The Role of Visionary Leadership Style in the Contemporary Context
Leadership is important to an organization. Organizations, particularly business-oriented ones, need a leader whose traits are tailored to meet contemporary market demands marred with globalization. Globalization has resulted in high competition among businesses, as many brands try to fight for survival on the market. For this reason, customers are left with a wide range of options to choose from when it comes to making purchases. However, in organizations’ perspective, they are exposed to the threat of collapsing, particularly those that lag in meeting the contemporary current market demands. As such, organizations invest in leadership to survive. Since organizational survival depends on leadership productivity, leaders are overwhelmed to yield desirable outcomes. In the long run, these leaders find themselves in the epicenter on which appropriate leadership styles should be employed to make their respective organizations the most competitive. Some of the leadership styles used by organizations include charismatic, transformational, visionary, democratic, bureaucratic, pacesetter, and coaching. While these styles are critical, depending on how each is executed, visionary leadership is widely used. For instance, McCallus(2018) acknowledges that nearly 80 percent of organizational leaders believe that visionary leadership is a success recipe. Evidently, after its introduction nearly 40 years ago by the late Steve Jobs, who defined an innovative leader as a person who can see the business (McCallus, 2018), many organizations have remained competitive. However, important to note is that not every person can become a visionary leader. Steve Jobs further described that a complete visionary leader should possess certain traits. These traits include being innovative for the future, risk-taking, inspirational, organized, communicative, focused, open-minded, persistent, and among other quality managerial skills. A contemporary society leader can never overlook Visionary leadership traits such as innovative for the future, risk-taking, and inspirational traits. On the other hand, while these traits play a crucial role in helping the leader move an organization towards success, others struggle to produce desired outcomes best sufficed with existing organizational management culture. This paper seeks to discuss the pros and cons, effects as well as challenges of implementing visionary leadership.
Traits of a Visionary Leader (Innovation for the future, Risk Taking and Inspirational (1100words)
Globalization is associated with an increase in actualizing technological tools making markets complex. For this reason, organizations invest in leadership styles to survive. Since organizational survival depends on leadership productivity, leaders are overwhelmed to yield desirable outcomes. In the long run, these leaders find themselves in the epicenter on which appropriate leadership styles should be employed to make their respective organizations the most competitive. While a number of leadership styles can be used by a contemporary leader to move an organization to success, a visionary leadership style is regarded as the most appropriate. Although many contemporary leaders have traits that make them achieve their leadership objectives, innovation for the future, risk-taking, and inspirational should be upfront. It is because a leader that posses these three traits and lacks others can still achieve the best-desired outcomes (De Massis et al., 2018).
Innovation for the future
For instance, a leader that poses innovation for the future trait is regarded as ideal for an organization to survive in the 21st century (De Massis et al., 2018). Technology advent has come out as a force to reckon in the 21st century. Today all processes are virtually technology grounded, particularly in the business sector. For example, in the car assemblage manufacturing processes, multiple fasteners are being used to make enclosure assemblies of systems. Since spare parts are structural components, this process is crucial as it makes them robust. The process of assembly requires multiple components, including base plate and structural ribs. Many enclosures are made of aluminum and assembled using robots. To assure joint strength, manufacturers are using a flow-form screw-driving process. This technology also eliminates gaps and eliminates the necessity of drilling. The fact that the production processes have been enhanced, thanks to the automation through the use of robots, hints of a promising efficiency that is expected to cut down the cost and meet the consumer demands in real-time. All in all, car assemblage manufacturing processes cannot be efficiently utilized in the absence of a leader that poses innovation for the future trait. After all, this trait is needed to support the operations.
Another area where innovation for the future trait has contributed to assisting organizations to remain competitive is in the marketing niche(De Massis et al., 2018). Most businesses use technological tools and social media platforms to market their products. It is because of most people in contemporary society access specialized tools and social media platforms with ease. Today, many advertisements are made through media platforms such as television sets and radios. Other products are advertised through social media platforms such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and other widely used social platforms. A leader poses innovation for future traits that aid these marketing strategies to be sufficiently actualized.
Risk-Taking
Risk-taking is also regarded as an important trait that a contemporary visionary leader should not afford to miss at all times while making leadership decisions. Many leaders use the concept that the higher the risk, the higher the rate of returns (Kerr, Kerr, & Xu, 2017). This conceptual assumption highly encourages a contemporary visionary leader to believe in making high investments. For instance, risk-taking visionary leaders’ and use of gambling decisions are widely notable at the production level (Kerr, Kerr, & Xu, 2017). At this point, risk-taking leaders increase the cost of production.
On the other hand, he/she reduce the prices of the products. This difference is a high risk, as returns on sales volumes are not guaranteed. However, it is one of the best strategies ever contemporary organizations use to increase their sales by capturing many customers. In the end, their market is expanded as many customers buy their products with returns that surpass production investment costs initially thought to be high. In the end, economies of scale marketing strategy. Many contemporary businesses widely use this strategy could not have otherwise been achieved without a visionary leader who is not risk-taking.
Another notable area where risk-taking is widely notable is product differentiation. Many contemporary businesses employ a product differentiation strategy approach to create uniqueness in a product. In this case, products to be changed into another look while retaining their initial nature, value, prices, weight, among other descriptions. Changing the products from their initial forms to something else may have adverse effects on the brand. The consequences can be particularly notable in situations when more customers are lost to other competitors. It then follows that losing customers to competitors for a company that differentiated its products is attributable to a leader taking a high risk. However, losing customers as a result of product differentiation can only negatively affect the introduction stages of the changed product. On the bottom line, the strengths associated with product differentiation after products regain their feet overshadow those used in an organization with a leader who is not risk-taking. Most importantly, many contemporary businesses remain competitive, attributing their success to actualizing high risk-taking visionary leaders.
Inspirational
An inspirational trait is also another crucial element that a contemporary visionary leader must use. In this case, since a visionary leader figures out what be fold the organization in the future, particularly in this 21st century, where technology is advent, he/she needs to work towards these goals. For instance, in manufacturing processes, notably car assemblage, a visionary leader needs to inspire his/her employees to achieve the strategy. Inspiration objectives can be achieved in various ways. Foremost, a visionary leader should employees with resources tailored to addressing the needs of technology marred with globalization (Bonau, 2017). It is because almost every sector, particularly businesses-oriented ones, are using technology to sufficiently address their customers’ needs. Visionary leaders who use technology supporting resources achieve the goals of the contemporary organization with ease. Thanks to the use of inspirational traits. In the end, he/she help an organization towards success.
Also, in the contemporary market context, visionary leaders need an inspirational trait to help employees and organizations at large meet various customers’ demands. Today, many organizations are utilizing technological tools such as televisions, radios, and social media platforms to advertise their products (Bonau, 2017). In this case, an inspirational trait is needed to influence employees, given that technology has taken over the world. This way, employees come to understand the market demands better, mostly when a contemporary market uses product differentiation to lure customers but their products. Further, with the available differentiation marketing strategy where a product is made to appear unique from other brands, inspirational traits with the help of technology help employees differentiate their organization’s products in more than just one form.
Pros and Cons to visionary leadership
Pros
Since organizations depend on their respective leaders’ productivity to move them towards success, many employ visionary leadership to meet the demands of contemporary market marred with globalization. Visionary leadership is employed because of various reasons. Foremost, a visionary leadership style helps a leader drag the best talents to an organization (Mariama-Arthur, 2018). In essence, when a leader reveals to his/her followers some of the plans, it is easy to convince them and receive support. However, working with his/her followers towards a vision, other talents maybe are nurtured. Convincing financial institutions to provide financial aid is another strength associated with visionary leadership. For example, Steve Jobs managed to convince financial institutions to invest in Apple. It is due to this reason that Apple managed to compete with Microsoft (Beahm, 2019).
Lastly, visionary leadership enables a leader to motivate his/her followers. Since the visionary leadership style informs followers of what their leader sees about the business, followers get motivated, especially when the future is associated with yielding positive outcomes. Not forgetting to mention, organizational cultural behaviors are firstly forged by a leader. It follows that followers, just as a leader with a good vision for an organization, employs imitate the behaviors exhibited by their visionary leader. This motivation occurs naturally and the most reliable approach to use and influence employees’ behavior. It is not easy to influence employees’ behavior when a leader uses other leadership styles, such as bureaucratic.
Cons
However, while visionary leadership is associated with these strengths, the style also has its weaknesses. For instance, incorporating new style management into an organization takes time to be effective(Boone, Kurtz & Berston, 2019). And while adapting to the new norm is not an event but a process, adjusted management levels have to be patient before positive outcomes are recorded. Also, many contemporary visionary leaders focus more on coming up with new designs of products. As such, activities that need to be undertaken at hand to make profits are ignored. The fact that employment and application of visionary leadership are vital to an organization should tailor the new style requirements with existing essential business activities. These activities may include investment returns and monetization of existing products. Contemporary visionary leaders who overlook existing product activities’ roles expose their organizations to high competition.
An organization adjusted to visionary leadership is highly exposed to the risk of collapsing compared to other competitors that maintained their style is another last weakness (Mariama-Arthur, 2018). Importantly, this weakness is particularly noticeable when a leader leaves for another organization or other personal reasons. In the long run, businesses adjust to other new procedures and rules introduced by a new leader. Many adverse effects accompany this adjustment process, such as employee turnover, low morale, and other unproductive activities. In the end, expose businesses adjusted into new visionary leadership to high overstretch their budget, exposing them against the threat to collapsing.
Challenges or Barriers Associated with Organizational Change to Create Visionary Leadership an Environment for Visionaries
Notwithstanding, cotemporary business markets are pegged on complex demands marred with globalization, and as a result, they are faced with various issues that need to be addressed. Since the satisfaction of customers’ demands is impeded by complexity in their nature, they need to be addressed tactically. Indeed, responding to customers’ various needs is not an event but a process. To this end, this position justifies the criticality of the visionary leadership style. The visionary leadership style itself is a demanding practice that requires the undertakers to be aware of challenges at hand. For example, organizations, particularly business-oriented ones, struggle to optimize resources to deliver quality products and services at a low cost. In essence, when available resources are underutilized, the organization’s budget is overstretched. More resources have not been budgeted for having to be purchased to cover up the underutilized and wasted resources. Another considerable challenge is managing resistance to change (Anshar, 2017).
More often, employees in many organizations, particularly in business-oriented ones, are resistant to change. Changes in organizations are inevitable attributable to new leadership with a different style of leadership. It is often difficult to change the behavior of employees used to operate under certain organizational cultural practices. Communication between departments may change, thus compelling readjustment to structure in passing information (Martinelli, 2017). Lastly, visionary leaders are experiencing challenges in responding to rapidly evolving technology (Harmon, 2019). Presently, the use of technology is notable in every organization, with the business sector as one of those on the frontline to utilize its application (Harmon, 2019).
The Potential Effects of this Selected Structure on Employee Behavior
While visionary leadership is associated with traits tailored to addressing the contemporary market’s demands marred with globalization, adverse effects are notable to an organization after a leader begins to work. Foremost, employee turnover rate increase as one of their strategic approaches to resist change to their management (Anshar, 2017). This way, organization productivity reduces as not all employees may be available for work, which impedes organization performance. At this point, it is exposed to the threat of collapsing. Also, employees’ motivation is lost as a new visionary leader comes along with new rules. Employees are forced to shift in positions as others get demoted. Demoted employees have low morale towards the job, thus become unproductive. Major divisions are disrupted, exposing an organization against the threat of collapsing. The other third effect is that an organization experiences lack of communication as departments may change, which is accompanied by confusion. This situation often notable at the initial application of the new visionary leadership style. In this case, employees are caught at the epicenter, wandering to which department they are answerable.
Another effect is that an organization’s customers may be lost to other brands due to change in service delivery as an organization adjusts into a new visionary leader norm. Losing customers to another brand is more common at initial stages of an organization as employees try to behave in a certain way to fit into new visionary leadership requirements. If an organization may regain its feet later, some customers may be lost to other companies for good. It is a severe threat to organizational performance. Lastly, organization activities that an organization prides on itself are highly compromised. For instance, the quality of production may be reduced as some employees are compelled to quit. It is because these employees find it difficult to operate under strict introduced rules by a visionary leader. Service delivery is also reduced as employees’ communication with specific clients is shifted to another person. This compromise of quality production on product delivery and customer service exposes an organization against collapsing threats.
Conclusion
In conclusion, this paper sought to discuss the pros and cons, challenges, and effects of implementing visionary leadership. Indeed, the type of leadership style employed is vital to an organization. Organizations, particularly business-oriented ones, need a leader whose traits are tailored to the contemporary market’s demands marred with globalization. Since organizations’ success largely depends on leadership productivity, leaders have no choice but to sacrifice for their organization’s survival on the market. Leaders use the best leadership style to meet organizational goals, critical in the contemporary business environment. However, the visionary leadership style believes that other traits underlie this style, innovative for the future, risk-taking, and being inspirational can never be underestimated. With the contemporary business market pegged on complex dynamics marred with globalization activities, brands are utilizing technology. However, a visionary leader is regarded as the best to withstand these market challenges. Here, a reason why the three traits cannot be underrated is lauded by contemporary organizations that adopt the visionary leadership style.
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