Match a leadership style (directing, coaching, supporting, delegating) to a person's readiness for a specific task.
The same person, four different styles
Situational Leadership — Hersey and Blanchard
Developed by Paul Hersey and Ken Blanchard in the late 1960s and 1970s, Situational Leadership is built on one core idea: there is no single best leadership style. The right style depends on the person's readiness — their competence and commitment — for a specific task.
The four styles are: Directing (tell people exactly what to do and how to do it — high task focus, low relationship focus); Coaching (explain the reasoning and involve the person in discussion, but you still make the decisions — high task and high relationship focus); Supporting (shift decision-making toward the person, offer encouragement, ask questions, collaborate — low task, high relationship); and Delegating (hand over responsibility to the person and step back — low task, low relationship from the leader's side, because the person doesn't need much of either).
A crucial point: readiness is task-specific, not a fixed trait of the person. The same employee who needs Delegating on a task they've mastered for years might need Directing on a brand-new assignment outside their experience. Using one fixed style for everyone, all the time, is the most common trap.
Here's a worked example: Priya is an experienced account manager. On client renewals — her home turf — she needs Delegating; she knows what to do. But she's just been asked to lead a product launch for the first time. On that task, her confidence is high but her experience is zero, so Coaching (or even Directing on the unfamiliar steps) fits better.
A note of honesty: Situational Leadership is widely taught but has limited empirical validation. Treat it as a practical reminder to stay flexible and task-aware, not as a scientific law. Also remember from Unit 2: you can delegate a task with context and authority, but accountability for the outcome stays with you as the manager.
Lesson notes
Situational Leadership — Hersey and Blanchard
Developed by Paul Hersey and Ken Blanchard in the late 1960s and 1970s, Situational Leadership is built on one core idea: there is no single best leadership style. The right style depends on the person's readiness — their competence and commitment — for a specific task.
The four styles are: Directing (tell people exactly what to do and how to do it — high task focus, low relationship focus); Coaching (explain the reasoning and involve the person in discussion, but you still make the decisions — high task and high relationship focus); Supporting (shift decision-making toward the person, offer encouragement, ask questions, collaborate — low task, high relationship); and Delegating (hand over responsibility to the person and step back — low task, low relationship from the leader's side, because the person doesn't need much of either).
A crucial point: readiness is task-specific, not a fixed trait of the person. The same employee who needs Delegating on a task they've mastered for years might need Directing on a brand-new assignment outside their experience. Using one fixed style for everyone, all the time, is the most common trap.
Here's a worked example: Priya is an experienced account manager. On client renewals — her home turf — she needs Delegating; she knows what to do. But she's just been asked to lead a product launch for the first time. On that task, her confidence is high but her experience is zero, so Coaching (or even Directing on the unfamiliar steps) fits better.
A note of honesty: Situational Leadership is widely taught but has limited empirical validation. Treat it as a practical reminder to stay flexible and task-aware, not as a scientific law. Also remember from Unit 2: you can delegate a task with context and authority, but accountability for the outcome stays with you as the manager.