Empirical investigation of moderating and mediating variables in between transformational leadership and related outcomes

Performance of Academic Staff during COVID-19 Pandemic-Induced Work Transformations: An IPO Model for Stress Management

The COVID-19 pandemic has adversely affected all spheres of services-related business, including the higher education sector. As a pre-emptive measure, almost all traditional educational institutions have been transformed into virtual organizations. This pandemic-induced work transition has created stress among academic staff and has hampered their performance. The present study aims to examine the impact of leadership behaviors, e-training, and employment security on the stress management process, consequently improving employee performance during and after the pandemic. Based on the IPO (input–process–output) model, this study examines the effect of leadership behavior, e-training, and employment security on teaching staff’s tasks and adaptive and contextual performance, mediated by stress management. To test the conceptual model, data were collected from the teaching staff of Malaysian universities. The structural equation modeling technique was used for data analysis, while bootstrapping with the maximum likelihood estimator was used to confirm the mediational role of stress management. The study revealed that task- and relation-oriented leadership behavior, e-training, and employment security positively influence stress management and employee performance in virtual organizations. Moreover, stress management acts as a full mediator in the relationship between leadership behavior and employee performance, while partial mediation occurs between e-training, employment security, and employee performance. This study offers valuable insights into the literature by proposing leadership behavior, e-training, and employment security as input in the stress management process to attain the performance output of teaching staff. Higher education institutions should come forward to assist their teaching employees in managing their stress levels for better outcomes.

Aligning organizational culture to enhance managerial effectiveness of academic leaders: an interface for employee engagement and retention

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to measure the impact of organizational culture on managerial effectiveness of academic leaders to enhance employee engagement and retention in higher educational institutions. This study utilizes “Social Exchange Theory (SET)” as a theoretical lens to clarify the phenomena.

Design/methodology/approach

This study uses an exploratory cum descriptive research design. Data collected via a structured questionnaire was analyzed and interpreted through structural equation modeling.

Findings

Organizational culture is found to have a significantly positive impact on managerial effectiveness. The findings also delineate a positive influence of managerial effectiveness on employee engagement and employee retention.

Research limitations/implications

This study provides insights into the cultural neuances and subtleties of how organizational culture influences managerial effectiveness of institutional leaders. This has a direct bearing upon work engagement and retention of employees. Therefore if leaders focus on organizational culture they will succeed in creating a productive and healthier workplace for their employees. This study is also addressing the strategic concern of sustainability in higher educational institutions through employee engagement and retention.

Originality/value

It is an original work based on primary data to bridge the research gap concerning the prevalent OC shaping ME in Indian higher educational context. It also enriches understanding about alignment of cultural dimensions towards achieving work engagement, and retention of employees through managerial effectiveness of leaders in higher education institutions.

The Influence of Teachers' Self-Efficacy and School Leaders' Transformational Leadership Practices on Teachers' Innovative Behaviour

Background: The current rapid development demands educators to possess innovative behaviour. Presently, in the environment of rapid technological growth and borderless global communication, teachers with innovative behaviour are capable of facing each painful challenge that confronts the education system; therefore, it is essential to understand the factors influencing the innovative behaviour of teachers. Purpose: To identify the influence of teachers’ self-efficacy and school administrators’ transformational leadership practices on teachers’ innovative behaviour. Method: A quantitative approach using a cross-sectional survey design with a sample of 1415 teachers from four states in Malaysia, and the data were statistically analysed using SPSS^® version 26.0 for Windows™ (IBM Corporation, New York, NY, USA). Result: Multiple Regression Analysis found that teachers’ self-efficacy and school administrators’ transformational leadership practices both had a significant influence on teachers’ innovative behaviour by contributing 47.0% of the variance in teachers’ innovative behaviour. Conclusion: The findings suggested that teachers’ self-efficacy and school administrators’ transformational leadership practices both play a role in influencing teachers’ innovative behaviour. Therefore, the stakeholders need to consider the aspects of self-efficacy and transformational leadership practices of school administrators in drafting policies and related programmes to improve teachers’ innovative behaviour.