Question

Dave is a new commissioner appointed to oversee a government agency. He is the third commissioner in less than three years in this agency. Morale is low, yet the staff know more about quality programs than he does. The staff fears that sharing too much about what he does not know will lead to them being fired. Using the contingency model, what do you think Fiedler would recommend Dave do?

Answer 1

The correct answer to this open question is the following.

Using the contingency model, Fiedler would have recommended Dave to use a Laissez-Faire Leadership style, due to his weak position in the group. In this scenario, the leader does not really lead the team. The ones who really lead are the members of the group self-direct the team.

We are referring to the Flieder's Contingency Model, created by Fred Flieder at the beginning of the 1960s. Fiedler concluded in his study that there is no single form of leadership that fits every situation. What he thought what that depending on the specific situation, the leader could assume of the leadership's styles such as the mentioned above or the Transformational Leadership style, the Autocratic style or the Democratic style.

Answer 2

Servant Leadership

Step-by-step explanation:

Dave should adapt to the servant leadership model. According to this model, the leader is second to his employees. He listens to his employees before he makes any decision and makes sure he incorporates their opinion.

Now since Dave is a new commissioner and is unaware of programs in place, and the employees know more than him, he should take the opinion of his employees and then make a decision.