Effective School Management

particular behaviour is quite inappropriate. It is vitally important that we
increase both our
(1) skill in recognizing when a particular form of behaviour is wrong; and
(2) ability to use alternative forms of behaviour.
Remember that as well as ‘concern for results’ and ‘concern for relationships’,
everyone has a third concern –  ‘concern for self’ or, more positively,
for  ‘personal effectiveness’. People – and organizations – will adapt very
quickly to whatever patterns of behaviour are seen to ‘pay off’ and will avoid
patterns which do not ‘pay off’. Thus there is a very interesting interaction
of management styles. If it is clear in an organization that ‘those who
shout loudest get most’, a lot of people will start to shout loudly. If esteem or
salary depends on having a large number of subordinates, empires will be
built.
While it is impossible to provide for every contingency, there are a number
of rules of thumb which the individual manager can use in spotting an
inappropriate use of behaviour on his or her part. Remember that these rules
only apply to inappropriate uses of the different types of behaviour, and that
while assertive behaviour, for example, may have a negative effect on some
people, there are others who like to be dealt with in an assertive way and who
will not respond to anything else.
Different individuals need to be handled in different ways. While some
people may be slow to take action if not ‘chased’, for example, others will be
sufficiently self-motivated to produce the best results when left alone.
In dealing with pupils, the technique of ‘acting’ an emotion is one that
most of us have used. Our response to staff may need the same degree of
control. The danger always is that of getting ‘hooked into’ behaviours which
may be counterproductive.
LEADERSHIP AND JOB EXPERIENCE
In dealing with subordinates the appropriate leadership style may vary
according to how long they have been in the job (Hersey, Blanchard and
Johnson, 1996). In the early days they may look for high task behaviour from
their boss, i.e. for him or her to tell them what is expected and teach them
how to do it in detail. At a second stage a more overtly ‘motivational’ behaviour

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EFFECTIVE SCHOOL MANAGEMENT
may be called for, i.e. agreeing what is expected but leaving the subordinate
more freedom to decide how to carry it out and giving feedback on results. At
the third stage, the employee may simply need positive or negative feedback
on results (a demonstration of genuine interest). Finally, a self-motivated
employee may for most of the time be left to get on with his or her job, though
this approach may never be right for certain subordinates.