Today I want to share my opinion about how the Contingency Leadership Theories can be applied among 21st Century leaders. Contingency leadership theory suggests that there is no one “best” leadership style, and that the most effective leadership style depends on the situation and the individuals involved. In other words, leaders should adapt their leadership style to fit the needs of their team and the task at hand.
To know better about Contingency leadership, let’s find out in the Sir Ernest Shackleton story about his mission to Antarctica. After we learned from his story we can know whether this style is still applicable among 21st-century leaders.
can you Imagine being trapped in Antarctica for two whole years, cut off from the world and struggling to survive? Sounds like something out of a movie, right? Well, it happened to a group of explorers. the leader was Sir Ernest Shackleton. Hmm, we are really curious about: how did they manage to stay alive?
Shackleton is one of those project managers who implement extreme agile concepts. He dreamed of becoming the first explorer at the south pole, he threw a contest to anyone who wanted to be involved in the expedition. The ship is called Endurance.
Unfortunately, Endurance was destroyed by ice, but he and his crew survived by floating on the ice sheet for months until they reached Elephant Island in 2 years later. Elephant island is the depo where he and his team can extend their life through fulfilling logistic needs like food. Despite facing an impossible journey, he can bring them from isolated area in great condition both mental and physical.
For his mission to Antarctica, he wrote a contest. In the competition it is written that the crew is wanted for dangerous exploration, small wages, cold, very long journeys of months2, full of uncertainty, full of danger, the opportunity of a return is very doubtful. But if this mission is successful, it will be remembered and respected for all time.
He acquired the team by make announcements like a contest. it describes the mission as dangerous, with small wages, long and uncertain journeys lasting for months, and full of danger. The chance of returning home is also uncertain. However, if the mission is successful, it will be remembered and respected for all time. Surprisingly there were dozens of applicants who wanted to join the journey, however, only 27 crews were selected to join the mission. He only selected talented people. Prior to the journey, He used a more task-oriented leadership style. He gave the 27 crew with different jobs, He also rotate the jobs so all the crew can do many things like chef, doctor, mountaineer, sailor, and many more
Boss was his nickname, and his crews talk with him by saying The Boss. During the early part of the journey, the Endurance became trapped in ice-filled waters. Shackleton instructed the crew to dig up ice fragments to free the ship, but what he did was ineffective as the ice refroze was too thick. During ice trapped, He used a dominant style, so all the crew must follow his order and next instructions
During daunting days, getting frustrated easily was real because they didn’t know exactly when the ice will be melting. One way to reduce anxiety, and stress during waiting periods is to engage in different activities, just like Shackleton and his crew did. They cleaned the ship together and held costume contests and football games. Keeping busy with fun activities can help pass the time and boost morale. The crew kept saying his leader with the Boss after the activities were done, and they suddenly said, “What are we going to do next Boss?.
He was incredibly brilliant in making the days fun in dangerous environments. He kept throwing the activities every day with full patience and persistence. Shackleton was able to maintain their motivation and hope. Until, when they faced Endurance was broken and broken with leaks occurring everywhere, Shackleton made the difficult decision to abandon the ship and search the nearest depot, Elephant Islan. In the most anxious period, Shackleton change his dominant style to a mostly adapted relationship-leadership style to increase his crew trust and also motivation. He knew that the crew was his asset and not only just asset, but his part of the expedition. They were not just a crew but a family. He was responsible to return them and make them stay alive.
Next, He used a map and compass to predict the location of a depot on Elephant Island. He instructed his team to bring lifeboats, supplies, tents, and dogs to aid in transportation through the snowy terrain. the crew initially consumed fish and seals as part of their diet. Sadly The dogs intended for transport were eventually shot and eaten by the crew during a waiting period since the logistics were absolutely depleted.
At the end, Shackleton never reached Antarctica but he gave inspirational leadership value to us since they can maintain their team in great physical condition over the years. How come the crew trust him so much? We know that the wage was small and there were not guarantees they will return again?
Shackleton was skilled at communicating with his crew and worked to build trust-based relationships with each member. He spoke honestly without fake, embarrassment, or scolding. Each interaction with the crew is personal and involves informal conversation so he know about their emotions, aspirations, and preferences in order to establish a mutually beneficial relationship.
Shackleton adopted situational leadership where he can be so power with full of instruction at the beginning especially when delegating the task and other risky decision he used to be more, dominant in leadership. However he also can be so close to their crew, like making informal conversation, throwing a mini contest while waiting for the ice to melt over the months, giving diffrenets award to the crew about the contest. The contest aims to reduce the anxiety within his crews. So, they allowed the crew to join the mini competition, but limit the access about the risky decision like abandon the ship.
So guys, that’s the story of Sir Ernest Shackleton, He was a skilled leader who fostered strong relationships between himself and his followers. He was an effective communicator, motivator, and emotionally intelligent, which led his crew to have faith in him and his leadership. Shackleton never broke the trust his crew had in him. He can connect with their followers on a personal level and understand their needs and motivations. This enables him to create a strong sense of trust and loyalty among their team members. So this is the main reason why the crew never leaves the boss and is always loyal to him although the circumstances is not logic. His characters are very important over centuries.
Now, let’s go back again to the first idea, can Contingency Leadership Theories be applied among 21st Century leaders? The answer is definitely yes, since the world is impacted by VUCA, VUCA stands for Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity, and refers to the current state of the world where change happens quickly and unpredictably then best leadership style is a leadership that can adress VUCA it self. The impact of VUCA can be seen in various aspects of our lives, including politics, economics, and social issues.
In Shackleton story, we never expected the ending story would be like that, so he use different leadership style to keep the crew sane and physically alive. In a daunting and uncertain situation, we cannot stick to one leadership style. We must know the follower first, maintaining their motivation, being a good role model. It’s so easy for Shackelton to abandon the ships and forget the crew, bu he never betray what trust was built on him. That’s way the crew had so much trust on him and let him and other crew to search for a depo for couple months while the remaining crew stay on the ice while waiting for them. So being a leader, must know how to be the Boss, a friend, a family, a motivator, a joker at the same time. What a marvelous job!
the youtube version of my opinion can be found in this link: