Primary Task Response: Within the Discussion Board area, write 350–500 words that respond to the following questions with your thoughts, ideas, and comments. This will be the foundation for future discussions by your classmates. Be substantive and clear and use examples to reinforce your ideas.

This week, the discussion will focus on contingency theory. This theory has been most recognized by the work of Fiedler. Research the work of Fiedler on contingency theory, and respond to the following questions:

• What is      your understanding of contingency theory? 
• Why is      authentic leadership important to contingency theory?  
• Describe      the differences and similarities of path-goal theory, Blanchard’s      situational theory approach, and Fiedler’s contingency theory

In addition to addressing all requirements of the assignments, model answer includes the following:

• Contingency theory is based on the premise that leaders      understand the situation in which that they would be most effective.      Authentic leadership requires a commitment to undertaking a journey to      better understand oneself and leadership style.
• Your answers may vary. However, theories are measuring      different things. Where Blanchard is measuring the overall effectiveness      of a leader’s ability to address each situation with the style needed to      be successful, Fiedler is measuring where the leader is most effective and      states that a leader is not effective in every situation.
• There are similarities in the approach of assessing a      situation and recognizing potential gaps in subordinates and then applying      the leadership that would fill those gaps. Path-goal theory focuses on 4      varieties of leadership that are different from situational theory:      directive, supportive, participative, and achievement-oriented. Where      Blanchard focused on how situational theory provided the best leadership      for a specific situation, path-goal theory describes the influence on the      subordinates’ performance. 
• Path-goal theory includes motivational theory, which is      important but is not an emphasis on Blanchard’s situational leadership      theory.
• If leaders want to be effective, they must be able to      give subordinates what they need to compensate for the gaps in      subordinates’ abilities (these gaps are found in the subordinates’      characteristics) and make changes based on the type of tasks. The goal is      to use the leadership style that best motivates the employee to be      effective in his or her job.

Additional Resources:

• Bayan, Y. F. (2018). Application of path-goal      leadership theory and learning theory in A learning organization. Journal      of Applied Business Research, 34(1), 13-22.
• Bickle, J. T. (2017). Developing Remote Training      Consultants as Leaders-Dialogic/Network Application of Path-Goal      Leadership Theory in Leadership Development. Performance Improvement,      56(9), 32–39.

In preparation for your research, select an individual currently in a  leadership position. The person must be responsible in some capacity for  other employees, and the person must be an individual that can be  researched.

Overview
In your overview of the leader, include:

• The leader’s name and title.
• His or her specific role or position and responsibilities.
• The name, industry, and description of the organization, including the culture of the organization.
• The length of time the leader has been in his or her current position.
• A brief history of the leader’s background and career path to his or her present day leadership position.

Analysis
Your analysis should:

• Describe, assess, and analyze the person’s leadership style. Be sure to provide specific examples.
• Identify and describe three significant challenges they faced as a leader.
• Identify and describe their greatest achievement, to date, as a leader.
• Apply and correctly cite a minimum of three leadership concepts from  the course to this leader’s roles and responsibilities within the  organization, their relationships with others, etc.
• Use these concepts to help describe the person’s leadership style and assess what makes it effective or ineffective.
• Reflect on what you learned about leadership from your research.
• Reflect on the implications for your personal leadership style.

Writing the Final Paper:
The Final Paper:

• Must be eight to ten double-spaced pages in length (excluding the  title and reference pages) and formatted according to APA style 

Locate an article from a scholarly journal or industry magazine about a specific arbitration case, involving a union or non-union, related to the topics introduced in Chapter 5 of your textbook. Some topics to consider, but not limited to, bargaining, negotiations, norms, and zone of possible agreement. The article must have been published in the past five years. The format for the article critique is as follows:

• Article Title
• Journal Name and Date
• Key Points: (Five to seven key ideas from the article)
• Summary: (Two to three paragraphs summarizing the article in your own words)
• Personal Evaluation: (Two to three paragraphs highlighting the relevance of this article to your position or occupation, your agreement or disagreement with the author and/or findings, and any additional insights you may have.)

Note: The arbitration does not need to be one specifically related to your occupation. It can involve any job field

Your response must be a minimum of two pages. All sources used, including the textbook, must be referenced; paraphrased and quoted material must have accompanying citations in APA format.