It is save to say that one point in our lives we have all been leaders. We may have led a simple game, or a complex work task, but the principles of leading do not vary much. A leader is a person who is able to motivate a group of members to accomplish a goal or task that may not have been possible if individuals worked alone. To do so a leader must posses several skills. According to (Katz, 1955) three posited that there were three basic skills that leaders needed; technical, human, and conceptual. The three skills will be examine in detail.
Technical: this set of skills includes knowledge and ability to use the tools and processes of the organization. In the organizational world you would hear the words “hands on” with these types of skills. Ability to fill out the appropriate forms to get work done would fall in this category. (Penn State University World Campus [PSU WC], 2016, L. 10) The definition states that a leader requires to know and have the ability to interpret and accomplish the work required for the company to be successful. A leader must have an understanding of the work accomplished to be able to make adequate decision and provide a quality assurance on work being completed.
Work knowledge is not all that is needed as it’s members are the ones that accomplish the work, therefore, proper human interactions and proper communication are essential. According to (Penn State University World Campus [PSU WC], 2016, L. 10): Human: this set of skills is obviously the ability to work with people, and as such is referred to as “people skills” in everyday language. Examples of this type of skill would be the ability to recognize why people are stressed and the ability to potentially reduce that stress by adding more information or resources to the situation.People skills are needed to make sure one understand the motivation behind good work.
Finally, the least tangible of the three skills conceptual. I believe this is the skill that separates one leader from another. How one decides to lead, and how the leader go about it are all based on this skill.Conceptual: this set of skills is about ideas. This is the least tangible of the three skill sets as it is about thought processes. An example of this type of skill would be the ability to create a clear mission statement that helps the organization move forward (World Campus [PSU WC], 2016, L. 10).
The three skills presented about are based on a leadership theory that provides in my opinion a decent foundation on leadership skill necessary to lead. Obviously every situation is different and every human is unique thus I don’t believe one theory will ever be encompassing all needed requirements to leadership, but I believe this theory can be used in most situation and easy to remember and comprehend.
Mandee says
While I believe the skills approach is a strong theory because it puts “an emphasis on skills and abilities that can be learned and developed” (p.43), according to Northouse (2016), it “takes a leader-centered perspective on leadership” (p.43). When truly assessing a leadership setting you have to look at three components; the leader, the follower, and the situation. The issue with the skills and trait theories is that they focus solely on the leader and their attributes. The definition that you used to describe leadership directly mentions followers, but yet skills approach doesn’t cover any information about followers.
However, I did start this comment by stating that I think the skills approach is a strong theory. The skills approach, while not all encompassing, is a strong first step in assessing leadership. But it is important to acknowledging that you need to look at all three aspects of leadership. When looking at the two theories that really dive into the leader, trait and skills approach, I feel that the skills approach is much better than the former. The trait approach concentrates on “innate qualities and characteristics possessed” by a leader (Northouse, 2016, p.19). This theory suggests that individuals are born with these qualities and emphasizes that leadership is a given quality and not something that can be learned or taught. The skills approach theory goes beyond the narrow-minded trait approach to expand on the technical, human, and conceptual aspects of a leader. Northouse (2016), also brings in the aspect of the situation when it comes to the leadership setting and the skills approach. He suggests the amount of technical, human, and conceptual skills needed will vary depending on the situation at hand. While top management has to display higher levels of human and conceptual skills with smaller amounts of technical skills, a lower-level supervisor needs a higher level of technical and human skills with lower amount of conceptual skills (Northouse, 2016). Overall, the skills approach theory is more encompassing to your definition of a leader.
Northouse, P. (2016). Leadership theory and practice (7th ed.). Thousand Oaks, California. Sage Publications.