Are you consciously choosing your leadership style?

When you have leadership responsibility for a group of people, it is important that you adopt a flexible approach tailored to the individuals on your team. In practice, most leaders naturally do this, however, understanding the mechanics behind the choice will give you more control and help you select the most appropriate style.

The model that I've used to good effect is known as Situational Leadership®, developed by Ken Blanchard and Paul Hersey. The picture on the left gives a good overview.

Here there are 4 clear leadership styles identified - Directing, Coaching, Supporting and Delegating - which mirror the experience level of the team member from low through to high.

It is important to note that a team member will typically have different levels of experience in each functional area of their remit and may therefore need more than one leadership style applied to them.

This reinforces the point that it is the leader who needs to flex their style rather than the team member.

In my experience, it has been very helpful to share this model with my direct reports and agree with them what approach and style they would like me to adopt. It is also a helpful tool in monitoring an individual's progress as they move through each development stage.

Having the right leadership style at the right time will enable you to build a stronger team, so I hope this inspires you to find the time to look into this further.