Communication and Leadership During Change

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The goal of leader development is "the expansion of the person's capacity to be effective in leadership roles and processes."[ attribution needed ] The two central elements to this are leadership can be learned, people do learn, grow, and change, leader development helps to make a person effective in a variety of formal and informal leadership roles. [1]

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Leader development promotes personal growth, helping individuals develop their abilities to manage themselves, to work effectively with others, and to ensure that the work gets done. Leadership development promotes organizational growth, helping the group as a whole develop the leaders it needs to carry out such tasks as securing the commitment of members and setting direction. [1]

Establishing connections with people who can help achieve someone's goals will increase your chances of emerging as a leader in an organizational context. A great deal of a leader's development happens internally. Leadership development is an "inside-out" process that starts within the leader and then moves outward to impact others.[ citation needed ] A leader's effectiveness is based on character principles like fairness, integrity, honesty, service, excellence, and growth. According to Stephen Covey's The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People , habits are a combination of knowledge (what to do and why to do it), skill (how to do it), and motivation (wanting to do it).

Spirituality has played a critical role in leaders development, helping them to make and follow through on their moral choices, develop virtues and character, identify their values and purpose, reaching job assignments and hardships. There are some common spiritual practices that promote leader effectiveness, such as

Self-leadership

Kevin Cashman argued that leadership should be looked at from within. [4] According to Cashman, leadership can be defined as the "authentic self-expression that creates value." [5] This form of leadership can be found at all levels within an organization. [6] He identifies seven pathways for individuals to lead from the inside out. Instead of a hierarchical order, these pathways are created holistically. [7]

Pathway One: Personal Mastery [6]

Pathway Two: Purpose Mastery [6]

Pathway Three: Change Mastery [6]

Pathway Four: Interpersonal Mastery [7]

Pathway Five: Being Mastery [7]

Pathway Six: Balance Mastery [7]

Pathway Seven: Action Mastery [6]

Leading followers through change

According to Klepper (1997), there are four main periods organizations go through when there is change within. The first is the Formative Period, when a new organization is just getting started. Although there is a founding vision, there are no formal definitions. This is just as well because normally there are a lot of experimentation and innovation taking place. These changes of creativity and discovery are needed to overcome obstacles and accomplish breakthroughs. The second period is Rapid Growth Period. Direction and coordination are added to the organization to sustain growth and solidify gains. Change is focused on defining the purpose of the organization and on the mainstream business. The third period is the Mature Period. The strong growth curve levels off to the overall pace of the economy. Changes are needed to maintain established markets and assuring maximum gains are achieved. The fourth and last period is the Declining Period. For many organizations it means downsizing and reorganization. To survive, changes include tough objectives and compassionate implementation. The goal is to get out of the old and into something new. Success in this period means that the four periods start over again. [8]

It is extremely important for leaders to be flexible and acceptable to change because it is inevitable. [9] In order to get through change, organizations need good leaders to help them guide through these tough times. It is vital that the leader keeps the core values of the company intact while they go through change to make sure that the company still meets the needs of it customers. Some leaders will take note of previous leaders and adopt certain things that were successful that those other leaders did when they went through change. The leader needs to keep the other employees focused during this change period. [10]

Communication and leadership as an internal process

According to Hackman and Johnson, communication is an integral part of the internal process of leaders. [1] Leaders must face many obstacles and challenging situations that can lead to personal growth. Much of the personal development that occurs for leaders is done as an internal process.

As they personally deal with issues, they make decisions that affect their lives and the lives of others. Intrapersonal communication plays an important role in the decision making process and for personal development of the leader. This communication does inwardly eventually manifests itself in outward effects.

Personal development as an internal process

Personal development is an important aspect of leadership. [11] The need for programs specializing in personal development is widely accepted across a variety of fields from science [12] to religion. [13]

Leadership programs focus on both the outward display or leadership and the inward attitudes, behaviors, and beliefs. Many of the authors of leadership books around the turn of the century began highlighting the internal process side of leadership development including Stephen Covey, author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, and Kevin Cashman, author of Leadership from the Inside Out. Both were widely successful best-sellers which focused on internal concepts such as "Being Proactive", Habit 1 in Covey's 7 Habits, [2] or "Personal Mastery", the first pathway in Cashman's Seven Pathways to Mastery. [3]

Role of intrapersonal communication

When leaders begin self-reflective analysis of themselves, they begin to engage in intrapersonal communication. Intrapersonal communication is defined as communication occurring within the individual mind or self. [14] It can be as simple as internal thoughts or more complex neurophysiological means of examining our self. [15] There is a long history of research on intrapersonal communication and its connection to internal development. [16] Individuals frequently engage in intrapersonal communication as a means of self-awareness and it is an internal process related to personal development. [17]

For leaders, there are many benefits for intrapersonal communication. Intrapersonal communication can increase self-awareness. [17] It can give the leader a better view of self. Research shows it is a means of overcoming communication apprehension, for both interpersonal and public communication. [18] These are some of the benefits for the leader who engages in intrapersonal communication as an internal process for personal development.

Innovative leadership and change

There is little peer-reviewed material on the intermingling of innovation and leadership. It is, however, very evident[ according to whom? ] that great innovation comes from great leaders. Steve Jobs is an example of one of the great technological innovators of our time.[ according to whom? ] As a new phenomenon and thought, many[ who? ] are seeking out how leadership effects innovation and vice versa. Many acknowledge the need for public sector support and societal support of innovation in order for funding to occur, and in turn, innovation to occur, [19] many universities are implementing innovation networks, and the necessity for unique and independent thinkers is apparent. Google says, "Our commitment to innovation depends on everyone being comfortable sharing ideas and opinions". [20]

Transformational leadership and innovation

Transformational leadership, a type of leadership that has an ability to change an organization, [1] would likely produce innovation. Since innovation is more than simply invention, the process of leadership can in and of itself be innovative. Innovation is a crucial part of being an effective and productive transformational leader. A transformational leader is creative, interactive, visionary, empowering, and passionate. [1] [21] The subordinates self-concept function determines how the follower will react to the leader. The capabilities and strengths of a leader to be a leader have a direct effect on an organization's success. [22] Oftentimes, leaders are not trained well in leadership development, leaving them unprepared to foster an environment of innovation. [22] An innovative leader is a transformational leader.[ according to whom? ]

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leadership</span> Quality of one individual or group influencing or guiding others based on authority

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Team Group linked in a common purpose

A team is a group of individuals working together to achieve their goal.

Organization development (OD) is the study and implementation of practices, systems, and techniques that affect organizational change, the goal of which is to modify an organization's performance and/or culture. The organizational changes are typically initiated by the group's stakeholders. OD emerged from human relations studies in the 1930s, during which psychologists realized that organizational structures and processes influence worker behavior and motivation. More recently, work on OD has expanded to focus on aligning organizations with their rapidly changing and complex environments through organizational learning, knowledge management, and transformation of organizational norms and values. Key concepts of OD theory include: organizational climate, organizational culture and organizational strategies.

Intrapersonal communication is the process by which an individual communicates within themselves, acting as both sender and receiver of messages, and encompasses the use of unspoken words to consciously engage in self-talk and inner speech.

Historically there have been differences among investigators regarding the definition of organizational culture. Edgar Schein, a leading researcher in this field, defined "organizational culture" as comprising a number of features, including a shared "pattern of basic assumptions" which group members have acquired over time as they learn to successfully cope with internal and external organizationally relevant problems. Elliott Jaques first introduced the concept of culture in the organizational context in his 1951 book The Changing Culture of a Factory. The book was a published report of "a case study of developments in the social life of one industrial community between April, 1948 and November 1950". The "case" involved a publicly-held British company engaged principally in the manufacture, sale, and servicing of metal bearings. The study concerned itself with the description, analysis, and development of corporate group behaviours.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stephen Covey</span> American educator, author, businessman and motivational speaker

Stephen Richards Covey was an American educator, author, businessman, and keynote speaker. His most popular book is The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. His other books include First Things First, Principle-Centered Leadership, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Families, The 8th Habit, and The Leader In Me: How Schools and Parents Around the World Are Inspiring Greatness, One Child at a Time. In 1996, Time magazine named him one of the 25 most influential people. He was a professor at the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business at Utah State University at the time of his death.

<i>The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People</i> Business and self-help book written by Stephen R. Covey

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Transformational leadership is a theory of leadership where a leader works with teams or followers beyond their immediate self-interests to identify needed change, creating a vision to guide the change through influence, inspiration, and executing the change in tandem with committed members of a group; This change in self-interests elevates the follower's levels of maturity and ideals, as well as their concerns for the achievement. it is an integral part of the Full Range Leadership Model. Transformational leadership is when leader behaviors influence followers and inspire them to perform beyond their perceived capabilities. Transformational leadership inspires people to achieve unexpected or remarkable results. It gives workers autonomy over specific jobs, as well as the authority to make decisions once they have been trained. This induces a positive change in the followers attitudes and the organization as a whole. Transformational leaders typically perform four distinct behaviors, also known as the four I's. These behaviors are inspirational motivation, idealized influence, intellectual stimulation, individualized consideration.

Transactional leadership or transactional management is the part of one style of leadership that focuses on supervision, organization, and performance; it is an integral part of the Full Range Leadership Model. This type of management was born during the Industrial Revolution as a source of competitive advantage. Some typical tactics of this type of management include strategy, efficiency goals, economies of scale and quality differentiation. Transactional managers focus on performance related tasks and goals.

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Symbolic behavior is "a person’s capacity to respond to or use a system of significant symbols". The symbolic behavior perspective argues that the reality of an organization is socially constructed through communication. Symbolic messages are used by individuals to understand their environment and create a social reality. When faced with uncertainty, individuals continually organize themselves within their group based reality and respond within that reality.

Change management is a collective term for all approaches to prepare, support, and help individuals, teams, and organizations in making organizational change. It includes methods that redirect or redefine the use of resources, business process, budget allocations, or other modes of operation that significantly change a company or organization.

Leadership studies is a multidisciplinary academic field of study that focuses on leadership in organizational contexts and in human life. Leadership studies has origins in the social sciences, in humanities, as well as in professional and applied fields of study. The field of leadership studies is closely linked to the field of organizational studies.

Transformative social change is a philosophical, practical and strategic process to affect revolutionary change within society, i.e., social transformation. It is effectively a systems approach applied to broad-based social change and social justice efforts to catalyze sociocultural, socioeconomic and political revolution. In seeking to integrate and then politicize personal development and social development as an overarching approach to social change at multiple levels, addressing a wide range of issues, using holistic, nonviolent methods, it may be best classified as a new social movement. Rather than focus on particular issue(s), it seeks to impact the culture of left of center social movement and organizing work. However, by considering the dismantling of and liberation from oppressive systems, including economic, as core to its goal, it defies even definitions put forth for new social movements. As a comprehensive approach to progressive social change, it seeks distinguishes to itself from the "ordinary" change of conventional social change, social justice and their respective organizing practices by placing emphasis on personal, organizational and social systemic change that cannot be undone, or "deep change".

Leader development is defined as the "expansion of a person's capacity to be effective in leadership roles and processes". These roles and processes are ones that aid in setting direction, creating alignment and maintaining commitment in groups of people sharing common work. Most organizational leadership research and educational programs have focused on developing individual-based knowledge, skills, and abilities associated with formal leadership roles of individuals. Leader development therefore results by investing in human capital.

A leadership style is a leader's method of providing direction, implementing plans, and motivating people. Various authors have proposed identifying many different leadership styles as exhibited by leaders in the political, business or other fields. Studies on leadership style are conducted in the military field, expressing an approach that stresses a holistic view of leadership, including how a leader's physical presence determines how others perceive that leader. The factors of physical presence in this context include military bearing, physical fitness, confidence, and resilience. A leader's conceptual abilities apply agility, judgment, innovation, interpersonal tact, and domain knowledge. Leaders are characterized as individuals who have differential influence over the setting of goals, logistics for coordination, monitoring of effort, and rewards and punishment of group members. Domain knowledge encompasses tactical and technical knowledge as well as cultural and geopolitical awareness.

The Three Levels of Leadership is a leadership model formulated in 2011 by James Scouller. Designed as a practical tool for developing a person's leadership presence, knowhow and skill, it aims to summarize what leaders have to do, not only to bring leadership to their group or organization, but also to develop themselves technically and psychologically as leaders. It has been classified as an "integrated psychological" theory of leadership. It is sometimes known as the 3P model of leadership.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Hackman, M. (2009). Leadership: A communication perspective. Waveland Press Inc, Publishers. ISBN   978-1-57766-579-3.
  2. 1 2 Covey, S. (2004). The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People . New York, NY: Free Press. ISBN   978-0-7432-6951-3.
  3. 1 2 Cashman, K. (1999). Leadership from the Inside Out. Provo, UT: Executive Excellence Publishing. ISBN   978-1-890009-31-1.
  4. ↑ Stogdill, R. M. (1965). Managers, employees, organizations. Columbus: Ohio State University, Bureau of Business Research.
  5. ↑ McGregor, D. (1960). The human side of enterprise. New York: McGraw-Hill. ISBN   0071462228
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 Hackman, M. & Johnson, C. (2009). Leadership: A communication perspective. Long Grove, IL: Waveland Press, Inc.
  7. 1 2 3 4 Hackman, M. & Johnson, C. (2009). Leadership: A communication perspective. Long Grove, IL: Waveland Press, Inc.
  8. ↑ "Leadership and Change".
  9. ↑ (McNamara)
  10. ↑ "Guidelines, Methods and Resources for Organizational Change Agents".
  11. ↑ Liu, J.; Siu, O.; Shi, K. (July 2010). "Transformational leadership and employee well-being: The mediating role of trust in the leader and self-efficacy". Applied Psychology: An International Review. 59 (3): 454–479. doi:10.1111/j.1464-0597.2009.00407.x.
  12. ↑ Rao, S. (19 April 2009). "Personal professional development". AIP Conference Proceedings. 1119 (1): 7–10. Bibcode:2009AIPC.1119....7R. doi:10.1063/1.3137917.
  13. ↑ Brown, E. (2007). "Personal, institutional, and communal leadership: Rethinking leadership development for the jewish community". Journal of Jewish Communal Service. 82 (3): 234–243.
  14. ↑ "Merriam-Webster".
  15. ↑ Walla, P; Greiner, K.; Duregger, C.; Deecke, L.; Thurner, S. (2007). "Self-awareness and the subconscious effect of personal pronouns on word encoding: A magnetoencephalography (MEG) study". Neuropsychologia. 45 (4): 796–809. doi:10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2006.08.017. PMID   17005211. S2CID   13973453.
  16. ↑ Jemmer, P. (2009). "Intrapersonal communication: The hidden language". European Journal of Clinical Hypnosis. 9 (1): 37–49.
  17. 1 2 Nurius, P.; Majerus, D. (1988). "Rethinking the self in self-talk: A theoretical note and case example". Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology. 6 (3–4): 335–345. doi:10.1521/jscp.1988.6.3-4.335.
  18. ↑ Francis, T.; Miller, M. (Jan 2008). "Communication apprehension: Levels of first-generation college students at 2-year institutions". Community College Journal of Research & Practice. 32 (1): 38–55. doi:10.1080/10668920701746688. S2CID   143016094.
  19. ↑ Taylor, J.S. & Machado-Taylor, M.D.M. (2010). Leading Strategic Change in Higher Education: The Need for a Paradigm Shift toward Visionary Leadership. Frontiers in Higher Education (Claes, T. & Preston, D.S., Eds.) Editions Rodopi BV: New York, NY.
  20. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2014-07-01. Retrieved 2016-11-10.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  21. ↑ Rank, J.; Nelson, N.E.; Allen, T.D.; Xian, X. (2009). "Leadership predictors of innovation and task performance: Subordinates' self-esteem and self-presentation as moderators". Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology. 82 (3): 465–489. doi:10.1348/096317908X371547.
  22. 1 2 Boatman, J. & Wellins, R. (2011). It's Time for a Leadership Revolution. T+D Publications, American Society for Training and Development: Pittsburgh, PA.
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