Interview Q&A

What’s Your Management Style? – Curate the Best Response

Last Updated on Apr 20, 2023

What’s your management style?– Do you find it onerous to answer this particular interview question compared to others? No more worries! You have finally reached the right destination on the web. 

Be heedful! It is one of the most prominent questions that interviewers ask while selecting a candidate. Your chances of selection or rejection can depend upon any of your answers, including this one.

So, how shall you start? There are so many ways to crack this question, of course! But, which one is the most appropriate and why? Also, you must know to structure your response in a striking way to make your interviewer’s mind blow away. 

Tighten up your seat belts and begin with us! No need to panic even if you’re dealing with many burdensome thoughts. In this article, we will look through all the aspects of answering this interview question..

What’s Ruling Their Thoughts?

Do you even know the reason behind asking you about your management style? Having the research and knowledge by your side works up to scratch, but management skills are another crucial and unavoidable aspect of your routine work that will affect your work anyway.

Every recruitment is almost conducted with the same energetic suppositions. The hiring managers want a wholesome package of discipline, knowledge, skills, and personality. If they choose you, you can be a game changer for them. 

Still, the question arises. Why this question?

The following can be the probable reasons:

1. How do you react to a guidance call? This can be one of the most imperative reasons for them to ask you this question. They expect better things from you when you’re being hired for a responsible role. 

2. What’s your team handling strategy? It is the direct one. Yes, they need to recognize and perceive the valid reason for taking the situation and your team.

3. How do you provide motivation? Hiring managers take it as a chance to acknowledge your motivating skills.

4. How do you manage chronology and deadlines? Management without time won’t work. They both complement each other, and you have to explain your methodology. 

Apart from the causes mentioned above, they may look for anything specific for their organization. To crack the same, read the pro tip below.

Time for a pro tip: You must thoroughly research the company before the interview to know precisely what they want. Read out their job description or JD.

Stay true to yourself and your interviewers. Lying is fallacious.
You may find it easy to describe something randomly, but what if they ask
another related question?

Decide and Reciprocate

Sample

Before you begin, you must assess your work management style on your own. You must know what you believe, and then you can incorporate your response accordingly. 

We all agreed with Paul Hawken when he said, “Good management is the art of making problems so interesting and their solutions so constructive that everyone wants to get to work and deal with them.” 

Management is meant to be flexible! We hope you undertake the idea. Here, we are jotting down the predominant forms with examples. Depending upon the needs and person’s work style, one can adopt any of the following ways of management:

1. Affiliative Management – Creating Harmony and Building Relationships

This kind of work management successfully creates a positive work environment. Managers don’t take the time or hold back when they see a praiseworthy task done. They let everyone be happy by up beating the culture and having strong communication skills. 

Affiliative leadership can opt for flexible environments. At the same time, this style doesn’t seem a fantastic idea when dealing with a challenging situation at work. Managers can be polite and dedicated but may not be able to show the ways clearly. 

You may find co-colleagues crying and hugging each other while leaving the job!

Example:I believe in a constructive work culture where employees share a good bond. I believe in listening up to the concerns and coming up with solutions. I keep my employees motivated, so they don’t fall behind in any aspect and ace the stage. In one of the incidents during my previous experience, my team had to deliver the presentation at the last minute. I motivated them to gather all the knowledge and matter and assemble most strategically without thinking about results, and we did great. Being a typical boss is not my approach.”

2. Pacesetting Management – Gearing Up For The Results

In this management style, the manager adheres closely to specify certain rules and ordinances at the workplace. This type of management works for the on-time results and sets up the tasks accordingly. The team stays motivated all time but sometimes can feel a little pressurized. A manager may question you if you are behind the assigned time slot. 

It sets the bar high. Yes!

If the employees at workplaces are already working professionally and need proper direction, this management style can perform like no other. It can build a “high-performing team” within a short period. 

Example:As a manager, I want everyone to work at the same pace, and to create that constructive rapport, I specify a few regulations for my team and ensure they are being implemented and followed well. I was designated as a content manager in my previous company, where I used to create strict deadlines. I encouraged my team to take practice sessions, training, and certification courses to play along well. My pacesetting management skills contributed to the team’s effort, and we got rewards for our team.”

Want to have a pro tip on your sleeve? 

Avoid mixing a management style with another one unless you claim to be a flexible one. This can make you seem confused or indecisive.  

Now, what do we mean by being “a flexible one”? Wait, we’re going to cover it too. Stick around till the end!

3. Visionary Management – Articulating The Ultimate Goal

A strategic vision defines the goal. It allows the team to move ahead with much more confidence and credibility. In this style, the manager has a long-term plan and sets up the short steps accordingly. The team must work in bits to collect all the required pieces. 

A lot of persuasion and dedication are required. A little micromanagement can be there to check whether the employees are working well or not. 

Example:I have faith in having a strong vision for everything I do, including the management work or team building, and that makes me follow the visionary management style at work. I was working as a manager and set up short-term goals for each team member and let them achieve their ways to reach the overall subjective and objective long-term goals. This strategy worked well, and we achieved the average monthly sales target with a good number of leads. I will use the same management framework in your reputed company to structure the work procedure and deliver effective outcomes.”

4. Democratic Management – Listening to Every Voice Equally

You must have heard the word “Democracy” in politics, but it is not vital to politics only. In the management field, too, democracy is required. The manager allows everyone to voice their opinion. This creates a good balance between formal and informal terms among the employees.

There’s nothing to command, and the decision-making process demands contribution from everyone. The collaborative workflow drives the shining results. 

Example:Being an effective manager can make a difference, and I believe in teamwork. Every team member is equal, and I love hearing their ideas and strategies at work. I create a collaborative workforce to divide the big burdensome project into smaller tasks. In my last project, I let my team members decide for themselves and ensured their voices were heard. This created a positive impact, and we came together as the strongest team in the department. If this opportunity is given, I will spare no effort to enforce the management strategies into the best practice.”

5. Laissez-Faire Management – No More Micromanagement!

Have you heard that too many ruins everything? Indeed! It does. The Laissez-Faire management style sets a seal on the workflow impeccably. It is incredibly annoying and disturbing when the manager gets deeply involved and wants updates every subsequent hour. 

One of the most popular formats of management! Yes, it is much in demand because it allows everyone to work according to their comfort and with minimal supervision or micromanagement. Who doesn’t like freedom? It’s a kind of prerogative in terms of its frame and structure. 

Example:I see management strategies as a fundamental responsibility at work, putting all my skills and abilities to upskill the results. Micromanagement is destructive to the mind, and I do not believe in poking my team members every other moment. Instead, I take strict follow-ups every morning or when they’re about to leave. I respect every employee’s unique way of delivering their work. Here I want to recall a situation with my former employer where I was given a task a little out of my routine work. Knowing that my team was my strength, I discussed with them and let them offer their uniquely identified ideas to me. That didn’t only work great, but we also got to see a miraculous after-effect of my strategy in the outcome.”

Are You A Supple one?

What if your management style is flexible? Yeah, it is a possibility that you switch to multiple management styles depending upon the condition. It’s pretty fair and just. So, how shall you explain it?

Take a look!

I am not a stiff person, whether it is my personal life or professional persona. Flexibility works everywhere. I take it as bliss and allow myself to judge the situation and act accordingly. If the team is already into the action, I can offer them Laissez-Faire management. Still, if it requires a prerequisite work, I automatically switch to another form, maybe, visionary or affiliative management. My objective is not to rule with a one-fixed management style claiming it to be “my obvious modus operandi.”

And, you’re good to go!

The All-Time Demolishers!

We have read extensively about how to respond to the interview question, “what’s your management style?” it is not enough! Yes, you cannot win a battle without knowing the negativities. The same applies here too. Precision works, and that comes only after cutting down the crap, and what is crap? Read down to note!

  • Don’t juggle in between your responses. It is not a great idea to relate your previous answer to the current one.
  • They’re not looking to hear a heroic poem. Keep it short and crisp!
  • Sidestep being over or under-confident. Instead, try striking a balance. 
  • Rambling is your biggest enemy. Prepare well to keep it away.
  • Avoid making up your management style. There is already a list to choose from. 

Cut the crap and shine on!

Click to know more: How do you handle stress and pressure?

A Quick Run-Through

Let’s go through everything in short!

  • It is essential to understand the reason behind the question sincerely.
  • Researching and reading the job description helps a lot.
  • Before curating your answer, analyze the different work management styles.
  • If not well-fitted under any category, one can be flexible and ace the interview.
  • Show your best and quit playing unnecessarily.