9 Different Management Styles and When to Use Them • Asana

Summary While all managers have similar responsibilities, it’s normal to tailor your particular management style to your communication preferences and personality type. That said, being aware of your default style can help you grow and better support your team. Below we dive into nine different management styles, the pros and cons of each, and when to use them.

As a manager, it’s your responsibility to provide clarity and context so your team members can get their best work done. Great managers are dot connectors, context providers, and clarity creators. But every manager takes a different approach to how they do that.

The approach you take makes up your management style. From the type of team building activities you plan to the conversations you have during 1:1 meetings with team members, your management techniques guide every interaction you have with your team—even if you don’t realize it.

You may already use a management style and not be aware of it, but identifying your style can help you hone and improve your self management skills. Whether you’re a first-time manager or an experienced one, by understanding the different management styles—and identifying your own—you can intentionally tailor your own style to best support and empower your team.

What are management styles?

Management styles describe the distinct approaches that different managers take to support and guide a team at work. All managers have the same responsibilities, but management styles describe how different types of managers specifically use their managerial toolkit to motivate team members.

There are a huge variety of management styles. Every manager naturally leans toward one management style, even if you don’t realize it. Our management styles come out through our communication preferences, our personality types, and how we show up at work. The key thing is to identify which management style you naturally use. Identifying your go-to management style can help you gain a better understanding of how you’re communicating and supporting your team—even the things you don’t realize you are doing.

Types of management styles

There are a wide variety of management styles, with more being defined every day. Anything that defines how you can guide your team, plan work, and connect the dots can be considered a management style. Some of these styles are top-down, while others are more hands-off. The nine different management styles include:

1. Autocratic management style

Autocratic managers centralize the decision-making process. On these teams, the manager usually makes the majority of decisions—including what the team should focus on, what short- and long-term goals they should work toward, and which tasks and projects are associated with these initiatives. A manager with an autocratic management style will then delegate work to the team member they think is best suited for the job. This is the most top-down approach to management.

The advantages of an autocratic management style:

It’s easier to make quick decisions since there is only one decision-maker.

The disadvantages of an autocratic management style:

Autocratic management can quickly veer into micromanagement.

Team members under autocratic managers are less encouraged to offer suggestions since there is only one decision-maker.

Team members can feel creatively stifled.

Best for: When decisions need to be made quickly and there is little room for error. In crisis situations, the autocratic style is the way to go.

2. Persuasive management style

One type of autocratic management is persuasive management. The persuasive management style puts decision-making totally in the hands of managers but encourages managers to share the logic and rationale behind their decisions. This helps team members feel more connected to the decision-making process.

The advantages of a persuasive management style:

It can help educate junior-level team members about what goes into managerial decisions.

It builds trust between the team and the manager since the team is given an explanation for every decision.

The disadvantages of a persuasive management style:

Like in any autocratic style, team members can feel creatively stifled.

Team members may feel like their feedback isn’t heard since communication is still one-sided.

Best for: Managers that are leading a more inexperienced team. Under this dynamic, the manager should be the sole decision-maker based on their experience but should share explanations in order to help their team grow.

3. Paternalistic management style

Another type of the autocratic style, paternalistic management is a form of unilateral decision-making where the team’s best interests are always kept in mind. While communication is still one-sided, team members are heard and decisions are made with their wants in mind. However, there is no collaboration between the manager and the team about the decision itself.

In this management style, managers try to create a feeling of trust within their team. By doing so, their direct reports are confident their feedback is taken to heart whenever the manager makes a decision.

The advantages of the paternalistic style:

Managers are truly committed to the well-being of their team. Team member well-being is at the heart of every decision.

Unlike other autocratic styles, team members are actively encouraged to express their desires to their manager, even if they don’t get to collaborate on the decision-making process itself.

The disadvantage of the paternalistic style:

Loyalty to leadership is imperative for this style to be effective. If the team doesn’t trust management, they’ll be less motivated to produce strong results.

Best for: Organizations with strong company culture. If leadership is able to build strong bonds within the organization, team members can trust that the right decisions are being made.

4. Democratic management style

Democratic, or participative, managers collaborate with their team members to distribute the decision-making process. They invest in their team’s well-being and career development. This management style encourages creativity and employee engagement. Though they are still the person making the final decision, managers who use a democratic style encourage contributions from all team members.

Before setting quarterly priorities, a democratic manager will make sure every team member understands the company goals and how their team’s initiatives contribute to the company’s yearly objectives. This type of manager will then encourage team members to suggest their own goals. If necessary, a democratic manager will workshop goals in order to ensure each team member is working toward their most important priorities each quarter.

The advantages of a democratic management style:

Team members have the context they need to succeed.

Teams with democratic managers often come up with more creative ideas because everyone is brainstorming together.

This management style promotes high engagement and buy-in.

Team members are encouraged to tap into their full potential at work.

The disadvantage of a democratic management style:

This collaborative management style takes more time than the others because the manager is more present.

Best for: Teams that are constantly looking to change and improve their processes. If you manage this type of team, it’s best that everyone stays on the same page when it comes to decision-making.

5. Consultative management style

A subset of the democratic management style, consultative managers are consistently looking for feedback from their team and trying to improve in their position. Differing from the authoritative style, consultative managers rarely make decisions alone but instead encourage collaboration from their team.

The advantages of the consultative management style:

It breeds healthy communications among teams.

It encourages upward feedback.

The disadvantages of the consultative management style

It can lead to inefficiency and slow decision-making since everyone is involved in the process.

Best for: Managers who want to take on more of a mentor role. Consultative managers strive to educate and influence their team through the decision-making process.

6. Transformational management style

Another type of democratic management is the transformational management style. Used predominantly among creative teams, transformational managers strive to create a culture that encourages adaptability, innovation, and problem-solving.

Transformational managers are invested in the professional growth of their team and look less at short-term projects and more at long-term development. Oftentimes, this means setting lofty and challenging goals for team members.

The advantages of a transformational management style:

This style works very well for motivated team members looking to grow in their careers and roles.

It helps breathe life into more mundane projects and helps team members see the bigger picture of what they’re working toward.

The disadvantage of a transformational management style:

Since this style relies on setting difficult goals, it can backfire if your team isn’t motivated enough to achieve them. As a result, this management style can sometimes lead to burnout and employee turnover.

Best for: Fast-moving, intrinsically-motivated teams that are always adapting to new circumstances. By integrating adaptability into their management style, transformative managers prepare their team for whatever may come their way.

7. Laissez-faire management style

Laissez-faire managers are the most hands-off managers. Laissez-faire literally translates to “let it go” in French, and this management style leans into that relaxed, hands-off approach. Laissez-faire managers prefer to give team members nearly full autonomy, and they typically only meet with team members or host team meetings if the team requests it. Otherwise, a laissez-faire manager only checks in if something went wrong.

The advantages of a laissez-faire management style:

Team members are encouraged to be creative and come up with their own ideas.

Self-motivated employees benefit from increased autonomy.

The disadvantages of a laissez-faire management style:

Unless team members are very experienced, they can struggle to prioritize their own work.

A laissez-faire manager doesn’t tend to provide context for work or proactively connect daily work to company objectives.

This management style can result in employees feeling unsupported or lost.

A manager with a laissez-faire management style doesn’t model collaboration best practices or lead by example.

Best for: Self-motivated creative teams that thrive when building their own ideas. This model works best for teams that work individually and don’t require much supervision.

8. Visionary management style

A type of laissez-faire management, the visionary management style is less concerned with the day-to-day operations and more interested in educating team members about the larger vision of the organization. Visionary managers tend to motivate and inspire rather than give instructions about day-to-day tasks.

These managers tend to be more outgoing and charismatic. This style works well for teams that are good at managing themselves and don’t require much individual attention. For less experienced team members, this may not be the most effective style of management.

The advantages of visionary management style:

When done well, this style can spur creativity and out-of-the-box thinking.

The visionary style can encourage your team to work harder because they’re truly passionate about their work.

The disadvantages of the visionary style:

If you want to use this style, you can’t feign inspiration. The visionary management is only effective when the manager is truly passionate about the company’s mission.

This method can feel more like leadership than management. If you use this method, be sure you’re continuing to support your team rather than just trying to inspire.

Best for: Innovative teams looking to disrupt an industry. In this case, a visionary leader can be exactly what a team needs to continue thinking outside the box.

9. Delegative management style

Another type of laissez-faire management, delegative management refers to a system where managers and team members only interact when managers are assigning them tasks. From there, the manager will come in at the end of the project, review the work, and the cycle will restart.

In this style, team members generally have the freedom to do tasks in their own way. Like teams with visionary managers, members tend to have a strong knowledge of the work and how it needs to be done.

The advantages of the delegative style:

It allows team members to maximize creativity in their assignments. With little to no supervision, team members can think outside the box when completing tasks.

There’s no risk of micromanaging in this style. As a result, team members feel autonomous in their work.

The disadvantages of the delegative style:

Without a clear feedback process during the project life cycle, the end result may suffer.

With the manager only existing to delegate, there’s no process for conflict resolution.

Best for: Employees with more expertise than their manager. In cases like this, the manager should facilitate rather than support and give feedback.

Management qualities and responsibilities

No matter what style you choose to use, it’s important to understand what it means to be a manager, and what qualities of a leader you should bring to the table in order to support your team. These include:

Connecting daily tasks to company objectives. One of the most important things you can do for your team is to make sure they have the context they need to succeed. Only 26% of knowledge workers have a very clear understanding of how their individual work relates to company goals. Without that context, team members don’t have a good sense of what they should be prioritizing, and what their highest impact work is.

Assigning and delegating work. Part of being a good manager is delegating work to the right team member. Good managers don’t think, “I can do that,” but instead approach a task or project with the mentality, “I know the best person for the job.” As a manager, it’s your responsibility to ensure that team members have enough work that engages and challenges them but that they aren’t feeling overworked or burnt out.

Providing feedback and professional development. Good managers are forward-thinkers who want to help their team members improve and get to the next level—whatever that next level looks like for them. Part of this is providing clear, constructive feedback to help your team members turn their weaknesses into strengths. Additionally, professional development and coaching sessions can help team members identify where they want to go in their careers—and begin moving in that direction.

Encouraging team building and collaboration. The best teams are those that work together—and the best managers are those that help their teams do just that. Good managers make time for team building opportunities. They emphasize the importance of team collaboration and open communication, so that team members feel comfortable bringing their full selves to work.

Management styles vs. leadership styles

Another quality of a good manager is simply knowing thedifference between leadership and management.

“Management is operational; it’s about setting priorities, evaluating priorities, hiring and firing decisions, compensation decisions, things like that. A leader is more of a coach, or even a spiritual guide. She is responsible for maintaining energy, keeping everyone on the team inspired and helping them grow, and for ensuring everyone is aligned in the same direction. A leader must be a point of strength and stability across changes.” —Dustin Moskovitz, co-founder and CEO, Asana

Management styles are how managers support and guide a team at work. Managers are focused on execution, organization, and planning—so management styles are primarily about how to provide clear direction on projects and support your employees at the team level.

Leadership styles are how leaders motivate and inspire a team or company. Leaders tend to be bigger-picture thinkers—so leadership skills primarily focus on motivating team members, leading company culture, and creative problem-solving. You can use leadership styles in management, but you need to make sure your main focus is on the specific aspects of management.

There’s a lot that goes into good management, and using the right management style is just the beginning. To continue improving your management style, actively source feedback from your team so you can support them as you grow.

Part of this growth also means communicating openly and honestly—even when sharing constructive feedback. By proactively encouraging open and honest communication, you can ensure your team is best equipped and supported at work.

To continue developing your team’s communication skills, get 12 tips to improve workplace communication.

The Top 7 Management Styles: Which Ones Are Most Effective?

In the past, managers were viewed by their employees and organizations as valuable commodities. They were seen as capable leaders with distinct management styles who guided their organization’s teams to success. They were viewed as indispensable.

Not anymore.

We’ve seen a shift in attitudes recently through many teams we onboard and coach at Workzone project management software. Unfortunately, over the last few years, the opinion on managers’ value seems to have eroded. Besides anything we notice, negative articles are everywhere, claiming middle managers are useless and unnecessary.

Why is it that public opinion has changed so drastically? Are managers a useless relic of the past, an unnecessary component of corporate culture that’s fast becoming obsolete?

Absolutely not.

So, what’s the problem then? Why are so many managers viewed unfavorably?

Management Styles & Hiring: Get It Right!

Research from Gallup found that organizations choose the wrong manager a whopping 82% of the time. It’s one of the most important decisions a company can make, yet 8 out of 10 times everyone gets it wrong.

It’s easy to assume that 82% of managers just weren’t cut out to be in a management position. But, a four-year study conducted by Leadership IQ found that more often, the case is that the manager’s style is inappropriate for their particular culture.

Different projects, teams, tasks, and businesses need different management styles. If you cannot adapt to the needs of your position and organization, then you’re doomed to failure.

Not only can an inability to adapt lead to your being demoted or let go, but it also hurts the entire company.

Only 30% of US employees and 13% of employees worldwide are engaged at work. And at least 70% of the variance in employee engagement scores can be directly attributed to employees’ managers.

A disengaged team means:

Lower productivity

Poorer quality work

Dramatically increased turnover

More issues with theft and absenteeism

Reduced profitability

The bottom line is that the wrong management style de-motivates employees, kills productivity, and trains employees to disengage or leave. Hurting the entire organization.

But how do you know which management style is called for? And how do you successfully adopt the right one?

Top 7 Management Styles List

1. Authoritarian management styles

The authoritarian management style manages through clear direction and control. It is also sometimes referred to as the autocratic or directive management style. Authoritarian managers typically assert strong authority, have total decision-making power, and expect unquestioned obedience.

This type of management style requires clearly defined roles and strict hierarchies and reporting structures. Employees should not have to question who is responsible for what. To be an effective authoritarian leader, you need to be willing and able to consistently stay up-to-date on your teams’ work and to make any and all decisions.

Bill Gates is an example of a positive authoritarian leader. He had a clear plan for his company. A plan that was difficult or impossible for many others to grasp until it became a reality and Microsoft became a household name.

Without being able to see and share what he had in mind, Gates couldn’t entrust his team to make decisions on their own. This is why he directed the team and maintained the decision-making power.

Pros

In the right environment, an authoritarian management style has been shown to positively affect employee performance.

The best environment for authoritarian management typically includes a traditional culture, such as that commonly found in China and some other Asian countries. These cultures have a high power distance, where employees expect higher-level people to have more power and tend to automatically defer to those in higher positions.

Authoritarian management style can also be effective if you have new or inexperienced employees who need a lot of guidance and instruction.

Cons

It’s important to note that if taken to the extreme, an authoritarian style can easily create a negative workspace.

We especially see this negativity when we see a micromanager use our project management software. Our coaching recommendation is to utilize to-do lists. A manager can keep an eye on employees’ work but not breathe down anyone’s necks. Ultimately, if you try to hold on to control too tightly, it will drive away your best employees.

Maintaining total control of all decision-making can also require a great deal of time and effort. If you’re overseeing large and/or complex projects, this can be incredibly difficult to manage.

2. Visionary management styles

The visionary management style is also sometimes called inspirational, charismatic, strategic, transformational, or authoritative. Visionary managers focus on conveying the overall vision of the company, department, or project to their team.

Unlike authoritarian managers, visionary managers don’t involve themselves in the day-to-day details. Instead, they focus on motivation and alignment of the team, to keep everyone moving in the same direction, and entrust their team members to handle the details about how to get there.

If you are naturally a charismatic, outgoing, and personable leader, you may find this style easy to adopt. However, it can be more challenging for introverts or people who are uncomfortable in the limelight. It also requires a great deal of emotional intelligence, a willingness to take risks, and the ability to lead and manage change.

A well-known visionary leader is Nelson Mandela. Mandela was the face and leader of the Anti-Apartheid movement. Through his determination and force of will, Mandela successfully led his country of South Africa to liberation. By relying on his charismatic nature and important vision, he motivated people to bring change without dictating their actions.

Pros

One of the advantages of visionary management is that it helps motivate employees to work toward common goals and solutions.

A visionary approach may be useful for getting everyone back on the same page when team culture is divided. Visionary management is often used when a company or team needs to change.

Cons

A disadvantage of visionary management style is that the lack of focus on detail can lead to problems, especially if your team members are inexperienced or new.

For this reason, visionary management is typically better for experienced, professional teams. People who are already knowledgeable and capable enough to do their work with little or no supervision.

3. Transactional management styles

Transactional management style is using positive rewards such as incentives, bonuses, and stock options to motivate employees to improve their performance. Another way to put it is that the transactional management style relies on motivating employees through extrinsic rewards.

For instance, transactional managers may rely on piecework pay to incentivize their employees to produce more. Similarly, they may structure quarterly or annual bonuses around employee performance.

Sean Gilbert is one of the co-owners of Gilbert Orchards in Yakima. Gilbert uses piecework pay and supports it as a means of driving higher productivity.

However, there are now numerous lawsuits and class action cases against the state’s tree fruit companies, claiming that piecework pay is unfair and not in line with minimum wage laws. This conflict and rise in legal action may make many leaders hesitant to rely solely on transactional management to drive performance.

Pros

Transactional management style tends to be effective for short periods, where you need to motivate your team to complete work they don’t want to do. For instance, if you need them to work overtime for a couple of weeks to finish a project on time, offering an extrinsic reward can be effective.

Cons

Studies show that extrinsic rewards are less effective than intrinsic ones, particularly in the long run. In fact, they can negatively impact employee motivation if used too heavily or for too long.

If you want to increase your team’s workload or hours indefinitely, transactional management will not be successful. Transactional management is not suitable for promoting creativity or innovation, as rewards are tied directly to known results.

4. Servant Leadership management styles

The phrase “servant leadership” was originally coined back in 1970 by Robert K. Greenleaf in an essay titled “The Servant as Leader.” This management style is also sometimes called coaching, training, or mentoring.

A servant management style focuses on supporting your employees. Managers who embrace this style spend their time, coaching, mentoring, and supporting their team. They see their role as one of an adviser or coach rather than a dictator or rule enforcer.

In order to be an effective servant leader, you need to be highly experienced both in the jobs of your employees and in performing coaching. Strong interpersonal skills are needed in order to relate well with your team and build a mentoring relationship. For your team to trust you and open up to you, you will need to show them you are ethical and trustworthy.

Jack Ma, the Executive Chairman of Alibaba Group, is a well-known example of someone with a servant-leadership management style. Ma is a champion of philanthropic efforts and is highly supportive of his employees. Ma prizes emotional intelligence and fostering love and support among his employees in order to achieve greatness.

Pros

The servant-leader management style is effective in helping your team develop and advance professionally. It also helps create a strong bond between employee and manager and can promote greater trust, bonding, and collaboration.

The focus of servant leadership is not to discipline but to help people learn from their mistakes and improve their own performance. If you have a team of highly skilled professionals, this leadership style can help them reach new levels of performance and productivity.

Cons

One of the disadvantages of this management style is that it can be ineffective for some employees. For instance, if you have negative employees that are unmotivated, negative, and/or simply a bad fit for their role, trying to support and coach them may waste both of your time.

Also, by focusing on learning opportunities and improvement, you effectively communicate that output is not as high on your priority list, as long as people gave it a genuine attempt. While this can be successful for process improvement, innovation, and other cyclical initiatives, it can cause problems if your team is producing physical products or providing customer service.

This management style also typically requires more of your time, since you have to spend some time in one-on-one meetings with your employees in order to effectively coach and support them.

5. Pacesetting management styles

Pacesetting management style embodies leading from the front of the pack. As a manager, you provide instructions and set a work pace, and then expect your employees to follow in your footsteps.

Typically, pacesetting involves setting high or hard-to-reach standards in an effort to drive your team to achieve new bests and hit bigger goals.

Pacesetting is successful when a leader sets a challenging pace that employees are motivated to match.

Jack Welch, once the CEO of General Electric, is a prime example of a persistent and demanding pacesetter. While he effectively led the company for twenty years, he did earn some negative press and the nickname “Neutron Jack” for setting an exacting pace and cutting 25% of the company’s jobs over a four year period.

Pros

If your team is capable and motivated, this style can lead to greater productivity and a healthy sense of competition and accomplishment. It is most effective when you have a single big challenge to tackle or a short-term goal to reach.

Research by Harvard Business Review shows that the majority of teams should avoid implementing stretch goals. However, they did find that effective but complacent teams can benefit from their use.

In other words, if you have an effective team that you know is not living up to its potential, adopting a pacesetting management style can be an effective way to get them out of a comfortable rut.

Cons

If you’re consistently pushing your team to meet stretch goals, you can cause them to burn out. Plus, if your team is not capable of meeting your standards, you could end up setting them up for failure. And the inability to reach the goals and targets provided can result in a loss of motivation, and lower morale.

This management style also emphasizes personal accomplishments, so it can create divisions and resentment among the team. For instance, if only one or two members are able to keep up with your pace, the others could become bitter and resentful.

6. Democratic management styles

This style is based on the philosophy that two heads are better than one and that everyone deserves to have a say, no matter what their position or title…its also sometimes referred to as consultative, consensus, participative, collaborative, or affiliative style.

Managers who adopt a democratic style encourage idea sharing and regular employee participation. The focus is on encouraging your team to share their thoughts, ideas, suggestions, and potential solutions in order to help each other, and the company grows.

In a democracy, you as the manager, retain the final decision-making authority, but you seek out and take into account the thoughts, ideas, and recommendations of your team before making any decision.

Ray Dalio refers to this type of group as one where an idea meritocracy exists – the best idea wins, no matter who’s idea it is. Dalio is the founder of Bridgewater Associates, a global leader in institutional portfolio management and the largest hedge fund in the world. Dalio values independent thinking and encourages every employee in the company, no matter how new or how junior, to put forward new ideas and suggestions.

Pros

A democratic leadership style helps your employees feel valued and heard. It can also encourage them to solve their own problems and come up with innovative new ideas. By asking for their input, you’re effectively encouraging your team members to think for themselves and to take on more responsibility for team decisions and outcomes.

Plus, by seeking out the ideas of others, you can arrive at better solutions and achieve greater results than if you’re making decisions in isolation.

Cons

The biggest downside of democratic management is that it takes time. If you’re often in a scenario where a decision needs to be made quickly, you won’t have time to seek out and consider the suggestions of the team.

Another issue is that employees can become frustrated or resentful if they feel like you’re not truly taking their ideas into consideration. For instance, if you never appear to go with Bobby’s suggestions, it could result in his feelings being hurt.

To avoid this, you will need to either promote anonymous suggestions, to remove the possibility of favoritism, or become adept at facilitating discussions and helping your team focus on valuable idea creation and sharing without emphasizing who came up with what.

7. Laissez-Faire management styles

The laissez-faire management style emphasizes employee freedom. Laissez-faire originates from French and directly translates to “let do” in English. In other words, laissez-faire managers let their employees do what they will, with little to no interference.

Within the laissez-faire management style, there is no oversight provided during the creation or production process. Laissez-faire managers promote self-directed teams, and typically only get involved if something goes wrong or the team requests it.

In a smoothly operating team, a laissez-faire manager will only appear present at the beginning and the end of the work process. At the beginning, to provide guidelines, share information, and answer questions. And at the end to review the outcome(s) of the team and provide advice or recommendations about how the team can do even better next time.

Google uses laissez-faire management as a means of promoting employee creativity and innovation. Google Founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin created “20 percent time” way back in 2004. While the rule has changed over time, in essence, management allows employees a portion of their paid work hours to focus on whatever project they want, without any management oversight.

This freedom enables employees to focus on work they are passionate about and to experiment with creative new ideas. Hugely successful innovations such as AdSense, Gmail, and Google Maps can all be attributed to this “20 percent time.”

Pros

If you have a team of highly skilled professionals, they may thrive with the freedom that a laissez-faire approach provides.

This management style can result in high job satisfaction and high productivity for teams who enjoy its autonomy. It can also help boost innovation and creativity throughout your organization.

Cons

Laissez-Faire may not work if a team:

Lacks self-motivation

Lacks problem-solving skills

Struggles to manage their own time

The lack of oversight inherent to this style is not appropriate for teams that cannot self-manage. It is also risky on large and/or critical projects, as you may not become aware of issues until it’s too late. Teams may want to utilize Gantt Chart software to see problems before they arise.

This is a lot to take in, isn’t it? What about your employees? Which management style will work best for them?

Management styles and You: Choose wisely!

Your perfect management style needs to align with the following:

Your own skills, experience, and personality. For instance, you may struggle to be a pacesetter if you’re not a subject matter expert.

The needs of your team. New and inexperienced or tenured and highly-skilled? The answer will impact which management style you should adopt.

The culture. The culture of your team and the organization as a whole need to impact your style. For instance, if your company is currently undergoing a lot of change, you may need to be a visionary. If you have a divided and unmotivated team, you may need to be a servant leader.

The problem is that the vast majority of managers aren’t asking themselves which management style is the right fit. They’re simply adopting the one they’re most familiar with, most comfortable with, or the one they’ve been told to exhibit.

This inflexibility inevitably leads to disaster.

The most successful managers understand that you need different styles for different scenarios and different projects. You may even need different styles for different members of your team.

A new junior employee may need an authoritarian style until they become comfortable with the job. While your senior employee who is highly motivated and reliable may thrive under a laissez-faire management style.

Amazing managers craft their approach around their audience and can fluidly switch between styles as situations change.

Does your team need a powerful project management tool that the whole team can use? Workzone may be just the ticket…

5 Management Styles: Pick the One That Works for Your Team

5 Management Styles: Pros and Cons

Gone are the days when everyone strived to hold the same job for 40 years until retirement. If you’re not comfortable with the job or the types of management styles employed by your superiors, it has never been easier to move onto greener pastures.

But with employee retention on the decline, businesses need to find ways to keep employees around. Management style is one of the biggest reasons people change jobs. In fact, over 50 percent of Americans have left a job to get away from a manager. As the old saying goes — people leave managers, not companies.

Since management style has such a big impact on retention, it’s important to know what works or doesn’t work for you and your team. This knowledge allows you to:

communicate better with your team, leading to better comprehension of your needs and requirements;

build on the strengths of your management style, and learn to avoid the weaknesses;

and be more confident in your decisions.

There are many management styles, but five stand out above the rest: autocratic, democratic, laissez-faire, visionary, and servant leadership. Here are the pros and cons of each.

Autocratic management style

As the name suggests, this management style is characterized by the leader’s control over all decisions. An autocratic manager will rarely take input from team members or from a group consensus. And they often exert complete control over their team.

Here are the pros and cons of using this management style:

Pros

Quick decisions can be made in environments where a speedy turnaround is required.

Processes are streamlined, as there’s no back and forth between team members. One person handles any and all sign-offs.

Poor performance can be quickly addressed and tackled. With other types of management styles, under-performance can go unnoticed for longer.

Cons

It discourages cooperation and taking initiative. Employees who are proactive and knowledgeable can find this style difficult to work under. It can lead them to feeling deflated and unmotivated.

Decisions stop when the manager is absent as team members don’t feel empowered or capable of making decisions.

Turnover can increase if team members don’t feel respected. Employees don’t feel valued for their input if decisions are always made above their heads.

The performance of a team or company is solely dependent on one person. If the manager is fair and competent, then this style of management can work. If not, everyone suffers no matter the quality of work they do.

Democratic management style

This type of management style requires the managers and team to be collaborative. It distributes the power and encourages all team members to take part in the decision-making process. Research by Amy Edmondson of Harvard shows that when leaders are inclusive and encourage their staff to speak up, it leads to better learning and performance.

Let’s look at the pros and cons:

Pros

It fosters strong working relationships between team members.

It’s useful for problem-solving for complex issues. As it encourages collaborative work, team members are more willing to put forward ideas and work together for a solution.

The knowledge level of the entire team increases, as knowledge sharing is actively promoted.

Since employees feel secure in their role and trusted to make decisions, it encourages innovative and creative thinking that can improve the business as a whole.

Everyone can benefit from management tools.

Cons

The decision-making process can be drawn-out as everyone’s input is needed to come to a consensus.

It can cause disharmony amongst team members if used incorrectly. Especially if employees feel some opinions are listened to more than others.

It muddies the water when it comes to a clear manager or leader. So when decisions have to be made without a group consensus, the lack of structure can cause issues.

If team members disagree and consensus can be reached, decisions may not ultimately come to pass, leading to delays and a lack of direction.

Laissez-faire management style

This leadership style is also known as the delegate style of management. Any and all decision making is delegated to team members, and managers are completely hands-off. There’s very little guidance from management, and teams have to problem solve on their own.

Pros

When there is a level of skill and knowledge in the team, it can motivate as team members felt they are seen to be the experts.

It can foster a creative environment, as team members are forced to innovate in order to problem solve.

Employees feel trusted to get on with their own work and projects. This trust can really improve team staff morale, and lead people to take greater ownership of their work.

Cons

Management may appear lackadaisical and uninterested in the team, leading to demotivation. A survey of 1,000 working adults showed that the top complaints about managers were about what they didn’t do.

Confusion over processes can happen when there’s no clearly defined management structure.

If there’s no oversight, poor performance may not be addressed in a quick or timely manner.

Changes by management can become hard to implement after a team has a large amount of autonomy. Team members may resist them, as they feel they can work without oversight.

Servant leadership management style

No, this doesn’t mean you just do whatever your reports tell you to do. Rather, it’s about keeping the mindset that a leader should always look for opportunities to serve the people on their team. That way, you worry less about finding ways to motivate your team in favor of sourcing these ideas from them directly.

Pros

This approach helps your reports grow, as they’re directly responsible for telling you what they need and how they plan to achieve their objectives.

The bond between a manager and their team grows stronger when the team is consulted on important decisions.

When you ask your team what you can do to help them, you’re making them feel heard. When people feel heard, they’re more likely to work with you on your objectives.

Cons

Imagine asking someone what you can do for them and all they’ve got to say is “I don’t know.” Unfortunately, some of the people on your team might not be as self-directed as you’d like.

Sitting down with everyone to ask them what you can do for them takes time. This management style may not be feasible if you’re running a larger team or a whole department.

Because of how time-intensive this approach is, it’s not well-suited to teams that have to fill quotas or otherwise concentrate on pure output — like a sales team.

Visionary management style

Where other management styles focus on individual initiatives, this style focuses on the big picture. Managers who follow this style find ways to encapsulate the organization’s vision. That vision becomes the guiding light to answer questions, solve problems, and determine which initiatives are essential. This leads to a management style that’s a bit more hands-off, as employees are trusted to follow the vision set out for them.

Pros

When your team is doing work they believe in, it’s a lot easier to keep them engaged. They’ll supply their own ideas more readily, and they’ll be more invested in their work.

Employee turnover is a challenge for every organization. But when you use a common vision to bring your team together, you’re lowering this risk.

Cons

What’s your organization’s vision? Now, what about your team’s vision? If the answers to these questions aren’t clear, you’ll probably have some difficulty implementing this management style.

The visionary management style only works when a manager can actually be inspiring. While that’s a trait that can be learned, it means this style requires a higher initial investment than others.

At the end of the day, the type of management style you choose will undoubtedly have an impact on your team. Whether that impact is positive or negative really depends on your employees and your organization. Make sure to speak with your team, consult them on their preferred style, check in and see how you’re doing, and adjust as necessary.

How to deal with the challenges of management

What are some of the biggest struggles managers face, no matter their management style? Getting an eye on what their team is doing, empowering their team to work with colleagues, and getting the reports they need to make better choices. These problems can be exacerbated by a large tool stack. If your organization uses more than one work hub, multiple chat apps, and more, it can be tough to know where everything is.

Not so with Unito.

Unito has the deepest two-way integrations for the market’s most popular work tools. In just a few minutes, you can build your first flow, start syncing work items, and save time.