**12. Strategic leadership models**

All the leadership styles are significant in strategic leadership, particularly when to use each of the styles to realize its usefulness. However, transformational, laissez-faire and transactional leadership are the models used in bringing about strategic leadership. Knowing which styles to use as a nurse leader is important when dealing with a complex work environment such as the hospital where varied accomplished health professionals converge to manage the patient.

### **12.1 Transformational leadership**

Transformational leadership devotes attention to charismatic and emotional elements of leadership which emphasize intrinsic inspiration and follower growth.

#### *Strategic Leadership in Nursing DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.104512*

This aligns with the needs of today's workforce, who needs inspiration and empowerment to succeed. Working with teams to identify what changes are needed, building a shared vision to guide the change, and then implementing those changes together with dedicated members of the group are all steps in leadership. By changing roles and responsibilities, leaders motivate their teams to put the interests of the organization ahead of their own. It is a process that affects and transforms individuals under transformational leadership. Leaders can also have a unique and reflecting effect on their subordinates and subordinates. The values, norms, ethics, feelings, and longterm objectives of transformational leadership are at the heart of this approach. It also requires assessing the motivations of followers, meeting their needs, and treating them as individuals... Transactional leaders are responsible for the day-to-day operations of the company, whereas transformational leaders are responsible for bringing in new ideas and implementing them.

According to Bass [23], transformational leadership is defined by the impact it has on the people it serves. Transformational leaders, according to Bass, inspire their people to trust, respect and admire them. Transformational leadership is judged mostly on the impact the leader has on his or her subordinates. Transformational leaders inspire loyalty, adoration, and respect in their followers because of the leader's willingness to go above and beyond the call of duty. Due to the transformational leader's ability to foster a sense of personal value in his or her followers, these results can be achieved. They provide adherents with a compelling mission and vision, as well as a sense of self-worth. It is via academic stimulation, idealized influence (charisma), and personal consideration that followers are transformed and motivated to action. Additionally, the leader encourages his or her subordinates to cultivate inventive and unique approaches to question the status quo and modify the environment to achieve success. Because leadership is a continuum from transformational to transactional to laissez-faire, Bass argued that leaders can simultaneously demonstrate both transformative and non-transformative leadership attributes.

### **12.2 Laissez-faire**

Laissez-faire leadership style is when a leader does not provide leadership that allows followers to look after themselves. Subordinates end up with freedom in deciding which policies and methods to adopt. The leader develops the structure of the work and provides adequate resources for work and helps upon requests by coaching or answering questions or supplying information. However, the leader does not participate in workshop discussions or group tasks. The leader again does not provide comments on followers' performance unless specifically requested. As a result of this, employees may become dissatisfied and fail to meet the goals they had set for themselves.

Negative repercussions are commonly linked to leadership, particularly in terms of follower satisfaction or leader effectiveness [24]. Female leaders are more likely to be transformational leaders, whereas male leaders are more likely to be laissezfaire leaders [25]. Those that have a proven track record of excellence or matured employees are most suited for this type of leadership. Using this strategy, more experienced employees become self-sufficient, productive, and impactful. As a result, the approach encourages team members to be creative and original, which in turn aids in the advancement of their careers. Members see a laissez-faire attitude as a vote of confidence in their talents, which gives them more room to grow into self-assured, devoted, competent, and successful individuals.

#### **12.3 Transactional theory**

The transactional leader directs attention to the use of conditional responses such as rewards and punishments to acquire compliance from followers. Transactional leaders attain goals by seeking to uphold the status quo, not aiming for advancement, whereas transformational leaders endeavor to transform the future by inspiring the followers. Transactional leadership styles result in increased job satisfaction as well as leader job performance. The leader gets the job done with no commitment from the followers. Because of its emphasis on short-term goals, transactional leadership is more like a management style than a true leadership one. Despite these drawbacks, it can be a useful tool in other settings, such as in the workplace.

As depicted in **Figure 1**, leadership is viewed as a continuum, ranging from transformational leadership, through transactional leadership to laissez-faire leadership. This implies while leaders may have a specific style this may not be fixed, as there are points/situations when leaders' styles may depict traits of the other two. Transformational leaders bring a lot of energy and enthusiasm to the workplace, change and new ideas to management, thus more is achieved. Transactional leaders maintain the status quo and ensure goals are achieved through the routine accomplishment of roles and responsibilities with normal energy, whereas laissez-faire leaders normally lack energy and ideas and bring lethargy to the workplace killing at time enthusiasms. Nurse leaders, in being strategic ought to acknowledge this continuum, understand the peculiarities of a particular situation and know and practicalize the best-fitting approach.

**Figure 1.** *Leadership continuum.*
