Management is not an easy task. While some may dream of one day working their way up the corporate ladder to being a manager, the reality is that if you can’t deal with people, you will never make it as a manager.
Different leaders have different styles and the same is true for management. McKinsey’s War for Talent raised the fact that there was a shortage of capable executives. The study recommends assessing and rewarding performance as the way forward.
Getting your team on track and working well together is the essence of what a manager has to do. There is no one correct way of managing but rather there are different styles that can be attributed to different personality types and ways of working.
3 Types of Management Styles That Make a Strong Leader
Democratic Management Style
This way of managing is best suited to someone who prefers being transparent and welcomes participation from employees. To be truly effective one has to remain fairly objective to get the best results from a democratic management style. A manager who is good at this style can create an amazing workplace fairly easily with a dextrous approach to delegation. A lot can get done quickly with a good team in place and trust established in a small time frame. The key to this style of management is to collect the feedback and ideas from their team members and then make fast, rational, and informed decisions based on real-time surveys and research. This also enables a complete overview of a situation rather than an ivory tower approach.
3 key things you need to make a democratic management style succeed
Remain objective
Objectivity is essential for this style of management to succeed. You cannot take sides or be emotionally attached to any options. You need to do what is best.
Excellent communication.
Communication works in two ways. You need to be excellent at Listening as well as Communicating with others.
Strong decision making
You will need to make rational decisions from large amounts of data and various opinions.
Coaching Management Style
Coaching is a more gentle approach to management. If you are the type of leader who emotionally invests in the people that make up your team, then this is the style that suits you. Being a mentor for your team is a different way of being a boss. It isn’t a boss-employee relationship. It is more of an advisory role where you become a guide and confidante. Someone who shepherds them along in their journey with a caring attitude and an interest in their comfort and wellbeing.
As a coach, you genuinely care about their success at work and in life. This in turn engenders a sense of belonging and your team wants to work harder and get better results. It is an inspiring role to play and gets stellar results. The key ingredients to success for a Coaching management style are to have empathy and an ability to connect on a human level with others. Building trust in your team will stem from shared experiences and overcoming obstacles and emotional hurdles together. This embodies a family spirit and helps your team members succeed through emotional support when the going gets rough. They learn the true value of caring and teamwork and this makes them succeed more. They pull together and fight for each other and the organization. A great coach is loved by their team. And they love their team more than anything.
2 things you need to be a great coach
1. Anticipate different personality types needs
Some team members need a firmer hand than others when it comes to the way they respond to criticism or praise. Each person is different and finding their strengths and weaknesses fast helps you work out what they respond to best. Coaching means setting goals as well as being constructive when it comes to building their confidence to take on challenges.
2. Keep your eyes and ears open
You need to listen to what your team members are saying to you and also how they are behaving. Missing out that someone needs some support or that you didn’t realize that there was a problem or disagreement between two members of your staff could end in disaster.
Visionary Management Style
Being a visionary takes a very specific type of person. You cannot be a visionary manager if you are not able to step back and let your team execute your vision. You are the inventor of the way but the actual steps of the journey are taken by others.
As a visionary leader, you will have to excel at articulating yourself to others clearly at the highest operating level of the organization. It’s up to you to come up with an overall strategic vision, like a general before a battle. You then have to move the team forward and mobilize the entire workforce at your disposal to make your vision a reality.
Leaving it up to your management team and letting them get in with the nuts and bolts of the operation you will make adjustments where necessary but by and large, you trust your team to get to the target you have specified. There is more than one way to reach the top of a mountain and you allow your team to assess the situation and make the best decision possible to get there.
2 Key ingredients to succeed as a visionary manager
1. High emotional intelligence
You have to be able to understand others on an emotional level to make this style work. Knowing what makes people tick is key if you want to be able to inspire greatness from them.
2. Flexibility
If you are not able to be flexible when the unexpected arises you won’t be able to work in this way at all. Improvising around obstacles and inspiring your team to solve problems together and succeed means you all have to be able to be flexible but keep your eye on the top of the mountain at the same time.
No matter what style of management you choose, the crux of the matter will be how you deal with your team. The people who work with you or under your supervision will dictate the true nature of the organization. Striving for the best for all of them will mean success for all, you just have to work out which style is best for you and for the venture as a whole.