Directive leadership is tight management, the main tool of which is order. In this case, a high orientation to the result and a low orientation to the interests and morale of people are observed (Northhouse, 2017). Directive leadership involves a high level of structuring the work, explaining to subordinates what and how to do it, as well as what and when is expected of them. With a directive style, the leader shows little interest in the desires, ambitions, goals of the people in the team (Northhouse, 2017). Nevertheless, such a leadership style can be effective in case of organizational crises, within crisis management, and, to a certain extent, in the process of introducing changes, when it is necessary to show firmness in overcoming resistance to changes, in particular sabotage.
Serving leadership is a team-leading style in which a leader puts the interests of the team above his own and creates the conditions in which people maximize their potential. A sense of community appears within the collective in this case. Self-awareness, empathy, listening, responsibility are the characteristics of a servant leader. Such leaders motivate an employee to work, reveal his/her abilities, potential, and desire, communicate with him/her. Understanding an employee’s needs, the leader suggests a development direction for him/her, combining the goals of the company with the goals of the employee. Such a leader provides an opportunity to see personal interest in the success of the company. The servant-leader engages employees in decision-making; where necessary, he or she creates a sense of community within the team. The result of this interaction is mutual respect, comfort in relationships, and a sincere internal motivation to work. Such a leadership style will be effective in implementing large-scale talent management programs and employee development.
At the center of the situational leadership concept, there are employees and their development. In practice, the leader must first analyze the behavior of the subordinate, and then choose an adequate leadership style. Briefly, the essence of this model can be expressed as follows: for effective management, the leader must choose the style of interaction with the employee, depending on the level of ability of this employee to complete the task, as well as his/her motivation. The situational leader has to manage four categories of employees in relation to the task: “the employee cannot and does not want to work and develop”; “the employee cannot, but wants to work and develop”; “the employee can but does not want to work and develop”; “the employee can and wants to work and develop” (Daniels, 2017). This management style will be effective in project management and flexible organizational structures, that is, if there is the necessity of the dynamic formation and management of teams.
Transformational leadership enhances the motivation, morale, and productivity of followers through various mechanisms. In this style, the leader is a role model for his/her followers. At the same time, the leader must identify the weaknesses and strengths of followers and set them tasks that can optimize their work. In a significant part of the studies, positive relationships were found between the transformational leadership style of managers and the organization’s desired attitudes, employees’ behavior, individual and group effectiveness of subordinates, as well as positive correlation with the results of organizations in general (Daniels, 2017). A transformational leader is a leader who not only manages, but helps a team or company to change, grow, and develop. This type of leadership will be effective in Agile transformations and Agile projects, when iterative, cross-functional, team-oriented approach is used, and speed, autonomy and teamwork come first in order to unleash the full potential of organizations.
References
Daniels, L. M. (2017). 21st century leadership consciousness: From fear to love based leadership. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform.
Northhouse, P. (2017). Introduction to leadership: Concepts and practice. SAGE Publications.