A successful leader understands the importance of each style, is comfortable flexing to any point on the spectrum and knows which style is appropriate for a given situation.
What is a leadership spectrum?
by John Dyer for Industry Week
Maybe you have heard workers say things like, “My boss is a total dictator! He won’t let anyone make a change without his direct approval!” or “I can’t stand how my boss will never make a decision … always pushing us to figure things out on our own. Why doesn’t he just tell us what to do?” Would you characterize these bosses as being managers or leaders? Maybe the best way to answer this question is to better understand the “Leadership Spectrum.”
Post 1: Boss makes decisions with little or no input.
Pros: Decisions can be made rapidly and decisively. The boss may have additional knowledge about the strategic direction of the organization that others may not be aware of. Also, the boss may be making a difficult decision in order to take the pressure (and responsibility) off of the employees.
Cons: There is little to no ownership and buy-in from anyone other than the decision maker. When things begin to go wrong, there isn’t much incentive to help correct the situation (leading to great delight by the employees who may say something like, “The boss should have known better and asked us for our ideas!”)