Informal group leader

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The informal group leader is the member of a team that leads the social group . His role was recognized early on. In contrast to the formal leader of the group, who is appointed as a group leader in an organization and is equipped with competencies for this, the informal leader gains his role on the basis of the group-specific distribution of roles or on the basis of his personality . He is also known as a group star or a group speaker. Those responsible in an organization should choose the way through the informal leader in order to be able to influence the performance of a group. In the negative case he is a ringleader , but will not be discussed here.

Recognizing the informal leader

In order to be able to use the informal leader as an "extended arm", this person must be known to the group leader. If the leader has known the group for a long time, then it is not difficult for him to recognize the informal leader from the circumstances and behavior of the group members. If the supervisor does not know the group at all or only superficially, the sociometric method of the sociogram is the best option . When asked "Who would you like to work with?" or "Who would you invite to a party?" answer the questioned group members and the leader evaluates the results. The group star is the one who gets the most votes from the group.

Types of informal leaders

In many teams there is only one informal group leader. In individual cases, however, two people can share the role of informal leader. Then there is the following leadership dual , which was described by Bales in 1954:

  • The activity leader , who is intensely committed to the achievement of the specified performance goals and does everything to ensure that all group members contribute to the achievement of goals. Therefore the group leader should use it as an 'extended arm'.
  • The popularity leader , who is welcome everywhere and is also committed to the group. Above all, he advocates the achievement of group maintenance goals (e.g. cohesion) or the achievement of individual goals (e.g. individual satisfaction ). He cultivates group relationships, listens carefully and encourages his comrades.

Both informal leaders do not curry favor and do not appear as "slippers". The group recognizes the high rank of the informal leader based on the authority recognized by the team . In order to maintain his authority and to strengthen the efficiency of the group, he has to observe a number of rules of conduct.

Characteristics of the informal leader

An informal leader has the ability to work towards the performance goals set by the organization, promote harmony in the team , balance tensions in the group, contribute to internal communication and increased opinion-forming. In addition, he is willing to watch over the observance of the group norms and to ensure that they are observed in the group. It is typical for him to be involved in the group. Informal leaders have good sociometric perception, high social competence , high self-confidence or high degree of extraversion . You maintain contact with all group members, including the outsiders of the group. They show helpfulness in every situation and are i. d. Usually not concerned with leadership. They work intensively for group life and have a balancing effect in the event of conflicts in the group.

Leadership of the informal group leader

Since the group star is the leader of the group, the group leader should give him special attention. Although the informal leader is not identical to the group leader, he is in the top third of the team in terms of performance. Otherwise he could probably represent the interests of the group less well-founded. This makes him one of the most powerful forces in the team and should therefore be led by the group leader with the supportive leadership style . He should observe the following leadership rules:

  • The manager can use all incentives against the informal leader that apply to high-performing workers, e.g. B. Promotion, remuneration and development incentives.
  • The group star needs freedom for his work so that targeted controls are sufficient. With positive informal leaders, strictness is not appropriate at all.
  • The manager will always inform the group star about special work processes and maintain good contact with him.
  • She should try to win him over to her own management work and use him as an 'extended arm' towards the team.

In doing so, the manager recognizes the key role of the informal group leader. Serious arguments (e.g. because of minor issues) should be avoided with him because he has the support of the team.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ GC Homans: Theory of the Social Group. 6th edition. Opladen 1972, p. 66 and p. 97 f.
  2. ↑ E. Höhn, CP Schick: The sociogram. 3. Edition. Göttingen 1974, p. 32.
  3. ^ R. Bühner: Personnel Management. 3. Edition. Munich / Vienna 2005, p. 224.
  4. ^ WH Staehle: Management. 8th edition. Munich 1999, p. 323.
  5. ^ R. Dollase: Sociometric Techniques. 2nd Edition. Weinheim 1976.
  6. ↑ E. Höhn, CP Schick: The sociogram. 3. Edition. Göttingen 1974, pp. 9-46.
  7. ^ AB Weinert: Organizational and Personal Psychology. 5th edition. Weinheim / Basel 2004, p. 413.
  8. ↑ M. Richter: Personnel management. 3. Edition. Stuttgart 1994, p. 107.
  9. ↑ L. Fischer, G. Wiswede: Fundamentals of social psychology. 2nd Edition. Munich / Vienna 2002, p. 165 ff.
  10. ^ HJ Rahn: Successful team leadership. 6th edition. Hamburg 2010, p. 63.