LEADERSHIP

AUTOCRATIC LEADERSHIP

Strengths:

Can increase efficiency -"tighten up" operations.

	Since there are no discussions, it will save valuable time.
	Quick results, especially in emergency situations.
	Chain of command and division of work (who is supposed to do what) are clear, understood by all.

Works well with people who have a low tolerance for ambiguity, feel insecure with freedom and even minor decisions and need full direction.

Weakness:

	The efficiency of one-way communication (orders) is often only apparent as, without feedback, many orders are misunderstood and miss their goal.
	An autocrat (leader) must be an expert on every job under his control since he receives little or no advice or information from his people.
	People usually feel excluded and unimport­ant due to the leader's autocratic rules. They may have low morale and productivity, and sometimes even go for work slowdowns or stoppage and strikes.
	May result in poor or no development of people's potential talent.

DEMOCRATIC LEADERSHIP

Strengths:

	When people have a genuine voice and part in the making of a decision, they tend to view it as their own, support it and try hard to make it work.
	Wide-open, two-way communication and the free-of people to voice their ideas, information and knowledge of specific aspects of jobsprovide a leader valuable ideas and advice.
	When people have a genuine share in decisions and thereby share in the burden and responsibility for decisions, they tend usually to:

(a) Feel important, respected and recognized as valuable (a deep ego satisfaction)/and

(b) Develop rapidly their full potential of effort, talent, accomplishment and value.

Most people work harder, more efficiently, more enthusiastically and at a high level of motivation when they are given genuine responsibility, free­dom to act and contribute to their work and goals. People's deep personal satisfaction in a participa­tive climate results in maximum human contribu­tion to the accomplishment of organizational goals.

Weakness:

	People participation in decisions can consume great amounts of time (in meetings, discussions/waiting for the views of all, telephone calls, etc.) causing inefficiency, delay or inability to decide and act within critical time limits (especially in emergen­cy situations).
	The consultative style invites people to provide their views and therefore, not all the views are considered in decision making. Therefore, at least some of the employees' views may be rejected. This will reduce the motivation of such employees.
	This style, unless carefully handled, can lead to collapse of managerial control by the manager who is ultimately and solely accountable for results.

LAIZZES FAIRE (FREE REIN) LEADERSHIP

Strengths:

	This style, when it works, enables a manager to handle the maximum number of projects, delegated almost completely to others and thus using up very little of his own managerial time -but he is always ultimately accountable for each project.
	Man/workers, especially highly educated, technical and professional ones (doctors, engineers, etc.) thrive and can contribute their best work only if granted wide freedom and responsibility.
	A free rein leader can handle a larger span of con­trol (more people directly reporting to him) than is possible with any other leadership style, the very maximum utilization of people and resources and "multiplication" or "extension" of himself as a manager of many people, projects and results.

Weakness:

By the very nature of free rein leadership, little or no control is exercised over subordinates and thus the risk of errors, even catastrophic ones, is greater than with any other leadership style; un­less the leader knows for sure that his people are completely competent and dependable, and in­deed it turns out that they are, his delegations of responsibility for projects and great freedom can end with deadlines missed or reached but with a series of disasters regarding specifications of pro­jects, budget overruns, safety or legal violations etc.; in short, a leadership style with enormous potential for vast quantities of work produced by a single manager -but with enormous risk as well.

The free rein leader can easily misjudge people and delegate to them projects and give them freedom which may be beyond their own knowledge and personal confidence. Therefore, this may result in failure in meeting targets and achieving goals.Finally, this can affect the morale of employees negatively.

Source: Adapted from http://www.apparelwarehousing.com/Leadership.htm


Please read these sources. It may be useful for your understanding.

http://www.leadership-expert.co.uk/leadership-styles/

What is the best leadership style?

- Each style of management can work well in different situations. It will change according to the particular situation and the people involved.

Autocratic style might work well during crisis because employees often look for a strong leader to tell them what to do. For example: Sales have unexpectedly fallen by 50%, causing uncertainty within the organization. This requires management to quickly take control and put a plan into action.

Democratic style might be more appropriate during a stable situation where employees are trained and able to do their work successfully.

Factors affecting leadership style

1. Personality

These are the personal characteristics of a leader. The personality of the leader may be affected by the heredity, culture, education, parents, culture, etc.

2. Skills and abilities of the manager and his workforce

Confident manager who knows her job well but is faced with an unusual difficult problem may ask ideas on what to do next from staff if they are trained well and are capable – democratic leadership style. On the other hand, when faced with a routine problem, he may just tell the employees what to do because there would be no need to discuss with the employees.

(Skills – acquired or learned talents; Abilities are natural talents – eg. Intelligence)

3. Time constraint

When there is enough time to talk to employees and obtain their views and suggestions for a problem/task/decision, the leader may adopt (use) democratic leadership style. However, if there is no enough time and the decision is required to be taken quickly, then he may adopt an autocratic style of leadership.

4. Organizational Culture

Different organizations have different organizational cultures. For example, organizations that have employee involvement, participation, and empowerment as their shared values will demand democratic leadership style.

Note: Organisational culture = the shared values, norms, and beliefs that guides the behaviours of employees.

5. Rate of change

The rapid changes in external environment require quicker decisions to be made by the leaders. In those situations where a decision has to be made faster, an autocratic style of leadership may be most appropriate.

6. Risk

The degree of risk involved in a decision will affect the leadership style. If a decision has to be made urgently and involves high degree of risk, the manager is likely to be quiet autocratic.

7. Nature of the tasks

A manager is more likely to be democratic in problems or tasks that are complex. The opinions or views of employees and their involvement in such complex problems are important. However, a manager is likely to be autocratic in easy and simple tasks/decisions because there may be no need for discussions.