Leadership is a multifaceted art that involves making critical decisions, orchestrating teams, monitoring activities, and evaluating performance. The debate surrounding leadership styles often centers on the pros and cons of each of several approaches. More and more business leaders favor democratic style, while others still prefer autocratic and authoritative methods. Great leaders, however, possess the versatility to adapt their style according to the situation, although they may have preferred approaches. In this article, we will explore why it is vital for leaders to measure the effectiveness of leadership style they follow and how they can enhance their leadership skills. 

The Leader's Role:

At the core of leadership is the responsibility to guide people and processes effectively toward sustainable and efficient goals. The most powerful motivator for any team is a leader who leads by example, setting clear expectations for team members, peers, and superiors. However, the key to successful leadership goes beyond mere action. 

Defining Values: 

Leaders, irrespective of their field, must establish a set of core values that act as guiding principles for their actions, decision-making, and conflict resolution. This foundation is crucial for the consistent functioning of any team. Equally important is the ability to attract and cultivate individuals who share these values and principles, as it forms the bedrock for a cohesive team. 

The Democratic Leadership Approach: 

The democratic leadership style, which values every team member's input, is highly effective when each team member is accountable and responsible. My experience has shown that this style often yields greater long-term efficiency and productivity. However, it is important to emphasize that for democratic leadership to thrive, team members must shoulder their responsibilities. When a leader displays care and concern, but the team fails to deliver, the democratic ideal is compromised. 

Measuring Leadership Effectiveness: 

The real question, though, is how leaders can assess the effectiveness of their chosen style and its impact on team motivation. 

Feedback as a Guide: 

Experience reveals that feedback from team members, peers, and supervisors provides invaluable insights into the effectiveness of one's leadership style and the expectations of others. 

In our Company, we adhere to international best practices and provide a suite of invaluable tools to enhance leadership effectiveness. One such tool is the 360-degree survey, a comprehensive assessment that combines my self-appraisal of my leadership style and goal accomplishments with the feedback from my team members and peers. The survey encompasses a wide range of inquiries that touch upon critical aspects such as team development, customer satisfaction, contribution to the company's objectives, efficiency of operational processes and tools, self-development and continuous education initiatives, goal alignment, collaborative efforts, adaptability and agility, delegation and oversight, and the quality of feedback mechanisms. The results yielded by this survey offer valuable insights, serving a dual purpose. Firstly, it allows me to ascertain the alignment of my perception of leadership style, behavior, character, and actions with the viewpoints of the respondents. Secondly, it facilitates an understanding of the expectations held by my peers and subordinates. This wealth of information serves as a solid foundation for creating a detailed action plan to guide my ongoing professional development, with the overarching goal of evolving into a respected leader capable of motivating and steering the team toward the successful attainment of objectives, while nurturing their growth and fostering high-performance standards. 

Another creditable tool in assessing team satisfaction with leadership is the Happy Job (HJ) Index. This survey empowers the team to evaluate the prevailing work environment and determine their overall job satisfaction. The HJ Index measures various critical metrics, including involvement, loyalty, satisfaction, and eNPS (Employee Net Promoter Score), which measures the willingness to recommend the company and one's job to a friend. While this instrument only indirectly estimates leadership effectiveness, it provides valuable insights for enhancing the quality of team life. The HJ Index reveals specific areas where the team seeks resolutions. For example, it may unveil concerns regarding workplace stress, the comprehensiveness and criteria for career progression, the timeliness and efficiency of managerial feedback, training requirements, knowledge sharing, promotion processes, the effectiveness of meetings, open dialogues, awards, process quality, goal clarity, and trust levels. By addressing and resolving the aforementioned issues through open discussions, a competent leader enhances overall job satisfaction and consequently elevates the performance of the workforce. For instance, addressing the problem of working in a stressful environment, which had been a major issue for the team, requires the identification of stressors, which can sometimes be attributed to external factors and prevailing uncertainties, and their subsequent resolution in collaboration with professionals. 

Regular feedback and tools like 360-degree surveys and the Happy Job Index can serve as invaluable resources to assess one's leadership style's impact and make the necessary adjustments. By taking this proactive approach, leaders can inspire their teams, enhance performance, and achieve lasting success in their leadership journey.