Am I a leader? A com­par­is­on of man­age­ment styles

There are many different ways to lead a team. Depending on the situation and goal, different skills are also required. There are es­sen­tially three different types of lead­er­ship: managers, leaders and experts.

How do you recognise which man­age­ment style you are most suited for, or prefer? What is behind the three main types of lead­er­ship?

Man­age­ment in terms of a directing function includes tasks like setting goals, drawing up plans, making key decisions and giving in­struc­tions. This makes it clear that man­age­ment is a control or ad­min­is­trat­ive activity.

Lead­er­ship focuses on direct in­ter­ac­tion between the manager and the employees. In this type of lead­er­ship, the com­mu­nic­a­tion skills of the leader and the ability to built trust with and amongst employees are important. Lead­er­ship depends on in­ter­ac­tion in both dir­ec­tions, from leader to employee and vice versa. These com­mu­nic­a­tion skills are less important for man­age­ment, which tends to function “from above”. Lead­er­ship can therefore be clas­si­fied as a personal type of lead­er­ship.

Leaders convey a vision and therefore provide a long-term per­spect­ive. They mobilise and motivate employees. Leaders also involve their team directly in the project, tapping into existing potential and ensuring cohesion within the company. They work closely with their team and exchange ideas with them on a regular basis.

The expert is re­spons­ible for a certain quality standard due to their pro­fes­sion­al com­pet­ence. They pass their knowledge along to employees and are available for advice. With this type of lead­er­ship, the focus is on the substance itself, which means that personnel man­age­ment can sometimes be neglected as a lead­er­ship aspect. Since their knowledge places them at a natural advantage, expert leaders often make most decisions them­selves.

In the workplace, man­age­ment styles have decisive in­flu­ences on everyday working life and are an important con­trib­ut­or to a company that performs well. Good lead­er­ship is par­tic­u­larly important for mo­tiv­at­ing employees. It is no secret that satisfied employees who enjoy their job also achieve better results. As a manager, you should be clear about your personal man­age­ment style.

Es­sen­tially, every larger company needs both good managers who can secure the business and have the or­gan­isz­a­tion under control, and leaders who can lead different teams, promote ini­ti­at­ive and in­nov­a­tion, and keep the or­gan­isz­a­tion of managers in mind, as well as experts with the necessary know-how to implement ideas.

Types of guides and their special features:

Each of these three types of lead­er­ship requires different com­pet­ences. Com­mu­nic­a­tion with employees also varies according to lead­er­ship style. A manager is usually good at or­gan­isz­ing and keeps an eye on everything. A leader should be able to lead a team and develop the employees. The expert, on the other hand, should enrich the company through their knowledge, advising both managers, leaders, and their teams.

One person on their own cannot perform all these functions. In practice, it often turns out that a good manager is not always a good leader; experts who are also strong leaders are also rare. As a manager, you should strive to con­stantly develop your skills, expand your range of activ­it­ies, and con­stantly question yourself.

An au­thor­it­ari­an man­age­ment style motto would be “Do as I tell you!” This means that the leader is the only one with the authority to make decisions and en­cour­ages employees to follow their in­struc­tions. This style is par­tic­u­larly re­com­men­ded in emergency situ­ations where quick action is required. This means that everyone is working towards the same goal, and decisions do not need to be discussed at length.

As a leader, you should strive for au­thor­it­ari­an lead­er­ship in ex­cep­tion­al situ­ations. Be clear and precise in your state­ments and when you dis­trib­ute tasks. Specify clearly what needs to be done and who should complete each task. You should not get involved in dis­cus­sions. This style requires a high degree of as­sert­ive­ness.

But beware! A per­man­ently au­thor­it­ari­an style can con­sid­er­ably worsen the working at­mo­sphere and dis­cour­age employees. Therefore, combining it with a different style is re­com­men­ded. Ad­di­tion­ally, you should treat your employees with respect during all in­ter­ac­tions and apply some self-re­flec­tion to your approach.

An au­thor­it­at­ive guidance lead­er­ship style con­trib­utes to an great employee en­vir­on­ment. This man­age­ment style is a good choice, es­pe­cially in times of crisis, when a company is changing, or when employees lack prospects. The main focus is on the team. The leader decides what to do, but pays attention to the freedom and in­de­pend­ence of in­di­vidu­al employees. This en­cour­ages team members’ own com­mit­ment.

Char­ac­ter­ist­ic of this style of lead­er­ship is, above all, the leader’s will­ing­ness to com­mu­nic­ate. Although they embody authority, they should not make that a constant focal point. Instead, they should encourage their employees to follow along and con­trib­ute their own ideas and opinions. This gives employees the feeling of being able to work on their own, have some re­spons­ib­il­ity and develop their own skills. However, sometimes, it can be easy to lose sight of the common goal when con­cen­trat­ing on the whole team.  

Empathy and social skills are required in an af­fil­i­at­ive man­age­ment style. It’s about building positive re­la­tion­ships between col­leagues and open com­mu­nic­a­tion within the team. This man­age­ment style is a good choice, es­pe­cially if there are problems on the team or if an employee needs advice.

This lead­er­ship style is the right one for you if you want to in­cor­por­ate humanity into your actions. Af­fil­i­at­ive leaders have un­der­stand­ing for their employees when it comes to solving problems and they can see the good in every team member. In this way, they convey to the team that the most important thing is the employee, not the final product or service. This often has a positive effect on the working at­mo­sphere. However, if important and urgent decisions have to be made, they may not be the most capable at taking the lead and making difficult decisions.

As is customary in a democracy, decisions are made by the whole team. A positive aspect of this man­age­ment style is that employees can get involved and are con­sidered to be of equal value. This motivates the team and ensures a positive at­mo­sphere in the long run. Fur­ther­more, employees are involved in the projects – which motivates them to approach their tasks with a more re­spons­ible approach.

As soon as employees want to have their own voices heard as well as yours as a manager, the demo­crat­ic style of lead­er­ship must be taken into con­sid­er­a­tion. The shared re­spons­ib­il­ity means that every team member feels respected and en­cour­aged to actively par­ti­cip­ate in what is happening.

Just like demo­crat­ic society in general, however, it can sometimes be that opin­ion­ated leaders create a stage for them­selves, whilst while others are com­pletely held back. As a leader, you should have a good sense of who in­flu­ences the dynamics of the team in what way, and whose concerns may be being neglected.

The per­form­ance-oriented man­age­ment style is a suitable choice in extreme situ­ations to steer the team in one direction and to achieve maximum per­form­ance together at short notice – whether in the event of an employee shortage due to sick leave or in the case of projects that need to be completed to a tight schedule.  

However, you need to involve yourself in the work and try to do your best, otherwise you will quickly lose cred­ib­il­ity and respect. Stay in touch with your employees at all time, and be sure to listen to their needs. Otherwise, you may seem too au­thor­it­ari­an, or even ignorant. This style differs from au­thor­it­ari­an lead­er­ship in that you demand a high degree of com­mit­ment from your employees. Everyone has to push their limits to reach goals.

Important to note: When used per­man­ently, this style is a real mo­tiv­a­tion killer and is a sure fire way to end up having your employees find a new job. Mixing this style with another is generally re­com­men­ded.  

With this lead­er­ship style, the your employee’s future is your driving force. You work out strategies together at eye level and pursue common goals. If every single employee is suc­cess­ful, so is the entire company. If the employee wants further training or is in a personal crisis, you can try to help them using this method.

Similar to af­fil­i­at­ive man­age­ment, the focus here is on the in­di­vidu­al person. However, the coaching man­age­ment style places even more im­port­ance to tapping into the potential of each in­di­vidu­al team member. To do this, you need to be very specific about the interests of the in­di­vidu­al and give them enough freedom to develop their abilities. However, too much guidance can put a damper on learning and have a pat­ron­ising effect.

You should also keep an eye on each employee’s potential, strength­en­ing and promoting it through targeted as­sist­ance. In the long run, your employees will feel at home in the company.

Each man­age­ment style has different ad­vant­ages that make it suitable for certain situ­ations. But you should also be aware of the dis­ad­vant­ages that come with each lead­er­ship style. Here is an overview:

You can apply these man­age­ment styles according to the re­quire­ments of the industry, the re­spect­ive project or the specific situation. It is important that you rethink your style from time to time and realign if necessary. This can also serve to provide fresh impetus and create new in­cent­ives. One style alone will cause problems in the long run and could de­mo­tiv­ate the team. Therefore, it is re­com­men­ded to combine at least two styles, of course tailored to the re­quire­ments of your company.

In addition, the way you run your business should suit you as a person – so stay authentic and open to new ideas. Your employees will thank you.