Leaders Produce More Leaders

Leaders produce more leaders while managers produce followers. That phrase shows how the difference between leaders and managers can influence the success of a business. As you said under management strategic decision-making section, in order to achieve the desired goals, managers carry the equipment needed to accomplish these goals. I also agree with your analysis of how management affects the employee and their work, while leadership affects the workplace a whole. 

Differences between leadership and management in the decision making process comes down to the different set of skills between managers and leaders. "Leadership means the capacity to influence people's behavior, it concerns using non-coercive means in order to obtain a coerced participation, aiming at the achievement of objectives." (Ivan, 2015) Leadership takes it beyond the typical delegation of management and asks their employees to take matters into their own hands and trusts that they have put the right people in the right place.

There are certainly several qualities that are similar between managers and leaders, while there are also several differences. As you said, "leadership requires skills to be able to motivate others to drive productivity" while "managers insure the daily activities of their employees" are completed. It is a leader's responsibility to encourage growth, for both the business as a whole, and the individual employee. Leaders tend to be goal oriented and individual driven to the sense that the success of their employees is how they measure their own success. In a group setting, "leadership occurs when one group member modifies the motivation or competencies of others in the group." (Ivan, 2015)

Management by walking around, as you mentioned, is a great way for managers and leaders to learn from their employees who are performing the daily tasks of the organization. It is important for both managers and leaders to constantly work on ways to improve the efficiencies within the organization so that the organization, and individual employees, can grow. Having an open line of communication between managers and employees is vital to the success of an organization. 

While I agree that a group of individuals is better than a single individual, I'm not too sure if I agree that "a team is only as great as the smartest person in the room." The group leader isn't always the smartest person in the room, but they can be the most influential. To me, the strongest person in the room is the individual who is able to pull everyone's ideas together to come up with the best outcome, and find the most effective way to implement it. Organizations really only need a few great leaders, with several first class managers to accomplish the goals of the organization. (Kotterman, 2006.)

Reference

Ivan, V. (2015). Leadership vs. Management From Competitive Intelligence Perspective. University Of Bucharest Publishing House. Retrieved from https://doaj.org/article/28fc18875d574b509f824b41bc8a2339