Introduction
Organizations are faced with multiple challenges in their quest to pursue their objectives and hence they rely on their leaders to steer them on a path of growth. For the leader to develop the necessary set of skills to lead an organization, it is critical to evaluate their leadership ability (Northouse, 2015). The objective of this paper is to provide an evaluation of my leadership style based on one of the leadership approaches outlined in literature. The paper will also include a leadership plan that details the areas I need to improve to become an effective leader.
Leadership Approach: Strengths and Weaknesses
The leadership approach that I will use to assess my leadership is the skills approach, whose focus is on the skills and abilities that are possessed by an organizational leader. The skills approach model indicates that an effective leader should have three main sets of skills including technical, human and conceptual skills to ensure that they can manage the affairs of an organization and steer it towards the identified path of growth (Northouse, 2015). The technical skills embody the ability of a leader to possess specific knowledge and proficiency that is related to their work. The human skills ensure that the leader can work effectively with the human resources within the organization and communicate the goals and objective clearly to their teams (Froehlich, Segers, & Van den Bossche, 2014). The conceptual skills ensure that a leader can understand and make decisions as well as take the necessary measures that are relevant to their field of work.
Based on the skills approach, I am convinced that I have both the technical and conceptual skills, which constitute my strengths as a leader. The completion of different reports during my field practicum enabled me to realize that I have the relevant knowledge related to the field of healthcare. As a leader, I was also able to make decisions on the different organizational issues that required specific knowledge. For example, when working in the health center, I could make various decisions on allocation of resources for the different operations. As a healthcare leader, I am also able to use the different technical tools that are available to facilitate the implementation of leadership strategies in an organization such as the tools for data analysis.
Despite having these strengths, my area of weakness is related to the inability to effectively work with the human capital within the organization. I am unable to communicate effectively the specific actions that my team should take to ensure the realization of the organizational goals. For example, I found it difficult to communicate the steps that the staff were required to take when preparing a health education plan for patients who visited the facility.
Leadership Plan
For me to improve my human skills, it will be necessary for me to take various steps. The first step will be to participate in more team activities and ensure that I contribute to the various discussions taking place (Froehlich et al., 2014). The increased participation will enable me to improve my communication skills. Another step that I will take will include finding a mentor who is an experienced people manager. The mentor will help me to identify various ways through which I should deal with the human resource issues that occur in an organization. Through the mentorship plan, the mentor will provide me with feedback to ensure that I continue to improve my skills (Northouse, 2015).
Summary
The leaders in an organization play a fundamental role in steering it towards the desired path of growth and hence they should be able to develop the required set of skills to drive its growth. An evaluation of my leadership based on the skills approach revealed that I need to increase my human skill. Therefore, to improve my human skill I will seek more opportunities to work in a team set up and work with a mentor who is experienced in people management.
References
Froehlich, D., Segers, M., & Van den Bossche, P. (2014). Informal workplace learning in Austrian banks: The influence of learning approach, leadership style, and organizational learning culture on managers’ learning outcomes. Human Resource Development Quarterly, 25(1), 29-57. Web.
Northouse, P. (2015). Leadership: Theory and Practice (7th ed.). Los Angeles, NV: Sage.