AUTOCRATIC VERSUS DEMOCRATIC LEADERSHIP

Leadership is defined as the power of an individual to influence others in belief or action.For a company or government to succeed, good leadership is crucial. All employees work under the direction of their managers. Therefore, to increase the productivity of a company some significant decisions should be made by the director. In this case, the kind of leaders may determine the fate of a company. There are two major types of leadership according to their management styles.

One type of the leadership is autocratic. Autocratic leaders take most decisions without consulting others and are the main source of power of the institution. They also tend to be punitive, controlling, power-oriented and coercive because they are only concerned for productivity. Autocratic leaders, also called directive leaders,don’t trust the ability of the followers and thus supervise and control them. The employees of the company managed by an autocratic leader get less responsibility and face less challenge. As a result, they cannot be satisfied with their jobs.Moreover, autocratic leadership has some advantages such as quick decision making, absolute control, focused targets, close supervision and maintaining order and discipline. Briefly, autocratic leaders have the power to control or supervise a company or the government and don’t consider thethoughts of others.

Another type of leadership is democratic. Democratic leaders involve people in discussions and the final decision-making. They tend to be considerate, consultative, participative, employee-centered and supportive because they are concerned for employees. They encourage questioning; open ideas to criticism and treat subordinates’ mistakes as learning opportunities. When subordinates work well, the leaders celebrate accomplishments and hence subordinates are encouraged.  Furthermore, democratic leadership, also called participative leadership, includes subordinates in the decision making process by encouraging employees to be creative, innovative and engaged at a higher level of productivity. In brief, democratic leaders don’t ignore subordinates ideas, thoughts and attitudes and hence boost them.

To sum up, thetype of leader is more important for companies or governments to survive for a long time. Democratic leaders regard employees’ motivation and improvementas crucial. On the other hand, autocratic leaders gather all the power to themselves. Autocratic leaders provide quick decision-making, while the democratic leaders focus on the subject comprehensively.