1. Contemporary Issues in Leadership
Prof. Cynthia Thompson

2. Inspirational Approaches to Leadership
Charismatic Leadership Theory
Followers make attributions of heroic or extraordinary leadership abilities when they observe certain behaviors.
Charismatic Leaders
Have a vision
Are willing to take personal risks to achieve the vision
Are sensitive to follower needs
Exhibit behaviors that are out of the ordinary

3. Key Characteristics of Charismatic Leaders
Vision and articulation. Has a vision—expressed as an idealized goal—that proposes a future better than the status quo; and is able to clarify the importance of the vision in terms that are understandable to others.
Personal risk. Willing to take on high personal risk, incur high costs and engage in self-sacrifice to achieve the vision.
Environmental sensitivity. Able to make realistic assessments of the environmental constraints and resources needed to bring about change.
Sensitivity to follower needs. Perceptive of others’ abilities and responsive to their needs and feelings.
Unconventional behavior. Engages in behaviors that are perceived as novel and counter to norms.
Source: Based on J. A. Conger and R. N. Kanungo, Charismatic Leadership in Organizations (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 1998), p. 94.
E X H I B I T 13–1

4. Charismatic Leadership
Engages in unconventional behavior, like Richard Branson of Virgin Atlantic Airways, Virgin Records, etc.
Sir Richard Branson,

5. Can charisma be taught?
According to Dr. Annette Towler, the answer is yes!
In her study, she randomly assigned business students to one of three conditions: 1) charismatic training, 2) presentation training, and 3) no training (the control group).
Both training conditions included information about effective types of body language, the structure of a talk, and the importance of giving clear instructions. Both involved watching a demonstration video, practice, and feedback.
The Charismatic training also included information on how to articulate a vision, use metaphors and analogies, and use self-efficacy language to raise follower expectations.
The results? Those who received charismatic training performed better on a speech and exhibited more charismatic behaviors than those who received only the presentation skills training.
Source: Towler, The language of charisma: The effects of training on attitudes, behavior, and performance. Dissertation Abstracts International

6. Teaching Charisma
Project a powerful, confident, and dynamic presence (Focus on improving body language)
Articulate an overarching goal, a vision for the future
Look for fresh and radically different approaches
Vision should be novel but realistic
Use real-life incidents, metaphors to give an emotional charge to the message
Communicate high performance standards and confidence in people’s ability to meet these expectations. Raise their self-efficacy.
Be sensitive to the needs of your followers. Be approachable, genuinely listen, and ask questions.

7. Beyond Charismatic Leadership
Level 5 Leaders
Possess a fifth dimension—a paradoxical blend of personal humility and professional will—in addition to the four basic leadership qualities of individual capability, team skills, managerial competence, and the ability to stimulate others to high performance.
Humility + Will = Level 5
e.g., modest & willful, shy & fearless versus “Rambo in Pinstripes”
Channel their ego needs away from themselves and into the goal of building a great company.

8. Transactional and Transformational Leadership
Transactional Leaders
Leaders who guide or motivate their followers in the direction of established goals by clarifying role and task requirements.
Contingent Reward
Management by Exception (active)
Management by Exception (passive)
Laissez-Faire
Transformational Leaders
Leaders who provide the four “I’s”
Idealized Influence
Inspirational Motivation
Intellectual Stimulation
Individual Consideration

9. Characteristics of Transactional Leaders
Contingent Reward: Contracts exchange of rewards for effort, promises rewards for good performance, recognizes accomplishments.
Management by Exception (active): Watches and searches for deviations from rules and standards, takes corrective action.
Management by Exception (passive): Intervenes only if standards are not met.
Laissez-Faire: Abdicates responsibilities, avoids making decisions.
Source: B. M. Bass, “From Transactional to Transformational Leadership: Learning to Share the Vision,” Organizational Dynamics, Winter 1990, p. 22. Reprinted by permission of the publisher. American Management Association, New York. All rights reserved.

10. Characteristics of Transformational Leaders
Idealized Influence: Provides vision and sense of mission, instills pride, gains respect and trust.
Inspiration: Communicates high expectations, uses symbols to focus efforts, expresses important purposes in simple ways.
Intellectual Stimulation: Promotes intelligence, rationality, and careful problem solving.
Individualized Consideration: Gives personal attention, treats each employee individually, coaches, advises, mentors employees.

11. Can transformational leadership be taught?!
Canadian Study: Managers were assigned to either a transformational training program or a control group; training included role playing exercises to practice new behaviors in line with transformational leadership
Results: Managers who went through the training were rated as more transformational; their employees reported higher levels of organizational commitment and their branches performed better in terms of personal loans
Source: Barling et al., 1996, Effects of transformational leadership training on attitudinal and financial outcomes. Journal of Applied Psychology, 81,

12. Can transformational leadership be taught?!
Israeli Study: Using a longitudinal field experiment design, the researchers randomly assigned 54 military leaders to either the experimental group or the control group.
Experimental group: Leaders received transformational leadership training, which included content about the difference between transformational and transactional leadership, how to implement transformational behaviors (see article for details)
Control group: Leaders received “eclectic” leadership training, which included goal-setting, leadership contingency theory, trust building, how to develop group cohesiveness, etc.
DVs: Followers’ motivation, internalization of values of the Israel Defense Force, followers’ performance
Results?

13. Can transformational leadership be taught?!
Results:
Leaders who received the transformational leadership training had a “more positive impact on direct followers’ development and on indirect followers’ performance” than did leaders who received the eclectic leadership training.
While you might question the generalizability of a study of military officers, the findings would likely apply to any organization that adheres to a hierarchy and values professionalism, has demanding and stressful jobs, and has a strong mission.
The bottom line? There is growing evidence that transformational leadership can be taught.
Source: Dvir et al., 2002, Impact of transformational leadership on follower development and performance: A field experiment. Academy of Management Journal, 45,

14. Full Range of Leadership Model

15. Women as Leaders
What’s wrong with the glass ceiling metaphor?

16. Women and the Labyrinth of Leadership
Barriers Confronting Women
Demands of family: The cult of motherhood
Underinvestment in social capital
Discrimination: Vestiges of prejudice
Earn 44% less than men
Drops to 22% after controlling for education, work experience, etc.
Resistance to women’s leadership
Unconscious mental models
Double bind
Self promotion is risky
Source: Eagly & Carli, 2007, Harvard Business Review (see eReserves)

17. Women’s Leadership Style
Does it differ from men’s? Is there a distinct “female” style of leadership?

18. Results of meta-analyses:
Women’s Leadership
Results of meta-analyses:
Transformational vs. Transactional Styles:
Women were somewhat more transformational, and engaged in more rewarding (vs. corrective or disciplinary) transactional behavior
Leadership Behaviors:
Women tend to be more participative and collaborative
Men tend to be more autocratic and directive
Women and men are equally assertive
Sources: Eagly & Karau, 1991, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology; Eagly et al., 2003, Psychological Bulletin

19. Challenges to the Leadership Construct
Attribution Theory of Leadership
The idea that leadership is merely an attribution that people make about other individuals.
Qualities attributed to leaders:
Leaders are intelligent, outgoing, have strong verbal skills, are aggressive, understanding, and industrious.
Effective leaders are perceived as consistent and unwavering in their decisions.
Effective leaders project the appearance of being a leader.

20. Are leaders always necessary?
Orpheus: The conductor-less orchestra
The Grammy award-winning Orpheus Chamber Orchestra practices collaborative and consensus building leadership
How do they perform without a conductor?! Read about it here:
Listen to an NPR interview with former Baruch president, Sidney Lirtzman, and Dr. Cynthia Thompson (for about 20 seconds!) about leadership lessons to be learned from Orpheus:
(You’ll need to download RealPlayer to listen to it.)
Substitutes for leadership?
Makes leadership unnecessary (e.g., highly experienced, professional employees in a flat organization)
Neutralizers of leadership?
Makes leadership difficult (e.g., employees who don’t care about the rewards you have to offer)

21. Substitutes and Neutralizers for Leadership
Relationship- Task- Oriented Oriented Defining Characteristics Leadership Leadership
Individual
Experience/training No effect on Substitutes for Professionalism Substitutes for Substitutes for Indifference to rewards Neutralizes Neutralizes
Job
Highly structured task No effect on Substitutes for Provides its own feedback No effect on Substitutes for Intrinsically satisfying Substitutes for No effect on
Organization
Explicit formalized goals No effect on Substitutes for Rigid rules and procedures No effect on Substitutes for Cohesive work groups Substitutes for Substitutes for
Source: Based on S. Kerr and J. M. Jermier, “Substitutes for Leadership: Their Meaning and Measurement,” Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, December 1978, p. 378.

22. Finding and Creating Effective Leaders
Selection
Review specific requirements for the job.
Use validated tests that identify personal traits associated with leadership (e.g., conscientiousness, openness to experience).
Conduct personal interviews to determine candidate’s fit with the job (being careful to avoid bias).
Training
Recognize that all people are not equally trainable.
Teach skills that are necessary for employees to become effective leaders.
Provide behavioral training to increase the development potential of nascent charismatic employees.