Leadership, personal leadership and behavior

In the German-speaking world, the term Führung is often used as a synonym for management, whereas in English a greater distinction is made between leadership and management. The difference between management and leadership can be made clear by the following statement: "To manage, the executive carries out the classic functions (planning, organizing, controlling); to lead, the executive behaves in a way that inspires and influences the behavior of others (Bass, 1990, p. 383). While management therefore ensures the functioning of an (existing) system, leadership describes the interpersonal interaction in leadership. The research focus on leadership, personal leadership and behavior therefore deals with interpersonal aspects of management. The focus here is on the following questions: 1. what characterizes successful leadership? and 2. how does personal leadership or leadership behaviour influence corporate success? Current research projects in this area are

  • Neuroleadership: A current research project is dedicated to the connection between leadership and neurophysiology. A magnetic resonance tomograph (MRT) is being used to investigate which neuronal activation patterns can be observed in employees when they are given transformational leadership. For this purpose, test subjects are placed in the role of employees in two teams, with one team being led by a transformational manager and one by a laissez-faire manager. In the scanner, the supposed employees are asked to imagine what it would be like to work in the team led by the transformational manager.

  • The dark side of power: Self-involved department heads with a slight tendency towards megalomania are often perceived as inspiring, optimistic and confident. The extent to which this narcissism is career-enhancing for managers and the point at which narcissism negatively influences leadership quality is currently being examined in collaboration with Ashridge Business School. To this end, several hundred managers are being examined for their narcissistic tendencies and their professional success.