you could
develop more fully to become a better leader.
Visit edge.sagepub.com/northouseintro4e for a downloadable version of this worksheet.
References
Antonakis, J., Cianciolo, A. T., & Sternberg, R. J. (Eds.). (2004). The nature of
leadership. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Bass, B. M. (1985). Leadership and performance beyond expectations. New York,
NY: Free Press.
Bass, B. M. (1990). Bass and Stogdill’s handbook of leadership: A survey of theory
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and research. New York, NY: Free Press.
Blake, R. R., & Moulton, J. S. (1964). The managerial grid. Houston, TX: Gulf.
Bryman, A. (1992). Charisma and leadership in organizations. London, U K: Sage.
Byrnes, N. (2001, January 29). The power of two at Pepsi. Businessweek. Retrieved
from http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2001-01-28/the-power-of-two-at-
pepsi
Conger, J. (1990). The dark side of leadership. Organizational Dynamics, 19(2),
44–55.
Conger, J. A., & Riggio, R. E. (Eds.). (2007). The practice of leadership: Developing
the next generation of leaders. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Hersey, P., & Blanchard, K. H. (1969). Life-cycle theory of leadership. Training and
Development Journal, 23(5), 26–34.
House, R. J., Hanges, P. J., Javidan, M., Dorfman, P. W., & Gupta, V. (2004). Culture,
leadership, and organizations: The GLOBE study of 62 societies. Thousand Oaks,
CA: Sage.
Lipman-Blumen, J. (2005). The allure of toxic leaders. New York, NY: Oxford
University Press.
Machiavelli, N. (2005). The prince (W. J. Connell, trans.). Boston, MA: Bedford/St.
Martin’s. (Original work published in 1
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Murray, S. (2004, January 26). From poor Indian student to powerful U.S. business-
woman. Financial Times, p. 3.
Padilla, A., Hogan, R., & Kaiser, R. B. (2007). The toxic triangle: Destructive leaders,
susceptible followers, and conducive environments. The Leadership Quarterly,
18(3), 1
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–194.
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Pandey, J. M. (2006, August 18). Nooyi: IIM-C’s “average” student turns role model.
The Times of India. Retrieved from http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Nooyi-
IIM-Cs-average-student-turns-role-model/articleshow/1902
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1.cms
Reddin, W. J. (1967, April). The 3-D management style theory. Training and
Development Journal, pp. 8–17.
Rost, J. C. (1991). Leadership for the twenty-first century. Westport, CO: Praeger.
Vecchio, R. P. (1987). Situational leadership theory: An examination of a prescriptive
theory. Journal of Applied Psychology,
72
(3), 444–4
51
.
39
2 Recognizing Your Traits
Introduction
Why are some people leaders while others are not? What makes people become
leaders? Do leaders have certain traits? These questions have been of interest for many
years. It seems that all of us want to know what characteristics account for effective
leadership. This chapter will address the traits that are important to leadership.
Is Leadership a Trait?
Since the early 20th century, hundreds of research studies have been conducted on the
traits of leaders. These studies have produced an extensive list of ideal leadership traits
(see Antonakis, Cianciolo, & Sternberg, 2004; Bass, 1990). The list of important
leadership traits is long and includes such traits as diligence, trustworthiness,
dependability, articulateness, sociability, open-mindedness, intelligence, confidence,
self-assurance, and conscientiousness. Because the list is so extensive, it is difficult to
identify specifically which traits are essential for leaders. In fact, nearly all of the traits
are probably related to effective leadership.
What traits are important when you are asked to be a leader? To answer this question,
two areas will be addressed in this chapter. First, a set of selected traits that appear by
all accounts to be strongly related to effective leadership in everyday life will be
discussed. Second, the lives of several historical and contemporary leaders will be
examined with a discussion of the traits that play a role in their leadership. Throughout
this discussion, the unique ways that certain traits affect the leadership process in one
way or another will be emphasized.
Leadership Traits Explained
From the beginning of the 20th century to the present day, researchers have focused a
great deal of attention on the unique characteristics of successful leaders. Thousands
of studies have been conducted to identify the traits of effective leaders. The results of
these studies have produced a very long list of important leadership traits; each of
these traits contributes to the leadership process.
Leadership Traits
For example, research studies by several investigators found the following traits to be
important: achievement, persistence, insight, initiative, self-confidence, responsibility,
cooperativeness, tolerance, influence, sociability, drive, motivation, integrity,
confidence, cognitive ability, task knowledge, extroversion, conscientiousness, and
openness (Judge, Bono, Ilies, & Gerhardt, 2002; Kirkpatrick & Locke, 1991; Stogdill,
40
1974). On the international level, House, Hanges, Javidan, Dorfman, and Gupta
(2004), in a study of 17,000 managers in 62 different cultures, identified a list of 22
valued traits that were universally endorsed as characteristics of outstanding leadership
in these countries. The list, which was outlined in Table 1.1 in Chapter 1,
“Understanding Leadership,” includes such attributes as being trustworthy, just,
honest, encouraging, positive, dynamic, dependable, intelligent, decisive,
communicative, informed, and a team builder. As these findings indicate, research
studies on leadership traits have identified a wide array of important characteristics of
leaders.
Are There Certain Traits a Leader Needs?
However, these research findings raise an important question: If there are so many
important leadership traits, which specific traits do people need to be successful
leaders? While the answer to this question is not crystal clear, the research points to six
key traits: intelligence, confidence, charisma, determination, sociability, and integrity.
In the following section, we will discuss each of these traits in turn.
Intelligence
Intelligence is an important trait related to effective leadership. Intelligence includes
having good language skills, perceptual skills, and reasoning ability. This combination
of assets makes people good thinkers, and makes them better leaders.
While it is hard for a person to alter his or her IQ (intelligence quotient), there are
certain ways for a person to improve intelligence in general. Intelligent leaders are
well informed. They are aware of what is going on around them and understand the
job that needs to be done. It is important for leaders to obtain information about what
their leadership role entails and learn as much as possible about their work
environment. This information will help leaders be more knowledgeable and
insightful.
For example, a few years ago a friend, Chris, was asked to be the coach of his
daughter’s middle school soccer team even though he had never played soccer and
knew next to nothing about how the game is played. Chris took the job and eventually
was a great success, but not without a lot of effort. He spent many hours learning
about soccer. He read how-to books, instructors’ manuals, and coaching books. In
addition, Chris subscribed to several soccer magazines. He talked to other coaches and
learned everything he could about playing the game. By the time he had finished the
first season, others considered Chris to be a very competent coach. He was smart and
learned how to be a successful coach.
Regarding intelligence, few if any of us can expect to be another Albert Einstein. Most
of us have average intelligence and know that there are limits to what we can do.
Nevertheless, becoming more knowledgeable about our leadership positions gives us
the information we need to become better leaders.
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Confidence
Being confident is another important trait of an effective leader. Confident people feel
self-assured and believe they can accomplish their goals. Rather than feeling
uncertain, they feel strong and secure about their positions. They do not second-guess
themselves, but rather move forward on projects with a clear vision. Confident leaders
feel a sense of certainty and believe that they are doing the right thing. Clearly,
confidence is a trait that has to do with feeling positive about oneself and one’s ability
to succeed.
Confidence
If confidence is a central trait of successful leaders, how can you build your own
confidence? First, confidence comes from understanding what is required of you. For
example, when first learning to drive a car, a student’s confidence is low because he or
she does not know what to do. If an instructor explains the driving process and
demonstrates how to drive, the student can gain confidence because he or she now has
an understanding of how to drive. Awareness and understanding build confidence.
Confidence can also come from having a mentor to show the way and provide
constructive feedback. This mentor may be a boss, an experienced coworker, or a
significant other from outside the organization. Because mentors act as role models
and sounding boards, they provide essential help to learn the dynamics of leadership.
Confidence also comes from practice. This is important to point out, because practice
is something everyone can do. Consider Michael Phelps, one of the most well-known
athletes in the world today. Phelps is a very gifted swimmer, with 23 Olympic gold
medals and the record for winning the most medals, 28, of any Olympic athlete in
history. But Phelps also spends an enormous amount of time practicing. His workout
regimen includes swimming six hours a day, six days a week. His excellent
performance and confidence are a result of his practice, as well as his gifts.
In leadership, practice builds confidence because it provides assurance that an aspiring
leader can do what needs to be done. Taking on leadership roles, even minor ones on
committees or through volunteer activities, provides practice for being a leader.
Building one leadership activity on another can increase confidence for more
demanding leadership roles. Those who accept opportunities to practice their
leadership will experience increased confidence in their leadership abilities.
Charisma
Of all the traits related to effective leadership, charisma gets the most attention.
Charisma refers to a leader’s special magnetic charm and appeal, and can have a huge
effect on the leadership process. Charisma is a special personality characteristic that
gives a leader the capacity to do extraordinary things. In particular, it gives the leader
exceptional powers of influence. A good example of a charismatic leader is former
42
president John F. Kennedy, who motivated the American people with his eloquent
oratorical style (visit edge.sagepub.com/northouseintro4e to read one of his speeches).
President Kennedy was a gifted, charismatic leader who had an enormous impact on
others.
Charismatic Leadership
It is not unusual for many of us to feel challenged with regard to charisma because it is
not a common personality trait. There are a few select people who are very
charismatic, but most of us are not. Since charisma appears in short supply, the
question arises: What do leaders do if they are not naturally charismatic?
Based on the writings of leadership scholars, several behaviors characterize
charismatic leadership (Conger, 1999; House, 1976; Shamir, House, & Arthur, 1993).
First, charismatic leaders serve as a strong role model for the values that they desire
others to adopt. Mohandas Gandhi advocated nonviolence and was an exemplary role
model of civil disobedience; his charisma enabled him to influence others. Second,
charismatic leaders show competence in every aspect of leadership, so others trust
their decisions. Third, charismatic leaders articulate clear goals and strong values.
Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech is an example of this type of
charismatic leadership. By articulating his dream, he was able to influence multitudes
of people to follow his nonviolent practices. Fourth, charismatic leaders communicate
high expectations for followers and show confidence in their abilities to meet these
expectations. Finally, charismatic leaders are an inspiration to others. They can excite
and motivate others to become involved in real change, as demonstrated by John F.
Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr.
Determination
Determination is another trait that characterizes effective leaders. Determined leaders
are very focused and attentive to tasks. They know where they are going and how they
intend to get there. Determination is the decision to get the job done; it includes
characteristics such as initiative, persistence, and drive. People with determination are
willing to assert themselves, they are proactive, and they have the capacity to
persevere in the face of obstacles. Being determined includes showing dominance at
times, especially in situations where others need direction.
Determination
We have all heard of determined people who have accomplished spectacular things—
the person with cancer who runs a standard 26.2-mile marathon, the blind person who
climbs Mount Everest, or the single mom with four kids who graduates from college.
A good example of determined leadership is Nelson Mandela, who is featured in the
43
Leadership Snapshot in this chapter. Mandela’s single goal was to end apartheid in
South Africa. Even though he was imprisoned for many years, he steadfastly held to
his principles. He was committed to reaching his goal, and he never wavered from his
vision. Mandela was focused and disciplined—a determined leader.
What distinguishes all of these leaders from other people is their determination to get
the job done. Of all the traits discussed in this chapter, determination is probably the
one trait that is easily acquired by those who lead. All it demands is perseverance.
Staying focused on the task, clarifying the goals, articulating the vision, and
encouraging others to stay the course are characteristics of determined leaders. Being
determined takes discipline and the ability to endure, but having this trait will almost
certainly enhance a person’s leadership.
Sociability
Another important trait for leaders is sociability. Sociability refers to a leader’s
capacity to establish pleasant social relationships. People want sociable leaders—
leaders with whom they can get along. Leaders who show sociability are friendly,
outgoing, courteous, tactful, and diplomatic. They are sensitive to others’ needs and
show concern for their well-being. Sociable leaders have good interpersonal skills and
help to create cooperative relationships within their work environments.
Being sociable comes easier for some than for others. For example, it is easy for
extroverted leaders to talk to others and be outgoing, but it is harder for introverted
leaders to do so. Similarly, some individuals are naturally “people persons,” while
others prefer to be alone. Although people vary in the degree to which they are
outgoing, it is possible to increase sociability. A sociable leader gets along with
coworkers and other people in the work setting. Being friendly, kind, and thoughtful,
as well as talking freely with others and giving them support, goes a long way to
establish a leader’s sociability. Sociable leaders bring positive energy to a group and
make the work environment a more enjoyable place.
To illustrate, consider the following example. This scenario occurred in one of the best
leadership classes I have had in 40 years of teaching. In this class, there was a student
named Anne Fox who was a very sociable leader. Anne was an unusual student who
dressed like a student from the 1960s, although it was more than two decades later.
Even though she dressed differently than the others, Anne was very caring and was
liked by everyone in the class. After the first week of the semester, Anne could name
everyone in class; when attendance was taken, she knew instantly who was there and
who was not. In class discussions, Anne always contributed good ideas, and her
remarks were sensitive of others’ points of view. Anne was positive about life, and her
attitude was contagious. By her presence, Anne created an atmosphere in which
everyone felt unique but also included. She was the glue that held us all together. Anne
was not assigned to be the leader in the class, but by the semester’s end she emerged as
a leader. Her sociable nature enabled her to develop strong relationships and become a
leader in the class. By the end of the class, all of us were the beneficiaries of her
leadership.
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Integrity
Finally, and perhaps most important, effective leaders have integrity. Integrity
characterizes leaders who possess the qualities of honesty and trustworthiness. People
who adhere to a strong set of principles and take responsibility for their actions are
exhibiting integrity. Leaders with integrity inspire confidence in others because they
can be trusted to do what they say they are going to do. They are loyal, dependable,
and transparent. Basically, integrity makes a leader believable and worthy of our trust.
Integrity
Leadership Snapshot: Nelson Mandela, First Black President of South Africa
South Africa The Good News / www.sagoodnews.co.za CC BY 2.0
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en
In 1990, when Nelson Mandela was released from prison after serving 27 long years, he was
determined not to be angry or vindictive, but instead to work to unite his country of South Africa,
which had been fractured by generations of apartheid.
The descendent of a tribal king, Mandela was born in 1918 in a small African village and grew up
in a country where Whites ruled through subjugation and tyranny over Blacks and other races.
Mandela attended Methodist missionary schools and put himself through law school, eventually
opening the first Black law partnership in 1942. His firm represented the African National
Congress (ANC), which was engaged in resisting South Africa’s apartheid policies, and during the
45
1950s, he became a leader of the ANC. Influenced by Mohandas Gandhi, Mandela was initially
committed to nonviolent resistance but shifted to supporting violent tactics when the government
refused to change its apartheid policies. In 1964, Mandela received a life sentence for plotting to
overthrow the government by violence.
During the nearly three decades Mandela spent in prison, he became a symbolic figure for the anti-
apartheid movement. But during those years, Mandela spent time examining himself, coming to see
himself as others did: as an aggressive and militant revolutionary. He learned to control his temper
and strong will, instead using persuasion and emphasis to convince others. He listened to others’
life stories, including those of the White guards, seeking to understand their perspectives. He was
steadfast in maintaining his dignity, carefully refusing to be subservient while being respectful to
the guards and others. As a result, he became a natural leader inside the prison, while outside, his
fame framed him as a symbolic martyr not only to Black Africans but also to people across the
globe. Free Mandela campaigns were building around the world, with other countries and
international corporations being pressured by stockholders and citizens to “divest” in South Africa.
In 1990, South African president F. W. de Klerk, fearing civil war and economic collapse, released
Mandela, at the time
71
, from prison. Mandela emerged as a moral leader who stood by the
principles of liberty and equal rights for all. He began speaking around the world, raising financial
support for the ANC while seeking to bring peace to his fractured country. In 1992, the South
African government instituted a new constitution and held a popular election with all parties
represented including the ANC. The result? In 1994, Mandela was elected as the first Black
president of South Africa, effectively ending apartheid. For his role in negotiations to abolish
apartheid, Mandela received the Nobel Peace Prize, sharing it with de Klerk.
As president of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, Mandela’s mission was to transform a nation from
minority rule and apartheid to a multiracial democracy. On the first day of his presidency, he set the
tone with the predominantly White staff of the former president, telling them that those who
wanted to keep their jobs were welcome to stay, stating “Reconciliation starts here.” He developed
a multiracial staff and cabinet, using his friendly smiling style and tactic of listening to all
viewpoints carefully before making decisions to keep the staff focused on problems and issues
rather than on partisanship.
Mandela served his five-year term as president but, at 76 years old, chose not to seek another term.
In retirement, he continued to advocate for social causes, serving as a mediator in disputes outside
of South Africa, and to bring a message of peace and justice throughout the world. Mandela died in
2013. While it is difficult to summarize all that he accomplished, Mandela’s legacy is best
described by former U.S. president Bill Clinton who in 2003 wrote, “Under a burden of oppression
he saw through difference, discrimination and destruction to embrace our common humanity.”
Grown-ups often tell children, “Never tell a lie.” For children, the lesson is “Good
children are truthful.” For leaders, the lesson is the same: “Good leaders are honest.”
Dishonesty creates mistrust in others, and dishonest leaders are seen as undependable
and unreliable. Honesty helps people to have trust and faith in what leaders have to say
and what they stand for. Honesty also enhances a leader’s ability to influence others
because they have confidence in and believe in their leader.
Integrity demands being open with others and representing reality as fully and
completely as possible. However, this is not an easy task: There are times when telling
the complete truth can be destructive or counterproductive. The challenge for leaders
is to strike a balance between being open and candid and monitoring what is
appropriate to disclose in a particular situation. While it is important for leaders to be
authentic, it is also essential for them to have integrity in their relationships with
others.
46
Integrity undergirds all aspects of leadership. It is at the core of being a leader.
Integrity is a central aspect of a leader’s ability to influence. If people do not trust a
leader, the leader’s influence potential is weakened. In essence, integrity is the bedrock
of who a leader is. When a leader’s integrity comes into question, his or her potential
to lead is lost.
Former president Bill Clinton (1993–2001) is a good example of how integrity is
related to leadership. In the late 1990s, he was brought before the U.S. Congress for
misrepresenting under oath an affair he had engaged in with a White House intern. For
his actions, he was impeached by the U.S. House of Representatives, but then was
acquitted by the U.S. Senate. At one point during the long ordeal, the president
appeared on national television and, in what is now a famous speech, declared his
innocence. Because subsequent hearings provided information suggesting he might
have lied during his television speech, many Americans felt Clinton had violated his
duty and responsibility as a person, leader, and president. As a result, Clinton’s
integrity was clearly challenged and the impact of his leadership substantially
weakened.
Effective Traits
In conclusion, there are many traits related to effective leadership. The six traits
discussed here appear to be particularly important in the leadership process. As will be
revealed in subsequent chapters, leadership is a very complex process. The traits
discussed in this chapter are important but are only one dimension of a
multidimensional process.
Leadership Traits in Practice
Throughout history, there have been many great leaders. Each of them has led with
unique talents and in different circumstances. The following section analyzes the
accomplishments and the traits of five famous leaders. Although there are hundreds of
equally distinguished leaders, these five are highlighted because they represent
different kinds of leadership at different points in history. All of these leaders are
recognized as being notable leaders: Each has had an impact on many people’s lives
and accomplished great things.
Traits of Great Leaders
The leaders discussed below are George Washington, Winston Churchill, Mother
Teresa, Bill Gates, and Oprah Winfrey. As you read about each of them, think about
their leadership traits.
George Washington (1
73
2–1799)
47
George Washington is considered to be the founding father of the United States of
America. His leadership was pivotal in the development of this country’s government.
He was truly respected by everyone, from low-ranking soldiers to feisty public
officials. He was a man of great integrity who was a good listener. After the
Revolutionary War, Washington was the reason that various factions did not splinter
into small groups or nations. He became the United States’ first president because his
leadership was so well suited for the times.
Gilbert Stuart /National Gallery of Art/Getty Images
48
Born into a prosperous Virginia family, he grew up on a large plantation. His father
died when he was 11. Washington received formal schooling for seven years and then
worked as a surveyor. He entered the military at the age of 20. During the French and
Indian War, Washington learned about the difficulties of battle and experienced both
victories and defeats. He served as commander in chief of the Continental Army from
17
75
to 17
83
. His leadership was instrumental in leading the colonies to victory over
Great Britain in the Revolutionary War. After the war, he retired to farm for a short
period. In 1787, however, his interests in politics and the nation took him to the
Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, where he was chosen to preside over the
successful creation of the U.S. Constitution. After the Constitution was ratified,
Washington was elected by 100% of the electoral college as the first president of the
United States. Washington served two terms as president (17
89
–1793, 1793–1797);
although he had the people’s support, he chose not to serve a third term. He retired to
Mount Vernon in 1797 and died there from pneumonia at the age of 67. At his funeral,
one of his officers, Henry Lee, eulogized him as an American who was “first in war,
first in peace, and first in the heart of his countrymen.”
Traits and Characteristics
George Washington exhibited many special leadership traits (Brookhiser, 1996; Burns
& Dunn, 2004; Fishman, 2001; Higginbotham, 2002). Researchers identify him as a
modest man with great moral character who demonstrated integrity, virtuousness, and
wisdom in his leadership. Though neither highly educated nor brilliant, he is reported
to have read 10 newspapers each day. He was tall, and careful about his appearance.
For much of his life, he kept a daily record of his work. Although reserved, as a
military leader he was brave and tenacious. Rather than use power to his own ends, he
gave up his position as commander in chief after the war. Washington provided
stability, reason, and order after the American Revolution when the United States was
in its formative stages. His evenness made him predictable to the American people,
who considered him trustworthy. Above all, Washington was a prudent leader who
made sound judgments and provided balance and wisdom to the new government.
Washington was a special leader with many unique talents who, as Schwartz (1987, p.
147) has suggested, “was ‘great’ because he was ‘good.’”
49
Walter Stoneman/Stringer/Hulton Archive/Getty Images
Winston Churchill (1874–1965)
Winston Churchill was one of the greatest statesmen and orators of the 20th century. In
addition, he was a talented painter and prolific writer; he received the Nobel Prize in
Literature in 1953. Churchill served in the military during World War I, became prime
minister of Great Britain in May 1940, and remained in that office through World War
50
II, until 1945. It was at this time that his masterful leadership was most visible. When
the Germans threatened to invade Britain, Churchill stood strong. He made many
famous speeches that had far-reaching effects on the morale of the people of Great
Britain and the Allied forces. On the home front, he was a social reformer. He served a
second term as prime minister from 1951 to 1955. He died at the age of 90 in 1965.
Traits and Characteristics
Winston Churchill’s leadership was remarkable because it emerged from a man who
was average in many respects and who faced challenges in his personal life. In his
education, he did not stand out as superior to others. On a societal level, he was a loner
who had few friends. On a personal level, he suffered from bouts of depression
throughout his life. Despite these characteristics, Churchill emerged as a leader
because of his other unique gifts and how he used them (Hayward, 1997; Keegan,
2002; Sandys & Littman, 2003). A voracious reader, Churchill was plain speaking,
decisive, detail oriented, and informed (Hayward, 1997). Furthermore, he was very
ambitious, but not out of self-interest: He wanted what was right for others, and he
wanted the best for Great Britain. His most significant talent was his masterful use of
language. In his oratory, the normally plainspoken Churchill used words and imagery
in powerful ways that touched the hearts of many and set the moral climate of the war
(Keegan, 2002). He had the ability to build hope and inspire others to rise to the
challenge. His stoicism and optimism were an inspiration to his people and all of the
Allied forces (Sandys & Littman, 2003).
Mother Teresa (1910–1997)
A Roman Catholic nun considered a saint by many, Mother Teresa received the Nobel
Peace Prize in 1979 for her work with the poor and helpless in Kolkata, India, and
throughout the world. Born in Macedonia, Mother Teresa came from a comfortable
background. At the age of 18, she joined the Catholic Sisters of Loreto order and
worked for 17 years as a high school teacher in Kolkata. Her awareness of poverty in
Kolkata caused her to leave the convent in 1948 to devote herself to working full-time
with the poorest of the poor in the slums of the city. In 1950, Mother Teresa founded a
new religious order, the Missionaries of Charity, to care for the hungry, homeless,
unwanted, and unloved.
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Bettmann/Contributor/Bettmann/Getty Images
Today, there are more than 1 million workers affiliated with the Missionaries of
Charity in more than 40 countries. The charity provides help to people who have been
hurt by floods, epidemics, famines, and war. The Missionaries of Charity also operate
hospitals, schools, orphanages, youth centers, shelters for the sick, and hospices. For
her humanitarian work and efforts for peace, Mother Teresa has been recognized with
many awards, including the Pope John XXIII Peace Prize (1971), the Nehru Award
(1972), the U.S. Presidential Medal of Freedom (1985), and the Congressional Gold
Medal (1994). Although she struggled with deteriorating health in her later years,
Mother Teresa remained actively involved in her work to the very end. She died at the
age of 87 in 1997. In September 2016, Pope Francis declared Mother Teresa a saint,
with the official name of Saint Teresa of Kolkata. In a statement announcing the
canonization, the Vatican called her a “metaphor for selfless devotion and holiness”
(Lyman, 2016).
Traits and Characteristics
Mother Teresa was a simple woman of small stature who dressed in a plain blue and
white sari, and who never owned more than the people she served. Mirroring her
appearance, her mission was simple—to care for the poor. From her first year on the
52
streets of Kolkata where she tended to one dying person to her last years when
thousands of people were cared for by the Missionaries of Charity, Mother Teresa
stayed focused on her goal. She was a true civil servant who was simultaneously
determined and fearless, and humble and spiritual. She often listened to the will of
God. When criticized for her stand on abortion and women’s role in the family, or her
approaches to eliminating poverty, Mother Teresa responded with a strong will; she
never wavered in her deep-seated human values. Teaching by example with few
words, she was a role model for others. Clearly, Mother Teresa was a leader who
practiced what she preached (Gonzalez-Balado, 1997; Sebba, 1997; Spink, 1997;
Vardey, 1995).
Bill Gates (1955–)
For many years, William (Bill) H. Gates III, cofounder and chair of Microsoft
Corporation, the world’s largest developer of software for personal computers, was the
wealthiest person in the world with assets estimated at more than $70 billion. A self-
made man, Gates began his interest in computers at the age of 13 when he and a friend
developed their first computer software program. He later attended Harvard University
but left, without graduating, to focus on software development. He cofounded
Microsoft in 1975. Under Gates’s leadership, Microsoft developed the well-known
Microsoft Disk Operating System (MS-DOS), Windows operating system, and
Internet Explorer browser. Microsoft is one of the fastest-growing and most profitable
companies ever established. From the success of Microsoft, Gates and his wife
established the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in 2000 to reduce inequities and
improve lives around the world. This foundation promotes education, addresses global
health issues (such as malaria, HIV/AIDS, and tuberculosis), sponsors libraries, and
supports housing and community initiatives in the Pacific Northwest. Beginning in
2006, Gates transitioned away from his day-to-day operating role at Microsoft to
spend more time working with his foundation, but he remained the corporation’s chair.
But in February 2014, Gates stepped down as the company’s board chairman in order
to increase his involvement in the company’s operations, serving in a new role of
technology adviser and mentor to the company’s new CEO Satya Nadella. Gates
continues to tackle global challenges as co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates
Foundation, which has become the world’s largest private charitable foundation.
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Yamaguchi Haruyoshi/Contributor/Corbis Historical/Getty Images
Traits and Characteristics
Bill Gates is both intelligent and visionary. When he cofounded Microsoft, he had a
vision about how to meet the technological needs of people in the future, and he hired
friends to help him accomplish that vision. Gates is also task oriented and diligent,
often working 12 or more hours a day to promote his interest in software product
54
development. Furthermore, Gates is focused and aggressive. When Microsoft was
accused by the U.S. government of antitrust violations, Gates appeared before
congressional hearings and strongly defended his company. When asked about
whether he has a “win at all cost” mentality, he answered that you bring people
together to work on products and make products better, but there is never a finish line
—there are always challenges ahead (Jager & Ortiz, 1997, pp. 151–152). In his
personal style, Gates is simple, straightforward, unpretentious, and altruistic: He has
demonstrated a strong concern for the poor and underserved.
Intelligence in Leadership
Oprah Winfrey (1954–)
An award-winning television talk show host, Oprah Winfrey is one of the most
powerful and influential women in the world. Born in rural Mississippi into a
dysfunctional family, she was raised by her grandmother until she was 6. Winfrey
learned to read at a very early age and skipped two grades in school. Her adolescent
years were difficult: While living in inner-city Milwaukee with her mother who
worked two jobs, Winfrey was molested by a family member. Despite these
experiences, she was an honors student in high school and received national accolades
for her oratory ability. She received a full scholarship to Tennessee State University,
where she studied communication and worked at a local radio station. Winfrey’s work
in the media eventually led her to Chicago where she became host of the highly
acclaimed Oprah Winfrey Show. In 2007, Winfrey was the highest-paid entertainer in
television, earning an annual salary estimated at $260 million. She also is an actor, a
producer, a book critic, and a magazine publisher, and, in 2011, left her successful
television show to concentrate on her television network, OWN. For years, Winfrey
had publicly battled her weight, using her struggles as inspiration for her millions of
fans to lead healthier lives. In 2015, Winfrey become a 10% stockholder and board
member of the diet empire Weight Watchers. Winfrey, who has long shown an interest
in health issues and dieting programs, serves as an adviser to the company, using her
undeniable clout to further encourage others to engage in healthier lifestyles.
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Frederick M. Brown/Stringer/Getty Images Entertainment/Getty Images
Her total wealth is estimated at more than $3.1 billion. Winfrey is also a highly
regarded philanthropist: Her giving has focused on making a difference in the lives of
the underprivileged and poor. Winfrey has paid special attention to the needs of people
in Africa, raising millions of dollars to help AIDS-affected children there and creating
a leadership academy for girls in a small town near Johannesburg, South Africa.
56
Traits and Characteristics
Oprah Winfrey’s remarkable journey from rural poverty to influential world leader can
be explained by several of her strengths (Harris & Watson, 2007; Illouz, 2003;
McDonald, 2007). Foremost, Winfrey is an excellent communicator. Since she was a
little girl reciting Bible passages in church, she has been comfortable in front of an
audience. On television, she is able to talk to millions of people and have each person
feel as if she is talking directly to him or her. Winfrey is also intelligent and well read,
with a strong business sense. She is sincere, determined, and inspirational. Winfrey has
a charismatic style of leadership that enables her to connect with people. She is
spontaneous and expressive, and has a fearless ability to self-disclose. Because she has
“been in the struggle” and survived, she is seen as a role model. Winfrey has overcome
many obstacles in her life and encourages others to overcome their struggles as well.
Her message is a message of hope.
All of these individuals have exhibited exceptional leadership. While each of these
leaders is unique, together they share many common characteristics. All are visionary,
strong willed, diligent, and inspirational. As purpose-driven leaders, they are role
models and symbols of hope. Reflecting on the characteristics of these extraordinary
leaders will provide you with a better understanding of the traits that are important for
effective leadership. Although you may not aspire to be another Bill Gates or Mother
Teresa, you can learn a great deal from these leaders in understanding how your own
traits affect your leadership.
Summary
This chapter describes the traits required of a leader. Social science research has
provided insight into leadership traits. Thousands of leadership studies have been
performed to identify the traits of effective leaders; the results of these studies point to
a very long list of important leadership traits. From this list, the traits that appear to be
especially important for effective leadership are intelligence, confidence, charisma,
determination, sociability, and integrity.
Traits and
Leadership Styles
From an examination of a select group of well-known historical and contemporary
leaders including George Washington, Winston Churchill, Mother Teresa, Bill Gates,
and Oprah Winfrey, it is clear that exemplary leaders exhibit many similar traits. In the
main, these leaders were or are visionary, strong willed, diligent, inspirational, purpose
driven, and hopeful. These leadership figures provide useful models for understanding
the traits that are important and desirable for achieving effective leadership.
Because leadership is a complex process, there are no simple paths or guarantees to
becoming a successful leader. Each individual is unique, and each of us has our own
57
distinct talents for leadership. Those who are naturally strong in the six traits discussed
in this chapter will be well equipped for leadership. If you are not strong on all of
these traits but are willing to work on them, you can still become an effective leader.
Remember that there are many traits related to effective leadership. By becoming
aware of your own traits and how to nourish them, you will be well on your way to
becoming a successful leader.
Glossary Terms
charisma 24
confidence 23
determination 25
integrity 26
intelligence 22
sociability 25
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Application
2.1 Case Study: An Emerging Leader
Tim T. portrays his life as a tension between “nature” and “nurture.” He sees it this way: He has
two sets of DNA, and these two very different sets of characteristics have given him what he needs
to be a leader. The first set of DNA, he says, comprises those “God-given genetic talents” that
came from the biological parents who abandoned him at birth. The second set comes from the
religious and caring family who adopted him two years later.
Tim’s nature is to be out in front of people and relating to them. These innate abilities of his have
always been very public and people oriented: from his easy and eloquent speaking style and
teaching skills to singing and acting. “As a baby, I was always an extrovert, and since age 2 or 3,
people have told me that I would be either president of the United States, a preacher, or a
comedian,” he says. “I didn’t intentionally work on these abilities; I have just always had them.”
His “other strand of DNA” came from his adoptive family whom he describes as gentle,
unassuming, and quiet. Tim admits he ran in the “middle of the crowd,” while his family members
were often silent bystanders standing off in a corner. They did, however, instill in him the strong
values of “loving God, loving family, working hard, and giving back” that he embraces today.
Those two sets of characteristics allowed Tim to thrive early. Just out of high school, he was given
an opportunity by baseball player Derek Jeter’s Turn 2 Foundation to create a new after-school
program for second to fifth graders called Proud to Be Me. The goal of the pilot program was to
build children’s self-esteem and self-concept by providing them with new and diverse experiences.
Tim developed it with the goal of giving these children a larger lens of what the world could be, so
they would be empowered to see more choices than what they found in their neighborhoods.
“My core belief and approach has been to help others by giving them things that nobody can take
58
away,” he says.
When Tim went to college, he supported himself working part-time at a bank doing collections,
calling people on the phone to try to convince them to make payments on their debts. It wasn’t fun,
but Tim excelled at it. “I would use my powers of persuasion to get people to make payments, not
because it was my job, but because I wanted to help them. These weren’t bad people; they just got
in over their heads.”
It was in this job that Tim realized his talents only worked if there was a purpose. “I tried to sell
vacuum cleaners once and couldn’t even sell one to my own mama,” he says. “Do you know why?
Because there was no purpose in it. But yet, I could talk these people who are struggling and
hurting into making a payment. That’s when I knew that I can’t walk on the face of this earth and
not help somebody. My persuasion has to have a purpose.”
After finishing college, Tim went on to get a master’s degree in communication and, at the age of
28, became the executive director of the Douglass Community Association, a 90-year-old private,
nonprofit, inner-city agency that provides opportunities for youth development, education, healthy
living, and leadership. Tim managed the center’s $1.2 million budget and 24 people. He spent
much of his time out in the larger community raising money and resources and putting out fires.
Although Tim enjoyed his role as executive director, he admits he had difficulty handling the day-
to-day personnel issues at the agency.
“I spent a lot of time managing external human resources, but not paying attention to the needs of
internal human resources at the center. When my staff did an assessment of me, they consistently
said, ‘He does a great job as a leader, but he is our boss and we need him here.’”
To enhance his skills, he took advanced leadership training at the Center for Creative Leadership in
North Carolina and Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Tim left the community
center after four years to become an associate vice president at Southwest Michigan First, a
regional agency focused on catalyzing job creation and economic growth in an area that has been
hard hit by job losses. For Tim, it’s an opportunity that makes the most of his double set of DNA.
“This is the place where my talent and my passions meet. I can help people. I can sift through
problems and take big issues and break them down in ways people understand. I can persuade and
motivate people and organizations to grow,” he says. “And I am still helping others in ways that
people can’t take away.”
But Tim still wants to find more ways to help others by creating an independent foundation to help
people and kids in need. “My experience has been that it is hard to help hurting people because
there is so much bureaucracy and BS tied up in how we do it. I want to help people without strings.
If you give people money to help them, don’t give it to them if you need it back. If you’re gonna do
something for someone, just do it.”
Questions
1. What is your reaction to Tim’s story?
2. Nature and nurture play a significant role in Tim’s leadership journey. From your
perspective, which has the greatest impact on Tim? Discuss your answer.
3. Of the six major traits described in the chapter (i.e., intelligence, confidence, charisma,
determination, sociability, and integrity), which traits are Tim’s strongest, and which traits
are his weakest?
4. What characteristics of Tim’s leadership would you like to incorporate into your own style
of leadership?
2.2 Leadership Traits Questionnaire
Purpose
59
1. To gain an understanding of how traits are used in leadership assessment
2. To obtain an assessment of your own leadership traits
Directions
1. Make five copies of this questionnaire. It should be completed by you and five people you
know (e.g., roommates, coworkers, relatives, friends).
2. Using the following scale, have each individual indicate the degree to which he or she
agrees or disagrees with each of the 14 statements below regarding your leadership traits.
Do not forget to complete this exercise for yourself.
3. ______________________________ (your name) is
Scoring
1. Enter the responses for Raters 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 in the appropriate columns on the scoring
sheet on this page. An example of a completed chart is provided on page 41.
2. For each of the 14 items, compute the average for the five raters and place that number in
the “average rating” column.
3. Place your own scores in the “self-rating” column.
Leadership Traits Questionnaire Chart
60
Summary and interpretation:
Scoring Interpretation
The scores you received on this questionnaire provide information about how you see yourself and
how others see you as a leader. The chart allows you to see where your perceptions are the same as
those of others and where they differ. There are no “perfect” scores for this questionnaire. The
purpose of the instrument is to provide a way to assess your strengths and weaknesses and to
evaluate areas where your perceptions are similar to or different from those of others. While it is
confirming when others see you in the same way as you see yourself, it is also beneficial to know
when they see you differently. This assessment can help you understand your assets as well as areas
in which you may seek to improve.
Example 2.1 Leadership Traits Questionnaire Ratings
61
Summary and interpretation: The scorer’s self-ratings are higher than the average ratings of others on articulate,
perceptive, conscientious, and diligent. The scorer’s self-ratings are lower than the average ratings of others on self-
confident, persistent, dependable, outgoing, sensitive, and empathic. The scorer’s self-ratings on self-assured,
determined, trustworthy, and friendly are the same as the average ratings of others.
Improve Your Leadership Skills
If you have the interactive eBook version of this text, log in to access the interactive leadership
assessment. After completing this chapter’s questionnaire, you will receive individualized feedback
and practical suggestions for further strengthening your leadership based on your responses in this
questionnaire.
Visit edge.sagepub.com/northouseintro4e for a downloadable version of this questionnaire.
2.3 Observational Exercise
Leadership Traits
Purpose
1. To gain an understanding of the role of traits in the leadership process
2. To examine the traits of selected historical and everyday leaders
Directions
1. Based on the descriptions of the historical leaders provided in the chapter, identify the three
major leadership traits for each of the leaders listed below.
2. Select and briefly describe two leaders in your own life (e.g., work supervisor, teacher,
62
coach, music director, business owner, community leader). Identify the three major
leadership traits of each of these leaders.
Questions
1. Based on the leaders you observed, which leadership traits appear to be most important?
2. What differences, if any, did you observe between the historical and everyday leaders’
traits?
3. Based on your observations, what one trait would you identify as the definitive leadership
63
trait?
4. Overall, what traits do you think should be used in selecting our society’s leaders?
Visit edge.sagepub.com/northouseintro4e for a downloadable version of this exercise.
2.4 Reflection and Action Worksheet
Leadership Traits
Reflection
1. Based on the scores you received on the Leadership Traits Questionnaire, what are your
strongest leadership traits? What are your weakest traits? Discuss.
2. In this chapter, we discussed five leadership figures. As you read about these leaders, which
leaders did you find most appealing? What was it about their leadership that you found
remarkable? Discuss.
3. As you reflect on your own leadership traits, do you think some of them are more “you” and
authentic than others? Have you always been the kind of leader you are today, or have your
traits changed over time? Are you a stronger leader today than you were five years ago?
Discuss.
Action
1. If you could model yourself after one or more of the historical leaders we discussed in this
chapter, whom would you model yourself after? Identify two of their traits that you could
and should incorporate into your own style of leadership.
2. Based on the case study of Tim T., which of his traits could you incorporate into your own
leadership? Discuss.
3. Although changing leadership traits is not easy, which of your leadership traits would you
like to change? Specifically, what actions do you need to take to change your traits?
4. All of us have problematic traits that inhibit our leadership but are difficult to change.
Which single trait distracts from your leadership? Since you cannot easily change this trait,
what actions can you take to “work around” this trait? Discuss.
Visit edge.sagepub.com/northouseintro4e for a downloadable version of this worksheet.
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3 Engaging Strengths
Introduction
Think of a time or circumstance when you were at the top of your game. Now, step
back and try to explain why you were so effective in that situation. What was it about
you or the way you presented yourself that made you feel good? What did you do that
worked so well? Why did others respond to you the way they did? The answers to
each of these questions are related to your strengths—the central theme of this chapter.
What Do You Mean By Strengths?
Every one of us has identifiable leadership strengths, areas in which we excel or
thrive. But we often fail to recognize these strengths. As a result, many times our
strengths are used ineffectively or not at all. The same is true for the strengths of our
coworkers and followers; sometimes their strengths are known, but often they go
untapped. The challenge we face as leaders is to identify our own strengths as well as
the strengths of others and then use these to make our organizations and followers
more efficient, productive, and satisfied.
Identifying individual strengths is a unique challenge because people often feel
hesitant and inhibited about acknowledging positive aspects of themselves. In the
American culture, expressing positive self-attributes is often seen as boastful or self-
serving. In fact, focusing on self is disdained in many cultures, while showing humility
and being self-deprecating is seen as virtuous. In this chapter, you will be asked to set
aside your inhibitions about identifying your own strengths in an effort to better
understand the inextricable role these strengths play in leading and working with
others.
Our goal in this chapter is to explore how understanding strengths can make one a
better leader. First, we will explain the concept by defining strengths and describing
the historical background of strengths-based leadership. We will examine how to
identify strengths, followed by a description of different measures that can be used to
assess your strengths. The final section of the chapter will look at the concept of
strengths-based leadership in practice, including specific strategies that leaders can
employ to use strengths to become more effective leaders.
Strengths-Based Leadership Explained
Before discussing the development and principles of strength leadership, we first need
to clarify what is meant by strengths. A strength is an attribute or quality of an
individual that accounts for successful performance. It is the characteristic, or series of
characteristics, we demonstrate when our performance is at its best. Strength
researchers (Buckingham & Clifton, 2001; Rath, 2007) suggest that strengths are the
ability to consistently demonstrate exceptional work. Similarly, Linley (2008) defines
68
strength as a preexisting capacity that is authentic and energizing and enables peak
performance. Simply put, strengths are positive features of ourselves that make us
effective and help us flourish. For example, Antonio was born with a talent for
drawing and design. He worked as a construction laborer for years while he attended a
university to study architecture. As a result, when Antonio became an architect, his
experiences in building made his design skills stronger because he more fully
understood the concepts of actual construction. His clients often comment that one of
his strengths is his “construction-friendly” designs.
What is Strengths-Based Leadership?
Historical Background
Studying leadership from the perspective of strengths is a new area of study, which
came to the forefront in the late 1990s as a result of two overlapping research
developments. First, researchers at the Gallup Organization initiated a massive study
that included interviews of over 2 million people to describe what’s right with people
—that is, their talents and what they are good at—rather than what’s wrong with
people (Rath, 2007).
Second, academic research scholars began to question the exclusive focus in
psychology on the disease model of human problems and started to study mentally and
physically healthy people and what accounted for their well-being. From this work, a
new field called positive psychology emerged (Peterson & Seligman, 2003). Each of
these two developments helped to explain the rising popularity of strengths-based
leadership.
Gallup Organization
Best known as a public opinion research organization that conducts political polling,
the Gallup Organization also conducts research in other areas of the social sciences.
For nearly 40 years, the study of people’s strengths has been a major research focus at
Gallup. This work was spearheaded by the late Donald O. Clifton, under whose
leadership millions of people were interviewed regarding their performance and
human strengths. Based on these interview data, Gallup researchers designed and
published the StrengthsFinder profile, an online assessment of people’s talents and
potential strengths. This profile was subsequently titled the Clifton StrengthsFinder in
honor of its chief designer and since 2007 has been called StrengthsFinder 2.0. Later
in the chapter, we will discuss more extensively StrengthsFinder and the specific
talent-based strengths it measures.
The Strengths Finder
StrengthsFinder is one of the most widely used self-assessment questionnaires in the
69
world and has been completed by more than 10 million people to date. This
assessment has been adopted by many universities and organizations to help
individuals identify their strengths, become more engaged, and improve their
performance. While Gallup has not published a theory about strengths, the widely
accepted use of StrengthsFinder has elevated strengths as a key variable in discussions
of factors that account for effective leadership development and performance.
Positive Psychology
At the same time Gallup’s StrengthsFinder profile was growing in popularity, a major
change was occurring in the discipline of psychology. Researchers were challenging
the discipline to expand its focus on not only what is wrong with people and their
weaknesses, but also what is right with people and their positive attributes. This
expanded focus, which was initiated by Martin Seligman in an address to the
American Psychological Association in 1998 (see Fowler, Seligman, & Kocher, 1999),
soon became the field of positive psychology. Since its inception a decade ago,
positive psychology has grown exponentially and developed into a credible and
important area of psychological research.
Positive Psychology
Specifically, positive psychology can be defined as “the ‘scientific’ study of what
makes life most worth living” (Peterson, 2009, p. xxiii). Rather than study the frailties
and flaws of individuals (the disease model), positive psychology focuses on
individuals’ strengths and the factors that allow them to thrive (Fredrickson, 2001;
Seligman, 2002; Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000). It addresses people’s positive
experiences, such as their happiness and joy; people’s positive traits, such as their
characteristics and talents; and people’s positive institutions, such as families, schools,
and businesses that influence them (Cameron, Dutton, & Quinn, 2003).
Positive Psychology in Action
Most prominently, positive psychology is devoted to the study of people’s positive
characteristics—their strengths. This makes it invaluable for understanding strengths-
based leadership. Positive psychology launched the analysis of people’s strengths into
the mainstream of scientific research (Linley, 2008). Concepts and theories from the
field of positive psychology directly relate to learning how strengths-based leadership
works.
Identifying and Measuring Strengths
As indicated in the historical background, most of the research on strengths has been
done by scholars connected with Gallup and scholars studying positive psychology.
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This body of research has produced multiple ways of identifying strengths and a wide-
ranging list of individual strengths. This section explores the way strengths have been
identified by three major groups: (1) Gallup Organization, (2)
Values in Action
Institute, and (3) Centre of Applied Positive Psychology in Great Britain. Although
there is much overlap in their work, each research group provides a unique perspective
on identifying and measuring individual strengths. Collectively, this research provides
an extensive list of specific strengths, a clear picture of how strengths can be
measured, and an expansive view of how strengths can be used to understand human
behavior.
Gallup and the StrengthsFinder Profile
Gallup researchers interviewed an enormous number of executives, salespeople,
teachers, doctors, nurses, and other professionals about their strengths and what made
them good at what they did. The goal of the interviews was to identify the qualities of
high-performing individuals. From interviews, Gallup researchers extracted 34
patterns or themes that they thought did the best job at explaining excellent
performance (see Table 3.1). These 34 items are “the most common themes that
emerged from the study of human talent” (Buckingham & Clifton, 2001, p. 12). For
the last decade, these themes have been the benchmark for discussing strengths in the
workplace.
It is important to point out that Gallup researchers identified themes of human talent,
not strengths. Talents are similar to personality traits—they are relatively stable, fixed
characteristics that are not easily changed. From talents, strengths emerge. The
equation for developing a strength is talent times investment (see Figure 3.1).
Strengths are derived from having certain talents and then further developing those
talents by gaining additional knowledge, skills, and practice (Rath, 2007). For
example, you may have the talent for being able to communicate easily with others. If
you were to invest time in learning more about the intricacies of effective
communication and practicing it with the help of Toastmasters International, a club
that helps individuals develop public speaking skills, you could enhance your
communication strength. Similarly, if you were born with talent as an initiator, you
could develop it further into one of your strengths by studying how to “think outside
of the box” and then practicing this thought process in your organization. To
summarize, talents are not strengths, but they provide the basis for developing
strengths when they are coupled with knowledge, skills, and practice.
How are strengths measured from the Gallup perspective? Gallup’s StrengthsFinder is
a 177-item questionnaire that identifies “the areas where you have the greatest
potential to develop strengths” (Rath, 2007, p. 31). After taking this questionnaire, you
receive a list of your five strongest talents. You can build on these talents, furthering
your personal growth and development. The questionnaire, which takes about 30
minutes to complete, is available through an access code that appears in the back of
strengths books published by Gallup. It is also available on the organization’s website
at www.strengthsfinder.com.
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Becoming Influential
Table 3.1
Source: Copyright © 2008 Gallup, Inc. All rights reserved. The content is used with permission; however,
Gallup retains all rights of republication.
Figure 3.1 Strength Equation
Source: Copyright © 2007 Gallup, Inc. All rights reserved. The content is used
with permission; however, Gallup retains all rights of republication.
How can leaders use strengths in their leadership? In the book Strengths Based
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Leadership, Rath and Conchie (2008) explain how a leader’s scores on the
StrengthsFinder profile can be interpreted. To facilitate understanding, they developed
a configuration that depicts four domains of leadership strengths (see Table 3.2). The
four domains are executing, influencing, relationship building, and strategic thinking.
These domains were derived from information obtained during interviews with
thousands of executive teams and from a factor analysis of the Gallup talent data set.
Taken together, the four domains represent the four kinds of strengths that help create
successful teams.
Effective teams possess broad groupings of strengths and work best when all four
domains of leadership strengths are represented on their teams (Rath & Conchie,
2008). Effective teams are generally well rounded, and they have different group
members who fulfill different needs of the group. Leaders bring unique strengths to
teams, but leaders do not have to demonstrate strengths in all four domains. Strong and
cohesive teams bring into play everyone’s strengths to make the team effective.
For example, Maria Lopez, who has owned a successful bridal shop for 10 years, took
the StrengthsFinder profile and found her dominant strengths were in the strategic
thinking domain. Maria is known for her futuristic thinking and deliberate planning.
She is outstanding at forecasting trends in bridal wear and helping her team navigate
the constantly changing bridal market. Maria hired Claudia, whose dominant strengths
are in relationship building. Claudia is the most positive person on the staff and
connects with everyone. It is Claudia who treats customers in the store like they are
part of “the family.” To run the store on a day-to-day basis, Maria brought on Kristen
who is a hard worker and uses her strengths in executing to get the job done. She is
highly disciplined and motivated to make the bridal shop the best in the city. Lastly,
Maria hired Brianna because of her strengths in the domain of influencing. Brianna is
always out in the community promoting the shop. She is seen as a credible
professional by other shop owners because she is self-assured and knowledgeable. In
the store, people like Brianna because she is not afraid to be in charge and give
directions to others. In summary, Maria, the store’s owner, is a leader with strengths in
one domain, but has the wisdom to hire personnel who have strengths in other
domains. Collectively, the combined strengths of Maria and her team allow them to
have a very successful bridal shop.
Table 3.2
Source: Copyright © 2008 Gallup, Inc. All rights reserved. The content is used with permission; however,
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Gallup retains all rights of republication.
Values in Action Institute and Inventory of Strengths
At the same time the StrengthsFinder profile was gaining prominence, researchers at
the Values in Action (VIA) Institute, led by Martin Seligman and Christopher
Peterson, were engaged in a project to develop a framework for the field of positive
psychology that defined and conceptualized character strengths. This classification
focused on what is best in people rather than their weaknesses and problems. To
develop the classification, they reviewed philosophical and spiritual literature in
Confucianism, Buddhism, Hinduism, Judeo-Christianity, Ancient Greece, and Islam to
determine whether there were commonalities that consistently emerged across cultures
regarding virtues (Peterson & Park, 2009; Peterson & Seligman, 2004). From the
review, they identified six universal core virtues: courage, justice, humanity,
temperance, transcendence, and wisdom. These six virtues represent the basic
structure around which Seligman and Peterson developed the Values in Action
Classification of Character Strengths (see Table 3.3). The VIA Classification includes
24 strengths organized under these six basic virtues.
As illustrated in Table 3.3, the 24 character strengths identified in the VIA
Classification are somewhat different from the strengths identified in Gallup’s
StrengthsFinder profile (see Table 3.1). For example, “justice” and “love,” which are
strengths in the VIA Classification, seem more encompassing and virtue oriented than
“connectedness” and “ideation,” which are strengths identified in the Gallup list.
Furthermore, the strengths outlined by the StrengthsFinder are more closely tied to the
workplace and helping individuals perform better, while VIA strengths are focused
more directly on a person’s character and how one can become more virtuous.
Table 3.3
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Source: Adapted from A Primer in Positive Psychology, by Christopher Peterson, 2006, pp. 142–146.
Values in Action
From the VIA perspective, character strengths are measured with the Values in Action
Inventory of Strengths (VIA-IS), a questionnaire designed to create a profile of your
character strengths. It takes about 30 minutes to complete and is available free at
www.viacharacter.org. After completing the questionnaire, you will receive reports
and feedback identifying your top five character strengths as well as a rank order of
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your scores on all 24 character strengths.
Centre of Applied Positive Psychology and the R2
Strengths Profiler Assessment
Based on the principles of positive psychology, researchers at the Centre of Applied
Positive Psychology (CAPP) in the United Kingdom developed an approach to
strengths that differs from the approaches used in Gallup’s StrengthsFinder and the
Values in Action perspectives. Rather than focusing exclusively on the identification
of a specific number of strengths, CAPP researchers created a more dynamic model of
strengths that emphasizes the changing nature of strengths (see Figure 3.2). They also
examined different kinds of strengths and weaknesses. CAPP argued that strengths are
more fluid than personality traits and can emerge over a lifetime through the different
situations we experience.
From CAPP’s perspective, strengths were conceptualized as “the things that we are
good at and that give us energy when we are using them” (Linley & Dovey, 2012, p.
4). The three central elements of this definition became the criteria in CAPP’s
questionnaire (R2 Strengths Profiler) for assessing strengths: (1) performance—how
good we are at doing something; (2) energy—how much vitality we get out of it; and
(3) use—how often we are able to do it. Therefore, the R2 Strengths Profiler assesses
60 strengths in relation to three dimensions of energy, performance, and use. Based on
an individual’s combined scores across these dimensions, CAPP provides feedback
that specifies the individual’s realized strengths, unrealized strengths, learned
behaviors, and weaknesses. It takes about 20 minutes to complete the R2 Strengths
Profiler, which is available for a fee at www.cappeu.com.
The CAPP strengths perspective is represented in the R2 Strengths Profiler Quadrant
Model (see Figure 3.2). It is divided into quadrants labeled realized strengths,
unrealized strengths, learned behaviors, and weaknesses. As you can see in Figure 3.2,
each quadrant lists attributes based on the dimensions of performance, energy
generation, and use. Each quadrant characterizes different individual attributes and
how they can be put into use.
Realized Strengths. Realized strengths are personal attributes that represent our
strongest assets. We are energized when we use them because they help us perform
well. For example, one of Rachel’s strengths is narrator. She is a wonderful storyteller
and uses these stories to convey her message and express her values. The model
suggests that people should make every effort to maximize the use of these realized
strengths, when it is appropriate to do so.
Unrealized Strengths. Unrealized strengths are personal attributes that are less
visible. We feel good when we tap into unrealized strengths because they support our
efforts and help us achieve our goals. One of Jason’s unrealized strengths is creativity.
He is good at coming up with new ideas and concepts, but more often than not he just
goes with the flow and does not express his creativity. The model challenges
individuals to become more aware of these strengths and to use them more frequently
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—thus to marshal them as a resource.
Figure 3.2 R2 Strengths Profiler 4M Model
Source: Centre of Applied Positive Psychology (CAPP), Coventry, UK: CAPP
Press.
Learned Behaviors. Learned behaviors represent those ingrained things we have
learned throughout our life experience. Although valuable, they do not excite or
inspire us. For example, one of Sunil’s learned behaviors is driver. As the eldest of
five, he was driven to graduate from college. Highly self-motivated, Sunil constantly
pushes himself to succeed in everything he does, often to the detriment of his own
health. Many times Sunil doesn’t recognize when his goals are unrealistic, and not
succeeding in these leads to feelings of self-doubt and worthlessness. The model
suggests limiting, or moderating, the use of these behaviors because they are draining
and do not energize us.
Weaknesses. Weaknesses are our limiting attributes. They often drain our energy and
result in poor performance. One of Kaylee’s weaknesses is unconditionality. She finds
it hard to genuinely accept people for who they are, without being judgmental about
them and expecting them to change to meet her ideals. As a leader, she is constantly
frustrated by others because they don’t meet her standards in a number of areas. The
model suggests that effective people try to minimize their weaknesses so as to make
them irrelevant or of less concern.
Unlike the previous approaches to strengths, the CAPP model is prescriptive and
pragmatic. The R2 Strengths Profiler suggests ways people can be more effective by
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increasing their strengths and minimizing their weaknesses. The model recommends
that individuals use their realized strengths when possible, but also intentionally look
for ways to increase use of their unrealized strengths. Stated another way, we should
capitalize on our strengths but also seek out ways to express our unrealized strengths.
In addition, the model recommends that we try to moderate our use of learned
behaviors and minimize our use of our weaknesses. We are energized by our strengths
(the top two quadrants), and we lose energy when we express our weaknesses and
learned behavior (the bottom two quadrants).
A good example of using the CAPP model is Tamaria, who has recently taken on the
role of project manager for a team that is developing a new website for her company.
Tamaria’s realized strength is her focus on details and organization; her weakness is
that she isn’t as technically skilled as some of the members of her team. As a child,
Tamaria struggled in school, and one of her coping mechanisms was to ask a lot of
questions so that she thoroughly understood assignments. That has become a learned
behavior she still employs. Finally, one of Tamaria’s unrealized strengths is her ability
to problem-solve and mediate in conflict.
In order for her team to succeed, Tamaria will need to maximize the use of her realized
strengths of organization and attention to detail in outlining the tasks and deadlines for
the project. To deal with her weakness in technical skills, she will need to minimize her
involvement in the technical development of the website, relying on other team
members’ technical skills. By employing her learned behavior of asking her team
members a lot of questions about what they are doing and why, Tamaria will slow
down the team’s progress and frustrate team members who may feel she’s
micromanaging them. In this case, she will need to moderate her inquisitiveness,
identifying the questions that she really needs answered or finding a way to research
the questions on her own. Finally, working within a team can result in disparate
opinions and ideas, and Tamaria will need to marshal her unrealized strength in the
mediation and problem solving so the team works smoothly together and meets
deadlines while creating a dynamic website.
To summarize, researchers have developed three unique assessment tools to identify
strengths: (1) StrengthsFinder, (2) Values in Action Inventory of Strengths, and (3) R2
Strengths Profiler (see Table 3.4). Each of these assessments provides a unique
approach to strengths, and together they help to define and clarify the meaning of
strengths. All of the questionnaires are accessible online, and they are worthwhile self-
assessment tools for identifying and exploring your personal strengths.
Strengths-Based Leadership in Practice
How are strengths used in leadership? Although there are no established leadership
theories on how to practice leadership from a strengths perspective, many useful
applications can be made from strengths research in everyday leadership situations. In
this section, we discuss several specific ways to incorporate strengths in your personal
and work settings. The steps include (1) discovering your strengths, (2) developing
your strengths, (3) recognizing and engaging the strengths of others, and (4) fostering
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a positive strengths-based environment around you. Following these steps will not be a
panacea for becoming a perfect strengths-based leader, but they will most certainly
help you, as a leader, to maximize the use of your strengths as well as those of others.
Using Strengths in a Pharmacy
Discovering Your Strengths
As we discussed earlier in this chapter, strengths emerge from our basic personality
traits. We all have unique personality traits, and therefore we all have unique strengths.
No one is without strengths. As suggested by psychologist Howard Gardner (1997),
extraordinary individuals are “distinguished less by their impressive ‘raw power’ than
by their ability to identify their strengths and then exploit them” (p. 15). MacKie
(2016) suggests that our leadership capability is enhanced when we are able to
discover our fully utilized strengths, underutilized strengths, and weaknesses. The
challenge we face is identifying our strengths and then employing them effectively in
our leadership and personal lives.
Table 3.4
Discovering your strengths requires you to concentrate on your positive attributes and
those times when you feel inspirited. To do so, you need to pay attention to your
successes rather than focusing on your weaknesses or failures. For example, when are
you at the top of your game? What is it about you or your interactions with others that
contributes to that feeling? What accounts for your best performance? When things are
going really well for you, what attributes are behind this success? Answering these
questions will help you discover your strengths. They are the first and most important
step in practicing strengths-based leadership.
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Discovering Strengths
There are several ways you can discover your strengths. First, you can complete one or
more of the strengths questionnaires (e.g., StrengthsFinder 2.0, VIA-IS, and R2
Strengths Profiler) that are available online. Each questionnaire gives a unique
snapshot of your greatest strengths. Second, you can fill out the Leadership Strengths
Questionnaire that appears in this chapter. This questionnaire will provide you with
specific feedback regarding your relative strengths in the areas of implementation,
innovation, encouragement, analysis, and mediation. Third, you can complete the
Reflected Best Self Exercise (RBSE) (Quinn, Dutton, & Spreitzer, 2003), which can
be found at http://positiveorgs.bus.umich.edu/cpo-tools/reflected-best-self-exercise-
2nd-edition/. The RBSE can assist you in identifying unrecognized and unexplored
area of strengths (Roberts et al., 2005). Fourth, you can complete the “discovering
your strengths” exercise that appears at the end of this chapter in Reflection and
Action Worksheet 3.4. This exercise allows people you know to tell you what they see
as your strengths when you are performing at your best. It is a powerful exercise you
can use to become more aware of your strengths, and it may help you learn about
some you have not recognized. Fifth, you can engage in a self-assessment of what you
believe to be your strongest attributes. Intuitively, we all have a sense of what we do
well, but taking the time to intentionally contemplate and consider our own strengths
leads us to become more fully aware of our strengths.
This myriad of methods for discovering strengths will allow you to painlessly develop
a definitive list of your major strengths. This process is not only enlightening but is
also a vital first step in developing strengths-based leadership.
Developing Your Strengths
Once you have discovered your strengths, what do you do with that knowledge? How
do you make use of this information to be a stronger leader? Developing one’s
strengths is a multifaceted process that involves several steps. First, you must
acknowledge your strengths and be prepared to reveal them to others. As we discussed
at the beginning of this chapter, it is often difficult to share our strengths with others
because we may feel inhibited about openly and verbally acknowledging positive
aspects of ourselves. But expressing our strengths is essential to making others aware
of our leadership.
Telling others about our strengths is important because it lets them know how we can
be most useful when working or collaborating together, clarifying the unique
contributions we can make to others and their work. In essence, disclosing strengths
declares “this is what I bring to the table, this is what I am best at, this is what I can do
for you,” and that allows others to know what they can expect from us. For example,
when Tanya lets others know that her strongest quality is that she is an achiever, others
learn that Tanya is not likely to allow mediocrity in their work. She is going to be
demanding and push others toward excellence. Similarly, when Jason tells his staff
that his strength is listening, his staff learns that Jason will have an open door and be
willing to hear their problems or concerns. Putting our strengths out in the open makes
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us more transparent to others, and this helps others predict how we are going to act
and how they might want to act toward us.
Developing Strengths
People use a variety of ways to reveal their strengths. Some people post their top five
strengths on Facebook or LinkedIn, add them to their email signature, or list them on
their résumé as a way of making their strengths more visible to others. Several unique
examples of how some people share their strengths are illustrated in Figure 3.3.
Disclosing our strengths to others does not need to be a daunting or embarrassing task,
but can be done in a fairly simple, straightforward manner.
Expressing strengths has a cultural element to it as well. What one culture may see as
a strength that should be revealed, another may see as something to be kept hidden.
For example, many Western cultures encourage women to recognize and celebrate
their intelligence. In some cultures, such as those in religiously conservative,
patriarchal societies of the Middle East, women expressing intelligence is not seen as a
strength. Many girls are prohibited from attending school.
In addition to revealing your strengths, practice working consistently with others based
on your strengths. For example, if your strength is being an innovator, find ways to be
creative in your leadership. For example, do not hesitate to engage in activities like
brainstorming or creating a vision for your group or organization. Similarly, if your
strength is that you are deliberative, place yourself in a position where your strength in
providing structure and order to a project can be put to use. Add your well-thought-out
perspective by being vigilant and practical when people around you are coming up
with ideas that have never been tested. The point is that you should lead from your
strengths; your strengths represent the best you have to offer in influencing others. As
Anderson (2004) from the Gallup Organization has suggested, “The best of the best
invent ways of developing and applying strengths in areas where they want to
improve, achieve, and become more effective” (p. 7).
Figure 3.3 Examples of Ways to Express Strengths
A good example of practicing strengths is Warren Buffett, one of the wealthiest people
in the world. Buffett is known for his patience, practicality, and trustfulness, and he
used these strengths to make Berkshire Hathaway, a multinational conglomerate,
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successful (Buckingham & Clifton, 2001). His patience led him to adopt the now
famous “20-year perspective” on investing only in companies that he believed would
be successful for the long term. His practicality explains how he selected specific
companies whose services and products he understood (e.g., American Express).
Finally, Buffett’s trustfulness allowed him to select senior managers who were
reputable and dependable to run his company. Clearly, Buffett recognized his strengths
and carved out a role for himself that allowed him to practice these strengths every day
(Buckingham & Clifton, 2001).
Addressing Your Weaknesses
Leaders must not only recognize and capitalize on their strengths, but also be able to
identify their weaknesses and address them (MacKie, 2016). Harvard leadership
professor John P. Kotter states, “Great leadership doesn’t mean running away from
reality . . . sharing difficulties can inspire people to take action that will make the
situation better” (Blagg & Young, 2001).
While some of the models discussed here advocate minimizing your weaknesses,
understanding them can allow you to work to improve them and to recognize
situations where your weaknesses can be a liability to your leadership. For example,
Lisa owns a small business developing e-commerce websites for companies that sell
products online. Her strengths are her structural and process-oriented thinking and
technical expertise. She is adept at anticipating and managing the many small details
for creating a website that is secure and provides a good user experience. However,
Lisa can’t describe what she does in normal “layperson” terms for clients. In her
proposals and presentations, she tends to lose clients with her use of technical
language and minutiae of detail. In Lisa’s case, it isn’t enough that she minimize her
weakness—she can’t not talk to clients because that’s how she generates new business.
She must find a way to communicate better with her clients.
Leadership Snapshot: Steve Jobs, Founder, Apple Inc.
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© Bloomberg/Contributor/Bloomberg/Getty Images
While Steve Jobs was undoubtedly brilliant, he didn’t possess the technical abilities to be a
computer genius. In fact, Jobs didn’t know how to write computer code or program a computer. But
he succeeded—twice—in building one of the most successful and profitable computer companies
in the world.
Jobs had many notable strengths, including his creativity, team building, strategic vision, and
influencing. He had intuitive vision, imagining products and applications of which no one else
dared to dream. When he created Apple in 1976 with partner Steve Wozniak, he sought to create an
attractive, simple, inexpensive computer marketed as the first home computer. Jobs micromanaged
every detail of the computer’s creation from its unique operating software to the color of its casing.
Jobs was an influencer, using his indomitable will and charisma to convince himself and others of
almost anything. He believed rules were meant to be broken, and in 19
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, Apple did just that,
introducing a truly revolutionary product, the Macintosh. It used graphics, icons, a mouse, and the
point-and-click technology that is still standard. It was innovative and influential.
But Jobs wasn’t perfect. He could be confrontational, and this quality eventually resulted in him
being booted out of his own company by Apple’s board of directors.
Jobs moved on, using his visionary skills and passion for perfection to create NeXT Computer,
recognized as a great product that never caught on with consumers.
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Undaunted, Jobs branched out into movie animation by acquiring Pixar Animation Studios,
bringing his vision, passion, and influencing skills to a new industry. Under his leadership, Pixar
revolutionized movie animation and made Jobs a multibillionaire.
His old company, Apple, hadn’t done so well. A decade after Jobs exited, Apple was nearly
bankrupt. It decided to buy NeXT Computer and the services of Jobs as a consultant. But he would
soon take over as CEO. His first move was to employ another of his strengths—focus. He took the
two-dozen products Apple was producing—printers, computers, and software—and winnowed
them down to only laptop and desktop computers for the professional and home consumer.
Jobs didn’t stop there. Over the next 14 years, he dreamt up the iPod, the iPad, and the iPhone. By
combining creativity, technology, and feats of engineering, Apple produced new devices that
consumers hadn’t even thought of or knew they needed. Jobs insisted these devices be intuitive and
simple to use and oversaw every detail of design from creating specialized glass for the screens to
the width of their metal casings.
In the end, Jobs’s vision revolutionized seven industries: personal computers, animated movies,
music, telephones, tablet computing, digital publishing, and retail stores. When he returned to
Apple in 1997, he personally created the company’s new ad campaign—“Think Different”—which
was as much a statement of his own strengths as a leader as it was a mission statement for Apple.
After losing out on several possible projects, Lisa listened to the feedback of the
clients when they said that what she was proposing was “too complicated.” Lisa
brought in a marketing professional, Julie, to help her develop and pitch proposals to
clients. Julie understands enough of the technical parts of Lisa’s work to be able to put
it in easier-to-understand terms for potential clients. Julie is very strong in
communication and social interactions, and Lisa is finding that by observing and
working with Julie, she is learning to communicate more effectively with clients.
While making the most of our strengths is important for leaders, recognizing our
weaknesses is also important in effective leadership. In the case of Lisa, she had to
address her communication problems; there was no way around it. Working to
improve on your weaknesses or using them as opportunities for others to contribute
their strengths will improve your leadership.
Recognizing and Engaging the Strengths of Others
In addition to employing their own strengths, leaders need to recognize and engage the
strengths of their followers. They need to determine what followers are good at doing
and help them to do it. Educators who study group dynamics and the roles individuals
play in effective groups often say “people do what they do best.” What they mean by
this is that individuals often become engaged and contribute positively to groups when
they are allowed to do what they are good at and feel comfortable doing. People feel
comfortable in groups when they can contribute to the group from their strengths.
How do leaders know what people are good at? Sometimes people are very up front
and freely express their strengths. Mia, for example, often says when she joins a new
work project, “I’m a good note taker, so you can plan on me to be the record keeper
for our meetings.” Similarly, Josh often says on the first day of a roofing project, “I am
pretty fast with the nail gun, so you might want me on the roof nailing shingles.”
Clearly, sometimes followers openly inform leaders of their strengths. When this
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occurs, it is important for leaders to acknowledge these individuals’ strengths if
possible and assign them to roles in the work setting that capitalize on these strengths.
While recognizing strengths sounds simple, it is not uncommon for leaders to overlook
followers’ strengths. Oftentimes, the strengths of followers are not evident to leaders
or even to the followers themselves. This becomes a challenging situation, because
leaders need to ascertain followers’ strengths from what they observe rather than what
followers explicitly express to them. Cordelia was a struggling graduate student who
was just plodding along, uncertain about her direction and goals. When she received
an A++ on a challenging reaction paper, she became excited and was surprised to learn
that her strength was creativity, particularly in writing. Cordelia and her instructor both
became aware of her strengths in writing by the work she did on her assignment. Juan
is good with solving computer glitches in the office, suggesting his strengths lie in the
area of technology. When he was assisting a staff member who was having a problem
downloading a file from the web, he found that he liked the challenge of solving these
problems. Or consider Ashley, who is a good worker, always present, and never
oppositional. She is a wonderful team member whose strengths are consistency,
kindness, and being fun-loving. She fosters the esprit de corps in the athletic center
where she works. In each of these examples, an effective leader tries to identify the
followers’ strengths and then incorporate them into building a more productive team.
However, it is important to note that others’ strengths may not always be directly
recognizable. Followers may have strengths that are not observable because their
situations don’t allow for many facets of their overall abilities to emerge. Therefore, it
is important to find opportunities outside followers’ normal realm of duties or
activities that will allow their strengths to emerge. For example, Jeff works on an
assembly line at a golf cart manufacturer attaching seats to the chassis of golf carts.
The position is very repetitive and structured, and Jeff, like the other assembly line
employees, spends most of his workday at his station with limited interaction with
other workers. However, with the blessing of his supervisor, Jeff recently organized a
softball team made up of other plant workers to play in a local league. Jeff has
recruited team members, arranged all the practices, communicated practice and game
schedules to the team, organized the purchase of team uniforms, and promoted the
team’s games in the plant through flyers and the company newsletter. As a result,
many individuals who work with Jeff have observed his strengths in organization,
inclusion, and communication, which would not be observable through his day-to-day
work on the assembly line.
As we discussed earlier in this chapter, high-performing teams and work groups
possess strengths in four domains: executing, influencing, relationship building, and
strategic thinking (see Table 3.2). When leaders become aware of their followers’
strengths as well as their own, they can use this information to design work groups that
have individuals with strengths representing each of the domains. Knowing followers’
unique strengths allows leaders to make work assignments that maximize each
individual’s contribution to the collective goals of the group (Rath & Conchie, 2008).
If a leader is strong on executing and knows how to make new ideas come to fruition,
but is not as strong in building relationships, the leader should identify followers with
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strengths in that area. Or if a leader has strengths in connecting with people and taking
command, the leader can identify others who are strong in executing and strategic
thinking. Knowledge of followers’ strengths is a valuable tool to help leaders to build
effective groups.
Leadership and Followership
Fostering a Positive Strengths-Based Environment
A final way to practice strengths-based leadership is to create and promote a positive
work environment in which people’s strengths play an integral role. Multiple studies
by researchers in positive organizational scholarship indicate that companies and
organizations that create positive work environments have a positive physiological
impact on employees and, in turn, this has an advantageous impact on their
performance (Cameron, 2012; Dutton & Ragins, 2007). Similarly, research suggests
that when employees have the opportunity to engage their strengths, they are more
productive and more loyal, and their companies experience less turnover (Clifton &
Harter, 2003). In short, people feel better and work better when the climate in which
they work is positive.
In his book Positive Leadership, Cameron (2012) argues that leaders who want to
create a positive work environment should attend to four areas: climate, relationships,
communication, and meaning. To create a positive climate, leaders should foster
among their employees virtues such as compassion, forgiveness, and gratitude. When
these qualities are present, people feel encouraged and are more productive. Leaders
can also promote celebrating people’s strengths. Doing so helps people feel valued as
individuals and respected for their contribution to the organization. To build positive
relationships, leaders need to highlight individuals’ positive images and strengths
rather than their negative images and weaknesses. Acknowledging and building on
people’s strengths encourages others to do the same, and this results in the
development of an environment where positive relationships flourish. To develop
positive communication, leaders must be supportive, make more positive than negative
statements, and be less negatively evaluative of others. Positive communication helps
people feel connected and encourages them to capitalize on their strengths. Finally,
leaders can foster positive meaning in their organizations by emphasizing the
connection between employees’ values and the long-term impact of their work.
Employees who find meaning in their work and see it as valuable are more engaged
and productive.
A Positive Climate
Fostering a positive strengths-based organizational environment is embraced by a
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multitude of organizations. For example, more than 500 colleges and universities have
integrated dimensions of a strengths-based perspective into their student learning,
faculty, and culture, including Baylor University, Texas A&M University, Azusa
Pacific University, University of Arkansas, Texas Tech University, San Jose State
University, and University of Minnesota. Among the many companies that have
adopted strengths as a systematic program are Fortune 500 companies Pfizer, Hilton,
Facebook, Chick-fil-A, Coca-Cola, Cisco, Microsoft, and Best Buy.
Summary
Strengths-based leadership has been given much attention in recent years because
researchers believe it can have a significant impact on the way leaders choose to lead
and on the performance of followers. In this chapter, we explored people’s strengths
and how leaders can make use of these strengths to become more effective leaders.
Although we all have strengths, they often go unrecognized and unused.
Understanding strengths can make one a better leader.
A strength is defined as an attribute or quality of an individual that accounts for
successful performance. In simple terms, a strength is what we do when we are
performing at our best. Strengths often begin with our inborn talents and can be further
developed through knowledge, skills, and practice. The equation for developing a
strength is talent times investment (Rath, 2007).
Strengths-based leadership has come to the forefront in recent years as a result of two
research developments. First, spearheaded by Donald O. Clifton, the Gallup
Organization interviewed millions of people about their strengths and what made them
good at what they did. From interviews, Gallup extracted 34 themes that best
explained excellent performance. Second, academic scholars created a new field called
positive psychology that focused less on the disease model and more on the study of
healthy people and what accounted for their well-being. Prominent in this new field is
the study of people’s positive characteristics—their strengths. Taken together, research
at Gallup and in positive psychology explains the rising popularity of strengths-based
leadership.
People’s strengths have been measured in different ways. The benchmark is Gallup’s
StrengthsFinder, which is a 177-item questionnaire that identifies an individual’s five
strongest talents across four domains (i.e., executing, influencing, relationship
building, and strategic thinking). Strengths can also be measured using the Values in
Action Inventory of Strengths, which provides an individual’s top five character
strengths as well as a rank order of his or her scores on 24 virtue-derived character
strengths. A third measure, the R2 Strengths Profiler, assesses 60 strengths in
relationship to an individual’s energy, performance, and use, and provides feedback on
an individual’s realized strengths, unrealized strengths, learned behaviors, and
weaknesses.
Although there are no established theories about the practice of strengths-based
leadership, there are several straightforward ways for individuals to incorporate
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strengths into their leadership. First, leaders need to discover their own strengths. They
can do this through completing questionnaires and other self-assessment activities.
The goal is to develop a definitive list of one’s strengths. Second, leaders need to be
prepared to acknowledge their strengths and reveal them to others. Although we may
feel inhibited about disclosing our strengths to others, it is essential for making others
aware of our capabilities. We need to make ourselves transparent to others and lead
from our strengths. Third, leaders must make a concerted effort to recognize and
engage the strengths of others. Because “people do what they do best,” leaders have an
obligation to help uncover others’ strengths and then integrate these strengths into
building more productive teams. Finally, leaders can practice strengths-based
leadership by fostering work environments in which people’s strengths play an integral
role. Leaders can do this by creating for their followers a positive climate, positive
relationships, positive communication, and positive meaning (Cameron, 2012).
Research shows that people feel better and work better when the climate in which they
work is positive.
To summarize, strengths-based leadership is a new area of research that offers a unique
approach to becoming a more effective leader. Not a panacea, strengths concepts
provide an innovative and valuable perspective to add to our leadership toolbox.
Glossary Terms
Gallup Organization 49
learned behaviors 56
positive psychology 50
realized strengths 55
strengths 48
themes of human talent 51
unrealized strengths 55
weaknesses 56
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Application
3.1 Case Study: Ready to Be CEO?
Christine Jorgens was shocked when the board of Begin the Future Foundation, the nonprofit
organization she worked for, asked her to apply for the position of CEO of the organization. For 40
years, Begin the Future Foundation had provided programs in a nine-county region to help children
living in poverty in urban and rural areas succeed in school and life, and the CEO’s job was a big
one.
Christine had never aspired to be a CEO. She had grown up on a small farm in a rural area, one of
88
seven children in a family that struggled financially. In high school, she worked at a local
restaurant, first as a dishwasher and then as a waitress, continuing to work there while she attended
college studying social work.
In her senior year of college, she landed an internship at Begin the Future Foundation overseeing
an after-school program for middle school students. Christine ended up working for Begin the
Future Foundation for 12 more years, with many of her colleagues joking that she was “the intern
who never left.” Friendly and approachable, she eagerly took on whatever work the organization
had for her to do. She worked as a receptionist, became a grant writer, helped out in public
relations and marketing, and then was given a position developing and initiating new programs and
working with donors to fund those programs.
She thrived at program development, finding ways to implement community resources that were
often overlooked. Her program, Study Buddies, paired up volunteer tutors from a local college with
children to meet three times a week for a half-hour of tutoring followed by a half-hour of recreation
and games. Christine also initiated Girl Power, a program allowing middle school girls to spend an
afternoon each week shadowing a local female professional or businesswoman who worked in a
career that they were interested in pursuing.
Christine’s enthusiasm was contagious, especially with donors. Her programs were all successfully
funded, and potential donors often approached Christine with ideas they had for new initiatives that
they were willing to fund.
But despite all her successes, Christine wasn’t sure she was CEO material. She saw herself as a
local girl who had lucked into some great opportunities. The board had been clear about what
credentials a new CEO must have: strategic thinking, experience running a nonprofit organization,
ability to work with people on all levels of society from the poorest to the richest, ability to manage
people, and a commitment to the organization’s mission of helping kids escape poverty. Christine
didn’t have direct experience overseeing a nonprofit and felt she needed more experience in the
day-to-day management of the organization.
At the suggestion of the board members, she took a strengths assessment and learned her strengths
were in strategic planning, relationship building, creativity, compassion, and influencing. In
addition, the board members pointed out that she had a deep knowledge and commitment to the
organization and the children they served. Despite Christine’s hesitancy, the board was convinced
Christine was the right candidate.
Questions
1. Strengths are considered inborn traits that can be enhanced with experience. What
experiences in Christine’s background helped her develop her strengths?
2. Of the strengths identified by the assessment, which were directly observable in Christine’s
work? Were there any that were not?
3. Christine admitted having some weaknesses, especially in day-to-day management of the
organization. Which of her strengths could she put into use to help her deal with that, and
how?
4. What strengths should Christine seek from others that would complement her own and fill
some gaps?
3.2 Leadership Strengths Questionnaire
Purpose
1. To develop an understanding of your leadership strengths
2. To rank your strengths in selected areas of performance
Directions
89
1. Please answer the statements below in terms of whether the statement describes what you
are like.
2. For each of the statements, circle the number that indicates the degree to which you feel the
statement is like you.
90
91
Scoring
1. Sum the responses on items 1, 6, 11, 16, 21, and 26 (implementer score).
2. Sum the responses on items 2, 7, 12, 17, 22, and 27 (innovator score).
3. Sum the responses on items 3, 8, 13, 18, 23, and 28 (encourager score).
4. Sum the responses on items 4, 9, 14, 19, 24, and 29 (analytic score).
5. Sum the responses on items 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 (mediator score).
Total Scores:
_________ _________ _________ _________ ___________
Implementer Innovator Encourager Analytic Mediator
Scoring Interpretation
The Leadership Strengths Questionnaire is designed to measure your strengths in the areas of
implementation, innovation, encouragement, analysis, and mediation. By assessing the rank order
of your scores, you can determine the areas in which you have the greatest strengths and the areas
in which you are weaker. A high score in a certain area indicates where you are strong; a low score
shows where you are weak. As discussed in this chapter, every person has multiple strengths. In
addition to the strengths revealed by the Leadership Strengths Questionnaire, you may wish to
complete other strengths assessments to obtain a more complete picture of all of your strengths.
If your score is 26–30, you are in the very high range.
If your score is 21–25, you are in the high range.
If your score is 16–20, you are in the moderate range.
If your score is 11–15, you are in the low range.
If your score is 6–10, you are in the very low range.
Improve Your Leadership Skills
If you have the interactive eBook version of this text, log in to access the interactive leadership
assessment. After completing this chapter’s questionnaire, you will receive individualized feedback
and practical suggestions for further strengthening your leadership based on your responses in this
questionnaire.
Visit edge.sagepub.com/northouseintro4e for a downloadable version of this questionnaire.
3.3 Observational Exercise
Strengths
Purpose
1. To learn to recognize people’s strengths
2. To gain an understanding of the role of strengths in the leadership process
Directions
1. In this exercise, your task is to observe a leader in action. The leader can be a teacher, a
supervisor, a coach, a manager, or anyone who has a position that involves leadership.
2. Based on your observations of the leader in action, identify areas in which the leader has
strengths and areas in which the followers have strengths.
92
Questions
1. Based on the virtue-based strengths listed in Table 3.3, identify two strengths you observed
the leader exhibit. How did these strengths affect his or her followers?
2. Discuss what strengths group members appeared to exhibit and how these strengths may
complement or distract from the leader’s leadership.
3. Do you think the followers in this situation would feel comfortable expressing their own
strengths to others? Discuss.
4. If you were coaching the leader in this situation, what specific things could she or he do to
create a positive environment where the expression of people’s strengths was welcomed?
Visit edge.sagepub.com/northouseintro4e for a downloadable version of this exercise.
3.4 Reflection and Action Worksheet
Strengths
Reflection
1. For this exercise, you are being asked to interview several people you know about your
strengths. Instructions:
First, identify three people (e.g., friends, coworkers, colleagues, family members)
from whom you feel comfortable asking for feedback about yourself.
Second, ask each of these individuals to do the following:
1. Think of a time or situation when they saw you at your best
2. Tell a brief story about what you were doing
3. Describe why they thought you were performing well in this situation
4. Based on this story, describe what unique benefits you offered others in this
situation
Third, from the answers the individuals gave, identify two or three recurring themes.
These themes represent your strengths.
2. What is your reaction to what others (in Step 1) have identified as your strengths? Are the
strengths others identified about you consistent with your own perceptions of your
strengths? In what way are they consistent with your scores on the Leadership Strengths
Questionnaire?
3. This chapter suggests that it is important for leaders to reveal their strengths to others. As a
leader, how do you feel about disclosing your strengths to others? How do you react when
others express their strengths to you?
Action
1. Based on the questionnaire in this chapter and your own insights, create a business card for
yourself that lists your five signature strengths.
2. Of the four domains of leadership strengths (see Table 3.2), which are your strongest?
Describe how you could solicit support from followers to complement these areas of
strength.
3. Imagine you are the leader of a classroom group required to do a semester-long service
learning project. Identify and discuss specific things you could do to create a positive
climate, positive relationships, positive communication, and positive meaning.
93
Visit edge.sagepub.com/northouseintro4e for a downloadable version of this worksheet.
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4 Understanding Philosophy and Styles
Introduction
What is your philosophy of leadership? Are you an in-charge type of leader who
closely monitors followers? Or are you a laid-back type of leader who gives followers
a lot of rein? Whether you are one or the other or somewhere in between, it is
important to recognize your personal philosophy of leadership. This philosophy affects
how others respond to you, how they respond to their work, and, in the end, how
effective you are as a leader.
What Does “Philosophy of Leadership” Mean?
In this chapter, we will discuss how a person’s view of people, work, and human
nature forms a personal philosophy of leadership. In addition, this chapter will
examine how that philosophy is demonstrated in three of the most commonly observed
styles of personal leadership: the authoritarian, democratic, and laissez-faire styles. We
will discuss the nature of these styles and the implications each has for effective
leadership performance.
Leadership Philosophy Explained
Each of us approaches leadership with a unique set of beliefs and attitudes about the
nature of people and the nature of work. This is the basis for our philosophy of
leadership. For example, some think people are basically good and will happily work
if given the chance. Others think people are prone to be a bit lazy and need to be
nudged to complete their work. These beliefs about people and work have a significant
impact on an individual’s leadership style and probably come into play in every aspect
of a person’s leadership.
Understanding Leadership Philosophy
Do you think people like work, or do you think people find work unpleasant? This was
one of the central questions addressed by Douglas McGregor in his famous book The
Human Side of Enterprise (1960). McGregor believed that managers need to
understand their core assumptions about human nature and assess how these
assumptions relate to their managerial practice.
In particular, McGregor was interested in how managers view the motivations of
workers and their attitudes toward work. He believed that understanding these
motivations was central to knowing how to become an effective manager. To explain
the ways that managers approach workers, McGregor proposed two general theories—
Theory X and Theory Y. McGregor believed that by exploring the major assumptions
of each of these theories people could develop a better understanding of their own
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viewpoints on human behavior and the relationship of these viewpoints to their
leadership style. Below is a description of both theories. As you read, ask yourself if
the assumptions of the theory are consistent or inconsistent with your own attitudes
and philosophy of leadership.
Theory X
Theory X is made up of three assumptions about human nature and human behavior
(see Table 4.1). Taken together, these assumptions represent a philosophy of leadership
that many leaders exhibit to one degree or another.
Assumption #1. The average person dislikes work and
will avoid it if possible.
This assumption argues that people do not like work; they view it as unpleasant,
distasteful, or simply a necessary evil. According to this assumption, if given the
chance, people would choose not to work. An example of this assumption is the
worker who says, “I only go to work to be P-A-I-D. If I didn’t need to pay my bills, I
would never work.” People with this philosophy would avoid work if they could.
Table 4.1
Theory X
Assumption #2. People need to be direct and controlled.
This assumption is derived directly from the first assumption. Since people naturally
do not like work, management needs to set up a system of incentives and rewards
regarding work that needs to be accomplished because workers are often unwilling or
unable to motivate themselves. This assumption says that without external direction
and incentives people would be unmotivated to work. An example of this is the high
school teacher who persuades students to hand in homework assignments by
threatening them with bad grades. The teacher forces students to perform because the
teacher thinks that the students are unwilling to do it or incapable of doing it without
that force being applied. From the perspective of Theory X, leaders play a significant
role in encouraging others to accomplish their work.
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Assumption #3. People want security, not responsibility.
The picture this assumption paints is of workers who want their leaders to take care of
them, protect them, and make them feel safe. Because it is too difficult to set their own
goals, workers want management to do it for them. This can only happen when
managers establish the guidelines for workers. An example of this assumption can be
observed at a fast-food restaurant where the employees only have to focus on
completing the specific tasks set before them (e.g., cleaning the shake machines or
making fries) and are not required to take initiative on their own. In general, many
fast-food restaurant workers are not required to accept many challenging
responsibilities. Instead, they are told what to do, and how and when to do it.
Consistent with this assumption, this example highlights how some workers are not
ambitious but want job security above everything else.
So what does it mean if a person’s personal leadership style or philosophy is similar to
Theory X? It means these leaders have a tendency to view workers as lazy and
uninterested in work because they do not value work. As a result, Theory X leaders
tend to be directive and controlling. They supervise followers closely and are quick to
both praise and criticize them as they see fit. At times, these leaders remind workers of
their goal (e.g., to be P-A-I-D) or threaten them with punishment to persuade them to
accomplish tasks. As the person in charge, a Theory X leader sees his or her leadership
role as instrumental in getting the job done. Theory X leaders also believe it is their
role to motivate followers because these workers have little self-motivation. Because
of this belief, these leaders take on the responsibility for their followers’ actions. From
the Theory X perspective, it is clear that followers have a need for leadership.
Theory Y
Like Theory X, Theory Y is based on several specific assumptions about human
nature and behavior (see Table 4.2). Taken together, the assumptions of Theory Y
present a distinctly different perspective from the ideas set forth in Theory X. It is a
perspective that can be observed to a degree in many leaders today.
Theory X and Theory Y
Assumption #1. The average person does not inherently
dislike work. Doing work is as natural as play.
Rather than viewing work as a burden or bad, this assumption suggests people see
work as satisfying and not as a punishment. It is a natural activity for them. In fact,
given the chance, people are happy to work. An example of this can be seen in what
former president Jimmy Carter has done in his retirement. He has devoted much of his
time and energy to constructing homes throughout the United States and around the
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world with Habitat for Humanity. Certainly, the former president does not need to
work: He does so because work is natural for him. All his life, Carter has been used to
making a contribution to the well-being of others. Working with Habitat for Humanity
is another opportunity for him to contribute. Some people view work as a natural part
of their lives.
Assumption #2. People will show responsibility and self-
control toward goals to which they are committed.
As opposed to Theory X, which suggests that people need to be supervised and
controlled, Theory Y suggests that people can and will make a conscious choice to
work on their own.
Table 4.2
People can be committed to the objectives of their work. Consider some examples
from the sports world. Successful athletes are often highly committed to their goals
and usually do not need to be controlled or supervised closely. Coaches design training
plans for these athletes, but the athletes do the work themselves. A successful long-
distance runner does not need to be pushed to run 60 training miles a week in
preparation for a marathon because the runner is already motivated to run long
distances. Similarly, an Olympic swimmer does not need to be forced to do daily 3-
mile pool workouts at 5:00 A.M. because the swimmer chooses to do this
independently of any coach’s urging. These athletes are self-directed because they are
committed to their goals. This is the point of Theory Y. When people can find
commitment in their work, they will work without needing leaders to motivate or
cajole them. Put another way, when people have a passion for their work, they will do
it even without outside direction.
Assumption #3. In the proper environment, the average
person learns to accept and seek responsibility.
While Theory X argues that people lack ambition, prefer to be directed, and want
security, Theory Y assumes that the average person is inherently resourceful and, if
given the chance, will seek to take responsibility. If given the chance, people have the
capacity to engage in a wide range of goal-setting and creative problem-solving
activities. Theory Y argues that, given the opportunity, people will act independently
and be productive.
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For example, two university students working in the main stacks section of the library
were required to complete a checklist whenever they worked to be sure that they
correctly carried out various sorting and shelving activities. The checklist was long,
cumbersome, and repetitious, however. Frustrated by the checklist, the students took it
upon themselves to design an entirely new, streamlined checklist. The new checklist
for sorting and shelving was very clear and concise, and was playful in appearance.
After reviewing the checklist and giving it a short trial period, management at the
library adopted the new checklist and required that it be implemented throughout the
entire library. In this example, library management provided an environment where
students felt comfortable suggesting a rather major change in how their work was to be
completed. In addition, management was willing to accept and adopt a student-
initiated work change. It is not unrealistic to imagine that these students will be more
confident initiating ideas or taking on new challenges in other work settings in the
future.
So if a leader’s philosophy of leadership is similar to Theory Y, what does it mean? It
means that the leader views people as capable and interested in working. Even though
Theory Y leaders may define work requirements, they do not try to control workers.
To these leaders, followers are not lazy; on the contrary, they naturally want to work.
In addition, these leaders do not think they need to try to motivate followers or make
them work since workers are capable of motivating themselves. Using coercion or
external reinforcement schemes is not a part of their leadership repertoire. Theory Y
leaders are very attuned to helping followers find their passion for what they want to
do. These leaders know that when followers are committed to their work, they are
more motivated to do the job. Allowing followers to seek and accept responsibilities
on their own comes easily for Theory Y leaders. In short, Theory Y leadership means
supporting followers without the need to direct or control them.
In the late 1970s and 1980s, a new leadership theory tangentially related to Theory X
and Theory Y was developed by William Ouchi (1981). Ouchi contrasted the
collectivistic culture of Japanese companies—which had begun to dominate markets,
especially in automobiles and electronics—with the individualism stressed in
American organizations and developed an approach that was a hybrid of the two called
Theory Z. A Theory Z organization is one that emphasizes common cultural values,
beliefs, and objectives among its members with a focus on communication,
collaboration, and consensual decision making. At the same time, some of the
individualistic values of American organizations are also incorporated. Theory Z
organizations still maintain formal authority structures and an emphasis on individual
contributions and recognizing individual achievements. However, the individual
decision making of the leader that is found in both Theory X and Theory Y is not a
characteristic of a Theory Z organization.
Leadership in Challenging Times
In summary, all of us maintain certain basic beliefs and assumptions about human
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nature and work that form our leadership philosophy. The next section discusses how
that philosophy impacts your behaviors as a leader, or your leadership style. Whether a
person’s philosophy is similar to Theory X or similar to Theory Y, it affects his or her
style of leadership. The challenge is to understand the philosophical underpinnings of
your own leadership style.
Leadership Styles Explained
What behaviors do you exhibit as a leader? Do you like to be in control and keep up
on the activities of your followers? Or do you believe in a more hands-off approach in
leading others, letting them make decisions on their own?
Whatever your behaviors are as a leader, they are indicative of your leadership style.
Leadership style is defined as the behaviors of leaders, focusing on what leaders do
and how they act. This includes leaders’ actions toward followers in a variety of
contexts. As noted in the previous section, your leadership style is driven by your
personal leadership philosophy. In the following section, we discuss the most
commonly observed leadership styles associated with Theory X and Theory Y:
authoritarian, democratic, and laissez-faire. While none of these styles emerges
directly from Theory X or Theory Y, the authoritarian and democratic styles closely
mirror the ideas set forth in these theories, respectively.
Styles of Leaders and Managers
The primary work on styles of leadership was by Lewin, Lippitt, and White (1939),
who analyzed the impact of various leadership styles on small group behavior. Using
groups of 10-year-old boys who met after school to engage in hobby activities, the
researchers analyzed what happened when their adult leaders used one of three styles:
authoritarian, democratic, or laissez-faire. The groups of boys experienced each of the
three styles of leadership for a six-week period.
The outcome of the study by Lewin and colleagues was a detailed description of the
nature of the leadership behaviors used for each of the three styles (White & Lippitt,
1968). They also described the impact each of these three styles had on group
members.
The following sections describe and elaborate on their findings and the implications of
using each of these leadership styles. Be aware that these styles are not distinct entities
(e.g., like personality traits). They overlap each other. That is, a leader can demonstrate
more than one style in any given situation. For example, a leader may be authoritarian
about some issues and democratic about others, or a leader may be authoritarian at
some points during a project and democratic at others. As leaders, we may display
aspects of all of these styles.
Authoritarian Leadership Style
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In many ways, the authoritarian leadership style is very similar to Theory X. For
example, authoritarian leaders perceive followers as needing direction. The
authoritarian leader needs to control followers and what they do. Authoritarian leaders
emphasize that they are in charge, exerting influence and control over group members.
They determine tasks and procedures for group members but may remain aloof from
participating in group discussions. Authoritarian leaders do not encourage
communication among group members; instead, they prefer that communication be
directed to them. In evaluating others, authoritarian leaders give praise and criticism
freely, but it is given based on their own personal standards rather than based on
objective criticism.
Some have argued that authoritarian leadership represents a rather pessimistic,
negative, and discouraging view of others. For example, an authoritarian leader might
say something like “Because my workers are lazy, I need to tell them what to do.”
Others would argue that authoritarian leadership is a much-needed form of leadership
—it serves a positive purpose, particularly for people who seek security above
responsibility. In many contexts, authoritarian leadership is used to give direction, set
goals, and structure work. For example, when employees are just learning a new job,
authoritarian leadership lets them know the rules and standards for what they are
supposed to do. Authoritarian leaders are very efficient and successful in motivating
others to accomplish work. In these contexts, authoritarian leadership is very useful.
The Authoritarian Leadership Style
What are the outcomes of authoritarian leadership? Authoritarian leadership has both
pluses and minuses. On the positive side, it is efficient and productive. Authoritarian
leaders give direction and clarity to people’s work and accomplish more in a shorter
period. Furthermore, authoritarian leadership is useful in establishing goals and work
standards. On the negative side, it fosters dependence, submissiveness, and a loss of
individuality. The creativity and personal growth of followers may be hindered. It is
possible that, over time, followers will lose interest in what they are doing and become
dissatisfied with their work. If that occurs, authoritarian leadership can create
discontent, hostility, and even aggression.
In addition, authoritarian leadership can become abusive leadership, where these
leaders use their influence, power, and control for their personal interests or to coerce
followers to engage in unethical or immoral activities. For example, a coach who
withholds playing time from athletes who openly disagree with his play calls or a boss
who requires salaried employees to work up to 20 hours of overtime each week or “be
replaced with someone who will” are both examples of the dark side of authoritarian
leadership.
While the negative aspects of authoritarian leadership appear to outweigh the positive,
it is not difficult to imagine contexts where authoritarian leadership would be the
preferred style of leadership. For example, in a busy hospital emergency room, it may
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be very appropriate for the leader in charge of triaging patients to be authoritarian with
various types of emergencies. The same could be true in other contexts, such as the
chaperone of a middle school canoe trip, or the coach of a high school team during the
state finals basketball tournament. Despite the negatives of authoritarian leadership,
this form of leadership is common and necessary in many situations.
Democratic Leadership Style
The democratic leadership style strongly resembles the assumptions of Theory Y.
Democratic leaders treat followers as fully capable of doing work on their own. Rather
than controlling followers, democratic leaders work with followers, trying hard to treat
everyone fairly, without putting themselves above followers. In essence, they see
themselves as guides rather than as directors. They give suggestions to others, but
never with any intention of changing them. Helping each follower reach personal
goals is important to a democratic leader. Democratic leaders do not use “top-down”
communication; instead, they speak on the same level as their followers. Making sure
everyone is heard is a priority. They listen to followers in supportive ways and assist
them in becoming self-directed. In addition, they promote communication between
group members and in certain situations are careful to draw out the less-articulate
members of the group. Democratic leaders provide information, guidance, and
suggestions, but do so without giving orders and without applying pressure. In their
evaluations of followers, democratic leaders give objective praise and criticism.
The Democratic Leadership Style
The outcomes of democratic leadership are mostly positive. First, democratic
leadership results in greater group member satisfaction, commitment, and
cohesiveness. Second, under democratic leadership there is more friendliness, mutual
praise, and group mindedness. Followers tend to get along with each other and
willingly participate in matters of the group, making more “we” statements and fewer
“I” statements. Third, democratic leadership results in stronger worker motivation and
greater creativity. People are motivated to pursue their own talents under the
supportive structure of democratic leadership. Finally, under a democratic leader group
members participate more and are more committed to group decisions. The downside
of democratic leadership is that it takes more time and commitment from the leader.
Work is accomplished, but not as efficiently as if the leader were authoritarian.
Laissez-Faire Leadership Style
The laissez-faire leadership style is dissimilar to both Theory X and Theory Y.
Laissez-faire leaders do not try to control followers as Theory X leaders do, and they
do not try to nurture and guide followers as Theory Y leaders do. Laissez-faire stands
alone as a style of leadership; some have labeled it nonleadership. The laissez-faire
leader is a nominal leader who engages in minimal influence. As the French phrase
implies, laissez-faire leadership means the leader takes a “hands-off, let it ride”
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attitude toward followers. These leaders recognize followers but are very laid back and
make no attempt to influence their activities. Under laissez-faire leadership, followers
have freedom to do pretty much what they want to do whenever they want to do it.
Laissez-faire leaders make no attempt to appraise or regulate the progress of followers.
Destructive Laissez-Faire Leadership
Given that laissez-faire leadership involves nominal influence, what are the effects of
laissez-faire leadership? Laissez-faire leadership tends to produce primarily negative
outcomes. The major effect is that very little is accomplished under a laissez-faire
leader. Because people are directionless and at a loss to know what to do, they tend to
do nothing. Giving complete freedom results in an atmosphere that most followers
find chaotic. Followers prefer some direction; left completely on their own, they
become frustrated. Without a sense of purpose and direction, group members have
difficulty finding meaning in their work; they become unmotivated and disheartened.
As a result, productivity goes down.
The Laissez-Faire Leadership Style
However, there are situations where the laissez-faire style is successful. People who
are self-starters, who excel at individualized tasks and don’t require ongoing feedback,
may prefer working under laissez-faire leaders.
For example, Angela is the president of a website development company who uses
independent contractors from across the globe. In certain respects, you could describe
her leadership style as laissez-faire. The programmers who develop the websites’ code
are in Poland, the designer is in India, the content writer is in the United Kingdom, and
Angela is in the United States. When developing a site, Angela maps out and
communicates the basic framework for the website and then relies on all of the
individual contractors to determine the tasks they need to do for the site’s
development. Because their tasks can be dependent upon another’s—for example, the
designer needs the programmers to write the code to make the page display graphics
and images in a certain way—they do communicate with one another, but because of
time zone differences, this is mostly done by email. As their leader, Angela is kept
apprised of issues and developments through an electronic project management system
they share, but because all of the contractors are experts at what they do and trust the
other team members to do what they do best, she lets them problem-solve issues and
concerns with one another and rarely gets involved.
While there are a few situations where laissez-faire leadership is effective, in a
majority of situations, it proves to be unsuccessful and unproductive.
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Leadership Snapshot: Victoria Ransom, Chief Executive, Wildfire
© Bloomberg/Contributor/Bloomberg/Getty Images
“I don’t believe in hierarchy or creating hierarchy. I believe in earning respect.”
That comes from Victoria Ransom, cofounder of social media software company Wildfire
Interactive, which grew from an idea to a company with 400 employees and 21,000 clients. The
company, which Ransom cofounded with Alain Chuard in 2008, helps companies reach customers
over social networks, and was acquired in 2012 by Google for $350 million.
Wildfire’s success is largely due to the leadership style and philosophy of Ransom, who serves as
the company’s chief executive. Ransom grew up in Scotts Ferry, a rural village in New Zealand
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where her father was an asparagus farmer and her mother was an office manager for a farming
equipment company. Ransom worked in the fields, and it was there that she learned the values of
hard work, leading by example, and humility that she brings to Wildfire.
Wildfire was actually an afterthought, created to solve a problem that Ransom and Chuard had
encountered in running the first company they had formed, Access Trips. Access Trips was an
adventure travel company that took small groups of travelers, ages 20–45, to remote destinations,
and Ransom and Chuard were looking for a way to promote Access Trips online by giving away a
trip on Facebook. They discovered, however, that no software existed to do what they wanted, so
they developed their own software to design sweepstakes, contests, or other promotions that could
run on Facebook.
The software, and Wildfire, was profitable within a year. Clients soon ranged from two-person
catering businesses to Sony and Unilever (Coster, 2012).
The company grew very quickly, which put Ransom’s values-based culture to the test.
“I’ve learned as the company grows, you’re only as good as the leaders you have underneath you,”
she says. “You might think that because you’re projecting our values, then the rest of the company
is experiencing the values. . . . [D]irect supervisors become the most important influence on people
in the company. Therefore, a big part of leading becomes your ability to pick and guide the right
people” (Bryant, 2013).
In order to find those right people, it was critical that Wildfire spell out its values and company
culture to employees from the outset. To do so, Ransom and Chuard identified what they valued in
the people at Wildfire and then met with all the employees in small groups to get their feedback on
these values. What resulted was a list of values that the company instilled and demonstrated:
passion, team player, humility, and integrity. Also on the list were having the courage to speak up
and curiosity.
“We really encourage people to constantly question, to stay on top of what’s happening in our
industry, to learn what other people in the company are doing. The hope was to break down these
walls of ‘them versus us,’” Ransom says (Bryant, 2013).
Ransom says a final value they identified was to “do good, and do right by each other” (Bryant,
2013).
The values a company purports to have, however, are not so readily maintained. Values and culture
have to be universally embraced, or they will crumble.
“I think the best way to undermine a company’s values is to put people in leadership positions who
are not adhering to the values,” Ransom says, noting that others begin to lose faith in the values.
“Until you take action and move those people out, and then everyone gets faith in the values again”
(Bryant, 2013).
Ransom says one way the company showed its values was when it would let employees go who
didn’t live up to the values. Making these hard decisions about people, even if they were good
performers, showed employees that “yeah, this company actually puts its money where its mouth
is” (Bryant, 2013).
Leadership Styles in Practice
Each leader has a unique style of leadership. Some are very demanding and assertive
while others are more open and participative. Similarly, some leaders could be called
micromanagers, while others could be labeled nondirective leaders. Whatever the case,
it is useful and instructive to characterize your leadership regarding the degree to
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which you are authoritarian, democratic, or laissez-faire.
Leadership and Collaboration
It is important to note that these styles of leadership are not distinct entities; it is best
to think of them as occurring along a continuum, from high leader influence to low
leader influence (see Figure 4.1). Leaders who exhibit higher amounts of influence are
more authoritarian. Leaders who show a moderate amount of influence are democratic.
Those who exhibit little to no influence are laissez-faire. Although we tend to exhibit
primarily one style over the others, our personal leadership styles are not fixed and
may vary depending on the circumstances.
Figure 4.1 Styles of Leadership
Consider what your results of the Leadership Styles Questionnaire on page 95 tell you
about your leadership style. What is your main style? Are you most comfortable with
authoritarian, democratic, or laissez-faire leadership? If you are the kind of leader who
likes to structure work, likes to lay out the ground rules for others, likes to closely
supervise your followers, thinks it is your responsibility to make sure followers do
their work, wants to be “in charge” or to know what others are doing, and believes
strongly that rewarding and punishing followers is necessary, then you are
authoritarian. If you are the kind of leader who seldom gives orders or ultimatums to
followers, instead trying to work with followers and help them figure out how they
want to approach a task or complete their work, then you are primarily democratic.
Helping each follower reach his or her own personal goals is important to a democratic
leader.
In some rare circumstances, you may find you are showing laissez-faire leadership.
Although not a preferred style, it is important to be aware when one is being laissez-
faire. Laissez-faire leaders take a very low profile to leadership. What followers
accomplish is up to them. If you believe that your followers will thrive on complete
freedom, then the laissez-faire style may be the right style for you. However, in most
situations, laissez-faire leadership hinders success and productivity.
Summary
All of us have a philosophy of leadership that is based on our beliefs about human
nature and work. Some leaders have a philosophy that resembles Theory X: They view
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workers as unmotivated and needing direction and control. Others have a philosophy
similar to Theory Y: They approach workers as self-motivated and capable of working
independently without strong direct influence from a leader.
Our philosophy of leadership is played out in our style of leadership. There are three
commonly observed styles of leadership: authoritarian, democratic, and laissez-faire.
Similar to Theory X, authoritarian leaders perceive followers as needing direction, so
they exert strong influence and control. Resembling Theory Y, democratic leaders
view followers as capable of self-direction, so they provide counsel and support.
Laissez-faire leaders leave followers to function on their own, providing nominal
influence and direction.
Effective leadership demands that we understand our philosophy of leadership and
how it forms the foundations for our style of leadership. This understanding is the first
step to becoming a more informed and competent leader.
Glossary Terms
authoritarian leadership style 83
democratic leadership style 85
laissez-faire leadership style 85
leadership style 82
philosophy of leadership 78
Theory X 78
Theory Y 80
Theory Z 82
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Application
4.1 Case Study: Many Managers, Different Styles
Vanessa Mills was recently hired to work at a branch of Lakeshore Bank as a personal banker. The
branch is very busy and has a large staff, including three on-site managers. As a new employee,
Vanessa is trying to figure out how to succeed as a personal banker while meeting the expectations
of her three very different managers.
Vanessa is paid a salary, but also receives a commission for activities including opening new
accounts and selling new services to customers such as credit cards, lines of credit, loans, and stock
accounts. Personal bankers are expected to open a certain number of accounts each month and
build relationships with customers by exploring their various banking needs and offering services
to meet those needs.
Marion Woods is one of the managers at Vanessa’s branch. She has worked for Lakeshore Bank for
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10 years and prides herself on the success of the branch. Marion openly talks about employees’
progress in terms of the number of accounts opened or relationships established, and then
commends or scolds people depending on their productivity. Marion stresses to Vanessa the
importance of following procedures and using the scripts that Marion provides to successfully
convince customers to open new accounts or accept new services with the bank.
As a new banker, Vanessa has not opened many accounts and feels very uncertain about her
competence. She is intimidated by Marion, believing that this manager is continually watching and
evaluating her. Several times Marion has publically criticized Vanessa, commenting on her
shortcomings as a personal banker. Vanessa tries hard to get her sales numbers up so she can keep
Marion off her back.
Bruce Dexter, another manager at Vanessa’s branch, has been with Lakeshore Bank for 14 years.
Bruce started out as a teller and worked his way up to branch manager. As a manager, Bruce is
responsible for holding the bank staff’s Monday morning meetings. At these staff meetings, Bruce
relays the current numbers for new accounts as well as the target number for new accounts. He also
lists the number of new relationships the personal bankers have established. After the meetings,
Bruce retreats back into his office where he sits hidden behind his computer monitor. He rarely
interacts with others. Vanessa likes when Bruce retreats into his office because she does not have to
worry about having her performance scrutinized. However, sometimes when Vanessa is trying to
help customers with a problem that falls outside of her banking knowledge, she is stressed because
Bruce does not provide her with any managerial support.
The third manager at the branch is Heather Atwood. Heather just started at Lakeshore Bank within
the last year, but worked for nine years at another bank. Vanessa finds Heather to be very helpful.
She often pops in when Vanessa is with a customer to introduce herself and make sure everything is
going well. Heather also allows Vanessa to listen in when she calls disgruntled customers or
customers with complicated requests, so Vanessa can learn how to manage these types of
interactions. Heather trusts her staff and enjoys seeing them grow, encouraging them by organizing
games to see who can open the most accounts and offering helpful feedback when customer
interactions do not go as planned. Vanessa is grateful for the advice and support she receives from
Heather, and looks up to her because she is competent and kind.
Vanessa is coming up on her three-month review and is very nervous that she might get fired based
on her low sales record and the negative feedback she has received from Bruce and Marion
regarding her performance. Vanessa decides to talk to Heather about her upcoming review and
what to expect. Heather assures Vanessa that she is doing fine and shows promise even if her
numbers have not reached that of a seasoned banker. Still, Vanessa is concerned about Bruce and
Marion. She has hardly had more than two conversations with Bruce and feels intimidated by
Marion who, she perceives, manages by running around barking numbers at people.
Questions
1. Based on the assumptions of Theory X and Theory Y, how would you describe each
manager’s philosophy and style of leadership? In what way do their attitudes about Vanessa
affect their leadership?
2. In this type of customer service setting, which leadership style would be most effective for
the bank to meet its goals? From the bank’s perspective, which (if any) manager exhibits the
most appropriate leadership? Discuss.
3. What advice would you give to each of the managers to enhance their leadership skills
within the bank?
4. What do you think Vanessa can do to prepare herself for her three-month review?
4.2 Leadership Styles Questionnaire
Purpose
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1. To identify your style of leadership
2. To examine how your leadership style relates to other styles of leadership
Directions
1. For each of the statements below, circle the number that indicates the degree to which you
agree or disagree.
2. Give your immediate impressions. There are no right or wrong answers.
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Scoring
1. Sum the responses on items 1, 4, 7, 10, 13, and 16 (authoritarian leadership).
2. Sum the responses on items 2, 5, 8, 11, 14, and 17 (democratic leadership).
3. Sum the responses on items 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, and 18 (laissez-faire leadership).
Total Scores
Authoritarian Leadership ________
Democratic Leadership _________
Laissez-Faire Leadership ________
Scoring Interpretation
This questionnaire is designed to measure three common styles of leadership: authoritarian,
democratic, and laissez-faire. By comparing your scores, you can determine which styles are most
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dominant and least dominant in your own style of leadership.
If your score is 26–30, you are in the very high range.
If your score is 21–25, you are in the high range.
If your score is 16–20, you are in the moderate range.
If your score is 11–15, you are in the low range.
If your score is 6–10, you are in the very low range.
Improve Your Leadership Skills
If you have the interactive eBook version of this text, log in to access the interactive leadership
assessment. After completing this chapter’s questionnaire, you will receive individualized feedback
and practical suggestions for further strengthening your leadership based on your responses in this
questionnaire.
Visit edge.sagepub.com/northouseintro4e for a downloadable version of this questionnaire.
4.3 Observational Exercise
Leadership Styles
Purpose
1. To become aware of authoritarian, democratic, and laissez-faire styles of leadership
2. To compare and contrast these three styles
Directions
1. From all of the coaches, teachers, music directors, or managers you have had in the past 10
years, select one who was authoritarian, one who was democratic, and one who was laissez-
faire.
Authoritarian leader (name)
__________________________________________________
Democratic leader (name)
__________________________________________________
Laissez-faire leader (name)
__________________________________________________
2. On another sheet of paper, briefly describe the unique characteristics of each of these
leaders.
Questions
1. What differences did you observe in how each leader tried to influence you?
2. How did the leaders differ in their use of rewards and punishment?
3. What did you observe about how others reacted to each leader?
4. Under which leader were you most productive? Why?
Visit edge.sagepub.com/northouseintro4e for a downloadable version of this exercise.
4.4 Reflection and Action Worksheet
113
Leadership Styles
Reflection
1. As you reflect on the assumptions of Theory X and Theory Y, how would you describe your
own philosophy of leadership?
2. Of the three styles of leadership (authoritarian, democratic, and laissez-faire), what style
comes easiest for you? Describe how people respond to you when you use this style.
3. One of the aspects of democratic leadership is to help followers take responsibility for
themselves. How do you assess your own ability to help others help themselves?
Action
1. If you were to try to strengthen your philosophy of leadership, what kinds of changes would
you have to make in your assumptions about human nature and work?
2. As you look at your results on the Leadership Styles Questionnaire, what scores would you
like to change? What would you have to do to make those changes?
3. List three specific activities you could use to improve your leadership style.
4. If you make these changes, what impact will this have on others?
Visit edge.sagepub.com/northouseintro4e for a downloadable version of this worksheet.
References
Bryant, A. (2013, January 26). If supervisors respect the values, so will everyone else.
The New York Times. Retrieved from
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/27/business/victoria-ransom-of-wildfire-on-
instilling-a-companys-values.html?_r=0
Coster, H. (2012, October 19). Victoria Ransom’s wild ride. Fortune. Retrieved from
http://tech.fortune.cnn.com/2012/10/19/victoria-ransom-wildfire/
Lewin, K., Lippitt, R., & White, R. K. (1939). Patterns of aggressive behavior in
experimentally created “social climates.” Journal of Social Psychology, 10,
271–299.
McGregor, D. (1960). The human side of enterprise. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
Ouchi, W. G. (1981). Theory Z: How American business can meet the Japanese
challenge. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.
White, R., & Lippitt, R. (1968). Leader behavior and member reaction in three “social
climates.” In D. Cartwright & A. Zander (Eds.), Group dynamics (pp. 318–335).
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New York, NY: Harper & Row.
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5 Attending to Tasks and Relationships
Introduction
Most people would agree that good doctors are experts at treating disease and, at the
same time, care about their patients. Similarly, good teachers are informed about the
subject matter and, at the same time, are sensitive to the personal lives of their
students. In leadership, the same is true. Good leaders understand the work that needs
to be done and, at the same time, can relate to the people who help them do the job.
When we look at what leaders do—that is, at their behaviors—we see that they do two
major things: (1) They attend to tasks, and (2) they attend to their relationships with
people. The degree to which leaders are successful is determined by how these two
behaviors are exhibited. Situations may differ, but every leadership situation needs a
degree of both task and relationship behaviors.
Which Behaviors Are Central to Leadership?
Through the years, many articles and books have been written on how leaders behave
(Blake & McCanse, 1991; Kahn, 1956; Misumi, 1985; Stogdill, 1974). A review of
these writings underscores the topic of this chapter: The essence of leadership
behavior has two dimensions—task behaviors and relationship behaviors. Certain
circumstances may call for strong task behavior, and other situations may demand
strong relationship behavior, but some degree of each is required in every situation.
Because these dimensions are inextricably tied together, it is the leader’s challenge to
integrate and optimize the task and relationship dimensions in his or her leadership
role.
Task and Relationship Theories
One way to explore our own task and relationship perspectives on leadership is to
explore our personal styles in these two areas. All of us have developed unique habits
regarding work and play, which have been ingrained over many years, probably
beginning as far back as elementary school. Rooted in the past, these habits regarding
work and play form a very real part of who we are as people and of how we function.
Many of these early habits stay with us over the years and influence our current styles.
Analyzing Leadership Styles
In considering your personal style, it is helpful to describe in more detail your task-
oriented and relationship-oriented behaviors. What is your inclination toward tasks
and relationships? Are you more work oriented or people oriented in your personal
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life? Do you find more rewards in the process of “getting things done” or in the
process of relating to people? We all have personal styles that incorporate some
combination of work and play. Completing the Task and Relationship Questionnaire
on page 113 can help you identify your personal style. Although these descriptions
imply that individuals have either one style or the other, it is important to remember
that each of us exhibits both behaviors to some degree.
Task and Relationship Styles Explained
Task Style
Task-oriented people are goal oriented. They want to achieve. Their work is
meaningful, and they like things such as to-do lists, calendars, and daily planners.
Accomplishing things and doing things is the raison d’être for this type of person. That
is, these individuals’ reason for being comes from doing. Their “in-box” is never
empty. On vacations, they try to see and do as much as they possibly can. In all
avenues of their lives, they find meaning in doing.
In his book titled Work and Love: The Crucial Balance (1980), psychiatrist Jay
Rohrlich showed how work can help people organize, routinize, and structure their
lives. Doing tasks gives people a sense of control and self-mastery. Achievement
sharpens our self-image and helps us define ourselves. Reaching a goal, like running a
race or completing a project, makes people feel good because it is a positive
expression of who they are.
Some clear examples of task-oriented people include those who use color codes in
their daily planners, who have sticky notes in every room of their house, or who, by
10:00 on Saturday morning, have washed the car, done the laundry, and cleaned the
apartment. Task-oriented people also are likely to make a list for everything, from
grocery shopping to the series of repetitions in their weight-lifting workouts. Common
to all of these people is their interest in achieving the goal and accomplishing the
work.
Relationship Style
Relationship-oriented people differ from task-oriented people because they are not as
goal directed. The relationship-oriented person finds meaning in being rather than in
doing. Instead of seeking out tasks, relationship-oriented people want to connect with
people. They like to celebrate relationships and the pleasures relationships bring.
Relationship Style
Furthermore, relationship-oriented people often have a strong orientation in the
present. They find meaning in the moment rather than in some future objective to be
accomplished. In a group situation, sensing and feeling the company of others is
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appealing to these people. They have been described by some as “relationship
junkies.” They are the people who are the last to turn off their cell phones as the
airplane takes off and the first to turn the phones back on when the airplane lands.
Basically, they are into connectedness.
In a work setting, the relationship-oriented person wants to connect or attach with
others. For example, the relationship-oriented person would not be afraid to interrupt
someone who was working hard on a task to talk about the weather, sports, or just
about anything. When working out a problem, relationship-oriented people like to talk
to and be associated with others in addressing the problem. They receive satisfaction
from being connected to other people. A task-oriented friend described a relationship-
oriented person perfectly when he said, “He is the kind of person who stands and talks
to you, coffee mug in hand, when you’re trying to do something like mow the lawn or
cover the boat.” The meaning in “doing” is just not paramount in the relationship-
oriented person’s style.
Leadership Snapshot: Mick Wilz, Director of Enterprise Excellence, Sur-Seal
© Terry Duffy
Innovation is key to survival in manufacturing, and Mick Wilz has the accolades to prove it. As the
director of enterprise excellence at Sur-Seal in Cincinnati, Ohio, Wilz made changes to the
manufacturing process that led to the company receiving the Excellence Award from the
Association for Manufacturing Excellence in 2012. Working within an industry where task and
routine are absolutely critical, it was actually Wilz’s unique relationship-oriented approach to those
tasks that made the most difference.
Wilz is dyslexic and finds reading, writing, and spelling to be very difficult. Not a lot was known
about this condition when he was growing up during the late 1950s and 1960s, and Wilz says his
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childhood was lonely and hard. But his mother was very supportive, advocating for him with
teachers and shifting him to five different grammar schools in order to find the best help.
After high school, Wilz began working in building maintenance at the family business, Sur-Seal, a
manufacturer of rubber and plastic gaskets. In the 1990s he became the company’s head of
operations, and in 2006 he took on the position of director of enterprise excellence charged with
reaching peak efficiencies in the manufacturing process. One of his efforts was to initiate a
redesign of the factory’s layout, moving