Introduction:
Leadership is one of the most studied topics in the world. It is complex and given the reciprocity between the leader and the follower whereby both have personal traits that are applied as variables in the relationship equation, it makes effective leadership all the more complicated. In addition, situational factors determine the relationship and effectiveness between the parties, i.e. a 3rd variable.
Leadership is not and cannot be standardized and is therefore categorized as highly dynamic. After all, the leadership style must be aimed at leading and coaching individuals in order to achieve the organization’s objectives together, taking into account the dynamics in the environmental factors. This means that, in addition to a positive attitude, the leader must possess the necessary knowledge and skills to be able to lead (Buhler, 2007).
What are the requirements for a good leader?
Some basic knowledge and skills that can be mentioned are: (a) clear norms and values, (b) integrity, (3) mutual respect, (4) future-oriented, (5) external focus, (6) quality-oriented, (7) balanced decision-making, (8) stimulating and learning attitude. A good leader should be able to determine what is relevant and important to improve the functioning and effectiveness of his or her employees and the organisation, and how he or she can influence them (Phills, 2005). In short, it is nowadays more the transforming and inspiring leader who is able to achieve better results. Also, recently there has been much more reference to “uplifting leadership”, which assumes that the leader must create a situation that allows the follower to perform better. The good performance of a follower contributes to the leader’s ability to do his or her job better, thus creating an upward spiral for the entire organisation. In summary, a good organization can benefit from giving each other reciprocal upward power (Hargreaves, 2014).
What is the situation on our islands?
The Leeward Islands are characterized as relatively small communities where informal contacts are very decisive for the quality of the leadership. This has to do with the fact that in smaller communities most people know each other, or that an informal relationship, for example a family relationship, exists. This poses an additional challenge for the leader to separate the business from the non-business in such a way that a good relationship between stakeholders is maintained. This is often not the case in larger communities. This situation, which is characteristic of Curaçao and Bonaire, can hamper the acceptance of the leader and his authority, as a result of which the effectiveness of the leadership and thus the performance of the organization can be negatively influenced.
In addition, there is often the idea that holding a managerial or managerial position in an organization automatically implies that the jobholder is a “leader”. There is a fundamental difference between a manager and a leader. After all, a manager steers towards achieving the organization’s objectives and tries to achieve the maximum return from the invested capital, while the leader steers and motivates people to achieve the organization’s objectives.
A real leader thus recognises a possible field of tension between the individual objectives of the employee and the organizational objectives, but he/she tries, by applying appropriate leadership actions, to persuade the employee to fulfil his tasks and to contribute to the realization of the organizational objectives.
The latter requires the necessary study and knowledge of leadership and mastering the right leadership competencies. The myth that one often hears that leadership is an automatic process and that this can easily be learned, is something that I strongly disagree with.
The fact that many organisations in our communities have a very short lifespan, especially in small and medium-sized enterprises, is, in addition to the financial and economic challenges, often due to the lack of the right leadership capacities. Even in family businesses where the company is transferred from father or mother to a son or daughter, we see that keeping the company in a successful state is becoming increasingly challenging.
Another phenomenon that leaders on the Leeward Islands have to take into account is the existing multiculturalism within society and the management of generations. In an organization, different cultures may have to do the same work side by side or there may be employees who belong to the generations of veterans, baby boomer’s generation X, Y, Zl. The approach of each of these generations is very different and requires the leader’s diversity management skills. How should I deal with someone who is 54 years old and another who is 26 years old doing the same job?
What are the key aspects of leadership that our leaders need to look out for?
Leadership literature has revealed that openness, conscious action, extraversion, number of key points that our leaders need to pay close attention to, regardless of whether they are in a for-profit organization, a school or as government officials, if they want to be successful in their actions as leaders. These are: (a) communication in organizations, (b) formulating goals and planning, (c) working on alignment of organizational stakeholders, (d) decisiveness in decision-making and (e) integrity: honesty and reliability.
Communication between the leader and the followers, between the leaders and between the followers, is critical for the success of the organization. It undoubtedly leads to a better understanding of the processes, which will lead to fewer conflicts. The leader must be able to clearly articulate the vision of the organization to the organizational stakeholders in order to promote their involvement and support. The objectives must be clearly and measurably formulated.
Decision-making: a weakness among our leaders is decision making. Decisions are often postponed or not taken at all, resulting in unclear and uncertain situations. Nothing is worse than not taking a decision.
Integrity, honesty and reliability: if you want to be effective as a leader, this is where it starts. The leader must be exemplary and create an environment based on these values.
What should our leaders avoid?
A number of actions and attitudes have been identified from the survey that certainly do not contribute to effective leadership. In general, but especially in smaller communities, the leaders should not be out and about: (a) show an attitude of “no-business like” in which, due to a lack of leadership knowledge and skills, they appear to be very unprofessional, (b) self-glorification, in which the leader seeks to receive praise from others, (c) leading without being able to control the whole, (d) weak in communication, (e) poor planning and formulation of objectives, (f) inconsistency, (g) no or poor decision-making, (h) no bridge builder, someone who is unable to communicate with his stakeholders and recognise the importance of stakeholder management, (i) averse to risk
Conclusion
Good leadership is not a myth. With the right knowledge and competences, leaders can lead their organisations to success by taking the right actions. It is a matter of investing and being willing to work together with others to bring the organisation into a virtuous circle.
References
Antoncic, B. (2009). The entrepreneur’s general personal traits and technological developments. Engineering and Technology, 41, 236-241.
Buhler, P. M. (2007). Managing in the new millennium. Supervision, 68(7), 20-22.
Ng, K., Soon, A., & Chan, K. (2008). Personality and leader effectiveness: A moderated mediation model of leadership self-efficacy, job demands, and job autonomy. Journal of Applied Psychology, 93(4), 733-743. doi:10.1037/0021-9010.93.4.733
Phills, Jr., J. A. (2005). Leadership matters or does it? Leader to Leader, 36, 46-52. doi:10.1002/ltl.127
Robbins, S. P., & Judge, T. I. (2009). Organizational behavior. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentica Hall.