Supportive Leadership at workplace

There are five major leadership styles which are applicable at work place by managers. These include directive, supportive , participative , achievement oriented and transformational styles . I like to discuss supportive leadership style – its concept and applicability. Supportive leadership is a naturally organic and emotionally sensitive style. In supportive leadership, the manager is not so interested in giving orders and managing each and every detail . While delegation is a vital part of supportive leadership, managers do not simply assign tasks and then receive the results. Instead, they work through the tasks with employees to improve skills and talent until the manager does not need to worry about a task being done correctly and the employee is fully skilled and empowered in a particular area. If a manager is approachable and empathetic then he is a supportive leader. He should show concern for the employees and treat them with dignity and respect. His employees will feel valued and cared for. They will be self actualized .They will give their best for the organization and trust the leader.

Applicability

Supportive leadership style is not suitable to every business and organization. For more bureaucratic companies and organizations where tasks are straight forward and simple , application of supportive style of leadership will be wasteful effort . This leadership style may be more successful in case of a flat organizations where employees are required to be creative who manage projects by themselves . In such organizations , the manager establishes goals for his employees and sets forth the path for achieving the goals. Tasks of the manager include clarifications of tasks, roles and responsibilities to employees. Moreover , the manager is also required to clarify appraisal criterion , providing guidance and coaching and providing psychological support to employees.

Behaviours of supportive leadership to work on

The supportive leader should work on the following behavior to make his style successful :

• Be polite and considerate, not arrogant and rude.
• Be empathetic and show acceptance and positive regards to employees .
• Treat each employee as an individual and having dignity.
• Remember personal details of employees and call them by their names.
• Be patient and helpful in giving instructions and getting explanations.
• Provide sympathy and support when employee is in difficulty and distress.
• Express trust and confidence in employees regarding their work performance.
• Be willing to help in personal problems
• Provide assistance with the work when it is needed.

The supportive leadership style affects employee engagement and ultimately their performance. Therefore , management students and young managers must learn the art of supportive leadership style useful for different workplaces.

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