Introduction

Leaders have always been with us since the creation of the universe and can be found in any industry you find yourself. In fact, where ever there is a gathering of living beings, there exist some form of leadership and/or followership. There are several definitions given to the concept of leadership. However, it is generally defined simply as the art of influencing people so that they will strive willingly towards the achievement of group goals”. This concept can be enlarging to include not only willingness to work but with zeal and confidence.

Leadership involves making things happen rather than letting things happen. A leader makes things happen by exerting both intrinsic and extrinsic influences on the group. Leadership is the most visible of all the management functions. This is largely due to the fact it deals so much with people. It has variedly been referred to as directly, commanding, guiding, Inspiring, initiating, and activating. However, all stand for the same purpose whatever denotation used.

The classic model of the good organizational leader is the top executive in the organizational management who directs and who is in control of all aspects of the operations of the organization. This top executive leader operates through a hierarchy of management and the organization had a fairly well-defined structure.  The organization of today does not have the luxury of stability since it faces an ever-increasing change in markets, customers and technology. It needs to accept, adopt and implement changes in the business model according to changing trends, technologies, customer preferences and future concerns.

Further, the core business of the organization is constantly under threat today from the newcomers to the marketplace who are having a different business paradigm. Hence the organization cannot afford to depend upon the leadership of individual or/and a small team of senior executives to meet this challenge. The organization needs to harness the ideas, skills, energy, and enthusiasm of the entire team for success. For meeting of new challenges, this new concept and practice of leadership has evolved, where line managers have taken over the leadership role along with the top executive and his small team of senior executives.

Leadership is an important factor for making an organization successful. It is the art or process of influencing people to perform assigned tasks willingly, efficiently and competently as defined earlier. Without leadership, a line manager simply cannot be effective. Leadership of the line managers transforms potential into reality. When good leadership is in place in the organization, it can be felt throughout the entire organization. With good leadership, organizational culture is not forced but developed. Communication is effective and open. Everyone understands the vision and goals of the organization, and everyone has input into how they can be improved. People feel that they are an important part of the organization and they give their best for the success of the organization.

The leadership in the organization is to meet the three challenges. The first challenge is to provide a shared vision of where the organization is heading and what its purpose is (the mission). The second challenge is to set objectives, that is, to convert the strategic vision and directional course into specific performance outcomes for each key area which leaders deem important for success. The third challenge in providing strategic direction is to generate and develop a strategy that will determine how to achieve the objectives. Strategic direction is imperative in identifying a systematic intervention that will provide the most leverage to the organization, as an organization cannot focus on everything all of the time.

Line manager leaders are a key human resource in the organization. These leaders develop better people under them and the two together develop better products which can compete effectively with the products offered by the competitors. We generally think of organizations competing by means of their products, but today organizations probably compete more by means of the quality of their line manager leaders than their products. High performance of people in the organization is the focal point for achieving success. This high performance can be secured only if there is effective leadership qualities available with the line’s managers.

As group efforts and teamwork are essential for realizing the organizational goals, leadership becomes vital for the execution of work. Through leadership, line managers can influence people under them to adopt a cooperative and wholesome attitude for successful work accomplishment. Their leadership motivates the people to a higher level of performance through their strong human relations.

Leadership is an important function of management which helps to maximize efficiency and to achieve organizational goals. In fact, leadership is an essential part and a crucial component of effective management. A remarkable leadership behaviour stresses upon building an environment in which each and every employee develops and excels. It has the potential to influence and drive the group efforts towards the accomplishment of goals.  Line managers must have traits of a leader. They must possess leadership qualities. With leadership qualities line managers can develop and begin strategies that build and sustain competitive advantage.

Underlisted are some of the important roles an organizational leadership is expected to play for purposes of organizational peak performance:

• An organization’s leadership is expected to establish why an organization exists and what it wants to achieve. Leaders are to clarify and communicate the vision and mission of the organization to the people. This vision and mission effectively provide employees with an understanding of the organizational direction and allows them to clearly understand their roles and responsibilities.
• Leaders communicate the policies and plans to the people of the organization. They are to imbibe the values and the culture of the organization since these play an important role in ensuring the achievement of the organizational goals.
• Leaders provide a structured approach. The structured approach is able to generate a plan of action that most effectively meets the organizational goals. An inclusive planning process also provides the opportunity for people to identify, contribute to, understand and achieve well defined objectives.
• The commitment and enthusiasm of leaders shape the common goals of the organization and provides inspiration and motivation for people to perform at a high level.
• Leaders provide encouragement to people for openly contributing and discussing new ideas in a positive environment and make use of their diverse experience and ideas to improve the organization.
• Leaders have an open and engaging relationship with the people. This relationship demonstrates that the people are valued as an integral part of the organization, creates a sense of ownership among people, and develops a closer alignment between individual and organizational objectives.
• Good leadership can help the organization remain focused during a time of crisis, reminding the people of their achievements and encourage them to set short term, achievable goals.

Effective leadership of the line managers requires leadership qualities in them. These qualities are to be visible by their actions in the context and circumstances of different situations. Leadership determines excellent organizational performance. Leadership success in the implementation of a strategy is manifested in a conducive organizational climate, a reward strategy that is linked to strategic objectives, flexible structures that support business demands, and an effective organizational culture that influence behaviour in the right direction. The ultimate desired end results manifest itself in aligned individual and organizational performance.

 It is in the recognition of this fact that the Chartered Institute of Leadership and Governance deems it fit to provide seminars to its members on leadership and organizational performance.

Mr Ibrahim Alhassan, FCILG
The author is the editor of the Chartered Institute of Leadership and Governance-Ghana. He is also the Northern Regional Director of the Institute. He is an editorial member of a number of journals including the European Journal of Educational Sciences and has review several articles. The author currently works as a data analyst in the Planning and Research Unit of the University for Development Studies, Tamale, Ghana.

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