The line of action taken by a leader largely depends on a wide range of situational factors. This is because both transactional and transformational leadership do not fill the gaps in leadership especially when urgent decisions are needed. According to Changing Minds (2009), “Factors that affect situational leadership include motivation and capability of followers.” These factors ate in turn affected by other internal factors within the particular situation.
In the design of effective situational leadership development, a list of factors must be put into consideration to ensure its effectiveness, and effective approach should be followed and parameters to evaluate the level of effectiveness be enhanced. Critical factors in developing an effective situational leadership include the size of the organization, the relationship that exists between the leader and the followers, and the motivation and capability of the followers. The three forces that lead to situational action, therefore, include “the forces in the situation, the forces in then follower and also forces in the leader” (Changing Minds, 2009). This demonstrates the situational leadership rule that the leader’s style is highly variable and distant events can lead to the displacement of activities. Maier (1963) noted that “leaders not only consider the likelihood of a follower accepting a suggestion, but also the overall importance of getting things done.” “In critical situations, a leader is more likely to be directive in style simply because of the implications of failure” (Maier, 1963).
The approaches to developing an effective situational leadership development as noted by Yulk (1989) also include subordinate effort, subordinate clarity ability and role clarity, organization of the work, cooperation and cohesiveness, resources and support, and external coordination. These underline the roles of both supportive and directive leadership that aim at achieving an effective plan. This plan is also suggested by one of the leading figures in situational leadership who intones that “before you can choose the appropriate approach to supervising someone, you need to know where they are and what they need (Blanchard, 2006). This means that you do not apply the same style and approach to every decision-making in situations. In addition to the above, it demonstrates the need to understand more about the subordinates, underline commonly occurring leadership challenges, and background information on why previous leaders might have failed. It is important to avoid the influence of the past on the current activities and plans. Armed with such strong information and backup, a leader can then proceed to draw the situational leadership development plan.
Evaluative plan to ensure the situational development plan is effective forms one of the most critical components of leadership. This is best achieved by the analysis of the resources injected in times of time and money and the results achieved. The results realized can be judged to be positive or negative through the ability to motivate and influence followers. Several questions that must be positively answered in response to the development plan include: How is the development plan capable of impacting the followers? Will it positively enhance the existing relationship between the leader and the followers? Will the three forces of situational leadership support the action? If the above evaluative answers are positive, then the situational leadership development plan can achieve the outlined leadership objectives.
References
- Blanchard, K., (2006). Ken Blanchard, Educational Leadership II, Ninth House Faculty.
- Changing Minds. 2009. Situational Leadership. Web.
- Maier, N.R.F. 1963. Problem-solving discussions and conferences: Leadership methods and skills. New York: McGraw-Hill.
- Yukl, G. A. 1989. Leadership in Organizations. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.