Choosing the Leadership Style That Works Best For Your Organization
Leadership styles have a significant impact on how well and how fast a company grows, especially when it comes to managing construction, where general contractors and project managers handle many team members on top of making sure that each project is delivered on schedule, within budget, and of the highest quality possible.
Concerns about safety and a lack of qualified workers have reached a crisis level in recent years. As a result, the industry needs to develop new ways to get new contracts and grow. Paving the way for success will depend significantly on the leadership styles of the building industry's project managers or general contractors.
Good leaders know the importance of picking the right leadership style for the best performance, output, and employee happiness. While the construction industry is highly laborious and taxing, contractors can still create a workplace that encourages success and helps them reach their goals. However, no one size fits all - no one leading style will work immediately. You need to make sure you have a variety of styles to use to deal with the different situations they face.
What Does It Mean To Lead?
A leadership style comprises the ways, traits, and actions a leader uses to guide, inspire, and manage their teams. How a leader leads can depend on many things, like their personality, beliefs, skills, experiences, or even the current situation. Their style can significantly affect how well they lead their team, develop strategies, carry out plans, and adapt to changes. Remember that a leader does this all while keeping the needs of clients and their team in mind.
Why Is It Important To Know The Right Leadership Style For You and Your Team?
Knowing your leadership style is very important to being a good leader. Knowing which style is right for you and your team can significantly boost your organization's productivity and profitability. Take the time to determine how your leadership style affects the people you lead. This will also help you figure out what leadership skills you need to work on and what skills you already have.
Some leaders can already put their current leadership style into a category and determine if it works for them. How their workers see them is how you can know if it is working.
How Does Your Leadership Style Affect Your Organization's Success?
As mentioned earlier, a leader's style is generally a mix of personality, life experiences, emotional intelligence level, family work, and thinking. However, leadership style has more to do with how well you lead. So, a leader needs to be able to take charge and know when to make an executive choice and when to make a more consultative decision.
Leaders use different methods and approaches to handle their teams and get things done. Their styles show what the leader believes, how they feel, and how they act around their workers. Leaders must ensure that everyone on the team understands what is expected of them and how their tasks affect the project's overall success. They should keep open lines of communication, listen to their team, and equip them with the correct information and trust that empowers them to make their own decisions.
In this section, let us look at some of the critical responsibilities of a leader when it comes to managing their teams and leading them to success.
Some leaders like to make choices independently and relay the action to the team. On the other hand, others want to include their team members in the decision-making process by getting their input. The chosen approach relies on how much the leader believes in their team's abilities and the authority required in the decision-making.
To delegate effectively, you should assign team members jobs based on their skills and give them the tools and help they need to do well. Knowing your team can help you assign the right task to the right person. This will help spread work, help team members learn new skills, and grow without being overworked or burned out.
Leaders need to know what drives their team members so they can adjust how they work with them. Some workers may be motivated by praise and rewards, while others may be more interested in chances to learn and grow. Boosting morale and employee engagement is critical to create a safe and happy work environment.
The Different Types of Leaders
Several popular leadership styles can be used regardless of the industry. Each style has its qualities, strengths, and weaknesses. If you understand these styles and evaluate which is right for you, leaders can better adapt their management style to meet their team's needs and company goals.
An autocratic leader is usually the only one who can make choices and set goals. An authoritarian leader knows what is best and makes tough choices without usually giving a reason. There is no way for them to change their minds, and they rarely ask their team members for feedback. This style can help when time is of the essence, like when there is an emergency or when choices need to be made quickly. This can work for construction, as worksites are often not the best places to learn because they are busy and risky.
Autocratic leaders focus on using their power to ensure their workers' safety. However, they cannot just tell people what to do. Their dictatorship must be based on objective reasons and make their employees believe they are reliable and trustworthy.
2. Democratic Leaders
When leaders use a democratic management style, they get everyone on the team involved in making decisions. They ensure that everyone on the team feels like they can say what they think and feel. Team members take accountability for their work since they are equipped with the power to make decisions and ensure that their voices are being heard.
This style helps your workers grow, learn to solve problems, and develop new ideas by letting them speak and communicate their thoughts. Different thoughts and points of view are considered, which helps people get a fuller picture of their problems.
3. Laissez-Faire Leaders
Leaders who use the laissez-faire management style trust their team members to make choices and finish tasks without constant control. They give workers the necessary tools and help but let them be in charge. This style can work well in places where workers are skilled and self-motivated.
It may seem simple, but the laissez-faire management style can be hard to use correctly. Employees may feel overwhelmed if they feel like they need help to decide. They might need clear instructions because they need to learn their jobs and responsibilities. You will need to find the right balance between freedom and support.
4. Transformational Leaders
Transformational management means that leaders focus on giving their team members more power and helping them grow. They push their workers to do more than they think they can and make plans for the future. Leaders push their team members to keep getting better and growing by having high standards and being there for them. It creates a good work environment where people feel valued and motivated to do their best. Leaders with this style usually put the growth of their employees first and give them chances to learn and move up.
5. Servant Leaders
Servant leadership is critical to making your company more productive and profitable. The people who do the work are taken care of by servant leaders who "serve" the needs of the business. They must be able to listen to and value the views of those who work for them. Then, they can meet their team members' needs and help them with their projects and daily tasks. Being a servant leader means putting the wants of your people ahead of your own.
6. Coaching Leaders
The construction business needs to learn new skills and grow, especially since there aren't enough skilled workers. Coaches are in charge of ensuring their companies have the proper training. Coaching leaders are good at sharing what they know and helping others learn in the way that works best for them. Coaching leaders naturally see other people's skills, weaknesses, and growth opportunities. This means they can create training and development programs that work for all types of learners, and you can add them to your construction crew scheduling systems.
7. Pace Setting Leaders
Onsite work often needs to be done quickly to meet schedules. Even though working rapidly cannot be maintained over time, leaders who set the pace can get their teams through short runs. These sprints are essential for specific projects to be finished on time and on price. Setting the pace at the proper levels of the company has a good effect on the project level.
Tips For Choosing The Right Leadership Style
Leaders of organizations, no matter the industry, must make critical decisions about management styles. It must consider the organization's goals, employee preferences, and how well it fits its culture.
To find the right management style for your needs, consider the business, the type of work, and the organization's goals. For example, industries that change quickly may benefit from a style that is more open to collaboration and flexibility. At the same time, high-risk settings may need a more directive style. In our case, managing construction onsite may require an autocratic or a pace-setting leader. If you work in the office or on the corporate side, a democratic leader may suit you better.
2. Take into Account What Employees Want
Leaders should figure out how their team members like to work, how they talk to each other, and what drives them. This knowledge can help them change how they manage their employees and make the workplace a place where people feel valued and supported. Try having one-on-one conversations with your team and get valuable insights into how they view you as a leader.
3. Fit in with the Company Culture
Implementing and adopting changes will be easier if the leader's style fits the organization's ideals, norms, and beliefs. This alignment helps employees feel like they fit and work together, which increases their engagement and overall success. Using construction employee scheduling software can help you create plans or systems that boost morale and motivate your workers.