Formation of leadership style in the process of generations’ transition: case of Austria and Ukraine

Abstract

The development and efficiency of an enterprise in today's environment directly depend on the style and effectiveness of management activities. The choice of leadership style has always been difficult, as it is influenced by various factors: the personal characteristics of the leader, his followers, the industry in which the organization operates, the stage of its development, etc. In recent years, these factors have been joined by new ones caused by globalization processes in the management of organizations. These factors include, first of all, the cultural characteristics of leaders and followers, as people in different countries have different values, traditions, and visions. Secondly, it is clear that people themselves have also changed - new generations are significantly different from the previous ones. This means they need new leaders. This is why modern leaders need to develop a leadership style that takes into account the cultural characteristics and requirements of the new generations. Moreover, choosing the right leadership style for each stage of an organization's life cycle is critical for its success and growth. The results of the survey on the preferences of Generation Z representatives regarding the values of their future leaders and expectations from these leaders in Austrian organizations showed that transformational and transactional leadership styles are less important for Generation Z representatives in Austria. Austrian respondents pay more attention to employee-oriented (transactional) leadership styles, and performance does not influence their preferred leadership style. The results of the survey on the preferences of Generation Z representatives regarding the values of their future leaders and expectations from these leaders in Ukrainian organizations showed that transformational and transactional leadership styles are more important for Generation Z representatives in Ukraine. Ukrainian respondents evaluate production-oriented leadership and change-oriented leadership higher than Austrian respondents. At the same time, Ukrainian respondents with a higher level of productivity prefer a transformational, change-oriented style of leadership to an employee-oriented (transactional) style.