DEVELOPING STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT AND LEADERSHIP SKILLS Essay

IntroductionLeadership and management, these are two words we use on daily basis. But the questions like how do we realise good leaders, what qualities, attitude, style and behaviour do they exhibit, are frequent. The ability to lead is not connected to education, although most leaders what are intelligent people. Many qualities required for a leader are also possessed by managers.Although it is unique to everyone there are a total number of common ways.I think, by developing our leadership skills, we are assured a more rewarding and successful career. There is no doubt that, leadership potential can be developed. With commitment, effort and practice, anybody can move beyond the skills you how are born with to be an excellent leader.â€Å"The most dangerous leadership myth is that leaders are born—that there is a genetic factor to leadership.Leadership differs to direction.

Bennis. Globalisation has resulted in diversity. To maximise contribution, each organisation and its managers are now challenged with creating inclusive cold working environment. They need to understand effective leadership style and culture to build trust and effective relationship.There are various means of considering leadership, that vary extract from focusing on the character traits of leadership that is excellent to highlighting facets of the scenario that help determine how folks lead.The strategies how that were effective yesterday are not necessarily effective in the same situation today†-QuinnLook more:  strategic management process essayIn order to face the growing competition in the market, it is very urgent for organisations to build potential leader. Developing strategic management and leadership skills should be a part of organisations’ actions.1.1 Explain the link between strategic management wired and leadership Strategic Management consists of t he analysis of any organisation, decision making and necessary actions in order to create and sustain competitive advantages.It is merely one of many other assets a thriving manager must possess.

Usually it is considered as the responsibility for the overall direction of the organization sums up what strategic management is all about. It can consider also define as the process of identifying and executing the organisation’s strategic goals (mission, vision and objectives) by matching its capabilities with the demand of its environment.Strategic senior management contains a set of managerial decisions. Leadership is the ability of a person to get other willingly to follow.Its something which is accomplished when a individual motivates individuals in a group.Equally, a good leader free will also be a manager. Majority of practical people are interested primarily in what they have to do, and not whether it should be labelled ‘leadership’ or ‘management’ or both. â€Å"It is very true that I have said that I considered Napoleon’s presence in the field equal to forty thousand other men in the balance† —Duke of Wellington. Difference between strategic management and leadershipManagement| Leadership|Intended to plan, organize, co-ordinate and evaluate| Job is to inspire and motivate| management administrate the organisation| Leaders innovate | senior Management tries to maintain the organisation| Leaders tries to develop| Focused on system and structure| Focuses on people|They focus on the present situation | They look towards future| React to problems logical and issues| Proactive to issues and problem| Prefer to control| Knows how to delegate|Minimising risk| Taking risk|  There are thousands of examples for leaders in the world.Leadership and top management arent synonymous.

2 Analysis of impact of management and leadership styles on strategic decision There are different leadership and management styles. Different various styles work well in different situations. They are based on different assumptions and theories. Strategic decisions taken by leaders depend upon their style.Leaders that are supportive understand and good sense women and men feel.2. Democratic styleThe leader involves employees in the decision making. This kind of style is usually appreciated by the employees or subordinate. how This style would bring problems in a situation where there are wide ranges of opinion and there is no well-defined way of taking the first final decision.They also need to make sure they manage change effectively.

Transactional leadershipThe assumption behind this kind of leadership is that people how are motivated by rewards and an organisation work well with a clear chain of command. This kind of leader works thorough creating all clear structures. Subordinates duty  will be well defined and also the reward they get for following the orders. Punishments are not always mentioned, but they how are also well-understood and formal systems of discipline are usually in place.Your leaders are the best factor on your companys capability.Transformational leaderThis style is based on the assumption deeds that employees will follow a leader who motivates them and a person with vision and passion can achieve anything. Transformation strong leadership start with the development of a vision, a view and path to future. That will excite and converter the employees. Transformational religious leaders are so committed always.Youre a pioneer, even in case you dont know it.

Understanding the situation 3. Applying appropriate skills and techniques.Leaders having different styles empty can have different levels of key elements. So the way and level in which they identify their personality can differ."Every leader has a certain style of political leadership thats innate.Especially when a strategic decision needs to made quickly. The impact of this style is for many people, this style feels harsh, a first great possibility of demotivation. Rest of people  assured leader can demonstrate consideration and compassion for team while using the Autocratic style, even though the team is not directly involved in the decision. There are situations in which leader wants input from employees or teams.Leaders are common now.

There is a more common thought that leaders who listen considerately to their follower’s opinion before making final decision get good result as compared to non-listeners. In the case of democratic style, the leader gives up ownership and control of a decision and allows the group to vote. Advantage of this own style is fairly fast decision, and an amount of group participation. No organisation or leader can implement a single style to deal with the multitude of decision that needs to be made during change process (Nancy, 2007).It could mean the folks who own and short run the company.Charismatic leadership style got few drawbacks. The complaint against Lord Browne was administration by media and business associates fuelled his charismatic new style and he ignored day to day core business activities.1.3 How leadership styles can be adopted to different situations? Success of an political organisation or a group dependent on the effectiveness of the leader.When employees are empowered theyre more prone to make decisions which are at the very best interest of the particular client and the organization also.

Leaders must be up to date of the situations. Leaders must be prepared to step in and show the way in all kind of situations.Different style can be adapted to different situations in relation to 1. Business- situations 2.Are such far more likely to reveal their very own loyalty the moment it matters.We know that high risk situation needs very strong and active direct involvement by the leader to keep it control. The people or team members: – In every organisation, there will have different different kind of employees or members.Differ by characters, talents, skills, attitude etc. identifying the team members is a tough task.IT leadership theory Learn the best way to be.

He made a resolution to transform GE into one of the world biggest firm. With his unique leadership style and character, Welch made history during his 2-decade journey at GE. His way of leading was based on some concepts. Lead, not manage:- according to him political leadership can be found in as long as they come up with good ideas and can energize rather than depress and control.Face reality: – good company was losing its market values and there was too much bureaucracy when Jack Welch joined the company. He realised the social realities and brought out strategies and  initiatives that made things better. Simplify the business: – his goal at GE was simplify the business. He didn’t think deeds that business had to be complicated.It can mean opportunities, good ideas, new business or new products (kevin, 2007). Lead by more energizing others, not managing by authority: – Welch called his leadership ideal ‘boundary less’, which means an open organization, free of bureaucracy logical and anything that prevents the free flow of ideas, people and decisions (kevin, 2007). His choice was inspiring others to perform well. red Lead by doing- one of the leadership style adapted by GEInformation technology is critical to the future of GE.The basic assumption behind the theory is that individual characteristics’ make how them suitable leaders only in certain situations. Each situation requires a leader to vary behaviour to fit the conditions. In other words, there is no right or wrong way in leading all the time. Fred Fiedler’s contingency theoryIn 1967, Fred Fiedler proposed his contingency theory.

According to Fielder, the direct relationship oriented style is more effective in situations which are intermediate in favourableness. When an intermediate situation is present, the leader can self help to build confidence and cohesion by focusing on the personal needs of the individuals (Henman, 2007). Hersey and Blanchard theoryIt is another situational theory. This economic theory was introduced 10 year after Fiedler’s theory.That is, followers are not mature or immature in any total or chronological sense; rather, they have varying degrees of maturity depending on knowledge of or experience with a specific goal (Henman, 2007). Leader-style theoryThis theory was introduced by Vroom and Yetton. They explain the different ways leader can make decisions and necessary following guidelines for leader in order to determine the extent to which subordinate should participated in decision making. Charismatic leadershipCharisma, as explained by Max Weber, is a certain good qual ity of individual personality, by virtue of which he or she is apart from ordinary people and treated as a personality with exceptional power or qualities.An effective leader needs to diagnose the needs and wants of followers and then react accordingly.The impact of different theories of management on organisational strategy will be different. giant IBM needs extraordinary leaders who can create high-performance work climates and foster employee engagement; people who not only succeed but enable others to as well. A disciplined process of identifying and developing high achievers and leaders has been a main stone of IBM’s strategy to regain market political leadership in the IT industry.As Fiedler explained, task oriented leaders are very effective when conditions are favourable or unfavourable. When conditions are favourable, members relations how are strong, there is a positive relation between team and leader. Hence new strategies can bring and work it out well so easily. In unfavourable certain circumstances or in stressful situations, a leader’s structure and control can remove undesirable ambiguity and the anxiety that goes with it.

2.2 Create a leadership strategy that support organisational direction Leadership strategy for General ElectricsThe General Electric Company, or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in New York. Company operates in five sectors via energy, technology infrastructure, capital finance, consumer andindustrial.It old has been almost a decade since Jack Welch retired as GE’s chairman and CEO, the brain behind the success of GE.If we consider their way in which they lead, and how their decisions, it is clear that they preferred transformational leadership style. Even though both used the same style, Jack Welch had been more opposite extreme than his successor. Leadership strategy: – choosing a best leadership style is the major step in leadership strategy. Leadership at company such like GE is very crucial.It is concerned with emotions, values, ethics, standards, and long-term goals and includes assessing followers’ motives, satis fying their needs, and treating them as full human beings†- (Northouse). The reason behind the selection of this leadership style is this style motivates the followers. The leader and followers are full well aligned in this system. A transformational leader can motivate the followers by setting challenging goals.We have seen the different leadership style and their impact on organisation. Even though, no particular leadership style is better always. It depends on the situations. The best style GE can use is transformational leadership because of based its unique advantages.

The leaders should have collective capabilities like providing direction, motivate the followers, engaging employees in decision making and to gain their active support in implementing planned cross-functional actions, implementing successful innovations, adapting to change, ensuring transparency just like former leaders, developing talents logical and being responsive to customers like Jeffrey Immlet. Since the corporate strategy is becoming more global, it require greater cultural sensitivity among leaders, enhanced representation of different geographies at top level, enhanced language skills to enable cross cultural relationships and greater understanding of local laws and business arrangement in strategy making.3.1 Use appropriate different methods to review current leadership requirement We know the important of leaders.These programs build perfect foundation for accelerating  learning and development in a particular domain, from commercial to operations, from human res ources to information management, from finance and communications to modern technology (GE, Leadership Programs, 2013).There are more than 300,000 employees in GE. The company operates through different sector. GE consistently ranks as the most admired and respected new company in the world.CEO of GE believes that ideal situation for a global firm was to have its factory on a barge that you could first move around the world to wherever it was the best competitive environment at the time. Their strategy is to expand business globally, instead of just looking for alliances.Fast moving anti Globalisation opens new opportunities for a global firm like GE. Hence leadership requirement at GE is tremendous.But they need leaders not only in quantity great but also in quality.3.2 Plan for the development of future situations requiring leadership Requirement of leaders in the GE increases. Leaders are logical not only required in the top level but also in the various bottom levels also.

Leadership Programs: – GE has various leadership programs. As part of their strategy to achieve commercial excellence and drive organic growth, they are developing a pipeline of strong sales logical and marketing leaders at GE through  the Commercial Leadership Program (CLP).CLP offers a curriculum that boosts the development of commercial skills and various techniques that are critical to success in all GE businesses. CLP prepares candidates for a successful career in sales or first commercial operations by providing the opportunity to learn about GE’s products, industry, and customers while making valuable contributions to the on-going success of GE.As compared to their profit growth, they need more to build leadership qualities in their employees. Human resource leadership program: – In GE’s Human Resources Leadership Program people are gaining real-world business experience, contributing to GE businesses and getting in first line for HR leaders hip roles across the company.HRLPs can build countless HR leaders within GE. Experienced commercial leadership programs: – The Experienced Commercial Leadership Program (ECLP) prepares time MBA graduates and experienced professionals for GE leadership roles in marketing and sales.But under certain specific condition, they need specific skills. The more basic skill required for leaders are explained below.Integrity: – this is the basic quality of a leader. This quality makes people trust the leader.They can speak openly logical and accurately about their limitations. Self-regulation: – People who are in control of their feelings and sudden  temptation are able to create an environment of public trust and fairness. Appropriate self-regulators are usually thoughtful and resist making impulsive decisions. These are definite qualities of a good leader.

Communication skills: – to deliver leader’s idea properly, private communication skill is very necessary. A good communicator can pay attention and listen carefully. Lead by example: – One of the best ways to red lead is by example – use where needed, lending a helping hand, and making sure that the work you do is clearly understood by apply your team. Leadership skills strataplex: –Leadership skill requirements are often described as being stratified by organizational level.They are comprised of those skills related to basic cognitive capacities, such as collecting, processing, and disseminating information and learning and are the fundamental skills required for a large portion of the activities in which political leaders are engaged (Mumford, 2007) .These skills include skills like oral communication, written communication, ability to learn and adapt etc. 2. Interpersonal SkillsThese are skill relating to interacting keyword with and influe ncing others.Strategic SkillsStrategic skill requirements are highly conceptual skills needed to take a systems perspective to understand complexity, deal with ambiguity, and to  effect political influence in the organization (Mumford, 2007). This includes skills for planning, visioning etc. â€Å"Leaders are not born, they are grown†- this is the word by the heavenly father of management, Peter Drucker. Leadership ability is not an inborn skill most times.1. Entry level program or Commercial leadership program (CLP) is an example for it. The CLP is a 12 to 24 month program that develops marketing and sales skills through a strong very core curriculum and challenging assignments. 2.

The ECLP program consists of three, eight-month rotational assignments within the marketing and sales functions of one of GE’s businesses (GE, Experienced Program, 2013).4. normal Operation management Leadership program (OMLP): OMLP accelerates development of entry-level talent and produces leaders capable of meeting the challenges facing the Operations, Supply Chain, Manufacturing logical and Quality functions at GE (GE, Entry level program, 2013).4.Commercial leadership program (CLP) provides candidates with valuable training, personal experience and exposure to a team of motivated colleagues and helpful mentors that can accelerate their careers. HRLP (Human Resource Leadership program) has created countless generations of HR leaders at GE. The program continues today and still focuses on taking talented people, providing forgive them with globally diverse challenging experiences, and developing them into world-class HR leaders. Candidates will have formal training, ro tation, seminars, business molecular simulations and community service activities.Another way of developing leadership skills is to get familiar with your followers. It will great help you in understanding their feelings and their needs, which in turn will help you in managing preventing their needs. Different plan for the development leadership skills includes conducting seminar, training programs, meetings, job rotations etc.ConclusionThis assignment is used to explain the important link between strategic management and leadership.Style should be adapted according to the business situation, team members and culture of the organisation. Different leadership theories are discussed in the assignment. Situational theories and contingency theories have been applied. The situations in which different theories can be applied are explained.

In this competitive world, organisation best can only sustain if and only if they can bring strong leaders.There are different ways of enhancing the leadership skills for future requirements. And there should be a plan of developing these skills. The new plan should cover all the current and  future needs for leadership and is helpful in the overall progress of the organization.Leadership style : A powerful model. TJ. Derue, S. (2011).Entry level program. Retrieved 2013, from www.ge.com: http://www.Retrieved may 5, 2013, from www.ge.com: http://www.ge.

ge.com: http://www.ge.com/careers/culture/university-students/experienced-commercial-leadership-program/india GE.com: http://www.ge.com/careers/culture/university-students/experienced-commercial-leadership-program/india GE. (2013).ge.com/careers/culture/university-students/information-technology-leadership-program/india GE. (2013, January 1). Leadership Programs.com/in/careers/leadership_program/index.html Goleman, D. (2004). Leadership That Gets Result.