Situational And Contingency Theories Of Leadership Training

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.

Leadership is a process through which an individual influences others to accomplish an objective and directs the organization in a way that makes it more cohesive and coherent. This definition of leadership is relatively similar to that of Northouse’s (2007,p.3) And the

This paper will address why situational leadership theory is useful and relevant in developing an effective leadership culture. In addition, it will also discuss the three theories of situational leadership and what is considered to be the strengths and weaknesses of each theory when leading staff in the organizational environment.

Leadership has a variety of meanings to different individuals, often based upon the circumstance and situation which defines the term leader or leadership. Northouse (2016) defines leadership as, “a process by which an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal.” (p. 6). Sammi Caramella writes, “Leadership is critical to every company. Workers need someone to look to, learn from and thrive with. Every leader has their own style and strategy. Further, leadership styles and methods vary because of outside influences and personal challenges. While leadership is unique to everyone, there are some common ways to define the term.” (2017). According to Peter Economy (2018), also known as "The

Leadership is and has been described as the “process of social influence in which one person can enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task”[1]. A definition more

According to Stephen, DeCenzo, and Coulter, leadership is the way an individual leads and influences a group to achieve certain goals (p. 337). When looking at being a leader, whether it is in a corporation or on a sports team, certain traits are associated with leadership. In addition, transactional, transformational, and/or charismatic leaders will each see a different outcome of the way they lead.

Leadership is a process which delivers a position of power held by an individual, this authority enables him to mobilise and direct the team efforts towards its goals.

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

Leadership is a slippery term to define. Often people define it by listing attributes that they believe a leader should incorporate, rather than an existential definition that describes the essence of what leadership is, without regard to its application.

This theory states that situational factors, rather than skills of leader, determine the effectiveness of leadership. Situational theories propose that leaders choose the best course of action based upon situational variables. Different styles of leadership are needed

Leadership is process means it is steps start from the easiest to the hardiest. Likewise, leadership is a circle contained members of group and there is no top for this system.

There are certain essential elements that constitute the definition of leadership. It may refer to the totality of an organization’s top direction-giving functionaries, or the actions applied in providing direction that enables the organization or team to move forward towards a goal. In reality, there are very diverse definitions of leadership depending on

Therefore, “the philosophy of a leader should be flexible enough to adapt to situations and changing times, and we will have to use a combination of transformational and transactional leadership techniques to get the job done” (“Pros and Cons of”, n.d., para. 9). The rudimentary idea behind Situational theory is that we need to adapt our strategy to the changing of conditions.

Over the years, a great deal of time, and research has been dedicate to the study of leadership. Even with extensive data on the topic, many still disagree on what leadership really means. Hence, leadership is a word that has many different meanings and different researched theories associated with it. On a basic level, leadership involves having and establishing a clear vision, sharing that vision with followers, respecting followers, and leading an organization with excellence while ensuring that everyone is part of the team. Leadership is also a method by which a leader uses his or her influence towards getting a group of followers to take ownership or buy into a vision.

Over the years, scholars and management theorists have cultivated several leadership styles that they have encouraged people to apply and try to implement. However, most of these theories have shown various short comings. Typically, none of these styles has proven to work best in diverse situations. In the late 1960’s, the Situational Leadership Model was developed. In this paper, I will discuss the details about the situational leadership model. In detail, the paper begins with a defined introduction of what the situational leadership model is about and an interpretation of its origination. An outline of the model will follow after which a discussion about the benefits and drawbacks of this model will shortly follow.