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INNOVATIVE LEADERSHIP AS AN EFFECTIVE TOOL OF ACHIEVING ORGANIZATIONAL GOALS

ABSTRACT

The setting of organizational goals is the beginning of a great task to be performed in the face of intense competition in a complex business environment. This may not be attained except the organization is headed by a sui generis gem. The study looked into Innovative Leadership as an Effective Tool in Achieving Organizational Goals, a study of Lagos State Ministry of Works and Infrastructure, as a way of examining the leadership and management needs of an organization. A sample of hundred respondents were drawn from the population using simple random sampling technique and percentages, statistical table and chi square were used to present and analyze the data and test the hypotheses respectively. The result revealed that there is significant relationship between innovative leadership and setting of organizational goals, innovative leadership influences teamwork, there is a significant relationship between innovative leadership and good management and innovative leaders are result oriented. The researcher thus recommends that organizations should embark on regular training and development programmes to help their employees improve their competence, they should put in place internal environment that encourages performance and leaders should not be domineering but influencing.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1   BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY

Innovative leadership is an essential element of effective tool in achieving organizational goals. Without developing the necessary leadership attitudes and skills, it is impossible to manage subordinates effectively. From a managerial stand point, innovative leadership is the process of influencing others toward the accomplishment of goals (Agarwal cited in Yalokwu 2006). Through innovative leadership, employees can be induced in a less threatening and acceptable way to contribute their optimum to the achievement of organizational goals. Innovative leadership is simply the art of influencing others to direct their will, abilities and efforts to the achievement of a leader’s goals. In the context of organizations, innovative leadership lies in influencing individuals and groups effort toward the optimum achievement of organizational goals. The human relations movement, beginning with the Hawthorne studies in the early thirties, focused on the important role of employee motivation and group norms for organizational goals. This led to the recognition of leadership effectiveness as an effective tool in achieving organizational goals. It is therefore, managers in their leadership roles who have the capacity to stimulate and inspire employees to contribute willingly, co-operatively and zealously to the optimum achievement of organizational goals. Innovative leadership gives directions to the efforts of all workers in accomplishing organizational goals. Hence, innovative leadership is indispensable if an organization is to be successful.

Every individual has some dreams and goals for his/her betterment, improvement or successful future. But unfortunately only having dreams and goals is not sufficient. We need to take practical steps and actions to get them in a better way and these steps and actions demand different kind of knowledge, skills and talent to become successful. Likewise, in order to get high level of long term success and sustainability organizations need to take some practical steps. While talking about these practical steps for organizations, scholars and researchers agree that organizations need to accept, adopt and implement goals in their business model according to goals trends, technologies, customer preferences and future concerns. Many authors wrote massively in this area. At the one end, organizational goals are a demand of time to remain successful in organization (Caetano, 1999).

Boston, at the other end claims that organizational goals are important for long term success and survival of an organization. There are possibilities for organizations to lose their repute and market share if they do not prepare themselves according to rapidly goals circumstance and situations (Boston, 2000). Scholars and researchers also agree on the point that innovative leadership is very important while managing organizations or addressing the issue of organizational goals. Innovative leadership is a key while the issue of organizational goals and effective leader can bring innovative change for an organization (Kennedy, 2000). In their book “organizational goals”, Senior and Fleming discuss the role of leadership and claim that a leader is a goal agent who can take initiative and bring goals for organization (Senior and Fleming, 2006).

Knowing the importance and implication of organizational goals and admitting that organizational goals is the demand of a time, for sustainable success and leader/leadership can play a pivotal role in formulating and implementing these goals, by deciding the desired form of an organization and taking the practical steps which are needed for the process. The next obvious question which one can have is ‘what kind of leadership is needed for innovative organizational goals?’ At the point where the authors agrees and accept that the role of a leader is crucial for managing organizational goals, at the same point is very complex and challenging. A competent and innovative leadership is required to manage the situation. Gruban, (2003) highlights that leadership competencies have a great relationship with successful organizational goal and a competent leader may prove more innovative in managing the goal process successfully. Bennis, (1987) also acknowledges the special qualities and characteristics are required from a leader to derive successful organizational goals.

1.2   STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Effective leadership is, no doubt, an essential ingredient, an indispensable element in any result oriented organization. Hicks and Gullet (1976) as cited in Peretomode and Peretomode (2005) in their work titled Human Resource Management, supported this view when they noted that the successful, result-oriented organization has a major attribute that distinguishes it from an unsuccessful organization, and that is, dynamic and effective leadership, call it resourceful leadership. Organizational performance is thus related to the quality of leaders possessed by it. However, some factors may frustrate the efforts of a good leader and make him seem non-effective and efficient. The internal and external environment a leader finds himself has a great deal of impact on his performance. While an averagely competent leader in a fair environment may perform very well, a better leader in a very challenging environment may perform less, especially if not given enough time to understand the environment and identify the organizations major constraint, weakness and strength in that environment.  This makes the modality for recognizing good leaders in different fields of business and their leadership quality difficult. This research work is aimed at looking critically into this, and proffering solutions so that the line of problems that may arise from inability to recognize competent leaders will be minimized.

1.3   OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

1. The aim of the study is to assess the effect of innovative leadership on organizational goals.

2. To examine the effect of innovative leadership in achieving organizational goals.

3. To examine the effective tools needed to achieve organizational goals.

4. To examine the relationship between innovative leadership and good management

5.  To make appropriate suggestion.

1.4    RESEARCH QUESTIONS

1. Is there any relationship between innovative leadership and organizational goals?

2. Does innovative leadership influence teamwork?

3. Is there a relationship between innovative leadership and good management?

4. Is innovative leadership result oriented?

1.5     RESEARCH HYPOTHESES

The statement of hypotheses is as follows:

1. H0: There is no relationship between innovative leadership and setting of

organizational goals.

H1: There is a significant relationship between innovative leadership and setting of organizational goals.

2. H0: Innovative leadership does not influence teamwork.

H1: Innovative leadership influences teamwork.

3. H0: There is no relationship between innovative leadership and good

management.

H1: There is a significant relationship between innovative leadership and good management.

4. H0: Innovative leadership is not result oriented.

H1: Innovative leadership is result oriented.

1.6    SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The result of this study will produce basis for the explanation of the importance, usefulness and the effect of innovative leadership on any given organization. The result will be useful to leaders in both public and private organization or better still to government officials and policy makers on how to manage organizations to achieve the objectives of the given organization. The findings of this study will help other researchers in their work on innovative leadership and its effects on organizational goals.

1.7   SCOPE OF THE STUDY

A study of this nature, which has a deal on innovative leadership as an effective tool in achieving organizational goals will only be viewed at a particular sector. This work would have been made to span Lagos State, but due to time, finance, scarcity of literature and other relevant data on the subject matter, it would cover Lagos State Ministry of Works and Infrastructure as a case study.

1.8       LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

The study was faced with the suggested problems in the course of the project:

i.  Fear on the part of junior staff to release needed data.

ii. Inability to reach senior staff to attain data not retrievable from junior staff.

iii. Time and finance, no doubt, constitute some constraints to every project and this one is not an exception.

1.9   DEFINITION OF TERMS

The terms used in this research are;

INNOVATION: Is generally understood as the successful introduction of a better thing or method. It is the embodiment, combination, or synthesis of knowledge in original, relevant, valued new products, process, or services.

LEADERSHIP: is simply the art of influencing others to direct their will, abilities and efforts to the achievement of a leader’s goal.

ORGANIZATION: The term organization is a very broad term and can be described in multiple ways. Traditionally an organization is intentionally designed social unit that consists of a team or a group of people that work together for the benefits of an organization on a continuous basis to get the organizational targets and goals.

TOOL: A thing that help you to do your job or to achieve or to relate to individuals, team-level assessments, private companies from the smallest to the largest.

EFFECTIVE: Producing the result that is needed or wanted to produce a successful result.

GOALS: Is the ability of an organization to achieve a goals or targets.

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