WHAT DOES COLLECTIVISM MEAN FOR LEADERSHIP AND TEAMWORK PERFORMANCE?
This study examines the influence of collectivism on leadership and its impact on teamwork performance. Prior studies regarded collectivism as an important factor of work quality, yet little is known about its impact on leadership and teams. We explore the role collectivism has on transactional and transformational leadership style in teams of professional service firms. The sample consists of 187 leaders and 97 non-leaders who work in multicultural teams of professional service firms. Both leadership styles have different effects on teamwork quality and teamwork performance, yet are found dependant on the level of collectivism of both leaders and non-leaders. The findings show that collectivism affects the preferred leadership styles among leaders and non-leaders. Collectivism orientation has indirect effect on team’s effectiveness through leadership styles and teamwork quality. Implications and recommendations to improve the effectiveness of teamwork of organization are provided for
