Understand Leadership Attributes and Skills - Unit 19 - P3
In this assignment I will be talking about the attributes and skills needed by a
team leader. Leadership means the action of leading a group of people or an
organisation or the ability to do this. There are different types of leadership
styles which are; autocratic, democratic, participative, and laissez faire.
Leadership style is the way in which a person tries to lead others over a period
of time. Their style is their chosen approach and will determine how others see
them and react to them.
Leadership is when you lead by example and guide a team to their goal. For
example; in a retail store the leader would be the manager who would
motivate the staff to achieving objectives such as high sales numbers.
Autocratic leadership is also known as authoritarian leadership. This is a
leadership style characterised by individual control over all decisions and little
input from other team members. Autocratic leaders typically make choices
based on their ideas and judgements and rarely take advice from their team.
This type of leaders gives instructions and expect the rest of the team to follow
them and carry them out. This can work in situations where the team needs
very clear instructions and the leader has a lot of knowledge. However, the
weaknesses of this approach are that the team may not like being ordered
around and some team members may have good ideas that could be shared if
they had the chance.
Democratic leadership style consists of the leader sharing decision making
abilities with the other team members. This promotes the interests of the
team members by practicing social equality. These types of leaders like to
listen to the points of view of other team members; they would rather consult
than tell.
Participative leadership is a management style that invites the input from the
whole team on all company decisions. The staff is given pertinent information.
The staff are given pertinent information regarding company issues and a
majority vote determines the course of action that the company takes.
Laissez-faire leadership style is where the rights and power to make decisions
is given to the worker fully. The advantage to this approach is that it
encourages the team to think for themselves individually. However, it can lead
, to frustration where the team feels like the leader isn’t leading the group and
it could lead to a lack of structure.
Leadership styles have a significant effect on all businesses and teams. These
styles effect everyone as it is what creates the co-operation that influences the
whole team and its performance. All leaders have different styles when it
comes to approaching their team Laissez-faire leadership style is typically
considered the least effective option as they believe that people excel when
they are left alone to respond to their responsibilities and obligations in their
own way. Democratic leadership style is usually considered the best option for
most teams. This is the opposite to the autocratic leadership style which
emphasizes that management offers guidance to its team. When deciding what
type of leadership style to use there are three factors to take into
consideration which are;
The preferred management style of the leader.
The style of leadership that team members are used to or prefer.
The situation in which the team is operating.
There has been much written about the qualities of leaders. What is written is
also about ‘great’ leaders should share in order to make their team work at
peak performance. Some even suggest that leaders can possibly share some
traits, characteristics, personality and even physical characteristics. Some of
this writing contradicts other work. One example would be Charles Handy’s
research which suggests that leaders:
Tend to have a dynamic and assertive personality.
Have above average intelligence without being brilliant.
Tend to be above average in height or small.
Charles Handy also suggests that leaders are able to take a ‘helicopter view’
and see what the situation is and what is going on around them. This is useful
as it means that the leader can have full control and see where the team are
heading. The leader is able to see if the team are on the correct track to
meeting their goals. Also, problems can be identified before they occur, and
the leader can see everything from above preventing them from getting
tangled up in small details. This will enable the team to work effectively.
As a leader power and authority are needed to ensure the job is done well and
correctly. Power means ‘the ability to force through decisions’. Authority
In this assignment I will be talking about the attributes and skills needed by a
team leader. Leadership means the action of leading a group of people or an
organisation or the ability to do this. There are different types of leadership
styles which are; autocratic, democratic, participative, and laissez faire.
Leadership style is the way in which a person tries to lead others over a period
of time. Their style is their chosen approach and will determine how others see
them and react to them.
Leadership is when you lead by example and guide a team to their goal. For
example; in a retail store the leader would be the manager who would
motivate the staff to achieving objectives such as high sales numbers.
Autocratic leadership is also known as authoritarian leadership. This is a
leadership style characterised by individual control over all decisions and little
input from other team members. Autocratic leaders typically make choices
based on their ideas and judgements and rarely take advice from their team.
This type of leaders gives instructions and expect the rest of the team to follow
them and carry them out. This can work in situations where the team needs
very clear instructions and the leader has a lot of knowledge. However, the
weaknesses of this approach are that the team may not like being ordered
around and some team members may have good ideas that could be shared if
they had the chance.
Democratic leadership style consists of the leader sharing decision making
abilities with the other team members. This promotes the interests of the
team members by practicing social equality. These types of leaders like to
listen to the points of view of other team members; they would rather consult
than tell.
Participative leadership is a management style that invites the input from the
whole team on all company decisions. The staff is given pertinent information.
The staff are given pertinent information regarding company issues and a
majority vote determines the course of action that the company takes.
Laissez-faire leadership style is where the rights and power to make decisions
is given to the worker fully. The advantage to this approach is that it
encourages the team to think for themselves individually. However, it can lead
, to frustration where the team feels like the leader isn’t leading the group and
it could lead to a lack of structure.
Leadership styles have a significant effect on all businesses and teams. These
styles effect everyone as it is what creates the co-operation that influences the
whole team and its performance. All leaders have different styles when it
comes to approaching their team Laissez-faire leadership style is typically
considered the least effective option as they believe that people excel when
they are left alone to respond to their responsibilities and obligations in their
own way. Democratic leadership style is usually considered the best option for
most teams. This is the opposite to the autocratic leadership style which
emphasizes that management offers guidance to its team. When deciding what
type of leadership style to use there are three factors to take into
consideration which are;
The preferred management style of the leader.
The style of leadership that team members are used to or prefer.
The situation in which the team is operating.
There has been much written about the qualities of leaders. What is written is
also about ‘great’ leaders should share in order to make their team work at
peak performance. Some even suggest that leaders can possibly share some
traits, characteristics, personality and even physical characteristics. Some of
this writing contradicts other work. One example would be Charles Handy’s
research which suggests that leaders:
Tend to have a dynamic and assertive personality.
Have above average intelligence without being brilliant.
Tend to be above average in height or small.
Charles Handy also suggests that leaders are able to take a ‘helicopter view’
and see what the situation is and what is going on around them. This is useful
as it means that the leader can have full control and see where the team are
heading. The leader is able to see if the team are on the correct track to
meeting their goals. Also, problems can be identified before they occur, and
the leader can see everything from above preventing them from getting
tangled up in small details. This will enable the team to work effectively.
As a leader power and authority are needed to ensure the job is done well and
correctly. Power means ‘the ability to force through decisions’. Authority
