Essay on Contingency Management Theory

There have been numerous theories surrounding leadership, which attempt to explain which form is most effective in the workplace. A universalistic approach was once used to rationalize leadership and it was believed that successful leaders possessed certain common abilities and traits. However, today due to external factors such as globalization and advanced technologies, there has been an evolution towards a new paradigm of leadership. Subordinates want to feel empowered and engaged at the workplace and often the behaviors and relationships between leaders and their subordinates become important to understand in order to fully understand effective leadership. Contingency theories have been developed in which people began to look at the behavior of leaders in specific situations. Two such contingency theories are: Path-Goal and Hershey and Blanchard’s Situational Theory.

The situational leadership theory is one of the theories that consider the leader function which suggests that there is no “one size fits all” approach to leadership. Depending on the situation, varying levels of “leadership” and “management” are necessary. However, leaders must first identify their most important tasks or priorities. Second, leaders must consider the readiness level of their followers by analysing the group’s ability and willingness. Depending on the level of these variables, leaders must apply the most appropriate leadership style to fit the given situation. Among the theories that suggest the role of a leader to promote the organisational group behaviours the Fred Fielder model which has introduced in 1960s and called the ‘contingency theory of leadership” in which the main idea of this early theory is that leadership effectiveness (in terms of group performance) depends on the interaction of two factors: the leader 's task or relations motivations and aspects of the situation. This is measured through the Least Preferred Co-worker scale (LPC) which has been set up to measure the leaders to identify a an individual they work with least well and to characterize this individual with ratings on a series of 8-point bipolar

Leaders have a “the ability to influence a group toward the achievement of a vision or set of goals” (Robbins & Judge, 2007, p. 402). In the past leaders have been described by certain traits or characteristics. These traits can help an organization identify potential candidates who may be strong leaders. Later behavior approaches of leaders were identified that could be taught. In short, leaders could be made. Situations have an impact on which leader behaviors will be most effect at any given time. Several contingency theories have been formulated over the years to identify how situations influence leadership behavior. Each style has strengths and

The basic idea underlying the contingency view is that there is no one set way to organize. Managers should analzie there situations well because what work for someone else may not work for them. They need to identify patterns and characteristics and find a stable solution

This research focuses on four leadership styles that have been used within the organization. These styles play apart in the success of objectives and tasks being accomplished.

With that in mind, leadership theory has identified four management styles--authoritarian, democratic, participatory, and laissez-faire. There is inherently nothing wrong with any of them; all have their place at any given time. But it's the communication aspect that is important when implementing any given method of leadership that makes an organization rise or fall, and determines if respect is retained or lost within the group. Stated another way, the problem does not lie in the styles themselves, but rather in the presentation.

Other forms of leadership styles that are known to exist derive from the Leadership Style Inventory (LSI) developed by Rowe, Reardon, and Bennis (1995). The inventory identifies four basic styles; commanding, logical, inspirational and supportive. The differences in style used by leaders are based on the following two questions: How adaptive are leaders when dealing with the issues they face? How do leaders communicate with, persuade, and energize employees in the process of change?

Lussier and Achua posit five normative leadership styles: Decide, consult individually, consult group, facilitate, and delegate (p128, 2013). While all of these

According to J. Seyfarth, there are four types of leadership styles: directive, supportive, participative, and achievement-oriented leadership (Seyfarth, 1996). These styles vary from one another, but all may be visible within a school environment. During a recent interview with an elementary school principal, Amy Zilbar, she described her dominate leadership style as supportive (personal communication, April 25, 2013).

Situational Leadership Theory is a contingency theory which focuses on analysis of the follower and the situation versus the leader as the starting point for application (Meirovich & Gu, 2015; Robbins & Judge, 2016). Throughout this theory, the term readiness is used relative to the follower’s abilities and maturity to engage in a situation (Bedford & Gehlert, 2013; Robbins & Judge, 2016). Follower readiness, as determined by willingness and abilities, dictate the leader response to the situation as influenced by the amount of direction and supportive behaviors required to successfully emerge from the contingent situation (Bedford & Gehlert, 2013). Based upon the variables of readiness, behaviors, and direction required, the leader responds

Each of these leadership styles has its own benefits (advantages) & disadvantages and they are as follows:

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).

In terms of leadership styles a wide variety exists for one to employ (Boykins, 2013). There isn’t firm consensus as to which styles prove to be the most effective. Different situations call for different approaches. In the article, Empirical Study of Leadership Styles, it discusses several leadership styles that I can relate to.

The Contingency Theory applied to factors unique to each situation to determine whether specific leader characteristics and behaviors will be effective. Researched findings credit Fiedler 's contingency theory as the first to specify how situational factors interact with leader traits and behavior to influence leadership effectiveness. This theory suggests high interest in the situation determines the effectiveness of task- and person-oriented leader behavior.

"Contingency theory is guided by the general orienting hypothesis that organizations whose internal features best match the demands of their environments will achieve the best adaptation." (Encyclopedia of Organization Theory, N.D.).