Avionics News February 2015 - 52

BUSINESS BASICS

Continued from page 51

objectives - and take responsibility for implementing
them on a day-to-day basis.
This is the end goal of leadership, according
to Tindall. The team and its members are highly
competent, committed and empowered, and they
need minimal supervision. They can take a task and
run with it, and the leader becomes a resource rather
than an arbitrator. This is an important stage in an
employee's development; it signals that he or she is
not only a functional follower, but that they are also
growing as a potential leader, too, as more and more
responsibility is delegated.
Two other styles of leadership are also worth
mentioning. Although they're not technically part of
the model, they're often lumped into it because they
reflect real strategies you might employ.
5. LAISSEZ-FAIRE. It'll be hard to recognize
this leader unless a situation arises where the leader is
needed. The leader's team is competent, friendly and
motivated. Each member has both skills and ability
to self-manage. Obviously, this isn't typically found
in the workplace, but it can appear in such situations
as employee committees, investigations or other
occasions when the manager steps aside to allow the
group to do its work. What's notable here is that the
leader has made a deliberate choice not to lead.
6. CHARISMATIC. This selectively used style
inspires followers to accomplish more by force of
personality and relationships. It works best when
the group's motivation is low because of frustration,
deadline pressure or some other challenge, and it
provides a "win one for the Gipper" moment.
Style points
With a range of leadership styles, you should
be capable of switching gears with the employee,
situation and task. Start by recognizing your default
style and understanding its limitations, and work
to expand your comfort zone; in fact, you might
occasionally consult other leaders and mentors who
excel at the styles that challenge you.
This gets to the second part of situational
leadership, where you consider the risks, skills and
emotional state of workers so you can lead them most
effectively. Indeed, a situation where relative risks are
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february

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great and an employee's skill level is low definitely
requires authority and direct guidance, either in
telling or selling; think a complex, high-dollar
installation or repair that pushes the employee's
experience. Conversely, in lower-stress situations
- or even high-stress ones where employees' skills
are sufficient - a consulting style might work more
effectively.
The secret, if you can call it that, is to recognize
the amount of instruction your people need, the
amount of encouragement they want, and the "task
maturity" they exhibit - that is, their ability to set
and accomplish specific goals, their willingness to
take responsibility for themselves, and the level of
training and experience they possess. As that changes
through a series of tasks, your style will adapt, too,
and not always in a linear manner. For example, a
newer employee may be more skillful and efficient
at installing new technology in a particular airframe
than a saltier one, simply because of experience.
Beyond risks and tasks, you also may want to tailor
the style of interaction with specific team members;
experienced workers might have valuable opinions to
share on decisions that warrant consulting (and make
you smarter, in return). Confident up-and-comers
ahead of the learning curve might favor selling, while
unmotivated or difficult employees often require
telling.
Ultimately, the process of training, coaching
and mentoring should develop employees' levels
of maturity. Intentionally apply incrementally less
authority to encourage the student to take on more
responsibility. If he or she handles that well, offer
more encouragement. Eventually he or she requires
less of both.
Conversely, sometimes they may regress. Even
though they know what to do, their motivation
declines. Here you'll likely modify your style of
leadership to be more charismatic, and perhaps more
selling, both to lift students' moods and to prepare for
the next task.
That, after all, is why they follow you; you're
their path to success, and whether you're rousting a
new employee to grow into a position or helping an
experienced one grow in wisdom and skill, the style
of leadership you use shapes the results you get. This
should deliver employees who give their best - just
the kind of performance you want to see. q
Avionics News February 2015

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Avionics News February 2015
