Democratic Leadership Definition, Pros, Cons and Tips

If you’re just moving into a leadership role for the first time, or contemplating a step up the career ladder, you may be wondering where to start. As a leader, there are several different leadership styles you can choose from. The one you ultimately select will depend on the needs of your team and the organization, as well as your personal preference. In this article, we’ll examine democratic leadership.

We’ll consider the democratic leadership style and investigate its pros and cons. We’ll also look at some examples of democratic leaders and situations, so that you can assess whether this is the style you want to adopt yourself, and help you to describe your leadership skills on your resume so that you’re ready to land a new leadership role.

Democratic leadership definition
Firstly, let’s look at how we define the democratic style of leadership. The word democracy originates from the Greek - “demos” means the people and “kratos” means power, giving us “power of the people”. And that’s just what democratic leadership is – a way of leading that gives voice to the entire team, not just its leader. It’s also known as participative leadership and shared leadership.

This leadership style is considered to be one of the most effective, and also one of the most popular among employees. The term was first coined by Kurt Lewin, who identified three leadership styles (the other two being autocratic and laissez-faire).

Characteristics of democratic leadership

Democratic leaders place great store in communicating with, and listening to, their team. That means that rather than barging in with a set idea of how something should be done, they take a flexible approach and encourage the team to collaborate creatively to find the best way of doing it. They actively seek other perspectives and input, ask for feedback, and stay open-minded about how to get to a specific goal. Democratic leaders are team players above all else and place a heavy focus on the importance of the team.

Pros and cons of democratic leadership

As with everything, there are pros and cons to this leadership style. Let’s have a look in depth.

Pros of the democratic leadership style

Happy employees. When employees feel valued and respected, they are more engaged in their work, productivity is higher, and attrition and absenteeism are lower. Everyone’s a winner!
Better working relationships. Democratic leaders trust their staff, which results in better relationships and reciprocal trust.
Increased connection to the work. When you’ve had a say in the task and the direction it’s taking, you’re more invested in the work and you’re more likely to want it to succeed. That can only be a good thing for the business and its employees.
Greater creativity. When employee ideas are encouraged and their input is actively requested, staff are more likely to feel comfortable expressing themselves creatively. That in turn leads to innovation, better problem solving and a more dynamic workplace.
More choice. In a similar vein, when everyone has a say in how the team progresses, there are more options to choose from. That means it’s more likely that the team will ultimately make the best choice to address problems.
Increased team cohesion. When staff are encouraged to share ideas and collaborate on driving the team forward, they all have a stake in the team’s success. They’re more likely to collaborate productively and support each other as they work together towards the common goal.

Cons of the democratic leadership style

Slow decision-making. When a leader sources ideas and opinions from every member of the team, it can slow down easy decisions and impact productivity as it takes time to seek input and reach a consensus.
Frustration. If an employee takes the time to consider a problem and share their opinion, they may feel frustration if their ideas are constantly cast aside in favor of other ideas within the team.
Poor decision-making. Sometimes, one person has the expertise to make a decision or solve a problem. If that decision or problem is instead thrown open to poorly informed employees, it risks the wrong decision being made.
Employee preference. Some employees believe that decisions should be made by the leader and that they aren’t being paid to work at that level. That could lead to resentment within the team.

Examples of democratic leadership in action

So now we know about the benefits and drawbacks of democratic leadership, let’s take a look at some examples of how it might work in real life.

In a weekly team meeting, a leader asks every member of the team if they have any issues to raise or topics to discuss. Each topic is discussed in turn, with each member of the team providing their input. Quieter individuals, who don’t volunteer to speak, are specifically addressed and given a chance to share their ideas. By the end of the meeting, a way forward is agreed for every issue raised.
In elite sport, the Coach makes decisions on a player’s fitness to play based on input from the player, their Physio, Performance Analysts and Fitness Coaches. With input from several experts, they can ensure that they’re fielding the strongest team and preventing injury.
A project hits a problem that means deadlines may be missed and extra costs incurred. The Project Manager pulls the project team together, explains the problem and the causes, and asks everyone for their ideas to get the project back on track. A discussion follows and the most viable solution is selected based on consensus among everyone involved.
A start-up is able to grow by seeking input from a small team of expert employees who are invested in the success of the business. Creativity is encouraged by allowing every member of the team to share their expertise and opinions, meaning growth is faster than it would be if the company relied solely on its founder to make decisions.

Famous democratic leadership examples

Throughout history, we can find examples of successful democratic leaders. These are just a few from recent times:

Tim Cook. As CEO of Apple, Tim Cook wasn’t afraid of working with people who were willing to challenge him and who he considered to be smarter than himself. He kept an open mind during meetings and encouraged everyone to contribute.
Jack Dorsey. Twitter’s former CEO believed in empowering his team, so that they felt able to speak up and collaborate to achieve the best results for the company.
Indra Nooyi. Indra Nooyi, of PepsiCo, involved employees in the decision-making process and listened to every opinion before making a final decision.
Muhtar Kent. The former Chairman and CEO of Coca Cola prioritized relationship building, diversity and inclusion, because he understood that new ideas come from different viewpoints. He wanted his employees to chase innovation and improvement by challenging the status quo.

Tips to implement democratic leadership

Do you think that this leadership style could work for you, your team and your organization? Here’s what you’ll need to think about as you go about implementing it in your everyday work.

Understand the team

As a leader, you need to understand your team’s strengths, weaknesses, and hierarchy. That means you’ll be able to defer to experts in each area, ask the right questions, and bring the right people in at the right time. This leadership style is all about using your resources to achieve your aims, so this understanding is crucial.

Communicate with your team

Communication is the cornerstone of democratic leadership. You’ll need an open door policy, so that staff can approach with suggestions and concerns any time, and you’ll need to put strong communication channels in place so that everyone is involved in the exchange of ideas. As you begin to implement democratic leadership, you’ll also need to communicate this to the team transparently, explaining your reasoning and how it will work.

Implement a decision-making process

Create a decision-making process and communicate it to your team. While you will be seeking and considering their input, you’re the leader and, ultimately, the buck stops with you. Let your team know which decisions you’ll retain control of and which they are able to influence.

Create a safe environment

You can’t expect colleagues to share their ideas if they are consistently shot down. Respect is crucial here, not just from you but across the team. Model listening and showing appreciation and build an environment where there’s no such thing as a bad idea.

Review

As with any time you implement something new in the workplace, set a deadline for review. At this stage, you’ll want to look back at what’s worked and what hasn’t and make adjustments going forward.

When should you – and shouldn’t you - use democratic leadership?

Democratic leadership is great for day-to-day operations, as everyone feels involved and valued and has ownership of their work and that of their team. When there’s a problem, democratic leadership is a go-to method for getting different perspectives and solutions to forge a way forward.

However, not every situation calls for democratic leadership. When you need to act quickly or there’s no room for error, it’s time to step up and make an executive decision. Additionally, if your team doesn’t have the right skills and knowledge collectively, decisions are best left to the most qualified person.

How to show democratic leadership on your resume

When the time comes to progress your own career, you’ll need a knock-out resume that showcases your strong leadership skills. Do you know how to convey your democratic leadership style effectively? Let’s take a look at some examples to inspire you.

In the Profile section. This section is your elevator pitch – you only have a few lines to make your first impression on the reader and you’ll need to use some of it to explain who you are, what you do and what you can achieve for a business. On top of that, you want to emphasize your leadership skills! One line is more than enough here.

Suggestion: “A strong democratic leader who empowers teams to collaborate to achieve results that exceed expectations”

In the Key Skills section. Here, you want to focus on hard skills in order to hit the keywords that a recruiter might search for. However, you can also add a couple relating to your leadership skills.

Suggestion: “Democratic leadership,” “Building consensus,” “Collaborative teamwork”

In your Experience section. This is a great place to show off your democratic leadership skills, as you’ll be able to give specific examples, alongside the results you achieved.

Suggestion: “Delivered a 25% increase in productivity by gathering suggestions from staff on the production line and implementing an innovative idea to change the warehousing processes”

In the Education section. Don’t forget to include any leadership training or management development courses you’ve done!

Other leadership styles

If you’ve decided democratic leadership isn’t the way forward for you, why not look into transactional leadership, autocratic leadership, situational leadership or organizational leadership? You may find that you can use elements of each style in different aspects of your work.

Build your career with your newfound democratic leadership skills!

Now you understand what democratic leadership is and how you can build it into your career, you’re ready for a new role! When you’ve updated your resume in line with the guidelines above, why not send it for a free resume review by the experts at ZipJob? Their feedback will help you propel your leadership career to new heights!