Machiavelli- leadership essay

The airline took advantage the deregulation of the sass and its success was contingent on the economic situation in the UK as deregulation enabled new entrants into the aviation industry (Niagara, 201 1: 1) In our ‘ Prince’ case study analysis, we see that the contingency approach is prevalent. In the battlefield, the human relations are not as important as the task. The Prince uses its authority to get the job done meaning to win the battle.

Whether he uses his own army or mercenaries the goal still remains the same. The Prince has high position power as the specific situation is considered to be highly favorable for him. The task structure is ideal for the Prince since the aim is to defend himself of all attacks and at the same time to conquer as many states as possible.

The notion of the contingency approach is that a leader who wishes to maintain himself must learn how not to be good and use this knowledge according to the necessity of the case. 2. 3 The Dyadic Approach Lousier and ACH (2010) argue that the dyadic approach focuses on the dual relationship between leaders and followers. According to this theory, leaders ill form different relationships with different followers. As part of a group, different individuals will think of the relationship with the leader in positive terms whereas others in negative terms (Lousier and ACH, 2010: 240). The notion that lies behind this theory is ‘ support for self-worth’ in the sense that leaders provide their support to their followers in exchange for their performance.

The whole idea is based on the fact that the leader cares about the follower’s needs, wants and feelings and the follower is thus motivated towards achieving the leader’s set goals. Daft (2008) argues that the Vertical Dyad Linkage (VOID) model stresses the importance of the relationship between the leader and the follower (dyad). According to this model, the group is subdivided into two sub-groups in relation to the leader: the in-group consisting of those members who share mutual trust, respect and obligation to a higher degree than those belonging to the out-group Daft, 2008: 53).

In-group members tend to have a better relationship with the leader which can result in better rewards and performance. Out-group members tend to experience less collaboration with the leader and in many cases the leader needs to use coercive power to get the job done. The relationship is strictly task-centered. In the website Middleton (201 3), it is stated that the Vertical Dyad Linkage (VOID) or leader-member exchange (LAM) theory emerged in the sass to satisfy the need of assessing the relationship between managers and subordinates. The theory states that all relationships between leaders and group members go through three phases: Role-taking.

Role-Making. Ratification (Middleton, 201 1). Role-taking occurs when the group is formed and comes together under the directions of the group leader. The leader gets to know his people and assigns duties and responsibilities to the members. Role-making occurs when the leader deliberately or subconsciously classifies the members as belonging to the in-group or out-group. Usually, this applies after the members have stayed some time with the group and the leader is aware of all the members’ attitudes and behaviors. Finally, ratification occurs when the group has worked together for a sufficient time. The classification of the in-group and the out-group prevails throughout the group’s life.

The whole process is seen as a ‘ routine’ since the in-group members work hard to justify and retain the leader’s good opinion about them whereas the out-group members don’t put o much effort as they know that they will not get the same treatment from their leader even if they support the leader and the group as a whole giving the best of themselves. A very obvious example of such a theory applied in the real organizational setting is that of Southwest Airlines. Coffey and Cook (1994) argue that Herb Keller, CEO of the company, has set the scene in his company where the employees are encouraged to work by enjoying themselves which in turn makes them happier and more productive.

The relationships between the leader and the workforce are so good and well received that when fuel costs Egan to skyrocket in the wake of Iran’s invasion to Kuwait, one third (in- group) of the company’s employees decided to take voluntary deductions from their pay to buy aviation fuel (Coffey and Cook, 1994: 289). In the case of our ‘ Prince’ text, we see that the leader (Prince) is supposed to form an opinion about the servants (members of the out-group) according to the servants. Sometimes, the servants think more of their own interests than those of the Prince. In such a case, even if the Prince (leader) tries to motivate them and show them that they are important to him, these people will never e good servants as they think only of themselves. No trust can be built and consequently the result will always be disastrous for the one, the other or both. 2. The Power Approach Power is the ability to make others do what one wants them to do. Daft (2000) distinguishes between two forms of power: position power which includes legitimate, reward and coercive power and personal power which includes expert and referent power (Daft, 2000: 503).

Agitate power is power that stems from a position within the organization. The organization grants authority to somebody to perform a specific task. Reward power is power that somebody in authority has to reward others whereas coercive is the power stemming from authority to punish somebody or recommend punishment. Expert power refers to the special ability or the skills that a person may have to perform a specific task and referent power refers to the leaders personality characteristics such as admiration and respect identified by their followers.

Willie Walsh, British Airway’s CEO from 2005 until 2011, is one of the best examples of using legitimate and coercive power in driving the company to success after problems that it faced from the low-cost carriers. Mild (2008) argues that the CEO used legitimate and coercive power to fire two of the oldest managers of British Airways over the fiasco that took place in terminal 5. He also requested the staff to consider unpaid leave as he also didn’t get paid for a period of time (Mild, 2008: 1). Lets now examine the forms of power that are portrayed in our ‘ Prince’ text. The Prince needs to study the war, its rules and discipline to the fullest extent. The Prince’s soldiers respect, trust and rely on him. They consider him as the brain who manages to conquer states providing a sense of safety to them.

Referent power becomes obvious in the aforementioned example of our study. Moreover, we see that the Prince encourages his citizens to practice their callings peaceably, to engage in commerce without the fear of higher taxation due to increased trading activities or for having taken away their possessions just by improving them. Instead, he offers rewards to those who wish to do these things, honoring in this way his city or state. The above example is the reward power that the leader of the text uses to motivate his citizens. Another form of power portrayed in the text is that of expert power. A wise Prince is the one who uses his special knowledge and experience that has gained throughout the years in the battlefield to form his own army instead of using mercenaries.

In this sense, the Prince is said to hold expert power. Comparing Walsh’s attitude towards his staff and ‘ The Prince’ we see that, as proposed by Machiavelli, when being inflexible and mean you achieve the goal, you maintain your state or even conquer a new one. 2.

5 The Transformational Approach Transformational leadership is the ability to promote innovation and initiate change. Mullions (2002) argues that it is a process of generating a vision for the entire organization by creating a feeling of trust, justice and loyalty. This leadership style has the ability to change social systems and reform organizations from the base. Transformational leadership is comprised of four basic elements: Idealized influence. Inspirational motivation. Intellectual stimulation.

Individualized consideration. Successful transformational leaders are considered to be those who have the ability to provide a strong vision and mission. They mobiles commitment of followers through arousing their emotions and finally they initiate grand changes. Transformational leaders are those who manage to convey to the hole organization the meaning of success and inspire everyone from top to bottom to work towards that direction.

The ultimate idea is to make people work for ideals set and shared by top management. This leadership style involves being straight and clear with people in order to gain their involvement in the whole sense. A very good example of a transformational leader has been Colic Marshall of British Airways. Alex Michael (2007) argues that Colic Marshall managed to transform in the 1 sass the business from a failing company into the world’s favorite airline. He managed to do this through listening to individuals’ ideas ND concerns inside and outside the company in an effort to understand the core values, beliefs and attitudes to form a new corporate culture that would drive BAA to success (Michael, 2007: 7). In our case study analysis we see that the Prince is or ought to be the master of the art in understanding the war, its rules and discipline. In order to be able to acquire a state, a Prince must have organized his soldiers in advance and inculcate them a shared vision having set the group values, beliefs and attitudes. Acting as a transformational leader, the Prince provides the framework for his group to fight sharing common beliefs and ideas in order o accomplish the desired goal which is the acquisition Of a new or the maintenance of an existing state.

Blake & Mouton’s Leadership Grid 3 Daft (2000) argues that the Managerial Grid developed by Blake and Mouton is a matrix that identifies five leadership styles which fall within two measurable variables: ‘ concern for people’ and ‘ concern for production’. According to this model, five management styles seem to exist In leadership theory. In impoverished management, people exert minimum effort to get the required work done.

Authority-compliance relies on putting the greatest effort to achieve efficiency neglecting the human relations. Country club management involves focus on the needs of people and human relations with a minimum concern for production. Middle-of-the-road management has to do with keeping both interests in balance. Finally, team management seems to be the most appropriate leadership style involving work accomplishment through committed people (Daft, 2000: 510). In the case of our ‘ Prince’ we can say that the leadership style that follows is that of authority-compliance. In this sense, the Prince is highly concerned with achieving the highest production attainable.

He strictly uses authority to make his soldiers comply and fight for getting the job done. Human relations are not an important factor as the main drive is efficiency in operations. The Prince is considered to be a highly task-focused leader and is mainly concerned about winning the battle (output) presuming that soldiers (people) obediently will accept the influence of the authority. Such seems to have been the case not only in ‘ Prince’ but in global army battalions throughout the years around the world. Synopsis / Critical Evaluation 4 Comparing the classical text with the contemporary approaches to leadership e can clearly see elements of convergence and divergence that exist between the two. 4.

1 Convergence Machiavellian teachings seem so relevant today as they were a half-millennium ago. The Prince is considered to be the CEO in the present context. Machiavellian ‘ The Prince’ is one of the most important texts portraying the specific character traits and abilities that effective leaders should possess in the practical exercise of power. In the text it is argued that those princes who have little regard for their word but have the ability to turn men’s minds have achieved great things.

Authority-compliance leadership style, task orientation, efferent, reward, legitimate and expert power are all elements portrayed in ‘ The Prince’ text. The Prince as a leader is the one who creates a vision for his people, mobiles commitment and initiates change. The leader devotes all of his energies to employ competitive strategies for winning. There’s a significant convergence between contemporary leadership theories and the classical text since there are elements of all the discussed theoretical concepts in ‘ The Prince’ which was written almost half a millennium ago. 4.

2 Divergence Machiavelli endorses an exploitive and deceitful behavior. He advises that people cannot be trusted under any circumstances. Emotional and social issues are not important as long as the goal is accomplished. Machiavelli teaches us that the goal is that matters.

Contemporary leadership approaches have to do with accomplishing goals through improved relationships and commitment. The theories hold that effectiveness is achieved through total effort and commitment towards a shared vision. On the other hand, Machiavellian text holds that a leader should do anything in the world, including being unethical, to maintain his power. The main divergence between the classical text and contemporary leadership theories s that ‘ The Prince’ sets aside ethical concerns of justice, honesty and kindness to maintain stability.

Machiavelli believes that the most successful kings (leaders) are the ones who don’t act according to dictates of law, justice and conscience but those who would do anything to preserve, if not increase their power. Whatever the case may be, the basic notion should be that different people need different treatment. It seems that ‘ all depends on the situation’ mentality is one of the most widely used strategies.

Generally speaking it seems to be amazing the fact that Machiavellian theory, although developed any years ago, still it is of a wide use today by many business leaders.