Leadership and Management-What Are We Talking About?

Leadership and management are two strategic principles in every organisation. It depends on hand in hand, supporting and complementing each other. Leadership and management are two distinct terms. While the first deals with people such as feelings and emotions etc., the latter deals with things such as systems and processes. Both are equally important. Owen Graduate School of Management, Professor of Management Richard Daft, defines management as the fulfilment of fundamental goals through proper organisation and planning. It is all about taking charge, controlling and executing to get the desired results. Leadership, on the other hand, is about commitment and capabilities to realise and actuate the vision. It depends entirely on relationship and influence. Leadership drives people towards the goals to bring about the necessary changes or implementations. People have the same purpose and work in cooperation to achieve it.  In today's world, employees want to be part of leadership and management. They too want to gain like their organisations do.

Both Are Important

Both guide and drive the people efficiently. Management guides and leadership emphasises it. Management works properly when the leadership is good; it puts things into action by placing a goal and working towards it. Every organisation should build and develop these two qualities. They should encourage and motivate their employees to partake in management and leadership roles. Organisations can achieve these through workshops and on-going training programs. The University of Southern California Professor of Business Administration Warren Bennis says while management gets people to do, leadership gets people to want to do. In management, the people don't have a say, while in leadership, they are open to voice their opinions and work accordingly. Leadership is made up of emotions; persuasion; vision; mission; values; verbal communication; people; and heart etc. Management is made up of, facts; problem-solving; control; goals; processes; rules; written communication; and head, etc. In management, people need to be practical. Outlined here are characteristics:

Leadership Management

• Inspires and works towards change
• Uses strategy and tactics to realise goals
• Looks at building healthy relationship with the people.
• Utilises budgeting and planning
• Utilizes vision and mission
• Builds relationships through authority
• Has a purpose
• Looks at ways to measure and maintain progress
• Concentrates on the development of people.
• Believe in proper organisation
• Trust building
• Established boundary
• People power
• Structures and restructure to get the work done

In leadership, a fresh approach is taken. Ideas and thoughts are from people are very much welcomed. Management makes everything rationally. It doesn't take input from the people; rather it likes to control and organize them accordingly. 

Mistakes to Avoid

When things get hectic, mistakes are bound to happen. Outlined here are some mistakes that should be avoided by the leaders and management:

•    Neglecting the team -one should never avoid or abandon the team. The team is very important as it helps in the decision-making and planning. Both, the management and the leaders must take out time to sit and talk with the team.

•    Laid-back - if one is working with a team, they should try to get the message across clearly. The person-in-charge in the leadership and management should be approachable for clarifications. It shouldn't be that they try to save their face in the last minute.

•    Not giving feedback - feedback is very important to get the desired result. Every employee should get a comment or reaction to help them do their work better. It shouldn't be pushed towards the last minute when things get out of hand.

•    Being too open - this often puts the leadership and management into the problem. There should be a professionalism line of conduct. If the manager is too friendly with the employees, they will be taken advantage of. Work will be delayed. Deadline will not be met.

•    Unclear goals -the leadership and management should clearly define the goals for the day or week. By not doing so, they end up wasting costly time. It results in no productivity and poor quality or inefficient work. It will cost the organisation big time.

•    Irresponsible -everyone from the employees to the management should be responsible for their actions. They should be serious about their work. If one employee in a team is irresponsible, it impacts the entire team.

Leadership and management are not a one-man job. It requires a team effort. Everyone needs to do their role efficiently and effectively from the employee to the management. Teamwork and coordination make companies and organisations successful. If the organisation respects the employees, the employees will work well.