This document discusses various theories and concepts related to leadership, power, and influence in organizations. It covers: 1) Sources of power which come from position, personal qualities, expertise, and control of information. Bases of power include coercion, reward, persuasion, and knowledge. 2) Contingency theories of leadership including Fiedler's, House's path-goal theory, Hersey-Blanchard's situational theory, and Vroom-Yetton's leader-participation model. 3) Issues around defining leadership, distinguishing between managers and leaders, whether leadership makes a difference, substitutes for leadership, and considering leadership as a process involving all group members.

1. Leadership
Power, influence and
leadership in
organisations

2. Power and influence
 Power is an important ingredient in the process of
influencing others
 Many of the behaviours that can be observed in
organisations are concerned with the acquisition,
retention and application of power.
 Power is more important to some than to others, but
none of us relish being wholly powerless
• E.g. McClelland’s ‘Need for power’
Current emphasis on ‘empowering’ people
Kanter – “It is powerlessness which
corrupts, not power.”

3. Power and influence
Power is the capacity to influence others to do what
they might not otherwise do.
Power involves dependency
The level of dependency and thus the strength of the
power, will be determined by:-
Importance Scarcity
Non-
substitutability

4. Power and influence
Examples of Power and
dependencyImportance Scarcity Non-substitutabilitity
Power to hire
& fire
Control of
information
Importance of the
job as a source of
income
Labour market
conditions –
availability of
other equivalent or
better jobs
Job not required
as a source of
income (e.g. just
won lotto!!)
Information
needed to
accomplish a
particular task
Alternative
sources of the
critical information
are available
The task for which
the information is
needed can be
replaced by an
alternative action
based on other
information

5. Sources and Bases of power
Where do you get
power from?
What tactics can you
use to influence
others?
Sources of power:
-Position
-Personal qualities
-Expertise
-Control of information
Bases of power:
-Coercion
-Reward
-Persuasion
-Knowledge

6. Common power ‘tactics’ used in
organisations
 Reason
 Friendliness
 Coalition
 Bargaining
 Assertiveness
 Appeal to higher authority
 Sanction

7. Power and influence
 Power related behaviour is often ‘political’
e.g.
 Behaviours outside ones formally specified
job role / status
 Behaviours that influence, or attempt to
influence the distribution of advantages
and disadvantages in an organisation
• E.g. protecting &/or developing bases of power
• Information resources
• alliances / friendships / obligations

8. Examples of ‘political’
behaviours in organisations
 Maintaining networks of contacts
 Creating obligations in others to call on later
 Establishing ones own credibility or possibly
discrediting others
 Such behaviours are a normal aspect of human
behaviour and are often constructive
• E.g. Lobbying for support of an innovative
development.
 Such ‘political’ behaviour need not be
approached as a ‘zero sum’ game.

9. Leadership: Two dimensions of
interest
 What determines or influences
effective leadership?
• Leadership as a dependent variable
 How does leadership influence the
behaviour of others?
• Leadership as an independent variable

10. Leadership: The main theoretical
approaches
Trait Theory
Behavioural Theory
Contingency Theory

11. Leadership: Trait Theory
 By studying great leaders from the
past we can develop a profile of the
characteristics needed to be an
effective leader.
 Problems with this approach?

12. Leadership: Behavioural Theory
 Behavioural theories took the view that it was the
behaviour, not the personal characteristics, of
leaders that determines leadership effectiveness.
 The major studies / theories include
• Ohio State studies –
• Initiating structure
• Consideration
• Michigan studies
• Employee or production centred
• Blake-Mouton Leadership Grid
 Problems with behavioural approaches?

13. The Blake-Mouton Leadership
Grid
Concern
for
people
Concern for production
9
0
0
9
Country- club
management
Team management
Middle of the road
management
Impoverished
management
Task
management

14. Leadership: Contingency
theories
 Contingency theories assume that there is
not one best style of leadership.
Leadership effectiveness will be
determined by situational factors.
 Major contingency theories of leadership
include:
• Fiedler’s Contingency theory
• House’s Path-Goal theory
• Hersey & Blanchard’s Situational Leadership
theory
• Vroom & Yetton’s Leader-Participation theory

15. Fiedler’s Contingency
theory
Leader-member
relations
Task structure
Position power
Good Good Good Good Poor Poor Poor Poor
High High Low Low High High Low Low
Strong Weak Strong Weak Strong Weak Strong Weak
High control Moderate control Low
control
Task oriented
leadership more
effective
Relationship oriented
leadership more
effective

16. House’s Path-Goal theory
 Draws on expectancy theory
 The leader’s task is to clarify goals and ‘clear’ the path to achievement of
these goals
 Contingency factors
• Situational factors
• Task structure
• Formal authority system
• Work group structure
• Subordinate factors
• Locus of control
• Experience
• Perceived ability
 Leader Behaviours
• Directive
• Supportive
• Participative
• Achievement-oriented

17. Hersey & Blanchard’s Situational
theory
Relationship
behaviour
High
Low
Low High
Task behaviour
Subordinate
maturity
Able and Able but Unable Unable
willing unwilling but willing & unwilling
Participatin
g
Delegating
Selling
Telling

18. Vroom & Yetton Leader-Participation
model
 Linked leader behaviour with participation in decision making.
 Leader decision styles
• Autocratic no discussion
• Autocratic, but with some discussion
• Consultative – leader consults with subordinates individually before making
decision
• Consultative – leader consults with subordinates as a group before making
decision
• Group makes decision
 Decision style depends on:
• Decision quality required
• Adequacy of information available
• Degree of structure in problem
• Importance of acceptance
• Likelihood of acceptance
• Degree to which subordinates share goals
• Likelihood of consensus amongst subordinates

19. Leadership issues
 Defining leadership
 Managers and leaders
 Does leadership make a difference
 Substitutes for leadership
 Leadership – a process

20. Defining leadership
 What do we mean by leadership?
 Can we measure it?
 Can we demonstrate the causal links
between leadership and
organisational outcomes?

21. Managers and leaders
Manager Leader
Transactional Transformational
Required Discretionary

22. Does leadership make a
difference?
(From Pfeffer – The Ambiguity of Leadership)
 Definitional problems
 Potential cloning of leaders
 Leaders discretion often constrained
 Leadership as an explanation of
social causality

23. Substitutes for leadership
 Substitutes for leadership may
include
• Knowledge, skills and motivation of
subordinates
• Structure and nature of tasks / decisions
• Quality of information and communication
systems
• Reward systems
 What aspect of leadership are these
factors most likely to substitute?

24. Leadership – A process?
 We tend to consider leadership in terms of the
attributes or behaviour of those designated (formally
or informally) as leaders.
 Perhaps we should also consider leadership as a
process in which all those in the group or
organisation are involved.
 This may be particularly relevant given the increasing
emphasis on the ‘empowering’ of employees and the
development of ‘self-managing’ teams.