bhu ls 600 chapter 6

© 2015 SAGE Publications, Inc.

Chapter 6:Chapter 6:Developing Leadership Developing Leadership

SkillsSkills


Chapter Objectives• Understanding administrative skills and their

use in practice.• Understanding interpersonal skills and their

use in practice.• Understanding conceptual skills and their use

in practice.


Discussion Questions

• What skills do you think are most important for leaders to possess?

• Why have traits of leaders historically received more attention than leadership skills?


What Are Leadership Skills?

• Leadership skills refer to learned competencies that leaders are able to demonstrate in performance.

• Leadership skills:o Give people the capacity to influence otherso Are a critical component in successful

leadership


Core Leadership Skills

• Administrative Skills

• Interpersonal Skills

• Conceptual Skills


Administrative Skills• The competencies needed to carry out the

purposes & goals of the organizationo Involve planning, organizing work, coordinating

work activitieso Allow leaders to accomplish the mundane, but

critically important, aspects of leadership

• Divided into three specific skill sets: o Managing People, Managing Resources, &

Showing Technical Competence


Managing People• An effective leader connects with people & understands the

tasks, the skills required to perform them, & the overall environment.o Includes helping employees

to work as a team motivating them to do their best promoting satisfying relationships among employees

o Occupies the most timeo Involves communicating with multiple stakeholderso Ex.: Nate Parker and after-school recreation program

• “Management by walking around”


Managing Resources• Resources can be money, supplies,

equipment, space, etc., anything needed to operate an organization.

• Managing resources requires a leader to be competent in both obtaining and allocating resources. Ex.: cross-country coach buying new uniforms for the team

• The ultimate responsibility of resource management rests on the leader.


Showing Technical Competence• Technical competence involves having

specialized knowledge about our work.o A leader with technical competence understands the

intricacies of how the organization functions.o A leader is more effective when he or she has

knowledge about the activities subordinates are asked to perform.

o A leader is not required to have technical competence in every situation.

• Also referred to as “Functional Competence”


Interpersonal Skills• People skills—the abilities that help a leader

to work effectively with subordinates, peers, & superiors, to accomplish the organization’s goals

• Divided into three specific skill sets: o Being Socially Perceptiveo Showing Emotional IntelligenceoManaging Interpersonal Conflict


Being Socially Perceptive• Being socially perceptive involves

understanding the unique needs, goals, & demands of different constituencies

• Having insight into & awareness of:o what is important to otherso how they are motivatedo the problems they face o how they react to change

• Ex.: Univ. of Michigan graduation


Showing Emotional Intelligence• Emotional Intelligence:

o a person’s ability to understand his or her own & others’ emotions

o apply this to life’s tasks

• Emotional intelligence is the ability to: o perceive & express emotionso use emotions to facilitate thinkingo understand & reason with emotionso manage emotions effectively (Mayer,

Salovey, & Caruso, 2000)


Enhancing Emotional Intelligence1. Leaders need to work on becoming aware

of their own emotions.2. A leader should train to become aware of

the emotions of others.3. A leader needs to learn how to regulate his

or her emotions & put them to good use. • Ex.: high school principal and student

pranksters


Handling Conflict• Conflict creates the need for change and occurs as the

result of change.

• Conflict is the struggle between two or more individuals over perceived differences regarding substantive issues or relational issues.

• Although uncomfortable, conflict is not unhealthy nor necessarily bad.

• If conflict is managed effectively there is a reduction of stress, an increase in creative problem solving, and improved group relations.


Conceptual Skills• Conceptual skills involve the thinking or

cognitive aspects of leadership, such as concepts and ideas.

• Divided into three specific skill sets: o Problem Solvingo Strategic PlanningoCreating Vision


Problem Solving• Problem Solving Skills are a leader’s cognitive

ability to take corrective action in a problem situation to meet desired objectives.

• Skills include the following: o identifying the problemo generating alternative solutionso selecting the best solution from among the

alternativeso implementing that solution


Strategic Planning• Strategic planning requires developing careful

plans of action based on available resources & personnel to achieve a goal

• Boal & Hooijberg (2000) suggest that strategic leaders need to have:o The ability to learn—capacity to absorb new information

and apply it towards new goalso The capacity to adapt—being able to respond quickly to

changes in the environmento Managerial wisdom—A deep understanding of people

and the environment in which they work


Creating Vision• Creating vision requires the capacity to

challenge people with compelling visions of the future.

• To create vision, a leader needs to: o set forth a picture of a future that is better than

the presentomove others toward a new set of ideals & values

that will lead to the future

• A leader must implement the vision & model the principles set forth in the vision


Leadership Snapshot: Coquese Washington

– Grew up in Flint, MI; played seven musical instruments.– Was an All-State selection for girls’ basketball two years

in a row and was awarded a scholarship to attend Notre Dame where she earned her undergraduate and law degree.

– After law school, played for the Portland Power of the ABL (American Basketball League) and the WNBA.

– Helped the Houston Comets win the WNBA title.– Became the founding president of the WNBA Players’

Association and negotiated the players’ first collective bargaining agreement.


Leadership Snapshot: Coquese Washington• She realized that she loved being part of a basketball team. In

2007 she was chosen as the Head Coach for Penn State Women’s Basketball and by 2013, she led the Lady Lions to three consecutive appearances at the NCAA Women’s Division I Basketball Championships.

• But the winning isn’t what’s keeping Washington on the court. It’s the opportunity to be a mentor and leader to her players.

• Coach Washington believes that “we use basketball as a vehicle, but I’m probably most proud of our kids’ ability to achieve. I’ve learned over the years that that is a skill that’s developed, not something you’re born with. Perseverance, persistence, belief – there are so many skills that have to be nurtured to become an achiever.”


Case Study: Sweet Caroline’s• Based on the Model of Primary Leadership Skills (Fig. 6.1), how

would you describe Caroline’s skills? In what skills is she strongest and in what skills is she weakest?

• Sweet Caroline’s bakery and restaurant seemed to emerge out of nowhere. What role did Caroline play in this? Do you think Caroline could improve her business with more strategic planning?

• Have you ever worked at a place that was very successful but felt quite chaotic and disorganized? How did you handle it?

• If you were a consultant to Caroline, would you recommend she open a second location? If so, what three skills would you have Caroline develop in order to help manage her business better?


Summary• Administrative, interpersonal, & conceptual

skills play a major role in effective leadership.

• Through practice & hard work, we can all become better leaders by improving our skills in each of these areas.

bhu ls 600 chapter 6

Education