Connecting Leadership Theory and Practice for Today's Businesses

Essay from the year 2018 in the subject Leadership and Human Resources - Miscellaneous, grade: A, , language: English, abstract: Many of today’s leadership models derive from theories created long before the term ‘leadership’ was coined. To understand these recent models, it is important to know where they developed from. This essay considers some of the initial leadership theories and connects them with their recent followers before exploring how leadership theory is applied in today’s management practice.Since the forming of groups at the beginning of mankind, leaders headed groups of individuals, some by choice of the group, some by personality, some took leadership by force, and others led by what they assumed to be divine right. Leadership developed over time, but even the most contemporary leadership styles still bear close links with their roots. To consider the connections of today’s leadership with the initial models, the history of leadership is briefly visited, and recent theories are explained before a link between leadership theory and practice and the application of leadership is made.