| Course | MGT 424 Leadership |
|---|---|
| Module | Module 4 |
| Paper type | Situational leadership paper |
| Length | About 1,042 words, 6 pages |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Aspen University |
| Program | Business Administration |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for MGT 424 Module 4
One Style for Twelve Staff and 140 Volunteers: Situational and Path-Goal Leadership at an Animal Shelter
Student Name
Business Administration Program, Aspen University
MGT 424: Leadership
Instructor Name
Month Day, Year
One Style for Twelve Staff and 140 Volunteers: Situational and Path-Goal Leadership at an Animal Shelter
Desert Paws Animal Shelter, a composite nonprofit in Tucson, Arizona, houses about 220 dogs and cats at a time and places about 4,000 animals a year. Its kennel manager supervises eight kennel technicians, a four-person behavior team that works with fearful and reactive dogs, and about 140 active volunteers who walk dogs, clean and help at adoption events. She is respected, kind and trusting, and she leads everyone the same way: a brief orientation, then freedom to work. The shelter has problems that may relate to that style. Half of new volunteers stop coming within two months, two volunteers were bitten last spring while walking dogs they were not cleared to handle, and senior technicians complain that every small decision still goes through her. This paper applies situational and contingency theories to her leadership.
Life Cycle Theory
Hersey and Blanchard (1969) proposed that the right leadership style depends on how mature followers are with respect to a particular task, meaning their ability and willingness. They combined two kinds of leader behavior, task direction and relationship support, into four styles. With followers new to a task, a leader should tell, giving high direction and little relationship talk. As followers gain some ability but still need encouragement, the leader should sell, combining direction with support. As ability grows but confidence wavers, the leader should participate, sharing decisions and offering support. With capable and committed followers, the leader should delegate. The theory became popular in training programs.
Path-Goal Theory
House (1971) offered a different contingency view, drawn from expectancy ideas about motivation. A leader's job, in his account, is to make the route to followers' goals clearer and easier, and to tie rewards to reaching them. What a leader should do depends on what the situation and the followers lack. When tasks are unclear, directive behavior helps. Where the work wears people down through stress, tedium or frustration, a leader's support fills the gap. Where followers already know the work well and it calls for judgment, inviting them into decisions pays off.
What the Evidence Says
Thompson and Vecchio (2009) tested three versions of situational leadership with employees and their supervisors and found little support for the original model's predictions or for its revision. The clearest finding was simpler: newer and less capable employees benefited from more structure from their supervisors, while more capable employees did not need it. The test suggests treating the theory as a reminder to vary direction by experience, not as a precise chart.
Five Groups of Followers
| Group | Skill and commitment | Nature of task | Recommended behavior |
|---|---|---|---|
| New volunteers, first two months | Low skill, high enthusiasm | Unfamiliar; some dogs risky | Directive: buddy shifts, clear rules on which dogs to walk |
| Experienced volunteers | Good skill, steady commitment | Familiar, sometimes dull | Supportive: recognition, variety, a voice in events |
| New kennel technicians | Moderate skill, uncertain confidence | Physically demanding, stressful | Coaching: direction plus encouragement |
| Senior kennel technicians | High skill, high commitment | Familiar, many small decisions | Delegating: authority over daily kennel decisions |
| Behavior team | High skill, emotionally draining work | Complex, stressful | Participative and supportive: shared decisions, debriefs |
Why One Style Fails
Her warm, low-direction style fits experienced volunteers but leaves new volunteers without the structure Thompson and Vecchio found beginners need, which helps explain early dropouts and the bites. At the other end, senior technicians lack the authority delegation would give them. The behavior team's work, which often ends in difficult decisions about dogs that cannot be placed, is the kind of stressful task where House's theory calls for support.
Recommended Changes
New volunteers will complete three buddy shifts with an experienced volunteer, and a color-coded collar system will show which dogs each volunteer is cleared to walk. Experienced volunteers will be invited to plan adoption events and will receive a quarterly thank-you gathering. New technicians will meet the manager weekly for their first three months. Senior technicians will hold a weekly decision meeting, without the manager, to decide kennel assignments and cleaning schedules. The behavior team will hold a debrief after every difficult case, which the manager attends.
The Manager's Own Situation
Contingency thinking applies to the leader as well. The kennel manager supervises more than 150 people across seven days a week and cannot personally direct every new volunteer. That is why the plan relies on experienced volunteers as buddies and on senior technicians to run daily decisions, spreading the work of leadership across the people who already know the job. House's theory notes that leadership is partly a matter of filling gaps in what followers receive from other sources; well-trained buddies can supply much of the direction new volunteers need, freeing the manager for the groups that need her most.
Risks of the Plan
Some long-time volunteers may resent the collar system as a sign of distrust. The manager will explain that it protects volunteers as well as dogs, after last spring's bites, and will invite experienced volunteers to help write the clearance rules. Senior technicians may make decisions she would not, and she will need to accept some of those decisions to make delegation real.
Adjusting Over Time
Followers move between groups. A volunteer cleared for all dogs moves from directive to supportive leadership, and a new technician who shows strong judgment moves toward delegation. The manager will review each person's group every quarter.
What Volunteers Said
A short survey of volunteers who had stopped coming found that most left because they felt unsure what to do and afraid of making a mistake with a large dog, not because they lost interest. That answer points directly to the directive structure the plan adds.
Measures
The shelter will track the share of new volunteers still active after two months, bite incidents, the number of decisions the senior technicians make without escalation and behavior team turnover.
Conclusion
The kennel manager's single style fits some followers and fails others. Hersey and Blanchard's model and House's path-goal theory both point toward varying direction and support, while Thompson and Vecchio's evidence suggests the most reliable lesson is to give newcomers structure. Matching behavior to five groups should keep more volunteers, protect them and free experienced staff to lead their own work.
References
Hersey, P., & Blanchard, K. H. (1969). Life cycle theory of leadership. Training and Development Journal, 23(5), 26-34.
House, R. J. (1971). A path goal theory of leader effectiveness. Administrative Science Quarterly, 16(3), 321-339. https://doi.org/10.2307/2391905
Thompson, G., & Vecchio, R. P. (2009). Situational leadership theory: A test of three versions. The Leadership Quarterly, 20(5), 837-848. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.leaqua.2009.06.014
What the MGT 424 Module 4 instructions ask for
Situational and contingency approaches in Aspen's MGT 424 hold that effective leadership depends on followers and circumstances, and this paper typically asks students to apply them to a leader with varied followers. Base the work on your classroom's Module 4 prompt; one shelter's kennel manager is studied here. Explain at least two situational or contingency theories, including what evidence says about them. Describe the leader's current approach and the followers' differences in skill, commitment and task. Match leader behaviors to each group with reasons. Note where the theories disagree or fall short, and what the evidence says about each. Recommend how the leader should adjust, and describe the evidence that would show the adjustment is working.
How this MGT 424 Module 4 example is built
The paper opens with Desert Paws Animal Shelter, where a kennel manager supervises kennel technicians, a behavior team and volunteers who walk and socialize dogs. Her style is warm and trusting with everyone; new volunteers receive a two-hour orientation and then work alone. Hersey and Blanchard's Training and Development Journal article links telling, selling, participating and delegating to follower maturity. House's Administrative Science Quarterly article explains how leaders clarify paths and remove obstacles. Thompson and Vecchio's Leadership Quarterly study found little support for the full model but some support for giving new employees more structure. A table matches five groups to behaviors, from directive coaching for new volunteers to delegation for senior technicians. The plan adds buddy shifts, a weekly technician decision meeting and support for the behavior team's stressful work.
Where the marks sit in the MGT 424 Module 4 rubric
Situational leadership papers are graded on accurate explanation of the theories, honest treatment of the evidence and specific matching of behavior to followers. This example presents two theories and then uses Thompson and Vecchio's test to qualify them, which shows critical reading. The follower groups are described by skill, commitment and task, the variables the theories require. The table matches behaviors to groups with reasons. Path-goal theory adds attention to task stress, which the life cycle model lacks. Measures tie the plan to volunteer retention, safety, animal outcomes and staff decisions, and the paper considers the leader's own limits.
Common MGT 424 Module 4 mistakes, and how to avoid them
Situational leadership papers often assign each follower a style from a chart without checking whether the theory is supported. Report what research has found, including its limits. Another weakness is describing followers vaguely; specify their skill, commitment and the nature of their tasks. Use more than one theory, since each highlights different needs. Make the recommended behaviors concrete, such as a buddy shift or a weekly decision meeting. Consider that followers change over time and the leader must adjust again. Finally, measure whether the changes help, for example through retention or the quality of work. Consider the limits on the leader's own time.
Write yours, or have the desk draft it
This paper is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Aspen University document. Read it for the moves, then write your own to the instructions in your classroom. If you want one built to your exact prompt and rubric, the first custom sample is free and arrives in 24 to 48 hours.
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MGT 424 Module 4 questions, answered
What does MGT 424 Module 4 usually ask for?
Aspen's MGT 424 covers situational and contingency leadership in this module, so applying these theories to a leader with varied followers is typical. Look at your classroom prompt.
What is situational leadership?
Hersey and Blanchard's theory that leaders should adjust how much direction and support they give according to followers' maturity or readiness.
Is situational leadership supported by research?
Only partly. Thompson and Vecchio found little support for the full model but some support for giving newer employees more structure.
Where can I find a free MGT 424 Module 4 sample paper?
The example above matches an animal shelter kennel manager's behavior to five groups of staff and volunteers using situational and path-goal theory.
What is path-goal theory?
House's theory that leaders motivate followers by clarifying paths to goals, removing obstacles and providing what the situation lacks, such as direction or support.