A systematic review of transformational leadership style and organizational performance behaviors

Abstract

Research into corporate governance has produced a varied and inconclusive set of findings regarding the relationship between managerial practices and organizational performance. Faced with this observation, the main aim of this article is to carry out a systematic review of transformational leadership as implemented by managers within companies. To achieve this objective, the author followed the methodology of the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items For Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) research protocol to review and analyze a total of fifty-one articles that met the inclusion and relevance criteria established for this study. The results of this systematic review reveal that, although previous studies may have come to sometimes contradictory conclusions, a large majority of researchers found a significant relationship between transformational leadership and various aspects of organizational performance. More specifically, transformational leadership is closely linked to elements such as performance, employee mobilization, workplace climate, and commitment to work in a growing economic context. It is clear from this systematic review that, in some contexts, a definitive consensus has yet to be reached. The findings of this study provide an overview of the available evidence, while identifying avenues for future research.

Keywords: leadership styles, transformational leadership, organizational performance, organizational behaviors.

JEL Classification:  M10, M21, M54, O15, L20.

Paper type: Theoretical research