One of the world’s most powerful corporate women and former CEO of cola and snacks giant PepsiCo Indra Nooyi has a strong leadership mantra.
“Leadership is hard to define and good leadership even harder. But, if you can get people to follow you to the end of the earth, you are a great leader,” she says.
In the world of business and other walks of life, you find different types of leadership with diverse types of leadership styles. What may work for one organization or institution may not work for another.
People are different and so are their types of leadership styles. For some in top leadership roles, being part of the team is more important than achieving individual targets. Others are lone wolves who work better alone.
Focusing on personal development and growth and learning different types of leadership skills are all hallmarks of great leadership.
A good leader can harness such skills to analyze and understand team members better and further do justice to their competencies. The result is better team involvement, stronger growth, and smooth workflow management.
Leadership is not a one-size-fits-all skill. Different situations, people, and organizations require different types of leadership styles. Those in leadership roles have to delve deep to engage with their team, reflect upon organizational policies, consider cultural and social contexts, and then zero in on their own type of leadership.
Following are the different types of leadership and various styles of leadership in management:
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Democratic Style Of Leadership
How much a leader values freedom and the voice of team members define different types of leadership. Borrowing from the longest-running and sustaining governance practices in the world, the ‘democratic’ types of leadership styles rely on complete participation of the entire team in the process of making important decisions. Every decision by such leaders is made by discussing the issue and gathering every individual’s vote or opinion.
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Authoritative Style Of Leadership
Authoritative type of leadership skills are identified by bold leaders with great motivation and courage. These leaders take up responsibility for the entire team and are known for their distinctive styles of leadership in management reflected in their determination, vision, unconditional authority, and support.
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Autocratic Style Of Leadership
Autocratic styles of leadership in management are the opposite of democratic leadership. Tough bosses who command and control subordinates and are blind to their own faults are the exaggerated versions of this style. Of all the different types of leadership, this one tends to work where the team size is huge, and the leader needs to make quick and reasonable decisions.
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Coaching Style Of Leadership
The coaching style of leadership in management is where the leader assumes the role of a teacher or a ‘coach.’ They explain everything, teach teammates tricks of the trade, and oversee their team members as a teacher would their pupils. Hardened by years of experience and expertise, these ‘coach’ leaders are those who have developed various types of leadership skills such as sympathy, understanding, patience, drive towards betterment, and teamwork.
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Laissez-Faire Style Of Leadership
Different types of leadership styles use different strategies, and the laissez-faire model of leadership demands trust. A laissez-faire leader trusts and believes in their team and provides very little oversight. These leaders are not aloof or careless but they trust their teams to do the job that has been given to them. This style of leadership in management requires balance in the work assignment, strong teams, and calm leaders.
Harappa Education’s Leading Self course teaches you about different types of leadership. It offers tools and frameworks to understand the types of leadership and develop various types of leadership skills from leading educators and trainers. Sign up for the course and begin your leadership journey.
Explore topics such as What is Leadership, Authentic Leadership, Transactional Leadership, Leadership Development & Transactional and Transformational leadership from our Harappa Diaries section and lead on a path of self-development.