| SHU-A4-GS Introduction: Our first book, Leadership Without Easy Answers is written by Ronald A. Heifetz and it deals with the key concepts of leadership. Leaders have certain common characteristics, which are exemplified throughout this book. This book will be outlined and summarized in the following assignment. Facts: Heifetz commences his book with the aspects that leaders have in common. The book consists of 11 chapters and describes leadership values that engage or capture the led. It consists of four parts beginning with framework and strategy of leadership. Heifetz associates leadership with power, authority and influence. Also values are presented and their importance is emphasized with every leader having values whether negative or positive. In the second and third part of the book he focuses on leadership with authority and he explains the difference between technical and adaptive leadership. Heifetz writes how the leader must be able to mobilize society to adapt to new challenges and harsh realities. The leader must have good time-management in for both types of leadership in order to determine the short-term or long-term solutions will be applied to the crisis. According to Heifetz there are two types of authority, formal and informal. Formal authority requires a position, rank, title, badge and can be taken away at any time. Informal authority is implicit and emerges from the constituents and colleagues; it is taken away when popularity falls. On the last part Heifetz discusses the risks that face a leader and the distress levels, which can be severe. Being a leader means standing on the balcony and becoming a target. A leader in unable to always please everyone and that is why he needs to stand back and get a perspective on the issue at hand. This helps a leader see the larger crowd and make better decisions. Analysis: Leadership is such a vast topic that it is merely impossible to include everything in a book but in Leadership without Easy Answers, Heifetz is able to touch many concepts of leadership. The book is written clearly and his examples are specific making it easy for the reader to comprehend the material effectively. On the other hand, he fails to mention many aspects that define modern leadership, such as the organizations and institutions involved, the characteristics of people and the respective social struggle. Many of the examples used, are of leaders reacting to situations after their occurrence. Leaders should be able to prevent certain situations through negotiations or conflict resolution. Conclusion: The discussions are clear and full of examples. Heifetz captures most important concepts of leadership. The book is a very helpful introduction to leadership and it motivates the reader to become a more efficient leader. Heifetz knows that leading is a learning process that requires bravery, patience, and a vision. |