Participatory Leadership Techniques

1503 Words7 Pages
The philosophy of the 21st century police leader is one of being strong, assertive, competitive, performance based and unreceptive to change. It has been reported police leadership is progressively from an autocratic, centralized style that was based on wisdom integrity and courage to that of one that embraces team work, involvement and shared leadership. This type of style works best in emergency situations in which strict control and rapid decision making is needed. The problem with this type of leadership is the organization’s inability to function when leaders is absent (Adlam, R., & Villiers, P.2003). But the style we see often is bureaucratic leadership is where the manager manages "by the book¨ everything must be done according to procedure or policy. If it isn't covered by the book, the manager refers to the next level above him or her. This manager is really more of a “police officer” than a leader. He or she enforces the rules. This style can be effective when: employees are performing routine tasks over and over employees are working with dangerous or delicate equipment that requires a definite set of procedures to operate, safety or security training is being conducted. This style is ineffective when: employees lose their interest in their jobs and in their fellow workers, employees do only what is expected of them and no more (Steinheider, B., & Wuestewald, T. 2008). A Participative Leader, rather than taking autocratic decisions, seeks to involve other people in the process, possibly including subordinates, peers, and superiors. Often, however, as it is within the managers' whim to give or deny control to his or her subordinates, most participative activity is within the immediate team. Involvement in decision-making improves the understanding of the issues involved by those who must carry out the decisions. People are more committed to actions
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