Organizational Behavior And Leadership Management Essay

Executive A is a true level-5 leader. Level-5 leaders usually are not charismatic leaders. They tend to work behind the scenes and are driven to make the company’s they work for successful. They put the company ahead of any personal goals and are believers in delegating responsibility and giving credit to other leaders in the company when things go well. At the same time a level-5 leader will accept responsibility of any company’s failures. The trait that stands out most is executive A’s drive for the success of the company and not his or her personal goals. Executive A accepts responsibility for poor decisions and praises the other company leaders for the company’s successes. Executive A takes pride in developing strong leaders from within the company. Executive A is a text-book example of a level-5 leader (Robbins & Judge, 2007).

Leader B would fall in the category of a transactional leader. The main difference from a level-5 leader is in the delegation of responsibility. A level-5 leader would accept the blame for the company’s failings while leader B, a transactional leader, would hold subordinates responsible for their shortcomings. Transactional leaders lay out a clear set of goals and tasks and will hold people responsible for any negative performance of the company but at the same time will reward and praise when goals and tasks are met successfully. One of the main characteristics of a transactional leader is that he or she will carefully monitor any deviation from company standards and rules and quickly take corrective actions. Transactional leaders use a Laissez-Faire approach by abdicating responsibility. Leader B fits this approach by rewarding successes and punishing failures with his or her subordinates (Robbins & Judge, 2007).

Leader C closely resembles a transformational leader. Leader C believes in getting his or her followers to transcend their own self-interests for the company’s good. This is one of the most important traits of a transformational leader. Leader C gives employees individualized consideration. He or she remembers employer’s birthdays or any other special events and wants their employees to look to them more as a coach or mentor instead of a manager. Transformational leaders have high expectations of their subordinates. These types of leaders tend to convey a sense of pride in the company that he or she wants their subordinates to follow. Leader C sets high expectations and tries to instill pride in the organization as a transformational leader would want. What stands out most in a transformational leader is the personal attention given to employee’s needs. Leader C takes pride in a rational approach to problem solving and most transformational leaders believe in this philosophy (Robbins & Judge, 2007).

If leader B was to replace executive A there would be a very big difference in the company’s successes. Laissez-Faire or transactional leadership is doing nothing as a leader, ignoring all its responsibilities and letting others do the work to ultimately get praise or punishment for successes or failures. The degree to which a leaders influence, on his or her followers, is the first measure of a level-5 leader. Level-5 leaders gain trust, loyalty, admiration and respect because of their willingness to work harder than one would expect. Outcomes of this nature occur because of the level-5 leader’s ability to get employees to work for more than self-gain and inspiring followers to a mission and vision gives these workers an identity.

This trait is not seen in a transactional leader. A transactional leader can leave employees feeling like they are the blame for all of the company’s ills and that the leader finds no fault in his or her actions. This could lead to moral problems that will affect a company’s performance (Bass, Bernard M., 1990).

Level-5 and transformational leaders have much in common. Both types of these leaders place a premium on a long term vision. Developing authentic relationships with followers and stakeholders is a common trait with these types of leaders. Encouraging innovative thinking with a desire for organizational learning adds to the traits that can bring about a culture of integrity and trust. Transformational and level-5 leaders are best at guiding their organizations through change. These two types of leaders go beyond fundamental changes in organizations cultural and political systems. Organizational systems and structure are altered to reach the changes necessary for the company’s success. A lack of ego is the main difference between a transformational leader and a level-5 leader. The level-5 leader will almost always lack a large ego.

Transformational leaders unlike level-5 leaders seek acknowledgement of their accomplishments whereas level-5 leaders tend to shy away from the fan-fare associated with an ego driven person. Leader C would be a close replacement for executive A. The leadership styles are closely related. A charismatic transformational leader or level-5 leader would be more apt to pick a transformational leader to follow in his or her footsteps because of their closeness of management theories. The effects on a company could be a slight decrease in performance if a transformational leader, like leader C replaces a level-5 leader like executive A. Leader C can continue with the company’s successes but to sustain a company to excel and to be seen as great requires a level-5 leader (Tichy, N.M., & Ulrich, 2008).