First Level Leadership
Increasing Critical Mass of Your Leadership Skills
A very desirable companion of “Your needs'', ''Their Needs'' and “The Situation”
Not all types of management styles are always practical or worthy. Therefore, what are the key factors that decide an appropriate act of managing? Allow me to build your knowledge by first ascertaining your needs/characteristics.
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When you are under the exciting influence of your personal background, knowledge and experience, you will sometimes fire up and attempt to incline towards being an authoritarian or democrat. |
And you will take little pain to alter
the existence of your natural or preferred style. Without reviewing the complete picture, your style of managing may prove to be counter productive.
Forces that will effect the inclination in you include:
Your value system: How do you feel about delegating responsibility, hierarchical command structures, your own management status, etc?
Your confidence in your subordinates: Do you trust your people, do you value their judgment, do you consider them competent, etc.?
Your own leadership inclinations: where do they feel most comfortable- in a highly directive role or in more of a team role?
Your tolerance to ambiguity: How secure do they feel when the certainty or predictability of the outcome from an action is reduced? This is important since delegating responsibility to the subordinates inevitably increases the uncertainty of the outcome.
The next stage is to consider the needs of the people
that you manage before deciding on an appropriate management style.
Do the following conditions exist?
• Do they thrive on independence?
• How willing are they to take responsibility?
• Do they like to operate to clear directives? Maybe they prefer a high degree of freedom.
• How interested are they in this particular problem and in finding a solution for it?
• Do they fit well with the organization, i.e. do they understand and support what the organization is in business to achieve? Are they committed to its goals?
• Do they have the knowledge and expertise to solve the problem?
If the above conditions exist, you are probably dealing with people who will respond better to a more participative style of leadership.
Where the conditions do not exist, the manager will probably have to exert more authority.
Another important component, which you need to consider
before deciding your management style, is the needs created by the situation
These are things to do with the time, place and circumstances surrounding the problem:
The type of organization: What factors are in place within the organization to encourage or impede a participative approach to decision making?
The effectiveness of the group:
How well do the component members of the group work together as a team?
The problem itself: Can you delegate the problem? What kind of knowledge is required? Do you have the authority to get outside resources involved in solving the problem?
Time pressure: How important is timing? Does this require an instant decision or it requires more time and thought.
When you consider the above three categories of needs, you will come up with a balanced and effective management style.
I am trying to identify here that
the starting point to employing your existing leadership abilities is a “Situation.” The result of that situation is dependent on the style in which you use those abilities.
Now the question in your mind is -
2) What do managers really do - What is business management ?
3) A write up on "Effective Meetings"should also be of special interest to you at this stage.
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