Leaders and managers have two things in common. The first is their ability to help and cooperate with others effectively. Both need to know how their team works and how to help them effectively. The second point is that leaders and managers belong to the role of authority, and their subordinates need to admire them. This means that employees can measure their abilities according to their behaviors and abilities(Indeed Editorial Team 2021). Although there are many similarities between the two, there are also many differences. Although they have many similar characteristics, they are different in that although all leaders are managers, not all managers are leaders. Management and leadership are interrelated and complementary qualities. The manager's task is to plan, organize, budget, solve problems, staffing and clarify work. Managers are monitoring their employees to stick to the plan and focus on goals (Ratcliffe 2013). The management is work centered and maintains the performance and control structure and system in the short term. Managers let subordinates pay attention to their qualifications, have power over others, and tell subordinates what to do (changingmind 2014). It's impossible to free one from the other. Leaders motivate and motivate, while managers plan, organize and coordinate. Leaders focus on the overall situation, while managers put all parts of their daily work together. In military affairs, the leader is the commander in chief and the manager is a general in the field(Rangam 2019).
The most effective way to manage subordinates is to motivate and encourage subordinates through performance monitoring. Theory X and y were proposed by Douglas McGregor, and the table above shows the differences between theory X and y. X theory is a kind of command mode which is assigned to work and controlled work. On the other hand, y theory is a fair management task theory, which has its own decision-making and team participation. Theory Y can generate more ideas and effective performance than theory X. Although X theory seems to be better, it depends on the situation and working standards(Culctemudomk 2014). Through the elaboration of CMI, I agree with this view, because the environment has a great impact on employees, because the bad environment will bring physical, mental and visual fatigue to team members, and this environment not only refers to whether the company is clean and tidy, but also includes the company's cultural environment, whether it is positive and effective cooperation to solve the problems. Personal characteristics will also change with people's age and experience. No one will be unchangeable. With the development of the times, unchangeable people will be eliminated by the society. Moreover, leaders should pay great attention to team members, which is the most important and can not be ignored. This will be the ideal idea of the company and its employees(Culctemudomk 2014). One of the most famous is the CEO of Ford: Alan Mulally. He is a bold leader who takes the direction in the challenge. On his first day in office, he was told by an executive: "our leaders will not speak directly to the employees in the factory." However, he did not listen to this opinion, but immediately visited the factory. Mulally also stipulated that weekly management meetings must be held every week, with the purpose of letting senior executives deeply explore the root causes of the company's long-standing problems. He launched the "One Ford" program, based on "bringing all employees to the same goal through focus, teamwork and global consistency." And the nature of the meeting from negative to positive, creating a safe atmosphere, everyone can be frank discussion, speak freely, not afraid of being accused. With firm determination and positive leadership style, Mulally built an enterprise culture of effective problem-solving and teamwork, and led his team out of the bankruptcy crisis of Ford, improved the design level and product quality of Ford, reversed the decline of market share, and enhanced profitability. However, the harmful leadership method can let the enterprise pay the huge price. A bad leader can motivate employees to adopt the wrong way and drag everyone down. Such as Sears, general motors, Lehman Brothers, Kodak and other old American department stores, political strife, suspicion and shortsightedness lead to estrangement. Finally, as a member of a team, leaders will be more popular with employees if they have the following characteristics. Respect every employee, whether in terms of work skills or ideas. When members have technical innovation or ideological objection, they should listen carefully and respect their ideas. Leaders need to maintain good self-cultivation, set an example for employees with own behavior. Help employees improve their skills and promote their career development. Give positive advice on employee behavior.
Referencing:
1. Indeed Editorial Team (2021) Similarities and Differences Between Leadership and Management [Online] available on: <https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/leadership-and-managment> [13 May 2021]
2. Rangam (2019) How Similar or Different are Management and Leadership [Online] available on: <https://www.rangam.com/media/blogs/how-similar-or-different-are-management-and-leadership/> [13 May 2021]
3. Culctemudomk (2014) WHAT IS THE MOST EFFECTIVE APPROACH TO MANAGING THE WORK OF SUBORDINATES?[Online] available on: <https://culctemudomk.wordpress.com/2014/06/15/what-is-the-most-effective-approach-to-managing-the-work-of-subordinates/> [13 May 2021]
4. Ratcliffe, R. (2013) What’s the difference between leadership and management? [Online] available on: <http://careers.theguardian.com/difference-between-leadership-management> [14 May 2021]
5. Changingmind (2014) Leadership vs. Management. [Online] available on: <http://changingminds.org/disciplines/leadership/articles/manager_leader.htm> [14 May 2021]
