Healthcare Managers/Executives/Administrators
OBJECTIVE Is there a relationship between leadership behaviors as perceived by the managers and employees and employee productivity in an urban health care facility?
METHODOLOGY The sample involved 26 managers (41% response rate) and 144 employees (37% response rate) in an urban health care facility in a northeastern part of a south central state. Nursing and non-nursing departments were represented in the sample. The typical manager was caucasian (96%), female (81%), 40 to 49 years of age (54%), with 11 to 20 years career experience (39%). Eleven were non-nursing departmental managers and 15 were nursing managers. The typical employee was caucasian (75%), female nursing service employee (88%), 30 to 39 years of age (39%), with less than five years career experience (33%). Most (63%) were employees of nursing departments. Respondents completed the LPI (alpha coefficient was between .61 to .90 for managers and for others was between .90 and .95) and the Productivity Measurement Scale (McNeese-Smith, 1991; alpha = .91).
KEY FINDINGS No relationship was found between employees' perceptions of productivity and managers' perceptions of leadership behaviors; however, employees' perceptions of productivity were directly related to their perceptions of the managers' leadership behaviors. The behavior most related to employee productivity was Inspiring a Shared Vision. Managers consistently rated their leadership practices higher than employees rated them. No differences were found between nursing and non-nursing departments.