Applying Blake and Mouton’s Managerial Grid

Applying Blake and Mouton’s Managerial Grid

In an article about Blake and Mouton’s model it is described how to put the Managerial Grid successfully into use. The authors identified three steps, which will be outlined below:

1. Leadership Style Identification: It is important to first identify at what position on the grid you are, or in other words what managerial pattern you are following.
2. Identification of Leadership Skills that can be Improved / Developed: This step includes a critical analysis of the efficiency of your current leadership style. If weaknesses are found, improving those is the following step. This can be done by looking at those skills necessary for the best position in the grid, the "Team" Leadership position (9,9). After having identified the skills needed, performance must continuously be audited to avoid falling back to the current managerial pattern.
3. Finding the right context for the grid: Sometimes the Team Leadership grid is not the best approach you can use. For example, in situations of companies transitioning their business it might be necessary to pay more attention to people. Or when dealing with internal economic problems it can be possible that concern for the employees can be better put on the back burner in the short-run, so that the company can fully focus on its production.

Please share any further tips or experiences in applying the managerial grid! Thank you.
H.Zeidan. (2009). The Blake Mouton Managerial Grid: Identifying five different leadership styles. The Certified Accountant, 3rd Quarter, issue 39..