cameron and green making-sense-of-change-management

Leading changeTHE COERCIVE-AFFILIATIVE MANAGERI realize on reflection that I have been using just two leadership styles all myworking life. I am 54, and this has been something of a revelation. I have beenusing the coercive style together with the affiliative style. It never occurred tome to do it any other way. I would tell the staff how things would be, give thema dressing down, and make up afterwards by talking about the football orasking about the family.No one would make suggestions or use their initiative, and no one ever seemedto learn anything new. I was completely in charge of an efficient but stagnant site.It wasn’t easy incorporating other styles, but once I had cracked thecoaching style, things began to change. The staff began to see me as moreaccessible. Now my people trust me more, and they are prepared to takeresponsibility and to suggest things and to make changes. I use less energy tocarry out my role, and can think more clearly about how best to lead.General manager of a manufacturing plantTHE PACESETTING MANAGERAt first glance I thought I was using all six styles in the right measure. Then when Ibegan to talk to my team about it, I realized that I was using the pacesetting style85 per cent of the time. Even my attempts at being friendly (or affiliative) turnedout to be pacesetting approaches. People described how a casual chat with mewould end up feeling like an interrogation. People on the shop floor activelyavoided me after a while. Or they spent ages preparing for an encounter with me.Of course, all my star performers loved this style. They found it thrilling and stimulating.The others fell by the wayside as I had no time for coaching at all. My stylebecame a self-fulfilling prophecy. The competent people did well, and those whoneeded to learn didn’t get the airtime from me that they needed, so they failed.I’m not saying that this has completely changed. But now I do recognizewhen I need to coach and when I need to paceset. My actions are morealigned to my intentions, rather than being simply a question of habit.Head teacherSee Table 4.5 for our summary of the six different styles and their uses.161