How to Use a Leadership Grid to Identify Leadership Styles

A leadership grid is a powerful tool to help you understand the areas in your management style that need improvement. While your ideal leadership style is probably close to that of a team manager, you might find yourself focusing more on the individual team member than the company as a whole. This could lead to a focus on results that leads team members to leave the company or look for a transfer. You might find it helpful to include your team in future decisions.

Relationship-oriented management

A relationship-oriented leader is a good example of a leadership style. This style involves regular goal setting and trusting employees to deliver on their responsibilities. This style has several advantages, including positive connotations among employees. However, delegating responsibility to select employees can create a confusion about what each employee’s role is. Therefore, a strong leader is essential to achieve success in this style. Relationship-oriented leadership styles are good for teams that are looking to develop strong leaders.

Unlike traditional leaders, relationship-oriented leaders are more likely to focus on the welfare of their staff. They promote a collegial environment and focus on staff well-being. In addition, relationship-oriented leaders prioritize personal goals and teamwork. In addition, they encourage employee self-expression and foster collaboration among members of their teams. This style of leadership also promotes social cohesion and harmony in the workplace. However, it requires an advanced level of emotional intelligence, and this type of leadership requires a strong sense of empathy.

Country club management

If you run a country club, then it is imperative to identify the true leaders among your team members. Not all managers are good leaders. Popularity is not a good indicator of leadership. While some people enjoy being stressed, others may not. It is important to remember that good stress comes from meaningful work, while bad stress comes from too little work. If you don’t identify your country club leaders early on, you may find your employees reacting negatively.

Leaders with a Country Club management style put the welfare of their team above all else. Their belief is that if their workers are happy, they will perform better. Consequently, they rarely correct negative employee behavior. Instead, they avoid conflict, which is a necessary motivator. While they might believe they have high employee engagement, they put their team members’ well-being ahead of their own work, which ultimately impedes productivity.

Authority-obedience management

While this type of manager enjoys being the boss and making decisions, they’re often detrimental to a dynamic dairy organization. In this article, we’ll explore the advantages and disadvantages of authority-obedience management and how to recognize it in yourself. This style is based on the principle that “you can’t manage what you don’t know.”

The two dimensions of the Leadership Grid are concern for people and concern for production. The Y-axis represents the focus on people, while the x-axis is concerned with results. Each axis represents a nine-point scale: a low number indicates the manager is less concerned with people and a high number indicates the manager’s concern for the bottom line. In essence, this grid is a tool to help managers determine the best type of leadership for their organization.

Produce-or-perish management

Produce-or-perish management is the type of leadership style that places emphasis on production and disregards the needs of the team. This style often generates high production and results but has a negative effect on the morale of the team. Workers who report to an authoritarian manager often feel demoralized and under-productive. Middle-of-the-road managers balance the needs of the team with the organization’s needs.

The authority obedience style, also known as Produce-or-perish management, is one of the worst forms of management. While it can result in a high level of short-term productivity, it’s not the best option for most organizations. Instead, opt for a leadership style that emphasizes individual contributions. You can find many useful tools through Mind Tools, including the Leadership Grid. If you’d like to know more about this style, consider joining the Mind Tools Club.