Final answer:
Authoritarian leadership is characterized by top management making decisions without subordinate input, being goal-oriented, and risking alienating employees if misapplied.
Step-by-step explanation:
A top-down leadership style where the top management makes all of the decisions and instructs subordinates about what to do and how to do it is known as authoritarian leadership. This style is characterized by a lack of participation from group members in the decision-making process. An authoritarian leader makes decisions independently, focusing on achieving specific goals, often without soliciting input or feedback from others.
Authoritarian leaders are typically goal-oriented and may be effective in situations that require quick decision-making or when the leader has a high level of expertise. However, this leadership style comes with the risk of alienating subordinates. Therefore, it's important to recognize the appropriate context for this leadership style to be successful.