1. HR Glossary
2. Transformational Leadership

Transformational Leadership

What is Transformational Leadership?

Transformational leadership is a kind of leadership in which the leaders inspire, encourage, and motivate their team to bring a positive change. It improves the team’s morale and engagement, promotes better and quicker decision-making, encourages grievance resolution, and ensures to follow core values of a company. Leaders of this type are more energetic, active, and critical thinkers to bring in positive changes that ensure overall success.

There wouldn’t be a better example of a transformational leader in today's era than Jeff Bezos, the founder and chairman of the multinational tech company Amazon. His qualities as a leader include simplification, inspiration, determination, mobilization, preparation, facilitation, and innovation.

What are the Four I’s of Transformational Leadership?

Transformational leadership can be categorized into four different factors. These help leaders in improving their capabilities and skills.

Idealized Influence

This type of leader is the role model who sets an example for others. Their best quality is to stick to the rules of successful leadership and not just speak them. They think critically, take risks, show consistent behavior, ensure ethics and possess integrity.

Inspirational Motivation

Just as the word sounds, such leaders possess the ability to impart inspiration and confidence to their employees. They should have exquisite communication skills in order to convey future goals and expectations. As a leader, they must deliver such criteria with accuracy and authority.

Intellectual Stimulation

This type of leader involves every team member in any project task and encourages them to be creative and self-governing in finding solutions. They don’t reprove the idea straightaway but instead question the ideator to explain how it will work.

Individual Consideration

This type of leadership accepts that every individual has their own desires, whether in the form of currency or joy. By mindful observation, one can understand what drives their employees towards achieving the goals. They give attention to every individual, resolve their queries, and mentor them to help them grow.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the characteristics of a transformational leader?

As a transformational leader, one should challenge employees to do something out of their comfort zone. Here are the significant characteristics of such a leader.

• Ensure employees stay motivated
• Promote positive employee development
• Develop an ethical environment at work
• Ensure transparency in values and tasks
• Foster a culture of overall company development rather than personal benefits
• Be a good mentor to his teammates
• Encourage others to make better decisions
• Build trustful relationships and promotes it

How is transformational leadership different from transactional?

Transactional leadership can be described as ‘keeping the ship afloat’. These leaders often encourage their employees by offering them incentives and rewards. They don’t look into the strategic and future needs of performance and goals but rather review if the goals are achieved in the present.

On the contrary, transformational leadership focuses on morale, collaboration, and team development. They strive to take their employees, teams, and company to the next level of success. Along with providing incentives to push the workforce, they also focus on their employees' all-around development.

Why is transformational leadership important?

It gives a sense of shared purpose to the employees and also provokes them to perform their best. In addition, such leaders strive to build trust and encourage the employees to take the company to newer heights.

How to build a transformational leadership system?

It is one of the essential factors in building trust and motivating your employees. Below mentioned are the tips for building such a leadership system;

• Establish a clear vision and mission
• Define the company’s core values
• Promote open communication and collaboration
• Encourage creativity
• Acknowledge your employees
• Reward the employees
• Enhance employee engagement

Is it challenging to adopt transformational leadership?

This can be challenging for companies depending on the work environment and the changes among them. As much as it encourages everyone in the team, people choosing to be such a type of leader may find it difficult to learn about the new role in the beginning.

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