The Impact of Transformational Leadership on Talent Retention with special reference to Information Communication Technology Industry in Sri Lanka

Abstract

This paper employs a systematic and comprehensive review to understand the global problem of talent retention which is also seen as the pivotal problem in knowledge economy. On the other hand, organizations face the challenge of attracting and retaining talented employees and consequently they are dealing with talent scarcity nowadays. Thus, the role of leaders in attracting and retaining talented workers in their organizations has become critical. Nevertheless, the effect of leadership on talent retention needs to be investigated in the context of the Information Communication Technology (ICT) industry in Sri Lanka. Using a survey strategy, this study administrated cross sectional questionnaires to collect data from executive level employees who work in the ICT industry in Sri Lanka. This paper critically examined the impact of transformational leadership on talent retention in the information communication technology industry in Sri Lanka. Further, the results indicate that idealized influence behaviour, inspirational motivation behaviour, intellectual stimulation behaviour and individual consideration behaviour of the supervisor have a strong positive impact on the retention of talented employees in the ICT industry in Sri Lanka. Accordingly, transformational leadership could be used as a strong retention strategy not only in the ICT industry but also in other contexts.