INTRODUCTION of Needs” (1961) states that motivation
INTRODUCTION Leadership maybe defined as the influence that leaders exert upon his employees in an organisationalcontext. In other words, leadership may be defined as the, “the ability of anindividual to influence, motivate and enable others to contribute towards theeffectiveness and success of the organisation of which they are members”(Gerstner & Day, 1997). Leaders arethe people who innovate, motivate, develop and inspire the members to ensurethe good working of the organisation and to further the goal of theorganisation. There are a few certain characteristics and traits that make up agood and effective leader. Here, we are going to discuss four key features thatI believe will make an effective leader. MOTIVATION Motivationcan be defined as “the extent to which a persistent effort is directed towardsa goal” (Campbell, Dunnette, Lawler and Weick). Motivation can be described asone of the key features of a leader because an effective leader should bemotivated himself, so that he can motivate people working for him to get thejob or a shared goal done. Without a motivated leader, the organisation cannotperform their tasks well.
A good leader should be motivated to achieve the needof power, affiliation and achievement. David McClelland in his “Theory of Needs” (1961) states thatmotivation is something that is not hierarchical, but it is some individualspecific needs that have been acquired over by time and from one’s own lifeexperience. He says that we all can have these needs regardless of age, sex,gender, race or culture. These needs can be classified in to 3 types: Need forAchievement(n-Ach), Need for Affiliation(n-Aff) and Need for Power(n-Pow).These words were first used by Henry Murray (1938).Need forAchievement(n-Ach):Leaders in this category preferdoing some challenging tasks well. They don’t try to run away from complicatedand complex problems or situations, rather than running away from these situationsthey take them up as challenges and try to complete them.
When employees see leaders,who do not give up easily when a tough situation arises, they get motivatedthemselves to work hard seeing the leader. Leaders with this personality traitsare characterized by an enduring and consistent concern with setting andmeeting lofty standards of achievement. Need forAffiliation(n-Aff): Affiliation can be described as a positive, sometimes intimate, personal relationships(Zimbardo, P & Formica, R, 1963). Leaders in this category, display a needto be social, friendly, compatible and create a harmonious relationship withhis peers.
A leader with this need have the urge to be accepted by other and toaccept others the way they are. We need leaders who are more social, outgoingand compatible with the people who work under him, because leaders with highneed of achievement and power can perform poor without high affiliation withhis employees. Let us take an characteristic example, of an salesmen who haslow need for power and achievement but high need for affiliation has been justpromoted to management. This type ofleader will have a good relationship with his peers and create a peaceful andharmonious work place which will motivate the employees to work hard and achievethe desired results.
