Is there a one-size-fits-all approach to leadership?

Does leadership require multiple approaches or a singular one to be successful? CMI (2013) stated there is no single ideal, as the best approach may vary according to circumstances and individual characteristics. Even today we have difficulty pinpointing a singular approach to defining leadership, a recent concept from the 18thcentury (Hunt & Fedynich, 2018, p. 21). This is not to be confused with management (Wadji, 2017, p. 78, 80). Even though both influence and work with teams to achieve the common goal, leadership uses vision to inspire and allows for two-way communication with subordinates. This encourages a collaborative effort to achieve their goal. Meanwhile, management is a one-way communication where they use their formal powers to demand compliance from their subordinates.

Evolution of Leadership

We have seen the changes and growth in how leadership is conceived throughout history. In antiquity, leadership was seen as something someone was born with innately, also called the “Great Man” theory (Hunt & Fedynich, 2018, p. 22-23).

As we get closer to our current timeline, we can observe a paradigm shift in how leaders lead and work with their teams, from authoritarian where leaders have absolute power, to Laissez-faire where the focus is the group’s growth and autonomy (Bwalya, 2023, p. 184-185).

During the post-war years till the 1980s, the approach to leadership shifted to adapt to the rise of large multinational corporations that earlier leadership theories could not support as they generally concentrated on the leaders’ abilities and personalities such as power, influence, and traits that a leader should have (Hunt & Fedynich, 2018, p. 23-24; Aliekperova & Aliekperov, 2023, p. 5). This gave way to a greater awareness of functional and situational approaches to leadership.

The functional approach views leadership as a function to understand and handle the team’s needs and maintain them to complete the given tasks (Ford et al, 2021, p. 89-91). These include building favourable group dynamics for its members, and the impact of the leader’s behaviour on their subordinates through applying the Adair Model (Ackah, 2019, p. 3).

The situational approach views leadership as a role that supports and gives direction to team members based on their development level (Thompson & Glas?, 2018, p. 575). This allows leaders to adapt to each member’s needs. Thus increasing job satisfaction and leadership effectiveness (Pasaribu et al, 2022, p. 3). The Path-Goal Leadership Theory summarises this approach well in application (Dare & Saleem, 2022, p. 2).

Even now in the 21st century, there’s no singular approach to leadership that can answer all of the concerns that come with it. Workplaces are becoming flatter and leaders are expected to be employee-centric and engaging rather than task-orientated (Gigauri & Mushkudiani, 2021, p. 10; Hunt & Fedynich, 2018, p. 24). This gave rise to transformational and transactional approaches to leadership, which encourages more interaction between leaders and members for better motivational and work relationship implications (Mekonnen & Bayissa, 2023, p. 2). And in turn, improves member’s overall performance, satisfaction, and retention; benefiting leaders and businesses. Hence leaders have to be adaptable and prepared to adopt multiple approaches.

Case Study

Ratan Tata was well-known for his transformational and charismatic leadership style during his tenure as chairman of Tata (BBC, 2012; Shreya, 2023, p. 2787-2788). Despite his vision to build affordable cars for the Indian market, he built Tata from a single-car manufacturing factory to the conglomerate giant it is today. Under his leadership, Tata has acquired $18 billion worth of well-known foreign brands such as Jaguar and Land Rover, pushed for more women to be in the workforce and leadership which now makes up 35% of its Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) workforce and 7% in Tata Steel, promoted diversity, and transforming Tata into an employee-centric organisation (Vijayraghavan & Philip, 2011; Global Business Review, 2022).

Final Thoughts

From what was mentioned and analysed, in conclusion, leaders should rationalise and contemplate the gravity of their position and seek mutual understanding and collaboration with the teams they are leading, adopting several leadership approaches and styles depending on the environment and situation, hence agreeing with CMI statement. Leaders can change through learning and observation as dictated by a theory of behaviourism (Aliekperova & Aliekperov, 2023, p. 6). This will not only improve the likelihood of business success but also employees’ performance, satisfaction and retention. As written by the English poet John Donne, “No man is an island” (Young, 2018, p. 308).

Thus, begging the question, “What will be the legacy of your leadership?”.

References

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Andrews, E. (2023, June 26). 10 Things You May Not Know About Genghis Khan. History. https://www.history.com/news/10-things-you-may-not-know-about-genghis-khan

BBC. (2012, December 28). Ratan Tata steps down as chairman after two decades.https://www.bbc.com/news/av/20856503

Bwalya, A. (2023). Leadership Styles. Global Scientific Journals, 11(8). 181-194. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/373068669_LEADERSHIP_STYLES

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