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MODELS OF LEADERSHIP. THE HARZBURG MODEL

The most comprehensive rationalization of personnel management in an organization, based on scientific principles, is achieved through the implementation of the optimal leadership model. 

It represents a system unity of styles, techniques, and means of leadership established in relevant organizational structures. There are various leadership models known, but most of them are either merely theoretical constructs or lack any significant practical application.

CONCEPT AND BASIC PRINCIPLES OF THE HARZBURG MODEL

In Europe, especially in Germany, the Harzburg model of leadership is widely adopted. It was developed by R. Hön in the 1950s at the Academy of Executive Personnel in Bad Harzburg.

The essence of this model aims to change employee behavior through "leadership in unity with employees." The development of this model was driven by the belief that the traditional authoritarian management style no longer aligns with a democratic societal structure, particularly the demands and capabilities of modern highly skilled and independent-thinking employees. The Harzburg model seeks to activate untapped employee motivations and support their drive for independent action. According to Hön's vision, it can transform employees from mere followers of orders into thinking and entrepreneurial individuals.

According to the Harzburg model of leadership, each employee should be given specific tasks and provided with autonomy in their area of work. Tasks and competencies should be delegated to the hierarchical level where they can be implemented. This model includes essential elements of management through delegation, framework management, and management by objectives, although it is often characterized as a variant of management through delegation. The significant difference between management by objectives and the Harzburg model lies in the emphasis on the process of goal setting and, above all, the involvement of employees not only in the distribution of tasks already set by management but also in jointly determining those goals.

The Harzburg model is based on the following principles:

  1. Production decisions should be made at the levels where the need for them arises and where they will be implemented.

  2. Production decisions should not be made solely by individual higher or middle-level managers but by many employees.

  3. Instead of giving individual assignments to each employee, a clearly defined field of activity (work area) should be provided, within which they can make decisions independently (this is an element of framework management).

  4. Responsibility should not be concentrated at the top management level. Part of it should be delegated to lower levels or units responsible for specific issues.

  5. Task distribution should follow a bottom-up approach, with decisions transferred to higher levels only if they cannot be competently made at lower levels.

  6. The principles of relationships between leaders and employees should be clearly defined and documented in a special management document. Compliance with these principles should be mandatory for everyone.

The Harzburg model entails a clear, hierarchically structured leadership system. Leaders should be ready to delegate their functions, and employees should be willing to take responsibility, which is shared between both parties. Accordingly, this division implies different responsibilities: employees take responsibility for actions, while leaders maintain overall responsibility, including supervision of activities and control of results. In doubtful or exceptional cases, employees are required to consult the leader, particularly when the achieved results deviate from the set goals (this is characteristic of framework management techniques).

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