Situational Leadership

Situational Leadership teaches that the 'style of leadership must match the needs of those being led' and that the best style can be identified by assessing the needs of the individual on two sliding scales:

a) Need for Direction: Low to High
b) Need for Support: Low to High

On a matrix the Situational Leadership Assessment looks like this:

Hi Need for Support Low Need for Direction Journeyman - When one gets to Q3 she has a high level of competence and can handle virtually all day-to-day situations in which this skill is applied but when a highly complex situation arises she may seek guidance from a Consultant i.e. one who will walk through the process with her and ensure that all the essential questions have been asked and answered appropriately.

Hi Need for Support Hi Need for Direction Practitioner/Apprentice - The Q2 client has some knowledge and skill and requires Coaching i.e.      a) supervised rehearsal,      b) assessment      c) corrective feedback      d) more rehearsal.

Low Need for Support Low Need for Direction Master - Within this specific skill, the Master has attained a very high level of competence and has seamlessly integrated its use into her life and work. There are always degrees of Mastery. As complexity increases, mastery decreases.

Low Need for Support Hi Need for Direction Novice - The client in Q1 has little knowledge or skill in this area therefore will benefit from an S1 style of leadership. S1 leadership involves Teaching, Training and Telling. Clear rules and structure are essential. S1 requires the use of Standard Operating Procedures. If these are not available, they must be created.

How I Add Value

From the above I hope you can see that I am able to add value in three distinct areas:

1. I can Teach/Train the Novice Manager/Supervisor/Leader.
   To do this I will:
   1. Create a Core Competency Matrix identifying the knowledge and skills required for mastery in the functional area.
   2. Conduct a diagnosis to determine the level of knowledge and skill the individual has regarding the subject skills.
   3. Set development goals and objectives and a developmental plan (including time lines) with the learner.
   4. Teach the skills in a highly participative and engaging manner, using examples that demonstrate their efficacy and practicality.


2. I can serve as a Coach to someone who knows a good deal about a skill but who has not had sufficient supervised practice with corrective feedback to get to the level of satisfactory competence to be able to move into the Journeyman role i.e. sufficiently competent to act on her own in any but extraordinary circumstances.
   1. The Coach works with the learner to plan where and how the subject skills will be used and to ensure that the she is applying the skill in the appropriate context. Effective learning happens best when it progresses from success to success and it is the Coaches job to set the learner up for success whenever possible. We can and do learn from failure but this is not our focus here.
   2. The Coach works from a Playbook or SOP, he observes and assesses the behaviour of the learner and provides corrective feedback.
   3. The Coach raises the performance and expectations 'bar' to continuously challenge the learner to practice the skill in ever more complex situations.