These roles are often confused. Since management positions come with some degree of formally designated authority, a person may assume a leadership role simply because of the position he or she holds in the organization. But management is about working with people and resources to accomplish the goals of the organization, whereas leadership is the ability to influence people toward the achievement of those goals. You might say that all leaders are managers, but not all managers are leaders. The formal rights given to managers by the organization do not assure that they will be able to lead effectively.
Characteristics such as inspiration, innovativeness, determination and self-confidence have been mentioned as traits common to good leaders. However, each society assigns unique meanings for most of these characteristics, and consequently their importance varies in all societies. These variations in leadership behavior have been the subject of extensive research, focusing on how leadership roles vary across cultures and how the characteristics of leadership behavior are interpreted across boarders.
In short, managers and leaders are not the same, especially when considered from an international perspective (the sole perspective in a globalized world). In any case, it is important for a manager to strive to be both a good leader and great manager.
