Rationale of study
In today's fast-paced world, individual success relies not only on knowledge but also on essential soft skills, including managerial, decision-making, and planning abilities, which enhance productivity and simplify daily life Among these, leadership skills stand out as crucial, yet few individuals fully grasp the depth of effective leadership.
This report provides a comprehensive analysis of leadership, aiming to equip individuals with foundational knowledge to apply in real-world scenarios Leadership is not solely an inherent trait; it is a skill that can be learned and refined over time to enhance personal growth and benefit the community While recognizing one's potential for leadership may be straightforward, developing into an effective leader requires dedication and effort This report serves as a guide to navigate that journey.
Research objectives
This study aims to provide a clear understanding of effective leadership by offering essential knowledge and practical strategies for applying leadership skills in real-world situations.
Research methodology
The study explores various aspects of daily life through relatable video scenes, focusing on individuals from all walks of life, regardless of age, gender, or occupation It particularly targets those aspiring to become effective leaders who may feel uncertain about where to start their journey.
Scope of study
Using this type of methods, we concentrate on describing a specific situation through observations to gain an understanding of problem; therefore, help to develop ideas for potential quantitative research.
To effectively analyze our subject, we employed various theoretical perspectives and identified key types of analysis By integrating references with real-world observations, including insights from films, we enhanced our understanding of the leading process This approach not only provided us with reliable information but also allowed us to apply the knowledge gained in a practical context, ensuring a professional completion of our task.
Structure of study
This report outlines our process for developing the final product, structured into eight key sections: Abstract, Introduction, Literature Review, Research Methodology, Findings and Analysis, Recommendations, Conclusion, and Appendix The Abstract introduces the initial problem by posing a broad question, while the subsequent sections systematically narrow the focus to identify the root cause through observation and data analysis Ultimately, the report concludes with insights and recommendations addressing the identified concerns.
LITERATURE REVIEWS 5 I Types of power
Traits approaches
The trait approach to leadership, rooted in the "Great Man" theory, emphasizes that successful leaders possess inherent characteristics rather than acquired skills This perspective suggests that individuals are born with the essential traits required for effective leadership, highlighting the notion that greatness in leadership is innate.
The trait approach theory, of course, comes with a fair share of controversy.
Various studies have attempted to identify the key personality traits of effective leaders, but the findings remain contentious While certain traits may be beneficial, they are not universally displayed by all individuals in leadership positions.
Seven key factors emerged prominently in the studies: drive, self-confidence, honesty and integrity, intelligence, job-relevant knowledge, and extraversion Each of these traits plays a significant role in determining success and effectiveness in various professional settings.
Leaders demonstrate a strong drive characterized by high effort and ambition They possess a significant desire for achievement, exhibit boundless energy, and maintain relentless persistence in their endeavors, consistently taking the initiative to reach their goals.
Desire to lead: Leaders have a strong desire to influence and lead others.
They demonstrate the willingness to take responsibility.
Honesty and integrity: Leaders build trusting relationships with followers by being truthful or nondeceitful and by showing high consistency between word and deed.
Self-confidence: Followers look to leaders for an absence of self-doubt,
Leaders, therefore, need to show self-confidence in order to convince followers of the rightness of their goals and decisions.
Effective leaders must possess the intelligence to gather, synthesize, and interpret vast amounts of information This ability enables them to create compelling visions, solve complex problems, and make informed decisions.
Effective leaders possess extensive job-relevant knowledge about their company, industry, and technical aspects This deep understanding enables them to make informed decisions and grasp the potential consequences of those choices.
Extraversion: Leaders are energetic, lively people They are sociable, assertive, and rarely silent of withdrawn.
Behavioral approaches
The Behavioral Theory of Leadership emphasizes the observable actions and reactions of both leaders and followers in specific situations This theory posits that effective leaders can be developed through learned behaviors rather than being innate According to behavioral theorists, a leader's actions are the most reliable indicators of their influence and success in leadership roles, highlighting the importance of definable and teachable behaviors in achieving effective leadership.
These theories concentrate on what leaders actually do rather than on their personalities Different patterns of behavior are observed and categorized as
The Iowa Studies of leadership, conducted in the 1930s by Lewin, Lippitt, and White, aimed to identify various leadership styles, resulting in the establishment of three primary types The autocratic leader makes decisions independently, relying solely on their own beliefs without seeking input from others In contrast, the democratic leader values collaboration, considering all opinions before making decisions and distributing responsibilities equally among team members.
Democratic leaders empower their teams by encouraging input on work methods, clearly communicating overall goals, and utilizing feedback to support their subordinates In contrast, laissez-faire leaders adopt a hands-off approach, granting their teams significant autonomy and minimal guidance, trusting that individuals will thrive when given the freedom to manage their responsibilities in their own manner.
A study by the University of Iowa examined three leadership styles to determine their effectiveness, revealing that the best approach depends on the situation Autocratic leadership is most effective in time-sensitive scenarios or when the leader possesses the most expertise Conversely, Laissez-faire leadership proved to be the least effective, while group members reported higher satisfaction under democratic leadership compared to autocratic leadership.
The managerial grid, created by Robert Blake and Jane Srygley Mouton, is a widely recognized framework for identifying different leadership styles This model posits that effective managerial behavior is influenced by two key factors: the level of concern for people and the level of concern for production.
Concern for people reflects a leader's commitment to understanding and addressing the needs, interests, and personal development of team members while determining the most effective approach to completing tasks.
Concern for production is the degree to which a leader emphasizes concrete objectives, organizational efficiency, and hihg productivity when deciding the best way to accomplish a task.
The grid illustrates managerial priorities, with the vertical axis representing concern for employees and the horizontal axis indicating concern for production, both scaled from 1 to 9 Higher numbers reflect increased attention to each variable, allowing managers to be positioned anywhere on the grid based on their level of concern for both people and productivity.
The five resulting leadership styles are as follows:
Impoverished management is characterized by a minimal concern for both people and tasks, embodying a laissez-faire approach that lacks effective leadership This style relies heavily on past practices to maintain organizational operations, ultimately hindering progress and development.
Country club management prioritizes employee satisfaction over productivity, fostering a relaxed and friendly work environment While this approach aims to create a happy atmosphere, it often leads to a lack of motivation among staff to meet organizational goals, resulting in minimal effort towards achieving business objectives.
Task management (high concern for production but low concern for people in this management style)
Middle-of-the-road management strikes a balance between production and employee well-being, emphasizing compromise in decision-making Managers who adopt this style prioritize collaboration, ensuring that decisions are made with the support of their subordinates This approach fosters a cooperative environment where both productivity and staff satisfaction are valued.
Effective team management prioritizes both production and employee morale Managers recognize that caring for team members and focusing on tasks can coexist harmoniously They emphasize the importance of clearly explaining tasks and involving subordinates in decision-making to foster a strong sense of commitment and engagement within the team.
According to Blake and Mouton, 9, 9 orientations is the most desirable one
The Michigan Leadership Studies, conducted by the Institute for Social Research at the University of Michigan, aimed to empirically identify leadership styles that enhance group performance and satisfaction.
The studies identified two distinct styles of leadership;
Job-oriented Leadership: Managers pay close attention to subordinates’ work, explain work procedures and are keenly interested in performance.
Employee-oriented Leadership: Managers develop a cohesive group and ensure that employees are satisfied with their jobs
The Michigan Leadership Studies found that both the styles of leadership led to increase in production, but it was slightly more in case of production of job-orineted style.
Situational approaches
Situational Leadership Theory, developed by Paul Hersey and Ken Blanchard, emerged from their work on Management of Organizational Behavior and was first introduced in 1969 as the "life cycle theory of leadership." Renamed in the mid-1970s, this contingency theory emphasizes the importance of followers' readiness and has become widely adopted by management development specialists.
The Situational Leadership Model, developed by Hersey and Blanchard, is based on two key concepts: leadership style and the performance readiness level of individuals or groups, often referred to as maturity or development level They defined leadership style by the balance of task behavior and relationship behavior that leaders exhibit towards their followers The model classifies leadership styles into four distinct behavior styles, labeled S1 through S4.
S1 - Telling (high task – low relationship): The leader defines roles and tells people what, how, when, and where to do various tasks.
S2 - Selling (high task – high relationship): The leader provides both directive and supportive behavior.
S3 - Participating (low task – high relationship): The leader and followers share in decision making; the main role of the leader is facilitating and communicating.
S4 - Delegating (low task – low relationship): The leader provides little direction or support
Effective leadership does not rely on a single style; instead, it requires flexibility and the ability to adapt to varying situations.
The right leadership style will depend on the person or group being led.
The Hersey–Blanchard situational leadership theory identified four maturity levels, or the four stages of follower readiness :
R1: people are both unwilling and unable to take responsibility for doing something Followers aren’t competent or confident.
R2: people are unable but willing to do the necessary job tasks.
Followers are motivated but lack the appropriate skills.
R3: People are able but unwilling to do what the leader wants.
Followers are competent, but don’t want to do something.
R4: People are both able and willing to do what is asked of them.
Maturity levels are specific to individual tasks; a person may exhibit general skills, confidence, and motivation in their role, yet still be categorized at maturity level M1 when faced with a task that demands skills they lack.
Situational Leadership Theory (SLT) likens the leader-follower dynamic to that of a parent and child, emphasizing that leaders must adapt their control as followers mature and become more responsible As followers progress in their readiness levels, leaders should reduce both their control and relationship behaviors For instance, when followers are at R1 (unable and unwilling), leaders should adopt a telling style with clear directions; at R2 (unable but willing), a selling style with high task and relationship orientation is necessary; at R3 (able but unwilling), a participating style is effective to gain support; and finally, at R4 (both able and willing), leaders can utilize a delegating style with minimal intervention.
Path-goal theory is a leadership theory developed by Robert House in
The Path-Goal Theory, initially developed in 1971 and revised in 1996, emphasizes that a leader's primary role is to help followers achieve their goals while ensuring these objectives align with the organization's aims This theory highlights task-oriented elements that correspond with situational leadership, offering strategies for leaders to motivate and support their employees Additionally, it underscores the importance of rewards in facilitating goal attainment.
According to House’s path-goal theory, a leader’s effectiveness depends on several employee and environmental contingent factors and certain leadership styles All these are explained in the figure below:
House identified four leadership behaviors:
Directive leader: Lets subordinates know what’s expected of them, schedules work to be done, and gives specific guidance on how to accomplish tasks.
Supportive leader: Shows concern for the needs of followers and is friendly.
Participative leader: Consults with group members and uses their suggestions before making a decision.
Achievement oriented leader: Sets challenging goals and expects followers to perform at their highest level.
According to the theory, these leadership styles are not mutually excusive and leaders are capable of selecting more than one kind of a style suited for a particular situation.
The theory posits that various leadership styles can be effective in certain contexts while proving ineffective in others Additionally, it emphasizes that the effectiveness of a leader's style is influenced by several key variables.
Employee characteristics play a crucial role in shaping leadership styles and organizational dynamics Key factors include employees' needs, locus of control, experience, perceived ability, job satisfaction, willingness to leave the organization, and anxiety levels For instance, when employees exhibit high levels of perceived inability, a supportive leadership approach may be more effective than a directive style, fostering a more positive work environment and enhancing overall employee engagement.
The work environment is influenced by various characteristics, including task structure and team dynamics, which employees cannot control For those engaged in simple and routine tasks, a supportive leadership style proves to be more effective than a directive approach.
Similarly, the participative style works much better for non-routine tasks than routine ones
In situations of low team cohesiveness, adopting a supportive leadership style is essential, while a directive or achievement-oriented approach is more effective when performance-oriented team norms are present.
Leaders should apply directive style to counteract team norms that oppose the team’s formal objectives.
In summary, extensive empirical research has validated this theory, emphasizing that a leader's primary responsibility is to help subordinates set and achieve their goals efficiently This framework serves as a roadmap for leaders, enhancing both subordinate satisfaction and performance.
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 17 I Approaches to research
Methods to apply
For our research paper, we have opted for the observation method, which involves recording, describing, analyzing, and interpreting individuals' behavior This approach can be either loosely or tightly structured, utilizing specific coding techniques to identify behavioral patterns.
We leverage professional knowledge of leadership skills as a foundational aspect of our research, combining it with direct observation and analysis This approach not only offers a comprehensive overview of leadership skills but also provides a deeper, more realistic understanding of the leadership process and its effects on the surrounding environment.
Research procedures
In preparing for our research on leadership skills, we conducted a preliminary search for existing studies and theories We established criteria for selecting suitable videos, prioritizing relevance to our topic to ensure clarity and avoid misunderstandings Additionally, we focused on the attractiveness of both content and visuals to facilitate effective analysis and presentation of findings Finally, we emphasized the importance of video quality, ensuring that subtitles are legible and conversations are easily followed.
Next, after selecting some options, we did a thorough evaluation and finally agreed on the video “Boss Da Market” considering its match to our criterias
We conducted a detailed analysis of the information gathered from the clip, applying relevant leadership theories and findings The results of this analysis will be discussed in the following sections.
FINDINGS AND ANALYSIS 19 I Clip summary
Application of leadership theories on analyzing the clip
Based on the video clip, it can be seen that the woman owns 3 sources of leader power, which are: legitimate, referent and coercive powers More specifically:
Legitimate power is exemplified by the woman who oversees the market, possessing the authority to collect stall rent and regulate vendors Her role enables her to direct market activities, such as enforcing cleanliness and ensuring fair practices among sellers, like preventing a butcher from cheating customers.
Despite her yelling, the market renters maintained their respect for the woman in charge, showing no indications of gossip or dissent regarding her management style This demonstrates her referent power, as she commands respect and loyalty from those around her.
This resulted from the fact that she was actually a kind - hearted boss.
The video highlights her dedication to helping the less fortunate by providing empty market stalls for them to sell their goods She exemplified honesty in her dealings, promptly refunding any overpayments made by her renters Furthermore, she demonstrated compassion by instructing her staff to assist a man who collapsed from exhaustion Her admirable qualities earned her the respect and admiration of all her renters.
Coercive power allows individuals to enforce rules and maintain control, as demonstrated when a woman exercised her authority over her renters in the market She took decisive action by breaking the butcher's scale upon discovering he was cheating customers, which prompted a fearful reaction from him.
The Literature Review indicates that while there is no universal set of traits for effective leadership, seven key characteristics—drive, desire to lead, honesty and integrity, self-confidence, intelligence, job-relevant knowledge, and extraversion—are frequently observed in successful leaders In the video clip, the woman exemplifies all these traits, although they are subtly revealed as the clip progresses, becoming clear only towards the end.
The woman was determined to secure her funds from lending kiosks in the market, demonstrating her unwavering energy and resolve to achieve her financial goals.
Driven by a desire to lead, she compelled the "curly man" to open the door despite his distraction with videos Upon entering the market, she vocally criticized others for the untidiness and insisted on maintaining cleanliness Furthermore, she persistently inquired about the rent from each tenant, demonstrating her authoritative approach.
She exhibited a powerful trait when she confronted the butcher, demanding that he treat his customers fairly and not overcharge them, demonstrating her strong sense of justice.
Honesty and integrity are subtly portrayed throughout the video, culminating in a powerful revelation of the protagonist's compassionate actions towards her renters By empathizing with their backgrounds and challenges, she not only offered support but also fostered stronger relationships with them.
Self-confidence radiated from her, as she steadfastly held on to her beliefs, even when they came across as somewhat abrasive Despite facing distorted portrayals of herself in online videos, she continued to pursue her path unwaveringly Her eyes and demeanor clearly reflected her strong sense of self-assurance.
The video clearly showcased the intelligence of the leader, but it was only after she watched it on social media that viewers fully grasped this quality Despite facing public misunderstanding, she remained composed and made astute decisions, choosing not to escalate the situation and instead maintaining her approach to market management.
Job-relevant knowledge: She knew exactly what happened inside the market, from the cleanliness of the market to the rent of each person.
Extraversion was prominently displayed in the video, highlighting the woman's energetic demeanor Her loud voice and lively facial expressions conveyed the essence of a dynamic leader.
3 Behavioral approaches – Iowa University Studies
The leadership style of the Boss Da Market is prominently illustrated through behavioral theories from Iowa University, Michigan University, and the Managerial Grid This analysis reveals a flexible approach to leadership, characterized by three key behaviors: an autocratic style, an employee-oriented focus, and a strong concern for people, as outlined in the Managerial Grid.
3.1 Autocratic style (Iowa University studies) Firstly, “autocratic style” is from the beginning to 1.30’ Let’s remember the theory from Iowa University, which describes that a leader with this style dictate work methods, make unilateral decisions, and limit employee participation From the beginning of the videos, she request the employees to turn off the music because “We’re collecting rent, not going to battle” We can also see that she instructs strictly about the cleanliness of the market many times : “What is this dirt ? How many times do I need to say it ?”, “Everything has to be clean!”, “How many times have I told you not put the trash can in front of the stall?” These are very dominant examples of autocratic leadership style
When collecting rental fees from stall owners, she adopts a loud tone and displays an angry facial expression, which intimidates them and prevents any objections, leading them to comply with her demands without engaging in discussion.
3.2 Employee-oriented (Michigan University studies)