LEADERSHIP

Leadership in Administrative Settings

Abstract

Leaders gain their positions within the group through a variety of means, including election by a majority of members, appointment by an external authority, or implicit recognition by a substantial proportion of the group members. The question of leadership emergence—who becomes a leader of a particular group—requires a multilevel answer that considers aspects of the individual, the group, and the organizational setting. In this paper, we try to focus on the leadership. The main purpose of this research paper is to research on leadership in administrative settings. Leadership depends, to some extent, on the eye of the beholder. People's implicit notions of what it means to be a leader have a powerful impact on who emerges and is deemed effective in a leadership role. Although these expectations can serve as effective heuristics to help people navigate the vast amount of social information that confronts them daily, they can also serve to disadvantage people who are qualified to lead their groups but are disqualified from consideration because they do not fit the mold of the traditional leader.



Leadership in Administrative Settings

Introduction

Leadership is open to innovation but that openness should be tempered with skepticism. These two attitudes are not mutually exclusive but are complementary. Demonstrating interest in new ideas even when they challenge the status quo is balanced by “scientific skepticism”. Being open to new ideas means responding positively (Puccio et al., 2007) supporting change and refraining from public criticism. Leadership should be good at testing new ideas and judging their merits “without letting politics and precedent get in the way”.

Openness to new ideas may include rewarding successful innovators, personal involvement by leadership in creative activities of the organization, or raising the profile of those creative activities within the organization. A policy of rewards—whether monetary, choice of assignments, or some form of recognition—encourages creativity, although offering money or promotion is less effective in the long run because it tends to discourage collaboration and information sharing. The recognition that is most meaningful in encouraging creativity is communicated one-on-one by the leadership and is shared across the organization (Mauzy & Harriman, 2003).

Discussion

Any group of diverse people working together will generate conflict, and leadership must effectively manage that conflict. Too little conflict can cause the group to fall into groupthink where the members of the group go along with decisions that they otherwise would not adopt as their own and that may even be obviously wrong. Groupthink will frustrate and destroy creativity. The antidote to uniformity and complacency is diversity of thought. Conversely, too much conflict will stop communication and even tear a group apart.

Leadership should be supportive rather than controlling, serve as a facilitator to help the group meet its goal, and provide an “open field” in which group members can feel free to move intellectually without obvious constraints (Peter, 2003).

Leadership Role

Leadership's role may consist of establishing the group, assigning the task, and then allowing the group to function on its own, or leadership may have continued participation and ...