Leadership Styles and Models for Nurse Team Coordination

This report examines the crucial role of leadership in the healthcare sector, emphasizing the need for continuous reforms and effective coordination of nursing teams. It identifies transformational, democratic, and transactional leadership styles, analyzing their suitability for healthcare scenarios. The report includes a comprehensive literature review of scholarly articles, evaluating the impact of different leadership approaches on staff engagement and organizational performance. It then develops a situational leadership model, based on the Hersey-Blanchard model, to guide nurse team coordination. This model emphasizes the importance of adapting leadership styles to the specific situation and the maturity level of the team members. The report concludes by highlighting the importance of a flexible approach to leadership, essential for fostering a leaderful culture within healthcare organizations, promoting high-quality patient care, and improving the overall efficiency of healthcare operations. The report uses various leadership theories and models to formulate a comprehensive analysis of leadership in the healthcare sector.

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Introduction:
The health care sector needs continuous reforms to provide safe, effective and
appropriate care. Effective leadership is necessary to lead and drive the constant changes in the
healthcare sector. An effective leader can guide her co-ordinate to accomplish the goal. Strong
leadership in Healthcare can encourage other nurses to perform as a team. To provide the best
Healthcare, the leader of the nurse has to communicate and motivate subordinate nurses. A
combination of different leadership style can be beneficial to lead that nurse team. A registered
nurse, who has the responsibility to co-ordinate the team must have effective leadership ability.
Without leadership ability, it is difficult to co-ordinate the sub-ordinate nurses. This report will
identify the effective leadership style which can be most effective in the given scenario. An ideal
leadership model will be developed in this report which will be helpful to manage the given
scenario. The literature review will be done to analyse the issue in-depth. An effective leader has
the responsibilities to develop a leaderful culture in the workplace. Obstacles of developing the
leaderful culture will be identified.
Literature review:
In this part, literature will be critically evaluated to analyse the significance of leadership
in health care in-depth. It will be helpful to get a clear idea about the leadership styles and
significance of leadership in healthcare.
“Leadership Theory in clinical practice” is written by Jie-Hui Xu (Xu, 2017).
Appropriate leadership ensures a high-quality healthcare system which can deliver safe and
efficient care. Healthcare professionals or coordinator of a nurse team should have the capability
to analyse relevant leadership style. The aim of this article to analyse common health care

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scenario and evaluate the effectiveness of leadership. Leadership is a process which motivates
others and guides them on what should be done to achieve both individual objectives and shared
objectives. Leadership is an important part of Management which enhance efficiency to
accomplish organisational objectives. An efficient leader plays a significant role in Healthcare
(Xu, 2017). This article aims to analyse several leadership theories and identify the most suitable
leadership style for healthcare. This article explorers several leadership styles, theories and
identify the relationship of those leadership styles with healthcare (Xu, 2017). This article
evaluates three leadership styles which are Transformational leadership, Democratic leadership
and Transactional leadership. According to the author of this article, the relationship between the
leader and followers can be explained by the Transformational leadership. In this leadership, the
leader has the ability to influence the subordinate or nurses to perform at their best level, which
can help the health care organisation to provide the best quality service (Xu, 2017). The
Expectations, opinion and inspirations of the nurses are adjusted by the leader to achieve the
shared objectives (Mittal & Dhar, 2015). According to Bernard M. Bass, there are four
components of this leadership style which are ideal impact, intellectual stimulation, personal
consideration and strong motivation (Tucker & Russell, 2004). There are pieces of evidence
which reflect that this leadership style ensures the satisfaction of the subordinate employees or
nurses and maximise their commitment to the healthcare organisation. In this leadership style
qualities and personalities of the leader is used by the leader to influence the follower and
motivate them to accomplish the shared objectives. To influence the subordinate employees, the
leader has to develop a relationship of trust with his subordinate employees or nurses (Xu, 2017).
The relationship of Trust must contain fair, honest and openness. The relationship of trust can
motivate the subordinate nurses or employees to become independent about the decision making

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process. Secondly, effective communication between the leader and the subordinate employees
for nurses is necessary to accomplish the ultimate objectives. The leader has a responsibility to
enhance the self-confidence of subordinate nurses. The second leadership style which is
discussed by the author of this article is Participative leadership or Democratic leadership. In
this leadership style, team members or subordinate nurses contribute to the decision-making
procedure (Xu, 2017). Followers and subordinate nurses feel more engaged in this leadership
style by this initiative. This initiative motivates subordinate nurses to become more committed
towards the shared objectives (McKeown & Carey, 2015). In the IT sector, hospitals, universities
and Pharmaceutical firms this leadership is widely used (Grimm, 2010). In this leadership style,
the leaders act as a facilitator and share information with subordinate employees. According to J.
W. Grimm, Participative leadership style supports nurses to carry out both individual
responsibilities and shared responsibilities (Grimm, 2010). A Participative leader controls steam
but allows them to participate in the decision making procedure. A Participative leader evaluates
most of the decisions with the team members and encourages subordinate nurses to share their
opinion regarding the issue (Xu, 2017). In this article, a comparison between the participative
leadership and transformational leadership is done, which reflects that both of these leadership
styles have the ability to provide the best quality services. Based on the scenario the leader has to
select a leadership style which can fulfil the target. Another additional leadership theory is
analysed in this article which is Transactional Leadership. In this leadership style, the leader set
a clear goal for the team member and by achieving that goal the team member can receive
rewards and by failing to achieve the target the team can receive punishments (Aga, 2016). In
exchange for additional rewards, a transactional leader motivates the employee to achieve the
objectives (Xu, 2017). Transactional leadership portrays the roles and expectations of the leaders

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and followers (Menon, 2014). Thus the author of this article concludes that the most effective
strategy will be applying different leadership style for different situation. The leader must have
the ability to exhibit a specific approach in a specific situation to accomplish the objectives of the
organisation.
“Clinical leadership and hospital performance: assessing the evidence base” is written
by F.Serto and G.Veronesi (Sarto & Veronesi, 2016). Involvement of clinicians in the
management and governance roles can increase the effectiveness of the healthcare organisation.
However, whether the participation of clinicians in the management and governance role of
health care organisation can enhance the effectiveness of healthcare organisations or not is
analysed in this article. To analyse this issue, the author of this article examined scientific papers,
which are published in English journals and conference proceedings. Boolean search strategy
from ISI web of science citation and search source is used by the author to develop this article
(Sarto & Veronesi, 2016). Nineteen papers are analysed and the Thematic mapping system is
applied to conduct the research (Sarto & Veronesi, 2016). Clinical leadership contains certain
features, which are inspiring, improving values, and vision (Swanwick & McKimm, 2017). By
using clinical experience, a clinical leader fulfils the needs of the patient (Jonas et al., 2011).
After analysing these articles the author of this article emphasizes on certain issues which are the
rule of clinical leadership on the management of operational resources and financial resources,
the impact of clinical leadership on the quality of care and the impact of clinical leadership on
the social performance of the hospital (Grindel, 2016). This article finds that clinical leadership
can create a positive impact in the healthcare management sector. However, there are certain
articles which suggest that this leadership style created a negative impact on the social
performance and financial sector (Sarto & Veronesi, 2016).

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“The influence of nurse manager leadership style on staff nurse work engagement” is
written by Manning, Jennifer (Manning, 2016). This study aims to analyse the impact of the
leadership style followed by the nurse manager on the work engagement office staff nurse.
Whether the leadership style followed by the nurse manager can enhance the work engagement
of the staff nurse or not is analyse in this study. A descriptive correlational research design is
used by the author to analyse the impact of the nurse manager's leadership style on the staff nurse
(Manning, 2016). In the transformational leadership, the manager develops value and bring
positive change in the staff nurse. A transformational leader is interested to develop the followers
as future leaders (Long et al., 2014). In the transactional leadership by providing rewards and
punishments the leader promotes compliance. In the passive avoidant leadership style, manager
little attention to subordinates. In this leadership style, the leader provides attention only when
the stop nurses have done something wrong (Northouse, 2018). This study finds that by
following Transactional leadership style, the nurse manager can influence the staff nurses
(Manning, 2016). To enhance the work engagement of the staff nurse, this leadership style can
be used. By following Transformational leadership, nurse manager can motivate the staff nurse.
Through this style, the leader can boost the work engagement of the staff nurse (Manning, 2016).
A leader who follows Passive-avoidant leadership style can create an adverse impact on the work
engagement of staff nurse (Abdelhafiz et al., 2015). So it can be said that to improve work
engagement and organisational outcome transformational and transactional leadership style can
deliver it positive impact on the staff nurse (Hamstra et al., 2014).
“Leadership special interest group: what is leadership?” is written by James. K (James,
2015). According to the author of this article, both business organisation and Health Care
Organisation needs a leader who ability to stimulate innovation, deliver strategic direction,

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ability to knowledge improvement and manage change. An effective leader must have the ability
to control specific task and employees behaviour which are appropriate for the situation
(Northhouse, 2018). Situational leadership is widely appreciated leadership style which can be
effective for Healthcare organisation according to this leadership different situations needs
different leadership styles. In this leadership style, a leader can modify the leadership style based
on the situation (James, 2015). There are certain benefits of this leadership style which are
flexibility practical approach and easy to use for the leaders. As a nurse coordinator, to manage
that team of nurses, the Situational leadership can be useful. Based on the situation the leader
will identify the necessary steps, which must be taken to achieve the objective (James, 2015).
Leadership model:
In this part, the situation of the workplace will be analysed to develop the leadership
model. Leadership style, which can be useful for coordinating the sub-ordinate nurses, will be
identified in this part. In the literature review part, several leadership styles are discussed which
are transformational leadership style, transactional leadership style, democratic leadership style,
clinical leadership style, passive-avoidant leadership style and situational leadership style. After
analysing all these leadership styles, it can be said that as a coordinator of the nurse team the
coordinator can use situation and leadership style to manage the nurse team.
In this part, the leadership framework will be developed which can develop a Leader Full
practice culture in the Healthcare organisation. To develop the leadership framework, the
Hersey-Blanchard model will be used. This model refers that following a single leadership is not
sufficient. This model refers that the leader must modify his leadership styles according to the
situation, subordinate employees, and their capabilities (Gruhlke, 2015). According to this
model, a leader should follow Situational leadership style which does not only task-relevant but

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also relationship relevant (Lynch, 2015). Situational leadership can be appropriate for this model.
In this leadership style, leaders are encouraged to evaluate the present situation and the abilities
of subordinate employees. Before choosing the leadership style, a proper analysis of the
situation, employees and their abilities are necessary to achieve the goal.
Paul Hersey and Ken Blanchard developed this model. This model is very much flexible
where the leader adapts leadership style based on several factors of the workplace which includes
the present situation, relationship with employees, and ability of the employees. The level of
maturity of the team member or subordinate employees for nurses is a very important factor for
this model (Wright, 2017). If the maturity level of staff nurses are high then the leader has to
deliver minimum guidance. On the other hand, if the maturity level of the staff nurses is low then
the leader has to provide accurate direction and monitor their work closely to achieve the
business objectives. This model divides the maturity level the followers into three categories,
which are high, moderate and low. Highly mature staff nurses will be efficient and confident
who have enough experience to fulfil their responsibility on their own. The label of moderate
mature employees is divided into two groups. The first group staff nurses have sufficient ability
but lack of confidence is a reason for which they need guidance. The second group of nurses has
enough confidence but they are not interesting to fulfil their responsibility on their own. Lastly,
low maturity staff nurses do not have enough skill to fulfil the responsibilities but they are
enthusiastic (Egan, Zigarmi & Richardson, 2019).
The Hersey-Blanchard Model refers to four different types of leadership style which
depends on the task and relationship, which is experienced by the leader in the workplace. Those
four leadership styles are delegating style, participating style, selling style and telling style
(Wartiningsih et al., 2018). In the delegating style, the leader allows the subordinate members for

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staff nurses to take responsibility for the decisions regarding the task (Thompson & Glasø,
2018). When the leader has highly mature employees for staff nurses, in this situation the leader
can utilise this leadership style. The characteristics of this leadership style are low-task and low
relationship style. In the participating leadership style, the leader motivates the subordinate
employees to share innovative ideas and their decisions about the situation. The characteristic of
this style is low-task and high relationship style. A leader can utilise this style to influence
moderate followers, who not only have experience but also have low confidence. The leader has
to guide the moderate followers to fulfil their responsibilities. In the selling style, the leader
influences the subordinate employees with his Ideas and explains the task according to his ideas.
The characteristics of this style are high-task and high relationship style. To guide moderate
followers a leader can use this leadership style. Subordinate employees or staff nurses, who has
enough skill and ability to fulfil the responsibility but they are not interested to do their job, can
be guided by the leader through this style. In the telling style, the leader has to provide
appropriate direction to the subordinate employees and monitor their work closely. The
characteristic of this style is high-task and low relationship style. To control the low matured
followers, the Leader can use this leadership style. This type of employees is enthusiastic. By
getting proper guidance from the leader, they can fulfil their responsibilities.
In this part, the advantages and disadvantages of this model will be analysed. Though this
leadership model may be very practical in theory yet it may not be suitable to apply in every
situation. The positive aspect of this leadership style is that the leader can modify his leadership
style based on the situation the ability of the staff nurses and understanding between the staff
nurses. Secondly, this model is easy to apply for the leader. By analysing the entire situation the
leader can take decisions which is most suitable to manage the situation. Thirdly by following

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this leadership style, the leader influences the employee and boosts employee engagement in the
workplace. On the other hand, there are certain disadvantages of situational leadership. The
leader may have too much responsibilities to manage the entire team. The decisions of the leader
may be flawed if he has to manage excessive responsibilities. Secondly in different cultures, the
efficiency level of this model decreases. Relationships and tasks are prioritised by this mode,
which may affect the long-term objectives of the organisation (Zigarmi & Roberts, 2017).
In this part, the model will be applied in the health care organisation. The coordinator,
who works as a registered nurse in the ward, has the responsibility to manage the team of nurses.
The coordinator can manage the team of nurses according to the situation, understanding and the
ability of the nurses. By analysing these three factors the coordinator can identify three the
strengths weaknesses and ability of the staff nurses (Cote, 2017). An appropriate structure,
proper monitoring, and appropriate control can help the coordinator to accomplish the shared
objectives. Based on the situation ability of the staff nurses, the leader will fix an appropriate
leaders trip style. Leadership style may vary from situation to situation. Based on the situation,
shift timing of the nurses and work pressure, the leader has to choose a leadership style, which
can help the healthcare organisation to provide the best quality healthcare services to the patients
(McCleskey, 2014). To enhance employee satisfaction the coordinator can offer a flexible work
schedule to the staff nurses. This initiative of the coordinator not only boost employee
satisfaction but also maximise employee engagement. By getting this benefit from the
coordinator they can fulfil their responsibilities efficiently.
However, this model has certain limitations. The control of the leader is important for this
model. Authority of the coordinator may be restricted by the Operation head or the hierarchy
system, which is followed by the authority of this healthcare organisation (Sethuraman & Suresh,

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2014). In this situation, the coordinator may be forced to adopt rigid styles. In this situation,
without analysing the follower maturity the coordinator may have to choose a leadership style. A
narrow field of options can restrict the control of the coordinator. The control of the coordinator
may be affected by time constraints. The number of staff nurses may create an impact on the
coordinator's control. The control of the coordinator may be affected by the availability of assets.
It may be possible that some nurses have the ability and skills but they are not interested to take
responsibilities. In this situation, the coordinator has to take the responsibility to motivate them
to take responsibility and use their skills, experiences and ability (Meier, 2016). It is possible that
there are some nurses in the team, who are very much enthusiastic about their responsibilities but
they do not have enough skills, abilities and experiences. To manage these nurses, the
coordinator has to provide accurate guidance and closely monitor their activities. So it can be
said that the coordinator can use the situational leadership style to manage the nurse team.
Without being dependent on a specific leadership style the coordinator can manage the nurse
team appropriately by following the situational leadership style (Meier, 2016).
In this part, the way the coordinator can manage the obstacles will be discussed. The
coordinator has to analysis the strength of the nurse team. Based on the number of nurses
coordinator can create a plan to maintain a successful rotation. This initiative will help the
coordinator to reduce the work pressure on the nurse team. The coordinator has to create a
positive relationship with the nurse team. By understanding the abilities of the nurses, the
coordinator can fix a plan for flexible work shifts. This initiative of the coordinator will help him
to maximize employee satisfaction. A proper analysis of the ability of the nurses is necessary,
which will identify the ability, skills, strengths and weaknesses of every individual nurse. This
information will be useful for the coordinator to create a work schedule for the nurses. It can be

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said that the Coordinator has to be proactive to manage the nurse team. By creating a positive,
trustworthy relationship with the nurse team, the coordinator can manage the nurse team
effectively. It will help the coordinator to use the nurse team to achieve the shared objective,
which is delivering the quality services to the patients.
Conclusion:
Thus to conclude, since this concerns a registered nurse in a ward, who acts as a
coordinator and manages a team of nurses, the form of leadership is based on this background.
Unlike other sectors which need leadership skills, this particular sector cannot function based on
only one particular style. One style would not prove beneficial and thus a combination of styles
have been chosen to execute the work at hand. This includes leadership ideas like democratic,
transactional, transformational and clinical. All these leadership styles have been well elaborated
earlier. Along with these, two other styles which are essential to this form of leadership are
passive-avoidant and situational. All the above-mentioned leadership styles have been discussed
and classified. After performing a literature review of nursing leadership, it was found that
situational leadership is best suited to govern and manage a nurse team. Again, the leadership
model that has been finally designed to manage a team of nurses is done on the basis of Hershey
Blanchard model. This will help the leader not only to manage the team well but also to yield a
good amount of productivity thereby also keeping an eye on the necessities and demands of the
nurses.

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