Final answer:
The best management style for highly skilled, motivated, and independent workers is the Laissez-faire leadership style. It allows these employees to self-manage and make decisions autonomously, which aligns with their ability to work without direct supervision.
Step-by-step explanation:
The type of management style best suited for employees who are highly skilled, motivated, capable of working on their own, and can solve their own problems is C) Laissez-faire. This leadership style is characterized by a hands-off approach, allowing employees to self-manage and make their own decisions.
Highly skilled and self-motivated employees may thrive under a laissez-faire leader because they often have clear goals and guidelines, and do not require close supervision or intervention to be productive and innovative.
In contrast, autocratic leaders tend to have a top-down approach to communication and decision-making, which is less suitable for independent and skilled employees.
Democratic leaders encourage group participation, which can be beneficial but may also slow down the decision-making process. Transactional leaders focus on supervision and achieving organizational goals with a system of rewards and punishments, which might not cater to the autonomy such skilled workers typically enjoy.