Situational Leadership Analysis

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Hersey and Blanchard’s Situational Leadership Theory (SLT) asserts that a leader’s effectiveness is dependent upon the readiness, or ability and willingness, of the leader’s followers to complete a task. This leadership style is an amalgamation of task-oriented and relationship-oriented characteristics that are employed depending upon the situation and the followers involved. According to the SLT, as followers increase in readiness the leader’s style is to adapt accordingly (Kinicki & Kreitner, 2009).

The table below (Babou, 2008) summarizes the leadership behaviors that the SLT presumes are appropriate to the various stages of follower readiness. Each quadrant of the Leadership Behaviors chart corresponds to the same quadrant in the Follower Readiness chart.

Leadership Behaviors

Style 1 (S1 or Directing): High task/low relationship

This leader uses above-average amounts of task behavior and below-average

amounts of relationship behavior.

Style 2 (S2 or Coaching): High task/high relationship

This leader uses greater-than-average amounts of both task and relationship

behaviors.

Style 3 (S3 or Supporting): High relationship/low task

This leader exhibits greater-than-average amounts of relationship behavior

and below-average amounts of task behavior.

Style 4 (S4 or Delegating): Low relationship/low task

This leader uses below-average amounts of both relationship and task behaviors.

Follower Readiness

For example, under this theory the leader would employ High Directive/High Support leadership behaviors to the Disillusioned Learner. Ideally, the leader helps the followers as they progress through the stages to achieve the Self-Reliant Achiever/Delegating level. While I do not necessarily ...

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...ul leader. Without high competence in these areas, the leader is unlikely to find success to any significant degree regardless of how well he or she performs in the other areas. Overall I am pleased with where I currently am in these fundamental areas, particularly in those areas that define me as a person and would otherwise be extremely difficult to change. The areas of weakness reveal adjustments that I can make in my style and how I outwardly present myself, but I do not believe there are any gaps that cannot be bridged as I continue my quest to become a better leader.

Works Cited

Babou. (2008, March 26). Variations in situational leadership Web. 28 March 2015

http://leadershipchamps.wordpress.com/2008/03/26/variations-in-situational-leadership/

Kinicki, A., & Kreitner, R. (2009). Organizational behavior (4th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill/Irwin.

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