What is your primary leadership style? (Part 5 of 6)

Laissez-Faire Leadership

We’re back with the fifth installment of the “What is Your Primary Leadership Style?” series. In the previous installments, we discussed:

• affiliative leadership 

• autocratic/authoritarian leadership

• charismatic leadership

• democratic/participative leadership

This week, our focus shifts to laissez-faire leadership.

Description: Leaders with a laissez-faire style can be described as trusting, passive, relaxed, impartial, independent, and flexible. They adopt a more hands-off management approach. Unlike autocratic or authoritarian leaders who maintain control over how work gets done, laissez-faire leaders limit their interference with the day-to-day activities of their direct reports. While they are available to give their team members support when it is needed, these leaders do not see a need to oversee every detail of the work. Instead, they leave decisions, task management, and project execution up to the individual employee. Despite giving their team members tremendous latitude, laissez-faire leaders assume ultimate accountability for their team, its decisions, and the quality of its work product.

Advantages: Laissez-faire leaders foster their team members’ professional development and growth as leaders by empowering them to be more involved and hands-on in their work. Employees on teams led by laissez-faire leaders are less reliant upon their leader, which encourages proactive problem-solving and independent decision-making. Laissez-faire leaders spend less time directly managing their team members, freeing the leader to focus on higher priority work and preventing their employees’ progress from being hampered by constant micromanagement. This leadership style is particularly effective when managing highly trained teams of experts, creative departments or projects, or employees with a track record of success, accountability, and motivation.

Disadvantages: Newer or less experienced team members may require support and guidance beyond what their laissez-faire leader provides. The leader’s lack of consistent communication may impede their team members’ development and jeopardize accomplishing the organization’s goals. Team members who prefer more “face time” can begin to lose trust in their leader if they rarely see or hear from them. Because team members are encouraged to make their own decisions, confusion about their role can occur when it’s unclear just who is responsible for the team’s direction. This can negatively impact productivity as the laissez-faire leader accepts full responsibility for their team and neglects to hold team members individually accountable for their decisions. Finally, this leadership style is not suited for tasks which require high precision or for teams who are not self-motivated or adept at managing their time or deadlines.

Examples: A few well-known figures who have exhibited characteristics of laissez-faire leadership include Paul Allen, Warren Buffett, Herbert Hoover, Queen Victoria, and Ronald Reagan.

Check back next week for Part 6 of this series where we’ll explore pacesetting leadership.

Sources: Laissez-Faire Leadership Disadvantages, The Niagara Institute Leadership Styles Handbook, Top 6 Use Cases for Laissez-Faire Leadership

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