Ken Blanchard is known as an author of numerous works, a prominent speaker, and a sought-after management expert. Ken Blanchard is the author or co-author of nearly forty books. Among them are no less than 30 bestsellers, translated into many languages, including the bestseller The One Minute Manager, which sold 13 million copies.
Ken Blanchard is also known for situational leadership theory, or life cycle theory, which he developed with Paul Hersey. They described it in 1960 in the book Management of Organizational Behavior. Blanchard and Hersey found that not everything depends on the employee or manager. This is active counter work: the employee needs to grow professionally, psychologically and motivationally, and the leader needs to apply desired style leadership: give timely instructions, guidance and support, as well as provide freedom of action at the right time. The most effective leadership is possible only if the leaders are “mature”.
Maturity in this case implies the ability to take responsibility for one's behavior, the desire to achieve a goal, and education and experience regarding the specific task that needs to be completed. According to Hersey and Blanchard, the concept of maturity is not a permanent quality of an individual or group, but rather a characteristic of a specific situation. That is, depending on the task being performed, individuals and groups exhibit different levels of “maturity.”
The theory implies that there are only four leadership styles that correspond to a particular level of maturity, and four levels of subordinate development. The first style is directive. This is leadership through specific instructions, setting strict goals and monitoring how they are achieved. This style is appropriate for low-maturity subordinates who are either unwilling or unable to take charge of a specific task and require appropriate instruction, direction, and close supervision. This implies a high task orientation and a low human relations orientation of the leader.
The second style is mentoring. This is leadership through “selling ideas.” It implies that the manager will continue to give specific instructions to his subordinates and monitor their implementation. But the manager also invites employees to express their ideas and supports their desire and enthusiasm to complete the task on their own responsibility. In this situation, subordinates want to accept responsibility, but cannot, since they have an average level of maturity. Thus, this leadership style is equally and highly task-oriented and relationship-oriented.
The third style is supportive. To a greater extent, the style is based on the participation of subordinates in decision making, because they know what needs to be done and how, and they do not require specific instructions. However, it is necessary that subordinates want and understand their involvement in completing this task. Therefore, the style is characterized by a moderately high degree of leader maturity. This means that the leader only supports subordinates, increases their motivation and involvement, provides them with assistance, without imposing any instructions. In essence, the manager and subordinates make decisions together, and this encourages greater participation and ownership. This style is characterized by a high orientation towards human relationships and a low orientation towards the task.
The fourth style is delegating. The style is characterized by a high degree of maturity, since in this situation subordinates know what and how to do, are aware of the high degree of their involvement in the task, and want to be responsible for its implementation.
Therefore, this style is appropriate in a situation with a mature leader. He allows subordinates to act on their own: they do not need any support or instructions.
Leadership occurs through delegation; the leader's behavior combines a low degree of focus on both the task and human relationships.
Blanchard's model is loved for its flexible, adaptive leadership style, hands-on approach and simplicity.
By selecting a leadership style for each level of employee development in relation to the task, the model results in:
- optimal solution to the work problem,
- freeing up the manager's time,
- psychologically comfortable working interaction,
- professional development and growth of the employee,
- maintaining the managerial form of the leader.
The universal rule of Blanchard's theory is that leadership is a partnership in which both parties, the leader and the follower, are responsible for the result. “Don’t think you can do everything on your own. When you create a project, you begin to need others to implement your idea.
You shouldn’t consider yourself the smartest and others as just technical labor. Let people use their brains and not just their hands. Let them be part of your dream and make your dream their dream. People are needed to reach the top, and then to stay there,” is what Blanchard professes.
Prepared by Natalya Yakovleva
There are 5 levels of human maturity.
Maturity level #1 – Programmable.
If you are a manager, then you will have to work with these levels of maturity tomorrow, when you come to work and begin to analyze what kind of employees you have. What level of maturity do they belong to?
You won't find 5th and 4th there. If you have a great company, then you will probably find employees of the fourth maturity level. But there is definitely no fifth level there. The fifth is often you. If you are successful.
About 70% of people on earth are programmable.
What does it mean?
A programmed person acts only within the framework of the program that was put into him by someone else or by himself.
For example, I had a situation at my enterprise a very long time ago.
I’m sitting in the office, I’m having negotiations, I can’t leave, and I send an employee to our warehouse for tea. He comes without tea. It was winter, there was a blizzard outside. He came covered in snow.
I speak:
-« Where have you been? You were gone for 20 minutes. Where's the tea?»
He says:
-« I came to the warehouse, it was closed».
I speak:
-« Have you tried coming from the other side? Where the entrance is not through the frame, where the goods are accepted, but from the other side?»
He says:
-« No, I haven't tried it».
I speak:
-« Well, go do it, bring some tea».
He wasn’t there for another 15 minutes, he came and said that it was closed there too.
I speak:
-« Do you remember that there is a bell there and you can call?»
He says:
– « It's late, evening, the storekeeper has probably already left».
I speak:
– « Did you call or knock, at least somehow show that you were there?»
He says:
– « No».
I speak:
-« Listen to me carefully: you go to the warehouse, go up to the door, the bell is on the right side at the top, stretch out your hand, press the button, if no one answers, start knocking. If no one opens it, here’s your phone, call the storekeeper, maybe he’s somewhere on the premises, understand?»
He says:
-« Understood».
I speak:
-« Tell me how you understood».
You won’t believe it, the man repeated word for word what I told him the eighth time. Before that, he retold everything wrong.
Therefore, if you work with programmable people, then the key rule is to seek feedback!
Do not send this person anywhere without receiving 100% mirror feedback. Because he will make a mistake, and then you will be responsible for it. This is how it happens, you go and start correcting mistakes.
This is one of the reasons when already advanced ones recruit employees and then refuse them, because they have to do their own work and redo it for them. This happens because such a leader does not know the types of maturity and does not know how to work with them. He doesn't know how to build relationships.
Maturity level No. 2 - Problem.
These maturity levels are all hierarchical. Each of us goes through all these levels of maturity at some point in time. Someone remains at one of these levels forever and does not want to grow further. Or he chooses situations that do not stimulate him to further growth, he chooses those situations that allow him to remain at the level of maturity that he has.
There are about 15% of task-level people on the planet.
Using this tea as an example, if this person was task-oriented, he would go and do the same thing as the programmable one, but when he called me back, he would immediately offer 2-3 solutions.
If you hire new employees, never hire programmable people, forget about them altogether.
If you see a programmable person, then start raising him, and if he does not grow, drive him to the neck. This is the person who will constantly pull you down. You may not even notice it yourself because of the routine you are busy with. You need to stay away from them.
The task type, when faced with a problem, offers 2-3 solutions, but is not responsible for them. He offers 2-3 solutions, one of which you must endorse - give the go-ahead.
Problem solvers are worth hiring; they can be raised to the third level.
What would the task person do in a situation with tea?
He would have come and said: “I came, it was closed, I tried on the other side, knocked, called. I suggest doing it this way. Let me go to the store. Or give me the storekeeper’s number and I’ll call her.”
If you have an employee or task assistant, he comes to you and says: “I met with the client, he does not want to sign an exclusive contract with us.” You ask: “What do you propose to do?” He offers several of his own options. And you are already wondering what resources he needs for this. He voices the necessary resources, and then you choose. The decision is up to you, you should not entrust him with responsibility, because he will not cope with it.
Maturity level No. 3- Problem.
The majority of employees and colleagues I have encountered are at the third level of maturity. You and I ourselves are at this level, some constantly, others periodically fall on it.
This is a person who can act most effectively only when the deadline has already arrived.
Why is it problematic?
Because he puts everything off until later. This is exactly the person who loves and is used to putting things off until later. If he solves this problem, he will reach the next level of maturity. If he doesn't decide, he will constantly be "putting out fires."
This is a person who constantly “puts out fires.” If something happens in his business, he solves and “resolves” these problems, he achieves successful results before the next emergency.
How does a problem type react to a problem that arises?
As soon as a problem appears, he observes it, keeps it in mind, thinks about how to solve it, he develops various tools, designs, plans and waits until the deadline comes, when the situation comes when it is no longer possible not to solve the problem.
These are people who start preparing for exams in one day.
This is a person who has a deal tomorrow, but only today he begins to remember what documents are needed, who is needed for this deal, can prepare a conversation plan, and so on. This is a problematic level of maturity.
You are forced into a problematic level of maturity when you have many projects that you do not delegate. You don’t want, you don’t know how, you don’t know how to delegate, how to entrust other people with these projects and where to find these people, how to arrange relationships with them, what to pay them.
You load all the projects onto yourself and as a result, you don’t get anything done.
This situation happens to me too. It is still happening. I am running two businesses at the same time, so I am now expanding the team, I am increasing the staff of freelancers who can be entrusted with all this, who will cope with these tasks better than me.
What should a problematic manager do?
If you are a problematic leader, if you are buried under a lot of things to do, you pull everything on yourself. First of all, start finding people who are better sellers than you, whether it comes to selling goods or selling services. Find more seasoned sellers, find cooler employees.
Don't be afraid that these people will be able to push you out somewhere. No one will force you out of your business.
The manager is subconsciously afraid to hire people with greater leadership potential, with greater sales potential than himself. Because he is afraid that these people can take over part of his business or even steal his business, steal his client base, steal technologies, skills, in fact - grow a competitor.
Many probably recognized themselves at the problematic level.
Maturity level No. 4 - Looking for a problem.
This is exactly the level of maturity you should strive for.
These are the employees you need to look for.
And often these employees need to be outbid and lured away.
It will be no secret to anyone that great salespeople and great specialists are always busy with something. There is rarely a situation when it is free on the market. You may just be lucky when a person changes his field of activity or city, and you intercept him at that moment. This is a happy coincidence. Often, employees of this level of maturity need to be hunted, observed, and lured away in order for them to work in your business.
This is a normal strategy, this is how most businesses work. That's the only way the big ones work. All TOP managers are under close supervision of headhunters.
As soon as this person is in a situation where contact can be established with him, the headhunter immediately contacts him different ways, offers him very favorable terms for the solution and drags this person to another company. This is a hunt for minds, for talents.
And recently this problem has become even more acute than it was 10 years ago.
How is this type of maturity different?
There are few such people.
It differs in that it is a human-system.
If the problem person is the person who creates the conditions, the person is an “akhtung”. By the way, the one who creates conditions is also the 5th level of maturity. The third and fifth levels of maturity are somewhat similar.
Why are No. 3 and No. 5 an achtung person?
Because he always has a lot of ideas, he does a lot of things, implements them, and pulls off a bunch of projects. He needs key employees, partners with a maturity level - problem seeker.
The problem seeker, when faced with problems in his sector of responsibility, solves them. He doesn’t even talk about it, you often don’t even know about it, what problems he solved. He just comes and says that some problem arose, he solved it, everything is fine.
A problem seeker is a person who has done everything in the sector of work entrusted to him.
If you have a branch system, then there are directors at the branch for whom everything is going great in the agency.
Looking for a problem a person should not be allowed to linger there, because he needs to be sent to those territories where everything is bad, but which you need and in which there is potential. These are potentially profitable territories, projects, facilities, and so on. This is where such a person needs to be sent. He can't live without it.
The problem seeker has the basic belief that he grows from problems. He doesn’t need to be convinced of this, he doesn’t need to be told this, he lives by it. He lives by growing up with problems.
How to identify a problem on which you 100% grow, and distinguish it from other people’s problems that don’t even need to be solved.
The problem on which you grow up has one quality - when faced with such a problem, at the first moment of time you do not know how to solve it. You understand that if you solve it, you will get a lot of resources, but you don't know how to solve it. You don't know how to solve this problem now.
It is on these types of problems that your “I” grows.
If, when faced with a problem, you know and can easily solve it, then you do not grow from these problems, you regress from them and degrade as a person. By solving problems of the same complexity each time, you do not develop, you lose. Even if you make money, it is nothing more than an illusion. Because you are losing the most important thing, you are wasting your potential.
Instead of investing your reasonable potential, all your strength, into solving the problems on which you really grow, you scatter it on those problems that the people to whom you entrust it must cope. You start doing this yourself.
And after some time you get bogged down in such problems and fall to a lower level of maturity, to a problematic one.
Your goal is to reach the “problem seeking” level. Look for problems, hunt for problems on which you grow.
Once you encounter such a problem, you should dance with joy that you encountered such a problem.
Other people are scratching their heads, don’t know what to do about it, are trying to avoid it, but you have a smile with 55 teeth and you are happy and dancing with joy that there is such a problem. It will be difficult for you to solve it, this is normal. Difficulty is an indicator that you have chosen the right problem.
But as soon as you solve such a problem, as soon as you implement such a project, you literally physically feel how much bigger you have become. Those who solved such a problem physically felt that they had increased strength, their back straightened, and they earned money.
This problem is not always related to making money.
Try to hunt only for such problems, it is from them that you grow. All other problems that you can easily handle, entrust them to people who will solve them.
Most projects consist of a series of operationally primitive and already familiar actions - routine.
What does the routine consist of?
Routine consists of operational tasks that you perform yourself - printing something, posting something. These are all routine tasks that you shouldn't have been doing for a long time. Most of you have been working in the market for more than a year or more than a dozen years; you should not have been dealing with these tasks for a very long time. By doing them, you waste time, potential and deprive yourself of the opportunity to really grow and earn truly, big money.
Let's return to the rule - don't procrastinate. I will accompany each rule with a parable, because a parable makes it easy and figurative to understand what is being said and to understand the meaning of each rule.
Parable about a Greek general.
For some reason, the king at some point turned against this general. Some kind of palace conspiracy, some kind of intrigue. It was on the general's birthday.
He was celebrating with his friends, when suddenly the king's envoy came and said to the general:
-« Sorry, it’s hard for me to say this, but the king has decided that you should be hanged at 6 o’clock. Prepare to be hanged at 6 o'clock».
The person was essentially told his date and time of death.
The general gathered his friends and arranged a feast. Music was playing, everyone was drinking, singing, dancing. This message from the messenger changed the entire atmosphere. However, everyone was not happy, they feasted, but were sad.
Then the general said:
-« Do not be sad, because this is the last feast in my life. Let's finish the dance we've been doing. And don't see me off in such a sad atmosphere, otherwise my mind will yearn for life again and again. The stopped music and the interrupted celebration will become a burden on my mind. Let's finish this, now is not the time to stop, now is not the time to be sad, I only have 2 hours left to live».
Because of him they continued to dance, it was difficult, but nevertheless they somehow danced and feasted. Only the general alone danced with even greater fervor. He alone was in a more festive mood, but the rest of the group was uneasy. His wife cried, but he continued to dance, talk with friends, and have fun.
He was so happy that the messenger returned to the king and said:
-« Sir, I saw the general after I told him the sad news of his death. This is a unique person! He heard my message and was not sad. He perceived it differently, absolutely incomprehensible to me! He laughs, he dances, he's in festive mood. He says that these moments are his last, and he now has no future, he cannot waste them. He must live them here and now, without delay».
The king himself came to see what was happening. He saw the saddened guests, everyone was crying, and only the general was dancing, drinking, singing, and having fun.
The king asked him:
-« What are you doing?».
The general replied:
-« This was my life principle - to constantly realize that death is possible at every moment. Thanks to this principle, I lived every moment as totally as possible. Today I made this absolutely clear. I always thought and assumed that death was possible, but hoped that it would not happen. But you, Sovereign, with your order completely threw away my future for me. This evening is the last in my life. Life is so short now that I can't put it off».
The king, hearing these words, was so happy that he became this man's disciple.
He said:
-« Teach me. This is how life should be lived, it is art. Be my teacher, teach me to live in the moment».
I think that this parable will be a reason for you to think about what you lose when you put off life and affairs until “later.”
You are losing the most important thing you have - the current moment, this second that you are now living to the fullest, in the thought that you can live it tomorrow. And you live tomorrow in thoughts that you can live it the day after tomorrow and so on.
As a result, a person does not live, but exists somewhere in the future and in the past, but not in the present.
How to get rid of the habit of putting things off until “later”?
With this parable, I also wanted to show the fifth level of maturity - creating conditions.
Maturity level No. 5 – Creator of conditions.
This is a person who creates something new out of nothing.
These are personalities such as Steve Jobs, Isaac Newton.
All the outstanding people who changed the course of humanity were at the level of maturity - creating conditions. He is not repulsed by the situation he is in now. It doesn’t matter to him what territory he is in, what market he is in, he is absolutely not interested in this. He is not interested in how others work, how competitors work, what they do, whether they do it right or wrong. He doesn't care, he just watches it. He does everything his own way.
And if he finds himself in a territory where there is no business, he begins to create conditions for this business to develop here. A person doesn’t just come and solve some problems, he creates them anywhere best conditions for yourself and for others.
One day I made a firm decision that I wouldn’t work differently, I didn’t want to. I will work my way. I will take certain factors as a basis and make my own technology out of this that suits me, my team, my enterprise in the city in which I work.
6-7 years have already passed, and there are still no people in my city who work thoroughly according to my system.
Then my intuition gave me a hint that I had found the core into which I needed to invest all my efforts, all my money, all my time in order to learn how to do this and improve this method for myself.
There is always a choice! And you need to choose the best! There is no need to take everything that comes your way. Most people take whatever they can get their hands on.
The point is that it was during that period that I created the conditions for the development of my business, in which my business is now developing. In these conditions, we grow, develop, expand and at the same time share these technologies with our friends, even with competitors. I tell you everything we do. I hide nothing.
You can ask me any question, I will answer it. And I won’t be afraid that you will compete later. This doesn't bother me at all.
The point is that not everyone takes them. He is forced to remain in the old channel, in the old familiar swamp in which he lives, and solve those problems that do not even require special effort. That is, stay in your comfort zone, don’t leave it, don’t go into an even more interesting and high-quality comfort zone.
And during the crisis, many decided to stay where they were and work the way they worked. The majority merged with the market during that period, while the rest are now eking out a miserable existence for the most part.
This is what happens in our city, that is, there are many examples that were then at their peak, making colossal gains, but have now been lost from sight. Nothing is heard about them now, they are not visible.
Because they haven't changed the technology. Times have changed, but people have not changed.
The same thing happened with the new Russians. When other times came, they became extinct like dinosaurs.
Someone was imprisoned, someone died, someone drank himself, someone smoked, broke up, and so on. A fairly large segment of the “raspberry jacket” society has practically disappeared.
Only those who were able to change themselves remained, who were able to recruit the strongest specialists into the team, who were able to reach a completely different level, who were able to change their previous habits. They did a new style life. Times have changed, and they have adapted to these times.
These are the people who create the conditions. I wish you to be the people who create conditions. Strive for it! This is one of the main goals in life.
It should be understood that there are many quite rich people who did not follow the rules that we are talking about today. You can’t even imagine how many illnesses and misfortunes there are in their families. And they themselves have serious health problems. There are problems in their families that you wouldn’t even wish on your enemy.
Life is very economical and you have to pay for everything in life. If you made mistakes, took someone else’s property, then you will definitely pay for it.
Even the TOP people in our country have such a heap of problems that God forbid anyone.
We're not even talking about majors. I have specific health problems, those that are incurable or cause great suffering to that person. He seems to be rich, he has everything, but he suffers so much that God forbid this happens to anyone! This is not visible from the outside.
However, not all VIPs have it bad. There are VIPs who have a very sweet time, because they don’t make mistakes, don’t take someone else’s and are constantly busy designing something new.
By communicating with some of them, you are already growing rapidly, your thinking framework is expanding. They have a huge scale of thinking and plans. The point is that they are starting to implement these plans very quickly.
And it seems that a person does absolutely nothing 24 hours a day. He travels, flies different countries, travels somewhere, minds his own business, goes on various hikes. At the same time, he has a huge number of businesses that are developing, growing, making profits, and increasing income.
To be continued….
The most effective leadership styles depend on the "maturity" of the performers
P. Hairsey and K. Blanchard, within the framework of their “Life Cycle Theory”, defined the concept of work group maturity:
“Maturity should not be defined in terms of age. Maturity of individuals and groups involves the ability to take responsibility for their behavior, the desire to achieve a given goal, and education and experience regarding the specific task to be accomplished.”
What is "maturity"
The concept of maturity is not a permanent quality of an individual or a group, but rather a characteristic of a specific situation. Depending on the task being performed, individuals and groups exhibit different levels of maturity. Assessment of this maturity is possible through the desire to achieve, the ability to take responsibility for behavior, as well as the level of education and past experience of working on assigned tasks.
After completing the formation processes, the group begins to constructively solve the tasks assigned to it. Its effectiveness is determined by the degree of maturity of the work group, which is the ratio between the need of the group as a whole for help and the need for psychological support.
“Help” here is understood as providing specific instructions, plans, resources, and control in achieving a goal.
Four degrees of group maturity
Elementary. At this level of maturity, the group experiences a high need for help and a lower need for psychological support. Members of such a group do not have sufficient abilities and capabilities to complete the task, but are motivated to complete it. Conventionally, this leadership style can be called “Giving instructions.”
Short. At the second level of maturity, the group retains a high need for help, but also acquires a high need for psychological support.
Group members already have some abilities, but do not yet have the full knowledge and skills to complete the task. In addition, they require some additional motivation to gain and maintain self-confidence.
Average. The average level of maturity of the group suggests a decrease in the need for real help and a high need for psychological support. At this point, the group members have acquired the necessary abilities, knowledge and skills to solve the problem. They need actual motivational support and strengthening of self-confidence.
High. A high degree of maturity characterizes a group that has an equally low need for both outside help and individual psychological support to achieve goals. Group members at this stage can and want to be responsible for the actions of the group, they have all the abilities and capabilities to achieve their goals and are confident in the group’s ability to achieve these goals.
Setting new tasks, changing the numerical or personal composition of the group, structural changes in the organization, mastering new technological processes leads to an inevitable decrease in the degree of maturity of the working group - at least by one level.
The larger the changes, the sharper the decline may be.
Leader behavior
At each level of maturity of the working group, it is advisable to use appropriate leadership styles and channels of influence on group processes. The manager, knowing the degree of maturity of his work group, has the opportunity to effectively use his own management potential.
The most effective leadership style depends on the maturity of the performer.
Leader behavior in the Hersey/Blanchard model is viewed as a relationship between relationship orientation and task orientation.
Task Orientation involves the extent to which the leader is involved in defining work roles in the group. He completely determines the actions of his subordinates: what, how, when and where to do. The manager sets goals, organizes procedures, determines deadlines, manages the process and controls.
Relationship orientation involves the extent to which the leader participates in communication: listening, providing social and emotional support. The leader facilitates, communicates, helps organize interactions, actively listens and provides feedback.
Directive style ("Give directions")
This is leadership through specific instructions - you set strict goals, give specific tasks and track how they are accomplished. This implies a high task orientation and a low people orientation of the leader.
When is it relevant?: directive style is most appropriate when low maturity working group.
Peculiarities: This style is maximally task-oriented and minimally relationship-oriented. In this case, the manager makes decisions individually and independently. Provides his subordinates with precise instructions and carefully monitors execution. He says what should be done and how, leads to the goal, manages processes, sets rules and regulations. Conventionally, this style of leadership can be called “Giving instructions.”
Mentoring style ("Sell")
This is leadership through “selling ideas.” It assumes a high focus on both the task and people. You, as a manager, continue to give instructions, monitor the completion of tasks, but here an element of justification is added: you explain the decisions made to the employee and invite him to express his ideas.
When is it relevant?: At the initial stage of maturity, a leader is most effective if he is equally task-oriented and relationship-oriented.
Peculiarities: in this style, the decision is made by the leader and discussed or explained to the subordinate. That is, the manager communicates his decisions, but gives employees the opportunity to clarify them. He convinces of the need for certain actions, explains the meaning and principles of work, clarifies the relationship and persuades if there is tension in the relationship. This style can be called "Sell".
Supportive style ("Participate")
This is leadership through participation in the organization of the work process. This style is characterized by a high people orientation and a low task orientation. This means that the leader only supports his subordinates, he participates in decision-making and helps, but to a greater extent, decisions are made by the employees themselves.
When is it relevant?: when the group reaches medium maturity, that is, has already mastered work skills and methods of making tactical decisions, it is advisable for the leader to move to a supporting style.
Features: e This style involves a greater focus on relationships and less attention to performing functions and tasks known to employees. In this situation, the manager makes decisions together with subordinates or supports them in making independent decisions. The role of the manager here is getting closer to the actual leadership role. He shares ideas, inspires people to give their best, helps manage relationships, and participates in group activities. This is the most collaborative leadership style. Style name "Participate".
Delegating style ("Delegate")
You lead through delegation, focusing little on both people and tasks, that is, you delegate to employees the right to make decisions and responsibility for getting the job done.
When is it relevant?: a high degree of maturity of the working group allows you to manage its activities using a delegating leadership style.
Peculiarities: the manager in this case does not need to constantly make efforts to create relationships or achieve a task. Decision making is delegated to subordinates, and the manager also delegates to them responsibility for implementing the decisions made. He observes the activities of the group, records the most successful results, and, if necessary, can give advice on an alternative way to solve the problem. The name of the leadership style is “Delegate”.
Like other situational models, the approach of P. Hairsey and K. Blanchard recommends that the manager determine his predominant leadership style and work on mastering other styles. It is the flexibility and adaptability of leadership style that constitute the essence of the situational approach.
.Only the leader who manages to turn the phenomenon of power into a means business communication, given to become an effective leader
A business is developing by leaps and bounds if everyone involved in this business puts maximum effort into its promotion. Moreover, we are talking about all categories of human resources: top management, line management, specialists and workers or ordinary employees. The performance of each individual employee is influenced by many factors and motives.
Let us dwell on one of the most important conditions that literally permeates any business, namely, the manager’s management of the work of his subordinates.
There are four levels of development of subordinates, which are called employee maturity (the theory of Paul Ghersi and Kenneth Blanchard). Depending on the level at which the subordinate’s maturity is located, the immediate supervisor must choose a method for managing his activities. Some business leaders may consider this issue not worth attention. But, alas, a subordinate at different stages of his maturity tends to effectively listen only to the appropriate method of setting tasks.
Let's consider the employee's maturity levels in accordance with the most appropriate method of managing the activities of a subordinate at this stage.
1) Low level. The subordinate still knows and knows little to effectively get involved in the work. The reason may be either a lack of knowledge and skills in this type of activity, or lack of confidence in one’s abilities. Most often, newcomers fall into this category of employees. Of course, they need clear and consistent instructions, directions and orders.
2) Relatively low level. When an employee is already eager to complete a task independently, or is ready to take risks and take full responsibility for the assigned task, but still has little experience, the level of such an employee cannot yet be called high enough, but initiative should be supported. Support at this stage should combine both approval of the correct actions and tips in difficult situations for the subordinate.
3) Relatively high level. As an employee gains experience, he either readily accepts responsibility for completing tasks that are delegated to him or avoids this responsibility. If there is an unwillingness to be active in achieving business goals, a subordinate inevitably falls into the category of conditionally mature employees. If the experience of such an employee is valuable for the development of the business, management uses from its reserve a management method called involvement. No instructions are allowed at this stage. A manager can interest a subordinate and “ignite” his idea so that an experienced employee gets down to business with enthusiasm.
4) High level. Subordinates characterized by a high level of maturity are able and willing to be responsible for completing complex, business-significant tasks. The main thing for a business leader is not to miss or ignore this readiness. Having made sure of the employee’s reliability, the immediate supervisor can safely delegate him to perform particularly important tasks.
Leadership is the activity of managing the joint work of people, personal influence on the behavior of subordinates to achieve set goals and is based on official regulations, personal example and mutual respect.
The guide includes:
1) setting tasks,
2) coordination,
3) work on creating a motivational team.
Guide Forms:
a) power,
b) personal influence.
Power is the ability and ability to influence and determine the actions of other people, and can relate to one person or group or organization. This is the potential that its user has. Power exists not only when it is exercised. Power can exist without the use of certain tools. Power is always a function of interdependence; the more one person depends on another, the more power the other has. The manager has power over his subordinates - salary, promotions, but it can also be the other way around. The manager depends on his subordinates to obtain the necessary information and establish contacts. That. any leader must maintain a balance of power, i.e. power should be sufficient to achieve the goals set and should not cause a negative effect among subordinates. Thus, in order to lead you need to influence, and in order to influence you need to have a basis of power. The basis of any power is the ability to influence the satisfaction of other people's needs.
Power can be: formal - the power of a position, it is determined by the official place of possession of power in the organizational structure without connection with his personal qualities, measured by the number of subordinates or the volume of material resources that a given person can dispose of; real - the power of position and authority, determined by place in the official and unofficial system, measured by the number of subordinates who are ready to voluntarily obey a given person. The boundaries of formal and informal power rarely coincide. The amount of real power is always constant.
Power exists in the form of several types: power of coercion, competence, authority, position, information. Coercive power is the inducement of workers to act against their wishes. Under this power, subordinates obey the leader as a result of fear of various official sanctions. The organization gives any manager of an enterprise the power of coercion. Tools - remarks, reprimands, fines, dismissals. Power based on legislative coercion is called administrative power. Coercive power can lead to staff turnover, and this power also requires constant control over subordinates. Power competence - any leader acts as the most competent specialist. Competence is perceived by subordinates as a form of power. This power is less stable and acquired more slowly. Negative consequence– when making a group decision, subordinates can accept the point of view of their leader and not express their opinion. The power of authority - the leader may lack information. The power of official position - the higher the position, the more power, this form of power is impersonal. Power is a form of power based on management’s ability to access necessary and important information.
Leaders should use power depending on the maturity of the group. Group maturity is the group’s ability to take responsibility for its behavior and the desire to complete the work given.
All groups are divided into 4 types:
1) low level of maturity - the group is both unwilling and unable to complete the assigned work,
2) with a transitional degree of maturity - the group perceives, but is not able to complete a specific task, it is advisable to use the power of official position + the power of coercion,
3) average level of maturity - the group perceives and is partially capable of performing a specific task; such a group requires the power of official position, the power of authority,
4) high level of maturity - the group is both capable and willing to perform the assigned work, the power of competence and the power of information are applied.
Sincerely, Young Analyst
