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Hersey: I'm concerned that people who are reading the title of our 1969 article, "Life-Cycle Theory of Leadership," for the first time may mistakenly think it's about how someone leads from atop a popular piece of fitness equipment.
Now, most people refer to the life-cycle behavioral model as "situational leadership." People have described the model variously as a touchstone, cornerstone, map, compass, sextant, and powerful lens. That said, it's a pleasure to pick up a pen (now computer) again with Ken Blanchard. Blanchard: When I was asked to write a commentary to our original article, I was thrilled to know that situational leadership is still alive and well, 25 years after the idea was born. I began to reminisce.
The article was written when Paul and I were both at Ohio University. I was an administrative assistant to the dean of the business college; Paul was chairperson of the management department. I heard about an organizational behavior course Paul taught, so I asked if I could sit in. "No one audits my course," he said. "If you want to take it for credit, you're welcome." I was taken aback, but my wife Margie helped me get my ego out of the way, and I signed up,
The course ended with a presentation of William Reddin's 3-D model, an outgrowth of Blake and Mouton's Managerial Grid. The 3-D model suggested that there was no best leadership style. Later, Paul and I began developing the "Life-Cycle Theory of Leadership," as a model and as an article for Training & Development. The theory's name was inspired by parents' need to change their "leadership" styles as their children progress through infancy, adolescence, and adulthood. We felt that the same logic held true for managing new, developing, and experienced workers.
From life-cycle to situational leadership
In the 1972 edition of our book, Management of Organizational Behavior: Utilizing Human Resources, we began using the term "situational leadership" rather than "life-cycle theory of leadership." And we made other important changes.
With the development of situational leadership, we emphasized that the dimensions of leadership were "task behavior" and "relationship behavior." Earlier models--such as Blake and Mouton's Managerial Grid and Reddin's 3-D Management-Style Theory--used attitudinal dimensions, such as "concern for production," "concern for people,"...