..What's missing from the organizational viewpoint?

Jim Collins, author of Good to Great, observed similar attributes in his research on how leaders succeeded in working with others during the 20th century. He coined it as the 5 Levels of Leadership. Most leaders used levels 1 to 4 but the leaders that led organizations successfully through turbulent times exhibited an additional level. At Level 1, a highly capable individual used good personal work habits, made personal productive contribution and leveraged their own talent, knowledge and skills in the workplace. At Level 2, the individual worked effectively with others in a group setting. The individual moved to Level 3 when he starts organizing people and resources to meet objectives of the organization. This is also known as basic managerial competence. Level 4 leaders are distinguished by their ability to influence and move people to a clear and compelling vision. They can also stimulate others to higher performance standards. This is the traditional definition of effective leadership. As the Corporate Leadership Council study showed, most organizations develop leaders up to level 4 and have a belief that they are the key elements to success. However, through the empirical research, Collins discovered an additional dimension. He saw only 11 individuals exhibiting this dimension out of the 1,435 Fortune 500 companies his team looked at. These leaders went beyond the basic 4 levels and moved into level 5.

Level 5 leaders possess the skills of levels 1 to 4 but also have an "extra dimension": a paradoxical blend of personal humility and professional will. They are somewhat self-effacing individuals who deflect adulation, yet who have an almost stoic resolve to do absolutely whatever it takes to make the company great, channeling their ego needs away from themselves and into the larger goal of building a great company. It' not that Level 5 leaders have no ego or self-interest. Indeed, they are incredibly ambitious - but their ambition is first and foremost for the institution and its greatness, not for themselves.1

Level 5 leaders wanted to see the company even more successful in the future and were comfortable with the idea that they may not get credit for their efforts to move the organization to a higher state.

In addition, Jean Lipman-Blumen's Achieving Styles Model categorized 9 areas leaders depend on to get things done. Like the Level 1 and 2 leaders, one needs to master their own tasks by using a direct approach. This can be done through the competitive style and also through using power and taking charge of situations. For some leaders, the motivation to get things done was strongly driven by their sense of intrinsic rewards. Level 5 leaders are most likely to have a strong intrinsic style as mentioned by Jim Collins and their non-essential need to have public recognition. As individuals advanced to Level 3 of team leadership, there are clear preferences on how each person behaves in working with others. Lipman-Blumen discusses how leaders may use the contributory, collaboration and/or vicarious styles to accomplish this. When this set of skills is being used, the leaders are identifying with their team and team goals as being the most important. Level 3 and 4 leaders use the relational path on a regular basis since they must depend on others to get the work done. In order to maximize commitment with others in an interdependent world, leaders will also need to consider the usage of the instrumental styles. It includes the entrusting, social and personal styles and focuses not only on the individual, but bringing together talents of people together through influence and relationships. Dominant and recessive uses of all the styles are based on ones personal background and experience with success and failure in past situations. Both Collins and Lipmen-Blumen believe all the skills can be learned or relearned and will help a person achieve greater success when used at the appropriate times.

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  • Introduction
  • Table of Contents
  • Methodology
  • Elements of Effective Leadership
  • Strategies for Individuals
  • Muslim Women Leadership Status in the Connective Era>
  • Connective Leadership in the Global Environment
  • Conclusion