Do you think that leadership outweigh management in terms of its importance? The answer would be a NO. Both leadership and management carry the same importance in an organisation. However, they are two entirely different subjects in today’s corporation.
Dana Hudnall in his whitepaper said that the meaning and definition of a manager and leader are often confused as the same topic. In fact, they are not synonymous. A manager is generally someone who is selected or appointed. In most cases, a manager is selected based on superior technical ability and his knowledge of a job. He is not required to understand the people he supervises. On the contrary, a leader has the ability to influence people based on genuine respect that has been earned and as a result of that respect, they can encourage and enable a team to get the job done, added Hudnall.
“Leadership is working with goals and vision; management is working with objectives.” – Russel Honore
Jennifer Bridges, a consultant and founder of PDUs2Go.com, also commented that leadership and management are surprisingly a controversial topic. There are many who stand on one side of the divide between leadership and management, demonising one and praising the other. While in fact, leadership and management are two different subjects that need different skills. You can consider that a true manager should not only have management skills but gifted with some leadership skills, added Bridges. For a better picture of these terms, here are different leadership and management skills.
“Management is efficiency in climbing the ladder of success; leadership determines whether the ladder is leaning against the right wall.” – Stephen Covey
Given that leadership and management are an entirely different role, their responsibilities and goals are not the same. To achieve success in a leadership role, you need to engage in honest and open communication. Successful leaders also need to adjust themselves to different interaction and communication that suit each situation and team. Moreover, leaders should be open to new ideas. Constantly ask and give feedback is your key to build trustworthy and effective collaboration.
On the other hand, to be a successful manager, you need to communicate your expectations and goals in a clear way possible. Successful and manager of choice are those who make time for his people to either mentoring or casual talking of personal development. You need to also constantly recognise employee’s achievements as well as believe in your people that they can achieve success by your instruction.
Read also: The Value of Introverts & Their Leadership Styles
