According to Manning and Curtis, in their book, The Art of Leadership, leaders must care about the work to be done as much as their followers (Manning & Curtis, 2019). Therefore, they must consider what the staff needs to complete their work and what they need as people to be comfortable and productive. I have encountered numerous leadership situations that have proven that the authors’ view is true. One of the leadership moments that is recent and was especially an Aha! The moment was when a colleague was bereaved, and the company I work for decided to show support and condole with him. Even though the situation did not directly concern productivity and the core business of the company, it showed how leadership should indeed focus on the work and the people. It exemplified how transformational leadership can be effective in causing desired changes.
Greg, one of the employees, had lost his wife. Being one of the funding employees, the boss decided that the company would organize a fundraiser and help him with the burial arrangements. Therefore, the employee welfare committee that was chaired by another employee called Mary was charged with running the committee. She organized events in conjunction with Greg’s family and ensured that the company, through the welfare committee, would help with things that the company needed, like transportation, burial arrangements, vigil, and also any other functions. It was a challenging moment, especially for the committee, because the company had not experienced such an occurrence before. Hence, the leaders and committee members had to find a way to deal with the various challenges that they faced by consulting and basing on their knowledge of Greg’s culture and needs at the time. It was important for the company to show unity with Greg during the time as a way of thanking him for his contribution to bringing up the company.
One theory that was evidently applied in the situation is transformational leadership. The method involves leaders working with members to help each other achieve better performance and accomplish their goals. Transformational leadership aims to help staff by motivating them and empowering them to make them optimally productive (Manning & Curtis, 2019). It involves four primary pillars. First, the leader should apply individualized consideration. When collaborating, one must influence people by determining their uniqueness and considering each person differently from everyone else. Leaders should use their knowledge of people’s different skills and talents when assigning roles and resources to ensure that they contribute optimally. Leaders should be empathetic to people and know the people’s needs for self-development. Knowing people’s intrinsic motivation also promotes their involvement. Intellectual stimulation involves leaders challenging followers to be more creative and think critically (Bakker et al., 2023). They encourage questions and offer room for people to build their understanding. Third, the style involves inspirational motivation. Leaders must communicate visions that encourage people to work. Leaders challenge people with optimism, meanings of tasks, and goal attainment. Last, leaders must show idealized influence. They must respect the rules that guide teams and have ethical behaviors. Being trustworthy encourages people to be trustworthy and also encourages team spirit.
The leadership moment correlates with transformational theory because the leader applies the principles that are the theory’s basis. For instance, Mary was among the people who had been with the company the longest and understood most of the employees on the team. She understood people’s skills outside their work and their talents. For instance, she knew people who were very social and gave them roles that involved many interactions. She assigned a colleague who had been known for his social skills to liaise with Greg and the family. She assigned me the role of secretary because of my orderliness in my work. It was apparent that each person was picked reasonably because of their skills and ability to contribute. The leader also stimulated us intellectually (Bakker et al., 2023). Even though she advised us on what to do, she required that each person find information on what was to be done by experienced people. She encouraged people to be the best they could be in their roles. She also showed inspirational motivation by using encouraging words. She showed optimism and visualized what the team should achieve by the end of the initiative to help our colleague bury his wife and recover. Lastly, she led by example. She always attended meetings as early as possible and strived to finish her tasks fast to encourage timeliness.
The leadership moment was very important to be in two ways. First, the situation involved a personal problem for one colleague rather than a business or work issue. Clearly, Mary, as the head of employee welfare, understood that people need to be cared for by their employers for them to be encouraged. The help that the team gave the employee was an example of leaders caring for people and not just tasks. It is such initiatives that Mary said had led to many people staying with the employer for long. Another reason is that it applied the four pillars of transformational leadership in easily observable and very simple ways. For instance, individualized consideration in the initiative showed the results almost immediately (Bakker et al., 2023). Therefore, it offered a very important learning experience after I had covered transformational leadership in class.
Coaching in leadership and supervision promotes skill and talent development. Therefore, such leaders work with their followers to develop their skills. The method also builds trust and collaboration among members. Mary also applied coaching in the leadership moment (Manning & Curtis, 2019). Rather than just assigning roles and waiting, she participated by assessing people’s work and helping them determine weaknesses and improve them. Coach leaders actively listen to understand their staff and give them feedback. They encourage communication and use the information they gain to guide their leadership and mentorship (Manning & Curtis, 2019). For instance, Mary asked that if a person has an issue with their role, they should approach her and other people and seek guidance. As a coach, she did not just exert power. She mostly guided people on what to do. Working with Mary caused people to always seek to improve their work. It also encouraged people to ask each other and communicate with the leader. Resultantly, there was more trust and productivity.
The application of coaching in the situation made me understand the need for leaders to look for weaknesses and help people improve them rather than just show power. It showed leaders’ roles in workplaces. Coaching is especially important for teams of newly employed individuals who are not very competent in their positions. The importance of having such a coach leader is that they will help people develop their skills better and be more productive (Manning & Curtis, 2019). The lessons from the style will help me as a business leader or executive to improve people’s productivity and also create work environments that are welcoming to positive criticism and full of trust.
In conclusion, organizations’ growth and achievement of their goals depend on the leadership applied by those with influence. Transformational leadership can help people achieve goals by applying the four principles. Leaders should consider people individually, inspire them, motivate them, and challenge them to be better. Leaders must also consider people’s needs and resources to optimize their productivity. I hope to have more chances to apply the theories and skills I learned to influence change positively.
References
Bakker, A. B., Hetland, J., Olsen, O. K., & Espevik, R. (2023). Daily transformational leadership: A source of inspiration for follower performance? European Management Journal, 41(5), 700-708.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.emj.2022.04.004
Manning, G., & Curtis, K. (2019). The art of leadership. McGraw-Hill Education.
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