Introduction to Management Styles
As a job seeker it’s important to know the management style you prefer. Knowing your preference for management styles provides an opportunity to convince an interviewer of what’s important in your day-to-day performance in the workplace. Understanding this will also put you in a better position to figure out how your style impacts the organization.
This section will help users to:
- Learn about various management styles
- Become aware of the correlation between management styles and leadership
- Develop a sense of what it takes to be a good leader
- Identify leadership styles and applications in various situations
- Become aware of your personal leadership style
- Become aware of the “Canadian Management Style”
What do we mean by management styles?
“Every leader has a unique style of handling the employees (Juniors/Team). The various ways of dealing with the subordinates at the workplace is called management style.”
– Management Style – Meaning and Different Types of Style, managementstudyguide.com
Managers and Leaders
What are the characteristics of a leader and a manager? Are great managers and great leaders the same thing? In reality, leadership and management are very different. If we reflect on the definition above then some phrases become important. These are ‘handling employees’ and ‘dealing with subordinates’. It’s clear then that the leadership role is a crucial part of any management style. To be a great manager you must understand what it takes to be a great leader.
What’s the difference between a manager and a leader?
The role of a manager is to manage the people who work for them. In general, managers make sure the work gets done and manage the people who do the activities to get the desired results. Managers are chosen and given their authority.
A leader isn’t appointed, but is someone who has the ability to inspire and motivate others to forge their own path towards achieving the desired results. Leaders use emotional intelligence to get the best performance out of their people.
See this website for nine differences between managers and leaders: marksanborn.com
“Managers are people who do things right, while leaders are people who do the right thing.”
– Warren Bennis, Ph.D.
Though we have seen that there are differences, this quote shows us how the two skill sets need to work together. Being a good leader without management skills will leave you with the inability to make your vision a reality. Being a good manager without having leadership skills will make it challenging to motivate your employees. Having a blend of both skill sets is ideal. There are a lot of managers in this world but there are very few people who have what it takes to be a great leader.