Answer

Leadership Styles and Conceptualization

Leadership entails implementing sound decisions through creation and articulation of clear vision while establishing achievable and realistic goals. It also involves provision of adequate knowledge and efficient tools required for realizing different set goals (Northouse, 2015). Effective leaders often portray various characteristics such as proper communication skills, perseverance, innovative thinking, proper management strategies, and willingness to risk taking, level-headedness, crisis management skills, and optimism. Leadership is considered subjective since it initiates the ability of one to establish a consistent following among other individuals.

Leaders put more focus on bettering one’s environment through authentic expression of unique personalities in pursuit of better conditions. It aids in establishment of strengths and provision of solutions to weakness in efficient and productive way possible through giving people success tools. This could be in form of genuine praising of people who take full responsibility and immediate attention to emergencies (Northouse, 2015). Leadership also encompasses authentic and positive influence regardless of type of role assigned. Authenticity helps in establishment of open mindedness, lifting of each other and cooperating in team work towards achieving a common set mission while building positive influence.

Leadership Traits vs. Leadership as a Process

 Leadership traits involve portraying various characteristics either inborn or inmate, that renders one a leader through differentiating him/her from non-leaders (Mendoza, 2016). Some of these personality traits include extraversion, physical factors like height, and body characteristic as well as abilities like fluency in speech.

Leadership from a traits perspective includes conceptualization of leadership as a direct property for possession of various degrees by different individuals. It, therefore, aids in selection of persons through restriction of leadership goals to the few who are considered to have special and inborn talents.

Process leadership portrays leadership as a direct phenomenon residing within the context and making leadership chances available to every person. Leaders are, therefore, categorized in regard to leadership behavior which, according to research, is a variable that can be earned and learnt by anyone.  

Assigned vs. Emergent Leadership

Assigned leadership entails appointment of leaders into a given supervisory position or management on a formal scale. Emergent leadership encompasses blending of informal leadership roles on basis of work team’s perception towards such leaders which involves recognition of assignment of emergent leaders into different formal openings (Ziek, 2014). Assigned leaders can be graded on the basis of formal leadership designation within a given organization and examples to these include presidents, general managers, regional managers, vice presidents, chief executive officers, assistant managers, and shift managers. Emergent leaders, on the other hand, occupy designated leadership positions which in most cases define someone within a front-line work upon whom others look up to for direction and inspiration.

On the basis of communication, assigned leaders have a formal communication style which employs paying keen attention and giving a listening ear to employees by creating an approachable environment in case of any issue. They also aid in articulation of interests of their employees through provision of task directions (Ziek, 2014). Emergent leadership involves status blending by becoming a vocally engaged communicator and development of group rapport on the basis of motivating and directing workers through utilization of their formal position in working groups.

Main challenge facing any assigned leader is gaining respect to a level slightly higher than that expected of an assigned leader. It is also time consuming considering it usually takes quite a while in bond building with all employees and respect earning through high commitment level and hard work (Ziek, 2014). Moreover, an assigned leader can equally face a number of conflicts with emergent leaders within an employee’s rank and can ideally get a vocal leader on his side. On the other hand, emergent leaders suffer from lack of authority even though they have direct influence on motivating people though there is no direct power to making high-level decisions in understanding all strategic intentions of the firm.

Power

Power defines authority, influence or control possession that directly or indirectly influences other people’s actions by people in authority or other intangible means. Possession of knowledge is the prime power source which is equally independent of different other positional levels. Power, in most cases, dwells on strength and assertion of common interests on a global scale with concrete aspects from capacity logistics, training forums, economic heft and activities within military hardware. It also contains certain soft elements such as language, culture and innovation.

Coercion

This is considered and defined as the practice of persuading one into undertaking something by use of force and not as per one’s willingness. A party is, therefore, forced to act in a certain involuntary manner through intimidation or pressure application. Coercion involves directly influencing an individual (Nahavandi, 2016). It involves reward and punishment manipulation in a given environment, force utilization, threats on termination, and direct influence on others. Coercion is mostly done for one’s own benefits since such leaders have very little regard for their followers. Therefore, coercive influences are portrayed in toxic leadership cases.

Management

Management differs from leadership because it majors on producing consistency and order while leadership majors on movement and change (Smith, 2015). Management involves doing things the right way and, therefore, firms must aid in cultivation of management for attaining complacency status.

In conclusion, leadership is considered subjective since it initiates the ability of one to establish a consistent following among other individuals. Leaders put more focus on bettering one’s environment through authentic expression of unique personalities in pursuit of better conditions. It aids in establishment of strengths and provision of solutions to weakness in efficient and productive way possible through giving people success tools like genuine praising of people who take full responsibility and immediate attention to emergencies. Leadership also encompasses authentic and positive influence regardless of type of role assigned, whereby authenticity helps in establishment of open mindedness, lifting of each other and cooperating in team work towards hitting a common set mission while building positive influence.