We have described power as the capacity to cause change and influence as the degree of actual change in a target’s behaviors. Ho Ching’s power as a leader has been recognized by many, but would you describe Ho Ching as an influential leader? Why?
Personally, I believe that Ho Ching can be called an influential leader for many reasons. Influential leaders are usually those people who are able to both develop an appropriate long-term strategy and use their persuasive capabilities and different sources of power in order to encourage all members of the company to follow the chosen strategy. Furthermore, influential leaders are usually affiliated with some of the wealthiest companies in the world. Temasek Holding, the company in which Ho Ching has been working for fifteen years, belongs to the largest number of shareholders in Asia, which is why Ho’s position is very important. Furthermore, a leader’s ability to influence others can be assessed effectively by considering his or her contributions toward implementing measures that improve the company’s performance.
As for Ho, she is believed to make a contribution to her company that cannot be overestimated. With the help of the firm attitudes that she sought to maintain, the company managed to break new ground. To be more precise, Temasek Holding has become large enough to stop focusing only on doing business in Singapore. Indeed, the company is now believed to be one of the most influential ones in all of Asia. Since she joined the company, Ho has managed to help the company grow more quickly and establish new partner relationships, two major contributions that explain why she can be considered an influential leader. In the end, she is an example of an influential leader because she successfully applies the right tactics and helps attract attention to important current issues.
Based on the excerpt from Ho Ching’s speech, what type of tactics does she use to influence the behavior of others?
Different researchers in the field point to various types of tactics that can be used by leaders in order to influence their followers or partners. As made clear from an excerpt of Ho’s speech, she uses both rational persuasion and inspirational appeals when she has to explain urgent issues that have to be solved as soon as possible. Indeed, her rational persuasion strategy is based upon extensive use of factual information concerning other countries’ performance levels and business opportunities. At the same time, this information helps her appeal to business partners; by giving these facts and highlighting the numerous links between them, she manages to compel these partners to start developing decisions that will help contribute to Asian growth in the global market. Overall, the tactics successfully used by Ho can be considered one of the most important factors that make her an influential leader.
Ho Ching has been named one of the most powerful leaders in Asia. What are her major sources of power?
When discussing the role and the performance of Ho Ching, it is necessary to distinguish her major sources of power. To begin with, she seems to possess expert power that helps her influence her followers and persuade them to implement the proposed decisions. The most important factors connected to expert power in a leader are knowledge and experience. As for Ho, she has held several senior positions in other companies, which is why she is seen as a skilled professional. In addition to her past experiences, she has legitimate power in Temasek Holding that allows her to influence her followers with the help of company rules. Furthermore, chief executive officers possess coercive power, which involves making important decisions aimed at redressing situations in their companies. Coercive power is usually applied when there is a need to improve the performance or participation of the followers by means of imposing negative sanctions and restrictions.