por What is transformational leadership?
He transformational leadership It is a type of leadership that encourages and promotes changes in the behavior and attitude of other people, changing their vision and obtaining from them the necessary commitment to achieve the objectives of the organization.
Transformational leaders care about their followers and appeal to moral ideals. It implies different values such as honesty, responsibility or altruism. In this way, he urges them to look after the interest of the organization and overcome individual selfishness.
YoIt involves increasing the ability of members of an organization to solve problems individually or collective. It represents the culture of change.
Transformational leadership motivates people to do more than is expected, which ends up moving and changing groups, organizations, and the community. own society. To achieve this they use an inspiring vision, which promotes personal commitment to achieve common goals.
Characteristics of transformational leaders
– Transformational leaders transform their followers and the organizations in which they are found. What’s more, the most prominent ones even transform the history and lives of people.
– It is a leadership style that motivates people and changes them, because it is related to human needs, to self-realization, self-esteem and personal growth.
– Transformational leaders exert influence on group members, produce vision changes that drive people to put aside the personal interests to seek the collective good.
– They will even seek the collective interest, even if their most basic needs such as security, health or love were not met.
– They are leaders with charisma, who influence through their character and their example. Transformational leaders end up becoming a role model for their followers.
– The transformational leader pays attention to his followers, in a way that promotes their development and growth. It also stimulates them intellectually, in this way the people around them initiate actions, try to do new things or think in new ways to solve problems. issues.
– The followers end up forming a strong emotional bond with the transformational leader, thus forming a shared vision.
– They are leaders who adapt very well to the demands of the organization. This means that they promote cooperation within the organization, that all members understand each other and that the expectations of both the organization itself and the group.
– They invite followers to contribute new ideas, encourage creativity so that they are independent. To do this, they invite them to creatively discover the best way to solve problems and execute tasks.
Advantages of transformational leadership
It has an impact on self-esteem and well-being
Given the characteristics of transformational leaders, followers end up feeling self-confident, with greater self-esteem and a feeling of being part of the group. cluster.
Increases worker performance
Followers try their best to achieve the efforts of the organization and thus higher performance and value are achieved. performance by workers.
Different investigations have shown that transformational leadership has a positive impact on the psychological and emotional reactions of followers, so their performance at work is also higher.
They can respond to organizational complexity
Another advantage of transformational leaders is that they are able to adapt to what the organization asks of them, increasing its efficiency and effectiveness.
These types of leaders promote cooperation and responsibility, and are capable of responding effectively to the complexity of organizations.
Disadvantages of transformational leadership
On some occasions, transformational leadership may not be the most beneficial style for the organization.
For example, when we move in a dynamic stable environment, with few changes, where followers have experience and enjoy their work, the transactional style may be more appropriate.
When followers have a status, they belong to an equitable organization that promotes self-control in its members, the transactional style. it may also be the most beneficial style that balance is maintained.
It is not a style for all followers
The transformational style is not the most optimal for all followers. Employees who are more dependent, unable to do what the leader expects or teaches, and unable to develop their skills will feel more uncomfortable.
Little orientation to detail
Although transformational leaders are known for their ability to motivate, they are sometimes poorly detail oriented. Experts say that these types of leaders would need the support of more organized and detail-oriented people.
Need for realistic support
Because transformational leaders rely heavily on passion and vision, they sometimes need a partner to give them a realistic picture of the organization’s situation and set goals.
Examples of transformational leaders in history
–Steve Jobs of Apple.
– Elon Musk, of Tesla and SpaceX.
– Nelson Mandela, former President of South Africa.
–Reed Hastings from Netflix.
–Jeff Bezos of Amazon
References
Is transformational leadership determinant in the intrinsic motivation of followers? Journal of Word and Organizational Psychology.
Moreira, CM (2010). Transformational leadership and gender in military organizations. Doctoral Thesis of the Complutense University of Madrid.