Leadership models categorize different approaches to effective leadership and decision-making within an organization. The three basic types are situational, transformational, and functional, each with its own emphasis and goals. There is no one right model, and managers may use a combination of approaches.
Leadership models are structured approaches to providing effective leadership and decision-making within an organization. Over the years, proponents of different types of leadership theory have developed programs aimed at categorizing different models, sometimes explaining when and where certain models are likely to work best for a given situation. While the names of these different leadership styles change from time to time, they all revolve around the key drivers of decision making, recognition of team player skills, and the ongoing process of encouraging the development of future leaders for the organization.
While terminology will vary from a leadership training course, there are three basic types or models of leadership that will likely be included. The former is often identified as situational leadership. With this leadership model, the emphasis is on identifying the immediate need in a given set of circumstances and choosing the actions most likely to produce the desired result. This means that a manager using this type of leadership approach may sometimes choose to keep communication one-way, providing instructions without asking for feedback from employees. As circumstances change, the manager may shift to looking for an open channel of communication with others and in some cases choose to delegate responsibilities to team members who have demonstrated the ability to effectively handle those duties without direct supervision.
A second type of leadership model is known as transformational leadership. While this approach is still results-oriented, part of the desired outcome is the steady and consistent growth of all in the care of the leader. A transformational leader places a lot of emphasis on the needs and potential of employees, often serving as both an advocate and a mentor for those employees. The aim here is to promote the stimulation of both creativity and intellectual enhancement within the group, often by encouraging the sharing of information and experience among all group members. Transformational leaders know that company goals are more likely to be achieved when employees are challenged, given opportunities for advancement, and given what they need to succeed both as individuals and as part of a team.
With the functional leadership model, the emphasis is more on form and function than on people. Here, the creation and establishment of policies and procedures is considered the key to maintaining order and productivity. When employing the foundations of this leadership model, the manager’s goal is to match the tasks at hand with the skills of the staff, with the aim of achieving the highest level of efficiency. From time to time, the assessment of policies, procedures and duties related to the position is reviewed, with the aim of improving the overall process. Since this approach is ultimately more concerned with how an organization runs than who runs it, employees are more likely to be viewed in terms of how well they fit into the current process than in terms of what they can bring to the company in the future.
It is important to understand that there is no one right leadership model that covers all situations. Managers are often called upon to make use of a primary model of leadership, but augment that style with periodic use of approaches inherent in other models. For this reason, there are many different seminars, books, and training programs that include hybrid forms of leadership models that build on these three basic approaches, but can incorporate elements of each into a new style designed to fit well with the culture. of a given corporation.
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