How do I lead correctly? Many people ask themselves this question. But it is much more important to ask: Is my leadership style authentic? Because authenticity is the key to a competent appearance and the successful leadership of employees.
In the context of the further training to the care service line (PDL) the author Nadine long argued intensively with this topic. In her book, she shows which leadership styles exist and how they should be applied. In addition, she explains which resources and instruments are available to achieve set goals. The focus is on one's own personality, because it must fit the chosen leadership style. Frustration on both sides is thus a thing of the past.
Contents
Introduction: Why I chose this topic
Main part
1 Leadership behavior
1.1 Definition of leadership
1.2 Understanding leadership behavior: History and present
1.3 Theses after Max Weber and Kurt Lewin
1.4 Situational leadership: Conducting, training, seconding, delegating
1.5 Analysis: Strengths and weaknesses/ possible consequences (from a critical point of view)
2. Personality management
2.1 Reflection of one's own personality
2.2 Development into a leader
2.3 General expectations of the nurse manager
2.4 Use of resources and management tools to increase the leadership competence
3. Achieve authenticity as a nurse manager
3.1 Networking one's own personality structure with the appropriate leadership behavior
3.2 Achieving leadership success through authenticity
Conclusion
Bibliography and sources
Introduction: Why I chose this topic
As part of my specialist work, I ask myself the question, what skills does a nursing manager have to have in order to be able to lead well?
Which leadership styles are there and which ones can I use and when? Does it make more sense to lead in an authoritarian, cooperative, laissez-faire or situational way? Are there ways to lead a team in which several elements of leadership styles are applied, but which are consistent leadership behavior as a whole? What management tools are available to me? I would like to get to the "bottom" of these questions.
Out of my own interest, even before this training, I interviewed superiors on this topic in my personal environment and always received different, but not satisfactory answers. In summary, each respondent had his or her own personal style, which he could not put into words.
Which leadership behavior is the "right thing to do"? I will deal with this question in my specialist work.
At the same time, I would like to deal with my own leadership behavior in order to be able to lead competently and authentically in my future desired leadership position as nurse manager.
At the beginning, I would like to point out what in general the word leadership stands for in today's sense, so that they can see right from the exclusion of how the interpretation of leadership has shaped itself in history, how it was until the beginning of the 20th century and what change it has undergone to this day.
For the sake of readability, I deliberately refrain from the female or even the male salutation.
Main part
1 Leadership behavior
1.1 Definition of leadership
Leading people means leading employees in a company or an organization means moving the leaders under specific conditions, letting the employees take over and carry out tasks.
Leadership behavior is understood to mean the "how", i.e. in which way the above-mentioned is implemented.
In order to name the direction of leadership, different management instruments are required that result in leadership behavior.
1.2 Understanding leadership behavior: History and present
In the following, it is shown what leadership behavior was understood to mean until the beginning of the 20th century. This illustrates the process of change from leadership to the present day.
History
With the onset of industrialization until the 1940s, it was believed that people had to be led because they were "seeking protection", and thus "helpless" and therefore needed a "strong hand". From today's point of view, then was patriarchal but also charismatic. Until the 20th century, the opinion was held that people can work tirelessly and subordinate themselves. It was believed that the right person to be the leader could assert himself on his own without possessing any real leadership qualities. The human being was measured purely objectively by his productivity in the company, his personality was not relevant. With statements such as: "Because of their fundamental aversion to work, most people need to be controlled so that they work hard enough." (Johannes Sattler, Lars Förster, Thomas Saller, Thomas Studer, 2010, Führen Die erfolgreichsten Instrumente und Techniken, Haufe, page 12, 13) this leadership attitude was underlined. In the 1920s to 1930s, the first rethinking of the leader took place. One came away from the patriarchal one, therefore from the sole leader, who represented a paternal figure. However, the employees were still not integrated, the sole "say" still had the manager. The attitude that people must be led by a "strong hand" remained. Having "disoriented employees" (Johannes Sattler, Lars Förster, Thomas Saller, Thomas Studer, 2010, Führen Die erfolgreichsten Instrumente und Techniken, Haufe, page 12, 13) in the company was the fear at the time. Instead of one person, elitist circles formed, which took over the leadership of employees. The employees of companies should submit to the management team.
At that time, people believed in charismatic personalities who had the best conditions as leaders. Since the attitude was represented that the "right" person would prevail among the employees and leadership is an inexplicable phenomenon that is best implemented by the "talent" of charismatic personalities.
It was not until the mid-1950s that it was understood that for a good leadership of employees, not only the personality, or the talent of a certain personality, is responsible, but concepts for the leadership and professional competencies of the manager must play a decisive role in order to be able to lead a company successfully.
There was a growing realization that leadership is not the goal of interests through power, but rather the ability to motivate people.
Leadership today
Leadership behavior has undergone a major process of change to this day. It is no longer aimed at rigid, one-sided and dictatorial superiors, but rather as a partnership in today's companies. (cf. Thomas Daigeler, Führungstechniken, 2006, Haufe, page 8) In economic and social enterprises such as in homes, outpatient services, residential groups, as well as in hospitals, goals are only achieved with the help of employees. In this respect, leadership is not only oriented towards the tasks, but also towards the needs and requirements of the employees. (cf. Thomas Daigeler, Führungstechniken, 2006, Haufe, page 8). Today, managers are increasingly involving their employees in decisions that used to be made only by them alone. As a result of this behavior, good results are no longer attributed solely to their success, but the attention is also paid to the employees. This development is based on the knowledge that organizations can no longer be managed by an individual alone after a certain level of complexity. (cf. Thomas Daigeler, Führungstechniken, 2006, Haufe, page 8)
Examples of this can be found in practice. More and more often, working groups are formed for certain projects, e.g. standard groups, which also implement the implementation in a team, and other areas of responsibility that can no longer be carried out by the manager alone. Although the nursing service management continues to have overall responsibility as the management, competences and partial responsibilities, trained specialists, are delegated. The employee should see himself as part of a whole, be aware of his importance as a person and the importance of his professional competence. As an indispensable member of the team, he feels accepted and taken seriously. Motivation and work performance thus increase, which has a positive effect on the management and the company.
But what leadership styles were and still are there?
If one looks again at the emergence or naming of leadership behavior, the story shows two essential representatives namely Max Weber and Kurt Lewin. Because some of their leadership styles continue to be found in the present, I would like to introduce them to them in the next chapter. Because if they are still to be found today, could they then suit me as a NURSE MANAGER in leadership behavior in order to be able to lead authentically?
1.3 Theses after Max Weber and Kurt Lewin
The main representatives of leadership styles were Max Weber and Kurt Lewin.
Max Weber (1864 – 1920, economist and sociologist) took the view that leadership should be understood as domination and investigated the question of why people allow themselves to be controlled. According to him, there are three reasons for this. People allow themselves to be dominated by representatives of traditional, charismatic and bureaucratic (belief in law and legitimacy) rule. (cf. Weber, Max: Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft, Kapitel III, Die Typen der Herrschaft, 1922)
Naming of leadership styles according to Max Weber:
- Autocratic leadership style/ patriarchal leadership style
- Charismatic leadership style
- Bureaucratic leadership style
Since I consider Max Weber's theses for leadership behavior in the position of outdated, I would first like to concentrate and analyze the authoritarian, cooperative or democratic and the laissez-faire leadership style, because these are mainly found in the nurse manager functions today.
Kurt Lewin (1890 – 1947, psychologist) studied leadership styles in terms of their influence on productivity and efficiency. Thus, he divided them into three groups and called them classical leadership styles. (cf. http://www.berufsstrategie.de/bewerbung-karriere-soft-skills/fuehrungsstile.php, 28.08.2012)
- Authoritarian leadership style
- Cooperative or democratic leadership style
- Laissez-faire leadership style
Since I have mostly experienced authoritarian leaders in my professional career, I would like to explain this leadership style to them first.
Authoritarian leadership style authoritarian= imperious, unrestricted, absolute, determining
The authoritarian leadership style gives the leader unlimited power and obliges the employees to obey. The leader is authoritarian and largely in control. (cf. http://www.berufsstrategie.de/bewerbung-karriere-soft-skills/fuehrungsstile.php, 28.08.2012)
In practice, this means that employees receive clear instructions from the nurse manager and carry them out, without any say, without leeway or decision-making authority. It allows for few discussions. They do not have the overall understanding of the tasks that the employees perform. examples The responsible nurse (nurse manager) carries out the doctor's visit alone and then works it out without involving the resident's supervising nurse.
The next leadership style is the cooperative or democratic leadership style. It is just as often represented in practice as the authoritarian style of leadership.
Cooperative or democratic leadership style:
cooperative/ democratic= common, closed, with each other
In this management style, the supervisor involves his employees in the operational process. It allows for discussion and expects objective support. As a rule, mistakes are not punished, but the employee is provided with assistance. For the manager, a cooperative interaction with each other is important. The cooperative management style leads to a high motivation of the employees through the development of creativity, promotion of performance and higher independence. This results in a relief of the supervisor and also a reduction in the risk of a wrong decision in the company. Likewise, a higher identification with the operation can take place. Open communication structures lead to a pleasant working atmosphere. (see http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Führungssstil, 04.10.12)
In practice, the nurse manager does not make decisions alone, but involves its employees. examples In team meetings, the employees are asked for their personal opinion and their suggestions are sought, for example, to make the daily routine of the residents more effective.
Less represented, but still present, is the laissez-faire leadership style.
Laissez-faire leadership style
The laissez-faire leadership style is often confused by nurses, superiors, but also by specialist books for leadership behavior with, no leadership at all. Literally translated, laissez-faire means: "let it be done". This "let it be done" is the translation of the word laissez-faire, but it does not describe the correct way of leadership. Leaders need to be very competent in their leadership behavior in order to properly apply this leadership style. One of the main tasks of the manager in this style is the delegation of tasks and responsibilities of the employees. The prerequisite for this is that the employees who are delegated have achieved the highest level of professional competence and that the manager has great confidence in them. Predominantly, the laissez-faire leadership style is found in the high leadership management (example: board to the managing director). The manager agrees on overall goals with the employees and relies on them to take the necessary initiative in the event of problems and to act independently (without involving the manager). It trusts that the employees will achieve the agreed goals by including resources. The manager takes care exclusively of strategic tasks in the company. She leaves the operative "business" to her employees, because they are able and motivated to work independently. (cf. Führungsstile gezielt einsetzten, Mitarbeiterorientiert, situativ und authentisch führen, Regina Mahlmann. Beltz Verlag, 2011)
Eexample: The nurse manager does not check the care plans and working methods of the employees, because it can rely on their competencies in such a way that a control is no longer necessary.
A modern form of leadership is offered by the next and last leadership style, which I would like to present to you in my specialist work. It is the situational leadership style, has its beginning in the mid-70s and is the most modern compared to the authoritarian, cooperative and laissez- faire leadership style and is finding more and more popularity in companies in the care industry. This management style depends on the competencies of the employees. Here, the employees are the most important among the management styles I have listed. When I was still working at the University Hospital ulm, I had a ward management, which led employees to some extent situationally, without being able to name this leadership behavior.
1.4 Situational leadership: Conducting, training, seconding, delegating
From the realization that employees and their personalities are very different, the search for the "one, optimal" management style was rather de moved away. Rather, it was decided to adapt leadership methods to the respective situation. Situational leadership behavior developed. This management model is based on two dimensions of leadership, namely employee and task orientation and the dimension of the situation. Here one assumes the respective degree of maturity of the employee in order to then apply certain management styles according to the situation.
The "Situational Maturity Theory" and the "Leadership Quadrant Model" were developed in the seventies to eighties by Paul Hersey1 and Kenneth (Ken) H. Blanchard2.
First, two situational features are analyzed, namely the professional competence and the commitment of the employee. It is from these two characteristics that his qualification is formed. The professional competence represents the knowledge, the professional experience and skills with a given task. The will to perform and the self-confidence to master the task, on the other hand, present his commitment. His qualification for a task is calculated from the two situational characteristics.
In the following graph, you can see the relationship between qualifications (=Q) and professional competence and commitment (motivation). On the basis of the following text, I would like to explain to you how the degrees of maturity of the employees are measured and what they look like in practice on the basis of examples.
Graph of qualification education
Abbildung in dieser Leseprobe nicht enthalten
(http://blog.resource-people.de/2008/fuehrungsverhalten.php, 28.08.2012)
Q1= low competence and low commitment
In maturity level one (= Q one), the professional competence of the employee is low, his motivation is just as low.
Example: A new employee is hired, his initial motivation was great, he felt increasingly overwhelmed in the new field of work by a lack of training, which reduced his motivation. Or a nursing assistant who shows little motivation. This employee needs clear structures that are binding on him, with little freedom of choice and control, which corresponds to the authoritarian management style. However, if the employee does not show any motivation and it does not grow, he should be asked whether he is in the right position and consequences are drawn accordingly.
Q2= low competence and high commitment
Q2= Maturity level two, are employees with low competence and high motivation. For example, in the shared apartment where I work, intensive care patients are cared for. Many nurses work there who are very committed to learning new things in order to develop their professional competence. However, these nurses have not attended any intensive medical training and are still inexperienced in dealing with this patient clientele. Therefore, these employees are shown clear learning objectives and pursued by the nurse manager. Instructions and tasks to increase his professional competence are made possible for him. This is clearly where authoritarian parts of the leadership come into play.
Example: A living area line is new in its management function. She has completed further training as a residential area manager and is an experienced nurse. Now she practices and trains her new work area under the guidance of the nurse manager, so that she acquires practical skills in the management function.
Q3= high competence and low commitment
Q3= Maturity level three, The employee has high professional competence, but he shows little to no motivation. He performs tasks technically correctly, but he shows no commitment, no innovation in new areas of responsibility. He does not bring his own ideas and suggestions for improving structures into the team. The employees in this degree of maturity, in my experience, quit soon (if the manager does not act in time).
Example: A nurse, for example, is characterized by years of professional experience, attends compulsory training courses, but he is not willing to further tasks or voluntary further training, because her interest in this is lacking. The manager asks the employee why his motivation decreases so much. Is he dissatisfied with operational conditions? Are there any private problems? Finding out this requires a personal conversation with him. A cooperative management style shows the best success here, arouse personal interest in the employee, by being able to decide for himself to a certain extent which further training he may attend or how his working environment can be better designed. It is important here that agreements with the employee must be adhered to by the manager, otherwise his motivation will quickly decrease again.
Q4= high competence and high commitment
Q4= Maturity level four corresponds to the highest maturity level, the employee has a high level of expertise so he has a high level of expertise and at the same time has a high level of commitment. This is the optimal degree of maturity of the employee. Since he needs less leadership in this degree of maturity, it can be delegated with regard to the professional competence of the employee.
Example: A nursing assistant has very good expertise and is highly motivated. You can rely on his good task completion. He attends training courses with great interest.
It is desirable that all employees in phase: Q four, i.e. the highest degree of maturity. Unfortunately, this does not correspond to reality, so it must be managed according to the respective degree of maturity of the employee.
Which management style is appropriate for the employee is judged by the manager (nurse manager) according to the degree of maturity of the employee. It is classified in terms of the psychological degree of maturity and the work content or degree of maturity, i.e. the professional competence. While the focus of the psychological maturity level is preferably on readiness and potential, the degree of work or task maturity addresses the professional and factual abilities and skills of the employee. Certain features are characteristic of both:
The psychological aspect refers to the characteristics such as commitment, the assumption of responsibility, the reliability and commitment, the willingness to cooperate, the team orientation and the will to make decisions of the employee. It also assesses the ability to exert stress in stressful situations, the will, the willingness to learn (to learn new things) and the self-reflection, his assertiveness and the handling of conflicts.
In the technical aspect, the focus is on the training of the employee, as well as on the professional competence, professional experience, independent work, the application of methods in various tasks, the control of processes, self-organization, thinking and acting in changed, new company structures. (cf. Führungsstile gezielt einsetzten, Mitarbeiterorientiert, situativ und authentisch führen, Regina Mahlmann. Beltz Verlag, 2011)
Of course, not every employee can be generally divided into a category. For example, in his expertise in dealing with trainees, he can be in maturity level three, and still be professionally in maturity level four with regard to the care of the residents. The aim is to increase the competence of this employee with regard to the student instructions to maturity level four.
Another example of the different degrees of maturity shows that a new employee, who was actually maturity level four so far, is only maturity level two in the new company. He must be given the opportunity and the time to induction, supporting this he receives a good induction concept. He is then judged according to his degree of maturity.
Likewise, an employee who was maturity level four can currently fall back to maturity level three, since he can no longer identify with newly introduced structures in the company, for example.
Or a new employee who was maturity level one at the previous company can suddenly be maturity level two or four, as he can develop with the new carrier and feels comfortable in his working environment. Were his competences not recognized in the old company? Or did other factors play a role in the old company that were previously unknown. Then it is important to talk about it through open communication with him, to act in any case, so that in the new operation the cycle does not start all over again.
Now, however, the question arises as to how leadership behavior for me as a nurse manager is shaped with the situational leadership style. After analyzing my employees and divided them into certain degrees of maturity, I think about which management style suits the respective employee in order to promote him.
The qualification determines the leadership behavior
Employees and their qualifications can be found in different maturity quadrants (see graph on page 8). Therefore, it makes sense to act in the respective degree of maturity of the employee or to intervene as a nurse manager. Depending on the qualification of the employee, a management behavior appropriate in the situation is chosen.
Starting from the two dimensions of leadership, Hersey and Blanchard essentially distinguish four forms of leadership: Conducting – Training – Seconding – Delegating.
According to Hersey and Blanchard, the executive should have a "four-key keyboard" and be able to play on it depending on the situation. In order to possess these skills, she must know the characteristics of the respective degrees of maturity and diagnose them with employees. (cf. leadership styles, employee-oriented, situational and authentic leadership, Regina Mahlmann. Beltz Verlag, 2011)
To illustrate the management behavior in the respective degree of maturity of the employee, I have first inserted a graphic representation below, so that this management model is even more transparent. Following the graph, I will go into more detail about the leadership behavior in the respective degree of maturity, I would like to underline this with practical examples.
Anand des Leadership – Quadrant – Model zu German: four quadrants – Model of leadership, the four basic types of leadership can be represented in a very simple form, with regard to the two dimensions of competence (professional and psychological) of the employee.
The quadrants in the following graph represent the degrees of maturity of the employees. Depending on the degree of maturity of the employee, the management form of the nurse manager is directly related. For example, in quadrant Q one, the task of the manager is direct leadership, i.e. conducting. The two scales, which represent competence and commitment, illustrate the maturation process of the employee. For example, I assess a certain employee and assess him with low commitment but high professional competence, so I can recognize on the basis of the leadership quadrant model that he is in Q three (= qualification, maturity level) and lead him by seconding him, i.e. involving him, having him participate in decision-making in order to regain his motivation.
Graphical representation of leadership – quadrant – model
Abbildung in dieser Leseprobe nicht enthalten
(http://blog.resource-people.de/2008/fuehrungsverhalten.php, 28.08.2012)
[...]
1 Paul Hersey ( *1930) is a American Behavioral scientists and entrepreneurs. He is mainly for the conception Situational Leadership known. Hersey and Ken Blanchard Published Management of Organization Behavior. (cf. www.http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Führungsstil, 04.10.2012)
2 Kenneth (Ken) H. Blanchard *May 6 1939 in New Jersey) is an American entrepreneur and author of management books. (cf. www.http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Führungsstil, 04.10.2012)
- Citar trabajo
- Nadine Lange (Autor), 2012, The nurse manager as a leader. How can I lead authentically?, Múnich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/1185104
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