...Situational Leadership Approach in Organizations Trina J. Hill LDR 531 - Week 2 January 22, 2013 Dr. Devona Smith-Fink Situational Leadership Approach in Organizations Management theorists Paul Hersey and Ken Blanchard developed the situational leadership approach. This methodology supports the notion that there is not one leadership style more important or ideal than another. Rather, the leader must apply an adaptive manner by judging the impact of contextual information along the path of leadership processes. Military organizations have recognized the importance of the contextual factors involved in the situational leadership approach. The Situational Life Cycle Theory of Leadership The theory requires the leader to examine the maturity level of their subordinates and fuse the task-oriented and relations-oriented behavior. Leadership style is also emphasized; and a delicate balance with maturity and style materializes to successfully lead based on the situation. Hersey and Blanchard modeled four leadership styles: telling, selling, participating and delegating with four maturity levels: low, medium (low skills), medium (high skills), and high maturity. “Four degrees of maturity (quadrants M1-M4) are distinguished… segments of a continuum ranging from immature to mature” (Yukl, 2010 p 233). The cycle is progressive as relationships and behaviors are directed, coached, delegated and supported from leader to subordinate, as exhibited in the figure. A high-maturity...
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...Leadership Approach Paper LDR/531 February 25, 2013 Leadership Approach A leader has the ability to lead and influence a group of people to follow in his or her direction to achieve organizational goals or in other words, getting people to want to do what you want them to do rather than just getting them to do what you want them to. The purpose of this paper is to explore the situational leadership theory as an approach to studying leadership and discuss the strength and weaknesses of this approach and how the theory relates to real-world scenarios. The situational leadership theory is an approach to studying leadership and suggests that there is not a one size fit all when leading a group of people. Hersey and Blanchard (1977) proposed a contingency theory that specifies the appropriate type of leadership behavior for different levels of subordinate “maturity” in relation to the work. A high-maturity subordinate has both the ability and confidence to do a task, whereas a low-maturity subordinate lacks ability and self-confidence (Yukl, p. 233, 2010). The theory identifies the appropriate leadership behaviors when confronted with subordinates who are at different levels of maturity in relation to the task at hand. The level of subordinates’ maturity is divided into four quadrants, M1 to M4. (M1)– This leadership approach is when the followers have low desire and ability to complete the task at hand. The followers avoid doing...
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...“Andy’s Recipe” Daifallah Alshaikhi MGT-560: Leadership Development Colorado State University-Global Campus Saudi Electronic University Dr. Steven Westlund Date 21- Feb-2014 Food is a basic need for everyone. Although many people prefer eating at home, many others will look for new places to dine in for a change. It is usually hard to find a table in famous restaurants unless you have a previous reservation. Famous restaurants owners enjoy a deluxe existence by having a better chance to meet important customers. The success of a restaurant depends on providing quality food and friendly atmosphere. Once customers like a certain restaurant they will usually revisit. Customers’ satisfaction is also an important element of success. Therefore, responding to customers’ needs could lead to outstanding results. Consequently, an efficient managerial approach could help a restaurant to provide both the high quality of food and the customer satisfaction. In this paper, “Andy’s Recipe” a case study which talks about an Italian restaurant owned by Andy Garafallo shall be analyzed. “Andy” is an owner and a leader with confident approach. He does not try different fads to get people into his restaurant. He believes that his restaurant provides delicious food and a friendly environment for socializing. Currently, “Andy” employs three managers: Kelly, Danielle, and Patrick. Each of them has a different strengths and weakness. In order to keep their strengths and improve their...
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...2 A contingency theory that contains mediating variables is o leadership substitutes theory o situational leadership theory o cognitive resource theory XXX multiple-linkage model Correct • 3 Which of the following is a characteristic of a positive charismatic? o Dependency on the leader o Centralized decision making by the leader XXX Devotion to ideology not personal identification o Information is restricted Correct • 4 One unique characteristic of followers in leadership theory is o skills and expertise o traits XXX task commitment and effort o confidence and optimism Correct • 5 Ideological leaders will develop when the leader o makes a rational appeal to followers XXX appeals to shared values o appeals to emotion o has particular expertise Correct • 6 Effective transformational leaders o select subordinates who will be loyal and uncritical o delegate most decisions to individuals or self-managed teams XXX use a combination of transformational and transactional behaviors o challenge strongly held values of followers to get their attention Correct • 7 Which statement about transformational and charismatic leadership is most accurate? o Charismatic leaders are more effective in business organizations o Both types of leadership are effective in any situation XXX Charisma is a necessary ingredient in transformational leadership o Both types of leadership involve the same underlying processes Correct • 8 Contingency...
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...inspired myself, the world and other leaders has been Mohandas Gandhi (1869-1948). He became a great leader through using the concepts of love and truth to achieve his goals. Gandhi was a leader that challenged the most powerful nations by using peace, love, integrity as his method of change. He used the principle of non-violence protest to achieve political and social progress was powerful. Gandhi was influenced by Hinduism as well as Jainism and Christianity but also by great writers such as Tolstoy and Thoreau. He developed the belief of Satyagraha, a new non-violent way to restore wrongs. This was well demonstrated in the Salt March in 1930, where Gandhi and others were beaten, arrested and killed but no one fought back. Here his use to leadership behaviour was clearly illustrated. (Kouzes and Posner) Another example was he believed that Britain has a conscience that could appeal to, he used the teaching of the New Testament, “ one who enters into no dispute with his neighbor, he either attacks nor uses violence. On the contrary, he suffers himself without resistance and by his attitude towards evil not only sets himself free but helps to free the world at large from all outward authority.” This was Tolstoy’s version of a Christian man in his book, The Kingdom of God is within you, using this Gandhi fought for independence for India. Gandhi exemplified a number of characteristics of a great leader, he made an effort to understand his people and spoke from their point of view, which...
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...Situational Leadership John Barry Organizational Leadership Situational Leadership The purpose of this paper is to identify the applications and effectiveness of the Situational Approach in Leadership. Leadership is a method by which one individual impacts others toward the achievement of group or organizational goals ("Leadership is a process," 2013, para. 1). A leader’s capability to affect others based on a diversity of factors other than his or her proper authority or position. Paul Hersey, a professor, developed situational Leadership in 1977 and Ken Blanchard, a leadership specialist who wrote "The One Minute Manager" focuses on more than the leader. Instead, a leader's actions depend on the condition and the subordinates. The model, which is considerably flexible to every condition or culture, provides a structure that leaders can use to evaluate an individual’s Performance Readiness Level to execute a specific task. The understanding behaviors are behaviors “to which a leader is likely to maintain personal relationships between himself and the members of his group by opening up channels of communication, delegating responsibility and giving subordinates an opportunity to use their potential” (Hersey & Blanchard, 1981, p. 35). In this approach, the leader should determine the circumstances and get used to his or her leadership approach to suit the specified task, accepting that the method may not essentially function in a dissimilar situation. Hersey...
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...Studying Leadership LDR/531 March 26, 2012 Studying Leadership Leadership is a vital part in any organization. Although there is not one set definition when it comes to leadership, words that are often associated with leadership include guidance, facilitator, and structure (Yukl, 2010). “After a comprehensive review of the leadership literature, Stogdill (1974, p. 259) concluded that ‘there are almost as many definitions of leadership as there are persons who have attempted to define the concept.’” (Yukl, 2010, p. 2). As convoluted as this concept may be, it is undeniable that such a complex behavior is not an easy task. Thus, there are several different approaches to studying leadership. Among these approaches is the situational approach. Situational Approach The situational leadership theory, developed by Dr. Paul Hersey and Ken Blanchard, focuses on the importance of contextual factors that manipulate leadership practices. “Major situational variables include the characteristics of followers, the nature of the work performed by the leader’s unit, the type of organization, and the nature of the external environment” (Yukl, 2010, p. 14). According to the situational leadership theory, the style of leadership that should be used is based on the maturity level of the followers. There are four types of maturity levels that range from high maturity to low maturity. Based on the maturity level of the group, there are four leadership styles that are appropriate: telling...
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...Abstract In leadership there are many methods to triumph over a task or challenge. In the first case study there is a significantly high failure rate among students. The leader is tasked by redesigning the curriculum, assessments, and participation. With this case study a situational leadership approach is done. This essay will describe the self assessment of the writer situational leadership style and the application of situational leadership theory. Situational leadership plays an important role for researchers in organizations to effectively evaluate at leader in a certain position. Jesuıno (2005) asserted that, "several definitions of leadership excess partly that in addition to the concept of leader leadership there should be understating the concept of power and authority", (as cited in Furtado, Batista, & Francisco, 2011, p.1048) In a situational leadership model there are four leadership styles that are defined; telling, selling, participating, and delegating. For the writer is important to understand what type of leader he is so that he will be able to lead effectively and provide the best leadership possible. For the writer, by understanding the different situational leadership roles the writer will be able to incorporate different skills and knowledge to any task and or challenge that is needed by the organization or company. This essay will describe the self assessment of the writer's situational leadership style and application of situational leadership theory...
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...of American college basketball. They share a number of records that remained unbeatable for a long time and even now it is considered as a huge achievement. Following is a brief account of their leadership styles and how effective they were so that one can understand the list achievements they share for a period of 30 years. Discussion Coach Knight began his career in the Army as coach to west point team. Later on his career took him to Indiana where at Indiana University; he coached his way to stardom. His recorf of 31-1 wins-losses was a straight record for the 1975 and in 1976, his team won every game of the season. What made him such a successful coach were his principles on discipline and hard work. He had a reputation of cursing and shouting at his players and even man-handle them at few occasions which landed him into trouble as well. In February 2003, he earned his 800th victory and that placed him in the hall of fame for best coaches of all times. If we look at his leadership style, his ability to handle stress as well as to instil it in his players was a factor that put him on the top. He was task oriented according to the fielder’s contingency model and derived success out of players by putting them under high- stress conditions. If we talk about situational leadership model II, he has S1 Telling style that is described as communication via one-way and there is no emotional support of any kind. At the same time, he tell that what to perform, how to perform, when...
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...Leadership Models Essay Abstract It is not possible to reflect every aspect of each theory, due to the complexities of the models and the wide-ranging opinions of scholars that have studied each concept over many years. However, the purpose of this paper is to discuss four leadership models that are not only interesting but will support growth to those aspiring to become scholars, practitioners and leaders in a particular field of study. These theories were selected to provide information and to offer a review of the characteristics and main points of significance of each theory. The following models will be examined: Transformational leadership, Transactional leadership, Situational leadership and Charismatic leadership. It is important to look at each model separately to understand and define the uniqueness of each of the theories. In addition, to providing definitions for each model, a brief summary will state general similarities. The summation will also indicate that each of the leadership theories is unique with a particular purpose and outcome. Leadership Models Essay Many leadership models have accumulated for as long as there have been leaders. To determine the characteristic associated with leadership styles and the relationship to the zeitgeist some theorists have defined leadership into attribute approaches and periods. “The scientific study of leadership can be roughly divided into three periods: the trait period from around...
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...stressing the importance of any given set of rules. In addition, Caldera is known as the “nicest advisor on campus” (Northouse, 2013, Kindle Location 2363). While being well-liked is a desired trait, it does not appear to be meeting the needs of the station. Caldera is failing to apply situational leadership to her knowledge of each of her DJs to effectively manage expectations and outcomes. She also lacks an efficient training and communication system and may stand to gain from implementing a knowledge management system to resolve the troubles being experienced within WCBA. Situational Leadership Explained The situational approach involves adjusting one’s leadership style to the development of the subordinate(s). Northouse (2013) explains how the various leadership styles should be applied to subordinates at different levels of development; however, he makes considerable mention that leaders must acknowledge that subordinates, no matter how seasoned, may move up and down the development scale, with no predictable pattern. It is up to the leader to become familiar with his/her subordinates and adjust leadership styles as needed. To summarize the key points of Chapter 5, “Leadership: Theory and Practice”, and how it relates to Caldera’s situation, Table 1 shows a direct correlation between...
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...Leadership Models MBA FP 6006 Capella University Introduction This paper investigates two leadership theories which support innovation within an organization. The paper discussed discovery and delivery skills of innovative leaders and my own discovery and delivery skills and how I can utilize them to support innovation within an organization. Leadership Lens The article titled “Diagnosing educational leadership problems: a Situational approach “(Gates, Blanchard, & Hersey, 1976) joins the original theorists with a practitioner of Situational Leadership Theory (formerly known as “Life Cycle Theory of Leadership”) to explain a then-seven-year-old conceptual framework that was born equally from writer and practitioner quests for a leadership style that would prove apropos when applied to most contexts, and two behaviors that were the core of prior leadership models: task behavior and relationship behavior. Task behavior refers to how much a leader will detail for followers the steps and requirements needed to complete a particular task. Relationship behavior alludes to a leader’s level of participation in communication with followers so as to supply socio-emotional support (or “psychological strokes”) and active facilitation. The co-creators of this mode of thinking, acting, and behaving have each secured their places in the history of leadership theory in spite of less than favorable assessments of their mental baby. What began...
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...Situational Leadership Research on leadership is a subject that has been approached in many different ways. Theories on leadership can be classified according to the type of variable that is emphasized the most. Three types of variables relevant to these theories include (1) characteristics of leaders, (2) characteristics of followers, and (3) characteristics of the situation (Yuri, G., 2010). In the textbook Leadership in Organizations, Yuri, G. classifies these theories into the following five approaches: (1) the trait approach, (2) the behavior approach, (3) the power-influence approach, (4) the situational approach, and (5) the integrative approach. This paper briefly discusses the situational approach of studying leadership. Method Description Situational Leadership Theory (SLT) evolved from the Life Cycle of Leadership Theory developed by Hersey and Blanchard (1969). Hersey and Blanchard’s theory has four major situational variables: (1) task behavior, (2) relationship behavior, (3) follower (or subordinate) maturity, and (4) effectiveness (Johansen, B. P., 1990). Task behavior refers to the extent leaders are likely to organize and explain what activities each of the subordinates is to perform and when, where, and how tasks are to be accomplished (Johansen, B. P., 1990). Relationship behavior is defined as the extent to which leaders are likely to maintain personal relationships between themselves and members of their team and provide socio-emotional support...
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...Nardelli I believe he stood his ground and made an example of what it is to be a business person on top of the game. Trait Theory Robert Nardelli’s leadership style and whether or not his actions rose to the level of being unethical will be discussed. While ethics of an organization play an extremely important role within a leader’s actions, the theories that make up that same leader tell a further story into the aspects of their leadership style. The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator has been widely used and has helped a lot of people discover new things about themselves and others. This trait theory has been used in organizations all over the world to understand their employees better in an attempt to utilize their specialties and creativity. The trait theory explains the ability that leaders have to be able to leader across various industries with such skill. Robert Nardelli’s leadership style was very interesting. In some ways he was considered a mastermind the way he raised the company’s profits and brought more organizational structure. The problems became when begun when his leadership style stared rubbing shareholders, customers, and employees the wrong way. With his military style leadership, employees were uncomfortable and shareholder’s even more annual meetings. Every leader has room to grow in their leadership and become more compassionate towards their employees across various industries, but when there is a...
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...Abstract It’s not only Western enterprises that expand globally, enterprises from emerging countries are doing the same more and more organizations are expanding from a local to a global market space. Especially India is establishing itself as economic center and is rapidly becoming the new global economic superpowers. An understanding of local culture and how it affect Western leadership practices and behavior is key in order to become a successful leader, as Western enterprises continues to establish themselves into these emerging markets. In the very same way as enterprises from emerging markets need to understand the local culture when they establish themselves in Western countries. The aim of this report is to investigate what cultural factors/dimension that affect leadership in the context of multi countries as well as to investigate behavioral styles and practices leaders operating in India and see how Western leadership theories are relevant to these set up. Introduction In today’s world we have emerged from the industrial age, into the information age where knowledge is our most valuable assets. The rapid technological development that have enabled this information age is also affecting the pace at which change is happening in the world. The pace of change is rapidly increasing and in order for organizations to be successful they need to keep up with this pace (Schwarz & Brock, 1998). In a recent business leader review with more than 400 senior executives...
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