Managing organizational structure - Agribusiness Management - page 380

primarily autocratic can show excellent results, particularly when the leader has a good feel
for the situation. Over a period of time, autocratic leaders tend to surround themselves with
subordinates who enjoy not having responsibility; they just like to “follow orders.” This
combination of leadership and following is often quite productive, at least temporarily.
However, it is limited completely by the individual autocrat's ability and can result in utter
chaos if that leader becomes incapacitated, or if the situation changes in a way that does not
play to the strengths of the autocrat. The autocratic style is common and is most likely seen
in smaller, owner-managed businesses.

Democratic

The democratic or participative leadership style favors a shared decision-making process,
with the leader maintaining the ultimate responsibility for decisions while actively seeking
signifi cant input from followers. Research shows that while this style may require a consid-
erable amount of skill, it stimulates employees' involvement, and enhances favorable
employee attitudes toward their jobs. The only real disadvantage is that a democratic leader-
ship style requires management skills and time that may not always be available—so this
leadership style may not be appropriate for all situations.

Free rein

Free rein or laissez-faire leadership literally relinquishes all decision making to followers.
The leader essentially abdicates his or her responsibility to the group and simply joins the
group as an equal; thus, the group decides what to do. Although free rein leadership may
work with some decisions, it seldom leads to consistently good decisions, and often results
in poor outcome and frustration among employees. This leadership style is highly dependent
on the quality of the employee team, and it takes a very capable group of individuals to make
this work. Figure 16.4 shows the increasing participation of a member of a group (the
employee) on the continuum from autocratic leadership to laissez-faire. The horizontal axis
describes the type of action taken by the manager in dealing with their employees.

Transformational

As discussed in Chapter 2 , managers' jobs include planning, organizing, directing, and con-
trolling. And, as agribusiness markets have evolved over time, it has become increasingly

Autocratic Democratic laissez-faire

Tells Sells Tests Teaches Consults Joins Abdicates

Figure 16.4 The leadership continuum
Note: horizontal axis outlines the action taken by the manager (leader) in dealing
with group members (employees).