What is Situational LeadershipⓇ (SL)?
The Situational LeadershipⓇ method from Kenneth Blanchard and Paul Hersey holds that managers should use a different leadership style,
depending on the situation. The model encourages the leader/manager to analyze the needs of the situation, and then to use the most appropriate leadership style. Depending on the
competences of employees in their task areas and their commitment to their tasks, the leadership
style you should use should vary from one person to another. You may even lead the same person in one way in a particular area, and in another way in another area.
Blanchard and Hersey categorized leadership styles in terms of the amount of direction and of support that the leader gives to his or her followers, and thus created a matrix (figure).
Leadership Behavior of the Leader
- S1 - Telling / Directing - High task focus, low relationship
focus - leaders define the roles and tasks of the 'follower', and supervise
them closely. Decisions are made by the leader and announced, so communication
is largely one-way. For people who lack competence but are enthusiastic
and committed. They need direction and supervision to get them started.
- S2 - Selling / Coaching - High task focus, high relationship
focus - leaders still define roles and tasks, but seek ideas and suggestions
from the follower. Decisions remain the leader's prerogative, but communication
is much more two-way. For people who have some competence but lack commitment.
They need direction and supervision because they are still relatively inexperienced.
They also need support and praise to build their self-esteem, and involvement
in decision-making to restore their commitment.
- S3 - Participating / Supporting - Low task focus, high relationship
focus - leaders pass day-to-day decisions, such as task allocation and processes,
to the follower. The leader facilitates and takes part in decisions, but
control is with the follower. For people who have competence, but lack confidence
or motivation. They do not need much direction because of their skills,
but support is necessary to bolster their confidence and motivation.
- S4 - Delegating - Low task focus, low relationship focus - leaders
are still involved in decisions and problem-solving, but control is with
the follower. The follower decides when and how the leader will be involved.
For people who have both competence and commitment. They are able and willing
to work on a project by themselves with little supervision or support.
Effective leaders have to be versatile in being able to move around the matrix
according to the situation, because there is no style that is always right. However,
human beings tend to have a preferred style. In applying SL you have to be aware which style is your own prefered one.
Likewise, the competence and commitment of the follower can also
be cetegorized into 4 quadrants.
Development Level of the Follower
- D4 - High Competence, High Commitment - Experienced at the job,
and comfortable with their own ability to do it well. May even be more skilled
than the leader.
- D3 - High Competence, Variable Commitment - Experienced and capable,
but may lack the confidence to go it alone, or the motivation to do it well
/ quickly.
- D2 - Some Competence, Low Commitment - May have some relevant
skills, but won't be able to do the job without help. The task or the situation
may be new to them.
- D1 - Low Competence, High Commitment - Generally lacking the
specific skills required for the job in hand, but has the confidence and
/ or motivation to tackle it.
Similar to the leadership styles, the development levels are also situational.
A person could be skilled, confident and motivated for one part of his his
job, but could be less competent for another part of the job.
Blanchard and Hersey said that the Leadership Style (S1 - S4) of the leader
must match with and correspond to the Development level (D1 - D4) of the follower - and it's
the LEADER who adapts. By adopting the right style to suit the follower's
development level, work gets done, relationships are built up, and most importantly,
the follower's development level will rise to D4, to everyone's benefit.
Steps in Situational LeadershipⓇ. Process
- Make an overview of the main tasks per employee.
- Assess the employee on each task (D1 - D4).
- Decide on the leadership (management) style per task (S1 - S4).
- Discuss the situation with the employee.
- Make a joint plan.
- Follow-up, check and correct.
Strengths of the Situational LeadershipⓇ model. Benefits
- Relatively easy to understand
- Relatively easy to use
Limitations of the Situational LeadershipⓇ model. Disadvantages
- The model does not distinguish between leadership and management. What is
called "leadership style" is nowadays often called "management style". Compare also:
Leadership Pipeline
- Leadership is not primarily about making decisions - it is about
inspiring people to change direction.
- Leaders may indeed vary the way they inspire people to change. But this
is when they have already decided on the need to change. Hence leadership
style does not reduce to decision making style.
- Focuses too exclusively on what the person in charge does.
- Of course both leaders and managers have to behave differently in different
situations. But that is just a trivial fact of life, rather than anything
profound in terms of our basic understanding of what it means to lead or
manage.
Assumptions of Situational LeadershipⓇ. Conditions
- Leaders should adapt their style to the follower's maturity, based on how
ready and willing the follower is to perform required tasks (that is, their
competence and motivation).
- There are four leadership styles that match the four combinations of
high/low readiness and willingness.
- The four styles suggest that leaders should put greater or less focus
on the task in question and/or the relationship between the leader and the
follower.
- Presumes that leadership is about how the boss makes decisions.
Book: Paul Hersey,
Kenneth H. Blanchard, Dewey E. Johnson - Management of Organizational Behavior:
Leading
Forum discussions about Situational Leadership.
|
Situational Followership
Don't like your boss's leadership style? If you feel frustrated or uninspired by your leader, you're in good company. Many people are unhappy with the leadership styles of those above them.
Rather th...
13
|
|
Leadership Style for a New Institution
My comment is a question seeking some guidance: here is my challenge and need some perspectives on. I am part of a new institution where everything is being done form scratch. The team has agreed on s...
4
3 comments
|
|
|
Courses about Situational Leadership.
Beginners Course
|
Advanced Course
|
Course for Experts
|
|
|
The best, top-rated topics about Situational Leadership. Here you will find the most valuable ideas and practical suggestions.
🥇
|
Commitment in Situational Leadership
The commitment to actually applying SL is crucial, but is often variable. It depends upon the job and the senior management. Inconsistent management by senior management of their staff will cause yo y...
69
2 comments
|
|
|
Advanced insights about Situational Leadership. Here you will find professional advices by experts.
Consultancy Tips
|
Teaching Tips
|
Practical Implementation Tips
|
|
|
|
Managing Very Clever People What you should understand if you're 'managing' extremely clever people... Rob Goffee and Gareth Jones say in HBR March 2007 that to manage extremely smart key people in an organization, first of...
|
|
Also Adapt your Leadership Style to Society Situational Leadership Remember that leaders should not only adapt their style to employee competences, but also to to the changing demands of ...
|
|
Leadership Practices Inventory by Kouzes and Posner Common Behaviors that Successful Leaders Display Kouzes and Posner in their (2002) book 'The Leadership Challenge' mention 5 Leadership Practices (common behaviors that ...
|
|
How to Develop your Own Leadership Philosophy Leadership/Management Development, Coaching, Mentoring In an article “When should a leader be directive or empowering? How to develop your own situational theory of leadership...
|
|
What is the Opposite of Situational Leadership? Leadership Development, Management Development, Coaching, Mentoring Situational Leadership can be seen as an adaptive style. The opposite, non-adaptive, or inflexible, style of leadership ...
|
|
Employee vs Task-oriented Leadership, Adaptability Based on Blanchard, in 1990, Blank, Weitzel, and Green analyzed leader task and relationship behavior in terms of Consid...
|
|
Situational Leadership® II Training on SL The Ken Blancard company is now teaching Situational Leadership® II (SLII®), a method based on three key skills:
1. Dia...
|
|
|
Various sources of information regarding Situational Leadership. Here you will find powerpoints, videos, news, etc. to use in your own lectures and workshops.
|
Situational Leadership Overview Overview Good overview presentation on Situational Leadership....
|
|
Contingency Leadership Theories In-depth Contingency Theory, Normative Decision Model, Situational Leadership Theory, Path-Goal Theory This presentation covers the subject of contingency theory of leadership and situational leadership. The presentation in...
|
|
Intro to Situational Leadership II Situational Leadership Situational Leadership II is a management model managers may use to adapt their style of leading more purposeful and int...
|
|
Measuring Psychological Maturity in Situational Leadership Situational Leadership Traditional scale construction procedures were used to develop an 11-item scale to measure psychological maturity. Preli...
|
|
Situational Leadership versus Contingency Theory Situational Leadership, Contingency Theory, Trainings, Workshops Dr. A. Adams sharply contrasts situational leadership theory with contingency theory:
- Situation Leadership Theory: Le...
|
|
Practical Communication Tips for Managers Management Skills, Leadership Skills, Management Development, Leadership Development, Situational Leadership As manager you need to combine professional expertise and experience with specific character traits, interpersonal and c...
|
|
10 Leadership Theories in a Nutshell Leadership Theories Overview, Leadership Development, Management Development, Leadership Styles, Coaching, Mentoring This 5-minute video gives a brief overview of 10 theories of leadership, explaining their main differences:
1. The Grea...
|
|
Young Steve Jobs on the Role of Managers Management, Leadership, Talent Management, Talent Acquisition, Talent Development This video is a nice start for any management course. Jobs shares some ideas on managers (in a high-tech environment) an...
|
|
Video Introduction to Leadership First Understanding of Leadership, Trainings, Workshops Quick visual intro to the subject of leadership by showing short impressions of:
harmony, driving performance, followin...
|
|
Situational Leadership Diagrams Situational Leadership Download and edit this 12manage PowerPoint graphic for limited personal, educational and business use.
Republishing in ...
|
|
|
Useful tools regarding Situational Leadership.
News
|
Videos
|
Presentations
|
|
Books
|
Academic
|
More
|
|
|
|
Compare with Blanchard and Hersey Situational LeadershipⓇ:
Leadership Styles
| Stages of Team
Development |
Leadership Pipeline
| Leadership Continuum
| Hagberg Model
of Personal Power |
Managerial Grid
| Path-Goal Theory
| Theory X Theory Y
| Contingency Theory
| Competing
Values Framework |
Expectancy Theory
| Result Oriented
Management |
Bases of Social Power
| Seven Surprises
| Seven Habits |
Results-Based Leadership
| Level 5 Leadership
| Servant-Leadership
Return to Management Hub: Communication & Skills | Human Resources
| Leadership
More Management Methods, Models and Theory
Situational LeadershipⓇ and Performance ReadinessⓇ are trademarks of Leadership Studies, Inc. Copyright© 1972, 1977, 1982, 1984, 1988, 1993, 1996, 2001, 2006, 2008, 2012, 2015, Leadership Studies, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
|
|
|