There are many different styles and views of leadership around the world.  Just because one country leads a different way then another, it doesn’t make the other country wrong or does it?  Although many countries have great leadership, there are some that don’t.  There are many different leadership styles to approach and different cultures have diverse views on them.  But what makes a good leader and what doesn’t?  What country has the best leaders, which doesn’t? Who does it affect and why?  These are some questions I want to address in this article on cultural leadership today in the 21^st century.  Determining the basic dimensions or characteristics of different cultures is the first step in being able to understand the relationships between them (Northouse, 2017 p.430).

Leadership is a universal phenomenon (Bass, 1997). That is, wherever there are people, there are leaders.  There are many traits and characteristics that all great leaders’ possess.  In 2000 Mayer, Salovey and Caruso claimed that emotional intelligence was important and that people who are more sensitive to their emotions and the impact of their emotions on others will be leaders who are more effective (Northouse,2017 p.28). Effective leadership is intended influence that creates change for the greater good.  Many dimensions of leadership are perceived differently as traits: Intelligence, Self-confidence, Determination, Integrity, and Sociability or abilities such as; Problem-Solving, Social Judgement, and Knowledge.  A diverse range of approaches to leadership emerged Within the 21^st century: transformational, authentic, spiritual, and servant leadership along with new characteristics, such as: Passion, Behavior, Connectedness, Consistency, and Compassion.

Here are 6 countries with great leadership styles; Germany, France, Japan, Spain, Sweden, and USA.   Germans style is hierarchy and consensus, which is basically a coaching approach.  They strive for perfection in systems and procedures, and managers motivate staff by showing solidarity with them in procedures.  They work long hours, obey the rules and expect obedience, and insist on fair play and the employees’ welcome close instructions (Sarosi, 2016).  France leadership style is autocratic where decisions are generally made by the chief executive and orders are top-down.  The highly organic nature of a French enterprise implies interdependence, mutual tolerance and teamwork, as well as faith in the appointed leader (Sarosi, 2016).  Japan has a ringi-sei consensus, where their top executives have great power in conformity with Confucian hierarchy, but have little involvement in everyday affairs of the company (Sarosi, 2016).  People work together to solve problems, and are always encourage to give ideas on improvements.  When a worker makes a suggestion that saves money for the company they are giving a bonus.  With this great incentive the Japanese are always looking for ways to improve production process.  Spain uses human force, and are often autocratic and charismatic.  However, they work less from logic than intuition and pride themselves on their personal influence on all their staff members, and managers often see their decisions as irreversible (Sarosi, 2016).  Sweden concept of primus inter pares leadership, differs considerably from European models.  It has fewer layers and the manger is generally accessible to staff and available for discussion.  The USA uses Structured Individualism where you get things done, find short cuts to prosperity, and make money for oneself, one’s firm and shareholder.  Managers are capable of teamwork and corporate spirit, but value individual freedom more than company welfare. Which means they can get fired if they make mistakes (Sarosi, 2016).

Although there are many great leaders in this world there are also some poor leaders as well that fall under the dark side of leadership.  The dark side of leadership is the destructive and toxic side that a leader uses leadership for personal ends.  They are known to leave their followers worse off than they found them, violating the basic human rights of others and playing to their basest fears (Northouse, 2017 p339).  Lipman-Blumen identifies many dysfunctional personal characteristics destructive where leaders  demonstrate lack of integrity, insatiable ambition, arrogance, and reckless disregard of their actions.  A few destructive and toxic leadership countries include North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Burma, and a few Africa countries such as Nigeria, Sedan, Equatorial Guinea.  North Korea represses its people more than any other living dictator.  The US committee of Human rights estimates that there are around 150,000 Koreans performing forced labor in prison camps for political dissenters and their families (Frater,2007).  Saudi Arabia is one of the only nations that hold no elections.  Woman still have no equal rights in this country and they continue to engage in arbitrary arrest and torture.  Burma has more child soldiers than any country and Burmese regime continues to kidnap citizens to force them to serve as porters for military in conflicts against non-Burmese ethic groups (Frater, 2007).  Sudan, Nigeria, Zimbabwe have killed and tortured thousands for their own gain, while ripping their own people off leaving their countries in poverty for their own wealth and greed.

Even though our countries are separate, we humans as a race are affected by evil leadership.  Our biggest threat being Kim Jong-Un with his nuclear weapons.  Because our greatest leaders show compassion for their people and most people in general are compassionate, they show concern for other cultures that are treated unfairly.  And anytime another country wants to step in and help, it affects their people by sending troops out in harms way, which affects their families and over all the economy.  Since the USA is the largest melting pot of cultures in the world it is hard for us to stay out of other countries affairs specially since we conduct trades with most countries.  The US practice many leadership styles, since our culture is a mix of cultures with a mix of views on leadership.  Although many countries have an authentic leadership view the US is becoming more popular with transformational leadership, since it conducts business all over the world and It is appealing to the people to have a leader that provides a vision for the future.  As you can see different cultures take on different leadership styles, which all work, but not all are justifiable and are straight up evil.

 

 

Reference

Northouse, P. (2016). Introduction to Leadership: concepts and Practice. Los Angeles: Sage Publications Inc.

Northouse, P. (2017). Leadership Theory and Practice. Los Angeles: Sage Publications Inc.

Sarosi, B. (2016, February 23). 6 Leadership Styles Around the World to Build Effective Multinational Teams. Retrieved from https://www.crossculture.com/uncategorized/6-leadership-styles-around-the-world-to-build-effective-multinational-teams/

Bass, B. M. (1997). Does the transactional-transformational leadership paradigm transcend organizational and.. American Psychologist, 52(2), 130.

Frater, J. (2007, July 3). Top 10 Worst Living Dictators. Retrieved from http://listverse.com/2007/07/03/top-10-worst-living-dictators/

There are many inspirational and motivational leaders throughout history that portrayed many leadership traits that made them who they are today.  Despite all the things you learn while becoming a leader there are many traits that make you a great leader and an icon to the people.  The top five leadership traits are: Intelligence, Confidence, Determination, integrity, and Sociability.  It fits clearly that leaders are the individuals who are out front and leading the way in our society (Northhouse,2017 p.30).  A few leaders that had a big impact on our society are Mother Teresa, Martin Luther King Jr, and Rick and Dick Hoyt.

Mother Teresa showed great charisma throughout her life by influencing and inspiring others.  With her clear goals of opening charities around the world and sticking by her strong values of how people should be treated, and loved, no matter what their level of poverty was.  She portrayed the determination trait by being persistence and having the drive to be proactive.  Her other biggest trait was sociability fitting that definition to the T. and along with that, integrity played a good part.

The Hoyts biggest trait were there determination despite what people said, they conquer something amazing, and did it as a team.  Another trait that helped them along their journey was confidence and through that they became charismatic.  Dick Hoyt had the intelligence to see and understand his sons’ situation and did something that not many other parents would do, and that was give his son a chance at life despite his sickness.

Martin Luther King Jr showed his intelligence through his “I had a Dream” speech, providing good language skills, perceptual skills, and reasoning ability.  He organized many marches against segregation.  King received the Nobel Peace Prize for combating racial inequality through nonviolent resistance in October 14,1964.  He was president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) and with-in this position he developed charisma, a special magnetic charm and appeal, which gave him exceptional powers of influence.  He had determination when he became the Leader of the Civil Rights Movement, with having perseverance in the face of obstacles, being proactive, being assertiveness, having the drive and persistence to get through this movement.  He advanced the Civil Rights Movement, using the tactics of nonviolence and civil disobedience.

Many traits among leaders present and past have made leaders inspirational and motivational.  Although some believe that you are born with these traits I believe that through life experiences these traits are bestowed upon you.  It is up to the individual to use these traits for the greater good and inspire people to do good and motivate them to be the best that they can be, and to help out societies for the sake of mankind everywhere.

Northouse, P. (2017). Leadership Theory and Practice. Los Angeles: Sage Publications Inc.

Northouse, P. (2015). Introduction to Leadership: concepts and Practice. Los Angeles: Sage Publications Inc.

Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia., W. contributors. (2017, August 28). Martin Luther King Jr. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Martin_Luther_King_Jr.&oldid=797731537

 

Although servant leadership seems contradictory and challenges our traditional beliefs about leadership, it is an approach that offers a unique perspective (Northouse, 2016, p.225).  It allows everyone to be treated equally, and gives the follower a chance to learn, set goals, and accomplish those goals through support from their leader.  In the past 10 years, multiple publications have been coming out on servant leadership and the positive affects it has on an organization.  Even though servant leadership has positive effects on the organization, it can have a negative effect as well, such as followers not wanting to be guided or empowered and it kind of puts aside organizational goals for follower goals.  Servant Leadership approach entails the leadership process being set around the principle of caring for others and to give up control rather than seek control.

Servant Leadership works best when the leaders are altruistic and have a strong motivation and deep-seated interest in helping others (Northouse, 2016, p.239).   Over the past 10-15 years I have not seen this type of leadership until this year.  I have two managers one my general manger (GM) is somewhat a servant leader by empowering followers, giving them freedom to be independent and self-sufficient and by helping followers grow and succeed.  My other manager the AGM is a servant leader to the T in servant: Serving, Emotional healing, Responsible, Visionary, Altruistic, Nurturing, and Trustworthy, these are all characteristics of a servant leader.  He is an inspiring man and I someday would like to be more of a servant leader as he.  He commits himself to putting followers first, being honest with them, and treating them fairly.  He makes it his priority to listen to his followers and develop strong long-term relationships with them.

There are ten characteristics of a servant leader that comprise the first conceptualization of servant leadership.  These 10 represents Greenleaf’s seminal work on a servant as a leader

1. Listening
2. Empathy
3. Healing
4. Awareness
5. Persuasion
6. Conceptualization
7. Foresight
8. Stewardship
9. Commitment to the Growth of people
10. Building community

My AGM has all of these characteristics as well, he communicates between his followers, talking and listening and acknowledging their viewpoint.  He demonstrates that he truly understands what his followers are thinking and feeling.  He supports his followers by helping them overcome personal problems, which in many cases managers don’t care about your personal problems.  He is receptive to their physical, social and political environments and knows how to view his own perspective on matters.  He is a master at persuasion and creating change through the use of gentle nonjudgmental argument.  He provides a clear sense of goals and direction and because of his seniority he is able to predict what’s going to happen, and if something did go wrong he wouldn’t mind being held accountable or taking responsibility.  My AGM is fully committed to helping each person grow personally and professionally, and allows them to express their own individuality.

Another model adapted from Liden, R.C., Panaccio, A., Hu, J., & Meuser, J.D. (2014) of servant leadership has three main components: antecedent conditions, servant leader behaviors, and leadership outcomes.  There are three antecedent conditions that has an impact on servant leadership: context and culture, leader attribute, and follower receptivity.  Context and culture occurs within a given organization context and a particular culture.  My manager was with our organization for over ten years and with time, developed a set of facts that surrounded particular situations and incorporated his natural culture of putting others first.  Leader attributes influence the servant leadership process by letting others bring their own traits and ideas about leading to the leadership situation which may leave them feeling a deep desire to serve or motivated to lead (Northouse, 2016 p.232).  Follower receptivity influences the impact of servant leadership on outcomes such as personal and organizational job performance.  Basically, for some follower’s servant leadership has a positive impact on them and for others it is not effective, meaning they don’t want to know you or want guidance, or help.  My manager also comes across this negative impact, an old employee that’s close to retirement who doesn’t want to get to personal, isn’t looking to learn more, and doesn’t want to be micro-managed.  A newer employee who wants to learn but at their own pace and doesn’t want to get to personal, which makes it hard on my manager because he finds it hard to communicate with these people.  Without communication it’s hard to help someone achieve their goals.

Servant Leader Behavior has seven behaviors that are core to servant leadership, these behaviors emerged from Liden, Wayne, et al.’s (2008).

1. Conceptualizing
2. Emotional Healing
3. Putting Followers first
4. Helping followers grow and succeed
5. Behaving Ethically
6. Empowering
7. Creating Value for the Community

Some of these are common to the Greenleaf model although his model was based on having the ability and this is actually doing these things on a daily basis which would make it a behavior.  Conceptualizing is understanding the organization purposes and mission and to know if something is wrong and addressing the problem creatively. Emotional healing involves being sensitive to personal concerns and well-being of others.  Putting others first may mean for a leader to break from their task to help the followers with theirs. Helping followers by mentoring and providing support.  Behaving is doing the right thing in the right way, by empowering your giving the followers freedom to make their own decisions and be self-sufficient.  Creating value is basically creating value for the community by consciously and intentionally giving back to the community. Once again, my AGM fits all of these behaviors, he understands the organization goals and knows how to fix them if we start veering always from them.  He is always concern for our well-being, and doesn’t mind putting in a hand to help even if it meant him falling behind a little.  He is a great mentor and is very supportive.  He let us make our own decisions on things and all around he is a very nice man and a great AGM, he not only helps us out but loves helping out the community as well.

Leadership Outcomes, there are a few outcomes to servant leadership: follower performance and growth, organizational performance, and societal impact.  The central goal of servant leadership is to create healthy organizations that nurture individual growth, strengthen organizational performance, and produce a positive impact on society (Greenleaf, 1970) A servant leader should be able to help followers realize their potential and full capabilities.  Positively affecting follower performance which in turn will make followers want to do more and they also have an effect.  As a result, the organizations are healthier.  Servant leadership has put a whole new light on leadership it basically frames the leadership process around the principle of caring for others, which can be applied to all levels of management in all types of organizations. After experiencing first hand a servant leader it kind of rubs off and makes you want to be one as well, just being able to put someone before yourself is a rare commodity.

 

Northouse, P. (2017). Leadership Theory and Practice. Los Angeles: Sage Publications Inc.

It is undeniable that different skills are needed to handle various situations within the workplace.  However, which skills are essential to which leaders and at what levels or leadership and management have been up for debate for decades.  While many theories have been developed, most have commonalities that center around human relations/social skills as well as technical and general knowledge.  While these skills appear to be stand-alone skills, problem-solving skills are at the center of any perceived or actual knowledge or social and technical skills displayed by leaders in the workplace.  After examining some skill-based leadership models, problem-solving skills appear to be paramount over other skills that leaders or managers may have, regardless of what level of leadership or management they are at.

Researchers have been studying leadership skills for a number of years.  Beginning in the early 1990’s, a multitude of studies have been published stating that a leader’s effectiveness depends on the leader’s ability to solve complex organizational problems (Northouse 2016). This research has resulted in the development of a comprehensive skill-based model of leadership that was advanced by Mumford, Zaccaro, Harding, Jacobs, & Fleishman (2000) as well as Yammarino (2000).  This information is directed towards leaders in all leadership positions as well as owners of companies looking to hire top, middle and supervisory leaders.

Robert Katz was one of the first to research skills, and he published an article titled “Skills of an Effective Administrator” in 1995.  Katz’s approach was an attempt to transcend the trait problem by addressing leadership as a set of developable skills (Northouse 2016).  Leadership skills are defined as the ability to use one’s knowledge to accomplish a set of goals.  Katz (1995) conceived a Three-Skill Approach that effective administration depends on.  The approach involves technical, human, and conceptual skills.  According to Katz (1995), Technical skill is knowledge about a specific type of work or activity, which might include knowing software languages and programming.  Human skill is the ability to work with people.  Conceptual skill involves the ability to work with ideas and concepts and to be able to create a strategic plan for an organization.

There are three types of management levels based on these skills – top, middle and supervisory management.  According to Katz (1995), a top-level manager does not need to be an expert on technical matters, although he or she should possess some technical knowledge.  This is probably because a top-level manager must at least be able to direct problem-solving, and he or she cannot solve problems without having at least some technical knowledge.  Katz (1995) also contends that supervisory level managers do not need to be great at conceptual skills.  However, according to Katz (1995), middle management should know it all, which would make middle managers the most valuable to the company.  Though problem-solving skills are not mentioned directly, de-emphasis on conceptual skills at the supervisory level and an emphasis on knowing everything at the middle-manager level indicates that both supervisory and middle-level managers may need problem-solving skills.

Unlike Katz (1995), Mumford et al. (2000) address problem-solving skills explicitly as a main competency of any leader.  Shortly after Katz (1995) developed his model, Mumford et al. (2000) designed a skill model which was made up of three key components.  These components include competencies, individual attributes, and general cognitive ability.  According to Mumford et al. (2000), competencies are at the heart of this model and every leader should possess problem-solving skills, social judgement skills, and knowledge.  Problem-solving skills are a leaders’ creative ability to solve new and usual organizational problems.  Social judgement skills are the people skills needed in perspective taking, social perceptiveness, behavioral flexibility, and social performance.  Perspective taking is understanding the attitudes that others have towards a particular problem or solution, Social perceptiveness is insight awareness into how others in the organization functions, Behavioral flexibility is being able to change and adapt to one’s behavior and Social performance is when leaders need to be able to communicate their own vision to others.  Knowledge and expertise make it possible for people to think about complex system issues and identify possible strategies for appropriate change (Northouse,2016).

The next part to the skill model developed by Mumford et al. (2000) is Individual Attributes which has four parts to it; general cognitive ability, crystallized cognitive ability, motivation, and personality.  Although these are more similar to traits they still help one in a leadership position with complex problem-solving which is a very difficult process, and as one moves up, it becomes more difficult.  These attributes help leaders as they apply their leadership skills.  General cognitive ability is being perceptual, being able to process and withhold information and have creative thinking skills.  It is known to be linked to biology not experiences (Northouse,2016).  Crystallized cognitive ability is intellectual ability that is learned or acquired over time, basically all the knowledge you learned through experience. Motivation is where leaders must be willing to tackle complex problems and influence others to do the same.  Last, Personality has an impact on the development of our leadership skills. certain traits can help, such as confidence, sociability and being able to adapt to different situations.

The last component of the Mumford et al. (2000) skill model is Leadership Outcomes.  It is the effective problem-solving and the overall performance of a leaders’ outcome.  These are strongly influenced by the leader’s skills and knowledge of their job.  Good problem-solving involves certain solutions that are logical, effective, and unique and go beyond giving information (Zaccaro et al.,2000). Performance is a degree which a leader has successfully performed the assigned duties through their experiences and environmental influences, such as technologies or economic, and political views.

All of the skills within the skill approach theory are very important for high level and middle level leaders.  However, effective problem-solving is the foundation to the skills approach, and to any leader in a leadership position.  Without problem-solving skills and knowledge, it is hard to imagine someone being able to be effective as a leader.  Being able to solve problems involving the  task-at-hand, hardware or technical systems, or personnel matters within the workplace, is crucial to being an effective leader or manager at any level.

 

Northouse, P. (2016). Leadership Theory and Practice. Los Angeles: Sage Publications Inc.

 

They are 5 main Leadership Traits of the upmost importance all leaders should possess, Intelligence, Confidence, Determination, Integrity, and Sociability.  There are also 6 Dark Side personality traits to avoid that could damage ones’ leadership career, Argumentative, Interpersonal Insensitivity, Narcissism, Fear of Failure, Perfectionism, and Impulsivity.  Everyone one from around the world, even high school students can benefit from knowing these traits. These are good to know, not only for someone wanting to become a leader, or in a leadership status, but for the followers as well.  Lord, DeVader, and Alliger (1986) researchers found that traits were strongly associated with individuals’ perceptions of leadership (Northouse,2016). Peter Northouse wrote a book called Leadership: Theory and Practice, that referenced all the researchers since the early 1900’s that were interested in traits of a Leader.  In the following paragraphs I will go over some of these traits and how they help in becoming a great leader. 

 

We had Leaders from the beginning of time, some good, some bad, and I think it was the bad ones that made people start thinking about what they wanted in a leader.  But Leadership has intrigued humankind and has been the topic of extensive literature for centuries (Northouse,2015).  In theory, there are hundreds of traits researchers came up with; They argued back and forth on what they believed were the vital traits and some even thought you were born with them. Over time theorists finalized lists and ended up with five major traits a person in leadership should have to be a great leader.  

The first major trait is Intelligence; having a strong verbal, perceptual, and reasoning abilities appears to make a better leader.  It’s identified as a trait that significantly contributes to a leaders’ acquisition of complex problem-solving skills and social judgment skills.  Becoming more knowledgeable about a leadership position gives us the information we need to become better leaders. (Northouse, 2015&2016) 

The second trait is Self-Confidence; the ability to be certain about one’s competencies and skills. It includes a sense of self-esteem and self-assurance and the belief that one can make a difference. Confidence can be improved by understanding what is required of you, from having a mentor, and from practice, awareness and understanding to build confidence. (Northouse, 2015&2016) 

The third trait is Determination which is a desire to get the job done.  It includes characteristics such as initiative, persistence, dominance and drive.  People with determination are willing to assert themselves, are proactive, and have the capacity to persevere in the face of obstacles. Determination can be strengthened through perseverance, staying focused on the task, clarifying the goal, articulating the vision and encouraging others to stay on course. (Northouse, 2015&2016) 

The fourth is Integrity; which is the quality of honesty and trustworthiness, one possesses.  People who adhere to a strong set of principles and take responsibility for their actions are exhibiting Integrity.  They are loyal, dependable, and not deceptive.  Representing reality as fully as possible and balancing openness with what is appropriate to disclose. (Northouse, 2015&2016) 

The fifth would be Sociability, the ability to seek out pleasant social relationships. Whom are friendly, outgoing, courteous, tactful, and diplomatic. They are sensitive to others’ needs and show concern for their well-being.  Social leaders have good interpersonal skills and have expectations of followers, they show confidence in others’ abilities and inspire others. (Northouse, 2015&2016) 

 

There are some traits that will affect the positive ones and not all leaders are successful and fail because of the traits researchers like to call, The Dark Side of personality traits. These traits are irritating or counterproductive behavioral tendencies that interfere with a leaders’ ability to form cohesive teams (Hughes, Ginnett, & Curphy,2002).  Here are the six bad traits to have described by P. Northouse. 

1. Argumentative: leaders who are suspicious, overly sensitive to criticism, and expect to be mistreated. 

1. Interpersonal Insensitivity: leaders who are aloof and unaware of how they come across to others, and have difficulty putting themselves in “other people’s shoes. 

1. Narcissism: leaders that are overly self-confident, self-centered, and extremely ambitious. They overestimate their abilities, have a strong sense of entitlement, and often hold others in contempt. 

1. Fear of Failure: leaders who dread being criticized. They tend to be overly cautious and reluctant decision makers. When forced to make decisions, they often impose old solutions to problems even when it is obvious they will not work. 

1. Perfectionism: leaders that are conscientious and methodical but also attend so closely to details that they have trouble setting and maintaining priorities. They maintain extremely high standards and are inflexible. 

1. Impulsivity: leaders that are hedonistic and often ignore the feelings of followers when in pursuit of their own pleasure. They enjoy testing limits, may fail to keep promises and commitments, and often neglect to consider the consequences of their actions 

 

Taking this all into account, studies on leadership traits has led researchers to develop standards for a leader and how to be a great leader like, for example John F. Kennedy vs Kim Jong-un.  These traits can determine who a great leader was and who wasn’t and can help leaders to become great at whatever they might do.  I decided to write about this to help people understand what endures to be a great leader and make one think about themselves as a leader and for followers to know what to look for in a leader.  There are other alternatives to you can take into account on who is a good Leader and who isn’t. You can look at it from a statistic point a view; variables being the number of followers or number of dislikes/likes, etc, but that is another whole subject.  Learning about the five major traits and knowing about the dark side traits, helps one learn and know how to solve any problems that might arise.  Leadership traits are all in theory and some can be added, removed or altered in good sense on helping you become a good leader. 

 

This means that one must possess the five top traits to become and be a great leader.  As a leader you want followers and you want them to follow your instructions.  The number of followers you get depends on your leadership abilities good or bad. I believe that everyone including followers would want to know what to look for in a leader; to determine who they might want to vote for as a new leader of a state, or country to better understand their leader in a workplace and help achieve goals.  I’m implicating that if you know what you need to become a great leader you will strive to know it.  It has been proved by many people that knowing and having these traits will make you more successful in life. One can use these traits in all aspects of ones’ life, work or personal.  It could be taught in high school, work and all around the world to help others improve their life. I think this should be applied to high school academics so everyone has an understanding of themselves and others. This article is about how to identify what the traits are and to identify a bad, good or great leader. 

 

References  

Northouse, P. (2016). Leadership Theory and Practice. Los Angeles: Sage Publications Inc. 

Northouse, P. (2015). Introduction to Leadership: concepts and Practice. Los Angeles: Sage Publications Inc.