Introduction The leader-follower-situation framework is an organisational model that is used to analyse leadership in order to determine its effectiveness and efficiency especially during crisis situations (Mitroff 2004). According to the theory, leadership is a function of three distinct components namely a leader, followers, and the situation. The three components can be individually used to examine a leadership crisis situation because they overlap in many areas. Leadership is an outcome of interactions between a leader, followers, and the situation that brings them together (Hollander 2012). The essence of the interactional framework is that the components interact with each other to determine the outcomes of events. Crisis situations are chaotic and dynamic. Therefore, leaders and followers need to change the components in order to achieve favourable results (Hughes, Ginnett & Curphy 2012). The framework can be used by leaders to evaluate their leadership style in order to determine the changes that can be implemented to increase their productivity and efficiency as well as those of their followers (Hollander 2012). Crisis situation: Target Inc. data breach In 2004, Target Inc. (an American retail firm) experienced a crisis situation after its management unearthed a security breach in the company’s payment system. The attackers compromised more than 110 million credit and debit cards belonging to customers (Stout 2014). The firm’s leadership did not manage the situation effectively after identifying the breach because of fears that it would tarnish the firm’s reputation and lead to loss of customers. This situation can be analysed using the leader-follower-situation framework to evaluate the effectiveness of target’s leadership during the crisis. Target’s CEO Gregg Steinhafel displayed exceptional leadership in addressing the crisis that tarnished the firm’s reputation and led to loss of loyal customers. On the other hand, he met the high expectations of both employees and customers in addressing the situation. His embracement of transparency aided his leadership and helped to regain the trust of his employees and some customers. Situation analysis Target’s management became aware of the data breach seven days before they announced it to the public (Stout 2014). A thorough evaluation of the firm’s response to the crisis revealed that delays to announce the attack led to more security breaches and financial losses. Target was slow in announcing the security breach and as a result compromised the security of the customer who used their cards after the attack (George 2014). The firm revealed that the situation lasted for approximately three weeks. Effective leaders realize that their response to crisis situations determine the reactions of their followers and the outcome of the situation (Mitroff 2004). The first step that Target’s CEO Gregg Steinhafel took was to admit the security breach and take responsibility as the leader of the firm (George 2014). This decision was aimed at maintaining the confidence and trust of the customers. As part of taking responsibility for the crisis, Steinhafel announced that his organisation would take liability for all losses incurred by