Leadership is related to the power of influence that leaders exert over their subordinates, but the way in which others are influenced is what gives rise to the many styles of leadership. Influence can be determined both by the position of the leader within a certain organization or context and by behavioral or personality traits that make followers feel enthusiastic about or identify with following them to achieve organizational goals (Yukl, 2012).
Authors such as Páez Gabriunas et al. (2012) consider leadership to be the ability to influence subordinates so that they work toward achieving a common objective from a moral and authentic perspective while, at the same time, contributing to personal growth and safeguarding individual interests.
According to Northouse (2021), Blake and Mouton developed a practical model that describes leadership behaviors in terms of concern for results and concern for people. How leaders combine these orientations results in five major leadership styles: authority-compliance management (9,1), country-club management (1,9), impoverished management (1,1), middle-of-the-road management (5,5), and team management (9,9). This model is particularly interesting because it views leadership tendencies as orientations that can be combined. Leadership behavior can be selected by the leader according to certain situations and goals rather than being static.
Static processes do not occur in organizations; dynamism is crucial in this VUCA world, where changes are inevitable at all levels—social, economic, commercial, and technological. Therefore, change management must be reflected in leadership (Turbay-Posada, 2013), as well as in the valuation of intangible assets and human capital (Ordoñez Santos, 2010).
Leadership is an extremely complex phenomenon, so there cannot be a single leadership style. Styles vary depending on each leader, their personality, their behaviors, and the particular situation, or they may result from a combination of all these elements. When leadership combines these elements to face situations, solve problems, and direct efforts toward a common goal, while considering the needs, qualities, and abilities of the people who will make it possible to achieve those goals, as well as the expectations of the group and the situation, a powerful process capable of generating very positive changes is created. According to Serrano Orellana & Portalanza (2014), leadership has been transformed over time as society has evolved.
Chiang Vega et al. (2017) consider that leadership is determined by leaders, followers, and the different situations that arise. In other words, it is a process of mutual influence. Arámbula Flórez (2006) identifies several capacities associated with leadership: strategic capacity, which involves making timely decisions in complex situations; interpersonal capacity, which involves establishing guidelines while stimulating followers; emotional capacity, which involves facing highly stressful situations; and technical capacity, which involves applying knowledge to achieve results.
Organizations must determine which leadership styles are practiced within them because their growth strategies and success depend, in part, on leadership. At the same time, organizations must guide, consolidate, and, above all, understand which leadership styles are optimal for their contexts.
According to Northouse (2021), there is a widely recognized situational approach model that classifies leadership into four styles: S1 is high directive–low supportive, S2 is high directive–high supportive, S3 is low directive–high supportive, and S4 is low directive–low supportive. This model proposes considering the followers, particularly their level of capacity and commitment, and adjusting the leader’s style accordingly.
Flexibility is one of the most representative characteristics of this model. There is another theory, known as path-goal theory, which, according to House (1996), suggests that for leaders to be effective, they must engage in behaviors that complement followers’ environments and abilities in a manner that compensates for deficiencies and is instrumental to subordinate satisfaction and individual and work-unit performance. The author identifies four leadership styles within this theory: directive, supportive, participative, and achievement-oriented. This is also a situational approach, but from another perspective, considering the relationship between tasks and followers, who are ultimately responsible for carrying them out.
Northouse (2021) also mentions another leadership style, the transformational style, which is based on factors such as charisma, intellectual stimulation, and stimulation of followers’ needs. The exercise of this leadership style contributes to the motivation of followers and the work team, helping to achieve optimal organizational results.
There is also the transactional leadership style, which is based on a transaction or exchange in which leaders reward or sanction followers in exchange for their performance. These leaders identify the needs and desires of their followers and, in accordance with organizational objectives or tasks, can help followers achieve them through rewards.
Another style is laissez-faire, or liberal leadership, which represents the absence of leadership or the avoidance of intervention by the leader. Leaders use their power very little and, when they do, they give their followers autonomy and independence in their operations.
As can be seen, leadership is a highly complex phenomenon, like all phenomena governed by human relationships and interactions. There are numerous leadership styles, and there are no completely reliable recipes. What works at one time may not work at another, and what works with one team may have a counterproductive effect on another team. Therefore, adaptability is a characteristic that cannot be ignored.
To the extent that more factors are considered when analyzing leadership, the more this phenomenon will be understood. Or, perhaps, the opposite is true and leadership is something so simple that the way it works goes unnoticed, especially by authors who attempt to deepen their understanding of it by dissecting it into smaller components.
References
Arámbula Flórez, I. (2006) Ingeniería organizacional. Bogotá Panamericana.
Chiang Vega, M. et al. (2017) Organizational climate and psychological health: An organizational duality. Dimensión Empresarial, (15,1).
House, R. (1996) Path-goal theory of leadership: Lessons, legacy, and a reformulated theory. Science Direct, (7,3).
Northouse, P. (2021) Leadership. Practice and theory, 9th ed. SAGE Publications.
Ordoñez Santos, M. (2010) En el proceso de construcción del capital relacional. Revista de la Facultad de Ciencias Económicas y Empresariales, (10,1).
Páez Gabriunas, I. et al. (2012) Diez competencias del dirigente líder. Un marco conceptual desde el enfoque del liderazgo transformacional. Universidad Externado de Colombia.
Serrano Orellana, B. & Portalanza A (2014). Influencia del liderazgo sobre el clima organizacional. Science Direct, (5, 11).
Turbay-Posada, M. (2013). Liderazgo e innovación organizacional. Psicología desde el Caribe, (30, 1).
Yukl, G. (2012) Effective leadership behavior: What we know and what questions need more attention. Academy of Management Perspectives, (26, 4).