Management and leadership are two crucial parts of modern companies. The modern economy depends upon and is influenced by effective management solutions and leadership strategies. Management and leadership are concerned with setting goals, establishing policies and programs, and implementing business action for the entire firm. Management is defined as administrative and supervisory activity of an entity (Calvin 2003). Management is not simply a limited specialized activity of the commerce, but rather a perspective for the entire management team. Management sets up constraints within which the other activities must be performed. It reflects an integrated and coordinated method to the management of managerial activity, and the development of total systems of business achievement that recognize the marketplace as the focal point of business (Hartman et al 2007). Successful leaders have the gift for inspiring and motivating employees; they have vision and lift the spirit of employees to accomplish great ends. The release of human possibilities is an essential leadership goal. Still, it is significant to differentiate moral and just leadership from the character of despots who, by definition, are effective leaders if they accomplish their goals through persuasion. “The personality of the leader affects his or her ability to engage in actual leadership. Conger (2004) suggests that the personality characteristics of a leader including self-confidence, achievement drive, communication skills, and interpersonal competence affect their effectiveness as a leader” (Hartman et al 2007, p. 32).
Management, similar to leadership, is ethical. Managers mobilize and assign resources; they guarantee the continuing vitality of the staff; they generate and maintain appropriate procedures. They also manage, delegate, and coordinate resources, and they provide a system of incentives to encourage and support productive behavior. Managers and leaders establish reporting systems, perform evaluations, and allocate accountability. Common to both managers and leaders is the focus on the outcomes they produce, which are based on the goals they pursue. Managers and leaders call for the kind of attempt, restraint, drive, and discipline that result in effective performance. The traditional definitions of management and leadership have concentrated on and described the management process. What a manager or leader does is vital, but descriptions do not address the function or purpose of management. The principle of management is to produce positive outcomes. Leadership is more than leading employees. Indeed, it has many more components. Leadership is also routine administration, supervision, and knowledge of procedures, rules, and set of laws; for example, it requires cooperation techniques, cost control, and legal responsibilities (Hartman et al 2007). “Empathy predicted both task and relationship leadership, whereas cognitive intelligence and competent task performance predicted task leadership but not relationship leadership” (Hartman et al 2007, p. 34).
An important part of management and leadership is knowledge and understanding of progression and procedures, but a new definition should focus on the results to be achieved. Managerial success is measured by achievement, not by the process used to accomplish the results. Based on this results-oriented philosophy of management, the new definition of management focuses on outcome. For leadership, setting goals set up the pathway to positive results. Deciding what it is that you want to do is the goal-setting stage, doing it is the process, and accomplishing goals is the outcome or result. The manager’s responsibility is to produce positive results. Setting clear, challenging goals and then doing what is necessary to accomplish them is the daily process. Success will be measured by the degree to which a goal is accomplished, but alas, life is not this simple. Remember that managerial performance is not judged entirely in terms of success or failure. Rather, performance is measured in terms of progress in relation to the goal. The focus is on lessons learned, and learning is a core value. In this sense, success becomes a journey, rather than a destination (Kim 2002). The word “leadership” is appended to the word “management” to emphasize that leaders must lead the organization to the concentrates of customer needs and wants.
In sum, leadership is based on managerial principles and goals but it involves personality and charisma of a person. Leaders can work toward positive results. In this case, the role and responsibility of these managers is to develop moral and ethical; principles for the organization, while the task of managers is to introduce these principles into practice and control their fulfillment. Results are not the only thing, and the ends do- not justify all means. There are ethical limits. Criteria beyond effectiveness are needed. The strategic aims must be just, and there must be a moral responsibility to do what is right. Moral and ethical behavior patterns are a key element of positive results and success. Truthfulness suffers when managers and leaders demand or expect from their employees an exaggerated personal loyalty to mission. Contemporary business environment requires exceptional leadership skills and knowledge, flexibility and excellent communication skills. The supervisory role in organizations requires application of managerial skills and leadership attributes in order to maintain high quality standards and meet customer expectations and service demands.
References
Calvin, J. R., (2003). Leadership Networking and Active Transitions in the Workplace: Freedoms, Energy, and Transformative Relationships. SAM Advanced Management Journal, 68 (1), 42.
Hartman, N., Conklin, T., Smith, J. (2007). What Leaders Say versus What Academics Write: The Relevance of Leadership Theory. SAM Advanced Management Journal, 72 (2), 32.
Kim, S. (2002). Participative Management and Job Satisfaction: Lessons for Management Leadership. Public Administration Review, 62 (2), 76.