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Sustainability-Oriented Leader, Please! Effects of Industry on Followers’ Preferences

Author

Listed:
  • Gillian Warner-Søderholm

    (Department of Business, Strategy and Political Science, USN School of Business, University of South East Norway, 3045 Drammen, Norway)

  • Simonas Čepėnas

    (ISM University of Management and Economics, LT-01304 Vilnius, Lithuania)

  • Inga Minelgaite

    (School of Business, University of Iceland, 102 Reykjavík, Iceland
    School of Public Management Governance and Public Policy, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg P.O. Box 524, South Africa)

  • Vita Akstinaitė

    (ISM University of Management and Economics, LT-01304 Vilnius, Lithuania)

Abstract

With sustainability becoming the new norm, the discussion about followers’ attitudes towards sustainability-oriented leadership is growing globally. Therefore, this study investigates the extent to which employees’ industry and sector background influence their perception of the ideal leader in relation to preferred sustainability orientation. This study also examines preferred sustainability leadership values and the role of culturally endorsed leadership in this process. Using the Preferred Sustainability Leadership Orientation (PSLO) survey, we gathered and analyzed data from 11 countries and 11 industry backgrounds ( n = 5530). Our findings show that there is a statistical significance in followers’ valuing a leader with a high sustainability orientation most. Moreover, our results indicate that respondents working in public administration organizations value a leader with a strong sustainability orientation in addition to environmental and equality goals. While respondents associated with agriculture and real estate do not seem to place so much value on an ideal leader focusing on gender equality, in industries such as finance, manufacturing, and real estate, followers seem to value a leader with a stronger focus on profit and less emphasis on promoting gender equality. This research offers implications for the development of the PSLO (preferred sustainable leadership orientation) as a useful sustainability leadership barometer tool for measuring an organization’s sustainability culture and suggests avenues for future research.

Suggested Citation

  • Gillian Warner-Søderholm & Simonas Čepėnas & Inga Minelgaite & Vita Akstinaitė, 2024. "Sustainability-Oriented Leader, Please! Effects of Industry on Followers’ Preferences," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 14(3), pages 1-26, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jadmsc:v:14:y:2024:i:3:p:46-:d:1350774
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Lenz, Gabriel S. & Sahn, Alexander, 2021. "Achieving Statistical Significance with Control Variables and Without Transparency," Political Analysis, Cambridge University Press, vol. 29(3), pages 356-369, July.
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