correctly deployed manager” (Sprenger 2004b). If they want to succeed, the leader
must be accepted by their employees; otherwise it does not matter how many
university degrees, certificates and references they have. Leadership must always
happen in specific situations and relationships and must prove itself in a concrete
company and a specific market.
2.4.1.1 Contingency Theory
According to Fred E. Fiedler’scontingency theory, the distinction between task-
oriented and person-oriented leadership according to the grid model by Blake
and Mouton does not present a clear statement on the effectiveness of leadership.
The interaction between leadership behavior and the leadership situation needs to
be given much more weight. The current situation is characterized by three
variables: the leader-led relationship, the task structure, and the positional power
of the leader (cf. Fiedler 1967).
The leader-led relationship is dominated by the personality of the leader, their
relationship to the group and by the trust and acceptance of the group, according to
Fiedler. The structure of the task depends on the clarity of objectives, the number
of possible solutions, the precision and verifiability of the solution. The positional
power of the leader is characterized by the extent of exercised power that the
organization allows. So the better the relationship of leader and led, the better
structured the task and the stronger the formal power of the leader, the more
effective the leadership situation is, i.e., the more likely it is that the manager is
in a position to influence the behavior of the group.
The contingency model has greatly influenced the research of the past 20 years,
especially in the field of executive development and training. However, I feel that
its three variables do not suffice to meet the multitude of different leadership situ-
ations. Thus, for example, Fiedler neglects the relationships between the employees.
In addition, in practice the variables are very closely linked and cannot be consid-
ered separately. Fiedler’s contribution chiefly consists in the simple observation
that there is no correct style of leadership. Rather, depending on the situation
different styles of leadership will succeed, a view that has gained credence in recent
leadership debates.
Looking slightly more into the detail of the leadership situation, leadership also
depends on the task situation, i.e. the nature of the task, the required speed for
problem-solving and the degree of certainty security of the task situation. For
example, production is a certain situation: all the conditions are known; the risks
are calculable and controllable. On the other hand, greater uncertainty prevails in
sales, where the variables of customer behavior and demand are only partially
predictable. Managers face the greatest uncertainty in the field of research and
development, where neither the costs nor the benefits are truly predictable and risks
lurk around every corner.
Paul Hersey, Kenneth H. Blanchard and Dewey E. Johnson (see Hersey et al.
1996) have noted a further influence of the leadership situation: the maturity of the
106 2 Occupation or Calling: What Makes for Good Leadership?