Menu
Why is leadership in a company important?
I do think that even in any type of organization, the leader should be the principal one to point where to go.
If the leader doesn’t know where the company should go, then this will bring an organization that is operating without a soul.
At least I think that.
I do think that even on small businesses, companies should have a purpose and a mission, and the leader should be the first one to believe.
Personally, I have felt as two different type of leader as in my experience.
At the family business, as have been the “son of the owner”, and that actually doesn’t feel like leadership.
Employees have taken the orders that I have given, but merely because I am just the second in hand.
It feels that I am entitled just because being a family member, and not actually because I have earned a leadership position.
In contrast, my experience in Heilbronn was totally different.
At the university and even at a community level, I got to become well known around.
It felt that I earned the appreciation, friendship and respect from the people I met due to my behaviour with them.
At a professional level and being 2 years at the main headquartes of Bechtle, I do felt that slowly I was also getting well known inside the company.
I didn’t handled a direct management or leadership position, but I do felt that eventually some colleagues started to ask me directly to solve x issue that were I could find a solution.
I do think that my time at Heilbronn helped me to learn more about myself, and also in the mean of being surrounded by people.
I don’t know if I can consider myself a fully international leader yet, but certainly learning to listen every single aspect of the different cultures help me to develop cultural awareness.
And those skills will help me one day to leave behind that feeling of leadership by asignation, and more into a leadership by transformation.
Leadership in a company is that factor that will define whether the objectives set will be achieved or not.
And, in some cases, it is also what plays a role against bad management.
If we develop the characteristics of leadership, we will become that figure who is fully capable not only of getting ahead on his own, but also of bringing out those under his charge.
In order to do so, you may want to learn about it:
Being innovative is of vital importance in the face of the changing demands of the environment.
This is an aspect that is essential not only to achieve success, but also for the survival of the company itself.
It is in it that rests the hope to solve the challenges that move business today, since it is expected that a leader is kept in the constant search for new and better ways of doing things.
It is not enough to know how to give timely information; learning how to listen is just as necessary.
Understanding your team should always be a priority, as there is no better way to gain their trust and increase your credibility with them.
One of the characteristics of leadership that separates commanding figures from all others is the ability to adapt to change.
This must apply to the different situations that may arise, as well as to the various people who may be part of their team.
Looking beyond just adapting, a leader is also expected to be able to understand the circumstances so that he can make the right decisions.
This will enable them to provide the best possible solutions in the midst of the avalanche of events that often surround them.
The best time for a leader to test his or her level of commitment, and courage, is through adversity.
These will be times when their loyalty to the company will be tested, although there is more than one way to express this trait.
For example, you can think of the commitment to not abandon their projects regardless of whether you are in good times or bad, or the commitment you have to effectively lead a team also should be thought of as the commitment to customers to provide products or services of value, among others.
Leadership does not allow the fact that problems exist to impede the work.
That is why it is vital to have a great capacity to manage the consequences.
A leader must overcome and recover from the most unfavorable circumstances of his actions.
The characteristics of leadership are also based on the fact that a leader must love what he/she does, know that success is not something that comes by itself, and that he/she must always give his/her best effort with all his/her will.
This characteristic is taken as an invitation to lead by example, thus motivating and inspiring.
Salary alone cannot be a motive, and it is definitely not enough to retain human talent.
The leader is fundamental to motivate his collaborators to stay.
Being one step ahead is always expected to be one step ahead of the market, to be in constant research of what the future trends will be and to learn those skills that become necessary to adapt to what is coming.
On the other hand, one must be aware that the world will always be moving around us.
Standing still is a mistake that can lead to many opportunities slipping away, which is why flexibility is merited at the time of receiving new ideas in order to open more doors and bring more success.
If we look clearly at the definition of leadership in a company then we will realize that this tells us about the ability that a boss has when influencing his team and manage it to go in favor of the overall objectives that have been raised.
This type of figure has a clear objective, and it is to be able to maximize each one of the benefits and to reach in this way the objectives that have been set, and it is something that, if it can be achieved due to all the characteristics that they possess, or develop, mentioned above.
However, it should be noted that not all forms of leadership are suitable for all types of companies that exist, or the different profiles of employees that can be found in them.
But this is something that we will clarify a little later in this article.
What we can say right now is that the influence of good or bad leadership will have a direct impact on the company’s performance.
And that is why we see cases where a company that was going downhill starts to improve miraculously when its top management is relieved.
If you are wondering what is a positive business leadership we can give you a generalized idea, since a way of leading is considered this way when it is molded to the ideals and philosophy of the group, so it works hand in hand with them.
These considered good leaderships can be translated as a higher performance to carry out the functions, employees who are honestly motivated, and even a higher competitiveness. If we do the sum of all the above factors then we will notice that the result is none other than increased profits.
Now, in order to know what negative business leadership is, and to recognize it in time, we could simply say that it is when there is a great difficulty in achieving the objectives that the company has set.
This would go on to create a bad working environment, which would also generate a deterioration in the company’s image leading to a reduction in sales, which can be one of the main signs that the hierarchy of command is not fulfilling its functions as it should.
First, let’s talk a little about how to choose between the different types of leadership.
For this, it is necessary to know what qualities the employees have, and also to adjust to the values of the company in which the leader role will be performed.
It is also necessary to take into account the economic moment the group is going through.
Some leaders achieve better results when they are in stable situations, while others will be more useful on those occasions when it could be said that they are going through a crisis.
Similarly, within the same business hierarchy it is possible to coexist with different types of leadership.
In some cases, the key to maximize productivity can be found in the combination of the different ways of leading a company, so that it does not all feel flat.
This is where it becomes very important which types of leaders exist and which are the most appropriate for the different situations that may arise.
They all have their advantages and disadvantages, so choose the one that best suits your staff, business philosophy, and economic situation:
This type of leader focuses primarily on human capital.
For him, the transformation of a company can only be achieved through its employees.
This is why he is in charge of maintaining constant communication with his group so that he can contrast ideas and define strategies.
This is a type of boss who has to know how to motivate his employees, and also inspire them to keep up the good pace.
Besides, he also knows how to reward them so that he can get the most out of their creativity, as well as their productivity.
However, this type of leader is focused on intangible qualities (e.g. ideas, values, etc.) and, ultimately, this is something that can also have a negative impact on the work environment.
Not everything could be as perfect as it is portrayed!
The negative side of this type of leadership lies in the fact that it is not usually recommended when going through moments of crisis, since the way in which the group is led makes it impossible to achieve results quickly.
It concentrates all its power in a single manager, and leaves no room for the opinions of subordinates to be taken into account.
The hierarchy in this case is rigid, and communication is unidirectional: employees receive orders and follow them, with no say in the matter.
This type of leader is most useful when quick decisions need to be made, where only the boss can decide what to do.
However, this is also why it can make employees feel undervalued and uncommitted to the future of the company in question.
This type of leadership is being used less and less in modern companies.
Nowadays, the aim is to engage and make employees loyal, as it is known that this way they are much more productive.
A rigid leader can clash with the values of any company today.
Here, the participation of all employees is usually sought when it comes to decision making.
There is constant dialogue between all members of the work group.
However, it is still in the hands of the boss to make the decision that will set the course of the company.
The great benefit of democratic leadership lies in the fact that employees begin to feel more involved with the company, and this automatically increases their commitment and productivity.
It also helps to encourage innovation and creativity on the part of the group.
On the negative side, perhaps we can point out that when you have a wide variety of opinions there is the possibility that decision making slows down, so this type of boss can be a little slower in reaching their goals.
Apart from this, it is extremely important that the leader in this case is a person who has a great ability to motivate others, so that he can keep the spirits up in his team, and that they do not mind having to collaborate.
This type of leadership is based on the transactions that exist between top management and the rest of the staff.
That is to say, the workers here receive some kind of prize, or reward, as a form of compensation every time that, as a group, they manage to achieve some of the objectives they have set.
As we know that the issue of rewards has caught your attention in particular, we clarify that they are given so that workers have a greater motivation to work hard, so it is a great idea to get a difficult plan forward.
For their part, managers also have to look at this way of leading as a benefit, since they are not only investing more in their employees to give them that reward, but they are also receiving all the tasks they set correctly executed, and in good time.
