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What’s the best leadership style for your situation?

Staff Development Weekly: Insight on Evidence-Based Practice in Education, July 12, 2007

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There is no best way to influence others. The right choice of leadership style depends on your ability to determine whether your staff members have all the skills and experience they need to do the job they are assigned and your sense of whether they want to or believe they can do it.

Assess readiness as determined by the level of competence and commitment the person or group brings to the job to be done. The relationship between the four leadership styles, commitment, and competence includes the following:

• Directing is for those who lack competence and, because of their insecurity, lack commitment (e.g., new grads in their first year of employment).
• Coaching is for those who are committed and not so insecure but need guidance, praise, and feedback to continue developing their competence (e.g., staff with 15-36 months on the job).
• Supporting is for those who are competent and their skills are well-developed, but who need support and guidance in trusting their own judgment and making decisions that build their self-esteem (e.g., a proficient staff nurse who is chosen to chair a task force of his or her peers).
• Delegating is for those who have both competence and commitment. They are willing and able to work on a project by themselves and with little supervision or support.

Editor's note: The above excerpt is from the online course "Nursing CE Series: Leadership and Coaching Skills for Nurse Managers." For more information on this and other courses in our library, go to http://www.hcprofessor.com.

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