Jory MacKay on January 16, 2024 How to master Fiedler’s Contingency Theory of Leadership
While there’s no “perfect way” to lead a team, data shows that many leaders are still doing it wrong.
A recent study by global leadership consulting firm DDI found that only 40% of companies believe they have great leaders, and only 32% trust their senior leaders to make the best decisions.
To build better team connections and deliver great results, the best project leaders match their leadership style to the team and situation around them. Fiedler’s contingency theory provides a straightforward way for leaders to understand their leadership style and assess how it works (and doesn’t) versus the situation around them.
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If you’re a new project or team leader looking to develop a successful leadership style, this article is for you. After we’ve looked at Fiedler’s leadership model, we’ll help you use it to uncover your ideal leadership style and what you can do if your style and team don’t match.
What is Fiedler’s contingency theory of leadership?
Fiedler’s Contingency Model states that there is no one “best” leadership style for any project. Instead, the best leadership style can only be determined by the leader’s inherent strengths and how they work with the team and situation at hand.
Austrian psychologist Professor Fred Fiedler developed the theory in the 1960s by studying the personalities and characteristics of hundreds of leaders. His theory concluded that an individual’s leadership style is largely fixed, based on their life experiences, and is difficult to fundamentally change.
But with that said, the study also concluded that no single leadership style is the best.
Instead, choosing the right style, as well as other management factors such as communication methods and team engagement, was dependent on the situation at hand.
It makes sense if you think about this practically, as two different situations may call for two different leadership styles.
For example, a more directive leadership style may be best if you’re working on a project to implement new regulatory standards under a tight timescale. On the other hand, if you’re working to create a prototype for a new product, a more collaborative and participative style may be best to foster the creation of new ideas.
Fiedler’s contingency theory of leadership is defined by two key factors: someone’s natural leadership style and the favourableness of the situation.
Let’s dig into both of them in a little more detail:
Natural leadership style
In Fiedler’s world, there are two types of leaders: one who is relationship-oriented and one who is task-oriented. To determine which one you are, you must complete the Least Preferred Coworker (LPC) test.
This test asks leaders to score the coworker they least prefer to work with against several questions. The questions are found below, with the answer for each question adding up to give an overall score.
Depending on the final score, an individual’s leadership style falls into one of three brackets:
- Relationship-Orientated. If they rate their coworker highly (above 73), it indicates they’re a relationship-oriented leader, akin to a servant leader in other models.
- Task-Orientated. If they score them less positively (below 54), they’re more likely to favor task-style leadership.
- Mixture. If they score in the middle (55 to 72), they’re a mix of relationship and task-orientated with a mix of top-down and bottom-up leadership strategies.
Fiedler believed those who scored highly and favored relationship-building were more suited for situations involving collaboration, conflict management, and morale building. Meanwhile, those who scored lower and favored task-based situations were better suited for functional project management and logistical work.
The best leadership style can only be determined by the leader’s inherent strengths and how they work with the team and situation at hand.
Situational favorableness
Fiedler believed you couldn’t be a great leader without the world around you working in your favor.
In more specific terms, you need the project’s situation to favor your leadership style. In Fiedler’s model, the situational favorableness is determined by three distinct factors:
- Leader-Member Relations (rated as either “good” or “poor”). This factor relates to the level of trust and confidence that the team has in the leader. The more trust the team has, the more likely the leader will succeed. Without trust, motivating and engaging team members and achieving the project’s objectives is hard.
- Task Structure (rated as either “High” or “Low”). This refers to the type of task a leader and their team are completing and whether it’s clear and structured or vague and unstructured. It might sound like common sense, but the more unstructured a task is, the more unfavorable the situation is for a leader to generate good results.
- Leader’s Position Power (rated as either “Strong” or “Weak”). The final factor relates to the power a leader has to direct the group. The more power a leader has to drive results, give rewards, and impart punishment, the more favorable the situation.
Based on the assessment of these three factors, Fiedler’s contingency model shows the type of leadership style that would perform best in any given situation. Typically, task-oriented leaders deliver well at situational extremes, with relationship-oriented leaders doing well in moderately favorable situations.
The 4 benefits of following Fiedler’s leadership model
While Fiedler’s model draws criticism at times, it does have a range of benefits for organizations and their leaders. Let’s take a look at some of the most common benefits.
- Gives a simple view of leadership. Fiedler’s model provides a quick and simple way to understand your own leadership style and what could generate the best results in a given situation. Where other frameworks are complex and ambiguous, Fiedler’s is quick and easy to complete and provides a fairly cut-and-dry output.
- Provides clear rationale to delegate. By not only identifying your own leadership style, but also providing a view of the best style for a situation, it provides ground to delegate leadership to others if they’re better suited. Many other leadership models simply focus on the individual, making them harder to translate into reality.
- Helps avoid team conflict. Again, by reviewing not just the leader but the situation at hand, Fiedler’s model helps avoid team conflicts by clearly showing the type of leader that would work best for the team. This can help you save time by assigning the right type of leader the first time.
- Aids in identifying areas of development. The scoring matrix of Fiedler’s theory provides a clear score and benchmark of your leadership style. For those wanting to take a well-rounded approach, it provides a clear view of where you sit on the scale and areas you could improve to become more balanced.
How to use Fiedler’s contingency theory to be the best leader for your team
Now that we know all about Fiedler’s model and the benefits it can bring, it’s time to bring it to life and actually start using it.
Next, we’ll walk through five steps you can use to understand your leadership style and how to match it to the right project.
1. Uncover your own personal leadership style
The first place to start this process is with the least preferred coworker (LPC) scale from before. You’ll need to score your least favorite coworker on each of the 17 questions to determine your overall leadership style.
Tips for success:
- Be honest. Tests like these are subjective based on our mood or recent experiences. While it can be tempting to shoot for a high score, answering as honestly as possible will help you and your team in the long run.
- Consider other theories. While we’re focusing on Fiedler’s model in this article, a range of other theories are available that look at different aspects of leadership. There’s no one way to inspire a team, so use these results in collaboration with other leadership tests, too.
Once you’ve completed your test, add up the scores to give you a final result:
- 73 and above = Relationship-oriented leader.
- 54 and below = Task-oriented leader.
- 55 to 72 = A mixture of both styles.
Real-life example:
Phillippe works as a Project Manager for ReviveO, an energy supplement company. Phillippe has been offered two projects to work on as his next assignment: an IT system data migration project and an HR process improvement project. He wants to choose the best project based on his leadership style, so he begins by completing the LPC test. He scores 74, which makes him a relationship-oriented leader.
At a time when only 32% of people trust their leaders, it’s worth investing in identifying and developing your own unique leadership style.
2. Assess your project’s environment
Once you’ve identified your own leadership style, the second step of Fiedler’s model is to assess the salutation you find yourself in. This is going to help you determine if your leadership style is a match for the project at hand.
Tips for success:
- Consider your team’s effectiveness. Is the team engaged? Do people communicate well together? Is there a strong culture and embedded team rituals? If the answer to many of these is yes, there’s a good chance the team’s trust in a leader will be good rather than poor.
- Get feedback on a previous project. Get the team involved when assessing task structure, asking them for feedback on previous project work they’ve completed. Not only will this help you get a rounded view, but it will build engagement and morale across the team.
- Use different lenses. When assessing your leadership position, consider this through the lenses of autonomy, mentorship, inspiration, and influence. The more of each of these you have, the more likely you have to have the ability to deliver a great project.
Real-life example:
Phillippe assesses both projects to determine their situational favourableness. In the IT systems project, the leader-team relations are strong, the task structure is high, and the power position is high. This project falls into category one.
On the HR process project, the leader-team relations are good, the task structure is low, and the leadership position is weak, meaning the project falls into category four.
3. Map the results to see if you’re the right leader for the project
Once you know your leadership style and you’ve assessed the favorability of the project, it’s time to compare the two to determine if you’re the right fit. The Fiedler model can be quite black and white, so don’t worry too much if the two don’t line up perfectly.
Tips for success:
- Be precise. During this step, review the theory leadership chart to determine the overall position of the project. While it’s a fairly simple chart, the combination of answers can be difficult to initially map, so take your time!
- Take extra care if you scored in the “mixed” category. If you scored between 55 and 72, with a mixed relationship/task style, your ideal situations are where the project lines intersect at category 3 and 6. These will be the projects where you can best utilize both aspects of your leadership style.
Real-life example:
Phillippe maps both projects to the chart. He notices that the IT systems project in category one favors a task-oriented style. On the other hand, the HR process project in category four favors his own relationship-oriented style. Phillippe speaks to his manager and asks to be assigned to the HR process project.
4. Delegate or re-assign if you’re not the right fit
What do you do if your style isn’t right for the project at hand? It’s a tricky situation to be in, but sometimes admitting the job isn’t right for you and finding someone else is the best thing to do.
Tips for success:
- Give the job to the best leader. If you’re in a position of management yourself, try delegating the project to someone with a more appropriate leadership style. This is the best way to ensure the project moves forward with the right leader while still providing a valuable solution.
- Look inward before bringing someone else in. If bringing a new leader in isn’t an option, try promoting someone from the existing team and work with them as a mentor. Again, this is a great solution, but may need careful management to ensure they have the power needed to get things done.
Real-life example:
Phillippe shares with his manager the reasons he didn’t want to work on the IT systems project. His manager suggests another project manager, Sasha, who’s a task-focused leader. Sasha is a lot more junior, so Phillippe offers to act as a mentor, using his natural relationship-centered qualities to provide additional support.
5. Change the situation (if possible)
Unfortunately, there are times when we’re left with no choice, and our leadership style doesn’t match the project we are assigned to. Fiedler believed our leadership styles are largely fixed, so in these situations you have to do everything you can (within reason) to change the situation to match your style.
Tips for success:
- Get personal. If you want to build higher levels of team trust, try and build connections by spotting signs of overload, employing tactics to boost inspiration, and having regular one-on-one meetings.
- Stay organized. To build structure around tasks, try using a project management software tool such as Planio. With modules for tracking tasks, actions, issues, bugs, and team communication, it’s the perfect tool to bring order and structure to your team’s day-to-day work. Find out more by reading all about how to do task management in Planio.
Is your leadership style really fixed? What to do if your style and team don’t match
Even though Fiedler didn’t believe our leadership styles can change, many other experts do.
If you and your team don’t match, here are some steps you can take to tailor your leadership style to drive great project outcomes:
- Do your research. Before you start changing anything up, take some time to do some research into leadership theory. While Fiedler’s theory is popular, his model isn’t the only one. Others look at personality traits, communication styles, and personal morals to determine your ideal style of leadership.
- Identify your why. Why do you need to change your leadership style? Has your project failed? Have you had poor feedback? Do you simply feel uncomfortable in the work environment? There are many reasons to change your leadership style, but make sure you have enough evidence to back up why you need to change yours.
- Pick a style and develop the underpinning skills. Whether it’s transactional, democratic, transformational, or authoritarian, pick a leadership style that you want to develop. From there, study the skills that contribute to that style and make a personal development plan to improve them. For example, a democratic leadership style relies upon consensus building, so you may need to develop your active listening, negotiation, and conflict resolution skills to master this style.
Style and situation combine for great project results
At a time when only 32% of people trust their leaders, it’s worth investing in identifying and developing your own unique leadership style.
If you’re new to leadership, Fiedler’s Contingency Model is a great place to start, providing a clear and concise way to learn more about your leadership strengths.
But even the best leaders fail in the wrong situations. That’s why Fiedler’s model also considers the situation around you to determine if you’re the right fit for the job — something you might not have considered if you’ve recently had a project failure.
If you follow the steps in this article, you’ll be equipped with the leadership knowledge you need to drive forward your next project. But that’s only half the battle.
Planio helps thousands of customers manage their projects from start to finish, keeping tasks, actions, documents, communications, issues, and bugs all in one place. Planio not only helps teams stay on track, but frees project managers up to focus on delivering the things that matter for their business.
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