One of the more widely recognized approaches to leadership
is the situational approach, which was developed by Hersey and Blanchard
(1969a) based on Reddin’s (1967) 3-D management style theory. The situational approach
has been refined and revised several times since its inception (see Blanchard,
Zigarmi, & Nelson, 1993; Blanchard, Zigarmi, & Zigarmi, 1985; Hersey
& Blanchard, 1977, 1988), and it has been used extensively in
organizational leadership training and development.
As the name of the approach implies, situational leadership
focuses on leadership in situations. The premise of the theory is that different
situations demand different kinds of leadership. From this perspective, to be
an effective leader requires that a person adapt his or her style to the
demands of different situations.
Situational leadership stresses that leadership is composed
of both a directive and a supportive dimension, and that each has to be applied
appropriately in a given situation. To determine what is needed in a particular
situation, a leader must evaluate her or his employees and assess how competent
and committed they are to perform a given task. Based on the assumption that
employees’ skills and motivation vary over time, situational leadership
suggests that leaders should change the degree to which they are directive or
supportive to meet the changing needs of subordinates.
In brief, the essence of situational leadership demands that
leaders match their style to the competence and commitment of the subordinates.
Effective leaders are those who can recognize what employees need and then
adapt their own style to meet those needs.
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