Leadership plays a crucial role in shaping the success and effectiveness of organisations. Different leadership styles have emerged, each with unique characteristics and implications. Understanding these styles is essential for leaders and organisations to adapt and thrive in diverse situations. This essay concisely summarises prominent leadership styles, such as autocratic, democratic, transactional, transformational, coaching and laissez-faire.
The autocratic leadership style entails centralising decision-making power, where leaders make decisions independently without seeking input from subordinates. In contrast, democratic leadership emphasises participation, collaboration, and open communication, with leaders actively involving team members in decision-making. Transactional leader-ship focuses on contingent rewards and punishments for performance, while transforma-tional leadership aims to inspire and motivate followers by setting a compelling vision and promoting personal growth and development. Coaching leadership focuses on growth through guidance, support, and mentorship, whereas the laissez-fair leadership approach provides minimal direction and supervision instead of trusting their followers' competence and self-motivation.
By examining each leadership style's key characteristics and implications, this essay sheds light on its strengths and limitations. Understanding these styles will enable leaders to make informed choices and adapt their approaches to suit various organisational contexts and challenges.
Table of content
1 Introduction
2 Leadership types
2.1 Autocratic
2.2 Democratic
2.3 Transactional
2.4 Transformational
2.5 Laissez-faire
2.6 Coaching
3 Summary
1 Introduction
Leadership plays a crucial role in shaping the success and effectiveness of organisations. Different leadership styles have emerged, each with unique characteristics and implications. Understanding these styles is essential for leaders and organisations to adapt and thrive in diverse situations. This essay concisely summarises prominent leadership styles, such as autocratic, democratic, transactional, transformational, coaching and laissez-faire.
The autocratic leadership style entails centralising decision-making power, where leaders make decisions independently without seeking input from subordinates.1 In contrast, democratic leadership emphasises participation, collaboration, and open communication, with leaders actively involving team members in decision-making.2 Transactional leadership focuses on contingent rewards and punishments for performance, while transformational leadership aims to inspire and motivate followers by setting a compelling vision and promoting personal growth and development.3 4 Coaching leadership focuses on growth through guidance, support, and mentorship, whereas the laissez-fair leadership approach provides minimal direction and supervision instead of trusting their followers' competence and self-motivation.5 6
By examining each leadership style's key characteristics and implications, this essay sheds light on its strengths and limitations. Understanding these styles will enable leaders to make informed choices and adapt their approaches to suit various organisational contexts and challenges.
2 Leadership types
2.1 Autocratic
Autocratic leadership is a managerial style characterised by the concentration of decision-making authority in the hands of a single leader or a select group. This leadership type is characterised by a strong central figure who exercises complete control over their subordinates, making decisions independently and without soliciting employee input or feedback. Autocratic leaders maintain a hierarchical structure, wherein information is disseminated unidirectionally, and communication predominantly flows from the top down.7
The autocratic leadership style can be advantageous in the circumstances requiring prompt and resolute action, particularly in crises or when managing individuals lacking experience or motivation. Nonetheless, this leadership approach carries inherent limitations. It tends to stifle creativity, impede employee engagement, and engender an atmosphere lacking trust and autonomy among team members. Collaboration is often discouraged, hindering a team's utilisation of diverse skills and perspectives. Consequently, job satisfaction may diminish, and opportunities for personal growth and development may become restricted.8
2.2 Democratic
Democratic leadership is a managerial approach characterised by the involvement of employees in decision-making processes and the promotion of open communication and collaboration. In this leadership style, the leader encourages participation, seeks stakeholder input, and values their perspectives when making decisions. Democratic leaders establish a supportive and inclusive environment that fosters trust, mutual respect, and shared responsibility among team members.9
The democratic leadership style enables individuals to contribute their knowledge, skills, and expertise, leading to greater ownership and commitment to the team's objectives. It encourages creativity, innovation, and the exploration of diverse ideas and solutions. By involving team members in the decision-making process, democratic leaders enhance employee engagement, job satisfaction, and overall organisational performance.10
However, democratic leadership can sometimes lead to slower decision-making, especially when consensus is sought. Additionally, a more directive approach may be necessary in situations that require swift action or when dealing with highly specialised tasks.11
2.3 Transactional
Transactional leadership is a managerial style that emphasises a relationship between leaders and employees based on exchanging rewards and punishments for performance. In this leadership approach, managers and team leaders set clear expectations and establish specific goals and objectives for their employees. They provide rewards, such as bonuses or promotions, for meeting or exceeding expectations while administering punishments or corrective actions for failing to meet them.12
Transactional leaders monitor and control performance, ensuring compliance with established rules and procedures. They rely on contingent rewards and corrective measures to motivate. This leadership style works well in structured and stable environments where clear guidelines and standard operating procedures are essential.13
While transactional leadership can effectively promote task completion and maintain order, it may limit creativity and intrinsic motivation. The emphasis on rewards and punishments can create a transactional and transaction-focused work environment, potentially inhibiting innovation, and long-term engagement. Additionally, this leadership style may not be suitable for situations that require adaptability and collaboration.14
2.4 Transformational
Transformational leadership is characterised by leaders who inspire and motivate their followers to achieve exceptional performance and personal growth. Transformational leaders articulate a compelling vision, set high expectations, and act as role models for their employees or followers. They stimulate intellectual stimulation by encouraging creativity and innovation and provide individualised consideration by offering support and mentoring to their subordinates. Transformational leaders profoundly impact their followers, inspiring them to surpass their self-interests and contribute to the organisation's collective goals. This leadership style fosters a positive and empowering work environment, promoting intrinsic motivation, engagement, and commitment among team members. Transformational leadership is associated with enhanced employee satisfaction, improved performance, and increased organisational effectiveness.15
2.5 Laissez-faire
Laissez-faire leadership is characterised by minimal or absent guidance, oversight, and involvement from leaders. In this leadership style, managers delegate decision-making authority and responsibilities to their subordinates, allowing them significant autonomy and freedom in their work. Laissez-faire leaders provide minimal direction and supervision instead of trusting their followers' competence and self-motivation.16
This leadership style can be effective when individuals are highly skilled, self-directed, and capable of managing tasks and responsibilities. However, laissez-faire leadership can also lead to a lack of structure, coordination, and accountability. Some individuals may experience confusion, reduced motivation, and diminished performance without clear guidance. Consequently, this leadership approach is often seen as less effective than other styles that offer more active involvement and guidance from leaders.17
2.6 Coaching
The coaching leadership style is characterised by leaders prioritising their followers' development and growth through guidance, support, and mentorship. Leaders adopting this style actively listen to their team members, provide constructive feedback, and offer individualised assistance to enhance their skills and abilities. Coaching leaders foster a collaborative and empowering environment that encourages learning, experimentation, and personal reflection. They inspire their followers to set and achieve goals and help them overcome challenges and obstacles. This leadership style promotes trust, open communication, and a sense of ownership among team members. It is associated with increased employee engagement, improved performance, and long-term professional development within the organisation.18
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1 See, https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/definition/autocratic-leadership, Access 30.05.2023.
2 See, https://councils.forbes.com/blog/how-democratic-leadership-can-impact-your-company, Access 30.05.2023.
3 See, https://online.stu.edu/degrees/education/what-is-transactional-leadership/, Access 31.05.2023.
4 See, https://hbr.org/2021/05/4-actions-transformational-leaders-take, Access 31.05.2023.
5 See, https://online.stu.edu/degrees/education/what-is-laissezfaire-leadership/, Access 01.01.2023.
6 See, https://hbr.org/2019/11/the-leader-as-coach, Access 01.01.2023.
7 See, https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/definition/autocratic-leadership, Access 30.05.2023.
8 See, ibid.
9 See, https://councils.forbes.com/blog/how-democratic-leadership-can-impact-your-company, Access 30.05.2023.
10 See, ibid.
11 See, ibid.
12 See, https://online.stu.edu/degrees/education/what-is-transactional-leadership/, Access 31.05.2023.
13 See, ibid.
14 See, ibid.
15 See, https://hbr.org/2021/05/4-actions-transformational-leaders-take, Access 31.05.2023.
16 See, https://online.stu.edu/degrees/education/what-is-laissezfaire-leadership/, Access 01.01.2023.
17 See, ibid.
18 See, https://hbr.org/2019/11/the-leader-as-coach, Access 01.01.2023.
- Citation du texte
- Anonyme,, 2023, Different Types of Leadership. Autocratic, Democratic, Transactional, Transformational, Laissez-faire and Coaching, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/1371878
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