Future Directions in Leadership Development: Principles and Applications

Introduction

The leadership process is a fundamental component of group life, a necessary condition for coordinating group members in order to pursue common goals. Indeed, the notion of leadership seems to be one of the few universals of human behavior (Islam, A. (2015). There is also anthropological evidence that indicates that societies without leadership are not known in at least some aspects of social life. The manifestation of leadership depends both on the existence of a leadership role and on some qualities of the individuals suitable for this role (Lloret, 2015).

Furthermore, leadership is influenced and determined by organizational culture and life experience. He demands integrity and obedience, responsibility, stability and change, visions and results. Effective leadership can be measured and modeled in at least three ways: through business results, organizational structure and organizational culture (Bula, 2012).

Anyway, it is the leader who controls and influences the organization, establishing the cultural framework in which decisions are made, supporting and demonstrating values, establishing goals and responsibilities (Velilla, Molina & Ortega, 2018). A successful leader understands that the organization is supported by values, beliefs and norms of behavior. These will allow him to rise above the difficulties and give him the tone, character and ability to resist.

Even if the manager is willing to initiate change, he must take into account the diagnosis of the organizational culture and a number of elements that can influence the results of the improvement process. The secret is to create procedures of the organization by which a behavior is rewarded or sanctioned, such as: the benchmarks for promotion, bonuses and salary facilities, professional appreciation assessments, disciplinary procedures (Nair & Saiz-Alvarez, 2019).

During the implementation of change, in general, resistance to change appears both on the part of the employees, and sometimes on the part of the managers. Often the sources of resistance to change are of the company or individual. Of the individual sources of resistance to change the most commonly encountered are: the time available for change; selective perception; social and economic losses; dependence on group members; the uncertainty of the future.

Numerous people think that leadership and management have the same meaning, but in fact they are different (Lazear, Saiz-Alvarez, Coduras & Cuervo-Arango, 2013). Leadership is the key active force that motivates and coordinates an organization to accomplish its objectives (Sarasvathy, 2001). A leader creates a vision for the others and then directs them towards achieving that vision. To be a leader you must have followers who have confidence in you and who give you their support and commitment to a goal (Alvarez & Barney, 2005). On the other hand, management is the process of getting things done, effectively and efficiently, through and with other people (Douglas & Shepherd, 1997).

Managers deal with difficulty through planning and budgeting (Gaglio & Katz, 2001). They put goals, determine how to meet those goals and gather resources to meet those goals. Leaders start with the vision and put strategies to meet this vision (Saiz-Alvarez, 2015). Managers organize and staff their employees to meet their goals. They create jobs to achieve the requirement of plans. Leaders try to recruit and keep the employees who participate their vision. Finally, managers control the employees' behaviour to ensure that employees meet the goals (Baron, 2007).

Some contemporary motivation issues facing today’s leaders include motivating a diversified workforce, pay for performance programs, motivating minimum wage employees, motivating professional and technical employees, and flexible work schedule options (Saiz-Alvarez, 2018).