Teaching versus Preaching Management Styles

Work should be so enjoyable that employees look forward to coming in each day. One of the detractors from that enjoyment is a boss who constantly preaches on how to do the job or what is being done wrong. He/she may even threaten dire consequences if the work isn’t being done exactly as they like or if employees don’t do exactly as he/she is expecting at the moment. This type of leadership is passé in today’s society.

Preaching talks down to employees while teaching lifts them up to a higher level.

Preaching treats subordinates as inferiors and destroys their self-confidence Management’s over-bearing mannerisms and constant criticisms inhibit the development of capable employees. Fear tends to make employees hesitant to make decisions and the organization loses the ability to adjust to situations in real time. Self-confidence and assuredness is key to an effective group of employees.

Additionally, preaching builds resentment. After a while, employees may tend to ignore the preaching because they do not understand the reasons why their bosses are constantly critiquing them. Devastating deterioration of morale and effectiveness results from this behavior.

A leadership behavior of teaching on the other hand elevates the employees in skills and self-confidence and builds a better team. They understand their work processes and systems and what will contribute to better products and services. They know the aim of the organization long-term and their role in achieving it. In other words, they understand the “what, how, and why” of their role in the organization. They are excited about their role and take pride in their work. They like the feeling of satisfaction of doing something worthwhile.

Teaching is the role of leadership. Having a “worker training worker” system is an abdication of leadership responsibility. Remember the children’s game of having people sit in a circle and something is whispered in on person’s ear and they pass it on around the circle? What comes out at the end is usually nothing like what was started. Can anything better be expected from worker training worker? It is the responsibility of leadership to train.

One of the most effective ways to teach is to model the behavior expected. Employees watch the leaders feet more than their lips.  In other words, they will model their behavior by watching what managers do rather than what they say. Jack Welch, the former CEO of General Electric, would teach one Six Sigma class a month at the GE Training School so he kept in touch with what was being taught, received first-hand feedback from employees, and more importantly sent a clear message of what was important. This did not go unnoticed to managers and rank and file employees alike throughout the organization.

Last but not least, modeling the way builds respect for the leadership team and employees enthusiastically follow management’s lead. A teaching style of leadership, as opposed to preaching, will build mutual trust and respect, up down and across the organization, each to the other, in equal amounts. That makes the ride into work each morning more exciting and the ride home more satisfying.