Assessing Your Leadership Skills
by Ken Blanchard

Rather than resent objective feedback on your performance as a leader and manager, look on it as a gift.

The major benefit of leadership assessment is that it makes people read through an objective analysis of their behavior and performance — and take time to reflect on the consequences of their leadership style and management skills on the people they manage. Feedback is a gift: appreciate that your people care enough to share their perspective. As you review your skills as a leader and manager, make some notes about your learnings, questions, and next steps to take. Here are guidelines on four leadership styles and the One-Minute Management skills of goal setting, observing, monitoring, and providing feedback.

Style 1: Directing

A manager using Style 1 provides specific direction about what, how, and when things need to be done. Do you set goals, develop action plans, provide specific direction, set time lines, and closely supervise members of your team when they are new and inexperienced with a given task, and when they are lacking competence, but are highly committed to the task at hand? The feedback will tell you to what extent your team members perceive that you match your choice of a leadership style to their development level, in this case to their need for direction.

Think of a specific example where you did provide direction when it was needed. What happened? Think of an example where you did not provide direction or training to someone who lacked experience or expertise. What happened? What could you have done differently?

The feedback to one question on the assessment will tell you how well you set goals with team members who are learning a new task. Research indicates that goal setting is perhaps the single best predictor of good performance. Another question tells you if, in the eyes of your team members, you observe and monitor their performance closely enough when they are learning. And another question tells you how well you provide feedback to beginners. Low scores on any of these three items tell you that you should focus on these skills in developing your team members' competence, confidence, and motivation.

List two or three steps you can take to improve your use of this leadership style. For example, you may want to be more specific about what each team member's exact job is and what a good job would look like.

Style 2: Coaching

A manager using Style 2 provides both direction and support. Do you consult with your team members on the goals and action plans you've set up for them? Do you ask for their ideas? Do you support and praise their initiative and progress in achieving their goals? Do you provide both direction and encouragement?

The feedback will tell you to what extent your team members perceive that you match your choice of a leadership style to their need for direction and support. Think of a specific example where you did provide direction and support when it was needed. What happened? Think of an example where you did not provide direction and support to someone who needed to be listened to. What happened? What could you have done differently?

List the steps you will take to improve how you use this leadership style. For example, you may want to ask for input on goals and action plans with team members who have developed some competence but are discouraged. You might also want to make more of an effort to praise progress.

Style 3: Supporting

A manager using Style 3 provides support and encouragement to people who need it. Do you help your team members solve their own problems? Do you listen and provide support and encouragement when your team members lack confidence or motivation on a given task? Feedback to these questions tells you to what extent your team members perceive that you match your choice of leadership style to their need for support.

Think of a specific example where you did provide support when it was needed. What happened? Now, think of an example where you did not provide support or encouragement to someone who lacked confidence or motivation. What happened? What could you have done differently?

Plan the steps you will take to improve your use of this leadership style. For example, you may want to ask more questions, praise performance more, or encourage your team members to solve their own problems.

Style 4: Delegating

A manager using Style 4 allows skills and confident team members to manage their own performance. Do you collaboratively set goals and then delegate day-to-day decision making to on your experienced team members. Do you allow your team members who are competent, confident, and motivated to make most of their own decisions?

Feedback to these questions tells you to what extent your team members perceive that you match your choice of a leadership style to their need for autonomy. Think of a specific example where you did delegate appropriately. What happened? Think of a specific example where you did not delegate to someone who was competent, confident, and motivated. What happened? What could you have done differently?

Again, what steps will you take to improve your use of this leadership style? For example, you may want to ask your team members to tell you what resources they need to excel even more and then secure those resources for them.

One-Minute Management Skills

The assessment will also help you rate your One-Minute Management skills of goal setting, observing and monitoring, and providing feedback.

Goal Setting

Do you set goals that are SMART: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Trackable? Do your team members have written goals? Do they know what is expected of them and what good performance looks like? Feedback to these four questions will tell you to what extent your team members perceive that you effectively use the leadership skill of goal setting. Think of a specific example where you did a good job setting goals. What happened? Think of an example where you did not do as good a job in setting goals or defining what good performance looks like with one of your team members. What happened? What could you have done differently?

Observing and Monitoring

How frequently do you observe and monitor your team members' performance? Do you stay in touch with what they are doing? Are you actively involved and interested in what they are doing? Feedback to these questions will tell you to what extent your team members perceive that you appropriately observe and monitor their performance.

Think of a specific example where you did stay in touch and monitored and observed performance well. What happened? Think of an example where you lost track of the task or level of performance. What happened? What could you have done differently?

Providing Feedback

Do you let people know directly or indirectly how well they are doing? Do you tend to catch people doing things right? Do you recognize and reward good performance? Do you let team members know when they are not doing a good job or living up to your expectations? Do you hold people accountable when they don't perform well and provide them with specific feedback on how they can improve? Feedback to these questions will tell you to what extent your team members perceive that you tend to use the skill of feedback well.

Think of a specific example where you did a good job providing feedback on results. What happened? Think of an example where you did not praise someone whose performance deserved praise. What happened? What could you have done differently? And, finally, think of an example where you did not reprimand effectively, where the person left the interaction with you focused more on how they were treated than what they had done to deserve the reprimand in the first place.

An objective assessment of your management and leadership skills — along with your thoughts about the next steps you should take — become a roadmap for refocusing and refining your skills as a Situational Leader and One-Minute Manager.

Kenneth Blanchard, chairman of Blanchard Training & Development, in Escondido, Calif., is co-author and creator of Situational Leadership and One-Minute Management.

Copyright © 2001 Executive Excellence Publishing

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