When I was about eight years old, I paid my aunt a routine summer visit. One day, she took me along to inspect the school that I knew she headed but had never seen. I was immediately struck by the aura of power she exuded once she got through the school’s gate. It was as if she shed off her humorous and accommodating persona that I knew her for and adopted a solemn tone that day. Janitors and teachers who were present greeted her using “Madam,” and silence befell where she stepped. As I sat outside her office, I could hear her issuing directives in a tone that suggested that a reply was not expected. I decided she would be my mentor in leadership due to the respect she garnered. Later in high school, I learnt of “leaders”, “managers,” and “employees” and the differences that characterize each category in the institutional setting. However, it was in college that I have gained a refined view of these duties and the reasons behind the scenes at my aunt’s school.
Management and leadership theories practiced in past decades emphasized the need to distinguish between the three classes of people in an organization. The step was necessary in providing job descriptions and expectations. However, these models contain evident shortcomings. For example, my aunt was acting as both a manager and a leader when giving directives on various school issues. On the one hand, she was controlling scarce resources. On the other hand, she was also providing guidance on how to apply available wealth. The current module’s introduction to Mintzberg’s theory has provided additional insight into the possibility that a person could possess leadership and management skills as opposed to expecting these capabilities from different individuals (Creelman, 2012).
Mintzberg’s model has three domains: interpersonal, informational, and decisional roles (Creelman, 2012). At school, my aunt’s primary objective was providing direction on resource utilization. Moreover, she created a negotiating platform between various suppliers and users, such as teachers, students, and janitors. When these negotiations failed, the principal acted as a disturbance handler by quelling eminent labor and student action (Bateman, Snell, & Konopaske, 2017). The head teacher also acted as the organization’s spokesperson during meetings where she laid the plans that were to be implemented and who would be responsible. I replicated these duties performance later in life when I was charged with leading various groups from the community and in school. I was often negotiating with uncooperative members to achieve objectives that would be beneficial to everyone. Additionally, I had to allocate resources by arranging meetings with adequate time to achieve predetermined goals. I was also an active educator by passing information from external parties to group members. Nevertheless, I have realized the need to improve on interpersonal skills to achieve career goals.
Informational and decisional roles are vital to a person in lower and mid-management positions. However, excellent people skills become a greater imperative to an individual aspiring for higher positions (Bateman et al., 2017). Mintzberg conceptualizes managers as leaders, liaisons, and figureheads (Creelman, 2012). The contemporary principal is expected to inspire the team. However, Mintzberg does not mention the qualities of a motivator. Research indicates that a leader should be empathic to the needs of others (Bateman et al., 2017). Compassion was a quality that I lack and is missing from my mentor in leadership. Therefore, I will seek to listen to team members and consider their divergent opinions on resource allocation and goal achievement.
References Bateman, T. S., Snell, S., & Konopaske, R (2017). Management: Leading & collaborating in a competitive world (13th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill. Creelman, D. (2012). Mintzberg’s refreshing view of leadership. Retrieved from http://www.diebasis.at/upload/multifile/753009412.pdf
This is a sample personal management essay only. If you need a non-plagiarized essay written by experts, visit SmartWritingService.com.