Critical Role 1: Knowing the Way

Discuss about the Leadership for International Journal of Hospitality Management.

An organization is a social group and for this purpose it is extremely important for an organization to be guided by a leader who knows the right path and is largely successful in leading the people to the right direction in which they will be able to achieve success for themselves as well as for the organization where they work in. A leader can be described as the visionary head of a firm who is a powerhouse of numerous, each of which contributes to the well being of the organization. In true sense, a leader is the one who knows the way, shows the way and goes the way (Hargreaves  and Fink, 2012) .  In a learning organization, the leader has various roles to play. The primary motive of the given essay is to analyze the different roles of a leader based on theoretical texts. I will also be stated down my personal views.

The first critical role of a leader is the knowledge of the path which the organization needs to follow. I believe that knowing the way is a critical aspect of a leader and that if the leader is well aware of the correct action that may be taken by the employee then it helps the organization to develop holistically (Kara et al,. 2013).  According to me, the role of a leader in this aspect is that of a designer. This is because a leader has various duties which range from formation of the vision of the organization along with sharing the values of the firm. The policies and procedures which will be followed in an organization are largely determined by him (Northouse, 2018). I believe that a leader tends to play a significant role in the creation of a process as well. This process goes a long way in fostering an environment of effective learning in an organization and guides continuous learning and improvisation of the strategies that are formed collectively. 

The next important role that a leader plays is that of a steward. As a steward the role of a leader is based on going the way. I believe that although the knowledge of the way is important, it is equally important for the leader to go down the path that he has the idea about. Along with this, it is also important for him to move in this path along with the firm and its members. According to Choudhary, Akhtar and  Zaheer (2013), this role of a leader stresses on the attitude and the perspective of a leader which guides him in determining the path which was envisioned by him earlier. It is the duty of a leader to prove it to the firm that he is capable of performing his responsibilities and that he will be helping them in performing the correct acts. He will have to face the opportunities that come in the way and bear the risks as well.

Critical Role 2: Going the Way

The third role of a leader is guiding the organizational members. The role of a leader in the given scenario is that of a teacher. His duty lies in being and acting as a continuous guide to the people of the firm and act as a visionary who helps in forecasting for the future of the organization. I believe that, the leader is blessed with a great ability which is not present in others and it is for this reason, that a leader needs to perform what no other individual in the organization performs (Giltinane, 2013). The leader is required to act as a coach and work towards the well being of the firm. He will be viewed as a role model for the firm and looked up by many. Hence, his actions will be judged continuously and he will be required to take actions which will result in the long term success (Antonakis and Day, 2017). The leader is required to apply various management as well as leadership theories in helping the organization to meet its needs and achievement of the vision. As a leader is believed to have a bird`s eye view, he is believed to have an advantage unlike any other and needs to take advantage of this. In the next section of the essay, I will be discussing some other roles of a leader that are critical to an organization`s success.

Rather than a performance, the  role of a leader is more like a function. It is an important function which is required at various levels of the organization. According to me, the leader needs to be present in the different strata’s of the organization and not just at the upper level; top managerial position.

True leadership does not lie in juts taking critical decisions about relevant policies and procedures, but in guiding the subordinates and assisting them in achieving success in their daily tasks which will contribute to the success of the company in the long run. I believe that a leader should also play the role of a representative of the firm. He needs to act as the face of the organization and represent the firm n various events that take place (Yukl, 2013). These events may include various conferences, meetings, seminars and other exhibitions alike. As a representative he will be required to communicate the message of the organization in front of the audience. Apart for representing the leader is also a representation of the specific department the leader is a part of (Sethuraman and  Suresh ,2014).

Critical Role 3: Guiding Organizational Members

The leader needs to act as a guiding light to the different people in a given organization. The leader can do this by helping the different employees by conveying the long term objective of the organization to them along with abiding them in their short term objectives. Very often the different individuals in an organization are confused and tend to act in the form of their own motive and do not concern about the objective of the organization. In such a scenario, it lays the duty of the leader to guide the different employees in achieving their goals along with fulfillment of the organizational objectives as well (Yahaya and Ebrahim  ,2016). 

The leader should also act as a solicitor. I believe that as a solicitor, a leader is required to gain the support of the different organizational members. He should have the capability of inviting support from different members of an organization and learn to understand what the quality that they view in him is and what is expected out of him (Bhatti et al., 2012). By following the step, the leader will be able to successfully gain the support of all members which shall assist in easy accomplishment of the goals.

According to me, lastly, the leader is required to act as a friend. Although the leader is required to play the role of a philosopher and that of a guide as stated previously, he also needs to act as a friend (Nahavandi, 2016). The employees must feel free when sharing their problems. When a leader will be successful in doing so, then the leader will be able to automatically identify all related problems and help the firm to prosper. 

A leader does not have to be perfect, he needs to be real. It is the requirement of a leader to understand the tension and see to it that the goals of the organization are achieved. A leader is required to understand the gaps which exist in an organization and learn from the gaps. In order to illustrate the importance of the approach of leader I shall take an example of a particular leader who was making a presentation of the goals of an organization. The leader was talking to the different employees about how the vision of the organization has a key role to play  in the future of the firm and that the vision concentrated on transparency in process. However, when the presentation got over, a given associate in a junior position although praising her speech mentioned that, although the policy states and emphasis on transparency, the organization is not transparent about its processes to the different customers (Mitchell, 2013). The room went silent and the engagement of the different organizational members dropped down completely. The leader had no answer. This was a classic example of how a leader failed in his activities.

In the case of another leader, stuck in a similar scenario, when the leader was questioned by one of his executives regarding the foul attitude of all the managers of the firm. The leader agreed to it and stated that the foul behavior is what is taking place till now, and that’s where the vision lies, to improvise the behaviour and giving the employees the power to act in favor of the organization. He achieved acclamation because of this and removed the tension. 

Hence it can be stated that from the given discussion on Leadership, I observed that a leader does not need to be perfect. In turn he needs to experiment and find the right path on his own. If the leader is unable to do so then, he might fail. He needs to act as guidance and take the organization to the next step. Hence, the qualities of knowing, showing and going the way play a key role in making the firm successful and accomplishment of visions. 

References

Antonakis, J. and Day, D.V. eds., 2017. The nature of leadership. Sage publications.

Bhatti, N., Maitlo, G.M., Shaikh, N., Hashmi, M.A. and Shaikh, F.M., 2012. The impact of autocratic and democratic leadership style on job satisfaction. International Business Research, 5(2), p.192.

Choudhary, A. I., Akhtar, S. A., and  Zaheer, A. ,2013. Impact of transformational and servant leadership on organizational performance: A comparative analysis. Journal of Business Ethics, 116(2), 433-440.

Giltinane, C. L. ,2013. Leadership styles and theories. Nursing Standard (through 2013), 27(41), 35.

Hargreaves, A. and Fink, D., 2012. Sustainable leadership(Vol. 6). John Wiley & Sons.

Kara, D., Uysal, M., Sirgy, M.J. and Lee, G., 2013. The effects of leadership style on employee well-being in hospitality. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 34, pp.9-18.

Mitchell, G., 2013. Selecting the best theory to implement planned change. Nursing Management-UK, 20(1).

Nahavandi, A., 2016. The Art and Science of Leadership -Global Edition. Pearson.

Northouse, P. G. ,2018. Leadership: Theory and practice. Sage publications.

Sethuraman, K., and  Suresh, J. ,2014. Effective leadership styles. International Business Research, 7(9), 165.

Yahaya, R., and Ebrahim, F. ,2016. Leadership styles and organizational commitment: literature review. Journal of Management Development, 35(2), 190-216.

Yukl, G.A., 2013. Leadership in organizations. Pearson Education India.