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Gail Wingate

DEPM 604 Section 9040


April 14, 2013
Assignment 3: Leadership Style Analysis/Discussion

Having come to understand the leadership styles that we learned during this course, I
chose the Situational Leadership style as being the most relevant because of its ease of
understanding, its rather common sense approach to leading, and because I believe that at various
time throughout my career I have unknowingly employed this style as a project leader.
What is the Theory of Situational Leadership?
Situational Leadership was created by Hersey, Blanchard and Johnson and is defined as
the manner in which managers lead subordinates based on the subordinates level of maturity
(Hersey, Blanchard, & Natemeyer, 1979). Maturity is defined as the combination of subordinate
commitment and competence (Thompson & Vecchio, 2009, p. 837). Hersey, Blanchard and
Johnson combined the leadership style and maturity level into the following four combinations.
For subordinates lacking in skills, motivation, and confidence, the lowest level of maturity,
leaders must provide a telling style of supervision where they offer extensive direction on how
to do the work (Thompson & Vecchio, 2009, p. 837). The next level describes subordinates who
are unable, but willing and confident, and require leaders to provide a selling style of
supervision where the leader spends more time explaining the work to be performed, acting as a
coach or teacher (Thompson & Vecchio, 2009, p. 837). The next level is the opposite of the
selling style and is called the participating style of supervision (Thompson & Vecchio, 2009, p.
837). In the participating style, subordinates are able to perform the work, but are unwilling and
insecure. Leaders acting in the participating style will allow subordinates to assume more
responsibility for completing the work, but offer significant support and encouragement to help
the subordinate gain motivation and confidence. The final level describes subordinates who have
a high level of maturity, thus are able and willing to complete the work and have the confidence

Gail Wingate
DEPM 604 Section 9040
April 14, 2013
Assignment 3: Leadership Style Analysis/Discussion

to do so. This level is defined as the delegating style of leadership (Thompson & Vecchio,
2009, p. 837). In the delegating style of leadership, leaders hand over the work to the
subordinates with guidelines, such as objectives and due dates. By delegating the work, leaders
empower their subordinates by allowing them to work autonomously and make decisions.
Opportunities and Challenges
While the Situational Leadership theory is one of the most widely-known theories and
has many opportunities, it is not without its challenges (Thompson & Vecchio, 2009, p. 837).
The opportunities are explained by Nworie (2012) as

The theory is specific and adaptable.


The theory helps the leader learn how to adapt to change.
The theory allows leaders to help the subordinate mature.

Nworie (2012) explains that Situational Leadership is good for Distance Education (DE)
leaders needing to adapt to new technologies, pedagogies, and innovations, and working with
many people at various levels of maturity.
The challenges leaders face when using the Situational Leadership style of leadership are
highlighted in a study (Farmer, 2005) from the Journal of Nursing Management that aimed to
help health care leaders use this style to manage telecommuters. This study is pertinent because
telecommuters and their leaders face many of the same challenges as DE students and teachers.
For example, Nworie (2012) states DE leaders face the challenge of shifting the organizational
structure from a face-to-face centralized academic setting to a (global) virtual environment
(para. 24). Leaders of telecommuter must also face this challenge when leading their
geographically dispersed subordinates.

Gail Wingate
DEPM 604 Section 9040
April 14, 2013
Assignment 3: Leadership Style Analysis/Discussion

The challenges leaders in Farmers (2005) study faced when leading subordinates and
that apply to DE leaders are as follows:

When leaders communicate in a virtual environment, they must be very skilled at

reading vocal inflections because they cannot read body language.


Leaders must minimize or, if possible, eliminate obstacles encountered by

subordinates.
Leaders must provide the necessary resources allowing the subordinate to complete

their work.
Leaders must provide clear objectives, goals, and expectations to allow for more
effective feedback. (Farmer, 2005)

In another study of the use of Situational Leadership to lead virtual project teams in
Clinical Research Organizations, Lee-Kelley (2002) explains that leaders must establish an
effective form of communication between the leader and the subordinate and the subordinate and
their peers. DE teachers must also effectively communicate with students and facilitate
communications between students. Lee-Kelley (2002) also states that leaders must be prepared to
control and motivate subordinates over long lengths of time. This mirrors the DE teachers
challenge of controlling the course and helping to motivate students for the duration of the
course.
Examples
Situational Leadership has been implemented in many different organizations. The
following examples of how Situational Leadership has been used, while implemented in business
organizations, parallels DE in that leaders and subordinates work in a virtual environment where
communication among leaders, subordinates, and peers is executed via technology.

Gail Wingate
DEPM 604 Section 9040
April 14, 2013
Assignment 3: Leadership Style Analysis/Discussion

In a study of leaders at Clinical Research Organizations (Lee-Kelley, 2002), leaders work


with geographically dispersed subordinates via electronic email, groupware such as Lotus Note;
telephone and video-conferencing technologies (p. 465). The study is broad in that it illustrates
that the success of a project is influenced by both the importance of the relationship between
leader and subordinate, and the ability of leaders to change their style as the project progresses
and the environment changes. More specifically, the study illustrates that factors such as power
position and level of control can influence project success (Lee-Kelley, 2002). For example, LeeKelley (2002) suggests that project managers succeed best when they are assigned to lead
projects that satisfy their own personal level of need to control the project.
Another example of a study that parallels DE is one described by Farmer (2005) of
leaders using Situational Leadership to lead telecommuters. A registered nurse acting as a case
manager works from her home. Initially, she is new to her job, but over the course of the study
her level of maturity grows and her leaders level of support and direction lessons. The study is
considered a success but stresses that leaders should continually reassess telecommuters while
focusing on the three core competenciesdiagnosis, flexibility and partnering with the
telecommuter for performance (Farmer, 2005, p. 488).
A different example is a study using Situational Leadership in an academic advising
session (Lerstrom, 2008). The study illustrates, using one advisee in particular, how the adviser
changed his style as the advisee became a more responsible and more mature person
(Lerstrom, 2008, p. 21). The study allowed advisors to understand and recognize the
development stages of their advisees. For example, there was a significant difference in the style
in which the advisor related to the advisee between the advisees freshman year and senior year.

Gail Wingate
DEPM 604 Section 9040
April 14, 2013
Assignment 3: Leadership Style Analysis/Discussion

When the student first began his freshman year, the advisor needed to tell him what courses to
take. When the student began his senior year, however, he had obtained the ability, commitment,
and confidence to choose the courses needed to graduate while the advisor merely provided
assurance that he had chosen correctly.
An Imagined Implementation of Situation Leadership Based on a Real Study
The following is an imagined situation based on a real case study performed with persons
with disabilities. The study (Cubero, 2007) discusses how a Situational Leadership framework
can benefit persons with disabilities in the work environment. Cubero (2007) explains the
attitudes towards persons with disabilities and how they affect that persons integration into the
workplace. Specifically, workers with disabilities are judged based on many factors: severity of
their disability, dependability, quality of work, biases of coworkers and leaders, employer
emphasis on diversity, and prior experience leaders and coworkers may have when working with
persons with disabilities. Conversely, the person with disabilities has their own perceptions that
affect how well they integrate into the workplace: perceived stigmatization of their disability,
their own positive or negative attitude towards themselves and other disabled persons, fear of job
security, and perceived relationships with coworkers. Cubero (2007) then discusses how a
leaders use of Situational Leadership can benefit both the leader and the disabled person.
Cubero (2007) explains that a flexible leader can tailor their style of management to the disabled
person based on how much job autonomy or job guidance the worker needs. This in turn can
benefit the disabled person by leading to lower worker burnout and higher potential promotion.
Cuberos (2007) case study ends with a recommendation for further study of the applicability of

Gail Wingate
DEPM 604 Section 9040
April 14, 2013
Assignment 3: Leadership Style Analysis/Discussion

situational leadership pertaining to the needs of persons with disabilities, thus the need for the
following imagined situation (p. 355).
In the imagined situation, leaders are about to attempt to use Situational Leadership to
support disabled employees. There are two new employees, worker A and worker B. Both
workers are unskilled and motivated, but worker A has much less confidence in themselves then
worker B. Consequently, the leader gives two different tasks to the workers, a fairly simple one
to worker A and a more difficult task to worker B. The leader offers technical directions and
ongoing guidance to both workers, but also provides extensive motivational support and praise to
worker A. In the end both workers successfully complete their tasks. Worker A, however,
requires more time because of the added time required of the leader to motivate and praise
worker A as he progresses.
As a result of the success of both workers, workplace discrimination against disabled
persons has been diminished thus improving the overall organization morale. In addition,
because the individual needs of the disabled workers have been met by their leaders, workers
have successfully cultivated their skills and shown increased motivation and confidence, albeit at
differing rates. Further, because the disabled workers have proven their abilities to improve and
ultimately contribute to the organization, their nondisabled peers have begun to look at and treat
them as equals.
Conclusion
None of the examples discussed in the prior sections use Situational Leadership in an elearning or DE environment, although several do take place in a virtual environment where
subordinates are geographically separate from their leaders. One can deduce from the examples,

Gail Wingate
DEPM 604 Section 9040
April 14, 2013
Assignment 3: Leadership Style Analysis/Discussion

however, that the Situational Leadership model can be successfully applied to a DE environment
because of the similar situations found in the examples. Situational Leadership can be very
effective in a DE environment because:

DE leaders must be able to respond quickly and adeptly in an environment where the

technology, pedagogy and other driving forces are constantly evolving.


DE leaders must educate students who are geographically dispersed and are of

different cultures.
DE leaders must teach students who have differing learning styles and needs.
References

Cubero, C.G. (2006). Situational leadership and persons with disabilities. Work: Journal of
Prevention, Assessment & Rehabilitation, 29(4), 351-356. Retrieved from
http://www.iospress.nl/journal/work/
Farmer, L.A. (2005). Situational leadership: A model for leading telecommuters. Journal of
Nursing Management, 13(6), 483-489. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2934.2005.00573.x
Hersey, P., Blanchard, K.H., & Natemeyer, W.E. (1979). Situational leadership, perception, and
the impact of power. Group & Organization Studies, 4(4), 418-428. Retrieved from
http://gom.sagepub.com/content/4/4/418.short
Lee-Kelley, L. (2002). Situational leadership: Managing the virtual project team. The Journal of
Management Development, 21(6), 461-476. doi:10.1108/02621710210430623
Lerstrom, A.C. (2008). Advising Jay: A case study using a situational leadership approach.
NACADA Journal, 28(2), 21-27. Retrieved from http://www.nacada.ksu.edu/

Gail Wingate
DEPM 604 Section 9040
April 14, 2013
Assignment 3: Leadership Style Analysis/Discussion

Nworie, J. (2012). Applying leadership theories to distance education leadership. Online Journal
of Distance Learning Administration, 15(3). Retrieved from
http://www.westga.edu/~distance/ojdla/winter154/nworie154.html
Thompson, G. & Vecchio, R. P. (2009). Situational leadership theory: A test of three versions.
The Leadership Quarterly, 20(5), 837-848. doi: 10.1016/j.leaqua.2009.06.014

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