Factors Influencing Choice of Leadership in Workplace Situations

Describe the factors that will influence the choice of leadership styles or behaviours in workplace situations. Explain why these leadership styles or behaviours are likely to have a positive or negative effect on individual and group behaviour

Leadership styles can be mainly categorized into three main categories

  * Autocratic - Autocratic leadership is an extreme form of transactional leadership, where leaders have absolute power over their workers or team. Staff and team members have little opportunity to make suggestions, even if these would be in the team's or the organization's best interest
  * Democratic – In a democratic leadership style the leaders make the final decisions but they invite other members of the team to contribute to the decision-making process.
  * Laissez-Faire – This type of leadership style means “leave it be” style and leaders using this style usually leave their team members to work on their own

The main factors affecting influencing the choice of leadership style include the factors described below:

  * Risk – The leadership style could be chosen depending on the degree and type of risk involved. The types of risk can be related to various factors like cost, safety or time constraints. Organisations involved in activities like oil production, military operations etc. where there is high risk of life causalities expected will require an autocratic style of leadership where team members needs to follow strict process and procedures which otherwise might result in loss of life.  
  * Type of business – Creative or supply driven type of business is also an influencing factor. Businesses like the movie industry, entertainment industry etc. relies more on the creativity of the people involved and thus will require a Laissez-Faire style allowing freedom for the team members to work on their own with minimal supervision.
  * Organizational Culture – Organizations whose culture is resistant to change could affect the...