In addition, the very varied nature of purporting adults with Autism and Speaker’s Syndrome creates the need for a manager to be highly adaptable in their management styles, for both employees and service users (we do after all ‘manage’ them when providing support) Recognizing the best style of leadership and management for each situation is vital in developing highly effective and happy teams of staff which in turn will deliver the best possible outcomes for our service users. My understanding is that there are six distinct base styles of management.
The table below seeks to ampere and set out the core differences in approach and also the effect upon a business and the staff each style of leadership/management will ultimately have. Think I naturally use a number of the management styles set out in the table and also think I can switch between them easily when the situation requires me to. I probably fall more naturally into the Authoritative and Coaching styles but am aware that at times, and if the situation requires it, I can be quite Autocratic.
Reflect on adjustments to own leadership and management style that may be squired in different circumstances. New Staff Members A good example of where I think my style would adapt over time is with new starters With a completely new starter would use Autocratic to provide initial guidance and training as they may not have the experience to draw upon for some situations and this would allow them to gain experience in using the best approaches that I’ve found to be the most effective working practice.
I would also use the Autocratic Permissive style once they have gained a good basic knowledge and experience with the job role, giving them guidance with daily sections but still maintaining the finally decision on more important and urgent matters.. As new staff spend more time in the business and have built upon their basic knowledge and skills I would move and adapt more towards a Coaching style as this would increase independent thinking and working. Coaching is a long term thinking manager, developing staff knowledge, strengths and improves their performance over time.
I also find Coaching to be really effective style in service user development. I also use this Coaching style in staff supervisions and appraisals when staff development is discussed and action plans are set out and agreed and I also use this when training staff (new and old) with any aspects of their job which may need some improvement or just brushing up a little. Crisis and Emergency Situations If an emergency situation were to happen involving one of the service users then this usually needs an immediate reaction followed by a period of review to ensure the situation was handle in the best possible way.
This may, in turn, lead to an implementation of new or change to existing policies and procedures ND this situation would require a number of management and leadership styles to be used. In cases of emergency I believe somebody needs to act quickly and concisely giving clear instruction to staff members as there is often little or no time to discuss and agree actions, reliance is upon set policies and procedures and upon the manager to ensure staff follow these without question or debate. Autocratic leadership therefore seems to be the best approach in controlling the situation and making sure of the best outcome.
Once the immediate situation ad been dealt with I would change my style to Democratic as the process of reviewing what had happened should involve the whole team. An open forum would allow the staff team to have an input and ideas are usually extensive from both sides, everybody having their say collectively about what had happened. The team would comment on whether the policies and procedures for dealing with an emergency were adequate or might need changing. This approach builds team engagement lets them contribute and share their own experience and also provides a learning opportunity for newer less experienced staff.
I also use Democratic when in staff team meetings or resident focus meetings as this is a platform where lots of people’s ideas are better than just one. This gives staff the opportunity to have their idea heard and motivates them to want to contribute their ideas, feel that they are being heard and be motivated in their job role. This leads to better quality of work and improvements in the service that we are providing as a business, whilst leaving staff feeling they are valid members of a successful staff team with job satisfaction.
Democratic style can be very useful hen complex decisions need to be made, it is effective when experienced staff work together and there is a steady working environment. Following specific team reviews, staff meetings or resident focus groups my style would change to Authoritative. Ideas or changes as a result of these meetings need to be decided upon and then implemented. This requires the team to see a clear leader in doing this and also for the manager to provide clear direction and to communicate the ‘new way’ or simply to reinforce that a great job was done by all those involved and to share that experience.
