Leadership Style and Its Impact on Employees

FACULITY OF GRADUATE STUDIES MBA PROGRAM THE BANK MANAGERS' LEADERSHIP STYLE AND ITS IMPACT ON EMPLOYEES' JOB SATISFACTION IN THE SOUTH OF WEST BANK BY AFNAN MOHAMMAD AMER ADVISOR DR. SHARIF ABUKARSH This thesis is submitted in partial fulfillment of requirements for the degree of Master of Business Administration (MBA), College of Graduate Studies, Hebron University. 2009 1 2 ACKNOWLEDGMENT I would like to express my appreciation to those who provided valuable advice and assistance during preparation of this thesis My appreciation to my Advisor Dr. Sharif Abukarsh for his guidance and support. And my appreciation to all the Bank anagers who allowed me to conduct the research in their branches My appreciation to every one helped me to make this piece of work completed.3 DECLARATION No portion of the work referred in this study has application qualification for to been submitted another this or as degree any or other university or institute of learning. 4 an DEDICATION This piece of w ork is dedicated to all my family members, especially to the great father I have, to my precious mother, my best friend Akram, and my lovely kids; zaid, Sanad, Manar and mohammad, for their patience and supporting. To them and to everyone who participated, helped, and encouraged me o complete this work, I dedicate this thesis 5ABSTRACT THE BANK MANAGERS' LEADERSHIP STYLE AND ITS IMPACT ON EMPLOYEES' JOB SATISFACTION IN THE SOUTH OF WEST BANK Job satisfaction is one of the most important human resource-related outcomes, Further; organizations that have more satisfied employees are likely to be more productive and profitable. Among determinants of job satisfaction, leadership is viewed as an important predictor and plays a central role. This study recognizes the types of the existing Bank managers' leadership style in southern part of West Bank and its impact on employees' job satisfaction from the view oint of its employees. All the employees of (20) Bank branches in the southern par t of West Bank which are (390) employees, were the target population of the research. The researcher developed one questionnaire used as a primary source consists of of three collecting main data, parts: the this first questionnaire part contained questions about the employees demographic variables, the second part is about the indicators of the current leadership styles of the Bank managers in the southern part of West Bank and the third part is a bout the job satisfaction of the Bank employees. One hundred distributed employees in to twenty a the three tratified Banks of questionnaires systematic southern 6 part have sample of of West been the Bank. Eighty nine questionnaires were returned which make the respondents rate (72. 4%). The results of the research highlighted a strong positive relationship between democratic leadership style and employees' job satisfaction, a slightly weak positive relationship employees' between job autocratic satisfaction and leadership a strong style and negative relationship between the laissez fair leadership style and employees' job satisfaction.7 CHAPTER ONE THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND 1. 1 Introduction Job human satisfaction is resource-related ften-studied topic the one outcomes, in of the and most important perhaps management and the most industrial psychology. Further, organizations that have more satisfied employees are likely to be more productive and profitable. Job satisfaction, characteristics likely such result as customer low together and in with environmental other turnover satisfaction, other characteristics, organizationally reduced positive valued absenteeism and organizational job satisfaction, job will outcomes productivity, effectiveness. (kim 2004) Among determinants of leadership is viewed as an important predictor and plays a central role. Leadership is management function, which is mostly directed towards people and social interaction, as well as the process of influencing people so that they will a chieve the goals of the organization (Rad and Yarmohammadian, 2004).By using appropriate leadership styles, managers can affect employee job satisfaction, commitment and productivity. Leadership style can be viewed as a series of managerial attitudes, behaviors, characteristics and skills based on individual and organizational values, leadership interests 8 and reliability of employees in different situations (Mosadeghrad, 2003). And because of the historical development of the Banking ector in Palestine which was, initially, marked by weakness and deformity in its structure and activities due to the political circumstances that Palestine went through. Apparently, there was an immense need for building a strong Banking system able to meet the economical and financial requirements of Palestine. And this strong Banking system mainly depends on the human force that like any business must be satisfied previously in mentioned, the work employee's place. job And as it was satisfaction is affected mostly by the managers' leadership style. (Parker, 2003) 1. 2 The Paradigm of the Study Independent variables Dependent variableManagers' Leadership style Job satisfaction Autocratic style Democratic style Laissez-fair style Employees' demographic variables †¢ †¢ †¢ †¢ Sex Academic qualification Salary Hierarchy level Moderator variables 9 F igure 1. 1: Conceptual framework There is one independent variable: managers' leadership style, which will affect the dependent variable: employees' job satisfaction. There are three leadership style indicators (autocratic, democratic, laissez fair), In addition, there are four moderator variables: employees' sex, their academic qualification, salary, and hierarchy level, that will affect the strength of the relation etween the dependent and independent variables. (Kenny, 1986) 1. 6 Objectives of the Study This study aims to accomplish the following objectives: 1. To explore the leadership styles of Bank mangers in s outhern part of West Bank. 2. To identify the best style achieving of high level job satisfaction that to be recommended and followed. 3. To explore the impact of sex, academic qualification, salary, hierarchy level, in determining the job satisfaction of the south West Bank employees. 4. To explore the level of job satisfaction of employees in south West Bank Banks. 1.3 Statement of the Problem Most of the time the success or failure f any business in general and Banking in particular is determined by the efforts and by the hard work done by its human workforce. And since one of the important factors influencing the employees activities and job satisfaction is the leadership style of their managers, a study of the 10 leadership style of the Bank managers and its relation with the employees satisfaction is essential for these managers to identify their styles and its impact on their employees performance, which will directly affect the Banking performance, with all its implications on the Palestinian economy. In order to accomplish the main objective of this study, nswers to the following specific sub-problems are sought: 1. What are the primary leadership styles of the Bank managers from the view point of its employees in southern part of West Bank? 2. What are the most remarkable characteristics of these styles from the view point of the employees? 3. What is the employees' job satisfaction level in southern part of West Bank? 4. What are the most remarkable characteristics of the employees' job satisfaction in southern part of West Bank?5. Is there a clear relationship between Bank managers' leadership style and the employees' job satisfaction in southern part of West Bank? . Is there a particular sub items in managers' leadership style or styles that result in the highest job satisfaction for the employees in southern part of West Bank? 1. 4 Null Hypothesis Based on the problem statement mentioned above, the research hypotheses for this study are as follow s: 11 1. There is no significant relationship between the leadership style of the Bank managers and the job satisfaction of its employees in southern part of West Bank. 2. There is no significant difference in the level of job satisfaction demographic of Bank employees variables (sex, in relation academic to the qualification, alary, hierarchy level). 1. 5 Significance of the Study Job satisfaction is an essential aspect of the human resource- related outcomes. And because of its significance in an organization, job satisfaction is perhaps the most often-studied topic in management and in industrial psychology (Kim 2004). And since job satisfaction is highly affected by managers' leadership style.The significance of this study is underlined as this study is the first in Palestine according to the knowledge of the researcher done in the Banking sector The importance development of of this Banking study sector, lies and in its studying mpact on the factors that may improve or hinder e mployees' job satisfaction. On the customers level, the more employees satisfaction, means the insurance of a better service, from one hand, and on the other hand , the well being of the Banking employees will have its clear effect on the Banking sector success,12 which the customer will directly feel; as a success in major economy key player. The results of this research will highlight the effect of management style on the job satisfaction, which will be an additional contribution to the national literature that will help in a better planning for future developmental lans of the Banking sector in Palestine. 1. 7 Scope and Limitation of the Study The time scope: the time of the research from January, 2008 to March, 2009. The place scope: The research will be composed of all the Palestinian Banks in the southern part of West Bank (Hebron, Bethlehem, Betjalah). Human scope: all the employees of the Palestinian Banks in the southern part of West Bank will be the population of the resea rch. Limitations of the study: 1. Some of the subordinates did not have time to fill the questionnaire in due time, and because of that it took the researcher more than planned to collect the data. 2.Some of the branch managers were reluctant or refused to cooperate, due to the contradiction of the excepted results of the study with their interests. 13 Banks framework table 1. 1 The working Banks in Palestine according to Palestinian Monetary Authority. Bank number Bank name 1 Arabic Bank 2 Cairo Amman Bank 3 Alquds Bank for Development and Investment 4 Palestine Islamic Bank 5 Arab Islamic Bank 6 Palestine Investment Bank 7 Bank of Jordan 8 The Housing Bank for Trade and Finance 9 Jordan Ahli Bank 10 Egyptian Arab land Bank 11 Bank of Palestine PLC 12 Al Rafah Microfinance Bank 13 Commercial Bank of Palestine 4 Palestine International Bank 15 Al-Aqsa Islamic Bank16 Arab Palestinian Investment Bank 17 Jordan Commercial Bank 18 Jordan-Kuwait Bank 14 Bank number Bank name 19 Union Ban k for Savings 20 HSBC Bank Middle East Limited 21 Principal Bank of Development and Agricultural Source(Palestinian Monetary Authority web site (http://www. pmapalestine. org) 15 1. 8 Definition of Terms Bank: a commercial institution that keeps money in accounts for individuals or organizations, makes loans, exchanges currencies, provides credit to businesses, and offers other financial services. (Macesich, 2000) Bank manager: manager of branch office of a Bank. (Macesich, 2000, p. 80) Leadership: ultimately about creating a way for people to contribute to making something extraordinary happen (Kouzes and Posner 2007) Autocratic leadership style: A leadership style where the leader solves the himself/herself problem using the or makes information the decision available at by the time.(Richard and Robert, 2009) Democratic leadership characterized by group style: a style participation in of leadership decision-making where the leader shares the problem with the relevant team members as a group. (Parker, 2003) Laissez fair leadership style: It s one in which the manager provides little or no direction and gives employees as much freedom as possible. All authority or power is given to the employees and they must determine goals, make decisions, and resolve problems on their own. (Richard and Robert, 2009) Job satisfaction: and an attitude (Cranny, 2002) 16 towards one’s job First line supervision manager: of a An middle individual manager who and is works under the responsible for managing the daily activities of a group of workers (Abas, 2003) Southern Part of West Bank: Bethlehem, Betjala and Hebron 17 CHAPTER Two REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE ANDSTUDIES This chapter international studies includes about literature, the topic of local the and research, which is collected by reviewing different books and studies from different university libraries. The chapter has two parts; the first is about literature of leadership style and job satisfaction, whereas the second is about international and local studies related to the topic of the research. 2. 1 Literature Review of the Leadership Style In this part, the literature and theoretical framework about the leadership style is provided. 2. 1. 1 Leadership Concept In a competitive and quickly changing business nvironment, the effective leadership becomes one of the most critical needs and requirements (Pierce and Newstrom, 1995). Leaders need to hold visions, values, assumptions and paradigms that are oriented, empowered in agreement workforce successful. (Kotter, 1990) 18 in with having order to a team- be most Many researchers have defined leadership (Specrtum, 1999) defined leadership as the ability to influence others to achieve a specific goals and objects. Another definition influencing a of leadership is of persons achieve group to the process the of required goals of an organization. (Shachleton, 1995) There are some asic elements shape the concept of leadership, which are: 1. The ex istence of a group of people working in a certain organization. 2. The existence of a leader from the group who got the ability to influence their actions. 3. The existence of a specific object to obtain. (Kan'an, 2002) The ends of leadership involve getting results through others and the means of leadership involve the ability to build goal-oriented teams. (Richard and Robert, 2009) Finally the researcher defines the leadership as the ability to influence a group of people or a community to achieve specific goals. 2. 1. 2. Sources of Leadership Strength Where does the leader's power come from?Do leaders have it? Or do followers give it them? As we shall see the answer may be both†. (Richard and Robert, 2009, p. 138) 19 The sources of leadership that gives the power and authority to a leader are 🙠 Parker, 2003) †¢ Expert power: Is the power of knowledge, some people are able to influence others through their relative expertise in particular area. †¢ Referent power: refers to the potential influence one has due to the strength of the relationship between the leader and the follower. †¢ Legitimate power: is based on the official authority that a person got in the organizational structure Reward power: involves the potential to influence others due to one's control over desired resources like the power to give raises or promotions. †¢ Coercive power: the opposite or reward power, is based on expectations of punishment for not doing the expected duties and work. 2. 1. 3 Types of Leadership Leadership style is an approach of giving direction, motivating people and implementing plans. As there are many leaders, there are different leadership styles. A good leader uses the right leadership style according to the situation.There are three types of leadership styles that vary in terms of decision making (Nathant, 2007) . Autocratic style 20 2. Democratic style 3. Laissez-fair style 1. Autocratic Leadership The autocratic style is chara cterized by maximum control by the leader on the group members (Bernhard & Walsh, 1990) This leadership style is based on the notion that enlisting people in decision making processes encumbers the efficient running of a business. (Zowelif, 1996) Autocratic leadership goes beyond decision making; it involves attempts to dominate or force values and opinions on followers. The predominant use of economic values should relate to autocratic leadership. Because they are supported in their decisions by the strong logic of efficiency’ these executives have confidence in their own decisions and feel less need to involve subordinates in the decision-making process. Subordinates may perceive these leaders as dominating and likely to force their values and opinions on others, tell others what to do, and make decisions in an overbearing way (Nathant, 2007). Autocratic leadership is best applied to situations where there is little time for group decision-making or where the leader is the most knowledgeable member of the group. (Berson and Linton, 2005) This leadership style surly has some major drawbacks, which are: 21 1.Increased workload for the manager: By taking on as much responsibility and involvement as possible, an autocratic leader naturally works at their full capacity, which can lead to long term stress and health problems and could damage working relationships with colleagues. 2. People dislike being ordered around, they also dislike being shown very little trust and faith. 3. Teams become dependent upon their leader: After becoming conditioned to receive orders and act upon them perfectly, workers lose initiative and the confidence to make decisions on their own. This results in teams of workers who become useless at running operations if hey loose contact with their leader. (Rad, 2004) In summary, an autocratic leader retains full authority, responsibility, and is concerned primarily with task and goal accomplishment and he/she uses one way communicati on pattern with the group. A leader using this style displays little trust and confidence in employees who generally fear their leader. 2. Democratic Leadership Democratic promotes the Leadership sharing of is the leadership responsibility, the style that exercise of delegation and continual consultation. The democratic leader acts as a part of the team, he/she receives the employees thought and suggestions with respect