Being an Adaptable Leader
How to better motivate a team by exploring the different leadership styles and how to adapt to the needs of individuals throughout their work-place development.
By Kaitlyn Wynn
Being able to motivate, lead, and connect with a team is so important in supervisory positions. Of course, being trained and well-staffed is great too, but if your team is not motivated correctly, your goals may not be as efficiently or effectively achieved.
So what are the different types of leadership? And how many types are there? Let's have a look! According to Human Relations: The Art and Science of Building Effective Relationships by Vivian McCann Hamilton, Paul Hersey and Kenneth Blanchard developed a leadership theory in 1993 that focuses on adapting your leadership style to fit the needs of the person that you are trying to motivate, at the different stages of their work-life.
They discuss four leadership styles
Telling- the leader gives clear and direct instructions on when and how they want things done
Selling- the leader still gives clear and direct instructions, but also listens and incorporates the ideas of their employee
Participating- giving the employee more freedom to do things as they see fit, while maintaining a strong relationship with the individual so they feel comfortable coming to you for help or with questions
Delegating- pretty laissez-faire approach, trusting the employee knows how and what to do
Each of these styles work best at different stages of their work development.
Telling works best at the beginning of someone's work life- when they are still trying to get the hang of things. It is best to utilize this 'hands-on' approach so they can feel confident they are doing the job well.
Selling works best at the next stage. As your employee begins to feel more comfortable in their role, they may have questions or ideas they would like to share with you. It is important to listen and encourage these interactions, so your employee feels heard, valued, and respected.
Participating comes when the staff-member gets more confident in their abilities. This stage is primarily about building a relationship with the individual. It is important to allow them more freedom in their work, so they don't feel like they are being underestimated, but still feel comfortable asking for help because of the good relationship.
Finally, delegating comes towards the end of their developmental process. Hopefully, this employee now as confidence in their ability to do the job right and navigate problems on their own and feels they can speak freely with their team-leader. Now you have an employee you can trust, as well as someone to collaborate with if you are facing a challenge.
Sources
McCann Hamilton, V. (2007). Chapter 12: Surviving and Thriving in the Workplace. In Human relations: The art and science of building effective relationships (pp. 402–403). essay, Pearson/Prentice Hall.