The Leadership Style that Companies Often Overlook...Why?
Colin Thompson
Managing Partner Cavendish/Author/International Speaker/Mentor/Partner
Do you know your leadership style? Leadership is fluid. You’ll always change and improve the way you direct reports to ensure that the organisation grows. The longer you lead, the higher the likelihood that you’ll change your `leadership` style over time. To become a better leader, you need to know where you stand today. Different types of leadership styles have a unique impact on the organisation. In this post, we are going to shed light on different leadership styles. Also, one of the leadership styles that most organisations tend to overlook. Let’s get started!
Defining leadership style
A leadership style revolves around a leader’s behaviours and methods when motivating, directing, and managing others. The leadership style of an individual determines how they create and implement strategies while accounting for the wellbeing of their team and the expectations of stakeholders.
Why you should know your leadership style
Knowing your leadership style is essential because it will help you figure out how you affect individuals who are under your influence. How do you direct the people under you? Do they think that you are a good leader? You should always ask for feedback to know how you are doing things. However, you need to know your leadership style first before asking for feedback. This way, when you receive feedback from junior employees, you’ll automatically decide which leadership style is best and gradually adopt the characteristics of the style in your day-to-day duties.
Knowing your leadership style will eliminate the need for getting feedback. Every leadership style has its pros and cons. Therefore, you should always be on the lookout for areas that need improvement. This is essential because some employees will hesitate to share their thoughts. Here are some of the most popular leadership styles in most organizations.
1. Democratic leadership
This is a popular type of leadership where the leader makes important decisions based on each member’s input. While they’ll make the final decision, every team member has an equal say on the direction of the project. Democratic leadership is one of the best leadership styles because junior employees get to exercise the authority they’ll need to use in the future.
2. Strategic leadership
Strategic leaders focus on the main operations of the company and opportunities?for growth. They accept the burden that comes with their executive duties while ensuring that the working conditions are stable for everyone. This is an amazing leadership style because strategic thinking supports multiple employees simultaneously. However, strategic leadership can be dangerous especially when it comes to setting precedents as to how many people can be supported simultaneously. And the best direction for the organisation.
3. Coach-style leadership
Similar to a coach on the field, the leader focuses on nurturing the strength of every member of their team. They focus on strategies that will allow their team to work together to achieve specific goals. This style is closely related to democratic and strategic leadership. However, it focuses more on the success and growth of each employee. Instead of forcing employees to focus on a set of skills of specific goals, this leader will build a team where every employee has a skillset in something different or an area of expertise.?
In the long run, the leader will focus on creating a strong team that communicates well and embraces the unique skillset of others to get the work done. A manager who uses this leadership style will help their employees improve their strengths by giving them different tasks to try, meeting them to discuss feedback, and offering them guidance. They can also encourage team members to expand their strengths by developing new skills and learning them from others.
The leadership style that gets overlooked
We all want to move forward in life. The person who is content with where they are or focuses on moving backward is abnormal. This means that employees will follow someone who helps them move forward. A leader who knows how to set their team up for success will easily achieve their goals and surpass the expectations of stakeholders.?
Leaders greatly determine the daily experience and engagement levels of their employees every day. Therefore, it makes sense to be the kind of leader that lifts your employees every day. Leaders need to be coaches. They need to be promoted for their leadership qualities and not their experience in upper management.
Most organisations are still using traditional promotion practices. And others are not sure of what they need to do to develop leadership skills in their followers. Since not every employee can be a leader, how do you nurture them so that they can grow?
One of the best ways that leaders can improve their team’s status is by helping them discover and get known for what they are excellent at. Employees will be more engaged at work when they have a leader who focuses on their positive characteristics or strengths.?
Leaders should build their relationships on trust and encourage their teams to focus on their strengths. By doing this, they’ll set goals based on their team’s capabilities, give more meaningful recognition and help their employees grow instead of leaving. The organisation needs employees who are working full-time to minimise turnover and boost their productivity.
Improving your leadership game to create more followers
Leaders should avoid relying on handbooks and company policies to learn how to get by. Instead, they need to focus on getting to know their employees and coming up with creative ideas for empowerment and engagement. If you are a leader, you should start by empowering managers to help employees develop their skills. Creating growth opportunities is one of the most important ways leaders can nurture their employees and reduce turnover.
Leadership styles to avoid
1. Autocratic leadership
This leadership style is the opposite of democratic leadership. The leader makes important decisions without consulting anyone. Employees are never considered before a change in direction. And they are expected to follow the decisions that are stipulated by the leader. A good example is when the leader changes the shifts or working hours without consulting the employees involved. This is one of the worst leadership styles. It can lead to high turnover rates and business closure.
2. Bureaucratic leadership
This is a leadership style where the leader adheres strictly to the rules. The leader can listen to the thoughts of their employees. However, they’ll reject any suggestion that goes against the practices or policies of the organization. Bureaucratic leaders will reject new or strong strategies. They can refuse to change their old practices because they’ve been tried and tested over time. And trying something new can seem like a waste of time or energy. Leaders who don’t nurture creativity and innovation among their employees can harm the organisation’s productivity and performance.
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Conclusion
The leadership styles that we’ve discussed in this post are the most effective in an organisation. You should always strive to work with your team to know their strengths and weaknesses and help them nurture unique skills that will boost their productivity and performance in the long run. Creating a culture where employees get promoted for the leadership skills that they possess will pay off in spades in the long run.
Insights-for-Business-Leaders
The most successful leaders and companies figure out how to build a "growth engine" - a handful of capabilities that provide real differentiation in the market. Leaders who succeed in creating growth engines have generally internalised 10 key points, according to Colin Thompson. How many have you internalised?
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