Leadership is defined as a skill possessed by an individual, which is characterized by influencing the way a person or a work group acts . In the next article we will talk about leadership theory , which classifies each leader by their way of leading a group. This can vary depending on what criteria it takes into account, it can be Autocratic and Democratic or Participatory.
What are the types of Leadership?
In each of these types of leadership, it has advantages and disadvantages. In the chain of command of a company it is important to have a model to which to be accountable, and to maintain order within the business structure . There is no specific type of leadership, this will depend on the personality of the workers, and which one best fits the company, when we see the advantages and disadvantages of the type of leadership, we can determine for which circumstances one or the other is better.
Autocratic leadership
It is in which one person assumes all responsibilities. Decisions are not delegated because the leader does not believe the people under his command are competent. Among the main characteristics, it stands out for the existence of a dominance by the leader , no contribution by the other individuals, under this type of leadership rules are strictly followed. Companies with this type of leader suffer from problems in the area of human resources .
This type of leadership has advantages and disadvantages as a consequence of the way they work . Among the advantages is: meet the objectives set efficiently, do what is necessary to continue with a project, there is no regret when it comes to firing an inefficient worker and the established time goals are usually met. Its disadvantages are that workers feel undervalued, it creates a bad work environment, causes stress among workers and generates little sense of belonging to the company.
Democratic or participatory leadership
Democratic leadership or also known as participatory, unlike autocratic leadership, in this the decisions of others in the work group are taken into account , promoting teamwork. The democratic leader delegates functions to his other people under his charge, without any discrimination he integrates others to participate by giving ideas, regardless of whether he agrees or not, seeing different points of view on an objective, which helps correct mistakes.
This type of leadership has the advantage of facilitating the integration of workers, allowing them to participate by contributing ideas, promoting teamwork, increasing job satisfaction and improving the quality of decisions . Its advantages are good, but it has disadvantages that can affect the company, such as giving way to the abuse of freedom if it does not establish limits, the leader can become dependent on the collaborations of his workers, if there is no maturity on the part of the team it may fail.
Examples of types of leadership
Since we know the concept and what characterizes each type of leadership, we must know where they are applied. Each has advantages and disadvantages, which make it better depending on what the company requires and how a company defines its objectives . Then we will see examples of the types of leadership, and in which circumstances a type of leadership works best.
Example of autocratic leadership
When companies want to increase their productivity, they choose managers who possess autocratic leadership that helps achieve this goal . There are several examples of autocratic leaders known for their success, such as filmmaker Ridley Scott, First Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, called the ‘iron lady’ for taking over the country’s plans, Roger Ailes television producer, was president of the Fox network news where I modify the news transmission, this thanks to his autocratic leadership.
Democratic leadership example
More than for a company, democratic leaders are necessary for the people , there are examples of great humanist personalities who were participatory leaders, such as Gandhi, Teresa of Calcutta, Nelson Mandela and Martin Luther King. They weren’t unsure of their vision, but they accepted ideas from their followers.
