The comparison of leadership approaches in Turkish Army Forces and in companies

Leadership varies among companies in practice dimension. In this study, the similarities and differences between the leadership characteristics of commanding personnel in Turkish Army Forces (TAF) and those of managers in private/publicly held companies have been identified.The commanders of military company and higher level commanders are studied as commanding personnel in TAF, whereas middle and top managers are studied as managers in companies. TAF commanders are selected from Land Forces, which reflect the majority of the army.In the study, qualitative research method has been used. In this context, management and organization culture in companies and TAF culture have been analyzedIn conclusion, leadership characteristics in TAF are similar to those in companies. However, in practice there are significant differences e.g. leaders in the army must have the capacity to lead the soldiers in a war in which they may be injured or even killed.Key Words: Leadership, military leadership (commander)