Daniel Goleman cites six leadership styles for different circumstances, but they have something in common. They are able to move people forward in the right direction, in particular circumstances. When leaders are effective, their influence resounds through the group, team or organisation. Goleman calls this ‘creating resonance.’
Goleman’s six leadership styles are:
Visionary: The leader inspires others to seek the vision. They are appreciative of people’s contributions, and show empathy for their needs. This creates resonance through a journey towards shared goals. This is a good leadership style in times of radical change, when there is a whole new vision of the future.
Coaching: The leader listens, and encourages people to find their strengths, and ways to use these strengths in the business. This creates resonance by aligning personal goals with organisational goals. This is a good leadership style when the team consists of competent people who want to enhance their skills in the short and long term.
Affiliative: The leader creates a good atmosphere, by being empathic, resolving conflicts, and boosting morale. This creates resonance by promoting harmony, and encouraging people to work together. This is a good leadership style in difficult times, when the future looks unstable, or when there are rifts to be healed.
Democratic: The leader excels in teamwork, collaborating, listening, and influencing people. This creates resonance by involving people, so they feel valued and want to contribute. This is a good leadership style to gain commitment and a high input level from the team.
Pacesetting: The leader has high standards and may be impatient. They are keen on getting a high input, and are less good at empathy and collaboration. This creates resonance by creating challenging goals. This is a good leadership style when the focus is on results, and the team is competent and enthusiastic.
Commanding: The leader keeps firm control, gives instructions and expects them to be carried out. It is not a style that will encourage talent to emerge. It creates resonance when there is an urgent need for clear direction. This can be an effective leadership style in emergencies, when things must happen quickly.
All these styles have their place, but context is important. When pacesetting and/or commanding styles predominate, the climate is not likely to bring high performance. Affiliative and democratic styles alone have a marginal positive effect. Competent leaders stay within coaching, affiliative, and democratic, but this is too narrow to achieve excellence. The most effective leaders are able to adapt their style to the circumstances, while maintaining their authenticity.
To find out more about how we can help with your people investment, please visit www.trans4mation.com or contact:
Nick Cotter
T: +44 (0) 870 606 4400
F: +44 (0) 870 606 4411
nick.cotter@trans4mation.com
PO Box 44
High Street
Evesham
Worcestershire
WR11 4ZJ
