Page 280 - DMGT402_MANAGEMENT_PRACTICES_AND_ORGANIZATIONAL_BEHAVIOUR

Unit 13: Communication and Leadership

5. The Manager may present the problem, get the suggestions and then take his own decision: Notes
Here manager gives sufficient opportunity to the employees to make suggestions, that
are carefully considered by the Manager.
6. The Manager may define the limits and request the group to make a decision: Under this
style of management, the manager delegates to the group the right to make the decision.
His subordinates are able to take a decision within well defined criteria and limits.
7. The Manager may permit full involvement of the subordinates in the decision-making
process: This is a style of leadership often referred to as 'Democratic' leadership.
Leadership style refers to the behaviour pattern adopted by a leader to influence the behaviour
of his subordinates for attaining the organisational goals. As different leadership styles have
their own merits and demerits, it is difficult to prefer one leadership style over another. The
selection of a leadership style will depend on the consideration of a number of factors.
Tannenbaum and Schmidt have pointed out the important factors that affect the choice of a style
of leadership. They are:

1. Forces in the manager, i.e., the manager's personality, experience and value system.
2. Forces in the subordinates, i.e., the subordinates' readiness for taking decisions, and their
knowledge, interest, need for independence, etc.

3. Forces in the situation, i.e., complexity of the problem, pressure of time etc.
Types of Leadership Styles

The different types of leadership styles are:
1. Autocratic or Task Management Leadership
2. Participative or Democratic Leadership and
3. Laissez-faire or Free-rein Leadership

4. Paternalistic Leadership.
1. Autocratic or Task Management Leadership: The autocratic leader gives orders which he
insists shall be obeyed. He determines policies for the group without consulting them,
and does not give detailed information about future plans, but simply tells the group
what immediate steps they must take. In other words, an autocratic leader is one who
centralizes the authority in himself and does not delegate authority to his subordinates.
He is dictatorial by nature, and has no regard for his subordinates. He drives himself and
his subordinates with one thought uppermost in his mind – action must produce results.
An autocratic leader controls the entire planning process, and calls upon his subordinates
to execute what he has planned. An autocratic leader operates on the following assumptions:
(a) An average human being has inherent dislike for work and will avoid it if he can.
(b) If his subordinates were intelligent enough, they would not be in subordinate
positions.
(c) He assumes that unintelligent subordinates are immature, unreliable and
irresponsible persons. Therefore, they should be constantly watched in the course of
their work.
(d) As he has no regard for his subordinates, he gets the work done by his subordinates
through negative motivation, that is, through threats of penalty and punishment.

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