If there is a short-term problem, the expertise of the leader can be used to create a solution. The ultimate democratic system occurs when decisions are made based on the majority view of all workers. The laissez-faire or free reign leader scarcely provides direction to his team members. Autocratic style leads to frustration, low morale and conflict among subordinates. There are many qualities that are needed to be a good leader or manager. Under autocratic leaders, subordinates would fear due to demands and expectations. Paternalistic managers give more attention to the social needs and views of their workers. They make the decision first and then announces it. Such times require a leader with ability to give instructions or guide and direct to those under his or her authority. They will delegate to them the authority to do this (empowerment) and listen to their advice. In many ways, it could be described as, Do it my way or go hit the highway. Workers get the job done, or else they go find a different job. As in an autocratic organization, a single leader is involved in decision-making, he makes decisions based on his own logic and judgment. . Provides a clear sense of direction Anyone who's worked on a class group project knows the value of having a leader. It encourages a higher churn rate. Be able to think creatively to provide a vision for the company and solve problems Be calm under pressure and make clear decisions Possess excellent two-way communication skills Have the desire to achieve great things SWOT Analysis of Kelloggs (Kellogg Company), https://www.forbes.com/sites/markmurphy/2019/11/24/does-anyone-actually-like-autocratic-leaders-new-data-says-yes/?sh=bd0ef4e10de5, https://hbr.org/2002/10/the-leadership-journey. Copyright 2017 2025. The advantages of Autocratic Leadership are: 1. Managers with this type of leadership style, keep a close eye on what is happening in their organisations. An autocratic leader focuses less on collecting input from team members and tends to make executive decisions that others are expected to follow. The autocratic leadership style means that the person in charge has the entire control upon all decision making. According to IPL.org, autocratic leadership is an extreme form of another kind of workplace leadership known as transactional leadership. Resulting in taking ideas and not implementing them. ", 100 Best Side Hustles for Teens to Make Money, 10 Proven Psychological Pricing Strategies with Examples, 100 Office Etiquette Rules You Need to Know, 50 Best Business Letter Closings of All-Time. The first and foremost advantage of this type of leadership style is that it helps the company in making a quick decision as the decision is centralized with the leader. The procedures and rules might seem rigid. List of the Advantages of Autocratic Leadership 1. In a system of dependence, an autocratic leadership style creates a lack of trust between you and your workers. That means workers who are highly skilled or motivated begin to lose their incentives to stay active under this leadership structure. As only the leader makes decisions, the management may or may not provide feedback. . Definition, Principles, Techniques, and Pros/Cons. This style has close links with Herzberg's motivators and Maslow's higher order skills and also applies to McGregor's theory Y view of workers. Advantages Autocratic style of leadership is very effective in times of emergency or stress since people will always work from orders or commands of their leaders. Employees who prefer some authority and decision-making powers in the team might not appreciate autocratic leadership. Its advantages are as follows: 1) An autocratic leader is in close control of the organization. What is the cons of autocratic leadership? This is yet another of the several, advantages of autocratic leadership style. Whether this style makes a good leader has been a longstanding debate. The idea here is that with a centralised control, giving guidance and direction to employees is relatively easy. Faster decision-making is the key to attaining organizational goals. At the end of the day, the autocratic leader is like the captain of a ship: every decision is a weight on their shoulders and they are ultimately responsible for what happens. A democratic style of management will put trust in employees and encourage them to make decisions. For that reason, some entities using this structure create an inheritance chain which allows another person to step into the leadership role right away. It reduces the amount of group input received. What leads to a successful working relationship is an ability of workers to have trust in their leaders, and vice-versa. Their expertise and experience can solve short-term issues. Team members may have opportunities to provide feedback; however, their feedback is highly unlikely to change the course of action. Many companies tend to turn to an autocratic leadership style when they need to create short-term results in an urgent way. But rarely do employees know that there are several benefits of autocratic leadership. Did you know that autocratic leadership is great when it comes to handling crises? An autocratic leader makes decisions and communicates them on time, making sure that the team has all the information they need to finish the project on schedule. Autocratic leaders have imperious or commanding personalities. employees also do not show their commitment to the organizational purpose. This can be beneficial for organizations that need to maintain a strong sense of control and predictability. Autocratic leaders exercise absolute control over the team. For leaders who don't care much about power and prefer to be appreciated by being of service to others, this is the main advantage. Advantages of autocratic leadership Quick Decisions Close Oversight Total Control Streamlined Work Process Easy to Learn The autocratic, or "do this or else," type of leadership is intuitive Good for Inexperienced or Unmotivated Workers./Bad for Highly Skilled and Motivated Workers. advantages of democratic leadership. When an autocratic leader becomes burnt out and cannot fulfill their duties, the rest of the team is often ill-equipped to step in and take the lead because they have never been in that position before. However, they describe the disadvantages of this style as promoting staff defiance, lack of free . After all, this is what good leadership is all about. - consultative although the manager will have the final say. It is one of the biggest, advantages of the autocratic leadership style, Faster decision-making and quick information-sharing can help boost the teams productivity. Effective communication is when the receiver gets the exact message the sender wants to convey. Productivity levels can see increases with this leadership style. Characteristics of autocratic leadership style. Pros This system leaves the employees stress-free. An autocratic. They must control the consistency at a personal level, which means they can no longer afford to give their team any freedom to operate. Task 2.3 - Comparison of leadership style Autocratic Leadership Style: Mr. Worth took on a more autocratic approach to leadership by operating his office from the top floor of the company, and rarely interacting with his employees. Most of the time Mr. Worth was absent from the rest of the employees, he communicated through his assistant. Advantages The pros of this approach include: Decisions can be made rapidly which may keep the team agile and very quick to respond to challenges. These were the autocratic leadership style advantages and disadvantages. In autocratic organizations, there are clearly defined tasks, roles, rules, and deadlines to follow. And they are accountable for the outcomes. autocratic leadership advantages and disadvantages? These types of interactions do not create a sustainable working relationship, which ultimately creates productivity problems as workers experience lower morale levels. Moreover, the instructions will go straight to the employees. Here are the pros and cons of autocracy: Pros of autocracy There are many benefits of autocracy, including: Increasing productivity: Autocracy can increase productivity, especially when subordinates don't have advanced skills or training yet. Autocratic leadership A leadership style in which leaders dictate without consultation of subordinates. An autocratic leader is well-equipped to deal with a crisis situation. If you know anything about democratic leadership, you will know that it sounds better than autocracy. Lets take a glimpse at who autocratic leaders are and what they do. Autocratic Leadership Advantages and Disadvantages: Advantages: It allows for fast decisions to be made: - An autocratic leadership includes fewer levels of administration levels that are to be informed. Business english 13. The employees need not wait for the thumbs up from seniors or ask for a deadline extension if they can get all the approvals and data on time. List of the Disadvantages of Authoritarian Leadership It may cause some employees to rebel. and lack of staff initiative (2015). Autocratic leadership is suitable when the organization is small. Subordinates tend to shirk responsibility and initiative. Autocratic leadership, however, has. However, this leadership style become less effective in large organizations. You may also like reading Advantages and disadvantages of private limited company. Your email address will not be published. Because it is the autocratic leaders reputation on the line, not the worker doing the job, those in this type of position tend to supervise every small detail of the work being done. Team members have creative freedom 3. Autocratic leaders ignore the skills of competent workers. Autocratic leaders generally believe that they are the smartest people around and know more than their subordinates. Therefore, leaders who exercise autocratic leadership should follow a balanced process to attain organizational objectives. The Advantages of the Laissez-Faire Leadership Style Here is a list of the pros of the Laissez-Faire Leadership style: 1. Leaders are of different types. Because of the too much rigidity in the structure, and low growth opportunities, most of the experienced employees tend to leave the autocratic organizations. Disadvantages of Autocratic or Authoritarian Leadership. Although this kind of leadership can sound harsh at first, it can be very effective. Advantages and disadvantages of autocratic leadership style. The leader is the only person to take the decision solely as they are in charge . If that leader does not create a fair working environment, then it is difficult for any employees to change that environment. Leadership styles There are many ways to lead and every leader has his or her own style. If the leader offers questionable ethics, however, and refuses to create fairness, then there is no one who can really hold that person accountable. In fact, some characteristics of autocratic leadership can be considered advantages in some situations and drawbacks in others. 5. List of Advantages of Autocracy Government 1. This ensures that employees are exercising best of their abilities to get the job done, and time and other resources are not wasted. 2. There is no doubting where fault lies of poor decisions. Autocratic leadership is a suitable option for small-sized organizations where a single leader can handle all the matters easily. There is just one person in charge. High clarity on structure and roles Organizations with autocratic leaders usually have very clear lines and borders in between different areas. Many autocratic leaders turn into severe micromanagers, making it difficult for workers to do their job because theyre always forced to report on what they are doing at any given moment. Some are encouraging and collaborative, while others are commanding and dominating. Workers become dependent on someone else to make decisions. "An organisation is only as good as the person running it". This requires good two-way communication and often involves democratic discussion groups, which can offer useful suggestions and ideas. Additionally, a leader like this improves workplace efficiency by instructing staff members on what to do and how to meet deadlines. Likewise, Leona Helmsley of the Helmsley hotel chain andMartha Stewart of MSLO are also considered to have exercised this type of leadership style. Managers must be willing to encourage leadership skills in subordinates. for the employees, too. Autocratic leadership can be defined as a leadership style where an individual leader holds the decision-making power over all organizational members and all activities. But, what is autocratic leadership? Therefore, they may not contribute to the team efforts as they should. This form serves well when the . These benefits of autocratic leadership can swiftly take the team out of trouble. Autocratic leaders are in charge and they make this fact known. That consistency leads toward corporate success. The result is a more consistent and accurate output. Autocratic leaders are like the captain of the ship. Autocratic leaders have imperious or commanding personalities. He is a lecturer in Management and Marketing. Although an autocratic leader can have a challenging personality, most employees prefer to work in an environment where there are clear expectations set for them. 1. This detailed article sheds light on some of the advantages and disadvantages of autocratic leadership style. Autocratic leaders are able to handle a crisis situation easily because they are the ones who are in charge.