Here's how you can drive strategy with the most effective leadership styles.

More than painting a picture of the future, I believe that articulating what is SUBOPTIMAL today is critically important. If today is not suboptimal, why care to march towards that better, promised future?

Driving strategy effectively requires leaders to adapt their leadership styles to the specific needs of their organization and team. Here are some of the most effective leadership styles and how they can drive strategy: Transformational Leadership Transformational leaders inspire and motivate their team by creating a vision for the future and encouraging innovation and change. Transactional Leadership Transactional leaders focus on structure, rules, and clear objectives. They reward and punish based on performance. Situational Leadership Situational leaders adapt their style based on the maturity and competence of their team members.

A leader is expected to have a clear vision of what he wants to attain with his team members. A sense of direction is important as every effort will be directed at achieving that particular goal. A leader utilizing a visionary style of leading will achieve feats with his team members especially when trying out a new phase or field.

I believe at the heart of this style is the WHY. Having the ability to explain the WHY of the strategy is critical for a leader to get the team committed and aligned to the strategy. It's based on the WHY that then the goals and the KPIs are set to deepen the alignment and commitment of the team.

This style is centered around creating a sense of belonging where the team feels they are equally important to the success of the team. This enables open dialogue, difficult conversations, and it drives to a consensus around what are the best strategy for the customer and for the organization. In my experience, this is a great approach when the problem to solve is very complicated AND you have a very diverse team.

Gone are the days of Jack Welch type of leadership where you use command and control. Getting buy-in from your team is vital so that everyone is heading in the same direction. But how do you balance between seeking buy-in and issuing a decision? That's the dance between too much and too little. It would be important to make sure that the whole team has been heard during the consultation phase. You may use various methodologies to elicit everyone's opinion e.g. voting, ranked voting, pro/con chart... However, when the time has come, the decision has to be made by the leader and everyone has to help to make it come true.

Strengthen the democratic leadership style by implementing structured decision-making processes such as consensus-building frameworks or agile methodologies. Use these frameworks to systematically gather insights from diverse stakeholders, ensuring that decisions are informed by a comprehensive understanding of the challenges and opportunities.

Asking for someone's advice and input is one of the most rapid ways to earn someone's trust. It boosts the receiver's sense of importance – “how knowledgeable I am that she is asking for MY input” goes the subconscious, thereby improving their commitment and the feeling of being valued.

I've used this style of leadership when there's a strong basis of trust within the team. I trust the that each team member is committed and capable of meeting their goals, so I become more of a coach to get them past obstacles, or to provide the team a different point of view. This style is not micromanagement because you do not get into the HOW but focus being the "safety net" for your team, so they can take risk and develop.

An example I have seen have amazing results across the board is leading people by maximizing their streghts and supporting them in developing new ones. Developing people can be within itself a fantastic leadership style, fostering a culture of support, individual ownership and growth mindset.

Foster a coaching culture by implementing structured coaching programs that align individual development with organizational goals. Develop customized development plans for each team member, focusing on skills and competencies that are crucial for executing strategic initiatives and achieving business objectives. Integrate coaching into regular performance reviews and goal-setting processes to ensure continuous growth and alignment with evolving business needs. Provide opportunities for peer coaching and cross-functional mentorship to encourage knowledge sharing and collaboration across teams.

Coaching your staff is an excellent way to nurture emerging talent, and foster an environment of continuous development. Coaching is a dedicated and intentional form of management, ultimately leading employees to reach their goals and potential. Leaders can and should continuously refresh their coaching skills and should gently guide team members to improve and discover on their own - increasing their skills and ultimately their self-efficacy.

They say that the best coaches are the best leaders. When you are given the awesome responsibility to mentor and coach someone, you need to make sure that you would be able to guide them not only in their current job, but also frame how this job fits in their career journey. It's also important to work with your team member to find out their strengths and weaknesses. Some of us make the mistake of spending too much time on our weaknesses, thinking that it would help us to get ahead. However, this usually happens because either we have not identified our strengths or have not figured out how it can be maximized. Sometimes, discovering a hidden strength can make the difference between a tepid job and an amazing career!

Although high performance is effective when used sparingly, I've noticed that extended and normalized pressure often leads to burnout. This burnout typically manifests as absenteeism, illness, mistakes, and irritability. In the longer term, there's a risk of losing high performers, as they often bear the brunt of performance expectations. To mitigate this, it's crucial to set boundaries on accessing teams during their holidays or weekends. Keep a pulse on the team to ensure a fair distribution of work during tight deadlines. Additionally, ensure that the desired results have clear steps and milestones with designated owners so pressure is more fairly distributed.

There is a lot of talk about wellness and avoiding burnout. However, most employees are worried about prioritizing their rest time as it could be seen as slacking off. How do we as leaders create a permission structure for employees to achieve their objectives without burning out? A lot of it comes down to communication. It's vital to ensure that there are clear "rules of the road". There are times when the will be lots of deadlines to meet and all-nighters to pull. Then, there will be times where the pace is slower. Keep communicating with your team and set an example that you also will be taking time off if needed.

Implement the pacesetting leadership style strategically by clearly communicating expectations and providing the necessary resources and support to achieve ambitious goals. Prioritize transparency in goal-setting processes, ensuring that team members understand the rationale behind targets and deadlines. Monitor team performance closely and provide timely feedback to reinforce progress and address any deviations from expectations promptly. Foster a culture of continuous improvement by encouraging team members to suggest process enhancements and innovative solutions that align with strategic objectives.

Embrace the affiliative leadership style strategically by integrating it with a focus on achieving organizational goals. Foster a culture where open communication and emotional intelligence are valued alongside performance metrics. Encourage team members to voice concerns and provide feedback, fostering an environment where constructive criticism is viewed as an opportunity for growth rather than a threat. Demonstrate empathy and actively listen to team members' perspectives, ensuring that their emotional needs are met while aligning their efforts with strategic objectives. Leverage the affiliative approach to strengthen team cohesion and collaboration.

I really HATE this approach. I do not think it's an effective leadership style because it literally eliminates any advantage of having a team, of having different talents. This style of "leadership" reduces the output of the whole team to JUST what the leader is able to deliver, which is never as much as a team can deliver.

It's hard to take a step forward if the ground is constantly moving underneath you. Teams must have a solid leader, with clearly defined goals and vision, in order to achieve their best. However, it's also impossible to take steps forward if something (or someone) is holding you in place. This style of leadership can be helpful to set a vision, but ultimately team members must be given reign over their work, their strategy, and their execution plans. With too close of oversight, team members will eventually lose their creativity, drive and respect.

Embrace "Leadership Style Roulette." Assign different leadership styles to days of the week. Monday might be 'Transformational Tuesday,' while Friday becomes 'Servant Leadership Saturday.' This playful approach challenges you to adapt your style daily, keeping your leadership fresh and responsive. It also helps you discover which styles resonate best with your team and strategy. Leadership becomes an exciting daily experiment!

A combination of leadership styles (Daniel Goleman) that edges strategy (Lewis Mckone) towards driving results. A leadership palette includes several economic behaviors & emotional liabilities that intend to make informed decisions. Example: As an employee or business leader, it includes an avalanche of emotions mostly to fire an employee or get fired before cross-examination. Lewis Mckone argues that M and A is not a strategy. However, the consonance may be pivoted on the leadership of the organization in buyer-seller aptitude towards M and A success. Most of the data sets agree M and As are not able to deliver shareholder value post-acquisition in the near future. The impact is high in overall leadership longevity for conglomerates.

There are 6 styles above, I find it hard to imagine any good leader thinks of these consciously. One should lead in a way that feels most natural, productive and receptive. A mix of these would naturally emerge