Introduction
Leadership is the process of putting up a practice for people to throw in their efforts to make something happen (Burns 1978, p. 6). In a nutshell, leadership is perceived to mean the capacity to put in order a group of people to accomplish a common objective. The kind of a leader that an organization has will determine the direction that the organization will take in terms of development.
Visionary and exemplary leaders will steer an organization to prosperity and success, while inefficient leaders will drive the organization to disarray and disorder (Burns 1978, p. 6). The people under a leader will often derive their modes of behavior from their leader. They always look upon the leader to give them directions and instructions that are aimed at steering the organization forward (Chen, & Silverthorne, 2005, P. 289).
The overall definition of leadership is not easy to find. However, most definitions of leadership include elements found in the standard definition proposed by Stogdill (1974, p. 5). Stogdill defined leadership as a process of influencing the actions/operations of a structured group of people to establish or achieve a specific goal.
Leadership as a process entail three fundamental aspects: First, influencing people to act in a given manner; second, working with individuals as a group; and last but not least, influencing the group towards goal setting or goal attainment (Stogdill, 1974, p. 5; Sosik & Godshalk, 2000, p. 366).
The most recent debates on leadership concepts tend to stress on the leader as manager. Nonetheless, both new and old concepts of leadership view leadership as a process where leaders recognize what is considerable for the organization (Gitsham & Wackrill, 2012, p. 2; O’Connor, 2005, p. 268).
This study will explore the leadership process in different contexts and will mainly focus on the hospitality industry. The essay will also examine specific leadership requirements in the industry using specific companies as examples.
Styles of Leadership
Over the last century numerous studies have been conducted on leadership. Among them are studies related to different styles of leadership (Sosik & Godshalk, 366). According to Northouse (2004, p. 7), leadership style is the prototype behavior of leaders and how they related to their juniors.
Woods and King (2012, p. 4) defines leadership style as a pattern of relations between the management and junior staffs, which includes organizing, directing, method and mode used by the management to inspire the junior employees. The styles of leadership are influenced by a number of factors and these include: organizational environment, leadership traits and characteristics of the junior staff (Al-Ababneh, 2013, p. 94).
As a result, leadership styles can be identified in accordance with the influence and behavior of the leaders. Some of the most common styles of leadership include autocratic leadership, egalitarian and laissez-faire (Al-Ababneh, 2013, p. 94).
Chen and Silverthorne (2005, p. 283) emphasize that different styles of leadership may be embraced due to the leader’s discernment of their juniors’ preferred approach. Therefore, leadership style preference could be altered in accordance with the authority exercised by a leader over the subordinates. For this reason, power is very important in achieving organizational goals.
In the hospitality industry, leadership is described as a “hands-on” style, which offers stress intercession, management of operations and relations between employees at all levels (Bolden et al., 2003, p. 5). In addition, Woods and King (2002, p. 55) confirmed that “hands on” management style is common to the hospitality industry.
He adds that “hands on” style is the most effective style in realizing the work satisfactorily, since most managers work closely with the junior staff and therefore are always more concerned about their welfare. Nonetheless, there is no single ideal style of leadership in the hospitality sector (Bolden et al., 2003, p. 6).
On the contrary, experts argue it is never easy to embrace the laissez-faire style of leadership in the hospitality industry. This does not imply that dictatorial style is favored, but it is desirable in the hospitality sector. While Woods and King (2002, p. 65) point out that the most preferred style of leadership in the hospitality industry is dictatorial leadership.
Quite the opposite, Al-Ababneh (2012, p. 98) established that the most prevalent style of leadership among managers in the hotel industry was based on power sharing. In other words, the most preferred style was democratic style.
Al-Ababneh (2013, 95) emphasizes that the hospitality industry is characterized by a strong culture and tradition. However, things have changed over the last few decades. Most of the current managers base their leadership on classical management style which focuses planning, managing, and assessing.
The outcome of this style of management is absolute adherence to laws and regulations with modest room for personal liberty, inventiveness and novelty. He recommends transformational leadership which makes efficient use of human resources. As a transformational leader, managers in the hospitality industry will be able to develop a strong vision which will assist in clarifying and communicating organizational goals.
In addition, transformational leadership will create an environment that cultivates enthusiasm, loyalty and steady improvement (Al-Ababneh, 2013, p. 96). Nonetheless, besides Al-Ababneh no other hospitality literature reveals any aspect of transformational leadership. Most of them emphasizes on strong leadership that entails transformational aspects.
Leadership and Hospitality Industry
According to Mullins (1998, p. 10), many studies have been carried out on leadership but very few are related to the hospitality industry. Raelin (2003, p. 20) argues that the most successful companies in the hospitality industry are those whose leaders have embraced the democratic style of leadership.
This means that all the employees take part in the decision making process and operate as a team. However, the greatest challenge in the industry is the steady delivery of high quality services, workers motivation and satisfaction through high quality performance (Tien & Tsai, 2008, p. 56).
Cutler (2010, p. 15) identified a number of features and challenges facing the hospitality industry and these include: first, the industry is constantly changing and faces consolidation and internal rivalry. In addition, the industry is expanding with labor mobility across the borders becoming a custom. As a result, the industry has been experiencing leadership challenge due to a diverse workforce.
Second, the industry has the highest employee turnover rate due to high competition for quality staff. For that reason, most companies have resorted to expatriates and older workers who require a different style of management.
Third, the industry has been experiencing a high level of competition among the players and low level of customer loyalty. Fourth, nearly half of the employees within the industry have not received adequate formal education and training (Cutler, 2010, p. 16).
Given the above challenges, Cutler (2010, p. 23) came with distinct characteristics of excellent leader in the hospitality industry. First, an exceptional leader must be able to turn difficult situations into opportunities. Second, excellent leader must be able to create a culture that promotes personal growth and respect for individual contribution.
Third, an exceptional leader must be able to encourage employees to take individual responsibility and work as a team. Last but not least, a good leader must build a close relationship within and without the organization (Raelin, 2003, p. 12; Cutler, 2010, p. 24).
Leadership, Gender and Culture
According to Ayman and Korabik (2010, p. 160), male and females will always achieve different results even when working under the same conditions. This attributed to the fact that men enjoy high privilege and respect in society compared to women. On the contrary, women enjoy low status and less privilege. Competency model used in the field of psychology show that leadership ability varies between men and women.
The difference is attributed to leadership traits and skills. These traits and skills are presumed to be the same regardless of gender and culture. However, the difference is attributed to external interference. Therefore, since these features have an effect on the way gender is perceived they considerably have an impact on access to leadership positions (Ayman and Korabik, 2010, p. 165).
In a study conducted by Al-Ababneh on Middle East five-star hotels (2013, p. 95), very few women held top management positions. In addition, most of the female employees were foreigners. Therefore, gender and culture still have a considerable impact on leadership even in the current era.
Conclusion
Leadership has evolved continuously throughout the years, passing through various stages. The evolution of leadership can be traced from the pre-industrialization period to the current digital era. Leadership is simply a process of influencing a certain group to achieve a specific goal.
There are different styles of leadership which are influenced by both internal and external factors. Some of the most common styles of leadership include autocratic leadership, egalitarian and laissez-faire. There is no single ideal style of leadership in the hospitality sector. However, experts attribute the success of most companies within the industry to a democratic style of leadership.
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