MANAGERRIAL GRID

1. Blake and Mouton proposed a managerial grid based on

the styles of “concern for people” and “concern for

production,” which essentially represent the Ohio State

dimensions of consideration and initiating structure or the

Michigan dimensions of employee-oriented and

production-oriented.

D. The Managerial Grid (cont.) Notes:

2. The grid has nine possible positions along each axis,

creating 81 different positions. (See Exhibit 11-1).

3. The grid shows the dominating factors in a leader’s

thinking in regard to getting results.

4. Based on the findings of Blake and Mouton, managers

were found to perform best under a 9,9 style, as contrasted,

for example, with a 9,1 (authority type) or 1,9

(lassiez-faire type) style. Unfortunately, the grid offers a

better framework for conceptualizing leadership style than

for presenting any tangible new information.

OHIO STATE:

1. The most comprehensive and replicated of the behavioral

theories resulted from research that began at Ohio State

University in the late 1940s. These researchers sought to

identify independent dimensions of leader behavior.

2.They narrowed over a thousand dimensions into two

dimensions—initiating structure and consideration.

3.Initiating structure refers to the extent to which a

leader is likely to define and structure his/her role and

those of employees in the search for goal attainment.

A. The Ohio State Studies (cont.)

Notes:

.It includes attempts to organize work, work relationships,

and goals.

.The leader high in initiating structure could be described

as someone who “assigns group members to particular tasks,”

“expects workers to maintain definite standards of

performance,” and “emphasizes the meeting of deadlines.”

4.Consideration is described as “the extent to which a

person is likely to have job relationships that are

characterized by mutual trust, respect for employees’ ideas,

and regard for their feelings.”

•The leader shows concern for followers’ comfort,

well-being, status, and satisfaction.

.A leader high in consideration could be described as one

who helps employees with personal problems, is friendly and

approachable, and treats all employees as equals.

5.Leaders high in initiating structure and consideration

tended to achieve high employee performance and satisfaction.

.The “high-high” style did not always result in positive

consequences.

.Leader behavior characterized as high on initiating

structure led to greater rates of grievances, absenteeism,

and turnover, and lower levels of job satisfaction for

routine tasks.

.High consideration was negatively related to performance

ratings of the leader by his/her superior.

University of Michigan Studies

1. Leadership studies were undertaken at the same time as

those being done at Ohio State, with similar research

objectives. They discovered two dimensions of leadership

behavior—employee-oriented and production-oriented.

2. Employee-oriented leaders emphasized interpersonal

relations. They took a personal interest in the needs of

their employees and accepted individual differences among

members.

3. The production-oriented leaders tended to emphasize the

technical or task aspects of the job—group members were a

means to that end.

4. Michigan researchers’ conclusions strongly favored the

leaders who were employee oriented. Employee-oriented

leaders were associated with higher group productivity and

higher job satisfaction.

5. Production-oriented leaders tended to be associated

with low group productivity and lower job satisfaction.