Leadership Styles

Basic Leadership Styles

The four basic leadership styles of the project manager are described below.

Autocratic

The project manager is primarily focused on getting the tasks done, with little regard to the team member's feelings.

Directing

The project manager tells the team members what, when, where, and how to do things.

Democratic or Participative

The project manager encourages the team members to actively participate in the decision-making process. A lot of authority is delegated to the team members and they play an active role in managing the project.

Laissez-faire

It's a French term, literally meaning "let do". The project manager turns things over to the team members, and only monitors the work at a high level.

Other Leadership Styles

A few other leadership styles defined in the PMI Standards and other project management references include:

Servant Leader

A servant leader demonstrates commitment to serve and put other people first. Agile approaches emphasize servant leadership as a way to empower teams. Servant leadership style works best when the team members have the necessary skills, and need the project leader to manage outside stakeholders. Read Servant Leadership for a better understanding of this topic.

Transactional

Rewards are based on accomplishments against goals.

Transformational

Empowering, motivating and inspiring the team members.

Charismatic

Able to inspire; is high-energy, enthusiastic, self-confident; holds strong convictions.

Interactional

A combination of transactional, transformational, and charismatic leadership styles.

Pace-Setting

A pace-setting leader leads from the front, sets high standards for performance, and expects the team to exceed with minimal management. The leader always wants to do things better and faster. This style should be sparingly used as it can lower team morale and lead to demotivation.

Further Reading

Also read the following:

1. Tuckman Ladder: for the various stages of team development and the corresponding leadership styles to be adopted.
2. Shu Ha Ri Model: for Agile coaching styles.