Situational Leadership Interview

Chloe Birkholt

Creighton University
 The right style of coaching that a leader needs to provide in order to create positive

growth can be difficult to develop. Coaches use the Behavior Engineering Model to assist them

in identifying underlying barriers that prevent the goals and change from occurring. The

Situational Leadership Model and Executive Coaching Guide allows a coach to structure

meetings with their clients in order to give the best guidance they can for that particular person. I

had the privilege of interviewing the President of Frontier Bank, Kevin Munro. Throughout my

interview I was able to use these three models to construct follow up questions based on Mr.

Munro’s answers. It was evident by the end of the interview what style of coaching best suited

him and provided him the best opportunity to encourage growth in his employees.

SITUATIONAL LEADERSHIP MODEL

Situational leadership provides guidance for executive coaches to adjust their leadership

styles with their client’s level of readiness to perform the tasks asked of them. The coach must

assess their client’s level of relationship behavior, which is the support provided, and their task

behavior which is the level of direction needed. The combination of the levels of support and

direction makes up the four styles of the Situational Leadership Model. Both task and

relationship behaviors are ajusted to the client readiness levels, which is then separated into four

categories using the combination of their willingness and ability. Kevin was a readiness level 4,

because he is able, willing, and confident. When coaching him, I would not need to provide as

much support, but I would continue to monitor progress as well as prepare for the next session.
 EXECUTIVE COACHING GUIDE (ASSESSMENT PHASE)

The assessment phase is the first step for an executive coach prior to the

intervention/meeting, in which they must prepare(S4), assess(S3), and diagnose(S2) their client.

Coaches must establish rapport and gain the trust of their client before the can intervene. While

preparing, the coach will need to research the client and the client’s environment, as well as plan

their goals and strategies for the next session. Before I met with Mr. Munro, I researched

Frontier Bank as well as his credentials, and the bank is currently expanding with the new

leadership of Kevin. I wanted to make sure I was able to create questions that catered toward him

and Frontier Bank. I was able to using style 3, (creating high relationship but low task) while

interviewing him. I tried to build rapport throughout our talk, so I did not seem like I was trying

to attack his leadership when I was talking about what I had learned in class. I also used open

ended questions, which are critical to understand his point of view on the situations he discussed

with me. As the interview progressed and I had built some level of trust, because he wanted to

use what I have learned this semester, with his company. In any coaching meeting, the coach can

move onto the Diagnose step after they have built trust and ask open ended questions. When a

coach begins to diagnose the situation, they move on to style 2, which is high task and high

relationship. Questions start to become more straight forward in order to deeply understand their

client’s current issues that need to be changed. It is important for the coach to help their client

find and understand the performance gaps, as well as any potential underlying causes. Being sure

to clearly define the performance issues is critical before moving on to the next step of

determining the client’s readiness level (Goldsmith et al., 2012).

 BEHAVIOR ENGINEERING MODEL

The behavior Engineering Model explains the six factors that coaches have to put into

consideration when they make their initial assessment of their client. The model splits up these

factors into two categories, the client themselves and their environment. The first area of this

model is environmental, which includes the factors of information, resources, and incentives. Mr.

Munro made it sound like he well equips his employees with all of the proper factors. The

information factor makes sure clear expectations are available, feedback is shared with

employees in a timely manner, and any guidance or knowledge is needed to do the work.

Resources include any materials, tools, and time for the employees. In the individual behaviors

factors that are assessed are the individual’s knowledge or skills, capacity, and motives. When a

coach utilizes these factors, they are able to solidify the needs of the executive. The model is

designed for coaches to be able to identify barriers to where there is a gap in performance.

Separating the factors into two groups allows coaches to identify the area that needs

improvement. The Behavior Engineering Model helps give the assessment phase for the coach a

structure to assess their client on individual and environmental factors.

MY ASSESSMENT OF THE INTERVIEW

Throughout the interview I was able to see a humble man talk about his company, and I

could hear the excitement in his voice about the growth of his company. Kevin makes sure his

employees have the information, resources, skills, and knowledge to successfully perform their

jobs, while providing them with incentives and motives. He shared with me how difficult

banking can be with the work from home orders, because you have to have the right set of

technology to make sure the confidentiality of their clients is protected from hackers. He

explained, “I know that banks are considered essential services and our offices are still open, but
my employees have families and I wanted to provided them with a safe way to continue to work

and take care of their family while still protecting our clients.” Mr. Munro also made sure to give

proper feedback in a timely manner by using a plan called 4x2, where he meets with employees

twice a year instead of annually. In these meetings the questions and comments are direct but

allow for free-flowing conversation. He explained there are four open ended questions he asks in

order to have more dialogue with his employees. When I asked about him about the knowledge

and skills he provides his employees, he explained they already are professionals but if they

needed it he would provide assistance. Overall, he seemed to have given his employees a chance

to provide the best work in a positive work environment.

CONCULSION

The right style of coaching that a leader needs to provide in order to create positive

growth can be difficult to develop, but Kevin Munro made it easy with his willingness and high

ability to perform tasks. He gave me a sense of what a humble executive leader looks like, and I

found it very refreshing. The Behavior Engineering Model allowed us to focus on his areas of

growth, and celebrate the areas of success. By using the Situational Leadership Model and

Executive Coaching Guide I was able to provide a well-executed interview, that catered to his

leadership and company, in return opened up our discussion to more leadership opportunities.
 REFERENCES

Goldsmith, M., Lyons, L., & McArthur, S. (2012). Chapter 3. In Coaching for leadership:
Writings on leadership from the world's greatest coaches (pp. 24-34). San Francisco, CA,
CA: Jossey-Bass.