fixed location on the grid.

They adopt whichever behaviour offers the

The model

greatest personal benefit.

The model is represented as a grid with concern for production as the xaxis andconcern for people as the y-axis; each axis ranges from 1 (Low)
to 9 (High). The resulting leadership styles are as follows:

The indifferent (previously called impoverished) style (1,1): evade

and elude. In this style, managers have low concern for both people
and production. Managers use this style to preserve job and job
seniority, protecting themselves by avoiding getting into trouble. The
main concern for the manager is not to be held responsible for any
mistakes, which results in less innovative decisions.

The paternalistic style: prescribe and guide. This style was added to
the grid theory before 1999. In The Power to Change, it was
redefined to alternate between the (1,9) and (9,1) locations on the
grid. Managers using this style praise and support, but discourage
challenges to their thinking.

Behavioral elements
Grid theory breaks behavior down into seven key elements:
Element

Description

The accommodating (previously, country club) style (1,9): yield and

Initiative

Taking action, driving and supporting

comply. This style has a high concern for people and a low concern

Inquiry

Questioning, researching and verifying understanding

for production. Managers using this style pay much attention to the

Advocacy

Expressing convictions and championing ideas

security and comfort of the employees, in hopes that this will

increase performance. The resulting atmosphere is usually friendly,
but not necessarily very productive.

The dictatorial (previously, produce or perish) style (9,1): control and

Decision making Evaluating resources, choices and consequences

Conflict resolution Confronting and resolving disagreements
Resilience

Dealing with problems, setbacks and failures

Critique

Delivering objective, candid feedback

dominate. With a high concern for production, and a low concern for
people, managers using this style find employee needs unimportant;
they provide their employees with money and expect performance in
return. Managers using this style also pressure their employees
through rules and punishments to achieve the company goals. This
dictatorial style is based on Theory X of Douglas McGregor, and is

The importance of communication in an organization can be

summarized as follows:

Communication promotes motivation by informing and

clarifying the employees about the task to be done, the manner
they are performing the task, and how to improve their
performance if it is not up to the mark.

Communication is a source of information to the

organizational members for decision-making process as it helps
identifying and assessing alternative course of actions.

Communication also plays a crucial role in altering individuals

attitudes, i.e., a well informed individual will have better attitude
than a less-informed individual. Organizational magazines,
journals, meetings and various other forms of oral and written
communication help in moulding employees attitudes.

Communication also helps in socializing. In todays life the only

presence of another individual fosters communication. It is also
said that one cannot survive without communication.

commonly applied by companies on the edge of real or perceived

failure. This style is often used in cases of crisis management.

The status quo (previously, middle-of-the-road) style (5,5): balance

and compromise. Managers using this style try to balance between
company goals and workers' needs. By giving some concern to both
people and production, managers who use this style hope to achieve
suitable performance but doing so gives away a bit of each concern
so that neither production nor people needs are met.

The sound (previously, team style) (9,9): contribute and commit. In

this style, high concern is paid both to people and production. As
suggested by the propositions of Theory Y, managers choosing to
use this style encourage teamwork and commitment among
employees. This method relies heavily on making employees feel
themselves to be constructive parts of the company.

The opportunistic style: exploit and manipulate. Individuals using this

style, which was added to the grid theory before 1999, do not have a

What is communication and

what happens when there's a
lack of communication?

The concept or state of exchanging information

between entities; The potential for information
exchange; A message
without communication there is a lack of
connectedness among things, as information can't
be transmitted without communication.
Lack of communication can just cause
misunderstanding and increase the distance
between two people... Communication is the basic
foundation of any relationship!

One way communication is when information is

shared to others without a response. This would
include posting a memo for staff members to read.
Two way communication involves information being
shared back and forth. Such as a staff meeting
where info is given and staff members are permitted
to ask questions and give there input.