One of the earliest literature on leadership style was a proposition by Robert Tannenbaum and Warren H. Schmidt on Leadership continuum in the 1950s. Situational leadership continuum consists of seven different stages. Notably, each stage within the continuum harbors a decreased authority of the manager alongside optimized freedom off the subordinate. In the continuum, the manager first makes all the decisions and communicate them and extends to the final stage where the team members integrate and make decisions based on the pre-designated limits. A continuum is a multistep approach to situational leadership in a descending manner as shown below.
The Manager makes and announces the decisions.
The manager “sells” the decisions to the subordinate.
The manager presents their ideas and invites any questions or concerns.
The manager offers an uncertain decision subject to change.
The manager presents problems while at the same time welcomes any suggestions from the subordinate and makes a decision.
The manager defines the limits through asking the group members to make a decision.
The manager permits the subordinates to function within the set limits as demarcated by the supervisor.
As the manager progresses through the continuum, they transit from managing by directing to leading through empowering. Moreover, the maturity and performance of the team is improved. While critics question the validity of the continuum, it is imperative that the leader (manager) takes charge of their team. Last but not least, trust between the leader and the subordinate is essential for the continuum to materialize.
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