Managers’ Leadership Styles and the role of Contextual Factors in the Workplace in the Indian IT Sector: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

An exploratory study was conducted to understand the use of emotional leadership styles by managers employed in the Indian IT sector along with identification of workplace contextual factors that influence the use of leadership styles. The six emotional leadership styles are classified as resonant (visionary, coaching, affiliative, democratic) and dissonant (pacesetting, coercive). Theories state that these leadership styles are effective in various situations and should be used interchangeably. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to collect data from 13 managers managing a team of minimum 2 employees working in multinational companies and start-ups under the Indian IT sector. The initial set of participants were recruited by sharing information of this study with personal networks and social media. They referred potential participants based on primary requirements of managers. Hence, sampling techniques employed were convenience and snowball sampling. Data was analysed using inductive thematic analysis and revealed two themes and seven subthemes. The first theme of ‘Synchronized use of Emotional Leadership Styles’ discussed participants’ use of five emotional leadership styles simultaneously rather than individually. The majority of participants employed characteristics of two leadership styles in a situation while interacting with subordinates. The second theme of ‘Influence of Team, Organisation and Client on Selection of Leadership Style’ revealed workplace contextual factors that are considered by managers while choosing appropriate leadership approaches. The workplace factors included team characteristics such as work experience and employment types, organisational policies and changing client demands. The implications of this study were for managers, learning and HR departments of the Indian IT sector to tailor and enhance their leadership development programs.