Ken Blanchard's Situational leadership II is all about leader (read coach) making a conscious decision on their behaviour to best encourage and support each specific staff member.

How logical does that sound? Its one of those statements that is so obvious, and yet I knew straight away its something I simply have never done.

Blanchard has identified four leadership styles to be associated with four levels of staff development. Ah! I hear you say "I treat different people differently, so I already do this. So there aren't three other ways." But there is a catch? staff development level is based on specific task. Ask yourself, do you treat same staff member differently when in relation to different tasks? This was key for me.

I am fine with treating people differently, but same person depending on task just does not feel right. I can recall in past being sometimes surprised at how someone who has normally managed to quite independently complete tasks, stumble their way through far easier ones. I was not considering person and task combined.

Development Levels Blanchard has defined four levels.

When we start, we know little and are probably not very good at our new job. As an enthusiastic beginner, we are however always keen, showing high commitment as a response to being given opportunity of a new position or level of responsibility.

After some time, commitment wanes as either job is different to expected or maybe harder and progress is slower. This is second level described as disillusioned learner.

As time and experience continue, competence builds, but often commitment lags behind. Still carrying disillusionment, staff member is not so sure about their ability.

Finally, staff member begins to believe in their own abilities and commitment returns to support high capability and they are then defined as aself-reliant achiever. FOR THAT TASK.

I have to keep reminding myself to assess individual on basis of work being done. The rules are based on Competence and Commitment. A good action now is to think of a task or goal recently delegated to a staff member. For that task, are they highly competent? - Can they do it easily? On other side, are they committed? Do they believe they can do it?

Now we know their development level for task or goal, how do we behave?

Ok, you have successfully accomplished your dream of being CEO of a public company. The stock of your company has a symbol and you are continually going to computer to check price, you tell all your relatives and friends and you even tried to encourage them to buy stock.

You think your job is done, you selected and excellent market maker, you released a an announcement to financial news media, but nothing is happening.

If you are playing basketball and you make a three point shot do you sit on court and admire your accomplishment or do you go back and play defense? You do not have to manage price of stock like so many CEO of newly listed companies try to do, instead you go back to work and use newly acquired tools to grow your company.

As a public company now you can now approach investors and let them now that you are working hard to grow company but if they should need some liquidity market will provide it.

You can now go out and retain a public relations firm and make sure that investors know who you are and where to find you. But before you do this make sure that you can afford investors relations company, otherwise you will have to learn how to promote your company and stay within legal boundaries as define by regulators.

You will now be able to attract and retain more highly qualified personnel by offering stock options and bonuses. Because you will need them. With privilege of being a public company comes added responsibility, so you must have highly competent personnel to meet challenge. Now as a public company you have received a tool to help you grow your company. As a public company you have stock with a known market value, The stock can be use for acquisitions.