What Is Situational Leadership Theory?

Consider a time when you were starting out in your profession. Having a boss at that time who would sit down next to you and go over things in a calm manner is essential. As well as that, they advised you and kept you on track with your goals. 

Another great example is a great team leader who would give directions on how to perform a task or to call you to ask whether you have any questions that need to be answered. This is the ideal management approach that’s crucial to achieving goals and professional advancement. Click on this link to read more.  

That’s especially true for people who don’t have any knowledge or experience. Take a few steps ahead in your career. You already know what you need to do since you have all of the information, abilities, as well as competence to perform a job. 

Then comes micromanagement. That’s a person who comes to you and offers a ton of unsolicited suggestions, checks on your progress every five minutes, and asks for tasks to be completed in a specific manner. No one likes a micromanager. 

There are other types of approaches that are appropriate for different situations, but they all require different degrees of competence. Even though most managers may typically delegate the project management to a top performer, sometimes a high-stakes scenario might necessitate the managers to be directly involved. 

Of course, we’re all people, and everyone can have a tendency to lean one way or another. Everyone exists on a scale. However, managers need to be sensitive and agile to everything that arises in their organization, competitive market, work environment, or team. 

That’s what the business climate has brought. Dealing with people is still the toughest job on the planet since it has so many variables. You can’t earn somebody’s trust overnight. You also need to be understanding, learn about individual histories, motivators, ego, experience, learning styles, and personalities. 

The heart of how situational leadership theory comes to play is through different dimensions depending on the circumstances. If you become a situational leader, you will be better suited to the people you lead, as well as to the work settings. Follow this link for more info https://www.independent.com/2021/08/19/cause-action-fund-hosts-leadership-awards-reception/. 

What are the different styles? 

Almost fifty percent of the time, leaders use just one style of management. Usually, that’s the wrong one to deal with the situation. Not all people are the same, and employee competency varies between performance and problems. 

The same thing is true about how committed the employees are to the project. As a manager, you need to find a way to make the project intricate, guide, and assist your team in making it succeed. Being adaptable will enable you to respond to all types of circumstances, as well as bring out the best in your teams. 

There are a couple of ways in which you can position yourself. The first one is called telling. This is when a team member needs constant monitoring. Then, telling them what to do, directing them, and guiding them is the best strategy. 

In this phase of situational leadership theory, you are the one who is making the choices and assigning the duties. In case anything unforeseen happens, give the team information about how to handle an emergency. The next stage is called selling. You can use this method whenever some team member or employee has great skills, but not enough to be effective. 

They can be a bit lazy on a given day, and you need to be there to motivate them, inspire them, and sell them on the idea of work. This increases engagement, and you can be open to words of cooperation. This is mostly used when dealing with creatives since you can improve and develop their abilities when you have an active goal where they can buy-in. 

The third method is called participation. This is mostly used during decision-making and planning. This method asks for collaboration, and you allow the team to make decisions on their own. It doesn’t need a lot of monitoring, and you can let the conversation go on. 

Finally, there is delegating. When some employee has an outstandingly high degree of competence and self-motivation, then this method is most useful. You help them in setting new goals, outlining a vision, and granting them more authority.  

An example

Here’s one example. Let’s say that someone is a beginner in a company. They’re low incompetence and high in dedication. These people don’t have the necessary skills, but they have the willpower to commit to a goal. In this phase, it’s best to use talking to lead them through every stage. 

You need to be there telling them what to do and how to do it. It’s best to connect them with experienced colleagues to force them to improve faster. Remember that you’re hiring a personality. Everyone can learn the skills.