Consultative
A consultative management style can be seen to be very similar to a democratic style. Consultative management involves the managers asking employees for their opinions and they will use this to assist their own decision making. The process of decision making may involve a small or large group of employees forwarding their ideas and opinions to assist with decision making. Where consultative management is differentiated from democratic is that despite the view from these employees it is actually the managers who have the overall decision making power, this will mean that managers are able to have control over the business and they can monitor and control what decisions are made.
Consultative management will involve managers assessing problematic situations, they analyse the problem then present information regarding it. Once the managers have obtained this information they are then able to commence thinking with regard to solving the problem, here they may involve the view from employees to overcome these situations.
A consultative manager will keep their employees informed about happenings within the business. They may use newsletters and notice boards to explain to them anything that has happened. They will also split tasks up and spread them out amongst employees so that they can work as a team to complete them.
Autocratic
An autocratic style is one of which the manager generally gives specific instructions that have to be carried out by staff. In this sense the manager is generally giving out instructions, this does not generally lean towards a democratic style in that the manager would not be seeking opinions from other employee’s. An autocratic manager will direct employees as to what they want them to be doing and not involve the opinions of these employees regarding decision making. Autocratic management is most useful in crisis management, this is because urgent decisions need to be made and a figure of authority has to take control and ensure that everything is done as necessary and on time.
The problem with this type of management is that the employees’ may feel de-motivated as they have little input in decision making in the business. An autocratic management style may also put a lot of pressure on a manager as they have to be responsible for a lot of decision making and this may cause problems for them.
Supportive
A supportive management style enables the employees to learn from their work place. The employees gradually start to fit into their role in the workplace and learn skills and make friends from it. Supportive managers seek to have employees developing their skills and producing a better output to the company. Supportive management is all about trying to help out employees keep on top of aspects in the workplace by speaking with them and helping them when they need it. Supportive managers are useful to help employees with personal problems, such as supporting employees who have children and helping them find methods of having their children cared for whilst they are working. Supportive management in many ways can help employees feel empowered, supportive managers will take into account ideas from employees and this can help bring new ideas to the business. Supportive managers can give employees time to help come up with new ideas, employees can then forward these ideas to the managers who will help them progress.
The problem with supportive management is that it puts more responsibility on employees and in some cases relies on employees for development, this means that if some employees are not working to their full potential the business will suffer. This type of management does not monitor employees strictly meaning there is more possibility that employees could “slack”.
Collaborative
Collaborative managers work as part of a team with employees; collaborative managers take part in activities with employees and help come up with ideas together with them. Collaborative managers should have excellent people management skills as they are working together with a lot of employees in order to get a number of views and opinions and help combine them to find the most effective ways in which the business can function. There are different points a collaborative manager needs to take into account regarding decision making and putting a message across to employees. These points include;
- Defining what has to be done
- Assigning tasks to each of the employees
- Helping to resolve conflicts between any team members
- Creating reports to show progress in the business
- Evaluating progress of employees and the teams
A collaborative manager has various other requirements of communication between themselves and people of other positions within the business as well as communicating with people outside the business.
Generally a collaborative manager will have a variety of communication roles in the business and this is generally the differentiation point behind this style of management. Collaborative managers will have to work at a variety of levels to work within different projects; the ability to adapt to these circumstances is an essential skill for collaborative managers. Collaborative managers will essentially have to be great communicators both in the aspect of listening to the employees ideas and assisting with development of these ideas.
Passive
A passive manager is one that has very little input into the business. The passive management style if that of which grants complete freedom to the employees. Passive managers will rely on the employees to make decisions within the business enabling employee’s almost complete control over the progress of the business. This type of management enables employees to fend for themselves therefore they can have a feeling that what they are doing is really making an impact on the business and that their opinions are valued highly.
Passive management styles can have various disadvantages to the business. Passive management assumes that employees are willing to work as part of a team and willing to motivate themselves to want to have a great impact on the business. Problems can occur in that some employees may “slack off” as they feel as though they are not under pressure to perform their maximum output. Another problem with this type of management is that conflict of ideas may occur between employees, with these conflicts that may have been previously resolved by management, they could be left to form into bigger problems without an attentive management teams.
Directive
Directive management involves the most common type of management used in organisations, directive management involves decisions being made from people at the top of the organisation and these instructions are then passed down the organisation and carried out by the subordinates of the organisation. This type of management is useful in less creative industries such as restaurants where more structured decision making is necessary. This type of management is also useful when sap decisions have to be made, such as an escape from a building that has caught fire. With a directive management style it is not likely that creativity is going to be encouraged as the managers make decisions regarding how parts of the business are to be carried out. This type of management is also likely to make employees feel less empowered as they are generally directed by management as to how they should carry out their jobs.
Overall these management strategies are effective in many ways however in different situations some will be more effective than others. The styles managers use will have various impacts on employees and the way they function and operate, managers will have to adapt their styles to different situations to ensure maximum productivity is obtained from all employees. Employee motivation and business revenue will all be affected by a management style.
