TRANSACTIONAL

LEADERSHIP

March 2009
First described by Max
Weber in 1947.
Further developed by
Bernard M. Bass in
1981.
 Considered at the opposite
end of the leadership
spectrum from
Transformational Leadership.
Later became part of a
three style model:
Transformational,
Transactional, Laissez Faire
 ASSUMPTIONS

A. People are motivated by

reward and punishment.
 ASSUMPTIONS

B. Authority is ceded to the

leader in a clear chain of
command.
 ASSUMPTIONS

C. The primary motivation is a

quid pro quo.
The leader creates clear
structures in which
requirements are well
understood.
REWARDS ARE ALWAYS
EXPLICITLY
MENTIONED.
 Punishments are not
always mentioned but
are well understood.
 Negotiation often takes
place at the initial stages
of the leader/follower
relationship, but seldom
thereafter.
“TELLING” more
than “SELLING”
 “MANAGEMENT by
EXCEPTION”
Operations performing as expected
do not need attention; however,
exceptions in either direction
(positive or negative) do!
On the leadership vs.
management spectrum,
transactional leadership very
much towards the
management end of the scale.