Hersey and Blanchard's Situational Leadership Theory (Scenario)
Eric is trying to find the right leadership approach to use on his diverse group of employees. The workers vary widely in age, experience, and enthusiasm. Some employees need a lot of direction, while others do not. Yesterday, Eric accidentally upset one of the older and more experienced workers, Hazel, by trying to offer too much help. Hazel is a very capable and willing employee, and after 20 years with the company, she probably knew the job a lot better than Eric did. But he was only trying to be helpful, and he was also trying to compensate for the day before when he had not offered enough help to another worker, Joe. As a new employee, Joe had very little experience and needed a lot of specific information about his work duties. Other employees were more like Hank, who was able to do his job and liked to share in decision making. In his interactions with Hank, Eric focused more on communication and facilitation. After some consideration, Eric has chosen to apply Hersey and Blanchard's situational leadership theory.
-To apply situational leadership theory,Eric needs to focus most on which of the following variables?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The core concept of Hersey and Blanchard's Situational Leadership Theory is that the most effective leadership style varies based on the readiness or capabilities of the followers. In this scenario, Eric's employees vary widely in age, experience, and motivation, with some needing a lot of direction while others do not. By focusing on the readiness of each employee, Eric can adjust his leadership style accordingly to help each employee be successful. Therefore, B) follower readiness is the most important variable for Eric to focus on when applying Situational Leadership Theory.