Leadership Plan Personal Leadership Development Term Paper

Transformation of a group to one with unified values and a shared sense of accomplishment requires better people skills than I currently possess (Bass & Riggio 2006).

These weaknesses, of course, will present certain obstacles that must be overcome during my leadership development. The drive to accommodate can denote a general desire to subsume one's will for someone else's purposes or ends, and this could limit my potential for development and adherence to my development plan, especially in a practical (i.e. working) environment (London 2002). My concern for people might also cause certain obstacles or gaps in the development plan; much of transformational leadership is directly related to the interrelationships fostered by the leader, and this will require additional attention on my part (Bass & Riggio 2006).

Actions and Timeline

Several specific actions can and must be taken in order to bring my leadership development plan into full fruition, and the development of a timeline for the completion of these action steps is also a necessity for a practical and achievable leadership development plan. One specific action step that I will take as a part of this plan is the establishment of more personal and unique relationships with the various members of my organization and team, leading (and in some ways themselves forming) better interpersonal skills and individual concern. This will take at least six weeks to accomplish with any true merit, and will in fact be an ongoing process, but can begin within the next week and continue on a person-by-person basis as time permits -- and time will be made for this task to be completed.

Other action steps that will be taken are the formation of a distinct and codified conflict resolution scheme that includes value statements from the organization's perspective, and will assist me in my efforts to refrain from overly accommodating behaviors and reactions to conflict. This plan can be developed, with proper consultation with other team members and research into published and proven conflict resolution methods, within the next several days; actual implementation and perfection will likely take place over several weeks as conflicts arise and are addressed. Developing more transformational leadership skills, behaviors, and attitudes can also take place through specific and conscious efforts each day to focus on particular aspects of the leadership style, and this can begin immediately.

Implementation, Assessment, and Modification

Leadership development is not a static thing, nor is there a certain point at which one can or ought to be satisfied that they have reached their leadership potential (Bass & Riggio 2006; London 2002; Hiebert & Klatt 2001). Implementing my leadership plan will be an ongoing process, with some specific procedures for this implementation detailed above. Successful transition to transformational leadership will be assessed through the productivity of the company, the general attitude in the work atmosphere, and through satisfaction and performance surveys distributed to the other members of the organization. Areas that still need to be improved will be identified through these means, and effective programs to enhance changes in these areas similar to those already outlined will enable the development plan to remain on track. Comparisons to similar companies on certain features can also be utilized to assess the effects of a new leadership style; performance would be expected to improve, and higher levels of employee satisfaction would also be sought.

Modifications to the leadership style and to the development plan itself will be made with a constant attention to current literature in the area, as well as through the directly voiced concerns and suggestions of the team members present in my organization. This focus will keep leadership balanced between broader best practices and the specific relationships developed in my company. Such specific attention will itself assist in the development of transformational leadership.

References

Bass, B. & Riggio, R. (2006). Transformational leadership. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Bush, T. (2003). Theories of educational leadership and management. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Hiebert, M. & Klatt, B. (2001). The encyclopedia of…