MSc Project Management

Dr. Ian Cammack

i.j.cammack@soton.ac.uk

MANG6311: Project Leadership

Session Objectives• To present a range of academic meta-theories on leadership.

• To develop an appreciation of our personal constructs of leadership.

• To draw out of academic theory key ideas pertinent to project teams.

A Key Question:

“How is Leadership Different to Management?”

Leadership & Management

• Management from administration of household (French) / breaking in a horse (Italian)

• 1300 ledere, “to cause to go with one” / Old Icelandic derivative leidha meaning the “person in front”

Leadership Definitions:

Definitions of Leadership• Leadership is “the behaviour of an individual … directing the

activities of a group towards a shared goal” (Hemphill & Coons, 1957, p.7)

• “Leadership is about articulating visions, embodying values, and creating the environment within which things can be accomplished” (Richards & Engle, 1986, p.206)

• Leadership is “the influential incremental over and above mechanical compliance with the routine directives of the organisation” (D. Katz & Kahn, 1978 p.528)

• “Leadership is to convince people to do things that are either dangerous (like invading another country) or stupid (working hard without extra pay)” (Adams, 1999, p.7)

Leadership Safari

Heroic

Skills

Charismatic / Transformation

alSituational / Contingent

Traits / Behaviours Distributed

Leadership

Is Leadership About ...• Who we are ...

– Height– Intelligence– Extraversion– Fluency

• What we do ...

– Interactions– Behaviours– Relationships

Leader or Leadership?• Is leadership about:

– One set of values, beliefs, commitments

– Shared understanding & commitment to objectives

– One source of leadership

Exercise: Thinking About Leadership

• What do you understand by ‘Leadership’?

• When was the first time that you can remember beginning to understand what ‘Leadership’ meant?

• How have your ideas about ‘leadership’ changed since then?

• What common prejudices or stereotypes exist in your culture about ‘leadership’?Out o

f Class

Acti

vity :

Indivi

dual

…further questions you may like to explore• What do you understand by ‘Leadership’?

• When was the first time that you can remember beginning to understand what ‘Leadership’ meant?

• How have your ideas about ‘leadership’ changed since that time?

• What did you learn from family / friends / culture about ‘leadership’?

• What did you learn from the arts / sciences / media about ‘leadership’?

• From what other sources did you learn about ‘leadership’

• Who agrees and who disagrees with your ideas?

• In what contexts would you feel comfortable or uncomfortable about sharing your ideas about ‘leadership’?

• What common prejudices or stereotypes exist in your culture about ‘leadership’?

• If you had lived one hundred years ago, how might your ideas about leadership have been different?

• If you had been brought up in a different culture, how might your ideas about ‘leadership’ have been different?

• If you had been born male rather than female (or vice versa) how might this affect your ideas about leadership?

Ekdawi et al (2000) Whose Reality is it Anyway?

Other (initial) thoughts• Pfeffer -”leadership is the outcome of an attribution

process”

• Gemmill & Oakley - process of “reification”

• Van Maurik “quality of its use or misuse arguably makes it the most important issue in the world today…”

• Bennis, 1959 “[a]lways, it seems, the concept of leadership eludes us or turns up in another form to taunt us again with its slipperiness and complexity. So we have invented an endless proliferation of terms to deal with it … and still the concept is not sufficiently defined”

• Garrett, 2002 “the abdication of management responsibility”

Can Leadership be Taught?

Six Practical Insights from Leadership Theories

Leadership Behaviour

Concern for Results

Concern for

People

Idea 1

Leadership Behaviour (2)

Concern for Results

Concern for

People

1,9

Country Club Management

Thoughtful attention to the needs of people for satisfying relationships leads to a comfortable, friendly organisation atmosphere and work tempo

9,9Team Management

Work accomplishment is from committed people; interdependence through a “common stake” in organisation purpose leads to relationships of trust and respect

Impoverished Management

Exertion of minimum effort to get required

work done is appropriate to sustain organisation

membership1,1

Authority-Compliance Management

Efficiency in operations results from arranging conditions of work in such a way that human elements interfere to a minimum degree

9,1

Behaviour Characteristics of 3 styles of LeadershipLaissez-faire

• Little / no control

• Motivates by support when requested by group

• Little direction is provided

• Communication is between members of groups and flows upwards / downwards

• Emphasis is on group

• Criticism is not given

Democratic

• Less control

• Economic & ego awards are used to motivate

• Direction through suggestions & guidance

• Communication flows up and down

• Decision making involves others

• Emphasis on difference ‘We’

• Criticism is constructive

Authoritarian

• Strong control

• Motivation by coercion

• Direction through commands

• Communication one way (downwards)

• Decision making doesn’t involve others

• Emphasis on difference ‘I’ and ‘You’

• Criticism is punitive

Marquis & Huston 1996 p14

Behaviour Characteristics of 3 styles of LeadershipLaissez-faire

• Little / no control

• Motivates by support when requested by group

• Little direction is provided

• Communication is between members of groups and flows upwards / downwards

• Emphasis is on group

• Criticism is not given

Democratic

• Less control

• Economic & ego awards are used to motivate

• Direction through suggestions & guidance

• Communication flows up and down

• Decision making involves others

• Emphasis on difference ‘We’

• Criticism is constructive

Authoritarian

• Strong control

• Motivation by coercion

• Direction through commands

• Communication one way (downwards)

• Decision making doesn’t involve others

• Emphasis on difference ‘I’ and ‘You’

• Criticism is punitive

Marquis & Huston 1996 p14

Out of C

lass A

ctivit

y : In

dividual o

r Pairs

Consider w

hich is

your p

referre

d style

.

What o

pportuniti

es / ch

allenges d

o you se

e

this

prese

nting

In yo

ur care

er as a

project

worker?

Manager makes

decision and

announces it

Manager presents

ideas and

invites question

s

Manager presents problem,

gets suggesti

ons, make

decision

Manager defines limits, asks

group to make

decision

Manager permits subordin

ate to function within limits

defined by

superior

Manager presents tentative decision subject

to change

Manager “sells”

decisions

Boss-Centred

Leadership

Subordinate-CentredLeadership

Tannenbaum & Schmidt (1958)

Idea 2

0-6 monthsSettling in

6-9 monthsOpening

up

9-18 months

Participating &

Reflecting

18-24 months

Transforming

Team Facilitator Control

Group MemberControl

Plan, directcontrol

Coach, opencommunicatio

ns

Participative

strategies &

critical thinking

Teach othersto lead

themselves

Facilitative leadership

Source: Glaser (1992) cited in Linstead et al (2009 p. 563)

Situational Leadership

• No single profile of an ‘ideal’ leader; rather than the leader needs to be conscious of the context and environment in which the leadership acts are taking place.

Source : Blanchard et al

Idea 3

LMX: In-groups and out-groups• ‘In-groups’ are given ‘prized’ tasks, the resources to

complete them and the trust to deliver. This can create a ‘virtuous’ circle.

• However, the ‘out-groups’ are closely supervised in the execution of mundane / difficult tasks with limited resources. Creating an environment where failure can be an expectation ...

Idea 4

Working with ‘Out-Groups’• Deep Listening

• Empathy

• Recognise Contributions on ‘out-group’

• Inclusiveness

• Develop Relationships

• Empowerment

Transformational Leaders help people to:

•interpret events

•recognise opportunities &threats

•understand when major change is necessary

•assume more responsibility

•maintain enthusiasm and effort in the face of obstacles

Idea 5

Charismatic Leadership

Source: http://www.slideshare.net/GeorgeXintarakis/what-charismatic-leaders-do-differentlyDownloaded 19th August 2014

RecipientsAre followers a ‘blank page’ ….?

• Socially constructed from early experiences:

– parents, teachers , politicians, captains and (latterly) managers

• We develop an implicit perspective of leadership and seek to judge leaders according to our own theories

(Hall & Lord 1995)Idea 6

To Sum Up

A Process of Leadership

Leaderbehaviour

Power

Situation

Traits

Relationship:Perceptions,attributions,exchanges, etc

Action & reaction

Objectives & outcomes

Style

Experiences

Skills

Leader Follower

Implicit leadership theories

Skills and experience

Romance of leadership

Behaviour & power