Comparing Leadership Styles (AQA A Level Business) : Revision Note

A confident, risk‑taking person may give direct orders

An empathetic person may coach and listen

Elon Musk often sets tough, top‑down targets at SpaceX

Satya Nadella uses a friendly, team‑focused style at Microsoft

Companies with a history of sharing power prefer democratic leaders

Tall hierarchies favour clear chains of command

The John  Lewis  Partnership has shared power with staff (“partners”) for over 100 years, so managers routinely consult teams before decisions

Highly skilled or unionised teams expect a say

Less‑skilled, short‑term teams may accept tighter control

BMW’s strong works council system in Germany forces managers to negotiate changes, encouraging a consultative style

Routine, low‑risk tasks can be delegated

Urgent or life‑and‑death tasks need fast, decisive leadership.

NASA mission control adopted decisive, centralised leadership during the Apollo  13 crisis to solve urgent problems within hours

Shocks such as pandemics, scandals or new laws can push leaders to act differently

Tesco switched to a more directive style in 2020, hiring 50,000 temporary staff in weeks to keep shelves stocked during Covid‑19

Fast, clear orders save time in an emergency or high‑risk job

Fast, clear orders save time in an emergency or high‑risk job

Draws on many ideas and builds buy‑in when staff are skilled and creative

Google’s 20 % time policy let engineers pitch ideas like Gmail, boosting innovation

Where team members are experts who value freedom and self‑manage

Netflix’s “freedom and responsibility” culture leaves decisions to small content teams

Can reduce morale and ideas in creative sectors

An autocratic boss in a design agency may drive staff to quit for more freedom

Slow decision‑making and consultation could be time-consuming and dangerous in a crisis

Hospitals switch to command‑and‑control triage leadership during mass‑casualty events

Lack of guidance for new or low‑skill teams

Early‑career teachers left without coaching miss performance targets

The leader states the decision in full and specifies exactly how, when and by whom work must be done

Staff obey the instructions; they make no proposals and cannot question the plan

The leader decides but explains the reasons, answers objections and tries to win commitment

Team members may ask clarifying questions yet have no power to change the decision itself

Leader outlines a provisional decision and actively seeks ideas before making the final call

The team suggests improvements and can influence details, but the manager keeps final authority

The leader presents the problem, sets boundaries and co‑decides with the group through discussion

The team shares an equal voice in analysing options and shaping the final decision within the limits set

The leader defines broad goals or constraints and hands full decision‑making and execution to the team

The team plans, decides and acts independently; the manager monitors results and offers support on request