How to successfully combine various management styles to help you find the best approach

When it comes to business there are several different management styles to choose from. The one you pick will mostly depend on your own personality and what kind of employees and co-workers you have in the company. Understanding your employees is key, and then adjusting your management style to fit with their personalities will come with time. Sometimes when the need arises however, combining management styles can work the best. Here are some suggestions on how to successfully combine various management styles to help you find the best approach to working with co-workers.

Before we discuss some ways to combine management styles, let's talk about a couple of different management styles found in the business world. Since mangers deal with employees in different ways there is a need for different types of management styles. There are basically three main categories of management styles:

1. Autocratic. Also known as authoritarian managers. This management style is used by people who want to make all of the decisions and have control over every aspect of the company, including workers. Autocratic management has little trust in employees and is an "order" based management style. Communication is one way and there is no other way. It can be effective in situations where immediate decisions need to be made or when you have a large number of workers that are not skilled in your expertise.


2. Paternalistic. This management style gives more attention to the social needs of the employees. There is interest in the fact that workers feel good about their job. Paternalistic managers will often times consult employees over certain issues and always want feedback.


3. Democratic. A democratic management style will place enough trust in the employees to allow them to feel confident in their job description. Employees will be allowed on occasion to take leadership roles as well as offer advice and opinion. In a perfect democratic management system decisions are made by all workers but in running a business this does not happen too often.

How to successfully combine various management styles to help you find the best approach?
Since all employees and managers are different there will sometimes be an overlap in management styles in order to try and reach all those working in the company. Here are some suggestions on how to combine various management styles:

• Work in small groups. When it comes to business sometimes it may seem that working in large groups will help get the job done faster. While this may be true for extremely large corporations, as a small business, working in smaller groups might make a bigger difference. When you work with few individuals you are less likely to run into personality clashes. For example, if you like to take an autocratic management style because you just can't stand that none of your employees can make a quick decision, dividing into small groups might help the problem and give you a chance to be a little more democratic.


• Don't be afraid to change. Even though you may be comfortable with the way you manage others, others may not be comfortable. Ultimately it is the success of your business that is at stake so if you want to be successful you will have to have some give and take. You don't have to lose your management style just tweak it a little. For example, if you are a paternalistic manager; always worried about how others are feeling and what they think you probably aren't getting much done around the work place. In order to get more done delegate some of the most important projects to responsible individuals and be clear on your expectations. While at the same time making sure that they feel confident by encouraging and expressing appreciation.

There isn't one true secret on how to successfully combine various management styles to help you find the best approach in your business situation. You have to take into consideration the personality traits of everyone working at the company and then figure out how to manage them. With a little time and effort you will find the best approach that works for you.

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