Difference between Management and Leadership



Difference between Management and Leadership

Introduction

The paper aims to explain the difference between the management and leadership. The distinction between management and leadership has always been the subject of debate within the business and academic world. The elementary definition is that leaders lead and the managers manage. Both terms have somewhat same meanings if their etymological and lexical meanings are considered. The word manage came from the Italian term maneggiare which means to handle or lead a horse while on the other side, the term lead came from old English which means to guide. However, both of these terms have the different roles in the business context which actually differentiate both of them. The leaders have the ability to rally people around the vision naturally as they have the strong vision which automatically persuades employees to follow them. Conversely, the managers have the ability to execute the vision systematically by directing employees what to do (Richardson, 2013).

Discussion

There are a number of differences between the leadership and the management functions. The management is basically task oriented and it is based on getting jobs done efficiently within the specified parameters. However, the leadership has the capacity to engage and motivate people to achieve the vision of success. In essence, the management primarily focuses on the processes while the leadership focuses on people and vision. According to Daskal (2011) that leaders set destinations but managers navigate the roads to reach there, leaders identify directions but the managers makes plan to get there, leaders are proactive while managers are reactive, managers enact culture while leaders shape it. The management is basically an organizational role which intends to manage things, coordinate efforts, and allocate resources to accelerate the efficiency in accomplishing the identified business goals. Whereas, the leadership aims to provide the direction and motivates employees to achieve the success. The management focuses on managing work and resources that involves achieving the objectives of the organization. The management revolves around the five basic functions that include the planning, budgeting, organizing, coordinating, and controlling. Hence, the managers are accountable to take the right decision at the right time. While on the other hand, the leadership focuses on achieving the tasks by motivating the team. The leadership is all about leading, inspiring, and empowering people to get the best out of each and every person for the success of the team. The leadership revolves around counseling, coaching, building relationships, and mentoring. In short, the management manages things while leadership is about leading people (Educational Business Articles, 2012).

Management is action focused wherein the managers put efforts on meeting objectives and solving problems that act as the obstacle in the success of the organization. The management emphasizes on highest possible standards of quality and productivity (Kinlaw, 1989). However, the leaders stimulate people to gain new competencies, work hard with people to overcome hindrances and complications, lead by examples, and facilitate people to overcome failures (Bennis and Nanus, 1985). Warren Bennis (1985) composed the list ...