Do you know that the quality of your employees’ performance is actually a reflection of your leadership, not the other way around? Think of it as this way: when students in a class are consistently scoring low and even the high achievers with a great record are slacking, who would you blame? You would probably blame the teacher, right?
How motivated and engaged your employees are depends on how well you lead them. Studies have shown that employee motivation is directly linked with the leadership skills of the managers. While there are many styles of leadership, there are 5 that are most common. So, here are 5 common types of leadership, their pros, cons and effect on employee motivation:
- Autocratic Style:
This is a classic ‘I am the boss’ kind of leadership. The leaders who are autocratic are confident, strong willed and know exactly what they want. They are also very clear about their expectations from their team and provide employees with well-structured guidelines. Rules are important for autocratic leaders and they expect their employees to abide by those rules. Moreover, they expect compliance from their employees instead of giving them a freedom of choice.
Pros:
- Employees have a clear idea of what is expected of them.
- Autocratic leaders are great communicators.
- Such a leadership is great for employees who need guidance.
- It helps in maintaining workplace discipline and implementation of rules.
Cons:
- Employees may feel confined and trapped.
- There is no room for career development for employees.
- Since employees’ ideas are generally not taken into account, they may feel devalued and underappreciated.
- Autocratic leaders have the tendency to do favoritism.
- Fixed rules, lack of flexibility and favoritism may lead to resentment amongst the employees.
How it affects employee motivation?
While an autocratic style of leadership has its sets of benefits, it might not be very good at motivating the employees. It does give employees a clear picture of what is expected of them and is also great in maintaining office decorum, both of which are great for employee engagement and productivity. However, due to the rigid behavior of the leaders, and their inability to take ideas from others, employees may feel demotivated and discouraged.
- Coaching Style:
Leaders who adopt this style are more like mentors and guides to their team members. They know each and every team member well, and can identify their weaknesses and strengths. They help their employees set their goals based on their abilities and assist them in achieving those goals. For these leaders, employee growth is of utmost importance hence they provide regular feedbacks and guidelines. So, this is more of a ‘You can do it’ kind of a leadership.
Pros:
- Allows employees to explore their true potential.
- Gives employees a voice.
- Encourages employees to do better as per the best of their abilities.
- Leads to a positive workplace environment.
- Employees can lean on their leaders for support and guidance.
- Greater teamwork and collaboration amongst the staff.
Cons:
- Can be too stressful and time consuming for the leader to get to know each employee personally.
- May not be practical for large scale and fast paced companies.
How it affects employee motivation?
Due to its employee centric nature, coaching leadership is great for motivating the employees. Employees under such leaders become more self-aware, confident and more productive.
- Pacesetting Style
As the name suggests, this kind of leadership is fast paced. The leaders who adopt this style are energetic and expect things to be done quickly and timely. They set a pace for their employees and want them to follow that pace. These leaders are more interested in the performance and overall results. They set high standards and goals for their employees. Employee feedback and appreciation is usually not in their books as their main focus is hitting the targets.
Pros:
- Great for achieving goals and targets
- Employees are pushed to get their work done in a timely and organized way.
- Makes employees more active and energetic.
- Is great for fast paced businesses where things need to be done quickly.
Cons:
- Can lead to employees being overworked and burnt out.
- Can cause stress and anxiety in employees that can have serious implications in their lives.
- Lack of adequate and effective feedback.
- May cause misunderstandings and broken communication between the employees.
- Leads to a toxic workplace culture. B2B news gives it a score of -0.25 in term of positive work culture.
How does it affect employee motivation?
Pacesetting is great for those employees who can meet up with the pace of their leaders. If they can, it is great for their motivation and morale. However, for those who can’t, such leadership can be extremely distressing and demotivating. It is also not suitable for employees who need feedback and guidance.
- Laissez- Faire Style
This kind of leadership is the exact opposite of autocratic style of leadership. Leaders who follow this model give complete flexibility to the employees and allow them to set their own goals. The main idea is to let employees follow their own schedule as long as they get the work done on time. There is almost no supervision and employees are delegated tasks that they have to do in their own pace.
Pros:
- A relaxed and flexible work environment.
- Makes employees more responsible.
- Gives room for creativity and innovation.
- Can increase employee engagement.
- Is ideal for employees who struggle with maintaining work life balance.
- May also reduce employee turnover.
Cons:
- Lack of proper guidelines can be confusing for some employees.
- It may have a counter effect and cause a dip in employee productivity.
- The employees can become too relaxed and laid back.
- Employees can team up against each other, making room for workplace bullying, politics, harassment and silos. Favoritism can also arise amongst employees.
How does it affect employee motivation?
This kind of leadership can only work if you have a set of experts and experienced employees. While it might work for some, this model might have an opposite effect and reduce employee motivation. When there are no clear instructions and employees don’t know what is expected from them, their productivity reduces, leading to low morale and motivation.
- Democratic style:
This kind of leadership is a mixture of autocratic and Laissez-Faire models. Leaders provide guidelines and set clear targets while also giving employees a chance to voice their opinions. Democratic leaders take their team members’ opinions into account before taking any decision. Feedback and constructive criticism are an important part of this style of leadership. Also, leaders who follow this style are more like facilitators who are there to assist employees when needed but give them room to follow their own pace. The leaders may not micromanage employees in this case, but they are definitely there to supervise.
Pros:
- Boosts the performance of the employees.
- Gives employees leniency yet setting some ground rules to follow.
- Makes employees feel valued and appreciated.
- Increases employee engagement and productivity.
- Employees feel empowered and unified.
- Leads to a positive work place culture.
Cons:
- The process of feedback and discussions may be time consuming.
- It can be costly for the companies to organize large group conferences and meetings.
How does it affect employee motivation?
Democratic leadership has tremendous benefits that outweigh its cons. It is a highly effective leadership method that boosts performance of the employees and lifts their morale. Such leadership is highly motivating for the employees.
The Takeaway:
The kind of leadership style you choose depends solely on the kind of business of you run and the capabilities of your employees. While some of these styles work for some, for others those styles may have a negative effect. Also, your leadership style can also vary according to certain situations. At the end of the day, whatever style you choose, it is important to consider the impact it has on your employees’ motivation.
