Autocratic Leadership

Going by its definition, autocratic leadership is a form of leadership wherein all the decision-making powers are held by the leader. That, however, is just a brief definition, and there is a lot more to know about it. There exist different types of leadership styles which are identified by the behavior of the leader.

Kurt Lewin, a German-American psychologist well-known for his works pertaining to social, organizational and applied psychology, identified three different styles of leadership. Each of these three styles, which have become quite popular in the corporate world and politics today, include:

• The autocratic style, also known as authoritarian style, wherein the leader has all the decision-making powers in his hand.
• The democratic style, also known as participative style, wherein decisions are taken by the leader after consulting with a group of people.
• The laissez-faire style, also known as the free rein style, wherein the leader doesn't put any restrictions on the group, and gives them the freedom to take their own decisions.

What is Autocratic Leadership?

In autocratic leadership, the leader is supreme and takes all the powers in his own hands. Even though this sounds much like dictatorship or tyranny, each of these concepts are separated by some distinct elements in them. It is broadly categorized into two types on the basis of how the leader functions:

• Directive - wherein the leader makes decision on his own, allots some tasks for his subordinates and monitors his subordinates.
• Permissive - wherein the leader takes decisions unilaterally, but gives his subordinates ample freedom to execute the tasks.

Is this Form of Leadership Good or Bad?

In a corporate world, the leader is the person in-charge. Having all the decision-making powers in his hand means that the leader has the right execute his powers without consulting his subordinates. In autocracy, the subordinates do not have the right to give suggestions. They are simply expected to follow the orders of a leader, and that too without demanding an explanation. In politics, autocracy or authoritarian rule is the one wherein the autocrat takes the reins of administration in his own hands, and takes all the decisions pertaining to the state or nation without consulting anybody.

The fact that the leader resorts to authority to get his work done or turns a deaf ear to employee inputs may make you feel that this is the worst among the numerous leadership styles. However, there do exist some circumstances wherein this style comes up as the most effective leadership style. Some examples of such circumstances include limited period of time in which the targets have to be met, when powers of the management are challenged by the employees, etc. One of the key benefits of autocratic leadership is the fact that decision making becomes much more simple and fast, as the leader doesn't have to consult or convince anybody. Basically this form of leadership can work wonders for the organization when decision making has to be quick and during some crisis.

While the positives of autocratic leadership style can result in successful outcomes, such autocratic leaders do not enjoy a mass following among their employees. At the end of the day, there is absolutely no leadership style which can be called perfect, as each of them have their own pros and cons. Thus, all comes down to the character traits of a leader. In leaders, authoritative personality to a certain extent is must - but overdoing it can affect the morale of employees.