Staying focused and organized, be it teaching a classroom, hosting an event, running a business, or even planning a wedding, are the foundations of effective management, the most powerful skill of all. Learning to organize the tasks and adopt a step-by-step approach to accomplish them effectively is an art as well as science. Unfortunately, not many people are familiar with it, leading to a prolonged struggle phase and a long journey towards success compared to those who excel in it.
Managing time, people, operations, and organizations is not an easy skill to develop. From job workers to entrepreneurs and from homemakers to students, management skills are necessary for all. It helps individuals turn into exceptional leaders and also helps them become an asset for their organization. Individuals with an ability to manage things without getting overwhelmed have a better chance of achieving their life goals.
The best thing is that people can develop this skill over time as it is not always innate among people. When it comes to helping people develop and hone their management skills, Mahfooz Ansari is a name that dominates the industry. Born and raised in India, he realizes the significance of ‘management.’ He has dedicated his life to management-related research, becoming a prominent professional in this niche.
A Successful Professor with a Vast Experience
As a prolific scholar of leadership and social influence, Mahfooz is helping people become better leaders by equipping them with powerful management skills. He was born in a small Indian village of Gaya District in 1949 and has always been passionate about human psychology. After graduating from High English School in Madanpur, he entered Gaya College to acquire a Bachelors’ (honors) degree in psychology. With a passion for turning his passion into a career, he moved to the United States to complete his master’s degree in industrial and organizational psychology from the University of Kansas. Upon completing his master’s, he enrolled in the University of Patna and received a doctorate in the same field.
He developed an interest in the management sector and wanted to establish a link between management and leadership, which became the basis of his research. After completing his education, he spent much of his time creating a research program that revolved around three aspects: the Power-Influence Approach to Leadership, Leader-Member Exchange (LMX), and the Cultural Context of Leadership and Social Influence.
He started as a lecturer at the University of Magadh (A. M. College Gaya) in 1971 and has since then taught in several Indian institutes, including Gaya College Gaya, A.N.S. Institute of Social Studies Patna, and the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur. He has also held visiting professorship at the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati, and the North-Eastern Regional Institute of Management Guwahati. He traveled to Malaysia in 1994, where he was appointed as a professor of psychology for the UIA International University Malaysia and then as a professor of management at the University Science Malaysia.
After spending 12 years in the Malaysian education sector, he moved to Canada in 2006, where he joined the University of Lethbridge. He was hired as a Visiting Professor of International Management and Human Resources Management & Organizational Studies. In 2009, while he was serving as a professor in Canada, Mahfooz earned full professorship. He was appointed as a chair of the HRM & OS Area in 2009 and chair of the International Management Area in 2015. He has also held visiting professorship in universities in Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Turkey, and India. Mahfooz has supervised more than 25 doctoral dissertations and over 60 master’s thesis during his professorship at different institutes.
A Prominent Identity in the World of Management
While serving as a professor, he did not stop his research. During all this time, Mahfooz authored several papers that revolved around leadership and social influence. The key areas of his research included organizational behavior, interpersonal relationships, business ethics, leadership, and organizational development. He has authored research papers for notable platforms. Some of these include Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes; Journal of International Business Studies; Human Relations; Journal of Business Ethics; Sex Roles; Management and Organization Review, Leadership & Organization Development Journal; Journal of Applied Social Psychology; and Journal of Social Psychology.
Mahfooz has worked with researchers from across 40 countries, which helped him publish over 90 refereed journal articles and book chapters. His research papers acquired widespread acknowledgment, which led him to receive several best paper awards from the Academy of Management and the Outstanding Paper Award at the Emerald Literati Network Awards for Excellence. Not only this, but he has presented his research at several conferences in the United States, Norway, Canada, India, Japan, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, and several others. He has, up till now, been part of 150 presentations.
He has also authored two books, ‘Managing People at Work: ‘Leadership Styles and Influence Strategies’ and ‘Managing Dyadic Interactions in Organizational Leadership,’ published in 1990 and 2000, respectively, by Sage Publications. His books serve as guides for all those professionals who are working towards developing management and leadership skills. Mahfooz has served as a member of the editorial board, including the Journal of World Business, Journal of Leadership and Organizational Studies, Cross-cultural & Strategic Management, FWU Journal of Social Sciences, and Pakistan Journal of Psychological Research. Dr. Mahfooz Ansari is an Indian born, Canadian management professional, author, public speaker, and researcher who has acquired an esteemed position on a global level due to his extensive research work in the field of leadership and management.
