The How and why participatory leadership

As an entrepreneur, one of the biggest challenges is to lead your team well. If we focus on the participation of workers at a cost of business goals? Or "show them how," and expect the team to follow your example? There is a different approach for each situation?

In this piece, we'll look at a particular leadership style - "participative leadership" and its benefits.

Leadership means different things to different people. However, a generally accepted definition is that it "is a process that takes place in groups where members influences and controls the behavior of other members towards a common goal."

While every leader creates his mantra of leadership, most leadership practices fall into one of these categories. Try to understand your style!

Directive Leadership: You have the first and last word, and the group simply follows the instructions. We do not hear a secret desire to be in the army!

Leadership support: you create warm, personal relationships with team members in order to convince their efforts.

Participatory Leadership: The members of the group are involved in decision-making process from the beginning, contributing their ideas and suggestions. You are a strong believer of teamwork.

Achievement Oriented Leadership: You give your team a goal and work independently to achieve it. You're either lazy, or more likely, have a high degree of confidence in the ability of your team.

For now, let's take a closer look Participatory Leadership

A person who follows the participative style of leadership will have a buy-in from group members on most changes and important decisions before their implementation. However, the leader is still the final decision. Remember, participative leadership is not about consensus - if you keep looking for universal approval, you will never do anything.

Some people think that participatory leadership is a "female thing" and makes it look soft. Let's set the record straight - this style is not a sign of weakness, in fact, is a force that your team will respect you.

When it works participatory leadership?

Although it is not practical to change your approach to every situation, you might like to try participative leadership under certain conditions. You say you're working on an assignment in which they have limited powers, but your employees collectively have a lot of knowledge and experience. Using participative leadership is likely to create a win-win for both - they will feel included and you make more informed decisions. And if you are the owner of a start-up, getting buy-in on key issues on the part of your core team members might be valuable.

Can I learn to be a participative leader?

Sure! Leaders are made, not born. Here are some of the most important suggestions offered by experts:

Encourage group values: Allow the group to establish the values ​​and, therefore, take ownership. Of course, these will support the objectives of the company.

Vision Share: participatory leadership is all about sharing, starting with your dreams for the company. Let your employees know where they are headed.

Create a healthy environment: It 's your responsibility to create an environment based on trust and mutual respect. Give your employees their own space. No growth is possible without it.

Provide the team: No point taking their inputs, if does not have the necessary skills for the job! Make sure they have the tools and training.

Organize and energy: not every speech has to be "rah rah", but it is important to nurture and motivate employees. Get those juices flowing!

Take and give feedback: two-way communication is the cornerstone of participatory leadership. Be generous with praise and with the objective criticism. Speak, but also listen.

Expect accountability: Since employees are given more responsibility, be accountable for their actions. At the same time, do not turn into a control freak!

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What's in it for me?

The participatory leadership is all about feeling good about themselves. You can take on many difficult business situations.

Making the change: the regular involvement of the team before introducing the change will ensure that they are already prepared for the transition. This works better than a separate "buy-in meeting" that other leaders might use.

Encouraging risk-taking: An executive of a multinational telecommunications tells how he used participative leadership to encourage employees to think out of the box, while charting your company's growth plan.

Solve technical problems: If you need to get a group of people that gruff, technically qualified to solve a complex problem, a participative style of leadership will help to bring out their combined experience.

So, is the participative leadership the best?

Probably there is no answer to this question. Each style works best in a specific situation and vice versa. The participatory leadership is no different - while we have talked about the benefits, it is equally important to recognize those cases where it will not work. A situation that requires strict monitoring and immediate action - say, a disaster site, he can not afford a consultative approach. To be an effective participative leader, you must also develop an astute judgment for when to use it! ......