Although there are many tried and tested leadership styles, each person has a unique way of handling projects and managing employees.

However, the practices various managers adopt are not only a direct reflection of their personality, but also echo the sentiments of employees, especially their attitude towards work. Here are some leadership styles that are commonly observed in the corporate world:

Let's-do-everything together

There are many leaders who take on all the challenges at work headon, along with their team.

Although they do get their hands dirty, such leaders not only get the work done, but also effectively guide and nurture their employees.

Hima Singh Banerjee, account manager, NextGen Publishing, informs, "Leaders, who mingle and take the effort to get involved with their team, understand them better and can make the most of their strengths. Such leaders know how to assign the right task to the right people because they can effectively tap into an employee's talents."

She also recounts an experience with her supervisor. "It was a surprise for us when he asked for a feedback about himself during an appraisal. But it was all the more heart warming to see him work on the feedback he got," says Banerjee. Indeed, a leader who has such a rapport with his/ her team often has them rooting for him in all situations. If you've heard of a senior manager in an organisation quitting and his entire team quitting to follow him to his new role, he or she probably is a leader of this genre.

My-way-or-the-highway

There are many leaders who employ a hard-wired and rigid approach. Ruchita Deshpande, a communications professional says, "In one of my previous jobs, my senior had this archaic habit of maintaining hard copies of all iterations that he had. This was considered a waste of time and resources by many as there already was a digital archiving system in place, but he wouldn't budge."

Deshpande feels such leaders may be well experienced and would have arduously worked their way up, and their `my-way-or-the-highway' attitude is often a boon to businesses that are majorly concerned with results. But more often than not, such an unyielding attitude becomes an employee's nightmare. Deshpande agrees, "Leaders today need to educate their team and then delegate. Falling back on quotes like `Do it because I am telling you' or `because I know better' are better reserved for mothers."

The pragmatist

Management guru, Peter Drucker, says that a key for every manager, regardless of the position, is to make their boss more effective, to make their strength fully productive. `The Pragmatist' swears by this thought. Not only does such a manager leverage their rapport to influence his/ her superiors take decisions that they consider vital for the workplace, but they also nudge their subordinates to constantly outperform themselves. However, unlike what it may seem, such leaders are not tyrants. More often, they are caring and come across as great mentors. However, while it does lead to a disciplined team that is capable of delivering quality work, there are great chances that such leaders may come across as too idealistic. In conclusion, Deepak B, a senior manager, aptly offers a view that is well-rounded. "In today's corporate space, the game is about maintaining a balance between giving employees a free hand as well as moulding them to work in a certain style. This calls for the leader to maintain a friendly, yet result-oriented approach with the team, thereby, creating a win-win situation for both the senior leaders and their subordinates," he says.

BDST: 1609 HRS, JUNE-22, 2014