Jill Geisler
Leadership Group Leader

Every manager has a style. It defines-for better or worse-your approach to leading others. Your style is born of your personality, values, personal and professional life experiences, mentors, role models and training (or lack of it.)

No style is perfect. No style fits all occasions. It's likely you have one primary approach to management and you shift into other modes as events demand -and that's just fine. You may have some of the best characteristics of one or more management styles, and none of the worst. If so, keep up the good work.

But here's the important point: While you may have one vision of your management style, your staff may see things differently. It takes courage, but gather a few staff members together. Share this list. It describes various newsroom management styles I've observed and catalogued through my Poynter teaching. Check whether your perception of your management style is in sync with that of those who follow you.

The Commandant: Believes strongly in authority and chain of command. May or may not choose to collaborate with peers or staff. Is comfortable making decisions without input from others, since "the buck stops here." Can be a strong defender of the news staff when it is under attack from critics outside the organization or budget cutters within. Usually good under pressure. Is strong on accountability and may be blunt and terse when giving information or feedback to staff. Can generate fear among employees, who may make decisions based on "what the Commandant would want" instead of considering other options. May or may not have high standards or craft skills. If the Commandant has high standards and skills, employees may describe him/her as "passionate about journalism" and accept the Commandant's lack of patience as the price of that passion. At the same time, other employees may feel intimidated and voiceless in the newsroom.

The Parent: Similar to the Commandant but believes in more of a "tough love" approach. May see subordinates as dependents in need of support, education and discipline. May share decision-making authority with employees as a means of teaching them, but usually keeps a strong hand in the process. May take a sincere interest in the personal as well as professional well being of staff. Is likely to offer nurturing one-on-one advice. May be better at talking than listening, and may need to grow his/her listening skills. May deliver public performance critiques, believing such feedback benefits the newsroom's collective growth. Feels an extraordinary amount of personal responsibility to the news staff and product. May spend especially long hours at work, watching over the "family." May have difficulty managing time-after all, a knock on the door from a staffer is proof the Parent is "needed" so the Parent sets aside other duties to respond. May feel deep pain over newsroom setbacks or errors, seeing them as a personal rather than systemic or organizational failure.

The Team Captain: Believes strongly in team building. Sees him/herself as the person who helps people grow as individuals but especially as members of a group. Encourages staff to work in partnership with one another. Praises individual performance but is likely to frame the praise in reference to its benefit to all. Likes to craft plans and have a strong hand in the assignment of duties to staffers, but is likely to listen to subordinates, especially sub-managers. Keeps a close eye on the process as well as the product; likes strategic planning. May have an overly optimistic vision of his/her team's collaboration and cooperation without building in tangible benefits to all parties for their unselfishness or understanding. Disdains turf-protection and cliques, at least in the Team Captain's own department. Interestingly, however, the Captain may be overly oriented toward his/her own work team, and need to remember to make connections and to collaborate with other departments in the organization.

The Coach: Like the Team Captain, the Coach wants to grow a strong team, but takes greater one-to-one approach with staff. Knows the goals, strengths and weaknesses of each staff member. Treats them as individuals. Devotes significant time to talking with staff. May be known as a "good listener." Does not offer immediate answers to questions or solutions to problems, but asks questions as a way to help employees discover them. Sometimes frustrates staffers who simply want a fast, definitive answer and not a coaching session, or who feel the Coach needs to be more direct in outlining exactly what is expected of them. The Coach may be less willing than other leadership styles to cut underperformers, always looking for one more chance to reach them. May sometimes get less public credit for staff's high performance because the Coach is leading the troops in a less visible, less dramatic fashion than other leaders. May need to manage his/her bosses in ways that let them know about the successes that grew from the Coach's efforts

The Expert: Believes fervently that his/her top value as a manager is rooted in the superior craft skills and knowledge he/she previously demonstrated as a staff member. Is often reluctant to let go of performing that craft work when promoted. May have time management problems because of this self-assigned workload. May disappoint staff members who hope for coaching from the Expert, rather than repeated demonstrations of his/her great work for them to emulate. For example, the Expert may rewrite copy rather than coach writers. Some Experts may, however, be good teachers who generously share wisdom. May be called upon often for advice and judgment calls because his/her knowledge is so widely respected. May need to learn to coach others to come up with their own good answers rather than automatically providing them. May need to offer his/her opinion last in a meeting, discussion or debate, so as not to overly influence or stifle conversation.

The Buddy: Believes staff members and managers can and should be friends. Wants to be respected and liked. Disdains hierarchical distinctions. May enjoy socializing with staff, have easy-going work relationships and promote informality in the workplace. May engender strong loyalty from those staff members who feel a bond with the Buddy, but at the same time, may be seen by other staffers as unprofessional and prone to "playing favorites." May find it hard to provide negative feedback, and may be criticized by staff when he/she does so, for what appears to be the hypocrisy of a pal "pulling rank" on another. May step in and "do the work" as a show of solidarity with the troops, but may not do an effective job of delegating or developing systems. The Buddy manager may identify more closely with staff than with the leaders of the organization. May deliver company information by saying "the brass wants this" and not take ownership of management decisions, undercutting his/her effectiveness as a leader.

The Remote Controller: Believes his/her most important work is done in the office, often with the door closed, and in meetings with higher-level management in the organization. May communicate easily and well with his/her own supervisors and sub-managers. May prefer to communicate with direct reports by memo and email rather than face-to-face. This may be a function of the Remote Controller's personality (introverted), sense of priorities, or both. Although the Remote Controller may be uncomfortable having individual conversations with staffers, when pressed to do so, may have valuable discussions. May have strong ideas about quality and performance, and offers those in writing, both to staff and in company reports. Sees self as a strategist, spending time on "big picture" items such as planning, systems and budgets. Is likely to be well organized. May keep track of daily product and performance of employees but is likely to delegate that duty to others.

Now--

Did you see yourself in some, any or all of these managers? Which is your primary style? Secondary? Where did you see glimpses of yourself in some types?

Are you pleased? What did your staff see?

If you or they are not happy with answers to these questions, are you prepared to adapt your style to become a more effective leader? Are you willing to ask your staff for more feedback on how to lead them more effectively? Where can you take steps immediately? What changes might need a long-term approach? What people inside and outside your organization can you enlist for support?

Remember, good leaders have more than professional knowledge. They have self-knowledge. They look inward to examine their strengths and weaknesses and they listen to outside input on how they can grow. They take the thirst for knowledge and love of learning that led them journalism, and they apply it to their role as leaders in this vocation's best service.
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More about leadership from the National News Leadership Workshop: Jill Geisler on what newsroom bosses need, and Gregory Favre on leading in the hard times.