INTERCONTINENTAL JOURNAL OF HUMAN RESOURCE RESEARCH REVIEW ISSN: 2320-9704 - ONLINE ISSN:2347-1662 - PRINT IMPACT FACTOR:0.875 VOLUME 3, ISSUE 10, OCTOBER 2015
AUTHENTIC LEADERSHIP STYLE VEENA CHRISTY1
Dr S.DURAISAMY2
1
Assistant Professor & Research Scholar, School of Management Studies and Commerce,Vels University, Velan Nagar, P.V. Vaithiyalingam Road, Pallavaram, Chennai. 2 Professor& Research Supervisor, School of Management Studies and Commerce, Vels University, Velan Nagar, P.V. Vaithiyalingam Road, Pallavaram, Chennai.
ABSTRACT It‟s no secret that bad bosses are the reasons for a many to seek better options. When employees feel that they are relating to a machine and not a real person who cares, bleeds, cries, or loses sleep over serious problems, theytend to disengage. Keeping in mind the significant costs which erupt due to the leadership failure to enhance employee turnover, this paper is an attempt to give attention to the employee perception of leaders. Using an existing pre tested questionnaire, a micro survey of employees in IT companies of Chennai was conducted and the results discussed. Keywords: Leadership, Leadership style, Authentic Leadership Style. INTRODUCTION Leaders of today are expected to value the human resources of their organizations and provide an environment that promotes individual contributions to the organization's work. People yearn for personalized leadership that speaks to their hearts and inspires them to do things they didn‟t know they were capable of accomplishing. It is always been a nightmare to work in an atmosphere where you don‟t feel a sense of synergy with your boss. Eleanor Roosevelt has rightly mentioned, “To handle yourself, use your head; to handle others, use your heart”Consistently, research tells us that the leadership traits of the person in charge works either as a magnet toattract, retain, and inspire, or as a force that repels. According to Avolio and Gardner, the foundation of the influence of leadership rests in the nature of the leader and his exemplary behavior. Among the various forms of positive leadership models like charismatic, transformational or ethical, Authentic Leadership style is emerging as a dominant one.(Avolio& Gardner, 2005; Avolio, Gardner, Walumbwa, Luthans, & May, 2004; Gardner, Avolio, Luthans, May, & Walumbwa, 2005; Luthans&Avolio, 2003) The conception of authenticity dates back to 1950s when humanistic psychologists first recorded authenticity as a echo of the analogy between one‟s self-concept and immediate experiences (Rogers, 1959, 1963) or realisation of self-actualization (Maslow, 1968). Erickson (1995) and Harter (2002) provided exhaustive reviews of the literature on „authenticity‟. Modern conceptualizations of authenticity are influenced by the self-determination theory (Deci and Ryan, 1995) which highlights that authenticity is related to high levels of self-determination. Goldman and Kernis (2002) and Kernis (2003) have described authenticity as a psychological construct which reflects the passable operation of one‟s true, or core, self in one‟s everyday enterprise. Referring to Maslow (1968) and Rogers (1959), Goldman (2006) observes that „psychological authenticity can be theorized as a vibrant set of processes by which one‟s full innate nature is discovered, accepted, instilled with meaning, and actualized‟ (p. 134).
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INTERCONTINENTAL JOURNAL OF HUMAN RESOURCE RESEARCH REVIEW ISSN: 2320-9704 - ONLINE ISSN:2347-1662 - PRINT IMPACT FACTOR:0.875 VOLUME 3, ISSUE 10, OCTOBER 2015 PERCEPTION OF AUTHENTIC LEADERSHIP STLYE George (2003) notes that authentic leaders feel that their leadership role has a deep sense of purpose. Their acts always reflect their principal values. They see themselves as stewards and servants and lead withtheir hearts as well as their heads while at the same time, building enduring organizations. Goffee and Jones (2005) make the point that aleader cannot define himself or herself as an authentic leader.Only the people who experience the leader canascribe authenticity to the leader. Authenticity is onlyperceived by others. It is the perception of the employees or the followers that theleader is real, sincere, and defined by honesty andintegrity. These authors state that no one can declare,“I am authentic.” That characteristic must be attributed byothers.. OBJECTIVE The Primary objective of this study is to assess the authentic leadership style quotientportrayed by the leaders in software MNCs in Chennai. As justified above no leader can claim himself to be authentic. Hence the perception of the team members about the authentic leadership style of their boss is captured through a survey instrument. LITERATURE REVIEW Several authors suggest that any industry needs effective leadership to defend the challenges it faces (Bresnen, 1986; Skipper and Bell, 2006). Thetrials faced by leaders as emphasised by Songer et al. (2008) include: difficulties in attracting talent, globalization, various workforce issues, change/transition and teamwork/communication. Authentic leadership is gaining ground amongst growing global concerns regarding rising social costs of business and the resultant demands for authenticity (Gardner et al 2005, Klenke 2007). Scholars have attempted to link authentic leadership with Positive Organizational Behaviour (POB) literature (Gardner &Schermerhorn 2004, Luthans&Avolio 2009, Yammarino et al 2008) Equally, it fulfils the three criteria for inclusion into POB: a) based on theory, research and measurement, b)statelike in being open to change and development, and c) impacting performance in organizations (Avey et al 2009). Also, it is close to several POB constructs such as psychological well-being, psychologicalcapital, positive organizational scholarship, and character strengths and virtues.It is important to understand how authentic leadership relates to these constructs considering their potential to influence work performance and psychological well being of employees (Gardner &Schermerhorn 2004, Kahn 1990, Ryan & Deci 2001). Authentic leaders exhibit integrity, sustained performance, construct trust and sincerity, and help followers recognize their real potentials (Gardner et al. 2005). These behaviours are expected to enhance the ownership of employees as identified by Kahn (1990). Through positivemoulding and convincing visions, followers of the authentic leaders are likely to adopt organizational goals (Gardner et al. 2005). Thus their extrinsic motivationswould resemble intrinsic motivationin effect and the goals will become moremeaningful (Ryan & Deci 2000). MEASUREMENT SCALE In order to record the perception of Authentic Leadership style, an existing pre tested questionnaire was used. The 16 item scale developed by Walumbwa & Colleagues was used. The actual scale without any modifications was the survey instrument. The scale included items such as
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INTERCONTINENTAL JOURNAL OF HUMAN RESOURCE RESEARCH REVIEW ISSN: 2320-9704 - ONLINE ISSN:2347-1662 - PRINT IMPACT FACTOR:0.875 VOLUME 3, ISSUE 10, OCTOBER 2015 “My Supervisor… Demonstrates beliefs that are consistent with actions” and the respondents were asked to respond based on how frequently their leader exhibited these traits in a scale from 0 – not at all, 1- once in a while, 2- sometimes, 3 – fairly often, 4 – frequently/Always. FINDINGS Demographic Profile of Respondents Table No: 1 Table Showing Gender of Respondents Gender No. of Respondents Percentage Male 27 67.5 Female 13 32.5 Total 40 100
67.5% of respondents were male employees.
Table No: 2 Table Showing Age of Respondents Age No. of Respondents Percentage 20-30 28 70 30-40 12 30 Total 40 100 Table No: 3 Table Showing Qualification of Respondents Qualification No .of Respondents Percentage BE 27 67.5 BSc 8 20 MSc 5 12.5 Total 40 100 .Table No: 4 Table Showing Designation of Respondents Designation No. of Respondents Percentage Software trainee 4 10 Software Engineer 19 47.5 Software Analyst 10 25 Team Lead 7 17.5 Total 40 100 Table No: 5 Table Showing Income of Respondents Income No. of Respondents Percentage 20K-40K 32 80 41K-60K 4 10 61K-80K 2 5 81-1L 2 5 Total 40 100
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70% of respondents are aged between 20 to 30 years.
67.5% of respondents were qualified with a BE degree
47.5% of respondents are employed as Software Engineers
The salary drawn by 80% of respondents is between Rs.20,000 to Rs.40,000 per month
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INTERCONTINENTAL JOURNAL OF HUMAN RESOURCE RESEARCH REVIEW ISSN: 2320-9704 - ONLINE ISSN:2347-1662 - PRINT IMPACT FACTOR:0.875 VOLUME 3, ISSUE 10, OCTOBER 2015 Table No: 6 Table Showing Duration of employment of Respondents Duration No. of Respondents Percentage < 1 year 18 45 1-2 year 6 15 2-3 year 2 5 > 3 years 14 35 Total 40 100 Table No: 7 Table Showing Marital Status of Respondents Marital status No. of Respondents Percentage Unmarried 17 42.5 Married 23 57.5 Separated 0 0 Total 40 100
45% of the respondents were employed within a year.
57.5% of respondents are married.
Scale Statistics Below is the mean, standard deviation and variance for each item in the scale. The lowest mean recorded signifies that the leaders exhibited Authentic leadership “sometimes” which is not a bad sign.
Table No: 8 Descriptive Statistics N Mean Std. Varianc Deviation e
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ALS1 ALS2 ALS3 ALS4 ALS5 ALS6 ALS7
40 40 40 40 40 40 40
2.22 2.07 2.45 2.65 2.43 2.68 2.57
1.349 1.403 1.239 1.292 1.279 1.071 1.338
1.820 1.969 1.536 1.669 1.635 1.148 1.789
ALS8 ALS9 ALS10 ALS11
40 40 40 40
2.95 2.48 2.27 2.75
.986 1.320 1.320 1.056
.972 1.743 1.743 1.115
ALS12
40
2.78
1.074
1.153
ALS13
40
2.75
1.056
1.115
ALS14 ALS15 ALS16
40 40 40
2.45 2.60 3.05
1.300 1.172 .986
1.690 1.374 .972
Valid N (listwise)
40
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INTERCONTINENTAL JOURNAL OF HUMAN RESOURCE RESEARCH REVIEW ISSN: 2320-9704 - ONLINE ISSN:2347-1662 - PRINT IMPACT FACTOR:0.875 VOLUME 3, ISSUE 10, OCTOBER 2015 Summated Score In order to find the Authentic Leadership style quotient, a summated score is arrived at by calculating the sum of frequencies recorded against each item of the scale. Table No: 9 Table showing the Perception of Authentic Leadership style Responses
Frequency
Percentage
Not at all
44
6
Once in a while
77
12
Sometimes
178
28
Fairly often
151
24
Frequently/ always
190
30
Total
640
100
It can be inferred that 190 responses were recorded against the best scale value – Frequently/Always, which accounts to the highest percentage of the responses and hence we can understand that the respondents feel that their leaders are authentic.
Though the highest percentage recorded signifies positively, the range / dispersion of the trait is equally high. This dilutes the significance of the results and underpins the state of affairs. Since the importance of Authentic Leaders cannot be underestimated, it poses a question of concern for organisations to react proactively. LIMITATIONS 1. As 70% of the respondents are in the age group of 20 to 30, their ability to judge the actions of their leaders is a matter of concern. 2. Nearly, 45% of the respondents were employed in their respective organisations and hence their understanding of the organisational culture may be biased.
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INTERCONTINENTAL JOURNAL OF HUMAN RESOURCE RESEARCH REVIEW ISSN: 2320-9704 - ONLINE ISSN:2347-1662 - PRINT IMPACT FACTOR:0.875 VOLUME 3, ISSUE 10, OCTOBER 2015 CONCLUSION The Superior – Subordinate relationship in an organisation is vital to the most important aspect of human capital i.e., employee retention. In spite of all the compensations an organisation may plan to retain their employees, good work relations is a great source not only to retain but also to make them put in their best efforts to accomplish organisational goals. Though many efforts are invested by organisations to acquire the best talent, leadership failure begets employee disengagement and finally yields in deterioration of organisational effectiveness. REFERENCES 1. Avey, J. B., Avolio, B. J., Crossley, C. &Luthans,F. (2009), “Psychological ownership: Theoreticalextensions, measurement, and relationto work outcomes”, Journal of OrganizationalBehavior, 30 (2), 173-191. 2. Avolio, B J-, & Gardner.W.L. (2005). Authentic leadership development:Getting to the root of positive forms of leadership. The LeadershipQuarierly./Ö, 315-338. 3. Avolio, BJ., Gardner, W.L., Walumbwa, F.O., Luthans, F.. & May, D.R.(2004). Unlocking the mask: A look at the process by which authenticleaders impact follower attitudes and behaviours. The LeadershipQuarterly, / 6, 801-823. 4. Bresnen, M.J. (1986) The leader orientation of constructionsite managers. Journal of Construction Engineering andManagement, 112(3), 370–86. 5. Deci, E.L. and Ryan, R.M. (1995) Human autonomy: thebasis for true self-esteem, in Kemis, M. (ed.) Efficacy,Agency, and Self-esteem, Plenum, New York, pp. 31–49. 6. Erickson, R.J. (1995) The importance of authenticity for selfand society. Symbolic Interaction, 18(2), 121–44. 7. Gardner, W. L., Avolio, B. J., Luthans, F., May,D. R. & Walumbwa, F. (2005). “Can You See the Real Me? A Self-based Model ofAuthentic Leader and Follower Development”, Leadership Quarterly, 16(3): 343–72. 8. Gardner, W. L. &Schermerhorn, J. R. (2004),“Unleashing Individual Potential Performance Gains Through Positive OrganizationalBehaviour and Authentic Leadership”,Organizational Dynamics, 33(3):270-81. 9. George, B. (2003). Authentic leadership: Rediscovering the secretsto creating lasting value. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. 10. Goffee, R., & Jones, G. (2005).Managing authenticity.HarvardBusiness Review, 83(12), 8594. 11. Goldman, B.M. and Kernis, M. (2002) “The role ofauthenticity in healthy psychological functioning and subjective well-being”, Annals of the American PsychotherapyAssociation, 5, 18–20.
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INTERCONTINENTAL JOURNAL OF HUMAN RESOURCE RESEARCH REVIEW ISSN: 2320-9704 - ONLINE ISSN:2347-1662 - PRINT IMPACT FACTOR:0.875 VOLUME 3, ISSUE 10, OCTOBER 2015 12. Goldman, B.M. (2006) Making diamonds out of coal: therole of authenticity in healthy (optimal) self-esteem andpsychological functioning, in Kernis, M.H. (ed.) Self-Esteem Issues and Answers: A Sourcebook of CurrentPerspectives, Psychology Press, New York, pp. 133– 9. 13. Harter, S. (2002) “Authenticity, in Snyder, C.R. andLopez”, S.J. (eds) Handbook of Positive Psychology, OxfordUniversity Press, London, pp. 382–94. 14. Kahn, W. A. (1990),” Psychological Conditionsof Personal Engagement and Disengagement at Work”, Academy of Management Journal,33(4): 692-724. 15. Kernis, M.H. (2003) “Toward a conceptualization of optimalself-esteem”,Psychological Inquiry, 14, 1–26. 16. Klenke, K. (2007), “Authentic Leadership: A Self,Leader, and Spiritual Identity perspective”,International Journal of Leadership Studies,3(1): 68-97. 17. Luthans, F., &Avolio, B. (2003).Authentic leadership development.In K.S.Cameron, J.E., Dutton, & R.E. Quinn (Eds.), Positive organizationalscholarship. Foundations of a new discipline (pp. 241-259). SanFrancisco: Berrelt-Koehler. 18. Luthans, F. &Avolio, B. J. (2009), “The „Point‟of Positive Organizational Behaviour”. Journal of Organizational Behavior,30(2):291-307. 19. Maslow, A.H. (1968) Toward a Psychology of Being, 2nd edn,Van Nostrand, Princeton, NJ. 20. Rogers, C.R. (1959) “A theory of therapy, personality andinterpersonal relationships, as developed in a clientcenteredframework, in Koch”, S. (ed.) Psychology: AStudy of a Science, McGraw-Hill, Toronto, pp. 184–256. 21. Rogers, C.R. (1963) “The actualizing tendency in relation to„motives‟ and to consciousness, in Jones”, M.R. (ed.)Nebraska Symposium on Motivation, 11, University ofNebrasksa Press, Lincoln, NE, pp. 1–24. 22. Ryan, R. M. & Deci, E. L. (2000), “Intrinsic andExtrinsic Motivations: Classic Definitions and New Directions”, Contemporary EducationalPsychology, 25(1), 54–67. 23. Ryan, R. M. & Deci, E. L. (2001), “On Happinessand Human Potential: A Review of Research on Hedonic and EudaimonicWellbeing”, Annual Review of Psychology, 52(1): 141-66. 24. Skipper, C.O. and Bell, L.C. (2006) “Influences impactingleadership development” Journal of Management inEngineering, 22(2), 68–74. 25. Songer, A., Chinowsky, P. and Butler, C. (2008) “Leadershipbehaviour in construction executives: challenges for thenext generation”,Construction Information Quarterly, 10(2), 59–66.
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INTERCONTINENTAL JOURNAL OF HUMAN RESOURCE RESEARCH REVIEW ISSN: 2320-9704 - ONLINE ISSN:2347-1662 - PRINT IMPACT FACTOR:0.875 VOLUME 3, ISSUE 10, OCTOBER 2015 26. Yammarino, F. J., Dionne, S. D., Schriesheim, C.A. &Dansereau, F. (2008), “Authentic Leadership and Positive OrganizationalBehaviour: A Meso, Multi-level Perspective”, Leadership Quarterly, 19(6): 693-707.
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