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Transactional Leadership Theories

Ooredoo Oman exhibits traits of transactional leadership. Managers focus on task completion and reward or punish employees based on performance. They micromanage work and resist change to maintain the status quo. Leadership is passive and reactive rather than proactive. The organization also has a rigid hierarchy and culture that prioritizes structure and practical problem-solving over innovation. Transactional leadership aims to motivate employees through contingent rewards and management by exception based on meeting clearly defined goals.

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0% found this document useful (0 votes)
73 views22 pages

Transactional Leadership Theories

Ooredoo Oman exhibits traits of transactional leadership. Managers focus on task completion and reward or punish employees based on performance. They micromanage work and resist change to maintain the status quo. Leadership is passive and reactive rather than proactive. The organization also has a rigid hierarchy and culture that prioritizes structure and practical problem-solving over innovation. Transactional leadership aims to motivate employees through contingent rewards and management by exception based on meeting clearly defined goals.

Uploaded by

Samrah Qamar
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Leadership Styles at Ooredoo Oman1

LEADERSHIP STYLES AT OOREDOO OMAN

By:

Class:

Professor:

School:

City & State:

Date:
Leadership Styles at Ooredoo Oman2

LEADERSHIP STYLES AT OOREDOO OMAR


Introduction
Ooredoo Oman (Omani Qatari Telecommunications Company) was formed in 2004.

Formerly branded as Nawras, Ooredoo Oman is a part of Global Telecommunication Company,

Ooredoo Group, which is based in Qatar. Curranty it has almost 50% of telecom market share in

Oman. It provides mobile, fixed and Internet service for residential and business customers

(Ooredoo, 2015, n.p). Any leadership style of an individual or an organization can be customarily

understood as a degree to which that individual or organization shows or accentuates a specific

set of traits, behaviors, and attitudes among its constituents (Givens, R., 2008, 5). Based on

recurrence and frequency of these traits and behaviors, a specific leadership can be defined

which exemplify these behaviors. Based on this paradigm, behaviors and characters of leadership

style and practices that are carried out in Ooredoo Oman clearly manifest the Transactional

Leadership Style (Ooredoo, 2012, n.p). To elaborate more on this and to support the above claim,

the rest of this introduction will give examples and provide evidence of different activates in

Ooredoo Oman which can characterize transactional leadership style.


Anticipating that adherent to be agreeable and docile and this is guaranteed by awards

and punishments (disciplines) approach in this way, the transactional leader is not anticipating

changing or enhancing the future, but simply hoping that things to continue as before. This task

and project completion driven style of leadership where things should be done in a deliberate and

organized way is clearly visible in Ooredoo Oman. The first of these transactional leadership

attitudes to be seen in Ooredoo Oman is its motivational approach. In this type of leadership,

extrinsic motivation is implemented. With this type of motivation, as the case is here in Ooredoo

Oman, desired performance and results are evoked by motivating the employees externally.

Employees will be rewarded for doing the needed job and getting the expected results and

punished otherwise.
Leadership Styles at Ooredoo Oman3

Also, Refusal to new ideas and the resistance of change is an apparent attribute in

Ooredoo Oman Management style to some extent. Directors and managers have a have a

tendency to be very impervious to change. The confidence in enhancing work environment is

missing. Moreover and as a result of this type of motivation, creativity is hindered (Kim, S. &

Yoon, G., 2015, 152). Individual thoughts are not welcome generally. Trusting that the things are

as great as they are, leadership in Ooredoo Oman doesn’t encourage innovative thinking.

Another symptom of this type of leadership is the rewarding the employees based on their end of

the year performance rating. In the light of particular set objectives and whether it is reaching the

anticipated results and targets, individuals are kept under scrutiny. Any poor performance will be

punished by means of going under specific probation path. Likewise, accomplishing the desired

tasks will be awarded with bonuses and promotion in some very cases.
Micromanagement is common among managers and section heads in Ooredoo Oman. In

this mandated environment, the managers are the ones who make decisions and the employees

need to carry out and execute these decisions. This continues with demanding for periodic and

unnecessary updates on the status of running projects and tasks. This imposing behavior is a

source of a great annoyance for employees who feel that they would have performed better if

they were given freedom to decide the way they carry out tasks. Another visible trait of

leadership style in Ooredoo is that it is very passive quite passive because the focus is on

maintaining status quo. The leader tends only to react to things that happen a the time and is not

proactive in taking preventive or remedial steps to solving that problem. One definitive behavior

associated with transactional behavior is establishing a criterion which is used for assessing and

rewarding performance. Practicality and pragmatism is a known and a clear characteristic feature

in leadership style in Ooredoo Oman The approach to solving problems is one of pragmatism,

and they take all realistic constraints and opportunities into account. Rigid Organizational
Leadership Styles at Ooredoo Oman4

hierarchy and putting a lot of importance on corporate structure and culture are apparent within

Ooredoo Oman working culture


Transactional Leadership Theories

The definition offered by Robbins about what transactional mode of leadership was in the

organization encompassed leaders who are primarily led by the social exchanges which they

manipulate in the form of transactions (Robbins, 2007, p.475). Among the components of what

transactional leadership has is the contingent rewards, and management exception (Birasnav, M.,

Mittal, R. & Loughlin S, 2015, 207: Chaudhry, A., & Javed, H., 2012, 2). The contingent rewards

are usually directed related to the performance of the employees. The logic behind this reasoning

is that the rewards provided for the employees are enumerated based on the efforts of the

employees in that particular company. The management in this case and the leaders of the

various departments are the ones that communicate what the employees have to do in order to

receive these rewards and the basis they use in order to pass judgment (Kasprzhak, A et.al, 2015,

959). Management by exception refers to the procesFs of taking note of any deviations from the

stipulated rules and regulations of the organization. Any variations will be amended after a

decision to rule whether corrective action is necessary (Harms, P., & Credé, M., 2010, 6). The

transactional leadership roles follow that there needs be no correction on the mission if it does

not interfere with the organization goals. It is only when the organizational goals are not being

met, at the time provided and at a relatively reasonable cost that interference occurs.

The organization uses social behavior in a retrospective with the intention of maximizing

the company benefits and at relatively low costs. This is because the organization requires that

all leaders motivate their employees so that they can perform their delegated duties and at the

same time maintaining high levels of responsibility. This form of leadership makes it quite easy
Leadership Styles at Ooredoo Oman5

for the people working there to understand their individual goals, and understand their needs so

that they can work even harder to achieve the organizational rewards. This means that people

who work way better than anticipated are rewarded for their efforts while those that fail to meet

the minimum requirements of their job outputs receive punishments (Aarons, G., 2006, 1164).

Subordinates are also assisted in areas where they find it difficult to carry out their respective

roles by the organization’s management which is an added advantage to the organization since

communication and accomplishment of company goals is also made easier. There are other

extrinsic factors which may result in minimal compliance from the employees of an organization.

They may range from the structure, the goals and the organization’s culture and that is why

transactional leaders are used to being action-oriented and directive.

Therefore, in a nutshell, transactional leadership requires that all leaders be willing to

work within the systems in place in the organization where they can consequently negotiate them

in a manner that assists in fulfilling the goals of the organization. The transactional organization

is such that the people involved have to think outside the box when they are solving problems

using methods and procedures that are fixed even with the changing business environments.

However, as much as this may be true, transactional leadership is mainly a passive form of

leadership, and they solve problems as they arise and there are no provisions or safety nets for

such type of occurring problems. Transactional leadership is associated with a behavior by the

management where they reward their followers using a criterion that helps maintain their status

quo

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs


Leadership Styles at Ooredoo Oman6

The transactional leadership in any organization uses the Maslow’s hierarchy of needs

context to fulfill its requirements. These requirements are such that there needs to be a situation

where satisfaction is the end goal of an organization (Haider, M.H. & Riaz, A., 2010, 31). The

transactional leaders in the organization thus have to put much focus on the lower levels of the

hierarchy as they are most crucial as to the success of the company (Hargis, M., John D., & Chris

P., 53). Understanding the conceptual framework surrounding the transactional leadership model,

it uses the reward system to get positive outcomes in the hierarchy. This is the exchange model

most common for most organizations that use the transaction leadership. It so happens that most

organizations using this leadership system can conversely come up with a system for punishing

the poor performers in the organization. Any individual that is found to have consecutive

negative outcomes is dealt with accordingly in a bid to act as a lesson and motivate other

employees to push their performance rates even higher. One of the ways that the Maslow’s

hierarchy of needs has been ensured, especially on the lower levels for those organizations using

the transactional leadership is by stressing the specific task performance in the company. When

transactional leadership is made use of in a company, then the transactional leaders can focus on

a specific portion of the production process which makes it an effective leadership model.

It is quite common for transactional leadership organizations to be more interested in the

process of productions rather than the ideas that are thought of ahead of time. These

organizations are more interested in the contingent rewards which are sometimes referred as

reinforcements or the penalizations, also known as negative reinforcement (Birasnav, M., Mittal,

R. & Loughlin,S, 2015, 208). When activities in such an organization are completed in record

time, or when the subordinate staff are involved in the process and work at a good pace towards

completion, the contingent reward is then awarded and could be in monetary terms or other
Leadership Styles at Ooredoo Oman7

forms such as praise. Punishments are mostly suspensions with the hope that the individuals will

do some self-searching as to the weakness and strengths they possess and as to what they need to

improve on more to catch up with the pace of the organization. The instances this would happen

is when production falls short of the performance quality expected, and the goals consequently

go unachieved (Hargis, M., John D., & Chris P., 52). This is not usually good for the health of the

company when goals, and sometimes tasks go unfinished within the time provided. The

punishments are often handed out by the management-by-exception since within the production

process of the organization, there is the possibility of some things going wrong which forms the

exception part of the management model.

When focusing on the management by exception, it is interesting to note that that there

are two routes that it assumes. The first is the active, and the other is the passive route (Harms,

P., & Credé, M., 2010, 6). The active management-by-exception requires that all the leaders

involved should make sure that they make continuous scrutiny of the performance of their

subordinates and are free to make any changes that they deem necessary or corrective action

where there are any errors involved. On the other hand, the passive management-by-exception

leadership model requires that the leaders wait for company issues to arise so that they can begin

looking for solutions to the problems.

Leader-Member Exchanges and the Transaction Theory

The transactional leadership model follows that there is some form of communication

between the organization management and their employees or in this case, their followers. With

that said, the quality of this relationship between the employees and their supervisors also

matters when the organization goals are at stake. This concept is referred to as the leader-member
Leadership Styles at Ooredoo Oman8

exchange with regard to the transaction leadership theory (Kim, C., &Park, W., 2015, 1701).

Based on the relationship under the transactional leadership theory, the time pressures that the

organization piles up on the supervisors in order to meet deadlines and production rates, the

supervisors find themselves establishing special relationships with portions of their employees

and people following their directions. As a result, there are two forms of groups: in-group and

out-group. The relationships between these two groups are usually very stable over time (Kim,

C., &Park, W., 2015, 1702). There has been an apparent report concerning the positive

relationship between these groups and the manner in which transactional leadership is carried

out. The reason is that both concepts rely on a discretionary stimulus.

It is quite often that employees in an organization find themselves experiencing the

transactional leadership style in the business as well as the industry. The reason is that

transactional leadership maintains and offers support for the status quo as it upholds the mutual

self-interests of the leaders and followers. When the followers meet the expectations of the

leaders, they are rewarded positively, and if they fail to comply, there are negative consequences

as well. There is an overall relationship found with the transactional behavior especially with the

contingent reward as it is found to be in correlation with attitudes and fosters better performance

in the organization. The organizations that use transactional models of leadership, their intentions

are to permeate the group setting which makes the leadership available to all the members of that

particular interest group. This reason alone is what makes the transactional leadership model an

ambient stimulus (Kim, C., &Park, W., 2015, 1701).

Transactional Leaders and Trust


Leadership Styles at Ooredoo Oman9

Organizations that rely on transactional leadership understand that it works best when

there is a process of exchange between the people in charge and the people that work under

them. It is important that the needs of the subordinates are understood if there is ever going to be

a successful transactional leadership model in the organization. In order to motivate the

employees, organizations come up with incentives such as financial ones and others like

organizational recognition in order to motivate their employees (Asencio, H.& Mujkic, E., 2016,

159). These controlled aspects do not only get them the desired performance rate that they desire

to keep the organization afloat, but it also gets to have desirable behaviors from their employees.

Through this way, the needs of the organization and the employees are all met concurrently.

Following this, a valid argument can be extrapolated from this information. When the

organization engages in the activities provided by leveraging the transactional leadership model,

the employees of that particular organization associate a level of trust with the organization

(Asencio, H. & Mujkic, E., 2016, 159: Kasprzhak, A et. Al, 959). The reason that this is so

emanates from the fact that when the leader’s consistency in ensuring that thy reward their

employees for extraordinary performance, then the employees will develop faith in the system of

organization. By using the contingent rewards and management by exception, the organization

ensures that all employees, both high and low performing, have some confidence in working

with the organization in achieving its objectives. There is empirical evidence which supports that

most of the managements in organizations that use transactional leadership models are more

trusted by their followers than other forms of leadership.

Transactional Leadership and Innovation

Understanding the relatioship that exists between transactional leadership characteristics

and the innovative nature of organizations requires that we first review what innovative behavior
Leadership Styles at Ooredoo Oman10

entails. In this case, innovative behavior takes into account a lot of processes through which

problems are recognized, and ideas are generated so that the problem can be solved (Pieterse,

A.et.al, 2010, 610). In order to identify the best solution fit for a problem, support ideas have to

be generated as well and finally, implementation. In order to be able to have an innovative sense

in the organization, there needs to be creativity which is an integral part of the innovative

behavior. Innovative behavior is largely a motivational issue as it is not only influenced by skills,

abilities, and knowledge. Since it is more of a motivational issue, it has become of considerable

interest to most leadership researchers. Based on research, the transactional leadership by

organizations is negatively related to innovative behavior since its main focus was on in-role

performance (Pieterse, A.et.al, 2010, 611). It is less focused on novel activities which could be

detrimental for the jobs that do not require innovation to be incorporated in the job description.

Transactional Leadership and Psychological Empowerment

As noted before, transactional leadership by organizations is used in a manner where

there are set expectations by the management and the leaders have to keep clarifying these

expectations as well as giving respective feedback as to how these expectations will be met.

These attributes are what show the predilections of the people in authority for these organizations

(Pieterse, A.et.al, 2010, 613). In addition to this, the preferences as forwarded by these leaders is

bound to bring up several and variant perceptions among the followers since it diverts them from

their innovative endeavors while still working for the organization. The negative thing about this

is that transactional leadership may be considered as being controlling and consequently,

demotivating to its employees which end up reducing the innovative behavior of the employees.

This notion leads us to examine the psychological empowerment of employees. The

psychological empowerment is a psychological state which resides within all individuals which
Leadership Styles at Ooredoo Oman11

reflects on the active orientation of the roles they have at work. It psychological empowerment is

thus more focused on the delegation of responsibilities at the workplace (Pieterse, A.et.al, 2010,

613).

As has been indicated earlier, psychological empowerment is more of a motivational

construct which arises when management in the organization has to initiate and regulate the

actions to be done in the production process (Aarons, G.A., 2006, 1164). The management, in

this case, should be able to impact good motivational aspects that make sure that the job is

completed well. Individuals who are psychologically empowered find themselves to be more

competent, facilitate proactive behavior, act independently, and are always showing initiative.

Since transactional leadership for organizations requires that responsibilities be communicated to

the followers, taking advantage of the in-role performance, it is also expected to monitor if these

expectations are met. Transactional leadership, therefore, provides direction and makes sure that

the employees understand the importance of in-role performance and should be taken more

seriously than innovation in the organization. Consequently, individuals who are more highly

empowered may find this controlling nature of transactional leadership as demotivating and thus

lead to lesser innovative strategies by the people working in the organization.

Micro Level and Conforming Management

This section of this article will discuss the theories that focus on the organizations which

use transactional conforming processes especially if they have to come up with a smaller number

of subordinates to lead more effectively. The social exchange theory arising from the use of

transactional leadership theories stress that the exchange of benefits and favors for the

management and the employees may lead to mutual attractions to each other. The ability for

leaders to establish in-group relationships with their subordinates is highly reliant on the ability
Leadership Styles at Ooredoo Oman12

to create favorable relationships with the leader above him (Johnson, P., & Carland, J., 2007, 5).

The ability for leaders to have productive relationships with the bosses above them makes them

more competent and to provide even more valuable information along the hierarchy. Through

this, it becomes possible for the management with the transactional style of leadership to become

more permissive when making decisions critical to the organization which makes their input

more supportive and consequently putting more consideration to the subordinates’ needs. The

two groups that are involved in the organization based on the transactional model are the in-

group and out-group members. The relationship with the in-group members proves to be very

beneficial as it provides assistance and commitment to attaining the organizational goals

(Johnson, P., & Carland, J., 2007, 6). The out-group members of the organization often have

lower levels of mutual relationship between people in authority and those under it and are purely

reliant on how authority is exercised. In order satisfy the terms of the group relationship, the

members must comply with the formal requirements the organization puts in place.

Benchmark of Ooredoo Oman against the Best Practice

As we have noted earlier in the introduction segment, Ooredo Oman follows a

transactional leadership model in its leadership. The main characteristics of this leadership are

that they inhibit innovation which affects the confidence of their employees. Another

characteristic is that the performance is monitored and reviewed annually after the end of the

trading period. The company conducts micromanagement which creates an imposing behavior by

the management and a hostile feeling among the employees who think they would work better if

they are not micromanaged like so. Another characteristic common to the leadership style of the

company is that it conducts passive problem solving and only react to things when they happen.

Ooredoo believes in realism when making decisions, and the organization has a rigid hierarchy
Leadership Styles at Ooredoo Oman13

system as they place a lot of importance on company structure and culture. All of these aspects

have been discussed in the theory section. However, this creates a problem as some of the

measures that the company takes to achieve its goals may indeed be detrimental to its workforce

as employees require to remain motivated at all times if they are to remain productive.

The intention of individuals to remain in a stable and well-functioning workforce is made

easier when the organization is able to retain their employees. Leadership has been known to the

be sole factor that determines the turnover intentions of the organization. However, in recent

studies, more insight has been provided which shows that the form of leadership an organization

takes up may indeed have some influence on the employee intention to stay with the organization

or leave. Following the Regulatory fit theory, the different styles of leadership may influence the

decision by employees to place much value in the work they do, and eventually, the intention to

stay or leave the organization. Of all the leadership theories that have been researched in the past,

there has been a significant interest in the transactional and transformational leadership styles.

Adopting either of the two styles of leadership will help an organization achieve success in the

long run. We have already discussed transactional leadership for the Ooredoo Oman and

discovered that there are shortcomings such as the lack of innovation and confidence and the

annoyance that micromanagement presents. Therefore, it is only logical that the transformational

leadership be discussed as the alternative to have a recommendation for Ooredoo.

The transformational leadership is one that motivates all the employees as the form of

leadership always appeals to higher ideals and moral values by the employees. In this situation,

the organization is able to set goals and a vision and requires that the employees and those under

the authority in all departments accept the credibility of those in authority (Harms, P., & Credé,

M., 2010, 6). Transformational leadership is able to motivate and at the same time inspire the
Leadership Styles at Ooredoo Oman14

employees to perform beyond the expectations as set by organization’s management. This thus

transforms the individuals and at the same time, the organization. Through this type of

leadership, it becomes possible for employees to rise above their self-interest (Haider, M.H. and

Riaz, A., 2010, 30). They are thus able to alter their interests, values, morale and ideals which

motivate them to increase their productivity rate. Transformational leadership also allows for

some creativity thus promoting innovations as new ideas are welcomed by management if they

add positive value to the organization. Another central thinking towards the transformational

leadership is innovation. Thus transformation leadership fosters change and transformation.

Change is good for the organization as the business world is constantly changing and the

organization needs to understand that the rigid policies brought about by transactional leadership

may limit the activities that the organization is involved in. Innovation, on the other hand, may

also promote organization growth (Vigoda-Gadot, E., 2007, 664).

The acquired knowledge about the transactional and transformational leadership models

make it easier to identify the changes that Ooredoo Oman Company needs to make so as to

operate efficiently. An ideal strategy that the company can adopt is an integrated transactional

and transformation strategy. The reason is that the transaction approach they use at Ooredoo

Oman is an inhibitory factor to creativity. Whatever the management puts across has to be

followed to the latter. In short, the management dictates the level of achievement and

performance is rewarded based on how fast and the quality of the work done. However, if

Ooredo were to adopt a transformational method of leadership, then the company would be sure

that the employees would go out of their way to achieving even more than the set targets. This is

a positive outcome for both the organization and the employees (Kang, J., Solomon, G., &Choi,

D., 2015, 532). In addition to this, the rate at which micromanagement is done by the persons in
Leadership Styles at Ooredoo Oman15

power at Ooregon Oman will reduce greatly, and the employees will have a better sense of

freedom where they can conduct their responsibilities peacefully and at ease.

Another problem that Ooregon needs to address is the issue of change and

transformation. For a telecommunication company, in order to stay ahead of their competition, it

is important that they understand what goes on in their environment and try to adjust to these

changes. However, it will be close to impossible to do this when the company is running a

transactional leadership model. In addition to this, the employees will feel even more confident

while dealing with a flexible system of leadership which will also increase the level of trust they

place on their organization (Asencio, H. & Mujkic, E., 2016, 162). These factors will increase

the number of retainer employees by the organization. Change in the company can also be

achieved by motivating the employees to become creative which will help come up with

solutions for problems that are bound to come up in the future. A passive method of operation is

better than a passive one due to the application of resources and other materials needed to

implement organization policies effectively (Kim, S. & Yoon, G., 2015, 150).

Personal Reflection

In order to gauge my capabilities as a leader, I conducted two interviews with a colleague

and his opinions on leadership. The other was with the line manager at Haier brand. The purpose

of the interviews was to get a perspective from a person in authority and one under authority as

to what the ideal leadership would be in an organization. Upon completion of my interview with

the two persons under study, I notice that the answers were overlapping two themes. The first

theme was motivation and the second theme was inclusion. These two things are responsible for

creating a healthy working environment according to the manager. My colleague believes that

once people have mastered how to do this, then it becomes easier to be in any leadership
Leadership Styles at Ooredoo Oman16

position. He has recommended that any person willing to be a leader should be passionate and be

self-motivated to reach the goals they would want to achieve. These are also character traits that

people in business leadership roles have to embrace. A very good place where people are

pursuing such high esteem jobs can benchmark such qualities is in the leaders they meet at the

workplace. The line manager made me understand that there are several challenges that a

manager is faced with especially in the course of the business process (Hambley, L., O’Neill, T.

& Kline, T., 2007, 3). This is due to the dynamic changes that might present new challenges that

the leader may not have encountered before. It requires that they work a way through the

situation so that they can also better their team in the process. For this reason, we will focus on

the two themes that surround a leader’s position.

I have come to understand that leadership is the position whereby the individual is

responsible for influencing the people under him/her to work into achieving a given set of goals.

There are formal and informal leaders in a business setting. The difference between both leaders

is that one has a position of authority, and the other one has none, but they still can influence

others using personal powers which is the category I place myself. As a potential leader, I am

certain that I possess integrity, intelligence, high self-esteem, flexible and open to experience,

conscientious and extravert (Vigoda-Gadot, E., 2007, 662). I have come to understand that it is

important for people looking towards being in such positions to figure out whether their

achievements are based on the tasks of the business or the people who perform these tasks, in

this case, the employees. This is important because, when one makes decisions, they could either

be perceived as acceptable or rejected by the employees. Therefore, it is important to analyze the

employee proportions critically so that they can understand whether to use either one of the three
Leadership Styles at Ooredoo Oman17

business decision models; these are the authoritarian, democratic and laissez-faire methods of

decision making.

I understand that the level of performance that any business receives from any given

activity comes from the motivation that comes with the job specification mostly, and then the

availability of resources and the ability to do the work (Obiwuru, T., 100). Motivation in the

workplace requires some sort of equity for all stakeholders. This is sometimes a hard thing for

me because digging through all the qualifications can be hard, and sometimes doing a lot of bulk

can sometimes be tedious for me. However, I need to overcome this negative trait since one thing

is for sure, the vacant position has to be filled by the best applicant eventually. Moreover, upon

admission, equal pay should be used when considering remunerations based on the equal input

one has put into the processes of the firm/organization/industry. Workers should, therefore, be

taught how to harness their abilities and receive support from management so as to achieve the

clearly outlined performance goals in the workplace (Obiwuru, T. er.al, 102). This leads the

manager to the point of asking how they can make the jobs they have posted vacant to be more

interesting and create the sense of a comfortable working environment.

Once a business leader has understood all these concepts, going about the business

activities of the day can be quite easy, and these concepts become helpful because it is

motivation and good leadership that helps employees work to their level bests so that the output

is maximized. An organizational leader is assertive and flexible as we have noted earlier and

therefore means that they are open to change. Empowering the employees in the workplace and

allowing them to engage in the decision-making process makes them feel that the business and

the management cares about their welfare. This creates a sense of trust between both parties and

work together more efficiently to reach a common goal (El Amouri, S., & O’Neill, S., 2014,
Leadership Styles at Ooredoo Oman18

137). The management should also ensure that they maintain an equitable environment all

throughout the course of the employer to employee relationship and should provide remuneration

that is equal to the workload and the effort given. This effort should increase the need for

employees to work even harder so as to achieve personal and organization goals.

I think I have it all wrong on how being motivated and performance works, but I have

gained insights from the two interviews which has allowed me to understand that it is not always

easy to be a leader. I plan on being an entrepreneur as my future career, and there are several

things that I have picked up from these lessons that my colleague and line manager imparted in

me that I was not aware of before. Among them is the manner in which we can use to attract and

maintain employees at the workplace. The decision to do this should be based on the basis of

inclusion and diversity and at the same time maintain equity. A leader should be able to be a role

model to the employees and be able to create mechanisms through which they can communicate

and receive feedback from their employees (Hambley, L., O’Neill, T. & Kline, T., 2007, 3).

According to me, the employees are more important and would, therefore, come first in my

priority of activities, and the tasks that come along with that come later. Growing up, I have been

taught that people deserve gifts and rewards based on the results that one has and is highly

dependent on the effort that one gives. These are some of the factors that would motivate people

in the workplace. In light of this, a motivated workforce motivates the leader who is responsible

for manning them. I believe that these are the two thoughts that come to mind when I review the

conversation I had with the two interviewees.

Following this, I need to understand what it means to motivate other people and what it

means to be inclusive. Therefore, to accomplish this, practicality is key in achieving these

changes in my character trait if I am to possess the full leadership skill set. This means that I will
Leadership Styles at Ooredoo Oman19

have to assume more leadership roles and be faced with the extreme situations where I will be

required to come up with solutions and strategies for the group I will be assigned to. In order to

understand the problems and difficult situations that leaders are faced with, it is only logic that I

go through the same process so that I can be experienced in the same. Through this, future

situations will be easier for me to handle. However, I think the most difficult transition for me is

to ensure inclusivity for all the employees under my authority. Making sure that only the most

comfortable working environment is present for the people are responsible for, I will ensure that

I have constant communication with them so that I can always be ahead of what they need in

order to carry out their work effectively. I believe that in doing so, working towards being a good

leader will be made possible.

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