Self-Reflection of Leadership

Answer

            Fundamental Principles

            Four fundamental universal principles guide my daily thoughts. Firstly, I believe in impartiality where people are treated the same irrespective of their race, religion, culture, class or political stand. Secondly, I focus on the independence of thoughts and actions. Actions and thoughts should not be subjected to influence from external factors ("Corrigendum," 2017). Instead, they should reflect an individual’s decision that is analyzed well and is a reflection of what any other person would have reacted in the same situation. I also believe in non-violence. There are many ways of solving conflicts and violence aggravates issues. Therefore, people should result in more subtle and positive conflict solving methods without causing harm (Higgins, 2013). My fourth fundamental principle is unity. For any organization to move forward, They must possess unit of purpose and cause of action. When all teams in an organization are united towards a common goal, it is steered towards its inevitable success (Spitzer, 2011).

Core Values

            As I approach my daily duties, I employ the following core values in my undertakings. Core values are the framework upon which personal resources like money and time are managed and business partnerships, relationships, and friendships are selected ("Corrigendum," 2017). First, I maintain professionalism in all I do. This enables me to maintain a professional relationship in the workplace and treat all employees similarly.  Secondly, I am compassion driven. I must ensure everybody around me feels appreciated, loved and that their interests addressed. I am also passionate about everything I do . I ensure that whenever I am to fulfill a duty, I develop a passion for not just fulfilling it but doing my best to ensure the ultimate results are well articulated. Finally, I am driven by empathy. I always put myself in another person's shoes before acting for or against their judgment. This enables me to determine the reasons behind their actions and advise them effectively (In Klarsfeld, In Booysen, In Ng, In Roper, & In Tatli, 2016).

            Beliefs about People in and Outside Organizations, Power, Processes/Policies, and Profit

            The people within and outside the organization shape its direction. Depending on how employees handle organization’s activities, they can facilitate its continued growth and success or drive it to its untimely death. Therefore, the internal environment determines how effectively employees play their roles and duties to ensure the organizational goals are reached. Similarly, the people outside the organization help on campaigning for or against its products and services. For instance, customer feedback enables the organization to determine how it features to the external environment (Lloyd, 2015).

            Power, on the other hand, facilitate information flow in the organization. When power is distributed to all employees, they feel part of the team and work towards fulfilling its vision and mission. However, some leaders use power to exploit their subordinates. As a result, employees feel unappreciated leading to high employee turnover.

            Policies are the guidelines upon which the organization is aligned (Yukl, 2013). These plans are fulfilled following a set of processes. Therefore, policies and procedures reflect the actual performance of the team in that they facilitate execution of its daily activities (Yukl, 2013.

Profits are revenues created from the organization’s operations. Profits describe the benefits shareholders derive from investing in the team. However, profits should be subdivided between the shareholders and the organization to steer its growth. This is because if all proceeds are given to shareholders, the team will stagnate at its initiation stage and will not be able to satisfy customers and beat the competition ("Sustainable People Policies for Sustainable Organizations," 2013).

How My Behaviors Align (or Don’t Align) to My Principles, Values, and Beliefs

            Principles, values, and beliefs shape my actions and reactions in everyday life. I have striven to exhibit strong ethics, consistency, transparency, and diligence in my daily work which are closely entangled with my beliefs, values, and principles.

            However, sometimes, I am inclined to work against them. For instance, when I am asked about my opinion on a senior management decision, I support it even though I harbor some sentiments against it to avoid creating conflicts of interest.

Leadership Theories

            I relate closely with participative and transformational leadership styles. According to transformational leadership, which written by James V. Downton, people follow an inspiring person who believes in energy and enthusiasm as the only means of getting things done (Baker, 2013). The theory also states that an individual must be guided by a well-thought vision and passion for them to achieve great things. A transformation leader offers an uplifting and wonderful working experience to their subordinates since they care about them and desire that they may succeed in their career life. They have an exciting and well-thought plan for the future which they sell to their followers and steer the charge during the action.

            Participative leadership fabricated by John Gastil, on the other hand, is based on the fundamental belief that decision-making is a product of a thorough understanding of the issues by the decision implementers (Wang & Chee, 2011). Similarly, the theory purports that people develop a strong commitment to an undertaking in which they were part of decision-making. Similar, commitment to the decision is higher when people make decisions collectively due to the stronger social commitment developed for each other. Finally, participative leadership views a collectively decided on better and in-depth that one made by an individual. Participative leaders seek the involvement of stakeholders, superiors, peers, and subordinates in decision-making rather than imposing such decisions upon them.

            The two leadership theories are similar because employees are encouraged to be part of decision implementation. Although in the transformational theory a leader can formulate decisions alone and steer the team towards their implementation, the two theories encourage including the entire team in decision formulation so that they understand their importance and increase their commitment towards execution (Wellington & Books24x7, 2012). However, the two leadership styles differ in that the transformational leadership must involve a charismatic leader. However, participative leadership requires a leader who can make employees and other organs of the company feel part of the decision-making process. Similarly, while a charismatic leader may look at the bigger picture, participative leadership focuses on unearthing the minor details so that nothing is left to chance (Wang & Chee, 2011).

Analysis of My Leadership about Each of the Two Leadership Theories

            The two theories apply to my leadership depending on the prevailing circumstances. For instances, participative leadership is useful when I need background information on a particular issue. This requires that I engage all interested parties in the decision-making process (Chu, 2013). The theory aligns with my principles, core values and beliefs in that I take everybody as an equal and ensure that each person feels comfortable working for the organization. I also foster freedom of thought and action so that the best decision can be arrived at without withholding any important clauses (In Bradbury & In Reason, 2014).

            Transformational leadership, on the other hand, comes into play during the implementation of a seemingly difficult task. I ensure every participant is charged for the ultimate goal and are ready and willing to follow me wherever I lead (McCann, 2011). This is a sure way of getting things done according to an elaborate plan whether it is participatory or individually created. The theory is not in line with some of my principles such as independence of action and thoughts as I ensure all participants follow the leader without questioning or giving their opinions. However, it is in sync with other principles and the core values as well as beliefs because everyone feels part of the team and success is collective (Gill, 2011).

My Leadership Qualities With Amazon’s CEO Jeff Bezos

            Just like Jeff Bezos, my priority in every undertaking is the client. The client keeps the organization afloat by purchasing and using our products and services. Therefore, I strive to ensure the client needs are satisfied through researching what the client expects and tailoring our products and services towards meeting them. Besides, a satisfied customer is bound to come back and bring another with them meaning they are the key to business growth (Howell, 2013). Secondly, I encourage participation of the team members in decision-making to promote innovative ideas. Individuals handle the same situation differently (Owens & Valesky, 2015). Therefore, getting to understand the reasons behind their actions is the best method of driving a perfect decision. When people come together and brainstorm, they come up with innovative ideas are more satisfying consequently encouraging the company’s growth and expansion.

            Finally, just like Jeff Benzos, I strive to set an example of my expectations of people working with me. That is why I employ the transformational leadership to put everybody on board and strive towards a common goal. Similarly, I delegate some duties to others and supervise how they execute them guiding them where necessary. This way, I help future leaders grow and enable everybody acquires some leadership qualities (Iszatt-White & Saunders, 2017).

            Justify at least Three Key Insights From Your Study That You Can Use to Enhance the Ethical Aspects of Your Leadership Influence

            Ethical leadership is guided by the honor accorded to the values and beliefs of the rights and dignity of other people (Ciulla, 2013). It is drawn from the appropriate or desirable morals and values a society or individual upholds. One of the insights I gathered from the study used to facilitate ethical aspects of my leadership influence is the ethical relationship leadership has with fairness, charisma, consideration, honesty, and trust (Fryer, 2011). These are the pillars that steer ethical leadership to its inevitable success and ensure everyone feels appreciated part of a great team.

            The other insight is that to enhance ethical leadership, a leader must draw from a clear and coherent action and ethical decision-making framework. When an individual follows a set of pre-defined ethical considerations, they are likely to ensure every part of the team is included and appreciated for the roles they play ("Simondon, 2014). There will be no bias or negative ratings that can make some members withdraw from the team. Additionally, an individual leader’s ethical framework must align with the organization’s mission, vision, and overall ethical standards (Niesche & Keddie, 2016). Ethical leadership implies that the uppermost consideration in decision-making is the organization’s mission and vision. Therefore, the standards of ethics upheld by the organizing form the backbone of individual ethical practices. This is to ensure that everyone understands the professional code of the organization, respects its tenets and they are working towards ensuring its enforcement (Millar & Poole, 2011).

            Finally, I have understood that ethical leadership process is shared. This implies that every individual in the organization should be able to practice it and follow through as deemed suitable. In that regards, they can question an action or decision, make initiatives, or play the role model in given circumstance while upholding the organization’s integrity (Leigh, 2013).

Development I Need to Become the Leader I Desire to be In Relation to the Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership

            Leadership is a continuous process, and every decision is a learning opportunity. Therefore, to become the leader I desire, I must fully align with the five practices of exemplary leadership namely: model the way, inspire a shared vision, challenge the process, enable others to act and encourage the heart (Kouzes & Posner, 2013). Modelling the way means that I must acquire behaviors that earn respect from others. As a leader, I must be able to work with my subordinates as an example of what is expected of them. This way, they will strive to emulate what I do and drive towards the set objectives. Secondly. As a leader, I should have a clear understanding of the company’s past and a vision for the future (Noure Elahi, 2015). However, that must be coupled with the ability to transmit that vision into the minds and actions of the subordinates to make it a shared goal.

            Thirdly, as a leader, I should be able to challenge every procedure that does not work to fulfill the organizational goals and objectives. A leader should analyze the existing processes and procedures and make amendments where necessary (Kouzes & Posner, 2017). For instance, a process may have proved fruitful in the past but may not feature in the current situation hence necessitating its review. The fourth practice entails incorporating other people into a plan. This is the surest way to facilitate active participation in decision-making and implementation of ideas geared towards the achieving the mission and vision of the initiative. Finally, by encouraging the heart, I will be able to handle challenges and overcome them creating leadership milestones that are encouraging and career enhancing (Kouzes & Posner, 2014).

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