Which is a key behavior of an effective team leader?

• A. Maintaining tight control of all decisions
• B. Empowering team members to speak freely and ask questions
• C. Discouraging feedback
• D. Avoiding delegation

Answer: (B)

An effective team leader fosters an environment where people feel safe to speak up and ask questions. This openness brings in diverse ideas, helps surface issues early, and leads to better decisions because multiple perspectives are considered. When team members are empowered to contribute, they take ownership, participate more fully, and collaborate more effectively, which also accelerates learning and problem-solving.

Maintaining tight control of all decisions stifles input and slows progress, reducing buy-in and risking missed insights. Discouraging feedback prevents growth and timely correction of course. Avoiding delegation burdens the leader and hinders others from developing their skills. So the behavior that best captures effective leadership is giving team members room to speak freely and ask questions.