Management Styles - What to Know to Apply Them Effectively

What Are Management Styles?

Given the importance of managers to the success of organizations and work teams, their skills and capabilities as leaders are of great interest. Many organizations and business experts have written about management styles. Some use catchy terminology, others opt for adjectives that try to characterize specific behaviors. For example, one online business resource⁴ lists seven (alliterative) styles: problem solving, pitchfork (controlling), pontificating, presumptuous, perfect (very capable), passive, and proactive. Another⁵ opts for autocratic, authoritative, pacesetting, democratic, coaching, affiliative, and laissez-faire.