Organizational Behaviour

UNIT-V: Leading High performance: Job design and Goal setting for High performance- Quality of
Work Life- Socio technical Design and High-performance work practices.
Behavioural performance management: reinforcement and punishment as principles of Learning –Process
of Behavioural modification - Leadership theories - Styles, Activities and skills of Great leaders.
5.1 Leading High performance:
The high performance organization (HPO) is a conceptual framework for organizations that leads to
improved, sustainable organizational performance. High-performance organisations and teams are
characterised by goal clarity and commitment, role complementarity, effective communication and
decision-making processes. Compared to other organizations, high performance organizations spend
much more time on continuously improving their core capabilities and invest in their workforce, leading
to increased growth and performance. High performance organizations are sometimes labeled as high
commitment organizations.

5.2 Job design: In simple, “The way the elements in a job are organized.”
Job design as “the specification of the content, methods and. relationships of jobs in order to
satisfy technological and organizational requirements as well as the social and personal requirements of
the job holder”- Davis (1966)

According to Jon Werner and DeSimone, “Job design is the development and alteration of the
components of a job (such as the tasks one performs, and the scope of one’s responsibilities) to improve
productivity and the quality of the employees’ work life.”

Job design has been defined by Davis (1966) as: “The specification of the contents, methods,
and relationships of jobs in order to satisfy technological and organizational requirements as well as the
social and personal requirements of the job-holder.”

Milkovich and Boudreau defined job design as, “Job design integrates work content (tasks,
functions, and relationships), the rewards (extrinsic and intrinsic) and the qualifications required (skills,
knowledge, abilities) for each job in a way that meets the needs of employees and the organization.”

Michael Armstrong has defined job design as “the process of deciding on the content of a job in terms of
its duties and responsibilities, on the methods to be used in carrying out the job, in terms of techniques,
systems and procedures, and on the relationships that should exist between the job holder and his
superiors, subordinates and colleagues.”

Job design is an attempt to create a match between job requirements and human attributes. It involves
organizing the components of the job and the interaction patterns among the members of a work group.
It helps in developing appropriate design of job to improve efficiency and satisfaction.

The process of linking specific tasks to specific jobs and deciding what techniques, equipment,
and procedures should be used to perform those tasks.

1
 Organizational Behaviour

Job design is the process of establishing employees' roles and responsibilities. Its main purpose is to
optimize work processes to create value and maximise performance. But, it's also a key element in
creating good quality jobs which benefit both workers and employers.

5.2.1 Principles of Job Design:

Principles are the bases of the approach used in job design. Robertson and Smith (1985) have suggested
the following five principles of job design:
 To influence skill variety, provide opportunities for people to do several tasks and combine tasks.
 To influence task identity, combine tasks and form natural work units.
 To influence task significance, form natural work units and inform people of the importance of
their work.
 To influence autonomy, give people responsibility for determining their own working systems.
 To influence feedback; establish good relationship and open feedback channels.

5.2.2 Job Characteristics Model:

Developed by J. Richard Hackman and Greg Oldham, the job characteristics model (JCM) says we can
describe any job in terms of five core job dimensions. A model that proposes that any job can be
described in terms of five core job dimensions: skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy,
and feedback.
i) Skill variety: The degree to which a job requires a variety of different activities so the worker can
use a number of different skills and talent.

ii) Task identity: The degree to which a job requires completion of a whole and identifiable piece of
work.

iii) Task significance: The degree to which a job has a substantial impact on the lives or work of other
people.

iv) Autonomy: The degree to which a job provides substantial freedom and discretion to the individual
in scheduling the work and in determining the procedures to be used in carrying it out.

v) Feedback: The degree to which carrying out the work activities required by a job results in the
individual obtaining direct and clear information about the effectiveness of his or her performance.

2
Organizational Behaviour

5.2.3 Methods of Job Design:

The various techniques of job design and redesign are discussed below:
1. Job Simplification
2. Job Rotation
3. Job Enlargement
4. Job Enrichment

5.3 Goal setting for High performance:

The main purpose of goal-setting theory is to better understand the connection between how the goal-
setting process influences work motivation and performance. From there, people and teams can use
that understanding to help employees become more successful in attaining their goals. Goal setting
helps to stay motivated, focused,, concentrate on learning new skills, & constantly improving our
selves.
 Goal setting involves the development of an action plan designed in order to motivate and guide a
person or group toward a goal.
 A theory that says that specific and difficult goals, with feedback, lead to higher performance.
 It refers to the process of setting specific, attainable targets for individuals or groups.
 Goal setting refers to the process of setting specific, attainable targets for individuals or groups. It
is a motivational technique which can help the employees to understand the business goals, and
motivate them to rise to the challenges.
 Goal settings have to be specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time bound.
 A theory that focuses on identifying the types of goals that are most effective in producing high
levels of motivation and performance and why goals have these effects.
 Goal setting can operate to enhance both intrinsic motivation (in the absence of any extrinsic
rewards) and extrinsic motivation (when workers are given extrinsic rewards for achieving their
goals.)
3
Organizational Behaviour

 Goal setting is one o the concept related t o motivation theory. “It is the process of setting clear
and challenging goals leads to better performance.”
 Goal-setting theory reveals impressive effects of goal specificity, challenge, and feedback on
performance.

5.3.1 Necessary conditions for high performance:

a) Goal acceptance/commitment.
b) Goals specify.
c) Goal difficulty.
d) Feedback on progress towards goal.

5.3.2 Goal setting S.M.A.R.T. technique: A good way to create constructive goals is to use the
S.M.A.R.T. technique.
 Specific: clearly states what is to be achieved.
 Measurable: can be quantitatively determined or observed.
 Achievable: within reach given the role and responsibilities.
 Results-oriented: indicating what action is to be performed.
 Time-bound: including a deadline for completion.

5.3.4 Goal setting for High performance:

5.4 Quality of Work Life:

 Quality of work life refers to the favourableness or unfavourableness of the job environment of an
organization for its employees. It is a term which covers a person’s feelings about every dimension
of its work e.g. economic incentives and rewards, job security ,working conditions, organisational
and interpersonal relationships etc.
 QWL as an individual's. perception of and attitudes towards, his or her work and the total working.
Environment.
 According to J. Richard and J. Loy, “QWL is the degree to which members of a work organisation
are able to satisfy important personal needs through their experiences in the organisation”.
4
Organizational Behaviour

 Richard E.Walton explains quality of work life in terms of eight broad conditions of employment
that constitute desirable quality of work life (QWL).
i. Adequate and fair compensation.
ii. Safe and healthy working condition.
iii. Opportunity to use and develop human capacities.
iv. Opportunity for career growth.
v. Social integration in the work force.
vi. Constitutionalism in the work organization.
vii. Work and quality of life and
viii. Special relevance of work.

Characteristics of Q.W.L:
 Job satisfaction
 Career growth
 Development of employee
 Considers humans as asset
 Job change: 1) job rotation 2) job enlargement 3) job enrichment
 Participation in management
 Proper physical conditions

Objectives of Q.W.L:
 To create a positive attitude in the minds of the employees.
 To increase the productivity.
 To improve standards of living of the employees.
 To increase the effectiveness of the organization (goal accomplishment, profitability etc.)

5.5 Socio technical Design:

 Socio technical systems in organizational development are an approach to complex organizational
work design that recognizes the interaction between people and technology in workplaces.
 Socio-technical theory has at its core the idea that the design and performance of any
organizational system can only be understood and improved if both 'social' and 'technical' aspects
are brought together and treated as interdependent parts of a complex system.
 Socio-technical design is concerned with advocacy of the direct participation of end-users in the
information system design process. The system includes the network of users, developers,
information technology at hand, and the environments in which the system will be used and
supported.
 Socio technical systems theory (STS) is an organizational design approach with a core focus on
the interaction between people and technology.
 Socio technical Systems Theory is an interdisciplinary approach that focuses on the interaction
between social and technical elements within an organization. It recognizes that organizations are
not purely technical or social but a combination of both. The theory emphasizes the need to
design work systems that consider both human and technological factors to optimize performance,
5
Organizational Behaviour

efficiency, and employee well-being. It originated in the field of organizational development and
has applications in various industries.

Key Concepts:
The theory posits that organizations consist of interconnected social and technical systems.

a) Interdependence: Recognizes the interdependence between social and technical elements, where
changes in one affect the other.

a) Work Design: Emphasizes the importance of designing work systems that align with
organizational goals and human capabilities.

b) Employee Involvement: Encourages involving employees in decision-making and system design

to enhance job satisfaction and performance.

c) Continuous Improvement: Advocates for ongoing assessment and adaptation of systems to

maintain effectiveness.

Characteristics of Socio-technical design:

a) Holistic Approach: Considers both social and technical aspects in organizational design and
management.
b) Employee-Centric: Prioritizes the well-being and participation of employees in shaping work
systems.
c) Adaptability: Recognizes the need for systems that can adapt to changing circumstances and
technology.
d) Continuous Learning: Promotes a culture of continuous learning and improvement.
e) Goal Alignment: Ensures alignment between organizational goals and work systems.

5.6 High-performance work practices:

High-performance work practices (HPWPs) can be defined as practices that have been shown to
improve an organization's capacity to effectively attract, select, hire, develop, and retain high-
performing personnel. Self-managed teams, flexible job assignments, performance-based
compensation, and increasing employee access to information are all high-performance work
practices. High-performance work practices are a set of approaches and HR techniques designed to
maximise the productivity and effectiveness of employees. These practices may include performance
management, employee involvement, training and development, and work-life balance.

6
Organizational Behaviour

High-performance work practices are defined as a way of organizing work in which employees
participate in making decisions that have a real impact on their jobs and the broader organization. The
aim of these practices is to achieve a high-performance culture, one in which the norms, values, and
human resources are combined to create an environment in which the achievement of high levels of
performance is a way of life. High-performance work practices empower employees, which helps
organizational efficiency and performance.
HPWPs involve substantial investment in human capital to empower employees by developing their
knowledge, skills, flexibility, and motivation, with the expectation that the employer will provide them
with the ability and the opportunity to deliver input into workplace decisions.
HPWS is defined as a system of HRM practices that increase the employee’s empowerment,
knowledge, skills and incentives that ultimately motivate them to achieve greater performance.
According to Tomar, “the main idea of HPWS is to create an organization based on employee
involvement, commitment and empowerment, not employee control”
Its aim is to create workplaces that are both highly productive and offer employees high level of job
satisfaction.
5.7 High-performance work Practices:
 Self-managing teams
 Open communication
 Extensive training/ upskilling
 Flexible work assignments
 Decentralized decision making
 Employment security
 Selective hiring of personnel
Components of HPWS are Training & Development, Opportunity to participate, Employee Incentives
Benefits of HPWS:
Employee Organization
 More Involvement  High productivity
 Experience Growth & Satisfaction  Quality
 More valuable as contributors  Flexibility
 Customer Satisfaction
 Lower Cost

7
Organizational Behaviour

5.8 Behavioural performance management:

The behavioural approach, also known as the behavioural science approach, focuses on studying
human behaviour within organizations and aims to establish scientifically verifiable propositions for
understanding this behaviour. It heavily draws concepts from psychology and sociology to analyze
various aspects of organisational behaviour. The core elements of the behavioural science approach
include motivation, leadership, communication, group dynamics, and participative management. These
aspects are considered crucial in understanding and managing human behaviour within organisations.
It is also important as other theories like, organizational motivational theory, personality theories. All
organizational behavior is either directly or indirectly affected by learning.
For Example: A worker’s skills, A manager attitude, A staff assistant’s motivation. A sale’s person’s
optimism & confidence.
Through learning process & principle employees behavior can be analyzed & managed to improve
their performance.
5.9 Reinforcement and punishment as principles of Learning:
Learning is “a relatively permanent change in the frequency of occurrence of a specific individual
Behaviour.” In an organization, a manager wants employees to learn productive work behaviours,
which to a great extent depend upon environmental factors. The manager’s goal, then, is to provide
learning experiences in an environment that will promote employee behaviours desired by the
organization.
The process of continuous learning involves being clear about what is required of the individual in
high-quality jobs. It also involves making sure that we have the knowledge and skills required to carry
out our jobs appropriately and fi ll any gaps in our knowledge base and skills repertoire as these
become identifi ed. One also has to ensure that one’s work is consistent with the value base. For
example, people working in the sales department have to learn the value of treating their customers
with respect and dignity.
Continuous learning is based on what is oft en referred to as “reflective practice.” Reflective practice
involves the learner considering critical incidents from past experiences that become the basis of
learning in the future. This helps us to develop a link between theory and practice.
Learning is an important source of motivation and job satisfaction. It helps us to remain updated with
the latest developments in our area of interest. Learning is an important source of job satisfaction and
motivation. In the highly dynamic and competitive world of business, it is important to be constantly
updated. Business schools play a critical role in developing quick learning skills that equip students to

8
Organizational Behaviour

face future challenges in their professional as well as personal lives. Continuous learning helps to
handle jobs effectively.
Barriers to Learning:
Though learning is an important aspect of our growth and development, there are barriers to learning
in the environment and within the individual. It is important for us to examine the blocks or the
barriers that stand in the way of learning. The barriers to learning occur at three levels.
a. Individual: Some individuals by their temperament are averse to learning. They dislike unfamiliar
situations and do not like to take risks at all. They feel comfortable with the status quo, and any
disturbance is intolerable to them. The individual’s own personality acts as a barrier to further
learning.
b. Teams and groups: In the formative stage of the development of group norms, certain groups
may decide not to be open to any learning and development process. They may decide to stick on
to old methods and techniques of learning which have been successful and effective in the past.
Such an approach may deter learning in teams and groups.
c. Organizations: One very strong barrier to learning which, unfortunately, is quite common in the
workplace is a culture which does not value learning. In some organizations, there may be a
culture of defensiveness, which discourages people from looking at situations in a new light or
from trying out new ideas. Learning opportunities become very restricted in such organizations.
The role of the manager becomes challenging when he has to deal with such individuals, groups, or
organizations. It is a significant test of one’s leadership abilities to influence a closed culture of
defensiveness and move forward with a more positive approach to learning.

In the work setting, learning can take place in one of the following ways: classical conditioning,
operant conditioning, social learning, cognitive learning, and programmed learning.
The most traditional and researched theory comes out of the behaviorist school of thought in
psychology.
Approaches to Learning or Types of Behavioristic:
1. Classical Conditioning
2. Operant Conditioning

9
Organizational Behaviour

1) Classical Conditioning: Pavlov’s classical conditioning experiment using dogs as subject. It

permit Pavlov’s to measure accurately the amount of saliva secreted by a dog. Classical
conditioning can be defined as a process in which a formerly neutral stimulus, when paired with an
unconditioned stimulus, becomes a conditioned stimulus that elicits a conditioned response. “A
process by which individuals learn reflex behaviours.”
Classical conditioning is a process by which individuals learn reflex behaviours. A reflex is an
involuntary, or an automatic, response that is not under an individual’s conscious control. In classical
conditioning, an unconditioned stimulus (environmental event) causes a reflexive response.
Sometimes a natural environment event, called a conditioned stimulus, is initially paired with the
unconditioned stimulus. Eventually, the conditioned stimulus alone yields the reflexive behaviour.
Environmental events that precede a reflexive response control it.

2. Operant Conditioning: It refers to a process by which individual’s learn voluntary behaviour.

The person most closely linked with operant conditioning learning is B. F. Skinner (Skinner 1974). He
coined the term operant conditioning to refer to a process by which individuals learn voluntary
behaviour. Voluntary behaviours are operant because they operate, or have some influence, on the
environment. Learning occurs because of the consequences that follow the behaviour. In fact, most
behaviour in everyday life (such as talking, walking, riding or working) is a form of operant
behaviour.
Operant behaviours are of interest to managers because they can influence or manage such behaviour
by changing the results of these behaviours. The crucial aspect of operant conditioning is what
happens as a consequence of the behaviour. That is, consequences largely determine the strength and
frequency of operant conditioned behaviours. Thus, managers must understand the effects of different
consequences on the task behaviour of employees.

Social Learning: As part of social learning, people learn new behaviour by watching others in a social
situation and then imitating or modeling their behaviour after that of the other person.
Albert Bandura and others have extended and expanded Skinner’s work by demonstrating that people
can learn new behaviour by watching others in a social situation, and then imitating or modelling their
behaviour after that of the other person (Bandura 1977). Th is type of learning is called social learning.
Social learning refers to the behaviours we learn from observing and imitating others. People fi rst
watch others, then develop a mental picture of the behaviour and its results, and finally try the

10
Organizational Behaviour

behaviour themselves. If the results are positive, they repeat the behaviour; if the results are negative,
they don’t repeat the behaviour.
Bandura has suggested that observers often learn faster than others because they don’t have to unlearn
behaviour, thereby avoiding needless and costly errors.
Social learning theory integrates modelling, symbolism and self-control,People imitate parents,
friends, teachers, heroes and others because they can identify with them. Th e symbolic process yields
guidelines for behaviour. In social situations, when those at the head of the table at a formal dinner
begin to eat, their actions let the other diners know (serve as a model) that starting to eat now is an
appropriate behaviour. People also invoke self-control to avoid engaging in observed behaviours that
harm them. Many people, for example, have stopped smoking because of its link to cancer. They have
seen or read how smoking has adversely affected the health of others.

Applications of social learning theory for improving behaviour in organizations have been identifi
ed (Bigge 1964). Researchers have suggested that managers:
a. Identify the behaviours that will lead to improved performance;
b. Select the appropriate model for employees to observe;
c. Make sure that employees are capable of meeting the technical skills required;
d. Create a positive learning situation to increase the likelihood that employees will learn the new
behaviours and act properly;
e. Provide positive feedback (praises or bonuses) for employees who have learned Behaviours and
those who have served as models; and
f. Develop organizational practices that maintain those newly learned behaviours.

Cognitive Learning: It involves selective interpretation of perceptual data organized into new
patterns of thoughts and relationships.
The perceptual–cognitive view of learning focuses on what happens within the individual: motives,
feelings, attitudes, memory, and cognition (thought). Sensory mechanisms are of primary importance
in the key cognitive activity, which is observation based. Through speech and knowledge of language,
humans form abstract concepts for organizing perceptions and manipulating ideas. Thus, cognitive
learning involves selective interpretation of perceptual data organized into new patterns of thoughts
and relationships. Human beings are capable of rearranging thought patterns into new configurations
or gestalts. Gestalt is a German word meaning “shape, configuration or the arrangement of relationship

11
Organizational Behaviour

in a total situation.” Patterns of concepts and relationships may occur suddenly through insight, or they
may evolve gradually as elements are linked together with new data.

5.10 Behavioral Performance Management or O. B. Model:

The steps involved in Process of Behavioral modification
Step 1: Identification of Performance Behaviors
Step 2: Measurement of the Behavior
Step 3: Functional Analysis of the Behavior
Step 4: Development of an Intervention Strategy
a. A Positive Reinforcement Strategy
b. A Punishment-Positive Reinforcement Strategy
Step 5: Evaluation to Ensure Performance Improvement

5.11 Leadership theories-Styles:

Leadership: Leadership is one of the most important aspects of organisational behaviour. It is the
process of influencing others to achieve a common goal or objective. A good leader can motivate and
inspire people to work together and achievve great things. Leadership is setting and achieving goals,
tackling the competition, and solving problems decisively and quickly.
 “The ability to influence a group toward the achievement of vision or set of goals.”
 Leadership is the ability of an individual or a group of people to influence and guide followers or
members of an organization, society or team.
 Leadership can be defined as a process in which a person tries to influence a set of individuals in
the pursuit of achieving individual, group, and organizational objectives. Effective leaders help
groups of people to define their goals and find ways to achieve them.
 Leadership is an attempt at influencing the activities of followers through the communication
process and toward the attainment of some goal or goals.
 Leadership is an influence process that enable managers to get their people to do willingly what
must be done, do well what ought to be done.
 Leadership is defined as the process of influencing the activities of an organized group toward
goal achievement.
 Leadership is interpersonal influence, exercised in a situation, and directed, through the
communication process, toward the attainment of a specified goal or goals.

12
Organizational Behaviour

 Leadership is not a person or a position. It is a complex moral relationship between people, based
on trust, obligation, commitment, emotion, and a shared vision of the good.
 Leadership is that process in which one person sets the purpose or direction for one or more other
persons and gets them to move along together with him or her and with each other in that
direction with competence and full commitment.
 Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality.
The source of this influence may be formal, such as that provided by managerial rank in an
organization. But not all leaders are managers, nor, for that matter, are all managers leaders.
Importance of Leadership:
 Initiating Action: Leadership starts from the very beginning, even before the work actually starts.
A leader is a person who communicates the policies and plans to the subordinates to start the work.
 Providing Motivation: A leader motivates the employees by giving them financial and non-
financial incentives and gets the work done efficiently. Motivation is the driving force in an
individual’s life.
 Providing guidance: A leader not only supervises the employees but also guides them in their
work. He instructs the subordinates on how to perform their work effectively so that their efforts
don’t get wasted.
 Creating confidence: A leader acknowledges the efforts of the employees, explains to them their
role clearly and guides them to achieve their goals. He also resolves the complaints and problems
of the employees, thereby building confidence in them regarding the organization.
 Building work environment: A good leader should maintain personal contacts with the
employees and should hear their problems and solve them. He always listens to the point of view
of the employees and in case of disagreement persuades them to agree with him by giving suitable
clarifications. In case of conflicts, he handles them carefully and does not allow it to adversely
affect the entity. A positive and efficient work environment helps in stable growth of the
organization.
 Co-ordination: A leader reconciles the personal interests of the employees with the organizational
goals and achieves co-ordination in the entity.
 Creating Successors: A leader trains his subordinates in such a manner that they can succeed him
in future easily in his absence. He creates more leaders.

13
Organizational Behaviour

 Induces change: A leader persuades, clarifies and inspires employees to accept any change in the
organization without much resistance and discontentment. He makes sure that employees don’t
feel insecure about the changes.
Features of Leadership:
 Influence the behaviour of others: Leadership is an ability of an individual to influence the
behaviour of other employees in the organization to achieve a common purpose or goal so that
they are willingly co-operating with each other for the fulfillment of the same.
 Inter-personal process: It is an interpersonal process between the leader and the followers. The
relationship between the leader and the followers decides how efficiently and effectively the
targets of the organization would be met.
 Attainment of common organizational goals: The purpose of leadership is to guide the people in
an organization to work towards the attainment of common organizational goals. The leader brings
the people and their efforts together to achieve common goals.
 Continuous process: Leadership is a continuous process. A leader has to guide his employees
every time and also monitor them in order to make sure that their efforts are going in the same
direction and that they are not deviating from their goals.
 Group process: It is a group process that involves two or more people together interacting with
each other. A leader cannot lead without the followers.
 Dependent on the situation: It is situation bound as it all depends upon tackling the situations
present. Thus, there is no single best style of leadership.

14
Organizational Behaviour

Trait theories of leadership: Theories that consider personal qualities and characteristics that
differentiate leaders from non leaders.The term trait refers to a variety of individual attributes,
including aspects of personality, temperament, needs, motives, and values. Personality traits are
relatively stable disposition to behave in a particular way.
Examples include self-confidence, emotional maturity, emotional stability, energy level, and stress
tolerance.
Some personality traits that are consistently associated with leadership are discussed here:
 Self-confidence: Leaders with high self-confidence are more likely to attempt difficult tasks and to
set challenging objectives for themselves.
 Emotional Stability and Maturity: The term emotional maturity may be defined broadly to
encompass several interrelated motives, traits, and values.
 Emotional Intelligence: Individuals with high EQ are in touch with their emotions and
demonstrate self-management in their ability to control their moods and feelings productively and
in staying motivated and focused even when facing obstacles.
 Personal Integrity: Integrity means that a person’s behaviour is consistent with the espoused
values and that the person is honest, ethical, and trustworthy.
 Achievement Motivation: This includes a set of related attitudes, values, and needs: needs for
achievement, desire to excel, desire to succeed, willingness to assume responsibility, and concern
for the task’s objectives.
 Power Motivation: A strong need for power is relevant to managerial role requirements that
involve the use of power and influence.
 Affiliation Motivation: People with strong need for affiliation receive great satisfaction from
being liked and accepted by others and enjoy working with people who are friendly.

Qualities of a Leader
 Personality: A pleasing personality always attracts people. A leader should also friendly and yet
authoritative so that he inspires people to work hard like him.
 Knowledge: A subordinate looks up to his leader for any suggestion that he needs. A good leader
should thus possess adequate knowledge and competence in order to influence the subordinates.
 Integrity: A leader needs to possess a high level of integrity and honesty. He should have a fair
outlook and should base his judgment on the facts and logic. He should be objective and not
biased.
 Initiative: A good leader takes initiative to grab the opportunities and not wait for them and use
them to the advantage of the organization.

15
Organizational Behaviour

 Communication skills: A leader needs to be a good communicator so that he can explain his
ideas, policies, and procedures clearly to the people. He not only needs to be a good speaker but
also a good listener, counsellor, and persuader.
 Motivation skills: A leader needs to be an effective motivator who understands the needs of the
people and motivates them by satisfying those needs.
 Self-confidence and Will Power: A leader needs to have a high level of self-confidence and
immense will-power and should not lose it even in the worst situations, else employees will not
believe in him.
 Intelligence: A leader needs to be intelligent enough to analyze the pros and cons of a situation
and take a decision accordingly. He also needs to have a vision and fore-sightedness so that he can
predict the future impact of the decisions taken by him.
 Decisiveness: A leader has to be decisive in managing his work and should be firm on the
decisions are taken by him.
 Social skills: A leader should possess empathy towards others. He should also be a humanist who
also helps the people with their personal problems. He also needs to possess a sense of
responsibility and accountability because with great authority comes great responsibility.

5.12 Leadership Styles:

a) Transformational leadership: Transformational leadership is when leader behaviors influence

followers and inspire them to perform beyond their perceived capabilities. Transformational
Leaders create a shared vision, inspire and motivate their team to execute that mission by building
trust, and as a result, transform their work environment. Transformational leaders inspire followers
to transcend their self-interests for the good of the organization and can have an extraordinary
effect on their followers.

b) Transactional leadership: Transactional leadership is a type of leadership style that focuses on

the exchange of skills, knowledge, resources, or effort between leaders and their subordinates. This
leadership style prioritizes individual interests and extrinsic motivation as means to obtain a
desired outcome.
16
Organizational Behaviour

Transactional leadership is different from transformational leadership. Transactional leadership

involves managing-helping organizations achieve their current objectives more efficiently.The
essence of transactional leadership is that people are motivated by rewards and punishment.
Leaders who favour this style create defined structures, including a clear chain of command. Th ey
work on the assumption that once a deal is struck between boss and subordinate, all authority
passes on to the former, while responsibility rests with the latter. Th is process of transactional
leadership is still in operation in business organizations. Transactional leadership involves the use
of external motivators. Transactional leaders are more dominating and believe in taking swift
action. A transactional leader has a short-term view. Leaders who favour this style create defined
structures, including a clear chain of command.

c) Autocratic leadership style: It refers to a leadership style where the leader takes all the decisions
by himself. Autocratic, or task-directed, leaders initiate structure, provide the information,
determine what is to be done, issue the rules, promise rewards for competence, and threaten
punishments for disobedience. A leadership style where the leader makes all decisions
independently or without consulting with subordinate

Advantages:
• Provides strong motivation and reward for the leader.
• Quick decision making takes place as single person decides for the whole group.
• Subordinate are only to carry out the orders of the leader.
• Decision making, planning or organizing need initiative.
• Good in certain circumstances, such as urgent task or military action.
Disadvantages:
• Poor decisions, poor level of employee motivation.
• Leads to frustration, low morale and conflict among subordinate.
• Subordinate tend to shirk responsibility and initiative.
• Full potential to subordinate and their creative ideas are not utilized.
• Organizational continuity is threatened in the absence of the leader because subordinate get no
opportunity for development.

d) Democratic leadership style: It refers to a style where the leader consults its subordinates before
taking the final decision. Democratic leaders solicit advice, opinions, information from their
followers, and share decision making with their followers. A leadership style where a leader
encourages employee participation in decision-making or persuasive or consultative.

Advantages:
• Better decisions, employee motivation.
• It improves the job satisfaction and morale of subordinate.
• The leader multiply his abilities through the contribution of his followers.

17
Organizational Behaviour

• It develops positive attitudes and reduces resistance to change.

Disadvantages:
• Delayed decision, long consultation.
• This style may not yield positive result when interaction of subordinate with leader is minimum.
• This may be used as passing the buck to others and of abdicating responsibility.
• This style needs tremendous communicating and persuasive skills on the part of leader.

e) Laissez-faire or Free-rein leadership style: It refers to a style where the leader gives his
subordinates complete freedom to take the decisions. Laissez-faire leaders give group members
complete freedom of action, provide them with material, and refrain from participating except to
answer questions. A leadership style where employees are encouraged to make their own decisions
within limits.

Advantages:
• More freedom for employees.
• Positive effect on job satisfaction and morale of subordinates.
• Maximum possible scope for development of subordinates.
• Full utilization of potential of subordinates.

Disadvantages:
• Few guidelines, little incentive, poor motivation, maybe a mess.
• Subordinate do not get the guidance and support of the leader.
• It ignores the leader contribution just as Autocratic style ignores the contribution of the
subordinates.
• Subordinates may move in different directions and may work at cross purpose which may
degenerate into chaos

5.13 Activities and skills of Great leaders:

Key leadership skills that great leaders need to have are as following:
 Relationship building.  Flexibility
 Agility and adaptability.  Teamwork
 Innovation and creativity.  Project planning
 Employee motivation.  Ability to assess employees’ strengths
 Decision-making. and weaknesses
 Conflict management.  Ability to build trust
 Negotiation.  Time management
 Critical Thinking  Strong communication skills
 Active listening  Reliability
 Empathy  Positivity
 Clear goals  Analytical skills
 Strategic thinking skills  Strong charisma
 Creativity

18