Читать книгу People Management - Rus Slater - Страница 9

“What?” I hear you cry! “Surely I should manage everyone in the same way to be fair?” Well, think about it: imagine you have two people, one is experienced, competent and willing, and the other is new to the task, has little ability and is lazy. Would it be fair to manage each of them in the same way? Would it motivate them both?

You have to manage or lead in a way that suits the situation. This is called Situational Leadership, a title originally coined by Ken Blanchard and Paul Hersey. Here is a simple primer to the idea:

• Consider an individual’s ability on a scale of low to high. This is their ability to do the job you are asking of them, not just a reflection of their age or years of service.

• Next consider their willingness to do this particular job, again on a scale of low to high.

• Now imagine these two values plotted on a graph, like the one opposite.

• The notations on the graph (C, D1, D2, S) refer to the paragraphs below the graph, which tell you how you might best manage this particular person.

• S = Support. This person is very willing but lacking in skill/ability. They need support in terms of demonstrations, training and practice (see Secret 4.8).

• C = Coaching. This person is both willing and able and therefore only needs some light coaching in order to perform well.

• D1 = Directing 1. This person has both low ability and low willingness. They are going to need much more in the way of directing – orders, supervision and checking.

• D2 = Directing 2. This person has already proved their ability but their willingness is low. They don’t need training and demonstration; they need some direction from you to understand why the task is important and how they will benefit personally by doing it well.

It is vital for your success and the success of your people that you manage in a way that suits the situation.