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 We've summarized many of the different types of leaders in our articles on Leadership Style and Situational Leadership. But in this publication on democratic leadership, we're going to dig deeper into each of these styles - just like we did with Autocratic Leadership - so you have a little better understanding of what the style is all about and when it's effective.
When we are talking about democratic leadership, we're really not referring to a democratic leader that holds political office such as a senator. We're talking about a leadership style that exhibits the characteristics of being democratic. That being said, the democratic style is one where we see everyone getting an equal vote - both the leader and the followers.
Participation and Democratic Leaders
If you think about leaders and how decisions are made, there really are about three distinct styles with many variations in-between. At one extreme we have the autocratic leader that makes almost a unilateral decision on how to proceed. At the other extreme we have a laissez faire leader that allows the followers or employees to make all the decisions. In the middle of these two extremes, we have democratic leaders which allow for more participation in the decision making process.
In fact, Lewin, Lippitt and White back in 1938 used these three styles as the basis for their leadership model. In the democratic leadership style we see a balance in the decision making process. Employees or followers are allowed to participate in the decisions - their opinion counts just as much as the leader's. Now this might sound like the optimal way to lead, but as we will discuss later, this leadership style has its pros and cons.
Democratic Leadership at Work
Daniel Goleman also thought there were enough distinguishing characteristics of democratic leadership to include it as one of his six styles. In his model, the primary behavior of these leaders was to forge consensus through collaboration. And key to this style is communication - seeking the opinions of others and letting your opinion be known.
When the workplace is ready for democratic leaders, the style produces a work environment that employees can feel good about. Workers feel that their opinion counts and because of that feeling they are more committed to achieving the goals and objectives of the group.
But Goleman and others also recognized that not every style is effective in every work environment - that's what situational leadership is all about - finding the right style to apply to the situation at hand. So then the logical question is: When is the democratic leadership style effective at work?
Pros and Cons of the Democratic Leadership Style
Most of us would like to think that the democratic style could be effectively applied to any group of employees. However, when we start to scratch beneath the surface, the pros and cons of democratic leadership becomes apparent:
Pros of the Democratic Leadership Style
Since employees or followers have an equal say in the decision-making process, they are more committed to the desired outcome. The collaborative environment created by this style often results in more thorough solutions to problems.
This creates an ideal environment for collaborative problem solving in addition to decision making. However, this democratic process has its drawbacks.
Cons of the Democratic Leadership Style
The democratic leader depends on the knowledge of his followers or employees. If the workforce is inexperienced, this style is not very effective. You simply need a fair amount of experience to make good decisions.
The other drawback of the democratic style is the time it takes for all this collaborative effort. When you ask people for their opinions it takes time for them to explain what they think and for others to understand what they are saying. If the business need is urgent, the democratic leader needs to switch styles.
So to summarize, the pros and cons of this style are pretty much in alignment - strength also becomes weakness. You get more input, but it takes time. People can share their knowledge, but they have to understand the process first. So the democratic leadership style is most effective when you have a workplace that has experienced employees and you can afford to spend the time necessary to develop a thorough solution.
Examples of Democratic Leaders
We're going to finish up by giving you an example of a democratic leader at work. If your thinking President John F. Kennedy is a famous democratic leader, you'd be partially correct. You're right in saying President Kennedy was a Democrat and certainly he will be remembered as a great leader. But President Kennedy was actually a very good example of a charismatic leader - not a democratic one.
Interestingly one of the best examples of a democratic leader is also a political figure - Dwight D. Eisenhower (a Republican no less!). As a military leader Eisenhower was faced with the difficult task of getting the Alliance forces to agree on a common strategy. Eisenhower worked hard to make sure everyone worked together to come to a common understanding. This was one of his greatest achievements. It was here that the democratic leadership style and collaborative efforts of Eisenhower shone through and with a victory of the Alliance forces to help back up the correctness of the approach.
About the Author - Democratic Leadership
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