The best suiting leadership style for a small entrepreneur

Anyone who just having a passion to start a business can easily become an entrepreneur providing that the level of entrepreneurship may still depend on facts such as to what extreme one is willing to take risks, the ability of long surviving in the business and so on. However, what the question arises now is that can each entrepreneur become a successful leader? The answer is NO as possibly everyone would accept. Lack of leadership and managerial skills can be considered to be one of the prime reasons for why most of the small entrepreneurs fail in their businesses from the standpoint of creating and long-lasting an efficient work-place.

‘Leadership skill’ is the most important asset to anyone who remain as an entrepreneur and who want to be in future. One may argue on the possibility of being a good leader when a person just got one or two people to work for him/her. At this level, at least that person must have good managerial skills with the ability of making negotiations with the employees and the most specific skills needed here are emotional intelligence and interpersonal dexterity because entrepreneurial (the business owner’s) bargaining is lower than empowermental (employees’) bargaining.

Therefore, now let’s decide which leadership style is much suitable for a small business owner providing task-oriented and employee oriented leadership styles as references. Task oriented leadership simply describes a leader as a control stick who always push employees to do what he wants meanwhile employee oriented leader always would care about the employees’ welfare. However, being hundred percent employee oriented doesn’t sound logic at all for any organization and seems stimulating a doubt on this concept itself. On the other hand, giving much reference to task orientation would seriously irritate the followers (employees) and would result in labour turnover and internal politics. A bargainer (big investor with a large firm) may be hundred percent tasks- oriented or employee oriented while it becomes impossible for a small entrepreneur. I would say, a small entrepreneur must act according to the situation prioritizing 70% to the tasks (make sure the work is done) and caring about the employees (whether they are satisfied with the job) for the rest.

Ken Blanchard and Paul Hersey introduced situational leadership that consists of four general styles of management coaching, directing, delegating, and supporting. Delegating style would be not that suitable for small entrepreneurs since it owes more responsibilities to the employees opposing to the managers (owners). A leader has to select the most suitable management style for him/her from these four; coaching (teaching approach), directing (directing employees what to do& not that effective these days) and supporting (a very friendly approach). At occasions, leadership style is decided by the influential factors such as individual, cultural and perceptual characteristics. Therefore, investing in good leadership skills can be turned into as a valuable asset of the business though it is not required so necessarily in a small business providing that not all good entrepreneurs are good leaders. However, to succeed in a business, one would need to be able to manage people with a sound interpersonal ability at least.

By
Mathangie

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Posted in: leadership,leadership for small business,small business,small entrepreneurship