Conversely, what type of leader behavior is most likely to be effective in situations of stability where the external environment is more certain. Why?
Arvonen and Pettersson’s article is considered to be a good source of information about leadership, types of behavior, and the most successful methods of the organization of a working process in a particular company. It seems to be not enough to have a good leader and qualified managers to succeed in the creation of a successful organization. It is more important to understand what type of leader behavior should be chosen in different situations. For example, when the external environment is more certain, the chosen leader’s behavior should be chosen in a way to become more effective in situations of stability.
According to Arvonen and Pettersson (2002), the situational theory should be applied as well as one of the elements of the CPE model of leadership behavior should be chosen. The results of their investigation show that the employee-oriented behavior is more effective when a certain situation is given because even the “situations characterised by change in organisations are greatly in need of managers with an orientation towards change and relations” (Arvonen & Pettersson 2002, p. 108). Still, it is necessary to comprehend that the chosen behavior is a basic dimension that has to be combined with a change-oriented or a production-oriented leadership behavior taking into consideration the situation.
Which leadership behavior is the most effective in all situations? Why?
In all situations, another type of leadership behavior may be used. At the beginning of the article, the authors admit that team management leadership is usually effective for all situations. Within the frames of their research, they have proven that the chosen CPM model of leadership behavior is a good change to improve the work of a company and the conditions under which people have to work. “The effective management style seems to include the employee-oriented type of behaviour as a basic dimension, regardless of the situation” (Arvonen & Pettersson 2002, p. 109) because any kind of work requires the presence of a good manager, a qualified employee, who is able to organize work, understand the importance of a change, and choose the most appropriate production-oriented behavior.
Compare this finding with that reported in relation to leader’s “seven competencies, or behavioural statements” about effective leadership in Alimo-Metcalfe & Lawler’s [“Leadership Development in UK companies at the beginning of the twenty-first century”].
The CPE model of leadership behavior offered by Arvonen and Pettersson is effective indeed, still, it is not the only one. There are many other attempts to improve the sphere of management and introduce more captivating ideas about leadership and its styles. One of the attempts is described in the article written by Alimo-Metcalfe and Lawler (2001), where seven competencies, also known as behavioral statements, are identified as the marks of effective leadership. The authors admit that the chosen statements seem to be some kind of personal qualities that cannot be neglected: the ability to provide clarity about the chosen strategic direction, focus on the delivery process, ensure commitment, develop self-awareness among workers, build appropriate relations, possess some personal convictions, and encourage people (Alimo-Metcalfe & Lawler 2001, p. 389).
On the one hand, the CPE model has nothing in common with the competencies identified due to its size, too general nature, and the absence of personal qualities that have to be gained. On the other hand, it is possible to look through the list of the Alimo-Metcalfe and Lawler’s statements and find out that they are some types of explanations of the behaviors offered by Arvonen and Pettersson. For example, employee-oriented behavior (Arvonen and Pettersson 2002) has much in common with such statements as the creation of appropriate relations or the development of self-awareness. This is why it is not necessary to look for some differences but focus on the similarities that help to improve leadership and the sphere of management in general.
Reference List
Alimo-Metcalfe, B & Lawler, J 2001, ‘Leadership development in UK companies at the beginning of the twenty-first century: Lessons for the NHS?’, Journal of Management in Medicine, vol. 15, no. 5, pp. 387- 404.
Arvonen, J & Pettersson, P 2002, ‘Leadership behaviours as predictors of cost and change effectiveness’, Scandinavian Journal of Management, vol. 18, pp. 101-112.