Introduction
Leader and manager are among the most common terms in the business world. The two tend to be used interchangeably, but they differ in various perspectives. A manager is employed in an organization or company and has four primary responsibilities: “planning, organizing, leading, and controlling” (Burgoyne, 2012, p. 6). A manager can be effective in leadership but has to adopt the responsibilities of a leader, including communicating effectively, motivating and inspiring, and guiding and encouraging the employees. The way the leader communicates with the followers differs from the way the manager does. The message, communication channel, and the potential for feedback used by a leader is different from the same as used by a manager.
There is a situation where the company is prepared to introduce a new product into the market. The message that will be communicated to the employees involves appeal to take ownership of the product and support its creation. The leader will be marketing the idea to the employees to ensure that they own the idea and are involved from the initial stages. On the contrary, a manager will communicate a strategy that has already been defined and designed and will expect the employees to follow orders in developing the new product. The message used by the leader is more effective as it prevents any chances of resistance to the change among the employees (Hunt, Hosking, & Schriesheim, 2013). Leaders will allow the chance for discussion with the employees.
The main communication channel that the leader will use is a face-to-face discussion where the leader is involved in an open discussion with the employees deliberating all the aspects of the new product. This differs with the channel that would be used by a manager, including passing the news about the strategic plan through the company’s bulletin. At this point, the product has already been developed, and the employees are being told that it is being introduced into the market and they should embrace it. The channel used by the leader is effective in that the employees have higher chances of owning the product (Hunt, Hosking, & Schriesheim, 2013). The manager, on the other hand, risks resistance among the employees.
The open channel of communication used by the leader provides room for feedback and inquiries to ensure adequate understanding (Bens, 2012). When the employees are involved in a face-to-face discussion, they have the opportunity to ask questions, give their opinions and feedback on the viability of the new product. This is effective and differs from the indirect communication channels used by the manager which do not give any room for feedback or questions. The leader also ensures that the ideas presented by the employees are incorporated in the development and introduction of the new product into the market.
Conclusion
Communication is an important aspect of success in business. Hence, it is critical that the most effective channels are used to communicate the message of a new product to the employees comparing the communication channels used by a leader and a manager, the former communicates more effectively. It is possible for a manager to apply the same channels of communication as a leader. It would be effective for the manager to adopt the leadership responsibilities for more effective running of the organization. Leaders are better placed to have a team of employees that is highly motivated to achieve the vision, goals, and objectives of the organization.