Business Bites: Leadership and leadership styles

Leadership styles should be tailored to your team members

In her Forbes article ‘Are leaders born or made?’¹, Erika Anderson tells us that, “Most folks who start out with a modicum of innate leadership capability can actually become very good, even great, leaders“. But how should we define leadership?

In Fundamentals of Leadership Development², Franco Gandolfi asserts that, “The combination of five components render a potent working definition of leadership – (i) there must be one or more leaders, (ii) leadership must have followers, (iii) it must be action oriented with a legitimate (iv) course of action, and there must be (v) goals and objectives“.

Based on these five criteria the following definition is used by Winston & Patterson³: “A leader is one or more people who selects, equips, trains, and influences one or more follower(s) who have diverse gifts, abilities, and skills and focuses the follower(s) to the organisation’s mission and objectives causing the follower(s) to willingly and enthusiastically expend spiritual, emotional, and physical energy in a concerted coordinated effort to achieve the organisational mission and objectives”.

We can see illustrated in this definition that leadership cannot be one dimensional. Various pieces of research suggest that effective leaders can adapt their style to meet the needs of the moment and of the team by remaining attuned to the environment to look for setting changes, organisational dynamics, and changes in the business cycle.

Before we look at the different defined styles, we should consider why this flexing of style may be needed.

For example:
a. Within a project when looking to bring a team together and focus them on a common goal through a clear vision and direction are needed, one particular style will be needed.
b. If within that project, you have an individual who is struggling with a new skill, you will adopt a different style.
c. If deadlines are challenging, but you have an experienced and dedicated team, yet another style is needed.

Psychologist Daniel Goleman, famous for his work on emotional intelligence, tells us that dedicated practice and repetition will help you expand your range of styles and this, in turn, will help to boost morale and drive team performance.

Much is written about leadership, but is leadership possible without followers?

Leaders cannot assume that their employees will automatically be followers. Leaders need to learn to attract and retain followers.

To do this, a leader must:

• Take time to explain what is going on in the business to allow followers a better understanding of the ‘bigger picture’ aiding alignment of their efforts with the business
• Be consistent: walk the talk. Do your words and actions always align with each other and in ways that you would want others to replicate?
• Use on the job feedback and peer reviews rather than just the yearly appraisal/review to highlight actions and behaviours that you would like to see repeated. Feedback needs to be timely and honest. From these conversations, you can add actions and goals to the individual’s personal development plan (PDP) to help them bridge any gaps in their skills and knowledge
• Hear what your followers have to say. They will feel appreciated if they feel that they are genuinely listened to, and you may even learn something new. It is important that they understand that you value their contributions and their ideas

Returning to Daniel Goleman, we learn of his belief in the existence of six leadership styles, as stated in Primal Leadership: Realizing the Power of Emotional Intelligence,⁴:

• Coercive leadership style is a command and control approach demanding immediate compliance
• Authoritative leadership style, which is about mobilising people toward a vision created by the leader
• Pacesetting leadership style, which involves expecting excellence and self-direction
• Affiliative leadership style, which centres around building emotional bonds
• Democratic leadership style, which involves creating consensus
•  Coaching leadership style, which focuses on developing people for the future.

Affiliative, democratic and coaching styles are very follower-centric. In her HBR article, ‘Six common leadership styles’⁵, Rebecca Knight explains when each of the styles are most appropriate.

When to use the coercive leadership style
This command-and-control leadership style may work in certain crisis situations where swift, decisive action and a clear chain of command are needed: a corporate takeover or in an emergency room, for instance. In most cases, though, this approach is likely to be detrimental.

When to use the authoritative leadership style
This leadership style is beneficial in lots of situations, and it’s particularly useful during times of change or uncertainty. It can also be integrated into daily operations by reminding your team members of your company’s mission in an organic way. These reminders make the organization’s goals and mission tangible and meaningful for the team.

When to use the pacesetting leadership style
Although this style should be used infrequently, it can work in certain circumstances where your employees are highly motivated and exceedingly competent. But even in these cases, it’s important to balance pacesetting with other approaches to avoid consequences like employee burnout.

When to use the affiliative leadership style
This style builds connections and creates a positive company culture, but it should not be used in isolation. Combining this approach with the inspirational, authoritative style creates more balance by offering both support and direction.

When to use the democratic leadership style
This style is ideal when you’re unsure about the best course of action and want to generate ideas. But it’s not a good strategy when your team members lack experience or information, or in times of crisis.

When to use the coaching leadership style
This style is especially useful during one-on-one performance evaluations, but you can also slip it into everyday conversations. A leader in coach-mode might say, “You’re great at XYZ, but when you do ABC, it doesn’t work as well because of these reasons. Have you considered trying this other approach instead?”

This real-time feedback helps employees grow and learn, rather than letting potential problems linger.

Returning to our earlier examples of when styles may need to be flexed or changed:
a. Within a project when looking to bring a team together and focus them on a common goal through a clear vision and direction are needed, one particular style will be needed. This is authoritative style.
b. If within that project, you have an individual who is struggling with a new skill you will adopt a different style. This is coaching style.
c. If deadlines are challenging, but you have an experienced and dedicated team, yet another style is needed. This is pacesetting style.

There is a plethora of research and information on leadership styles that is constantly being reviewed and revisited. We hope that this article has given you a grounding in the nuances between differing styles.

References
1. Andersen E. Are leaders born or made? Forbes. 12 November 2012. Accessed 10 May 2024.
2. Gandolfi F. Fundamentals of leadership development. Executive Master’s in Leadership Presentation, Georgetown University, June 2016.
3. Winston BE and Patterson K. An integrative definition of leadership. International Journal of Leadership Studies 2006.1;2:6-66.
4. Goleman D, McKee A and Boyatzis RE. Primal Leadership: Realizing the Power of Emotional Intelligence. 2002. Boston: Harvard Business Press.
5. Knight R. Six common leadership styles – and how to decide which to use when. Harvard Business Review. 9 April 2024. Accessed 10 May 2024.

Useful reading
ABDO Business Bites: Leadership