MANAGEMENT/LEADERSHIP SPECIAL ...Hands on vs.hands off

Hands on vs. hands off 

WHAT IS YOUR LEADERSHIP STYLE – HANDS-ON OR HANDS-OFF?

THE RELEVANCE OF THE TWO THEORIES IN TODAY’S CORPORATE CONTEXT

    Commonly there are two types of leaders - one who is completely ‘hands-on’ from A-Z and the other who is blasé and laissez-faire and delegates with trust – in all, a ‘hands-off’ manager. So, what works better for a leader - hands-off management or handson? “A good leader will utilise a combination of both the management styles to get the best out of the team,”says Vipul Singh, VP and head of HR, ADP. Molly Gellerman, director HR, Target India opines, “Leaders must be encouraged to be more hands-on when on-boarding new talent, working to help someone improve their performance or developing someone for the next level. A hands-off approach can be better for your team when you have built a high-performing team underneath you and your time is better spent at carving out the next steps of a strategy or long-term plan. What matters the most is to know your talent. Know when they need you more and know when they can thrive by stepping aside and letting them soar.”
    So, if we were to pit hands-off v/s hands-on management, which would trump the other? Mohan Ayyangar, COO and CTO of Pangea3, a Thomson Reuters Company elucidates, “A hands-off leader can produce great results with a team of absolute A-players. Having said that, today, the probability of hiring/inheriting a team with 100 per cent A-players is impossible. Team members who are slightly lower in the learning cycle or less-seasoned (given the current market conditions) might see/interpret the light-touch approach as a lack of engagement and will respond with low commitment. Those who seek more mentorship, guidance and supervision will be left out cold. But remember, a hands-on leader may stifle his/her team and generally create an environment devoid of creativity. The heavytouch style can create the perception that all objectives belong solely to the leader and that the team is just executing on his/her behalf.”
    A hands-on leadership style is more proactive, involves decisions that are closer to reality and is more prevalent in start-ups/new businesses where the team is evolving and one needs to be on-the-ground to understand day-to-day vagaries, complexities and take faster decisions to move ahead. Neither of these methods will work all the time. After all, leadership is about adapting to situations.

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