What is Autocratic Leadership Style (Is it really that BAD?)

Not all leadership styles are suitable for every occasion, and the autocratic leadership style is the polar opposite of the democratic leadership style. There are many leadership styles used by great leaders throughout the decades.

During the hard times, the autocratic leadership style is often used to make sure everyone works hard towards the company’s goals. Whereas, a less autocratic approach is used when a company needs to realize its true potential.

But how true is this and what can you learn from the autocratic leadership style?

What Is Your Leadership Style?

Wondering what is your current leadership style?

Autocratic, Democratic, or Laissez-Faire?

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A serious conflict happens within my team, I... ...remind everyone what is our goals that need to be met. ...ask my people to come together so that we can talk it through. ...let my ream to work by themselves so that they don't have to bother one another.

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How much I trust my team members? A lot. Yes. Not really.

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My people are highly skilled and motivated and they... Are free to make decision on the field. Often discuss their plans with me. Follow the same plan I've decided for everyone.

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How do I ensure my team meets it's goal? I lead them in the front! Encourage all of the team to participate. Delegate each task to my team.

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We have a tight deadline for a project which I think it is near impossible to complete within the time. I let them know it needs to be done, and issue deadline for each of the team members. Ask my team to come up with the fastest way to complete it. Relay the timeline to the team and let them decide how to complete it within the timeline.

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When one of my team members is performing poorly. He/ She need to be punished so it won't happen again. Have an one-on-one talk with the individual so we can align our expectations. Just give him/her a reminder, it will work out somehow.

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I need to develop a marketing plan for the next project. I think out the marketing plan myself and introduce it to the team. I tell my team what is the expectation and ask for suggestion on how to achieve it. I give my team the instructions and order them to give me the plan within the timeline.

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When face with challenges I often... Let my team come up with suggestions, so we can discuss further. Make the decision and ask my team to solve the challenge. Make the decision after my team have agreed on the solution.

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I have a new employee that joined my team. I invite in collaborative meetings and discussion. I let them follow a guideline with my expectations for each member of the team. I let them explore the best way of working on each task.

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What do I think of great leaders? They always have the solution, that's why they are leaders. They are humble and willing to learn from team member working under them. They empower their team members to make their own decisions.

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When I see my team member is demotivated, what will I do? I closely instruct them to follow on each task to ensure each task are completed correctly. I ask them to participate in team discussion so they will have their input. I give them space and time to recover.

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What is Autocratic Leadership?

Autocratic leadership is also known as authoritarian leadership, it is a form of leadership where the leader has absolute authority, control, and power over the members of their organization.

Autocratic leaders expect absolute obedience from their subordinates.

Leaders who adopt the autocratic leadership style often make decisions based on their own ideas and judgments and rarely accept advice from their subordinates.

Characteristics of Autocratic Leadership

Autocratic leaders are leaders who lead with the intention of retaining control where they expect unquestioning obedience and compliance. Anyone failing to comply will likely be threatened or subjected to some form of punishment.

Autocratic leaders have the following characteristics:

• Manupulative. Autocratic leaders are found to display both overt and covert manupulative behaviours to ensure absolute obediance of their subordinate.
• Inflexible. Autocratic leaders expects rules, regulations, and policy to be straightly followed, any deviation will be subjected to harsh punishment.
• Authoritative. Autocratic leaders expect absolute obediance from their subordinate, and their words are final, questioning of the leader’s words will lead to dire consequences.

Advantages of Autocratic Leadership

Autocratic leadership style can have many advantages and can be an effective way to lead the team in certain circumstances. Here are some of the few advantages of autocratic leadership.

Little room for mistakes

Autocratic leadership often leads to having little room for mistakes in the task that is being performed.

Following strict regulation, policy, and instructions, this leadership style ensures strict compliance and ensuring quality on the final results.

Focus

Utilizing autocratic leadership prevents the task from getting sidelines.

As each subordinate is required to follow the order by the leader strictly without question, the members of the team can concentrate on tasks without the need to participate in process of decision making.

Highly Effective

Having complete control over the team, autocratic leaders are highly effective at making critical decisions under high pressure as they are not required to take into consideration the opinions of their subordinates.

Autocratic leaders are task-driven, thus they are seen as effective leaders who are successful in achieving goals, even under tight timelines.

Disadvantages of of Autocratic Leadership

The autocratic leadership style is not a very popular leadership style, because it has a few critical disadvantages that can have a negative impact on the team and the organization as a whole.

Lack of involvement

The major disadvantage of autocratic leadership is the lack of involvement.

The team members are not allowed to voice their opinions, thus they have no power or opportunity to make any changes.

The absence of the ability to voice out their opinion leads to the team members feeling disconnected from the organization which can be bad for morale.

No room for creativity

Autocratic leadership does not cultivate creativity or innovation in the organization.

In an autocratic environment, the leader makes all the decisions and the rest of the team members will just follow orders without question.

There won’t be any room for creativity or innovation in the organization, as the culture is only about following orders and doing what you’re told rather than thinking of new ideas on your own.

Demotivated

People will feel unappreciated in an autocratic environment because it feels like their worth is all about following orders without question.

As the leader often lacks empathy and focuses only on the task and the results instead of their people, the people will feel that they are like a tool.

Each team member will feel that they are all replaceable and expandable, thus feeling demotivated and unsatisfied at work.

Authoritative vs Authoritarian (Autocratic) Leadership

“Authoritative” and “Authoritarian” leadership sounds similar but have very different meanings.

Authoritative leaders are people focus leaders, they command authority through the respect they gain, guide by example, and inspire their team into action towards a common goal.

Authoritarian leaders are task focus leaders who command authority through their position in the organization, they demand results and motivate the team into action through strict orders.

There are many differences between authoritative leaders and authoritarian leaders.

Authoritative leaders have a firm understanding of the challenges, know exactly what needs to be done to overcome each challenge, and have a clear vision for achieving success. These leaders are known to be visionary leaders, who inspire motivation and offer direction and guidance to complete a project, or a goal.

Authoritative leaders have the following characteristics:

• High self-confidence. Self-confidence to know the instructions they set will lead to the goal and achieve the task.
• Ability to adapt. Capable identifing any challenges, and know what need to be done that will lead to success.
• Empathy. Understand the feeling and emotions of the team.

Authoritative leader say, “Let’s do this!”

Authoritarian leader say, “This is an order!”

Authoritarian leaders are often seen as dictators, and lead the team through commanding leadership. It is often viewed as a more negative approach, but it can be highly effective in the right situation.

When is Autocratic Leadership Effective?

Autocratic Leadership is most effective in situations where control is essential and there is little room for error, whereas decisions must be made in a split-second judgment to ensure the success of the task.

Autocratic leadership is seen to be the most effective in an organization such as the military, sports, emergency situation, certain healthcare areas, and situations where the team members require close monitoring or supervision.

Famous Autocratic Leaders

Regardless of your opinion on autocratic leadership style, here are a few famous leaders in history that great leaders are known to successfully use the autocratic leadership style to lead their organization.

• Adolf Hitler. Austrian-born German politician who started the World War 2 and was the dictator of Germany from 1933 until his death in 1945.
• Benito Mussolini. Italian politician who founded and led the National Fascist Party, and he is Europe’s first 20th-century fascist dictator.
• Bill Gates. American business magnate, software developer, investor, and philanthropist. He is a co-founder of Microsoft and utilize autocratic leadership during the start of his career, which later developed other leadership style as he grow his organization.
• Larry Ellison. American businessman and investor. He is the co-founder, of Oracle Corporation.
• Elon Musk. Entrepreneur and business magnate. He is the founder of companies such as; SpaceX, Tesla, Inc, The Boring Company, co-founder of Neuralink and OpenAI.

Example of Autocratic Leadership

Autocratic Leadership in the workplace

Leona Helmsley is often recognized for her harsh autocratic leadership style within the Helmsley Hotel Empire.

She commands her subordinates to provide the best for her hotel guest. Often manage her subordinates in an insensitive way that leads to gaining her the name of “Queen of Mean”.

Nonetheless, she always ensures that things will always get done.

Autocratic Leadership in business

Business owners such as Elon Musk are ambitiously known for setting exceptionally high standards for all their hires. These leaders are slow to hire and fast to fire.

Every single product that his employees create or design, he demands perfection. Even if it means discarding an idea or a project that the team has taken months of effort in developing.

Autocratic Leadership in emergency situations

Leadership during an emergency situation such as a fire, or disaster response has the potential to influence a person’s life. During these times, the team will be under high stress and requires quick actions.

Questioning the decision made by the leader will often cause the loss of precious time that can lead to death or serious injury.

Autocratic Leadership in Sports

In sports, the team’s coach, team captain, or referee often takes an autocratic approach. These people will adopt an autocratic leadership style because they are expected to make fast decisions. These decisions cannot be questioned, if they allow players to question their authority, players will think of them as weak and lacking leadership skills.

Autocratic Leadership in School

Many examples of autocratic leadership are seen in school. Teachers and principals will not ask the class if they way to come to school the following day but demand their attendance.

Students who disobey the school rules or question the authority of the teachers or principal will be given detention or other forms of punishment.