Delegative or laissez-faire leadership is very hands-off. When you use this style, you allow team members to set their own goals and deadlines, and you let them determine how to do their work. Researchers have found that this is generally the leadership style that leads to the lowest productivity among group members.
Delegative leadership is most effective when team members are highly motivated and highly skilled, and when you can provide frequent feedback on performance and progress. It’s also effective when you work with freelancers or consultants.
The downside of delegative leadership is that it can lead to poor performance in teams where people have low skill levels, little motivation, or poor knowledge.
“It’s better to hang out with people better than you” Warren Buffett
Characteristics of a Laissez – Faire Leader:
The benefit of laissez-faire leadership style
The downside of the laissez-faire style depends so heavily on the abilities of the group, it is not very effective in situations where team members lack the knowledge or experience, they need to complete tasks and make decisions. This can lead to poor job performance and less job satisfaction.
This is leadership style is also not suitable for situations where efficiency and high productivity are the main concerns. Some people are not good at setting their own deadlines, managing their own projects, and solving problems on their own. Under this leadership style, projects can go off-track and deadlines can be missed when team members do not get enough guidance or feedback from leaders.
How to Be Successful
Working in a creative field where people tend to be highly motivated, skilled, creative, and dedicated to their work can be conducive to obtaining good results with this style.
Laissez-faire leaders typically excel at proving information and background at the start of a project, which can be particularly useful for self-managed teams. By giving team members all that they need at the outset of an assignment, they will then have the knowledge they need to complete the task as directed.
A leader with this style may struggle in situations that require great oversight, precision, and attention to detail. In high stakes and high-pressure work settings where every detail needs to be perfect and completed in a timely manner, a more authoritarian or managerial style may be more appropriate.
Using a laissez-faire approach in this type of scenario can lead to missed deadlines and poor performance, particularly if group members are unsure of what they need to be doing or do not have the skills they need to perform tasks with little to no direction.