Chapter 3 – Skills Approach What leaders can do
The skills approach shifts attention from innate traits to learnable abilities. Katz’s classic three-skill model identifies:
- Technical skills – expertise in methods, tools, and processes.
- Human skills – ability to work with people and build relationships.
- Conceptual skills – capacity to work with ideas, strategy, and complexity.
Katz argued that technical skills are more important at lower levels, while conceptual skills become critical at the top, and human skills are essential at all levels. Mumford’s skills model extends this by including individual attributes, competencies and leadership outcomes.
1. Explain the key idea behind Katz’s three-skill model. How do technical, human, and conceptual skills vary across different management levels?
Katz’s model suggests that effective leadership depends on three skill categories: technical, human, and conceptual. Lower-level managers rely heavily on technical skills because they work directly with specific tasks and processes. Human skills are important at all levels because leaders must communicate, motivate, and resolve conflict. Conceptual skills become more critical at higher levels, where leaders work with abstract ideas, strategy, and the organization as a whole.
2. Compare Katz’s three-skill model with Mumford’s skills model. What new elements does Mumford add?
While Katz focuses on three broad skill categories, Mumford’s model is more detailed and developmental. Mumford adds: (1) individual attributes (cognitive abilities, personality, motivation); (2) competencies (problem-solving skills, social judgment, and knowledge); (3) leadership outcomes (performance, effectiveness); and (4) the influence of career experiences and environmental influences. This shows how experiences and context shape leadership skills over time.
3. How does the skills approach emphasize the idea that leadership abilities can be learned and developed?
The skills approach treats leadership primarily as a set of capabilities rather than fixed traits. It argues that through training, education, challenging assignments, and feedback, individuals can improve their technical, human, and conceptual skills as well as their problem-solving and social judgment. This implies organizations can intentionally develop leaders, not just search for people who already have the “right” traits.
4. What is the relationship between individual attributes, competencies, and leadership outcomes in the skills model?
In Mumford’s model, individual attributes (e.g., general intelligence, personality, motivation) create the foundation for developing competencies such as problem-solving skills, social judgment, and domain knowledge. These competencies, in turn, shape leadership outcomes like quality of solutions, team performance and effectiveness. Career experiences and environment moderate these relationships, helping or hindering the development of competencies.
5. What are the main strengths and criticisms of the skills approach in understanding leadership effectiveness?
Strengths: (1) It is leader-centered but teachable, emphasizing development; (2) it provides a clear structure for training programs; (3) it recognizes the role of problem-solving and social skills in real leadership. Criticisms: (1) the model is complex and sometimes descriptive rather than predictive; (2) the skills–outcomes link is not always clearly tested; and (3) it may underplay traits and organizational constraints that also affect effectiveness.