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Leadership Styles in a Nutshell

Competent leaders in organizations are vital for the future survival of an organization. They are the person who will take the organization from Point A to Point B - Point A, where we are now, and Point B, where we see ourselves in our strategic vision. Without leadership the organization stagnates, and stays where it is now with no prospect of moving forward. In essence it actually means that the organization is moving backwards in relation to opposition companies who are moving forward.

 What is a good or great leader like? What "style"of leadership do they practice? In simplistic terms there are three styles of leadership (although there are many variations and other very important aspects and characteristics of good leadership).

 The authoritarian leader (Autocratic leader)
The authoritarian leadership style is used when leaders tell employees what they need to do, without getting any input from the team members. The style is: I instruct, you do! 

 In itself it seems like an undesirable style, especially in this day and age where people want to know why things have to be done, why it needs to be done in a certain way, etc. This style is, contrary to popular belief, quite useful. Leaders use it when:

  • They have all the information to solve a problem or to get something done
  • When they are short on time, and there may not be time for reasoning and discussion
  • The employees are properly motivated, and they are not offended when instructed to do something
  • The employees have very little experience or knowledge on the subject matter at hand
This style of leadership must not be confused with an abusive style of leadership, where there is a lot of shouting and threatening. Abusive management is not professional, while the authoritarian style can be, and can obtain very good results. 

The secret to using this style of leadership is to not overdo it. If the time is available and the leader wants to gain more commitment from employees, rather use the participative style of leadership.

Participative style (Democratic Style)

With the participative style of leadership the leader includes one or more of the employees in the decision-making process to determine what to do and how to do it.This is a very attractive style of leadership, but the leaders must remain in control and make the final decisions. The leader is still responsible for the actions and decisions, as well as accountable for the outcomes. He or she is still the final authority.

This style of leadership shows signs of strength. Employees are normally inclined to respect it.

The participative style of leadership is normally used when the leader has part of the information necessary to make decisions, while the employees may have the rest. The leaders can never be expected to know everything. That is why good leaders surround themselves with knowledgeable and skillful employees. 

This style is motivational in nature. Employees feel that they are part of the team. It allows the leader to make better and more informed decisions.

Delegative Style (Free-reign style, laissez faire)

The delegative leader will allow employees to make the decisions. The leader, however, must never forget that he or she is responsible for the decisions that are made, as well as accountable for the outcomes. 

This style of leadership works if employees are able to analyse situations and to determine what needs to be done and how to do it. These leaders know that they cannot always do everything themselves. 

Delegative leadership is only useful when the leader has full trust and confidence in the people who are reporting to him or her. 

Good leaders use all 3 these leadership styles, depending on the situation at hand. It depends on the forces involved between the leader, followers and the situation. These forces are:

  • How much time is available
  • Are relationships based on respect and trust or on disrespect?
  • Who has the information - leader, the employees or both?
  • How well are the employees trained and how well does the leader know the task?
  • Internal conflict
  • Stress levels
  • Type of task - is it structured or unstructured? Is it complicated or simple?
  • Laws, policies or established procedures that governs the execution
It is a good thing for leaders in businesses to reflect on their own leadership style from time to time, and on how they may adapt to get optimum performance out of their employees at all levels, to the maximum benefit of the company.

More on leadership will follow later.

For more information, feel free to leave a comment or contact me at koosgouws10@gmail.com.

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