Situational Leadership and Motivation

Situational Leadership and Motivation

Let’s examine motivation in light of the Situational Leadership model.  Recall that Situational Leadership is the ability to adapt your leadership style to match the demands of the situation and the individual.  Situation Leadership is based upon an interplay between task behavior, relationship behavior and worker readiness.

Task Behavior – is the extent to which the leader instructs individuals on what to do, how to do it, when to do it, etc.

Relationship Behavior – is the extent to which the leader communicates, facilitates, supports, etc.

Worker Readiness – is the extent to which the person being led is both confident, motivated and competent to deliver the task in hand

This model requires effective individuals to analyze specific situations as to the willingness and ability of workers to perform a specific task and then have the individual adapt their behaviors to match the demands of the situation.  Effective leaders consider the worker’s development level, which is a function of their competence and commitment to perform a task well without supervision.

Competence is a function of the worker’s task knowledge and skills gained through formal education, on-the-job training and experience. It can be developed with appropriate direction and support.

Commitment is a function of the worker’s motivation and confidence. Motivation is the worker’s interest and enthusiasm to do the task, and his desire to succeed. Confidence is the person’s sense of security or self-assuredness; the extent to which the worker trusts that he has the ability to work independently.

Earlier, we described four levels of development for individuals in the workforce.

Level 1 – Novice: characterized by low competency levels but a high commitment level

Level 2 – Apprentice: characterized by some competence but a lower enthusiasm

Level 3 – Journeyman: characterized by high competence but variable commitment

Level 4 – Master: characterized by high competence and high commitment

The Novice is characterized by undeveloped skills to perform a job but a high level of motivation to develop the skills and make a contribution to the organization.  In terms of Pete DeLisle’s descriptors, individuals at this level often feel an identification with the company.  They are often proud to report “I work for ____________”.  Do you remember that GE had the slogan “GE is me”?  In terms of Maslow’s nomenclature, the individual could fit into a number of the “needs” categories from Safety to Belonging to Esteem.

The Apprentice has begun to develop skills to do the job well.  They still require a lot of direction for accomplishing tasks and a lot of behavior related communication as to why the task is important and how their effort fits in to the whole of the organization.  It is my opinion that the apprentice is often characterized at the Belonging Needs level of Maslow’s pyramid.  They want to fit in; they want to be seen as having an important role in the organization but they are insecure at this point in their development.  As Pete would say, they are consciously aware of their incompetence (the apprentice begins to understand that they are not yet skilled at the job) and want to move to greater levels of competence.

The Journeyman has well-developed skills and needs little direction in accomplishing tasks.  This developmental level is characterized by the need for significant relationship behavior, but not the same type of behavior as was needed for the Apprentice.  The Journeyman feels she has something worthwhile to contribute and knows her skills are valuable assets.  Depending upon the nature of the relationship behavior with the leader and the organizational context, the Journeyman may be motivated by identification or only compensation (in terms of Pete’s descriptors).  If the individual feels that her work is not valued of is she is relegated to routine tasks, she likely will see herself as a hired hand employed to get a specific job done.  Individuals in this situation will often shop the job market to find out what their skills are worth.  If my only reward (motivation) for my work is money, why not seek to maximize that reward?  However, if the individual is given assignments of increasing complexity and independence in an area of interest, she may develop a real sense of identity with the job and perhaps the organization.  You’ve heard the exchange …”What do you do?”   “I’m an environmental engineer who develops improved processes for treating drinking water.”  Leader behavior can help the Journeyman become an increasingly valuable asset to the organization, or drive the individual to leave.

The Master is characterized by highly developed skills and a motivation to use these skills.  Someone at this developmental stage is often writing articles, developing procedures, and teaching or mentoring others.  In Maslow’s scheme they are meeting Esteem Needs, or perhaps Self-Actualization Needs.  In Pete’s terms, they are at the Identification level or even the Ownership level, or should be in a healthy organization.   The leader ought to work with the Master to define assignments and opportunities that continue to reward the Master.  Often these assignments will not be “perform this task” but rather “share your expertise in this arena”.

Herzberg’s framework can help us to look at the relationship between leadership and motivation in a different light.  Herzberg described motivational factors as:

• Achievement
• Recognition
• Advancement
• The work itself
• The possibility of personal growth
• Responsibility

Such items as technical supervision (which implies elements of task behavior) and interpersonal relations with supervisor (relationship behavior) are described as hygiene factors; they can only prevent job dissatisfaction!  Herzberg suggests that most of the methods leaders use to motivate their workers simply diminish their dissatisfaction with the job rather than increase their satisfaction, regardless of the developmental stage of the worker.   I find this astonishing and enlightening.

One of the points made in Herzberg’s article was the technical supervision and interpersonal relationships are attempts at external motivation.  Motivation is an internal generator (in his words) and the role of the leader is to identify and provide the type of work and environment in which each employee will have the (internal) desire to contribute at a high level.

I think there is still plenty of room for situational leadership within Herzberg’s framework however.   Actually, I think his approach can help clarify appropriate and effective task and relationship behavior.  Let’s look at the follower readiness levels again.

Level 1 – Novice 

This individual needs a lot of direction in what to accomplish and how to accomplish it.  Often the work itself is a strong motivator for the novice – they took the job because they felt it would be interesting.  The leader can provide a means of motivation for the novice by recognition of new tasks well done and appropriately giving increasing levels of responsibility as the novice demonstrates a readiness for the new tasks.

Level 2 – Apprentice

This level is characterized by high task and high relationship behavior.  An apprentice understands that if he performs well, there are opportunities for advancement.   The leader can articulate the career paths ahead for the apprentice and help the individual plan a course of action to help him achieve the desired goal.

Level 3 – Journeyman

The journeyman has reached a level of competence such that a variety of factors may motivate this individual.  Increasing levels of responsibility on interesting tasks, recognition among peers for work well done, the possibility of advancing into a senior role within the company, and the opportunities to learn new skills can all provide motivation for the journeyman.

Level 4 – Master

With the master, it gets a bit tougher.  They may be “maxed out” on advancement and acquiring new job responsibilities.  However, if they have stayed within a technical track for some time it is often because they find the work itself interesting and rewarding.  Recognition could still be a source of motivation as could the possibility of having a broader sphere of influence within the organization.