Transformational leadership and contextual performance

Abstract

Purpose Transformational leaders engage their employees’ self-concept in such a meaningful way that it results in an extra effort exerted by employees in addition to what is expected of them. This extra effort or pro-social behavior leads to contextual performance (CP) which supplements the individual’s task performance and lead to superior organizational performance. The purpose of this paper is to empirically investigate the influence of transformational leadership (TL) on employees’ CP. The paper also tests the moderating role of integrity on the relationship between TL and CP. Design/methodology/approach Data were gathered through self-administered questionnaires from 480 Indian information technology (IT) employees across India. Harman’s single-factor test was used through analysis of moment structures (AMOS 20.0) to test the bias associated due to common method variance. Regression analysis was carried out through a series of hierarchical models in SPSS 20.0 to test the direct and interactive effect of integrity between TL and CP. Findings The result supports the assertion that TL has a positive influence on employees’ CP. However, the moderational effect of integrity on the relationship between TL and CP was found to be insignificant. Practical implications The findings of the study have confirmed that employees deriving higher degree of integrity at work will engage in discretionary behaviors and they are more likely open to organizational changes and improvement. The IT organizations may take clues from the findings of the study for creating conducive working environment where affective organizational commitment can influence the CP and job satisfaction. Originality/value This study is critical in a sense that as the Indian IT industry has one of the highest turnover rates in the service industry, it would take a strong and compelling reason for the IT professionals to stay committed to the organization, derive satisfaction at work and help peers and others by engaging in extra role of CP.