Topics:

1. The Nature of Leadership

2. Types of Leadership in Administration & Supervision

Authoritarian / Task Centered

Democratic / People Centered

Presented byHijab Zaidi

MA Education

Leadership Definition:

Educational and professional leadership enhances learner’s outcomes through the creation of an environment where learning permeates the organizational culture.

Definition:

The educational leader is able topromote a

Shared community vision

mobilize people

lead curriculum and pedagogicalpractice

administrate effectively

reflect critically on all practice.

Leadership:

There is probably no topic more important to success today than leadership

leadership occurs among people

involves the use of influence

is used to attain goals

Cont….The ability to influence people toward the attainment of organizational goals.

Leadership is dynamic and involves the use of influence.

builds a sense of community

creates a sense of ownership

establishes shared vision and values

to provide insights, identify strengths and areas for growth

The crowd will follow a leader who marches twenty steps in advance; but if he is a thousand steps in front of them, they do not see and do

not follow him.

~ George Brandes

Autocratic LeadershipAutocratic leadership refers to a style of leadership where the leader has complete authority over decision making and the employees obey the leader without question.

Manager retains power (classical approach)

Manager is decision-making authority

Manager does not consult employees for input

Subordinates expected to obey orders without explanations

Motivation provided through structured rewards and punishments

The employee has low motivatation or little desire to achieve, often passing their work responsibilities onto others.

Group members are reluctant to take responsibility

Collective or participative decision making causes delays and a project needs to be keep on schedule

Group members are inexperienced or unfamiliar with their role and trial and error needs to be avoided.

Low skilled or unskilled workforce

Characteristics of Autocratic LeadershipSome of the primary characteristics of autocratic leadership include:

Little or no input from group members

Leaders make the decisions

Group leaders dictate all the work methods and processes

Group members are rarely trusted with decisions or important tasks

Cont….

The autocratic leader retains all power, authority, and control, and reserves the right to make all decisions.

Autocratic leaders distrust their subordinate’s ability, and closely supervise and control people under them.

Autocratic leaders involve themselves in detailed day-to-day activities, and rarely delegate or empower subordinates.

Cont….

The autocratic leader adopts one-way communication. They do not consult with subordinates or give them a chance to provide their opinions, no matter the potential benefit of such inputs

Advantages of Autocratic Leadership Style

Getting things done quickly

Improving communication and management.

Disadvantages of Autocratic Leadership

Autocratic leaders usually remain unpopular and damage working relationships with colleagues.

The one sided communication flow in an autocratic leadership style restricts the creative and leadership skills of the employees and prevents their development.

The leader reserving the right to make all decisions leads to subordinates becoming heavily dependent on the leader. The team thereby becomes useless in running operations if they lose contact with their leader, and absence of the leader leads to total collapse and shutdown of operations.

The heavily centralized command of autocratic leadership style ensures that the system depends entirely on the leader. If the leader is strong, capable, competent, and just, the organization functions smoothly, and if the leader is weak, incompetent, or has low ethical and moral standards, the entire organization suffers for the sake of a single leader.

Lack of involvement from the employee in the decision making process leads to employees not assuming ownership of their work, contributing to low morale, lack of commitment, and manifesting in high turnover, absenteeism, and work stoppage.

Democratic Style of Leadership

Democratic leadership, also known as participative leadership, is a type of leadership style in which members of the group take a more participative role in the decision-making process.

Cont….Involves a team guided by a leader where all individuals are involved in the decision-making process to determine what needs to be done and how it should be done.

Democratic:

Encourages decision making from different perspectives – leadership may be emphasised throughout the organisation Consultative: process of consultation before

decisions are taken

Persuasive: Leader takes decision and seeks to persuade others that the decision is correct

Individuals are not simply hired hands but bring along with them their heads and hearts.

Democratic Belief

Democratic:May help motivation and

involvement

Workers feel ownership of the firm and its ideas

Improves the sharing of ideas and experiences within the business

Characteristics:

Delegation of tasks to other employees and subordinates along with full responsibility makes them accountable for their actions and tasks.

The manager or leader in-charge is always open to feedback (initiatives and otherwise) and it forms the basis of future assignments.

Encouragement by the leader to inspire the employees to become leaders and develop in this area. The manager seeks consultation on all issues and decisions but remains the final authority on which ones to be put into use.

Office politics that can threaten the growth and development of a working environment can be reduced with the help of a democratic style of leadership. All the people involved use their skills together for the completion of a certain task and hence, almost all ideas are taken into consideration and carefully debated. Communication gap is reduced. Tension between the leader and team members is decreased as a result of which fear of rejection and denial also reduces – this makes all sorts of issues addressable. A positive work environment is created. This means that a culture of junior workers getting a fair amount of responsibility and challenges is encouraged. When there are the right vibes among employees, work becomes more pleasurable.

Some managers adopt democratic leadership to please their subordinates but fail to follow the technique in its entirety. They might simply take in all the ideas and end up never implementing them.

The decision making process might be a long drawn one since every team member needs to be consulted. No one has a scarcity of ideas but to put them all in place requires a great deal of patience and understanding. Missing opportunities and being stuck in the middle of a hazard can be some of the drawbacks of this method.

Leadership Styles Autocratic Leadership Democratic Leadership

Other Terms Task OrientedDirective Leadership

Relation OrientedParticipative Leadership

Michigan Studies Job – centered Employee - centered

Blake’s LeadershipGrid

Concern for production Concern for people

Burns (1978)Bass (1999)

Transactional Leadership TransformationalLeadership