{"id":2440,"date":"2025-01-30T17:12:29","date_gmt":"2025-01-30T17:12:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/situational.com\/which-leadership-style-is-best-for-managing-change\/"},"modified":"2025-09-24T16:33:04","modified_gmt":"2025-09-24T20:33:04","slug":"which-leadership-style-is-best-for-managing-change","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/situational.com\/blog\/which-leadership-style-is-best-for-managing-change\/","title":{"rendered":"Which Leadership Style is Best for Managing Change?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Change is happening faster and more frequently than ever before. According to Accenture\u2019s 2024 Pulse of Change Index<\/a>, the last four years has seen the rate of change affecting businesses rise by 183%. In the last year alone, it\u2019s risen by 33%.<\/p>\n

To manage this onslaught of change effectively, modern leaders need to develop a solid approach to smoothly navigate the nuances of any situation, including situations of uncertainty.<\/p>\n

But which leadership style is the best for managing change?<\/p>\n

The Four Leadership Styles<\/h2>\n

Within the Situational Leadership\u00ae<\/sup> Model<\/a>, there are four primary leadership styles<\/a>, including:<\/p>\n

1. Style 1 (S1) \u2013 \u201cTelling\u201d Leadership Style<\/h3>\n

The “Telling\u201d leadership style<\/a> sees leaders make a majority of the decisions and closely supervise the follower as they perform a task. This style shows leaders directing or guiding their followers through the task at hand.<\/p>\n

2. Style 2 (S2) \u2013 \u201cSelling\u201d Leadership Style<\/h3>\n

The \u201cSelling\u201d leadership style<\/a> has leaders still largely in charge of decision-making. However, they add in some additional context to reinforce follower buy-in. This style shows leaders explaining or coaching their followers on the task.<\/p>\n

3. Style 3 (S3) \u2013 \u201cParticipating\u201d Leadership Style<\/h3>\n

The \u201dParticipating\u201d leadership style<\/a> sees followers start to make more of the decisions, though they receive support from their leader. This style shows leaders facilitating the task execution, helping followers problem-solve along the way.<\/p>\n

4. Style 4 (S4) \u2013 \u201cDelegating\u201d Leadership Style<\/h3>\n

The \u201dDelegating\u201d leadership style<\/a> has followers make task-related decisions with little to no oversight from their leader. This style shows leaders empowering their followers as they work autonomously, monitoring from a distance.<\/p>\n\"The\n

The Best Leadership Style for Managing Change<\/h2>\n

So, of the four leadership styles listed above, which one is best for managing change? Well, it depends.<\/p>\n

Generally speaking, the best leadership style is the one that matches the follower\u2019s Performance Readiness\u00ae<\/sup><\/a> level for a task. For example:<\/p>\n

S1 + R1<\/h3>\n

The S1 or \u201cTelling\u201d leadership style is often an ideal match for a follower who\u2019s at an R1 Performance Readiness\u00ae<\/sup> Level<\/a>. They require more direction and support from their leader.<\/p>\n

S2 + R2<\/h3>\n

The S2 or \u201cSelling\u201d leadership style is often an ideal match for a follower who\u2019s at an R2 Performance Readiness\u00ae<\/sup> Level<\/a>. They benefit from understanding in the larger context of a task or project.<\/p>\n

S3 + R3<\/h3>\n

The S3 or \u201cParticipating\u201d leadership style is an ideal match for a follower who\u2019s at an R3 Performance Readiness\u00ae<\/sup> Level<\/a>. The follower feels better equipped to make decisions with some advice from their leader.<\/p>\n

S4 + R4<\/h3>\n

The S4 or \u201cDelegating\u201d leadership style is often an ideal match for a follower who\u2019s at an R4 Performance Readiness\u00ae<\/sup> Level<\/a>. The follower can perform the task well with their leader standing by to offer support as needed.<\/p>\n

Keep in mind that with tasks that are change-related, followers will always start out on the right side of the model as either R1 or R2. This is because they haven\u2019t yet demonstrated their ability to perform this task, as it\u2019s inherently new to them.<\/p>\n

Knowing that, we can assume that the best leadership style for managing change will be a leader-driven style<\/a>. This can be either S1 or S2, otherwise known as the \u201cTelling\u201d or \u201cSelling\u201d leadership styles. These styles will allow leaders to provide the exact amount of support and direction followers need to start a new, change-related task.<\/p>\n

That being said, change is often unpredictable<\/a>. It can affect your team\u2019s readiness levels in unprecedented ways, even for tasks they previously demonstrated mastery for. Here at The Center for Leadership Studies (CLS), we often say that when change hits, readiness shifts.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s critical that leaders remain aware of their followers\u2019 Performance Readiness\u00ae for each new, change-related task as well as their ongoing tasks. Doing so allows them to better understand how the change is impacting their team and what\u2019s needed from them as a leader. From there, the right leadership style becomes clear.<\/p>\n

Identifying the Best Leadership Style for Your Unique Situation<\/h2>\n

When it comes to finding the best leadership style for managing the changes you\u2019re dealing with, the key is to think situationally.<\/p>\n

Remember, the leadership style that worked well in managing one change task might not work as well in managing another.<\/p>\n

For instance, say your company onboarded a new hire<\/a>. The new hire does not have experience in this role at your company and is insecure for their new tasks. They need to know what\u2019s expected of them and how to get started. Knowing this, you employed an S1 or \u201cTelling\u201d leadership style to provide guidance and get the new hire headed in the right direction.<\/p>\n

Then, say your company wants to implement a new communication platform. Your team members might not understand why they\u2019re being asked to switch platforms or how they should go about doing so but trust the organization and your leadership enough to be willing to try it. In this scenario, you might consider using an S2 or \u201cSelling\u201d leadership style to give your team a better understanding of the \u201cwhy\u201d behind this move so you can reinforce buy-in.<\/p>\n

In both situations, a change occurred. But the leadership style did not stay the same. That\u2019s because the right leadership style is not one-size-fits-all. No one leadership style is going to be effective at managing all types of change.<\/p>\n

Instead, the best leadership style for managing change is going to be the one that best suits the situation and best accommodates your team\u2019s unique challenges and needs.<\/p>\n

Master Change With The Center for Leadership Studies (CLS)<\/h2>\n

Nowadays, change management is one of the most critical skills a leader can have. Hone it with our course, Situational Change Leadership\u2122<\/a><\/em>. Designed to guide leaders through the steps of embracing and managing change, this course empowers leaders and their teams to become champions of change.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/section>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Change is happening faster and more frequently than ever before. According to Accenture\u2019s 2024 Pulse of Change Index, the last four years has seen the rate of change affecting businesses rise by 183%. In the last year alone, it\u2019s risen by 33%. To manage this onslaught of change effectively, modern leaders need to develop a solid approach to smoothly navigate the nuances of any situation, including situations of uncertainty.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2448,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[24],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2440","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nWhich Leadership Style is Best for Managing Change?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Discover which of the four primary leadership styles is the best for managing (and leading through) change.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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