You have noticed that one of your team members is not following through on the part of a project assigned to him. He is very motivated and has told you he wants a promotion; however, his recent actions are contradictory to his goal. The current staffing situation does not allow you to reassign the project to someone else in your work group. What would you do? Circle your answer.

A. Do nothing and hope the problem takes care of itself.

B. Tell him that if he wants the promotion, he will need to finish the project in 1 week.

C. Allow your follower to complete the task, and only intervene if you notice a problem.

D. Allow your follower to complete the task, watch to see if he makes mistakes, and—if so—intervene to correct them.

E. Mentor your follower one-on-one and discuss how doing this task will help him learn new skills. Remind him of how important the project is to the overall vision and strategy of the organization, and be a positive role model.

Discussion Questions

1. Identify the approach you chose above from the full-range leadership development model (e.g., transactional/management by exception—passive [MBEP] or transformational/Four I’s).

2. Explain why you would use this approach, citing the full-range leadership development model.

3. Compare your responses to the two case studies. Are you consistent with your leadership style, or do you adopt a contingency approach to leadership by changing your leadership style based on the circumstances?