| Course | LDR 310 Applied Leadership Capstone (LDR/310) |
|---|---|
| Week | 2 |
| Paper type | Leadership problem analysis |
| Length | about 1,043 words, 4 double-spaced pages plus title page and references |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | University of Phoenix |
| Program | BS in Business |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for LDR 310 Week 2
Why Seasonal Crews Leave Before Labor Day: Analyzing a Leadership Problem at a Missouri Marina Company With Turnover and Socialization Research
[Student Name]
University of Phoenix
LDR/310: Applied Leadership Capstone
Week 2 Assignment
[Instructor Name]
[Date]
Harbor Point Marinas, its staff and its data are composites written for a model paper.
The first week's proposal named the problem at Harbor Point, the invented three-marina business: its dock leads have never been prepared to lead, and that gap feeds both early quitting and accidents at the fuel docks. Assistant operations manager Devon Marsh's self-assessment revealed that he often takes over problems instead of coaching leads. Before designing a solution, the problem needs a clearer diagnosis. This paper reviews research on turnover and newcomer adjustment and analyzes Harbor Point's data to find root causes.
A Century of Turnover Research
Hom et al. (2017) reviewed a hundred years of turnover research. Early work focused on job satisfaction and alternatives; later work added organizational commitment, shocks that prompt leaving and the forces that keep people in jobs. They noted that turnover is shaped by individual attitudes, the work environment and supervisors, and that understanding when people leave, not only whether, helps target interventions.
Why People Stay
Mitchell et al. (2001) asked why people stay rather than why they go and proposed job embeddedness as an answer. Three anchors keep someone in a role: friendships and connections around the work, a good match between the job and the person's life and the price of giving it up. Those anchors predicted who stayed better than satisfaction alone did. Seasonal workers start with few links and little to sacrifice, which makes them easy to lose.
How Newcomers Adjust
Bauer et al. (2007) conducted a meta-analysis of newcomer socialization and found that role clarity, self-efficacy and social acceptance were key indicators of adjustment. These, in turn, related to job satisfaction, commitment, performance and intention to stay. Organizational socialization tactics and newcomers' information seeking supported adjustment. Most of Harbor Point's seasonal workers are newcomers each summer, so socialization matters greatly.
The Data
The analysis used exit interviews from 38 workers who left early last season, payroll records showing start and end dates for all 124 seasonal workers, incident reports for 11 fuel dock incidents and short interviews with six returning dock leads.
When People Left
Departures came in two waves. About 40 percent of early leavers quit within their first two weeks. Another 35 percent quit between late June and mid-July, the busiest stretch around the Fourth of July holiday. The rest left in August for other reasons, mainly early returns to college.
Why the First Wave Left
First-wave leavers described not knowing what to do, being thrown onto the fuel dock on a busy weekend after a two-hour orientation and feeling that no one knew their name. These comments correspond to low role clarity, low self-efficacy and low social acceptance in Bauer et al.'s terms. Workers whose dock leads had spent time training them in the first week stayed at higher rates.
Why the Second Wave Left
Second-wave leavers described exhaustion and unpredictability: schedules posted only days ahead, double shifts called on short notice and frustration when they could not get a weekend off for a family event. Several mentioned a better offer from a restaurant or another marina, consistent with alternatives and shocks in Hom et al.'s review.
New workers decided to leave in their first two weeks because nobody showed them the job, and veterans left in July because nobody protected their time.
What Stayers Said
Workers who stayed through Labor Day offered a contrast. Many mentioned a particular dock lead or coworker who had shown them the ropes, and several said they returned because friends from the previous summer were coming back. These are links in the embeddedness model. Stayers also described knowing what to expect each week, which they credited to the two marinas where leads informally planned schedules ahead. The comparison suggests that the conditions for staying already exist in pockets of the company and could be spread deliberately.
Incident Patterns
Of the 11 fuel dock incidents, eight involved workers in their first month. Common factors included unfamiliarity with fueling procedures, rushed service when lines formed and no lead on the dock at the time. Dock leads reported being pulled to rental docks when those got busy.
The Role of Dock Leads
The data point to dock leads as central. They could provide role clarity through training, social acceptance by welcoming new workers, safety through presence on the fuel dock and schedule stability by planning ahead. Yet they receive no training in these tasks and little authority, as Week 1 found.
Causes Within and Beyond Influence
Within influence: onboarding, dock lead preparation, scheduling practices and coverage of fuel docks. Beyond influence: the tight local labor market, wages set by the owners and students' college calendars. The capstone will focus on the first group while noting the second.
Limits of the Data
The analysis covers one season, so patterns may shift with weather or the job market. Exit interviews were short and conducted by managers, so some workers may have softened their reasons. Payroll dates are reliable, but incident reports vary in detail across marinas. Despite these limits, the patterns are consistent across sources, which gives some confidence in the diagnosis.
What the Dock Leads Said
The six returning dock leads agreed with the pattern. They said they wanted to train new workers properly but were usually covering a dock themselves, and that schedules arrived from the office too late to plan around. Two said they had never been told they were responsible for safety on the fuel dock. Their comments confirm that the leads have the willingness but not the preparation, time or authority the role requires.
Narrowing the Project
The diagnosis narrows the project to three areas: preparing dock leads to onboard and coach new workers in their first two weeks; giving dock leads scheduling responsibility with posting at least two weeks ahead; and assigning a trained lead to each fuel dock during peak hours.
Conclusion
Research on turnover, embeddedness and newcomer socialization explains Harbor Point's pattern: new workers leave when they lack clarity, confidence and connection, and experienced workers leave when schedules grow unpredictable and alternatives appear. Incidents cluster among new workers without a lead present. Dock leads are best placed to change these conditions, which sets the direction for the remaining capstone work.
References
Bauer, T. N., Bodner, T., Erdogan, B., Truxillo, D. M., & Tucker, J. S. (2007). Newcomer adjustment during organizational socialization: A meta-analytic review of antecedents, outcomes, and methods. Journal of Applied Psychology, 92(3), 707-721. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.92.3.707
Hom, P. W., Lee, T. W., Shaw, J. D., & Hausknecht, J. P. (2017). One hundred years of employee turnover theory and research. Journal of Applied Psychology, 102(3), 530-545. https://doi.org/10.1037/apl0000103
Mitchell, T. R., Holtom, B. C., Lee, T. W., Sablynski, C. J., & Erez, M. (2001). Why people stay: Using job embeddedness to predict voluntary turnover. Academy of Management Journal, 44(6), 1102-1121. https://doi.org/10.5465/3069391
What the LDR 310 Week 2 instructions ask
The second LDR 310 assignment typically asks students to analyze the problem identified in the capstone proposal using research and evidence. Expect to review relevant theory and studies, gather and examine data from the organization, identify root causes and explain how leadership contributes to the problem and could help solve it. Some prompts ask for a literature review section. A strong paper uses research specific to the problem rather than general leadership theory, analyzes the organization's data carefully, distinguishes causes the student can influence from those outside their control and narrows the focus for the rest of the capstone. Cite scholarly sources in APA format.
How this LDR 310 Week 2 example is built
Harbor Point loses nearly half its seasonal workers before Labor Day, and most leave in two waves: after the first two weeks and around the Fourth of July. The paper reviews research on turnover across a century, which identifies predictors such as job attitudes, alternatives and shocks, and the job embeddedness model, which explains why people stay through links, fit and sacrifice. A meta-analysis of newcomer socialization shows that role clarity, self-efficacy and social acceptance drive new employees' adjustment. Exit interviews, payroll data and incident reports show that early leavers lacked role clarity and connection, that July leavers were exhausted by unpredictable schedules and that incidents cluster among workers in their first month. The diagnosis points to dock leads as the people best placed to change these conditions.
LDR 310 Week 2 grading rubric: where the points go
Problem analysis papers are graded on the relevance of research, the quality of data analysis and the clarity of the diagnosis. Strong work reviews research directly related to the problem, analyzes organizational data to identify patterns and root causes and explains the role of leadership in both causing and solving the problem. Graders reward distinctions between causes within and beyond the student's influence and a focused conclusion that shapes the rest of the capstone. Reviewers like to see leavers compared with stayers rather than leavers alone. Tables or clear summaries of data, careful reasoning from evidence to causes and accurate APA references complete a strong analysis.
LDR 310 Week 2 help: mistakes to avoid
A common weakness is a literature review of general leadership theories that never connects to the specific problem. Choose research on the problem itself, such as turnover or safety, and use it to interpret data. Another frequent gap is presenting data without analysis; look for patterns by timing, role, location or tenure. Some students list every possible cause, including many they cannot influence, such as the job market. Note them but focus on what leadership can change. Others jump to solutions before finishing the diagnosis. Save the plan for later weeks. Quote a few exit comments to give the numbers a human face. Finally, explain how your findings narrow the project, since a clear diagnosis makes the remaining assignments easier.
Related LDR 310 sample papers
Other LDR 310 week samples
- LDR 310 Week 1: Self-Assessment and Capstone Proposal
- LDR 310 Week 3: Stakeholders and Change Strategy
- LDR 310 Week 4: Implementation Plan
- LDR 310 Week 5: Capstone Results and Reflection
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LDR 310 Week 2 questions, answered
What does LDR 310 Week 2 usually cover?
It usually covers analyzing the capstone's leadership problem with research and organizational data to identify root causes and explain how leadership can address them.
Where can I find a free LDR 310 Week 2 sample paper?
The Week 2 analysis of seasonal turnover and fuel dock incidents at a composite Missouri marina company is shown above.
What is job embeddedness?
It is a set of forces that keep people in a job, including links to coworkers and the community, fit with the job and organization and what they would sacrifice by leaving.
What helps new employees adjust?
Research identifies role clarity, confidence in doing the job and social acceptance as key indicators of adjustment, supported by structured socialization and helpful insiders.
How do you find the root cause of employee turnover?
Analyze exit interviews, timing of departures, roles and supervisors, then compare leavers with stayers to find patterns that point to causes leaders can change.
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