10 Excellent Leadership Styles and their Relevance for Organizations

Leadership is one of the most crucial aspects of any organization. It is common knowledge that people often change jobs due to poor leadership and executive interests. Influential leaders who can guide the company towards success are a boon for any company as they result in loyal, long-term employees.

Understanding the different leadership styles is essential for HR and management to support the company in finding capable leaders who gel well with their teammates and company culture. While a leader with the right potential can be refined with the help of training, recruiting one with the right mindset and leadership skills will result in enhanced employee management and staff retention.

There are multiple types of leadership styles, such as visionary leader, charismatic leadership, pacesetting leadership style, coaching leader, etc. So, which are the most common leadership styles? Which is the best leadership style? And which is the most effective leadership style? What are leadership styles exactly? And how do leadership styles matter in the grand scheme of things? Let us find out.

What are Leadership Styles?

Leadership Styles refer to the methods adopted by most leaders to manage their employees. Leaders can influence and motivate their employees using a specific style. The style affects how most leaders handle their employees, how they strategize and implement their tactics, and how they improve their team’s morale.

Different types of leadership styles directly affect the organization’s success rate since it affects the employee mindset directly. While great leaders tend to encourage independent thinking and increased automation, a bad one tends to micro-manage their teammates, lowering their morale, enthusiasm, and engagement with the company.

Employees who trust their leaders are likelier to follow them and deliver results. They will also be encouraged to fulfil their duties well if given autonomy over their tasks as they realize their leader trusts them to accomplish their assignments successfully. It also gives them a sense of responsibility towards their functions and ensures accountability.

Employees who have the freedom to accomplish their tasks also provide valuable feedback as they feel free to share their thoughts and have a genuine interest in improving the products, processes, and services of their company. Hence, with the help of the right style, one can enhance their company brand, as well as their employer brand.

Difference between Boss and Leader

In simple terms, a boss is someone who gives out orders and asks their team members to follow them. On the other hand, a leader is someone who leads by example and accomplishes tasks with the help of their teammates. Hence, they create accountability, while bosses expect accountability from their staff.

 Leaders are concerned about long-term solutions to pressing problems, while bosses expect quick fixes to immediate concerns. As a result, the leadership role collaborates with their staff to find answers, while the bosses delegate the same to others to get solutions. Hence, it is common to observe leaders actively interacting with their team while bosses restrict communication by trying to route all contact through them.

Bosses and leaders have the clear distinction of being driven by different ideals. While numbers drive bosses, leaders are more concerned with values. As a result, bosses assume they are the best at their work, while leaders constantly try to improve themselves and develop leadership skills.

The differences between leaders and bosses may not be apparent from the interviews. Hence, understanding their leadership style often helps the management and HR team know whether an individual is a leader or boss and trains them to adapt their leadership approach to the company's work culture.

What is the Relevance of Leadership Styles?

Leadership styles are often influenced by various factors, such as the leader’s personality and experiences. The right leadership style would help the leader understand how to make the right decision in specific circumstances. In the decision-making process, one needs to have a good idea of one’s own leadership style and adapt it as required. A clear vision of one’s style would help smoothly tackle any situation.

The leadership style of the leader or manager also affects the employees working under them. An ideal leader should be able to uplift the morale of their teammates and help them remain engaged with their company. However, if there is a mismatch between the leadership style and the company culture, employees are bound to react negatively to the leader’s initiatives.

For example, if a new manager is micro-managing the team member, they would feel that their company do not have faith in them enough to undertake their tasks effectively. Hence, they would feel demotivated and lose the will to remain productive.

Effective leadership style will also help improve communication within the team as employees would not hesitate to speak their minds and provide valuable feedback. As a result, the management will be able to understand the mindset of their employees and undertake employee welfare activities to have an engaged workforce and improve team bonding.

Common Leadership Styles

There are various common leadership styles commonly adopted by influential leaders. These styles give them a steady persona which helps endear them to their employees.

Hence, let us check out some of the most effective leadership styles:

Coach

A leader with a ‘Coach’ leadership style encourages employees to achieve more by coaching them effectively. While they may not undertake the coaching, they will motivate the staff and encourage them to improve themselves. Coaching leaders can also identify the individual strengths and weaknesses of the teammates and set personalized goals for them.

To help the employees achieve their goals, the ‘coach’ leader also sets clear expectations for their employees and helps them achieve them. They also ensure that the targets are achievable as they know their teammates well.

Being a ‘coach’, leaders with coaching leadership style spend time and effort developing meaningful connections with their teammates. As a result, they create an environment of positivity, understanding and mutual respect.

Servant

A ‘servant’ leader is a servant to their teammates. They will put the needs of their teammates before their own and do everything in their power to ensure their team’s well-being.

They share authority and hence, help others reach their true potential. Although being a servant leader requires high integrity and liberality, it rewards higher morale amongst the team members. The Servant leadership guides their team with a people-first mindset.

Hence, they can effectively make their team members feel valued and engaged with their work, resulting in better productivity. However, it may not be suited for all kinds of work, especially when other competing teams may have different types of leaders.

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