MOST Malaysian organisations, from the very small to the very                                                                                         
big, follow the autocratic leadership style of management.                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                                      
This may sound like a broad generalisation, but if you look                                                                                           
around, you will find few practising the participative or                                                                                             
consultative style of management.  There are many reasons why                                                                                         
the autocratic leadership style dominates.  The common reasons                                                                                        
are:                                                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                                      
1. Historical development: Throughout history, societies and                                                                                          
nations were ruled by individuals with                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                                      
strong personalities. They had strong ego needs and exercised                                                                                         
power in a top down fashion.  They become role models.                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                                      
2. Maintaining order: It is much easier to maintain order and                                                                                         
discipline using an iron hand. The classic model is that of                                                                                           
the military. The modern day management model of "command                                                                                        
control" is borrowed from the military.                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                                      
3. Fear of losing control: When this fear is strong enough,                                                                                           
vital information or critical success factors of a business is                                                                                        
guarded zealously.  Only the trusted few have the privilege to                                                                                        
share some of the information. This practice is common in                                                                                             
family businesses although to a much reduced extent now.                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                                      
Other than the trusted few, the rest of the workers need only                                                                                         
do as instructed. In the early days of the Coca- Cola                                                                                                 
business, the secret formula or recipe was a closely guarded                                                                                          
production secret.  Incidentally, today the rule of the game                                                                                          
in the soft drink industry has changed. Even if you have the                                                                                          
exact cola-cola recipe there is little chance of success as a                                                                                         
new entrant.  Today what sells Coca-Cola is brand image and                                                                                           
global marketing. In fact, in today's world, information and                                                                                          
theoretical know how is so cheaply available that it is almost                                                                                        
free.                                                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                                      
Unfortunately, many present day managers are still having                                                                                             
problems coming to terms with this reality.  Instead of                                                                                               
acknowledging such realities they react by feeling insecure in                                                                                        
letting their subordinates have direct access to company                                                                                              
information which is easily available from elsewhere.                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                                      
4. Power affinity: Many corporate leaders and managers have a                                                                                         
healthy desire for power. It is one of the drives that gets                                                                                           
them to where they are. It is only when power gradually                                                                                               
becomes abused does the negative face of power bring about                                                                                            
negative influences on the organisation.                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                                      
All leaders tend to have an affinity for power and therefore                                                                                          
the tendency for the people in charge to be autocratic is                                                                                             
high.                                                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                                      
Organisations with autocratic leadership styles can be said to                                                                                        
have the following characteristics: 1.  Centralised decision                                                                                          
making:                                                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                                      
The decision making process tends to be centralised at the                                                                                            
upper echelons of management. Implementation of action plans                                                                                          
is based upon instructions from the top.                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                                      
The organisation's structures become bureaucratic as time goes                                                                                        
by. Systems and procedures become institutionalised. A point                                                                                          
is reached in such organisations where the majority of actions                                                                                        
and activities come to be governed by policies.                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                                      
The idea that policies purely serve as guiding instructions                                                                                           
gets lost as the power in organisations became more and more                                                                                          
centralised at the top. Over time the workers in such                                                                                                 
organisations only do as they are told. Top management reduces                                                                                        
thinking workers into unthinking robots since all decisions                                                                                           
are made at the top and the slightest change needs management                                                                                         
approval.                                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                                      
Such organisations are slow in adapting to changes taking                                                                                             
place in the external environment. They refuse to recognise                                                                                           
the changing consumer needs.  They refuse to acknowledge that                                                                                         
competitors' products are getting better and priced lower than                                                                                        
theirs.                                                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                                      
Instead of looking outwards at the realities of the market                                                                                            
place, they are inward looking.                                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                                      
This phenomenon happened to once mighty American corporations                                                                                         
such as General Motors Harley Davidson, Xerox, IBM and so on.                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                                      
When the Japanese manufacturers reached world class quality                                                                                           
with their products in the late 1970s and early 1980s, many                                                                                           
American corporations were humbled by the more efficient and                                                                                          
progressive Japanese firms.                                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                                      
The 1980s saw many American corporations having to reinvent                                                                                           
themselves. The heartening note is that many of these firms                                                                                           
became more competitive after their turnaround exercise. Their                                                                                        
painful restructuring experiences are useful case models for                                                                                          
many Malaysian companies.                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                                      
2. Tight control: When control from the top is tight, a huge                                                                                          
wall, though not visible, is erected between management and                                                                                           
workers.  Mutual trust between management and workers is                                                                                              
severed. Over time workers become irresponsible and non                                                                                               
committal.                                                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                                      
Management can set performance targets. Unless the workers see                                                                                        
some benefits in achieving the targets, what management gets                                                                                          
is the couldn't care less attitude of the workers. They do the                                                                                        
minimal that will keep them out of trouble, and that's it.                                                                                            
They put on a facade when management people are around.  The                                                                                          
moment these "controllers" are away, the couldn't care less                                                                                 
behaviour resumes.                                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                                      
With tight top down control it is unrealistic to expect                                                                                               
workers to work hard or be committed to their work. The                                                                                               
exception lies in the 20 per cent or so of workers found in                                                                                           
all corporations or factories who are self driven.                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                                      
These work horses are motivated by their own personal values                                                                                          
or work ethics.                                                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                                      
With tight top down control, management alienates about 80 per                                                                                        
cent of its workforce. Management believes that n order to get                                                                                        
production output from the workers, ;here is only one way the                                                                                         
command and control way to force workers to work.                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                                      
What these management people fail to realise is that the                                                                                              
command control model is only applicable in a very restricted                                                                                         
sense in Malaysia today. Twenty years ago when the                                                                                                    
unemployment rate was high, management could get away with the                                                                                        
command control approach.  Today, not only is there a labour                                                                                          
shortage (which increases job hopping even among factory                                                                                              
workers), the younger generation of workers is less likely to                                                                                         
accept unreasonable commands and controls.  They will fight                                                                                           
back or sabotage the system. The labour market has changed and                                                                                        
so has lifestyles.                                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                                      
But many management staff continue to run their organisations                                                                                         
using out of date styles or approaches. Habits die hard.                                                                                              
Mindsets and old paradigms of work, especially at the top                                                                                             
echelons of management, need changing so as to adapt to the                                                                                           
realities of a changed environment. But mindsets are extremely                                                                                        
difficult to change. Only popular manage ment writers make it                                                                                         
ap pear easy.                                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                                      
3. Centralisation of power: Organisations that use the command                                                                                        
control model to manage their op erations inevitably have                                                                                             
their power source centralised at the top. It is common                                                                                               
knowledge today that power tends to corrupt.  This can lead to                                                                                        
negative behavioral patterns (in those holding the power) that                                                                                        
work against the long term interests of the company.                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                                      
There is a high tendency for autocratic leaders to practise                                                                                           
favouritism. While all management writers exhort management                                                                                           
practitioners to think rationally and act objectively without                                                                                         
bias and favouritism, we also know there is the human side in                                                                                         
the corporate lead ers as well.  For instance know the left                                                                                           
brain is the seat of rational thoughts and the right brain                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                                      
controls our emo tions. The root cause of of fice politicking                                                                                         
is always traceable to the leader ship style of the person in                                                                                         
charge of the company, division or department. The practice of                                                                                        
favoritism in organisations is definitely one of the                                                                                                  
weaknesses of management.                                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                                      
And this weakness is seldom solved from with in because it                                                                                            
takes place in the blind spot of the au tocratic leader.                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                                      
It is interesting to note in management literature that                                                                                               
successful CEOs and managers must have the following skills:                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                                      
1. Technical skill, such as engineering or market ing. It also                                                                                        
includes the skills of professionals or specialists such as                                                                                           
accountants and compute experts.                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                                      
2. Conceptual skills. This skill is associated with our mental                                                                                        
faculties.  Managers with good conceptual skills are                                                                                                  
innovetive, creative or good problem solvers .                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                                      
3. Interpersonal skills.  Because management is the art and                                                                                           
science of getting work done through people,                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                                      
managers must possess good interpersonal skills.  Those                                                                                               
lacking this skill are greatly disadvantaged as leaders or                                                                                            
motivators of human energy.                                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                                      
4. Politicking skill.  Interpersonal or social skills are for                                                                                         
dealing with peers and subordinates.  To deal with superiors                                                                                          
and those in power, politicking skill is a must.  Many                                                                                                
managers with the                                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                                      
above three skills have failed to get to the very top echelons                                                                                        
of management as they lacked this fourth skill and are                                                                                                
therefore unable to secure a place in the power base.                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                                      
It is rare to find individuals who have all four skills.                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                                      
There is no denying that obsolete approaches, such as the                                                                                             
autocratic leadership style of management, must give way to a                                                                                         
combination of styles.                                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                                      
If the present leadership style is 90 per cent autocratic, it                                                                                         
must be modified to something like 40                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                                      
per cent autocratic and 60 per cent participative within a                                                                                            
timeframe of two to three years.                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                                      
That the autocratic style is out of date in Malaysia today is                                                                                         
obvious. And the sooner the style is replaced by a more humane                                                                                        
approach, the better for management and workers.