Best Practices For Improving Leadership Skills Assignment

Question

Task: Conduct a research on leadership skills assignment and explore the best practices for improving leadership skills in construction projects in Australia.

Answer

Gaps after reviewing literature and reason for the present research on leadership skills assignment
In Australia, demand in construction trades went for an all time low in 2018. The supply and demand gap are wide with the gulf scalable through the necessary skills set and technical expertise. Extant literature exists on theoretical perspectives but what qualifies for successful leadership skills is still lacking concrete definition. Also, statistical significance is not reported in many of the research papers scrutinized for the study developed within the leadership skills assignment. Critical success factors and core competencies were enlisted but the impact of each of the skills had subjective analysis than objectively numerically established data analysis. A distinction between success factors and critical success factors demanded attention of the researcher. However, a quantitative and qualitative analysis with depiction of overall summarization of which skills contribute the most had been underexplored in the extant literature.

An examination of leadership skills is magnetic to the success of project management. Project management is based on tripod of relevance of cost, quality and timely delivery. Statistical significance though very scant had not much visited on the insights in this perspective of profile of leaders for matching skills to tasks thereby ensuring success of the project and the organization.

The leadership skills assignment outlines that the project managers are laid off in lean times. They are considered as an additional and an overhead cost. The cancellation of projects implies project managers being laid off. The successful project accomplishment of projects requires interdisciplinary skills set. Projects when left non-agreed and not understood become more gigantic for lack of understanding often ending into failure. Management must focus on increasing their attention and relevance of achieving success of projects implementation.

Any project being undertaken requires timely delivery, consistency in quality of services and versatility of skills. Also ensuring quality within specified budget is much of an unforeseen challenge that needs to be mapped with potential and capability analysis. Further, establishment of standards for achievement and evaluation makes the matters intense and hurried. Consistent delivery mechanisms increase the economic and social pressure. For infrastructure and construction projects, establishment of communication networks and other such connections of electricity and water supply require rigorous efforts. Caution needs to be exercised while formulating the plans and careful investigation into comparing the task completion against standards designed. The project workers are trained and certified in Australia. The success of the project outlined in the present context of leadership skills assignment is measured by comparison of extent of customer satisfaction. The present study provided in the leadership skills assignment also extends a revelation on the perspectives on subtle argument prevalent in HR between need for team camaraderie or leadership skills. Though there is profuse literature available for the skills required of project managers but the influence of project managers into getting the task done is missing. Extant literature which is available does not bring out the best practices for exploration of leadership skills. Project manager needs to be specialized in the multiple domains. The construction sector as an industry is still under researched. The research gap outlined in the leadership skills assignment especially in this industry needs to be explored with respect to the best leadership skills in the industry of construction.

Literature review
Leading a set of individuals is always challenging as everyone has their distinct competency and role. The statistical significance of the labor trends had been reported in the form of reports. Report (2018) revealed wide difference between the skills set of project managers and their availability into fitting these roles. Many of the upcoming jobs require project handling and project management skills. Thus, the need to drive change and innovation is of utmost relevance for the organizations to thrive and succeed and individuals to lead. The gap between the requisite talent and that which is available is quite wide and needs immediate redressal. Moreover, the existing workforce is escalating towards the age bracket of retirement. Year 2027 is creating 20.77 million jobs. Strategy and action are essential segments of projects-based organizations which require skills of simultaneously handling people and situations. The ideal skills set include combination of technical, leadership and business management. In 2017 in US 82 percent of the project-related jobs were better paid than non-project-oriented jobs. As per the investigation on leadership skills assignment, job role bandwidth is increasing as much as the pressure to complete tasks and fulfill roles and expectations of customers. Further, employers expect more skills for increased pay. Thus, increasing the knowledge and learning its application goes a long way in building professionalism. Multitude of projects which are based on the principles of customization requires multiple specializations (Sabaa, 2001).

The leadership skills assignment examines the word of Strohmeier (1992) that summarized interpersonal issues for a project manager in multimode: communication, conflicts, motivation and teamwork. Since project managers need to closely scrutinize thus formal authority and influence is discounted most of the times. Thus motivating employees formally and ensuring cooperation becomes difficult and subtle conflicts begin to rise and persist. Communication and coordination with all vendors, employees as a team and customers becomes difficult as micro management and multi specialty becomes contradictory. To overcome these issues illustrated in this segment of leadership skills assignment, emotional intelligence as a human skill is proposed to manage emotions of oneself and others (Goleman, 1998). Sunindijo, Hadikusumo and Ogunlana, 2007 described the significance of EI in organizations as helpful leadership approach into managing organizations in the construction sector. Emotions are at the core of every human being and usually people fall a prey to their pain without gain. Emotional intelligence involves social awareness, self-motivation and managing emotions of oneself and others. Motivating others to perform to the best of their abilities and extending their capabilities. Emotional intelligence helps in serving customers better due to the core concept of empathy which involves being sensitive to needs of the customers. The readings of Abudayyeh et al., 2006 considered in the context of leadership skills assignment mentioned about the addresses safety concerns for the organizations into building an environment and culture of mutual trust and respect. Identification of needs of humans with a set of their priorities is essential for serving both the employees and thereby customers better. An employer builds a better image of themselves when they relate to the safety concerns of their employees. Cox and Cheyne,1999 mentioned project safety as the core criteria of performance that influences building organizational environment of trust and a climate of productive performance. Employees can perform more and better when they know they are not threatened. Thus, it can be stated herein leadership skills assignment that provision of safety valve makes employees feel secure and committed to the organizations. Project manager as lynchpin into formulating and overlooking into project safety plan. Safety plans must be devised for holistic concerns towards ensuring zero defect to their safety. Glendon and Litherland, 2001 mentioned about skills set of project manager into building safety concerns for the organizations. Heerkens, 2015 supported the argument that a project manager is responsible for successful and safe project delivery especially in the construction sector. A project is a commitment from a manager to the firm and his team and trust of organization on his competencies and qualifications. It is essential to maintain the balance of trust and credibility concerns.

Ahearn et al., 2004 mentioned political skills of project managers as an act of understanding others with an ability to influence with knowledge. Human skills are hardwired to explore new dimensions and improving their knowledge and skills set aids in not only their self-development but also socialization plans which are essential towards effective product and project delivery. The study of Rosenau, Jr. and Githens, 2005 considered to prepare this leadership skills assignment highlighted managing expectations of employees and other stakeholders as the core job of a project manager. Block, 1983 brought to light that it is project manager only who signifies image of the organization and his team. The actions and interactions between team and its members govern the quality of relations in the team to prevail. Ferris, et al., 2000 highlighted coalition, resource scarcity and resource competition to be made available according to the prevalent exercise of power and influence. Ferris et al., 2005 denoted four segment of political skills including social dexterity, networking and collaborative approaches, interpersonal influence and apparent sincerity as hallmarks for any project manager to hone for their skillful performance. Project leadership requires in addition to the technical excellence, personal influence and power for the work performance and target achievement. Ferris, 2007 adumbrated political skill as a matter of inspiring support, trust and influence. Fisk, 2014 and Pritchard, 2001 mentioned six skills as strings of the concept of technical expertise which included scheduling, budgeting, reporting, cost monitoring, quality management and looking into contract and risk management as essential core competencies of project managers.

Credibility of articles cited in literature review
An extensive study had been undertaken to achieve the research goal. Since the study obtained in the leadership skills assignment is a pioneer in the concept of revealing more facts and bringing conceptual clarity to the research questions. A careful examination of the paper containing similar textual requirement have been unearthed and an attempt had been made to submit the present research study comprehensively. Various websites, journals and books have been referred to not only as a matter of examination of the credibility of the research publication but as a matter of interest as well. A cross reference check had been made in regards to the scenario of leadership skills assignment to check whether the existing research had been made available. Further, citations of the similar articles as posted here are also attempted to be verified.

Research questions and objectives
Research Question 1:
Successful organizations are built on the premise of successful leaders: which is the best leadership style?

Research objectives

• To understand what critical success factors help in project leadership.
• To gauge the significant skills considered into leadership successful project management

Research Question 2:
Does team concept work best in the backdrop of construction sector?

Research objectives:
Construction sector in Australia is inclusive of qualified workers or not qualified workers and which of the two set of employees perform better

The second research goal outlined herein leadership skills assignment is to explore, understand and appreciate the best practices which are prevailing and which can make the leadership skills more viable for this

Research methodology
Eclectic sources of online data formed the basis for the research. Qualitative analysis formed the foundation of findings. Various research papers from journals and other secondary resources were explored for comprehension purposes. The study developed within the leadership skills assignment took a month of rigorous research to synthesize findings. Further to verify the results in-depth interview of ten professionals from the construction industry validated the findings.

What is the main purpose of the present research on leadership skills assignment?
Various core competencies have been sought after the employers but project managers possess only a few thereby creating a gap between demand and supply. In order to bridge the divide between the two an attempt had been made whereby the best practices for leadership skills in construction and engineering sector is delved deep in the country context of Australia. Also a sublime reason for what constitutes best practice and which leadership style works best for achieving results in critical times where exigency is significant and the project manager is bestowed with the task of weaving many strings into one.

Proposed research methodology:
Reference from experts used in this leadership skills assignment have been sought with their guidance and insights into conducting a focus-in-depth interview before finalizing the final structured questionnaire. Garnering responses from the respondents on likert scales makes it convenient to procure data on the basis of assessment of real-time feedback which helps to evaluate the prevailing perceptions from the set of employees aiding in the appreciation and evaluation of feedback on leadership concepts, style, significance and scope from those forming a part of the team.

Justification of present research method:
The present study build in this leadership skills assignment will follow an analytical approach for the statistical analysis on the subject. Mere understanding on the basis of perceptual understanding is not enough to generalize results. Therefore, it is quintessential to present findings of the report in a structured and objective manner. Both qualitative and quantitative research is helpful when results have to be derived from an exploratory and descriptive type of study. Use of softwares such as SPSS and AMOS aids in the applying the analytical tools for the presenting the findings in a comprehensible manner. The tabular presentation of the data makes it easier to derive meaning and interpretation from the data.

References
Abudayyeh, O, Fredericks, TK, Butt, SE & Shaar, A 2006, ‘An investigation of management’s commitment to construction safety’, International Journal of Project Management, vol. 24, no. 2, pp. 167–174.

Ahearn, KK, Ferris, GR, Hochwarter, WA, Douglas, C & Ammeter, AP 2004, ‘Leader Political Skill and Team Performance’, leadership skills assignment Journal of Management, vol. 30, no. 3, pp. 309–327.

Baker, KG & Waring, TH 1999, ‘Book Review: Working with Emotional Intelligence, by Daniel Goleman. New York: Bantam Books, 1998. 383 pp., $25.95 hardcover’, Family Business Review, vol. 12, no. 4, pp. 375–381.

Cherniss, C & Goleman, D 2001, The emotionally intelligent workplace?: how to select for, measure, and improve emotional intelligence in individuals, groups, and organizations, Jossey-Bass, © [Reprinted, San Francisco.

El-Sabaa, S 2001, ‘The skills and career path of an effective project manager’, International Journal of Project Management, vol. 19, no. 1, pp. 1–7, viewed 6 August 2019, .

Ferris, GR 2007, ‘Political skill in organizations’, Development and Learning in Organizations: An International Journal, vol. 22, no. 1.

Ferris, GR, Perrewé, PL, Anthony, WP & Gilmore, DC 2000, ‘Political skill at work’, Organizational Dynamics, vol. 28, no. 4, pp. 25–37.

Ferris, GR, Treadway, DC, Kolodinsky, RW, Hochwarter, WA, Kacmar, CJ, Douglas, C & Frink, DD 2005, ‘Development and Validation of the Political Skill Inventory’, leadership skills assignment Journal of Management, vol. 31, no. 1, pp. 126–152.

Fisk, ER & Reynolds, WD 2014, Construction project administration, Pearson, Boston.

Glendon, A. & Litherland, D. 2001, ‘Safety climate factors, group differences and safety behaviour in road construction’, Safety Science, vol. 39, no. 3, pp. 157–188.

Goodwin, RSC 1993, ‘Skills Required of Effective Project Managers’, Journal of Management in Engineering, vol. 9, no. 3, pp. 217–226.

Heerkens, GR 2015, Project management., Mcgraw-Hill Education.

Knutson, J 2001, Project management for business professionals?: a comprehensive guide, John Wiley, New York.

Pinto, JK 2000, ‘Understanding the role of politics in successful project management’, International Journal of Project Management, vol. 18, no. 2, pp. 85–91.

Rosenau, MD & Githens, GD 2005, Successful Project Management: A Step-by-step Approach with Practical Examples, John Wiley & Sons Incorporated.

Strohmeier, S 1992, ‘Development of interpersonal skills for senior project managers’, International Journal of Project Management, vol. 10, no. 1, pp. 45–48.

Sunindijo, RY, Hadikusumo, BH & Ogunlana, S 2007, ‘Emotional Intelligence and Leadership Styles in Construction Project Management’, leadership skills assignment Journal of Management in Engineering, vol. 23, no. 4, pp. 166–170.