Leadership in Crisis - A Case Study on Leadership during the Economic Crisis in Britain

Abstract: This paper addresses the behaviour of business leaders during the economic crisis in Britain during the period 2007-2010. It looks at the theory of Leadership as presented by DuBrin, other writers and researchers comparing it to what is practiced in Britain in order to see if it is the right approach. Through historical data with proper research we are able to tell the approach that these Leaders have exhibited. We also looked at the Leadership style used in other countries that have gone or are going through economic crisis like the United States. The paper looks at the leadership traits, skills and responsibilities which are ideal in dealing with crises, in particular economic crises, and investigates the best leadership styles and traits for best practice in industry in dealing with economic crisis. A study of leadership at the national crisis level, more likely a macro-management scenario, gives a clear insight to leadership practices during crises. In this case, a questionnaire was designed and distributed to individuals who have/had a part in various organisations in making crucial decision or witnessed firsthand decision making during the recent economic crisis. In designing the questionnaire, majority of the answers were given based on a scale of one to ten, the Likert Scale. The results of the research pointed to certain traits which successful crisis leaders possess and also show the presence of transactional leadership mixed with charismatic leadership during crisis.