What is Charismatic Leadership? 

Charismatic leadership as "resting on devotion to the exceptional sanctity, heroism or exemplary character of an individual person, and of the normative patterns or order revealed or ordained by him" (Weber, 1922). 

He defines Charisma as "a certain quality of an individual personality, by virtue of which he is set apart from ordinary men and treated as endowed with supernatural, superhuman, or at least specifically exceptional powers or qualities. These are such as are not accessible to the ordinary person, but are regarded as of divine origin or as exemplary, and on the basis of them the individual concerned is treated as a leader (...). How the quality in question would be ultimately judged from an ethical, aesthetic, or other such point of view is naturally indifferent for the purpose of definition".

Gardner & Alvolio (1998) define charismatic leadership as an impression management process enacted theatrically in acts of framing, scripting, staging, and performing. 

What is the Origin of the Charismatic Leadership?

German Sociologist Max Weber distinguished back in the 1920's three ideal types of leadership, domination and authority:

• Charismatic domination (familial and religious),
• Feudal / Traditional domination (patriarchs, patrimonalism, feudalism), and
• Bureaucratic / Legal domination (modern law and state, bureaucracy).

What are the Phases of Charismatic Leadership? 

Robert House (1977) used four phrases to define charismatic leadership:

• Dominant.
• Strong desire to influence others.
• Self-confident.
• Strong sense of one’s own moral values.

What are the Behavioral Attributes of Charasmatic Leadership?

Conger & Kanungo (1998) describe five behavioral attributes of Charismatic Leaders:

• Vision and articulation.
• Sensitivity to the environment.
• Sensitivity to member needs.
• Personal risk taking.
• Performing unconventional behavior.

What is the Process of Charismatic Leadership? 

Jay Conger (1989) proposed the following four-stage model of charismatic leadership:

• Continual assessment of the environment and formulating a vision.
• Communication of vision, using motivational and persuasive arguments.
• Building trust and commitment. subordinates must desire and support the goals of the leader and this is likely to be accomplished by more than coercion; rather the leader builds trust in the leader and the viability of the goals; this is likely to be done through personal risk taking, unconventional expertise, and self-sacrifice.
• Achieving the vision. Using Role modeling, empowerment, and unconventional tactics.