Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

Effective Leaders Solve Problems

2000; Taylor & Francis; Volume: 43; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1080/08956308.2000.11671354

1930-0166

James Hillier,

Leadership and Management in Organizations

Leadership must change as the organization grows, but always there are problems to be solved. Leadership very much resembles the English language in that its meaning usually depends on the context in which it operates. Consequently, I begin this note with definitions found in Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged, published by Encyclopaedia Britannica Inc. The Dictionary defines leader as a person who by force of example, talents or qualities of leadership plays a directing role, wields commanding influence, or has a following in any sphere of activity or thought. It defines leadership as that ingredient of personality that causes men (and/or women) to follow. Note the complete absence of any suggestion of authoritarianism in either of these definitions! I shall return to them later. Almost by definition, high-quality leadership is an important, if not essential, element leading to the success of any group activity. Most managements accept this observation. Not so well appreciated, however, is the fact that the nature of effective leadership of a new organization, generated by a novel intellectual or technical concept, must change substantially as time passes and the organization progresses from a neophyte establishment to a routinely operating entity. Enthusiasm, dedication and charisma are some of the more important characteristics of the leadership that is successful in founding a new organization. Shortly thereafter, intellectuals and professionals must take on the leadership role in establishing the philosophy of operation and the validity of any technical aspects. If the organization survives and grows, the leadership role is ultimately taken over by administrative types who are concerned with strategy, organization and economics-in other words, with the routine operation of the organization. Three Stages-One Priority There is an obvious parallel between this general idea of the origination and development of a new group and the specifics of a group that introduces a successful innovation in an industrial environment; it is the evolution from the creative Aha! to the production and then marketing of a practical and economic product. Except for a somewhat greater technical content, the type of leadership required for each of these three stages will also be quite similar to those in the general case. In all three stages, the principal activity is the solving of problems. A truly effective leader will greatly facilitate the solving of problems, especially when a group is involved. Such a leader provides appropriate direction but also elicits the orderly, constructive expression of a variety of opinions, both from the group and elsewhere. The solution to any problem results when, and only when, all the essential pieces of information are present and fit together (usually quite suddenly) in a single mind that is capable of recognizing it as the solution. Consequently, it is evident that the process will proceed much faster if the group is made up of individuals with an adequate diversity of stored information and whose interaction as a group is appropriately directed. This leads to the conclusion that the successful solution of problems is strongly dependent on the capabilities of the leader who assembles and directs the group. During the different stages of an organization's evolution, particularly in an industrial R&D environment, the problems have a wide range of different characteristics and chances of solution. In the first stage, the problem can be the creative challenge of providing a solution to a newly identified need, or the opposite when a technical breakthrough is looking for a need. In this case, the solution is usually being sought by an individual who has been selected for his or her creative ability and, in effect, is probably also providing the leadership for this early stage of the project. …