Cultural Dimensions of Leadership
February 12, 2025
What is Politics ? Employees who do not believe in working hard depend on nasty politics to make their position secure at the workplace. Employees play politics simply to come in the limelight and gain undue attention and appreciation from the seniors. Politics refers to irrational behavior of the individuals at the workplace to obtain […]
Abraham Maslow is well renowned for proposing the Hierarchy of Needs Theory in 1943. This theory is a classical depiction of human motivation. This theory is based on the assumption that there is a hierarchy of five needs within each individual. The urgency of these needs varies. These five needs are as follows- Physiological needs- […]
Etiquette helps individuals behave in a socially responsible way. In simpler words, etiquette transforms a man into a gentle man. Remember employees need to behave sensibly and appropriately to make their position secure at the workplace. No organization likes to have someone who lacks etiquette. Respect the place where you earn a living for yourself. […]
In these times when global corporations operate in many countries across the world, it is important for the employees in these organizations to know the nuances of intercultural communication. It is often the case that many Asian employees (especially the younger lot) say, “they passed out in a certain year from college”. This has different […]
Bureaucracy is not an obstacle to democracy but an inevitable complement to it. Joseph A. Schumpeter The above quote by Schumpeter can call for a heated debate on its relevance and credence. However there is no denying that bureaucracy; since a couple of centuries or so; has been an integral part of the Government, the […]
Leaders are essentially people who know their goals and have the power to influence the thoughts and actions of others to garner their support and cooperation to achieve these goals. In-case of leaders these goals are rarely personal and generally to serve the larger good.
Ever since man was a hunter gatherer and lived in closely knit groups, they had leaders who led the hunting expeditions and took greater risk than the rest of the group members. In turn they were bestowed with larger share of hunting, respect and a higher position in the group. With changing times, how leadership is perceived has also changed, but, it remains an important aspect of social fabric nevertheless.
The initial theories proposed that leaders are born and cannot be created, there are certain distinct characteristics possessed by few men which make them leaders. [Read Great Man Theory and the Trait Theory]. However, for the current discussion we would try and take a closer look at another interesting theory which was proposed called Situational Leadership Theory. This theory says that the same leadership style cannot be practiced in all situations, depending upon the circumstance and environmental context the leadership style also changes. The pioneers of this theory were Kenneth Blanchard and Paul Hersey.
The model encourages the leaders to analyze a particular situation in depth and then lead in the most appropriate manner, suitable for that situation. The three aspects that need could be considered in a situation are:
In the Situational Leadership model, the leadership style has been divided into 4 types:
It is also represented by a diagram most often which is below:
The developmental level of follower is an important indication for a leader to decide the most appropriate leadership style for them:
The above information regarding the style of leadership and the type of followers sure has a correlation to each other which forms the basis of situational leadership. So, a situational leader would try to accommodate his/her leadership style as per the situation and the level of competence and commitment of his/her followers. This information is also an important aspect to consider when senior leaders act as coaches for their subordinates in the organizations.
Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *