EXPLAINING ORGANIZATIONAL EFFECTIVENESS—LEADERSHIP STYLES VS. MOTIVATION PROFILES VS. DECISION‐MAKING STYLES: SUPPORTING OR COMPETING DIMENSIONS?

Abstract

This paper assessed if and to what degree leadership styles, motivation profiles and decision‐making styles explain organizational goal attainment (effectiveness). Leadership behaviors of 209 Swedish corporate managers were collected using established instruments, and effectiveness data were collected from the companies in which these managers were employed. It is concluded that managers’ leadership styles, motivation profiles, and decision‐making styles support each other because they give a more comprehensive description of leadership behaviors. On the other hand, leadership styles, motivation profiles, and decision‐making styles compete in presenting empirical support for and explanations of organizational effectiveness. Managers who were power‐motivated appeared to be more effective than other managers, regardless of their leadership styles and decision‐making styles. Leadership scholarship needs to focus more on the consequences of managers’ behaviors and how they relate to organizational goal‐attainment.