Ways to Lead
FountainBlue's July 11 When She Speaks program was on the topic of 'Ways to Lead'. Please join me in thanking our esteemed panelists.
Facilitator Linda Holroyd, CEO, FountainBlue
Panelist Carolina Amador, Associate Director, Corporate Intelligence, BioMarin
Panelist Amber Barber, Senior Director, Program Management, Jade Global
Panelist Sanchita Gupta, Senior Director, Human Resources Business Partner, Samsung Research America
Panelist Regina Hancher, Director, Customer Success, Gigamon
We began by comparing and contrasting Goleman's six leadership styles description, as released in 2000 as well as leadership styles profiled by Braden Becker in his 2023 article for HubSpot.
Our panelists agreed that there's a time and a place even for the most 'provincial' and 'outdated' leadership styles.
Although the Laissez Faire leadership style might not work when standards are strict and lives are at stake, it might work well in start-up situations when you have independent, mature workers with a lot of initiative, experience and good judgment.
Although the Autocratic leadership style might not be very inspiring and motivating for many employees, it is the preferred and favored leadership style in times of crisis when urgent and immediate action is required. It may also be the style of choice when a decision has been made, and the team must follow-through on that decision as dissension would compromise the ability to execute collaboratively and efficiently.
Although the Democratic leadership style works well in many situations, there are times when a vote with equal representation by all is the best way to lead. Sometimes equal representation for all is not effective as sometimes some people may be better informed, some people may have more at stake, some people are more motivated, etc.,
Although the Transactional leadership style rewards specific actions and supports meritocracy, it may not be effective when teams need to be inspired by more emotional, less tangible rewards. Plus transactional rewards unequally implemented can lead to disillusionment, disengagement and distrust.
Although the Bureaucratic leadership style can make processes more cumbersome and slow, setting clear policies and protocols in place can make difficult choices more clear and fair and less emotional.
Our panelists shared a wide range of stories and anecdotes about how they used a combination of coaching, strategic, transformational, visionary, pacesetting, and Path Goal leadership styles to address specific challenges, strategize on a plan, mobilize resources, rally stakeholders, and deliver specific measurable outcomes.
Coaching Leadership - Leader nurtures individuals
Strategic Leadership - Decisions based on strategy and goals
Transformational Leadership - Pushing to think and work in new ways
Visionary Leadership - Energetic focus on the future
Pacesetting Leadership - Leaders set ambitious goals
Path Goal Leadership - Situational Leadership with consideration for motivations and needs of those who are led
Change is never easy, but change IS the choice for companies and leaders looking to grow and succeed. Below is a compilation of their advice on how to best lead through change:
Be Strategic.
Accept the inevitable and focus on what you CAN manage and change.
Be clear on the WHY and on the end goal, the North Star. Reverse engineer from that visionary and transformational end goal.
Prioritize the focus on the proactive, high-impact changes you can lead.
Understand WHO needs WHEN, WHERE, and HOW and create a business case to provide support and resources to manage and lead through the change.
Be Collaborative.
Change doesn't happen overnight. But change CAN happen if you work together to understand the needs, support each other, remove obstacles, secure resources, solicit support from senior leaders and across the organization.
Focus on solving a problem, facilitating collaboration and communication.
Clearly communicate how a wide range of stakeholders contribute to the change and how each benefit from the change, when they lean in together.
Distribute the leadership – facilitate confidence as an action, err on the side of action
Be Responsive, Communicative and Other-Centric.
Help change to happen in ways which are acceptable to the wide range of stakeholders impacted. Be responsive, supportive, participatory, or achievement focused based on the needs of these stakeholders.
When possible, understand, support and work with common reactions around change: Restore (I still want to do it that way), Replace (Can I get a different version of what I used to have), Redesign (Can you create something like I used to have), Relinquish (I don't want to engage in that new, new).
Adopt a Servant leadership style – one that is leader-centric, but acting as a servant, removing obstacles, facilitating both empowerment and results.
No matter what the future brings, focus on delivering a psychologically safe environment filled with respect and servitude.
Grow Your Network.
Work the network to support the change initiative. Know what you know, know who you know, Know who knows what you know.
It's not clear what kind of change will happen, but it *is* clear that change WILL happen, and adopting a wide range of leadership styles will help you, your team, your program and your organization navigate the changes ahead.
Each leadership style serves a purpose, depending on the followers and depending on the situation, but every leader and manager must be versed in a wide range of leadership styles to meet the wide-ranging demands of the people they serve and the projects they oversee.