Evolution of Leadership Styles

Evolution of Leadership Styles

Over the span of the past 27 years, the influence of leadership has indelibly marked my career, leaving an enduring impact on my personal and professional growth. From my humble beginning of career in a telecom company as Project Engineer in 1996, I have traversed a transformative path shaped by the profound essence of leadership. Throughout this journey, I have had the privilege of encountering exceptional leaders who have served as beacons of inspiration, guiding me towards success and empowering me to reach new heights. In this article, I would like to share my learnings in the ‘evolution of leadership styles’ in last two decades. Join me as we explore the profound and lasting effects of leadership, and discover the power it holds to shape careers, inspire teams, and drive meaningful change in the ever-evolving landscape of the professional world.

Successful achievement of a mission or goal by a group of individuals needs proper planning, guidance, and direction, which is accomplished through true leadership. The definition of leadership has evolved over the decades. Multiple dimensions of leadership have been conceptualized over the years which cover three key aspects: The Trait Approach which is more focused on the innate personality characteristics of leaders; the Skills Approach, where the skills and abilities of leaders have gained through learning and finally the Behavioural Approach where the leaders are classified into two categories, the task behaviours, and relationship behaviours. The primary target of task behaviour leaders is to accomplish the tasks whereas relationship behaviours are more concerned about the well-being of their followers.

The fast-changing world demands leaders to stay agile and adapt to the new style of leadership to meet high expectations. Modern leadership has experienced a profound shift from the conventional style of leadership. While modern leadership prioritizes collaboration, empathy, and teamwork, traditional leadership strongly emphasizes control and authority. For the successful functioning of an organization, the leadership style is to be employee-friendly and non-commanding with proper coaching and communication, through which a well-mature and self-managed team is formed to work toward the development of innovative products. Distributed leadership with de-centralized power will help leaders of varied levels of authority make decisions, control their line of business, and collaboratively achieve the company’s objectives and key results.

Being leaders with wide industrial experience and a good understanding of the current and envisioned healthy workplace, let us check how future leaders can apply their styles to minimize or dismiss the negative effects in the work environment. A thorough analysis of data collected from many leaders and followers proved that ‘contemporary leadership’ styles significantly enhance the outcomes of individuals and organizations by reducing unhealthy organizational environments. Some of the key modern leadership qualities which manifested the capability to maintain a healthy workplace are:

Authentic Leadership: A leader's capacity to be sincere, self-aware, and honest is the centre of authentic leadership. Genuine leaders are regarded as being dependable, trustworthy, and capable of inspiring and motivating their followers. This leadership approach places a heavy emphasis on developing relationships with subordinates and respecting their opinions. Analysis of survey data from more than 50 organizations in different countries proves that authentic leaders build team behaviour through their self-evaluation which in turn improved team performance. It is a potent style of leadership that can foster trust and a supportive workplace environment.

Ethical Leadership: Leaders with ethical behaviour and practices are seen as role models who maintain a good rapport with their followers, maintain fairness and justice by equal treatment of their followers, and always point out inappropriate behaviors to improve the overall outcome of the organization. They show the calibre to report unethical behaviors in the organization and encourage internal whistleblowing by lowering the threat of retaliation. Many organizations in this era follow similar practices through regular one-two-one interactions between managers and subordinates, skip-level meetings to 2nd level supervisors, freedom to report unethical behaviours or incidents through an ombudsman, etc., which indeed helps to reduce negative influences and resulted in better employee morale and motivation.

Transformational Leadership: Transformational leadership is one of the modern era's most effective leadership philosophies. The significance of inspiring and motivating team members to reach their maximum potential is emphasized by this management style. Creating a unified vision for the organization's future and focusing on their followers' skill and capability development are hallmarks of transformational leadership. They are able to encourage a sense of commitment and shared purpose among team members.

Servant Leadership: This style places a strong emphasis on addressing team members' needs, empowering them, and prioritizing their interests. The goal of servant leadership is to foster a collaborative environment where followers feel appreciated and supported. Further study through data collected from a set of supervisors and subordinates of an organization with political influence, found that the effectiveness of employees' task performance and organizational citizenship behaviours (OCBs) were positively impacted by servant leadership.

Overall, effective leadership philosophies in the modern century place a strong emphasis on the value of flexibility, cooperation, and innovation. In a world that is evolving dynamically, leaders who are able to adapt modern leadership styles are able to engage and inspire team members, foster loyalty, trust, and promote organizational success consistently.

References:

Northouse, PG 2021, Leadership : theory and practice, Ninth Edition. edn, SAGE Publishing, Los Angeles.

Ancona, D, Backman, E & Isaacs, K 2019, 'Nimble leadership', Harvard Business Review, vol. 97, no. 4, pp. 74-83.

Moldoveanu, M & Narayandas, D 2019, 'The future of leadership development', Harvard Business Review, vol. 97, no. 2, pp. 40-48.