I have had the pleasure serving under a transformational leader. His name is Colonel Dean A. Nowowiejski, PhD, and he exhibited all the traits of a transformational leader. Transformational is concerned with the emotions, values, ethics, standards, and long-term goals. (Northhouse, 2013, p185) Dr. Nowowiejski’s leadership style embodies this definition. He was genuinely concerned with all of his employees, ensured that they were aware, and embraced the organizations values, ethics and standards, and long-term goals. Although he had, the authority to take disciplinary action against those that violated the organizational values, ethics, and standards. He utilized this authority sparingly and ensures that each breach of these areas were utilized a teaching method so the individual could learn and adapt the appropriate behavior. Dr. Nowowiejski had a vision for the organization however, he did not want his employees to blindly follow, and he wanted their buy in. As the organization developed the strategic plan, he guided them along the journey until they came to their own conclusion on how the organization could achieve the vision, not by dictating but by explaining and teaching. Dr. Nowowiejski is a brilliant transformational leader, I saw individuals go from a lethargic useless employee to nearly over zealous and passionate. In the cases where individuals strayed from the organizational values, ethics, and standards, I saw them transformed into strong moral characters, which not only adhered to organizational values, ethics, and standards but also embodied them. (Northouse, 2013)
I also had the opportunity to serve under a “pseudotransformational” leader; it was shortly after my encounter with Dr. Nowowiejski that I served under this “pseudotransformational” leader. Initially I was still riding the high of serving under Dr. Nowowiejski; I saw many of the same traits in this new leader as I saw in Dr. Nowowiejski. However, it was not long that I saw cracks in what I thought a “transformational” leader. Little by little, I saw that he was self-center and only used individuals to achieve his objectives and desires. He was indifferent to the organizational values, ethics, and standards. His motto was “the end justifies the means” something that you would never hear from Dr. Nowowiejski, quite to the contrary, the means justified the end. Although this new leader seemed genuinely interested in my well-being, I soon came to find that I was just another pawn in his game. The moral of the organization suffered immensely and employees were leaving left and right, and those that stood behind became indifferent and uncommitted. Later one of the individuals was fired for misuse and abuse of government funds. A stark contrast to the organization that Dr. Nowowiejski left behind.
Much like bank tellers who only handle genuine currency, they are able to tell a counterfeit bill from real bill, individuals are similarly able to tell that whether their leader is a transformational leader or a pseudotransformational leader. When they compare what is understood as organizational values, ethics, and standards and see a leader violate those values, ethics, and standards without remorse or with the excuse that the ends justifies the means, then you know that you have a pseudotransformational leader. When you see a leader that puts their well-being above that of the organization and its employees, then you know that you have a pseudotransformational leader. When a leader leaves the organization in worse shape than when they came on board, then you know you had a pseudotransformational leader.
Although I have shared my real world experiences, the precise academic definitions of transformational and pseudotransformational leaders can be surmised in the factors that are found in our textbook. A transformational leader has an emotional component in which transformational leaders act as role models for their followers. They inspire motivation though communicating high expectation of their followers. They stimulate their followers intellectually as to permit them to be creative, innovative, challenging their beliefs and values not only of the leader but also of the organization. Lastly, they create a supportive environment for the followers. A pseudotransformational leader has a transactional relationship with their followers wherein the follower is rewarded for their efforts. Furthermore, they manage-by exception in that their leadership is comprised of corrective criticism, negative feedback, and negative reinforcement (Northouse, 2013, pp 191-195).
As you can see by the academic and real world examples, a transformational leader’s actions are positive while a pseudotransformational leader’s actions are primarily negative. Dr. Nowowiejski’s methods involved positive actions, which resulted in an organization that thrived and thought for itself, while the subsequent leader only served his needs in order for him to achieve the next rank. He was indifferent to the individuals that he led. Which left the organization dumbfound and the organizations moral in bankruptcy. I truly would have followed Dr. Nowowiejski to hell with an empty water gun, while his replacement would not get the time of day. Two distinctly different leaders with two distinctly different outcomes.
REFRENCES
Northouse, P. (2013). Introduction. In Leadership: Theory and practice (6th ed., pp. 185- 217). Thousand Oaks: SAGE.
Pennsylvania State World Campus (n.d.). Module 10 Transformational Leadership Retrieved from https://courses.worldcampus.psu.edu/sp15/psych485/001/content/10_lesson/printlesson.htmll