There are key differences between leadership and management. However, a leadership manager is someone who is able to bridge those differences and bring the two together. Such managers are a huge asset to any business, because they can manage their staff, while inspiring them at the same time. It takes a very special individual in order to be able to do both of these things, because management is about control, rules, procedures, and decisions, whereas leaders focus more on soft skills, increasing productivity and inspiring others. Leadership managers, therefore, also have to have a style that is more open and inspiring, rather than authoritarian.
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Leadership managers see themselves as part of the team, rather than above the team. But, at the same time, they have to place themselves in a position wherein others look up to them, and look to them for guidance. To achieve this, they have to truly embody a vision and goal, while at the same time being innovative and being able to think outside of the box. Additionally, they have to be able to cope with complex, high speed, high stress, and ever changing environments. They have to be at the forefront of new technologies, global developments, and more.
Opportunity
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) classifies leadership managers as administrative services managers, who earned an average annual salary of $90,050 as of May 2016 at the bachelor’s degree level. The BLS also reported that there were some 287,300 administrative services managers employed as of 2014, and that they can expect to see an 8% growth in demand from 2014 to 2024. This is as fast as the national average and will translate in approximately 23,500 new jobs.
According to the BLS, there will be a particular demand for administrative services managers who are able to understand sustainability, energy efficiency, and environmental impact. The goal across virtually every organization is to become greener, inspiring its staff to embrace that and, in so doing, impress external stakeholders.
At the same time, risk management, and particularly environmental and financial risk, are two essential skills that good leadership managers are supposed to have. Furthermore, they must have an in-depth understanding of information and records, as we now live in the age of “big data”. Competition is strong, but it is expected that many current administrative services managers will retire soon, which means demand will rise quite significantly.
Career Paths
The BLS has also reported on where these managers work, and what their earnings are. This showed that those who worked in:
- Finance and insurance, earned an average annual salary of $100,240. 8% of administrative services managers work here.
- Professional, scientific, and technical services, earned an average annual salary of $97,850. 9% of administrative services managers work here.
- State and local government, excluding education and hospitals, earned an average annual salary of $90,890. 11% of administrative services managers work here.
- Educational services; state, local, and private, earned an average annual salary of $86,820. 14% of administrative services managers work here.
- Healthcare and social assistance, earned an average annual salary of $83,810. 13% of administrative services managers work here.
Payscale.com has reported on popular occupations for those with a Master of Business Administration (MBA) with a leadership concentration. This showed that:
- Operations Managers earned an average annual salary of $58,958.
- Marketing Managers earned an average annual salary of $51,000.
- Human Resources (HR) Managers earned an average annual salary of $67,407.
- Vice Presidents (VP) of Operations earned an average annual salary of $112,000.
- General / Operations Managers earned an average annual salary of $80,500.
- Senior Business Analysts earned an average annual salary of $78,577.
- Data Analysts earned an average annual salary of $47,000.
Salaries
The BLS has reported that the average annual salary for administrative services managers was $90,050 in May 2016. The bottom 10% earned $49,270 or less per year, whereas the top 10% earned $159,330 per year or more.
Geographical location is a key factor in terms of how much someone can earn in leadership management. That being said, it is important to understand that areas with relatively higher salaries also often have a higher cost of living.
According to the BLS, the top five states to work in as an administrative services manager are:
- New Jersey, with average annual earnings of $130,400.
- New York, with average annual earnings of $128,030.
- Delaware, with average annual earnings of $113,300.
- Rhode Island, with average annual earnings of $112,660.
- Maryland, with average annual earnings of $112,450.
The Payscale.com report has also provided information on average salaries in different geographical locations. This showed that those working in:
- Columbus, Ohio, had an average annual salary of $59,665.
- Houston, Texas, had an average annual salary of $82,500.
- Chicago, Illinois, had an average annual salary of $72,027.
- Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, had an average annual salary of $63,318.
- Nashville, Tennessee, had an average annual salary of $48,000.
- Denver, Colorado, had an average annual salary of $69,000.
- Boston, Massachusetts, had an average annual salary of $120,000.
Employers
A more important factor that influences potential income in leadership management is the company that someone works for.
Payscale.com’s report has also looked at a number of popular employers in the field of leadership and management. This showed that those working for:
- The Boeing Company, enjoyed an average annual salary of $75,663.
- United States Steel Corporation, enjoyed an average annual salary of $61,771.
- Booz, Allen, and Hamilton, enjoyed an average annual salary of $106,125.
- Globecomm Systems Inc., enjoyed an average annual salary of $103,771.
- Intel Corporation, enjoyed an average annual salary of $95,200.
- Anthem, enjoyed an average annual salary of $124,498.
- Healthstream, Inc., enjoyed an average annual salary of $77,500.
- Ciena Corp., enjoyed an average annual salary of $114,000.
- Zotec Partners, LLC, enjoyed an average annual salary of $98,000.
Bachelor’s Degree
It is a fact that in order to gain a lucrative career in the field of leadership management, you will need to have a good education. First of all, you will have to obtain a bachelor’s degree. Fortunately, many of these degree programs from various colleges and universities can now be accessed online. One example is the BS in Leadership and Management Studies offered by NYU’s School of Professional Studies. Their curriculum includes:
- Intensive Writing
- Writing Workshop
- Critical Thinking
- Quantitative Reasoning
- Mathematics
- Calculus W/Applications to Business & Economics
- Mathematical Reasoning
- Precalculus
- Biology of Hunger & Population
- Environmental Sustainability
- Human Biology
- Stars, Planets, & Life
- The American Experience
- Classical & Medieval World
- Contemporary World
- Renaissance to Revolution
- World Cultures: Africa
- World Cultures: Asia
- World Cultures: Latin America & The Caribbean
- World Cultures: Middle East
- History of Music
- Major 20th-Century Writers
- Oral Traditions in Literature
- Visual Expressions in Society
- Calculus with Applications to Business & Economics
- Business Writing
- Business Ethics
- Business Law
- Business Organization & Management
- Intermediate Accounting
- Introduction to Finance
- Intro to Macroeconomics
- Intro to Microeconomics
- Leadership: Theory & Practice
- Organizational Behavior
- Principles of Accounting
- Principles of Marketing
- Statistical Methods
- Sustainable Management Principles
- Special Topics Leadership & Management Studies
- Senior Project: Internship
Master’s Degree
To really advance your career in leadership management, you should consider completing a master’s or MBA degree. This will give you the opportunity to gain advanced skills and knowledge in your field, and set yourself apart from the rest of the crowd. Just like with the bachelor’s degree programs, many master’s programs are now also offered online, which makes it easier than ever to complete a degree without having to completely stop working.
A good example of a highly rated degree program is the Master of Science in Management, Strategy and Leadership offered by Michigan State University’s Eli Broad College of Business.
Admission Requirements
Each school is entitled to set its own admission requirements. However, they are usually quite similar across the board due to the fact that these requirements demonstrate whether or not the applicant has the academic capacity to complete a program at the graduate degree level. For example, the admissions requirements for Michigan State University’s Eli Broad College of Business are:
- A bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution
- Three years’ full time managerial experience
- A GPA of at least 3.0
- The potential to advance into organizational leadership
- Personal managerial attributes
- GMAT/GRE
- Letters of recommendation
- Statement of intention
- TOEFL for non-native English speaker
Curriculum
Schools are allowed to set the courses that make up their curriculum for a particular degree program as they see fit. This is why it is very important to study with an accredited university, as this guarantees prospective employers that your degree included courses that meet the minimum requirements for the profession.
For example, the curriculum for the Master of Science in Management, Strategy and Leadership offered by Michigan State University’s Eli Broad College of Business includes:
- Competitive and Business Strategy
- Developing Managerial Skills
- Strategic Decision Making
- Human Resource Management for General Managers
- Managing the Learning Organization
- International Management
- Negotiations
- Leadership and Team Management
- Creating an Ethical Organization
- Fundamentals of Human Resource Staffing
- Leading the Strategic Change Process
- Corporate Strategy
- Developing Reward and Compensation Systems
- Strategic Analysis
- Managing Diversity in the Workplace
- Talent Management and Development
Financial Assistance
Obtaining an education, especially the master’s degree, is very expensive. It will require a lot of investments in time and money. Luckily, most colleges and universities will be able to signpost you to financial aid, and they may also have scholarships and grants available that you can apply for. At the same time, there are a number of external scholarships that you may want to consider. These include the:
- United Italian American Inc. Scholarship, to the value of $1,000.
- John D. Graham Scholarship, to the value of $3,000.
- Marcia Silverman Minority Student Award, to the value of $5,000.
- Traub-Dicker Rainbow Scholarship, to the value of $3,000.
- Anne Marie Brown Memorial Scholarship, to the value of $2,000.
- Gunvant & Bharati Parekh College Scholarship, to the value of $1,000.
- B. Davis Scholarship, to the value of $1,000.
- Ecotrust Native American Scholarship – Tribal College Students, to the value of $3,000.
- Ecotrust Native American Scholarship – Non-Tribal College Students, to the value of $3,000.
- Lannan Scholarship, to the value of $3,000.
- Traveler’s Foundation Scholarship – Non-Tribal College Students, to the value of $4,000.
- Traveler’s Foundation Scholarship – Tribal College Students, to the value of $4,000.
It should be noted when applying for a scholarship, this will usually mean that you have to meet certain requirements. These include studying at a certain school, taking on a certain concentration, aiming to work in a certain field, demonstrating financial need, holding a minimum GPA, belonging to a certain minority group, being a member of a professional organization, or being of a certain gender.
Certifications
It is not actually a requirement to be certified in the field of leadership management, but it is still a good idea. Having a certification indicates that you have knowledge and expertise in that particular field. That said, getting a certification does require a further investment of time and money, and you often have to maintain certification through continuous education credits. However, most would agree that this is a worthwhile investment because it usually opens new career doors. Some certifications that you may want to consider in the field of leadership management are:
- Certified Manager Certification
- Certified Professional Manager
- IT Service and Asset Manager
- Project Management Professional (PMP)
Associations
Becoming a member of certain professional organizations as soon as you decide to study towards a leadership management degree, even at bachelor’s degree level, is also a good idea. First of all, these professional associations and organizations often offer scholarships and grants that you could then become eligible for. Second, you will always be at the forefront of new developments within your field, thus ensuring that your skills and knowledge are always up to date. Third, you may be able to complete certifications and continuous education credits. Lastly, you can build a professional network that will serve to further your career.
Some of the associations in the field of leadership management you may want to consider becoming a member of are the:
- Institute of Leadership and Management (ILM)
- National Management Association
- Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL)
- American Management Association
- The Management Association
References
- Occupational Outlook Handbook – Administrative Services Managers. (2016, May). Retrieved from https://www.bls.gov/ooh/management/administrative-services-managers.htm
- Master of Business Administration (MBA), Leadership Degree Average Salary. (2017, Apr. 29). Retrieved from http://www.payscale.com/research/US/Degree=Master_of_Business_Administration_(MBA)%2C_Leadership/Salary
- BS in Leadership and Management Studies. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.scps.nyu.edu/academics/departments/mcghee/undergraduate/bs-leadership-and-management-studies.html
- Master of Science in Management, Strategy and Leadership. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.michiganstateuniversityonline.com/programs/masters-degree/ms-management-strategy-leadership/
