According to AFS Intercultural Programs, leadership is process of influence in which one person can enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task. Therefore it is imperative to have a strong leader who will inspire and motivate, while still requiring respect from the followers. The difference between a leader and a manager is the manager is appointed to a position of power, whereas someone in leadership are the best at coping in any given situation (just because someone is in a lower position of the organizational hierarchy, doesn't mean they can't be a leader). The four main leadership styles are autocratic, democratic, laissez- faire, and paternalistic. Autocratic is referred to as an authoritarian or “all-powerful” …show more content…
Paternalism means paper knows best. The relationship between the leader and the group is the same as the relationship between the matriarch of a family and the other members. Leaders in paternalistic style tend to be dominant male. Just as the head of household, a paternalistic leader provides his followers with good working conditions, as well as fringe benefits, and it's assumed the employees will work harder out of gratitude. Paternalistic leadership gives rise to various advantages and disadvantages. Advantages of this style of leadership is the manager involves employees in the decision making, the manager provides feedback, and answers questions. The managers also meeting the employees social needs. These elements keep the employees motivated, therefore decreasing staff turnover and absenteeism. Disadvantages to paternalistic leadership is the increasing dependency of the employees on the leaders, leads to more supervision being required. Leaders or managers in the style are connected on a more personal level instead of professionally, which lead the to be more forgiving of subordinates lack of experience. Mistakes or errors can be made if the workers are not skilled or experienced enough, therefore leading to slower production. If the decisions made aren't agreed upon by the employees, they will turn their back on the leaders. If a loyal connections if made with the leader, there will be low staff motivation, which then would lead to higher turn over. Example of paternalistic leadership is Henry ford. Henry Ford once famously said that one can take away his factories, burn his buildings and ruin his business but if he had his people with him then he could create his business right back up again. Mr. Ford valued his employees as if they were