LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT PLAN

NAME-S.W.DINAPALA LECTURER-MRS KALA Pieris Class-Friday-6:00-10:00

Contents
1.0 INTRODUCTION ...........................................................3 1.1 Leadership in the modern world ..............................4 2.0 Aspired Leadership style .............................................4 3.0 Analysis of strengths and weaknesses ........................6 4.0 Self Analysis ..............................................................7 4.1 current attributes .....................................................7 4.2 Future attributes .......................................................9 5.0 strategies to develop into a Leader ..........................10 6.0 References ...............................................................11 7.0 appendix ...................................................................12 Appendix 1 ....................................................................12 Appendix 2 ....................................................................13 Appendix 3 ....................................................................15 Appendix 4 ....................................................................18 Appendix 5 ....................................................................19

1.0 INTRODUCTION Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality Warren Bennis In life we all have a vision,a dream, a fantasy but few of us have what it takes to make it a reality ,most of us would think back and say Oh that was just a random wild though that I had when I was young but the hard fact is that anything is possible with the right balance of application and effort which is where leadership plays a key role ,in many of our lives our dreams and visions are often complicated to the point that they cannot be achieved in isolation ,many of us whose dreams lie in the cooperate world should be aware of the fact that at some point one would have to assume the role of a leader which brings us to the main question who is a leader and what is the meaning of leadership. Well according to Bill Gates a leader is a person who empowers others, a person who has the courage to take tough decisions and stand by them, but more importantly a leader is someone who has the compassion to listen to the needs of his/her followers. However the most important quality a leader should possess is motivation a leader should be able to transfer his positive energy to his followers in order to build team spirit and desire to succeed collectively in terms of goal achievement people come from different cultures and different parts of the world but a leader should try to understand or empathize with his/her followers and act accordingly ,for example some employees may work better when you put an arm around their shoulder and tell them that they are important and valued while others may work better when you push them offer them challenges ,Maslows Hierarchy of needs theory can give an insight as to how a leader should cater to the needs of his/her followers, similarly a leader should also be able to conduct himself in a manner that sets an example to his/her followers especially in times of adversity a leader should focus on emotional intelligence and always try to think and act positively ,if a leader gives up or sulks then it is likely that such negative emotions will also be transferred to his/her followers.

1.1 Leadership in the modern world

Globalization has put forward new challenges to leaders, In todays day and age people often look for charisma in a leader, however unlike in the past people are more willing to accept someone who is a work in progress in other words people are more willing to accept someone who may not have made an initial impression of becoming a leader as they do not expect to blindly follow a leader in any given situation .however it is a known fact that 90% of todays cooperate leaders have charisma to add to other key qualities such as selfconfidence,creativity,the ability to see a vision and being able to communicate and care for people. As a result of globalization leaders are required to face new challenges such as managing cross cultural issues and managing such differences, as a result of the information technology revolution leaders are required to keep up to date with the developments in the field so as to adopt a suitable and modernized way of achieving a vision in other words most people in the modern cooperate world look up to leaders as innovators. 2.0 Aspired Leadership style As I had stated above in the modern world charisma is something that should be inherent in a leader in the modern world, therefore I can safely say that my aspired leadership style is to become a charismatic and transformational leader Charisma in a leader is something that has to come naturally it is not something you can fake or imitate, charisma can make a leader an instant hero or mentor in a followers mind ,that emotional connection goes a long way in achieving goals both on a personal level and also on an organizational level ,a charismatic leader will always pay personal attention to his/her followers making them feel important but more importanly making them feel wanted or needed which is what most humans want regardless of the varied goals we have in life. A charismatic leader will always be vocal ,a born motivator who can chose the right words to say at any given moment but the standout feature of a charismatic leader is not that he/she is trustworthy, honest and innovative ,granted all such features are important but a charismatic leader defines himself/herself by always

having the back of their followers meaning that whatever happens a charismatic leader will always stand by his/her followers ,when followers make silly mistakes and errors related to poor judgment a charismatic leader will regardless stand by such followers and assume full responsibility and bear the brunt of the negative consequences. Transformational leaders on the other hand mainly try to create a positive change both on a personal level and on an organizational level, they are very much selfmotivated and transfer their energy and desire to followers who are generally made to feel important and inspired ,A transformational leader will often operate with an end state in mind ,they have a vision and have the mental capacity to visualize their end state hence making him/her unique but more importantly effective in what he does, A transformational leader never shys away from tough decisions in fact he/she embraces the pressure of making a tough call and will often go by gut feeling after analyzing the necessary information ,hesitation in anonymous in transformational leaders who very well know beforehand that in order to achieve a vision ,a goal or an objective tough decisions will have to be made and in some instances drastic actions such as letting a member go may be the best possible solution in certain crisis situations. Transformational leaders are also very mindful they know how to handle egos of certain employees which can be a fine line as sometime he/she may have to stoke a person ego to get the best out of him/her however if an employees ego goes out of control it is likely to cause a disruptive influence such is the fine lines governing the success of a leader, however transformational leaders are very adopt at maintaining a balance in such fine lines. The main difference I see between a transformational leader and a charismatic leader is the fact that a transformational leader measures success based on collective achievement something that a charismatic leader may be oblivious to, for example a transformational leader may motivate employees by making them feel part of change or transformation whereas a charismatic leader will more often than not motivate employees through monetary gain or the gain of a certain status that can define oneself. therefore I believe it is important to have a mixture of characteristics from both leadership styles that way I can have a

positive impact on not only my life ,but on other peoples lives as well ,while also contributing to the wellbeing of the society and the environment in which we live in.

3.0 Analysis of strengths and weaknesses

Strengths Trustworthy Excels at conflict resolution Ethical Ability to work well under pressure Knows when to take a calculated risk Good negotiation skills Task oriented weaknesses Tends to be too agreeable At times dis organized and easily distracted Dislikes getting emotionally attached with people Poor time management Not a team player Dislike making quick decisions Trys to please everyone

Throughout the course of my degree Ive worked on may group projects , Ive also worked as the head of web development in Dinapala pvt a company that is owned by my grandfather .In terms of working in teams Ive always tended to be an individualist not overly socializing with others but never letting them down in any way ,this does not mean I am not a pleasant personality almost everyone Ive worked with would have a good word to say about me because I am unselfish and more than happy to cover for my teammates ,At the same time, as I had mentioned above I was made head of web development and online transactions in Dinapala pvt ,I played a major role in the launch of the website and still play a pivotal role in ensuring that all online transactions work smoothly and the customer receives their orders within the specified time. During the particular project I felt like I was put on a whole new world as it is no secret that being the head of such an important project for such a reputed company would surely beat any of the assignments I have done during the course of my degree for one thing I had to make tough calls regarding the who I wish to work with meaning I had to hurt some people for the betterment of the overall scheme, something I will never be proud of but understand that is in certain situations necessary.

4.0 Self Analysis 4.1 current attributes

Throughout the completion of various self-assessment tests I have been able to identify my leadership characteristics and where I stand in terms of becoming an effective leader. I have also been able to identify the steps that I should take to become a charismatic and transformational leader. Through the completion of the self-assessment test seen in appendix 1 I have been able to identify that I have taken part in more management related tasks than leadership oriented tasks ,as I have said above I find it difficult to encourage or in some instances motivate people however when I am given power and authority I make sure that I deliver expected results meaning that I am more comfortable managing people rather than leading them ,the fact that I have developed a budget ,produced a plan of action , supervised staff and organized an event further proves my hypothesis of being more experienced in management related tasks, however worryingly I have not encouraged participation( I prefer people to self-motivate themselves) ,have not prepared a public speech and have not really developed a transformational vision which can be seen in some ways as lacking in the leadership department. As seen in appendix 2 I have also completed the big 5 personality test , through the particular self-assessment it has become once again clear to me that I prefer to work by myself ,and prefer not to overly socialize with others , I wouldnt say that social interaction among follower is in anyway a bad thing however I am more comfortable not knowing some people outside of work as it helps keep things professional and work related this has mostly been the case in my time at acbt ,even though no one there has a bad word to say about me they often wont find enough words to describe my character , my low score on the surgency dimension is however worrying as it indicates that I am more suited to being a follower rather than a leader and for someone who aspires to be a charismatic

and transformational leader that is simply not good enough. However on a more positive not I have a very high score in the adjustment department meaning that I am very clam in stressful and pressurized situations something which is essential for a charismatic and transformational leader, it also indicates that I am not fazed by failure, criticisms and problematic characters. I think is the positive side to my personality being quiet and reserved as I am able to control my emotions, work calmly under pressure and not be prone to occasional moodiness which most expressive social characters are invariably prone to. As far as the other dimensions go it is generally neither here or there meaning that I am neither too agreeable nor unfairly disagreeable, neither disorganized nor conscientiousness and finally neither overly open to new experience nor against it. I also underwent another self-assessment to evaluate my cognitive style(appendix 3) ,when it comes to gathering information I tend to have a good balance in using both intuitive and sensing strategies I dont favor a particular strategy which I think is good as it gives me variety in solving certain problems however contrary to the results of the self-assessment I very much dislike doing routine jobs meaning that I prefer to be more intuitive and focus on unique contributions or overall perspectives. I also completed LPC test (least preferred co worker) in which it once again proved tome through the aid of a low LPC score that I am more task oriented than relationship oriented something which I have mentioned above , however I do realize that I may need to start being a more social able character and start being more enthusiastic and maybe make a few jokes , it would be out of character but I do remember that during my childhood years I was more like that and still am in front of my family and close friends therefore I do believe I can change this feature of being defensive and only interested in the task at hand , it would invariably be important in being the type of leader I aspire to be. I also underwent the self-assessment in which I was able to evaluate my communication skills (appendix 4) it proves the fact that although I am not necessarily overly happy about speaking in public I tend to be a good speaker who has the ability to capture the attention of the crowd through humor, wittiness and strong real life related examples ,this has often been the case throughout the time of my degree since I am not a talkative person therefore most of my

classmates and lecturers were of the opinion that I am not a strong speaker however I have been able to surprise just about every one of them especially with my humor, in fact one lecturer even compared me to harry Houdini a tentative man in person yet a great magician on stage. Further in terms of influencing people through power I prefer to use expert power and referent power (appendix5)
4.2 Future attributes

I t has become clear to me that I possess more management traits than leadership traits , a situation which I believe is not ideal as most leaders are born naturally however there is that inner belief in me that says that I am a leader and that is the belief that I hope will materialize in the future ,the first thing I have to change is my socially quiet character I need to learn to interact with others talk about things outside of the task and more importantly create an emotional connection as that is without doubt the way in which a charismatic leader functions , further I need to gain the ability to talk to LPC (least preferred worker) characters all my life I have cold shouldered such characters and now I release that may not be the best way to go about it . further even though I am highly enthusiastic about what I do I seldom express such feelings and that can be a hindrance if one aspires to be a truly transformational leader as you want your positive energy to spread among your group members, having lazy and uninterested body language something which people misinterpret as being uninterested is not good enough for a leader ,a charismatic and transformational leader must always have appropriate body language and look enthusiastic , however by far the most important thing I must change about myself is the fact that I need to start wanting to be a leader, be an example speak out and deal with problems and no matter what happens take full responsibility for the actions of the entire team ,this is what I believe is the defining hallmark of a truly charismatic and transformational leader .

5.0 strategies to develop into a Leader Under this subheading I will be relating to the qualities that I need to develop in order to become a charismatic and transformational leader, I have also suggested appropriate steps I can take to develop such qualities Motivation- attend Kumar Indamlhennas (world famous wisdom trainer) seminars on leadership and motivation ,he is renowned wisdom trainer that has visionary techniques and insights relating to motivation ,it will be important to me to develop my motivation as that is first thing a follower looks for in a leader. Socializing skills- I have decided to join social networking sites such as Facebook after years of rejecting my friends invitations and pestering ,I believe that in modern society it is important for a leader to be aware of whats going around in a followers life and social networking is key to this answer I have also decided to apply for membership at the Sinhala welandhaperamuna an group that organizes many social event and gatherings ,in march they organized a concert with proceeds going to charity being part of such a society will be important in developing my social skills, therefore fingers crossed my application will be accepted.

Knowledge- I have decided to pursue my MBA in Australia against the wishes of my parent who believe that it may not be necessary at such an early age however I believe that it could be beneficial for me in being the leader I aspire to be ,I have also decided to attend several leadership related seminars and workshops The next question is how I will know if I have become a charismatic and transformational leader, of course I can do all the above and retake the selfassessment tests, however I believe that once I star making a positive difference in peoples lives only then will I realize that my aspiration has come true, only then will I look up and say that I have succeeded

6.0 References

1.kies,k(n.d). The case for commitment 2.Bateman,T.S., & snell S .A (2006).Management the new landscape(5th ed).New York.Mcgraw hill/Irwin pp 440,443,437 3.Siemone(n.d) The revolutionary leader 4.Mariotti,J1999,the role of a leader, Industry week,cleavland. 5.daglish c,& Miller,M(n,d) leadership understanding tis global impact .Tilde University press. 6.Riggio ,E.(n.d). what makes is charisma and charismatic leadership retrieved from http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/cutting-edge-leadership/201210/whatis-charisma-and-charismatic-leadership 7.Riggio,E.(.n.d). Are you a transformational leader. Retrieved from http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/cutting-edge-leadership/200903/areyou-transformational-leader

7.0 appendix
Appendix 1

Management tasks =9 points Leadership tasks= 5 points

Appendix 2

Score Surgency -17 Agreeableness-20 Adjustment- 31 Conscientiousness-20 openness to new experience -20

Appendix 3

Appendix 4

Self-assessment score-7/10

Appendix 5

appendix 6