Leadership Styles That Cause a High Turnover in an Organization

Poor leadership can cause employee turnover, which ends up costing your small business time and money. The expense of recruiting and training employees can eat away at profits in a company. In addition, the lack of seasoned employees can diminish your production, customer service and efficiency. Examine whether your leadership style and your managers’ leadership styles are negative and therefore cause employees to leave.

An overly stern boss can alienate employees quickly. This style of leadership usually includes unrealistic expectations, highly-critical feedback, intolerance of mistakes and a tendency to place blame instead of seek solutions. Employees under this type of manager often feel intimidated and on edge. The stress of working under such a leader can cause employees to leave the firm.

This type of leader avoids conflict and has a “hands off” approach to management. Employees receive little direction and usually don’t know what standards they should live up to. "Avoiders" often put too much trust in employees, many of whom need guidance and instruction. Problems tend to worsen until they reach a crisis point. By then, the cost and time of fixing the problem can undermine your business' performance. Employees under this type of leader tend to feel insecure because they spend too much time figuring out solutions on their own with no guidelines.

Leaders who constantly tell stories about smart decisions they made often convey a sense of insecurity. Employees pick up on this leader’s need to look good, and consequently lose respect for him. When a leader spends more time blowing his own horn than managing the business, employees might start looking elsewhere for work. Employees stay where they respect leaders for their actions, not merely for their words.

A leader who frequently loses his temper and is prone to outbursts can drive away employees. This type of leadership instills fear and insecurity in workers, which often leads to resentment. Employees spend too much time wondering when the next eruption will happen. After awhile, they decide the job is not worth it.

Some leaders fail to communicate. They might leave out important information an employee needs to complete a task, or they might provide no information at all. This type of leader often remains silent in the face of problems and seldom offers words of encouragement. Employees must guess what the boss is thinking, which creates an insecure and frustrating work environment.