Transformational Leadership Definition
Transformational leadership motivates working individuals to go above and beyond what is expected of them. Leaders use this approach to reach their full potential and create a positive change in the workplace.
Transformational leadership has become a go-to approach for leaders lately. It is no news that all businesses, be it small or large, are going through fast changes in this digital age. In such a scenario, only transformational leaders can understand how to encourage, guide, and help their employees to be their best productive selves.
Here is when a big question arises, “What exactly is transformational leadership?”. Come with us as we try to answer this question.
So, let’s explore:
- What is Transformational Leadership Theory?
- Importance of Transformational Leadership
- Transformational Leadership Characteristics
- Advantages and Disadvantages of Transformational Leadership
- Transformational Leadership Examples
What is Transformational Leadership Theory?
Transformational leadership, in simpler terms, is a theory that motivates employees to take a step ahead and share their ideas/opinions. This, in turn, not only helps the business to flourish but also employees to become successful in the future.
Companies use this technique to empower their workforce to make the right decisions and address their problems mindfully.
Transformational leaders love what they do and align with the purpose of the organization. They also spot business processes that do not reap the desired results and make the necessary adjustments along the way.
Importance of Transformational Leadership
Transformational leadership, as we mentioned above, encourages actions that can help a company for a long time. This leadership style is becoming a thing lately because it helps both the leaders as well as the businesses succeed.
A transformational leader, for instance, doesn’t focus on methods or short-term problems. Instead, they try to figure out what drives each employee and help them keep their eye on the company’s long-term goals.
Transformational Leadership Characteristics
Look at some of the must-know transformational leadership characteristics:
Accepting the Change
Transformational leaders welcome change and think ahead about how it will affect the organization. This way, they are ready to deal with problems that come up.
Emotional Intelligence
Transformational leaders need to be ready to work with others, have empathy, and be emotionally intelligent. They are self-driven, strong, and good at earning the trust and respect of those around them.
Ability to Adapt
Transformational IT (information technology) leaders can handle the fast-paced changes in their fields and put difficult technologies to use. They also know what these changes will mean for other systems and can see problems coming before they happen.
An Amazing Team Player
Instead of putting themselves first, transformational leaders care about the well-being of their workers and the company. People on the team celebrate together and give credit to those who deserve it when they do well.
Promoting Collaboration
Transformational leaders are open to ideas from everyone around them and don’t judge or react right away. The fact that they can talk to their employees in an open and honest way builds trust that lasts.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Transformational Leadership
Advantages
- These leaders are less strict, so employees are freer to try new things and come up with new ways of doing things.
- People who do the work and deal directly with customers and business problems are more likely to come up with new ideas and ways of doing things.
- The goals of the organization are important to the employees, which makes them more committed and hardworking at work.
- A good transformational leader brings everyone in the organization together around a shared goal.
Disadvantages
- A transformational leader often has an inspiring big-picture goal, but they don’t always give clear steps on how to get there.
- Employees can get burned out or give up on trying to reach the goal if it is too big or aggressive.
- A transformational leader is someone who brings about a change in an organization. However, this change can be too upsetting for some people.
- Making sure your workers are interested and excited is one of your most difficult jobs as a transformational leader.
- There is always a chance that some workers won’t agree with the transformational leader’s goal.
Transformational Leadership Examples
Here are some well-known examples of transformational leadership:
Jeff Bezos
Jeff Bezos changed the business world when he started Amazon. Online book sales were Amazon’s first big hit. After starting to sell other things, Amazon quickly grew into the huge online store it is now. In addition to this, Jeff focused on building a company where people are open to new ideas, which helped Amazon achieve its goals with a bare minimum effort.
Steve Jobs
People often called the late Apple co-founder and chief executive officer (CEO) a genius and a visionary. During his two terms at Apple, he led a wave of new product development. He pushed and encouraged teams to make the most user-friendly hardware and software ideas when Apple was just starting out.
After more than a decade, products like the iPod, iPhone, and iPad made his comeback to Apple stand out. He got his message across clearly that goods should meet high standards of quality and be easy for customers to use.
There you go!
You now know everything about transformational leadership. To implement this type of leadership in your workplace seamlessly without disrupting the current operations, you should try HROne. With HROne, you can empower employees and give them much-needed autonomy. So, when are you transforming your leadership style?