Contingency School of Management

Question 1

Contingency/Situational Theories

Answer 1

States that the best practice for management is to respond to individual internal or external stimuli, rather than laying out a specific plan.

Thus, there is not a ‘best way’ for management, but each case needs to be examined individually.

Question 2

Hershey and Blanchard

Answer 2

Paul Hershey and Ken Blanchard developed the situational Management Theory.

Question 3

Wrote ‘One Minute Manager’

Answer 3

Ken Blanchard

Question 4

Joan Woodard

Answer 4

Management theorist who contributed to the Contingency Theory of Management. One of first women to gain fame for work. Argued that depending upon the company and industry, managers needed to quickly adapt to whatever style of management is required.

Question 5

Robert House

Answer 5

Developed the Path-Goal Theory. States that a leader’s behavior needs to be dependent on the their employee or followers’ satisfaction and performance. This theory is a form of transactional leadership theory (ie the manager changes management style).

Question 6

Fred Fidler

Answer 6

Developed the Fiedler Contingency Model.

Question 7

Fiedler Contingency Model

Answer 7

Asks leaders to rate their least like coworker/peer using a Least-Preferred Co-Worker scale (LPC). Based on the result, Fiedler believed that you could tell what type of leadership style that person prefers.

The second part concentrates on matching the leader’s management style to the demands of the situation. He believed that situational control is the extent to which a leader can determine what their group is going to do, and was the primary determinant of the effectiveness of a particular leader.