The two terms, leadership and management, are often used interchangeably, but there are key differences; let's explore them.

Some people use the terms "leadership" and "management" interchangeably, and while this is not fundamentally wrong, there is still a debate about their similarities or differences.

Is it just a matter of preference, or are there clear differences that define each term?

Ronald E. Riggio, professor of leadership and organizational psychology at Claremont McKenna College, described his view of the difference between the terms. He noted that the common distinction between "leadership" and "management" is that leaders tend to perform the "higher" functions of an organization, while managers perform the more mundane tasks.

However, Riggio believes it's just a matter of semantics, as successful and effective leaders and managers must basically do the same things. They must set the standard for followers and the organization, be willing to motivate and encourage, build good working relationships with followers, be a positive role model and push their team to achieve goals.

He explains that there is a history that explains the difference between the two terms: business schools and "management" departments adopted the term "manager" because the prevailing view was that managers were in charge.

They continued to be seen as "professional workers with critical roles and responsibilities to support the success of the organization, but leadership was not usually in the everyday vocabulary of management researchers."

Leadership, on the other hand, originated with organizational psychologists and sociologists who were interested in the different roles in all types of groups.

So "leader" became a term that defined someone who played a key role in "making group decisions and setting the direction and tone for the group. For psychologists, manager was a profession, not a key role in a group."

As their research began to merge with business school settings, they brought the term "leadership" with them, but the terms continued to be used to describe different things.

The short answer according to Riggio is no, not really; simply because leaders and managers need the same skills to be productive and respected.