Understanding Organisational Behaviour
1. Compare and contrast transactional and transformational leadership styles in contemporary organizations in western societies. Is one style superior to the other? Please explain and support your answer.
1860 Words
Introduction
Transactional and transformational leadership were concepts introduced by Burns (1978) in his treatment of political leadership. Transactional leadership puts its focus on the interaction between leaders and their followers while transformational leadership puts emphasis on an approach that inspires individuals to aspire for more (Bass, 1990). This essay will look at both leadership styles in contemporary organizations across western societies, and explain why transformational leadership is more effective.
Transactional leadership
In this form of leadership the leader sets out goals and tasks that have to be met by the employee (Bass, 1974). This limits the undertaker to only complete the given aims (Bass, 1974). This implies that there is a hierarchy present, and for it to be successful the followers need to be well aware of this and face its implications. Therefore there is a chain of command that exists.
Transformational leadership
This form of leadership aims to achieve more than just the goals of a firm. It attempts to endorse growth in many aspects of the organisation, especially in the employees through innovation (Raza, 2011), creating prospects for them (Tucker, Georgia, Russell, College, and Emory, 2004) and motivation of the former (Tucker, et al., 2004).
We will look at 3 aspects of the leadership styles that distinguish each form from the other: characteristics, motivation and power.
Characteristics
Both styles are leader centric, implying that the leader is the one that creates the ‘success’ (Contu, 2012).
Transactional leadership constitutes of three characteristics: contingent reward, active and passive management by
1860 Words
Introduction
Transactional and transformational leadership were concepts introduced by Burns (1978) in his treatment of political leadership. Transactional leadership puts its focus on the interaction between leaders and their followers while transformational leadership puts emphasis on an approach that inspires individuals to aspire for more (Bass, 1990). This essay will look at both leadership styles in contemporary organizations across western societies, and explain why transformational leadership is more effective.
Transactional leadership
In this form of leadership the leader sets out goals and tasks that have to be met by the employee (Bass, 1974). This limits the undertaker to only complete the given aims (Bass, 1974). This implies that there is a hierarchy present, and for it to be successful the followers need to be well aware of this and face its implications. Therefore there is a chain of command that exists.
Transformational leadership
This form of leadership aims to achieve more than just the goals of a firm. It attempts to endorse growth in many aspects of the organisation, especially in the employees through innovation (Raza, 2011), creating prospects for them (Tucker, Georgia, Russell, College, and Emory, 2004) and motivation of the former (Tucker, et al., 2004).
We will look at 3 aspects of the leadership styles that distinguish each form from the other: characteristics, motivation and power.
Characteristics
Both styles are leader centric, implying that the leader is the one that creates the ‘success’ (Contu, 2012).
Transactional leadership constitutes of three characteristics: contingent reward, active and passive management by
Bibliography: (2007). The Transformational Leadership Report. http://www.transformationalleadership.net/products/TransformationalLeadershipReport.pdf Armstrong, Anona Babou. (2008). Transactional Leadership Vs. Transformational Leadership. http://leadershipchamps.wordpress.com/2008/08/04/transactional-leadership-vs-transformational-leadership/ Bass, Bernard M Contu, Alessia. (2011). Leadership and social influence 1. Warwick Business School. Hamilton, Molly. (2007). The Interaction of Transactional and Transformational Leadership. http://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/ojwed/vol3/iss3/4/. Online Journal of Workforce Education and Development, Volume III, Issue 3- Spring. (Accessed 6 August 2012). Ivana Simic. (1998). Transformational Leadership - The Key to Successful Management of Transformational Organizational Changes. Economics and Organization, Vol 1, No. 6, pp. 49-55. Judge, Timothy A. and Piccolo, Ronald F. Transformational and Transactional Leadership: A Meta-Analytic Test of Their Relative Validity. Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 89, 2004, pp. 755-768. Tavanti, Marco. (2008). Transactional Leadership. Leadership Studies: The Key Concepts. Ed. Antonio Marturano, Jonathan Gosling. London; New York: Routledge, 2008. 160-170.