CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS, DISCUSSION AND INTERPRETATION OF

FINDINGS

4.1 Introduction
This chapter reviews the results and analysis of the quantitative findings of the
study. The findings are also discussed in the light of previous research findings
and available literature, where applicable, in order to identify similarities and
differences between this study and previous studies and literature. In particular,
through data analysis, an attempt to identify emerging themes and categories that
identify effect of leadership styles. Conducting the research study required using
the themes and their perspective attributes that were substantiated by comments
and observations from the research participants for analysing data. The
participants statements are provided in this chapter to illustrate their input with
regards to their perceptions related to the leadership styles that influenced their
organisational culture.

Therefore, in this chapter, the data and content analysis and finding of the
research are discussed. This chapter provides the discussion regarding the
response’s opinions. Moreover, the demographic information which will be
presented using graphs, numbers, and percentage of the participants.

An inductive, iterative process was followed in this study with information being
gathered from employees of the Research Council, with specific aim of
understanding of exploring the perceived effect of the leadership styles on
organisational culture. Plainly, this qualitative study sought to respond to the
research questions reflected below:

 What is the current leadership styles at the Research Council?

 What is the perceived effect of the current leadership styles on organisational
culture at the Research Council?
 What are the perceived challenges posed by the current leadership styles on
organisational culture at the Research Council?
  What recommendations can be presented to the management at the
Research Council on ways in which the current leadership styles can be
improved in order to optimize organisational culture.
Consideration the nature of the study, this chapter explored and analyze the
qualitative interview data, and provided the discussion of the findings in relation to
the study’s objectives.

4.2 Interpretation and Discussion

In this chapter the research data analysis, results and findings are discussed
employing tables and graphs. The sections below will illustrate the response rate,
demographic characteristics, as well as the responses to the interview questions
posed to the respondents. The objective of this section is to represent the main
findings of the study obtained from the methods applied as presented in the previous
chapter.
For protecting the identity of participants in the study, participants are therefore
referred to as Participant #1 through to Participant #10.

4.2.1 Demographic Characteristics

Demographic information provides data regarding research participants and is
necessary for the determination of whether the individuals in a particular study a
representative sample of the target population for generalisation purposes. The
respondent's position within the Research Council, years of service in the present
capacity, and level of education were all included in the demographic data.
Frequently, research participant characteristics are described in the section of the
research report and act as independent variables in the research design.
Demographic information are independent variables by definition since they cannot
be influenced or manipulated (Salkind, 2019). Kumar (2019) also state that
demographic information permits the researcher to better understand certain
background characteristics of the participants, whether it is their age, race, ethnicity,
income, designation and marital status. The characteristics provide information to the
cultural and social factors affecting the respondent values and beliefs. Table 4.1
below illustrates the details of respondent demographics.
Table 4.1: Demographic Profile of Participants

Cod Category of Working

Gender Age Grouping Qualification
e Position Experience
1 Female Operational 30 to 39 years 1 to 5 years Diploma
Senior
2 Female 40 to 49 years 16 years plus Master’s Degree
Management
3 Female Top Management 40 to 49 years 16 years plus Master’s Degree
Middle
4 Male 40 to 49 years 6 to 10 years PhD
Management
Junior
5 Female 30 to 39 years 1 to 5 years Honours Degree
Management
Junior
6 Female 30 to 39 years 6 to 10 years Honours Degree
Management
7 Female Operational 40 to 49 years 11 to 15 years Diploma
Senior
8 Male 40 to 49 years 6 to 10 years Master’s Degree
Management
Middle
9 Male 30 to 39 years 1 to 5 years Honours Degree
Management
10 Male Top Management 50 to 59 years 16 years plus Master’s Degree

4.2.2.1 Category of Positions of Participants

As shown in Figure 4.2 and Table 4.2 below the information provide the result of the
category of the position of the participants who participated in the study. When
assessing the information regarding the category of position of the participants, it
showed that all the categories were at 20% (n=2) respectively, namely Operational
employees, Junior Management, Middle Management, Senior Management and Top
Management.

The significance of the data in terms of the research topic is that it indicates that the
study addressed the issue of bias in terms of positions of participant. Subject
selection in qualitative research is purposeful and participants are selected who can
best inform the research questions and enhance understanding of the phenomenon
under study. Hence, one of the most important tasks in the study design phase is to
identify appropriate participants.
Figure 4.2: Category of Positions of Participants

Top
Man- Catergory of Positions
agement; Opera-
20% tional;
20%

Junior Management;
20%

Senior
Middle Management; 20%
Man-
age-
ment;
20%

Table 4.2: Category of Positions Statistics

Cumulative
Valid
Percen Percent
Positions Frequency Percent
t
Top Mngt. 2 20.0 20.0 20.0
Senior Mngt. 2 20.0 20.0 40.0
Valid Middle Mngt. 2 20.0 20.0 60.0
Junior Mngt. 2 20.0 20.0 80.0
Operational 2 20.0 20.0 100.0
Total 10 100.0 100.0

4.2.2.2 Gender Profile of Participants

The following information provide the result of the category of gender profile of
participants in the study.

The gender profile of participants is shown in Figure 4.3 and Table 4.3 below. With a
total of 60% (n=6) of participants being females. They are followed by the male
group of 40% (n=4) of participants.

The implication of this data in terms of the research topic is that it provides an
indication that the study addressed the issue of bias, with regards to where gender
was concerned. Moreover, results from demographic data are crucial to the study,
especially where gender differences influence organisational culture.
Figure 4.3. Gender Profile of Participants

Gender Profile

Male
40%

Female
60%

0 1 2 3 4 5 6

Table 4.3: Gender Profile Statistics

Valid Cumulative
Gender Frequency Percent
Percent Percent
Male 4 40.0 40.0 40.0
Valid
Female 6 60.0 60.0 100.0
Total 10 100.0 100.0

4.2.2.3 Age Grouping of Participants

The age demographics are depicted in Figure 4.4 and Table 4.4 below. The majority
of the participants at 50% (n=5) were in the 40-to-49-year age group. This group is
followed by the age group of 30 to 39 years, which accounts for 40% (n=4) of the
participants. The 30 to 39-year age groups accounts for only 10% (n-1) of the
participant. It must be noted that there were no participants who was below 20 years,
20-29 years and plus 60 years old.

This data is important in terms of the research topic for the reason that it indicates
that the study addressed the issue of prejudice in relation to age. Moreover,
demographic data are significant to the study, especially when age differences
influence resistance to change.
Figure 4.4: Age Grouping of Participants

Age Grouping

50-60 years
10%
30-39
years
40%

40-49
years
50%

Table 4.4: Age Grouping Statistics

Cumulative
Valid
Percen Percent
Age Range Frequency Percent
t
Below 20 years 0 00.0 00.0 00.0
20 to 29 years 0 00.0 00.0 00.0
30 to 39 years 4 40.0 40.0 40.0
Valid
40 to 49 years 5 50.0 50.0 90.0
50 to 60 years 1 10.0 10.0 100.0
Plus 60 years 0 0 0 100.0
Total 10 100.0 100.0

4.2.2.4 Working Experience in Research Council

As per the information on the Figure 4.5 and Table 4.5 below shows that participants
with work experience of less than 1 year were zero (0), between 1 to 5 years were 3,
between 6-10 years were 3, between 11 to 15 years was 1 and 16 plus years was 3,
(n=10).
Figure 4.5: Working Experience of Participants

Working Experience

16 plus years 3

11 to 15 years 1

6 to 10 years 3

1 to 5 years 3

Less than 1 year 0

0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3

Table 4.5: Working Experience Statistics

Valid Cumulative
Age Range Frequency Percent Percent Percent
Less than 1 year 0 0.0 0.0 0.0
1 to 5 years 3 30.0 30.0 30.0
Valid 6 to 10 years 3 30.0 30.0 60.0
11 to 15 years 1 10.0 10.0 70.0
16 plus years 3 30.0 30.0 100.0
Total 10 100.0 100.0

4.2.2.5 Highest Education Qualification of Participants

The research study determined a participant’s highest qualification whether they had
a certificate, diploma, degree, honours degree, Master’s degree or PhD qualification.
The distribution of skill levels among the participants is depicted in Figure 4.6 and
Table 4.6 below. The Figure 4.6 indicates that there were no participants with a
certificate and degree qualification on the sample. However, 20% (n=2) of the
participants held a diploma, whereas 30% (n=30) of participants held an honours
degree, 40% (n=4) of participants have master’s degrees and only 10% (n=1) of the
participants have PhD qualification.

This data is noteworthy in terms of the research topic because it indicates that the
study addressed the issue of bias in terms of qualification. Additionally, demographic
data are critical to the study, mostly in determining how variations in highest
qualifications influence resistance to change.

Figure 4.6: Highest Education Qualification of Participants

Highest Educational Qualification

PhD; 10%
Diploma;
20%

Masters Degree; 40%

Honours Degree; 30%

Table 4.6: Highest Qualification Statistics

Valid Cumulativ
Highest Frequenc
Percent Percen e Percent
Qualification y
t
Certificate 0 0.0 0.0 0.0
Diploma 2 20.0 20.0 20.0
Valid Degree 0 00.0 0.0 20.0
Honours Degree 3 30.0 30.0 50.0
Masters 4 40.0 40.0 90.0
PhD 1 10.0 10.0 100.0
Total 10 100.0 100.0

4.3 Analysis of Core Themes

4.3.1 Theme 1: Leadership Styles in the Organisation

Research Objective 1: To identify the current leadership styles at the Research
Council.

This section was designed to analyse the current leadership styles within the
Research Council.
Question B1: What is your understanding of leadership styles?

In this question the participants expressed their views on their understanding of

leadership styles.

In describing what is their understanding of leadership styles. The following was the
responses from the participants:

Participant one said that:

“Ways of leading people be it in an institution, department, section, or even a
small research team. Leaders can be authoritarian or ‘lead from behind’ meaning
that they provide guidance and capacitate to subordinates so that they grow into
future leaders. This manner of leadership requires one to entrust responsibilities
to subordinates with the aim of grooming and capacitating them.”

Participant two said that:

“Leadership styles are the behavioural patterns that a leader assumes to
influence the behaviour of followers” and play a strategic role in providing a
direction for the success of the organisation.”

Participant four said that:

“Leadership styles are the way management leads organisation in different
manner as people have difference ways of leading people within organisations
and plays a significant role in the job they have, the way they communicate”.

Participant ten said that:

“Leadership styles is a way of leading people be it in an institution, department,
section, or even a small research team. Leaders can be authoritarian or ‘lead
from behind’ meaning that they provide guidance and capacitate to subordinates
so that they grow into future leaders. This manner of leadership requires one to
entrust responsibilities to subordinates with the aim of grooming and capacitating
them”.
Participant six said that:
“Leadership styles are the manner in which leaders communicate, motivate,
support staff to ensure that organisational goals are met. There are four main
leadership styles that I understand: Autocratic, Democratic, Laissez-faire, and
Transformational,”.

All the participants identified the following generic understanding of the leadership
styles:
o A leadership style refers to a leader's methods and behaviours when
directing, motivating, and managing others.
o Leadership style also determines how they strategize and implement plans
while accounting for the expectations of stakeholders and the well-being of
their team.
o Classifications of how person/s in leadership behave while leading a group
and their approach to providing direction, implementing plans, and motivating
people; and
o Leadership style plays a significant role in the job they have, the way they
communicate.

Question B2: What do you think is the dominant leadership styles practised in
the Research Council?

In this question the participants expressed their views on the dominant leadership
styles practiced in the Research Council?

Participant one said that:

“Both autocratic and democratic leadership dominant are leadership styles that
are practiced in the Research Council.

Participant two said that:

“The leadership styles that are mostly evident at the Human Sciences Research
Council are democratic, strategic, transformational, transactional, coach-style
and bureaucratic. The leader of the organisation uses these styles to run the
 organisation. Most organisations cannot run without the bureaucratic style
because some of the decisions made are based on policies, for example the
finance, SCM, Payroll units have to use the PFMA policy to run the finances of
the organisation, they cannot roll out tenders or pay suppliers as they please they
have to abide by the rules of National Treasury. The organisation is democratic in
a way that they do involve employees in some decisions that are made and they
want inputs from employees to make sure that the employees are happy in the
workplace.”

Participant two said that:

“Dominant leadership style at Research Council is democratic leadership, the
people in leadership roles in the Council create space for employees to voice
their opinions.” This opinion was also shared by Participants three, four, five,
seven, eight and nine indicating that they strong believe that democratic
leadership style is the dominant in the Research Council which makes it
majority opinion of the sample.

Participant three further indicated that said that:

“Although is of the opinion that the dominant leadership style in the Research
Council is democratic but because it is such a large entity sometimes it feels
bureaucratic as there are a lot of rigid guidelines that employees must follow.”

Participant four said that:

“In my opinion autocratic leadership is dominant leadership style within the
Research Council.” This opinion was also shared by Participants six and ten
as indicate that the leadership controls all the decisions and takes very little
inputs from other employees and do not involve others for their suggestion or
advice.

Participant five said that:

“Leadership dictates policies and procedures, decides what goals are to be
achieved, and directs and controls all activities without any meaningful
participation by the subordinates. Leadership has full control of the team,
leaving low autonomy within the group.
Assessing the responses, it was clear that most participants agree that democratic
leadership style is the dominant leadership styles practised in the Research Council.
Democratic leadership, also known as participative leadership or shared leadership,
is a leadership style in which members of the group partake in the decision-making
process. According to Cherry (2022) democratic leadership his can apply to any
organisation, from private businesses to schools to the government.
The findings suggest that democratic leadership style can yield positive outcomes
when everyone is given the opportunity to participate, ideas are exchanged freely,
and discussion is encouraged. Research has found that the democratic leadership
style is one of the most effective types and leads to higher productivity, better
contributions from staff members, and increased staff morale.
Question B3: How effective are the current leadership styles in managing and
retaining employees

In this question the participants expressed their views on the effectiveness of the
current leadership styles in managing and retaining employees.

Participant two said that:

“The Research Council have Retention and Talent Management Policy in
place with the intension of keeping high performing talent with the Research
Council. However, in reality the policy is not effectively implemented.”
Participant four said that:
“The current management is not effective in managing and retaining
employees and does not provide priority to the talented employees. The
Research Council have lost many talented researchers to the universities, I
believe issue of putting employees on contracts and also perhaps not
providing a competitive salary is the reason most of the researchers look for
better perks somewhere else in the similar industry.”

Participant five said that:

“I am of the opinion that the Research Council leadership is not effectiveness
in managing and retaining employees because most employees are placed
on contracts and does not stay in the organisation because of uncertainty of
the contract extension, financial stability and work security retains
 employees.” The Participants three, eight and nine also raised similar issues
regarding the uncertainty in contract extension which plays a role in
employees leaving the organisation as a result of lack of retention and
ineffectiveness of the leadership in managing and retaining employees.

Participant ten said that:

“My assessment is that the leadership is ineffectiveness in managing and
retaining employees, even if the policy is available, we have seen talented
employees leaving the organisation without any effort from the leadership of
the organisation trying to ensure that they are given salary counter offers to
ensure that they stay within the Research Council. This also leads to low
confidence in the leadership and as a result there is high staff turnover”.

All the participants agreed that the current management is not effective in managing
and retaining employees and identified the following issues:
o The Research Council have Retention and Talent Management Policy
in place.
o Managing and retaining employees in the Research Council is not
provided a priority.
o The employees have low confidence in the leadership and as a result
there is high staff turnover.
o Employees are placed on contracts does not stay because of
uncertainty of the contract extension, financial stability and work
security retains employees.

Retaining talent within Research Council is critical since it will create a secure
environment and will assists in reducing turnover rates. When organisations
experience turnover, they need to reassign job responsibilities to other employees
and spend time looking for new talented candidates. Organisation whose employees
stay with them long term and save both time and money. Understanding the
importance of retaining talent and strategies to use can help organisation to enhance
its productivity with more expert employees. The finding from the participants is
supported by Craig (2018) indicating that strong culture brings better retention in an
organisation. The organisation must first hire employees who demonstrate a long-
term commitment to the organisation. When new employees begin with the
organisation, leadership must ensure that they retain those talented employees.

Question B4: How does leadership style affect the organisation's working
environment?

In this question the participants expressed their views on how leadership style
affects the organizations’ working environment.

Participant one indicated that:

“Leadership style can affect the organisational working environment through
treating all employees the same, helping the employees grow and develop
through goal setting, opportunities and recognition.”

Participant three stated that:

“Leadership style affects the organisation's working environment through having
realistic expectations from employees, supporting their work and career growth
opportunities and ensuring the mental health of employees is addressed and well
taken care of. Having performance-based incentives can also create healthy
competition amongst employees.”

Participants four provided a positive picture and stated that:

“In my opinion there are some pockets in the organisation which are performing
very well and promotes the success of the employees.”

Participant six painted a negative view and indicated that:

“Many staff members feel undervalued and unseen. Employee motivation levels
are low in the Research Council.”

Participant seven indicated that:

“Leadership style affects the organisation’s working environment both in a
negative and positive way depending on the style being displayed by
management.”
Participant eight stated that”
“A leader should possess a bit of each leadership style so to have balance in a
way they treat employees. The style of leadership can organisation’s productivity
and employee morale.”

Participants nine stated that:

“Autocratic leadership style would be one style that could create somewhat a
negative environment because it might make employees feel unvalued their
inputs does not matter only what the manager says goes, and that is not an
environment employee wants to work in.”

According to the overall view of the participants leadership have an influence over
employees and can affect the employee either positive or negative based on the
leadership style and execution of strategy of the organisation, but both effective and
ineffective leadership will influence and build organisational culture in the workplace.

Duggan (2020) support the views of the participants by indicating that leadership
style impacts the organisation by affecting employee morale, productivity, decision-
making speed, and metrics. Furthermore, according to Tanner (2019) leaders have a
great impact on organisational culture as they set the agenda, prioritise work,
manage, lead, and delegate. Leaders affect the organisation's working environment
by providing a sense of vision, purpose, mentorship, and inspiration to those they
lead. The leaders should be able to reshape the workforce to achieve personal and
professional success. The Research Council should create a foundation of a positive
culture in the organisation through creating meaningful work, appreciation of
employees, well-being, build a strong leadership and connections.

Question B5: What is the relationship between leadership style and culture?

In this question the participants expressed their views on what the relationship
between leadership style and organisational culture is.

Participants one indicated that:

 “Leadership is important to building organisational culture. Leadership culture is
how leaders interact with one another and their team members. It is the way
leaders operate, communicate, and make decisions.” Furthermore, it is about
the everyday working environment their behaviors, interactions, beliefs, and
values within the organisation.

Responses from participants two, three, four, eight, nine and ten were also in line
with the response of participants one as all have indicated that the relationship
between leadership and organisational culture is a collaborative process, agreeing to
which a leader, with his leadership style, creates an organisation that, with its beliefs,
behaviours, and values, creates a future organisational culture. All these
participants provided a same view in terms of their understanding of the relationship
between leadership style and culture.

Participants five stated that:

“The relationship between leadership style and culture is that positive culture
within the organisation encourages most staff to go beyond the call of duty with
the support of their managers.

Participants six stated that:

“Leadership style directly influences the organisational culture. Cultural norms
can be engrossed and can lead too good or too bad consequences. The values,
beliefs, norms and ideals embedded in a culture affect leadership behaviour,
goals, and strategies of organisations.”

Participants seven stated that:

“Leadership style and culture is somewhat aligned with each other, and a
positive and inclusive organisational culture can only exist if the leadership style
is that of a leader who believes in including their employees in the existence of
the organisation/unit.”

Deducting from the responses above it is clear that the correct choice of a leader
and his/her leadership style together with the organisational culture that they create
are responsible for the organisation’s business success.
According to Schein (1996), the relationship between leadership and organisational
culture is an interactive process, rendering to which a leader, with his leadership
style, creates an organisation that, with its beliefs, behaviours, and values, creates a
future organisational culture. Leadership has a meaningfully greater impact on the
culture than the culture of leadership does.

Mitrovic, Simovic and Raicevic (2019) also pointed out that the relationship between
leadership style and organisational culture is symbiotic; while organisational culture
affects the manager’s choice of leadership style, with time, the manager himself
shapes and changes the organisational culture. Organisational culture is a result of
the leadership style. The leader who adjusts his leadership style to the organisational
culture, but over time, it is the leadership style that later changes the organisational
culture. Different types of organisational culture work best with different leadership
styles (Mitrovic, Simovic and Raicevic, 2019). The Research Council leadership
should be able to adjusts leadership style to the organisational culture.

4.3.2 Theme 2: Effect of Leadership Styles on Organisational Culture

This section was designed to analysis the effect of leadership style on organisational
culture within the Research Council.

Objective 2: To determine the perceived effect of the current leadership styles on

organisational culture at the Research Council.

Question C1: What is the role of leadership in organisational culture?

In this question the participants expressed their views on what is the role of
leadership in organisational culture?

Participants one stated that:

“The role of leadership in organisational culture is provide direction on where the
organisation is going, setting the vision and mission of the organisation and
internal and external stakeholders of the organisation follow suit.”

Participants two pointed out that:

 “The role of leadership in organisational culture is to guide, manage and create
an effective environment which cultivates employee’s growth highlights their
strengths and weaknesses and capacitates to make them better.”

Participants three indicated that:

“Leaders have a tremendous impact on organisational culture. They set the
direction of the organisation through setting the agenda, prioritise work, manage,
lead, and delegate work to employee. Leaders provide a sense of vision,
purpose, mentorship, and inspiration to those they lead.

Participants ten indicated that:

“The role of leadership in organisational culture is to outline the rules, values
processes, policy and procedures to be followed within the organisation. All of
these are communicated to staff through different methods such as intranet, staff
meetings and lekgotla.”

Participants six expressed that:

“Leadership sets the culture of the organisation. To ensure that the mandate of
the organisation is met, to retain and develop staff so that talent is built and
retained.”

Participants eight said that:

“The role of leadership in organisational culture is to make sure that they create
a culture that is healthy and welcoming to all employees, an organisational
culture could also be the reason why employees leave or stay in an
organisation. So, leadership needs to be the one that creates such a culture that
is welcoming to all.”

All the participants displayed an understanding of the role of leadership in

organisational culture and expressed the following issues:
o Leadership shapes the organisational culture. Leadership set the agenda for
the organisation, prioritize, manage, lead and delegate what must be done in
the organisation.
 o Leaders provide a sense of purpose, vision, mentorship, and inspiration to the
employees.
o Leadership style influences and ensures the prosperity and the economic
growth of both organisation and employees.
o Good leaders ensure and enforce healthy cultures and the opposite is true for
bad leaders.

According to the article by Tenney (2020) the role of leadership in defining

organisational culture is to foster a strong mission, communicate a clear vision, and
model core values that put people over profits. Through defining culture, leaders can
unite employees with a shared sense of purpose that motivates employees and
gives meaning to their work. The leadership of Research Council through clearly
defining culture the leaders in the organisation can instil a sense of purpose and
create an environment where employees feel valued and provide excellent customer
service. When employees feel valued and taken care of, they will take care of
stakeholders/ customers. This finding is supported by Steffensen et al., (2019) by
stating that effective leadership often involves working hard to share and teach team
members about the organisation’s values and principles.

Question C2: In your understanding, what is the effect of leadership styles on

the organisational culture?

In this question the participants expressed their views on the effect of leadership
styles on the organisational culture.

Participants two indicated that:

"Leadership styles have a variety of effects on the organisation, depending on a
variety of factors, including outputs, standards, work flexibility, dedication, and
rewards, among others. Not every leadership style will be effective for every
employee. While some employees may be motivated by the leadership styles
used by the Research Council and as a result produce more research outputs
and show greater loyalty to the organisation, other employees may not be
satisfied, feel demotivated, and fail to meet their KPA goals.”
Participants three indicated that:
“The results and outputs of employees' work are influenced by the leadership
style that management uses. This has the power to boost or destroy employee
morale, encourage people to produce their best work if the leadership style
recognizes it and offers incentives as a reward, or merely do what is necessary
to get by. In a toxic workplace, employees might not provide their best effort.
Collaboration among leaders and the team members they supervise can benefit
the organisation.”

Participants eight indicated that:

“The leadership style has a significant impact on organisational culture; if the two
are not in any way aligned, the leadership style triumphs and shapes the culture
of the organisation. Since we all come from different backgrounds, ethnicities,
and cultures, an organisation should be a place where each person feels
accepted with their diversity. This is because leaders and employees should
work together to establish the organisational culture.”

Soleman et al., (2020) postulates that organisational culture is a basic pattern of

thinking and act correctly. Therefore, leadership can influence culture just as much
as culture can influence leadership. Systems that foster organisational culture and
uphold workplace norms must be developed by leaders. The acts of the leader
where their attention is directed, how they respond to crises, and the behaviours they
model are adopted as cultural norms in the workplace. The effectiveness of an
organisation's operations can be strongly impacted by its culture. Both good and bad
leaders can influence the climate of their organisations.

Question C4: What is the impact of leadership styles on employee

performance and retention in the organisation?

In this question the participants expressed their views on the impact of leadership
styles on employee performance and retention in the organisation.

Participants five highlighted that:

 “The leadership style affects organisational culture in way that it leads
employees to put extra effort on their jobs and perceive their leaders as
effective. Positive cultures create healthy working environment.”

Participants six pointed that:

"Employees who work under hostile and dictatorial leadership are inclined to
perform at the bare minimum. Since most people want to feel appreciated, if the
leadership is not supporting, they are likely to look for alternative work, but a
caring and supportive leadership style is likely to produce high-performing and
devoted staff.”

Participants seven stated that:

“People will not stay long in an organisation if the leader's leadership style
makes them feel as though they are not valued, heard, or part of the
organisation because this could negatively impact performance. Depending on
the style, leadership philosophies may have beneficial or bad effects on
organisational culture. The culture would undoubtedly suffer from an autocratic
manner. Because a leader's words are followed regardless of how the followers
feel”

All the participants identified the following generic issues:

o Effective leadership can improve the individual employee
performance through appropriate leadership style and retain high
performance and talented employees within the organisation because they
know that high performance employees are unique resources of the
organisation:
o Leadership style can influence job satisfaction and well-being among
employees; and
o Leadership will have positive impact on organisational commitment which
ultimately reduces the employee’s turnover intention.
Dwipayana and Suwandana (2021) argue that employee retention can be positively
and significantly impacted by leadership style. In other words, the more effective the
organisation’s leadership style, when employees as motivated, they are more likely
to stay in the organisation. The influence of leadership style on the employee
retention is very important and should be strengthened. The findings indicates that
the Research council need to improve on the employee retention. This simply means
that the employee’s desire to stay with the organisation will rise the better when the
leadership style supports performance retention in the Research Council.

According to the research’s findings, leadership style has a significant positive

impact on employee retention. Therefore, as a result, the leadership of the Research
Council should pay attention to the leadership style that will be used when dealing
with employees, including differentiating between situations where and when to use
leadership style, in order to improve and maintain employee retention. Employees
will also be content if their leaders allow for the employee inputs during decision
making, are able to inspire employees, communicate effectively with employees, feel
a sense of responsibility towards employees, and the emotional control necessary to
complete tasks. So that the Research Council can function effectively and
harmoniously. Furthermore, the Research Council should always pay attention to the
relation between employees and leaders.

Question C5: What do you think would be the most beneficial approaches to
managerial leadership style in the organisation?

In this question the participants expressed their views on the most beneficial
approaches to managerial leadership style in Research Council.

Participants two highlighted that:

“The leadership styles can be improved by leading from behind (learn to follow)
by allowing your employees to do their projects the best way they know how,
keep learning, being a good listener, be able to resolve conflict, practising
discipline and attending leadership workshops or courses that will help you
improve on being a leader.”

Participants three indicated that:

 “Having clear guidelines or instructions for newly employed is important since
there are several cultural aspects of the organisation that new employees
personally find it difficult, such as time-billing, project participation, and other
things that they have discovered via questioning.” These views were also
expressed by participant ten.

Participants eight indicated that:

“The organisational culture of Research Council should be in line with its beliefs
and goals. For the Research Council to pinpoint areas for organisational culture
change, it must be aware of both its strengths and limitations. Accessible,
genuine, open, and transparent leaders with excellent communication and
listening skills are required for a good organisational culture.” The views were
also expressed by participant four.

Participants five is of the opinion that:

“The pacesetting managerial leadership style, which gives instructions and
establishes a plan for their employees to follow, will be the most advantageous
approaches to managerial leadership style in the organisation. In an effort to
motivate their team to achieve greater goals. This kind of leader frequently
establishes high or challenging standards.”

Participants six stated that:

“Long-term benefits are likely to come from a leadership approach that is
transparent, consultative, and compassionate. It will be able to draw in and keep
talented, high performing workers.”

Participants seven indicated that:

“The beneficial approaches to managerial leadership style in the organisation is
that the Research Council should practice inclusivity and transparency. The
employees want to feel included and feel like they are a part of a bigger picture
 not just numbers, and transparency in the direction where the organisation is
going.”

Aibieyi (2019) argues that sound leadership has the ability to influence the workforce
so that everyone works to achieve the organisation’s desired goal is a very important
component. It is crucial to encourage employees to work eagerly, zealously and
confidently. Therefore, the findings indicate that clear guidelines or instructions for
employees in the organisation are very important. Research Council leadership
should have excellent communication and listening skills in order to motivate their
team to achieve greater goals. Furthermore, the most beneficial approaches to
managerial leadership style in the organisation should be inclusive, transparent,
consultative and compassionate.

4.3.3 Theme 3. Challenges of Leadership Styles on Organisational Culture

Objective 3: To identify the perceived challenges posed by the current leadership

styles on organisational culture at the Research Council.

This section was designed to assess the perceived challenges of the styles of
leadership within the Research Council.

Question D1: What leadership style do you prefer as an employee and why?

In this question the participants expressed their views on what leadership style do
they prefer as an employee and why.

Participants one indicated that:

“I preferred leaders that lead from behind. They allow subordinates to assume
responsibility, which results in learning and growth. My aim is to grow into a
reputable researcher, and this will be facilitated by leadership that fosters
positive and healthy environments to allow growth. According to the different
styles of leadership, a leader who leads from behind is behaving as a servant
leader. Servant leaders see to the needs of the team, which helps create the
conditions that allows individuals to shine, making the best use of themselves
and available resources.”
Participant two, three, five and seven expressed that they prefer democratic
leadership style as employees. According to the participants Research Council tried
their best to put their employees needs first and allowing the employees to explore
their strengths and weaknesses and giving the employees freedom to pursue other
tasks besides the tasks of their organisational roles.

Participants two said that:

“Democratic leadership comes with inherent challenges, the benefits are that the
staff are well informed about what the organisation is offering, and some leave
the organisation with new qualifications, good work experience and lessons
learnt that can be improved as one ventures to new organisation and roles.”

Participants four, six, eight, nine and ten indicated that they prefer transformational
leadership because it places emphasis on change and transformation. The
participants elucidated that transformational leader is always looking ahead and
thinking about what needs to be done in order to achieve the organisations’ goals.
Transformational leaders inspire their followers to do the same. They are
comfortable with change and understand that it is necessary for organisational
success. They work to ensure that their followers are also comfortable with change
and are able to adapt to it. They also see the potential in each one of their followers.
They strive to develop their followers’ individual strengths and abilities so that they
can reach their full potential. The generic reasons which were put forward as
motivation for their choice of democratic leadership style is that leaders embrace
teamwork, team and employee empowerment and leadership approach are often
more engaged and creative than those under some more restrictive leadership
styles.

Judging from the responses of the participants it was clear from the expressions of
the employees of Research Council prefer transformational leadership. An extensive
body of research has linked transformational leadership to successful performance
outcomes at the individual, group, and organisational levels. To support one another
and the entire organisation, transformational leaders put their attention on
"transforming" others. The response from followers of a transformational leader is
trust, admiration, loyalty, and respect for the leader, as well as a greater willingness
to put in more effort than was initially anticipated.

A transformational leadership approach, in accordance with White (2022),

encourages, inspires, and motivates staff to innovate and bring about the change
required to change the organisation's future success. To do this, executives need to
lead by example, demonstrating authenticity, a strong sense of corporate culture,
employee ownership, and independence at work. Transformational leaders are
change agents and can spot emerging and changing technological trends and then
assist their organisation in embracing those changes. This finding is also supported
by Benson et al., (2018) who reviewed more than twenty studies and discovered that
transformational leadership was positively connected with performance.

Question D2: What are the challenges with the current leadership style?

In this question the participants expressed their views on challenges with the current
leadership style in Research Council.

Participants two expressed that:

“It is difficult to make all employees in an organisation happy, however one of

the challenges is that the leadership favours researchers more that the support
staff. Since research council is a research facility, most of their decision making
revolves around research. They focus on further capacitating Researchers and
first preference is given to Researchers for funding of studies, attendance of
conferences and most workshops that are being offered by the organisation are
more focused on research work”

Participant nine said that:

“Due to the size of the organisation, leadership tends to be complacent to the
work each employee does, and this can be discouraging, and some employees
procrastinate and take credit for work done by others, especially because
research projects are usually done by a team.”

Participant ten indicated that:

 “Leadership could create moments of insecurity within the leadership due to lack
of feedback provided to employees. This can lead to some employees rebelling,
reduce the amount of group input received and impair group morale.”

Participants one and six, both stated that communication is the challenge with the
current leadership style in the organisation and many staff members feel
undervalued and overworked, they do not feel recognized or safe.

All the participants identified the following generical challenges.

o Communication Challenges: Keeping all employees on the same on the

same page. It has been established that in research changing environment it
can be difficult to keep all employee abreast with what is going on in the
organisation, or even in the team. Therefore, having schedule quick, regular
one-on-one meetings to check if all employees are receiving and
understanding key information. Furthermore, a sense keeping communication
frequent and open so that all employees are the same page. A culture of
feedback within a team is an essential way to ensure they can really progress
together and individually.
o Competency Challenges: Issues relating to making hard decisions,
managing resources, delegating without micromanaging where some of the
issues identified by the participants.
o Seeking feedback: Lack of 360-degree feedback in the Research Council
has been identified as a challenge to some of the participants as they are of
the opinion that leadership should implement as it is key to the organisational
success. Feedback presents an opportunity to learn and continue to develop.
It is also a way to hear what your employees or team does appreciate about
your leadership. Setting up feedback mechanism and making sure to respond
positively to the feedback received can take a lot of trust for employees.

According to Chandy (2018) organisational culture could be improved through

effective leadership by fostering effective communications. The performance and
contributions of employees are frequently crucial to the success of an organisation or
business. Research Council can benefit from having a strong organisational culture,
but it also needs a steady and efficient communication channel. To be effective and
productive, employees must comprehend their duties and the guiding principles of
the organisation.

Question D3: How organisational culture and leadership style affect

employee’s performance?

In this question the participants expressed their views on how organisational culture
and leadership style in Research Council affect employee’s performance.

Participant two said that:

“Organisational culture and leadership style affect employee’s performance by
achieving and building strong employee relationships, encouraging frequent
employee recognition, recognising the work of both Researchers and Support
Staff, more transparent communication this goes together with open lines of
communication, trusting employees with their work and connecting both current
and potential employees to the organisations purpose. A strong organisational
culture supports adaptation and developing the organisation's employee
performance by motivating employees towards a shared goals and objectives.”

Participant eight said that:

“Leadership determines values, culture, change tolerance and employee
motivation, all of which have a direct causal relationship to organisational
performance and success. In addition, leaders can enhance organisational
values by encouraging staff members to develop through goal setting,
opportunities, and recognition and these will improve employees' performance.”

Participant five said that:

“Organisational culture and leadership style can affect employee’s performance
positively through encouraging employees to exceed their performance. They
therefore express trust in leadership as a critical factor in employee
performance, irrespective of which style leaders adopt. There is a correlation
between trust and employee behaviour that stimulate performance, including the
preparedness to stay with the organisation for long term. “
Participant seven said that:
“I am of the opinion that positive work culture encourages productivity,
engagement and improve employee experience. Leadership and culture directly
affect performance through improved productivity, business goals are supported,
and business performance is improved. Employees becomes optimistic with
their workplace if they feel they are a part of the culture.”

While examining the how organisational culture and leadership style affect
employee’s performance the role of leadership on employee performance. Issues
such as achieving and building strong employee relationships, encouraging frequent
employee recognition, recognizing the work, trust in leadership. These issues raised
by the participants support the notion that organisational culture and leadership style
can positively affect performance and lead to improved productivity, achieved
business goals, and business performance is improved. Numerous research studies
conducted confirm that there is a positive influence that organisational culture and
leadership style plays in employee’s performance (Meng & Berger, 2019;
Kammerhoff, Lauenstein and Schütz, 2019; Eliyana, Ma'arif and Muzakki, 2019).

Question D4: What are the challenges in leadership styles practice in the
organisation?

In this question the participants expressed their views on the challenges in

leadership styles practice in the Research Council.

Participant three said that:

“Some of the challenges are related to high staff turnover, lack of transformation
in senior management as result the Research Council was fined by the
Department of Labour for non-compliance for meeting Employment Equity
targets”.

Participant five said that:

“Most research staff are over worked and work long hours to complete their
projects without proper guidance from the leadership which lead to low morale of
 employees and other planning their exit from the organisation. Furthermore, it
becomes a challenge for some of the leaders within Research Council to
approve employees to attend the training.”

Participant five said that:

“The challenges in leadership styles practice in the organisation revolves around
the dissatisfaction of employees, high staff turnover, lack of motivation and lack
of engagement.”

When analysing the responses of all the participants the following generical
challenges in leadership styles practice were identified.

o Inspiration: There is a lack of inspiration in the organisation. The research

team and other employees are looking for inspiration and motivation to
complete their work. This can be tough to achieve in a challenging work
environment or if employees are not feeling motivated. Lack of critical
employee engagement.
o Developing employees: A key role of a leader is talent and employee
development. As a leader it is critical to search out the potential in team
members and encourage their growth. The leaders need to understand their
aspirations for the future and come up with ways to assist challenge and
stretch them. Creating formal and informal opportunities to talk about how
they want to progress in their career and support them to take those steps.
o Leading change: Leading a team during change can frequently feel
uncertain. Leadership is looked to by the workforce for direction and
assurance. It is crucial to give the team's emotions some credence and make
them feel heard. Lowering resistance to the change can be accomplished by
assisting them in seeing its advantages.

Effective leadership, according to Meng and Berger (2019), encourages a learning

culture. Sharing knowledge and information that can foster their employees' growth
is a constant behaviour of effective leaders. Leaders should aware that in order for
their teams to be productive and operate efficiently, they need the right tools. In
order for employees to positively impact the organisation, leadership must
communicate with them and give them useful tools. Employees should be
encouraged to develop their abilities and productivity in their chosen fields of
specialization by leadership. This promotes a culture of learning that encourages
workers to take chances and work together with co-workers (Craig, 2018).

Question D5: What challenges affect the organisational culture of Research

Council.

In this question the participants expressed their views on the challenges affecting
organisational culture of Research Council.

Participant one said that:

“Challenges affecting the organisational culture of Research Council relates to
the lack of management support for the change, lack of commitment to change,
past experience of failed change which can also lead to the burnout of staff, high
staff turnaround, low morale and reputational damage of the organisation.”

Participant three indicated that:

“Lack of commitment and reinforcement is a challenge and it is another reason
why innovation culture efforts fail in low levels of managerial commitment.”
Participants seven, eight and ten also share the same view and indicated that
innovation is seen as an extracurricular activity, it easily gets in the way of daily
tasks and routines. Lack of management committed spread to the employees.

Participant nine indicated that:

“Challenge that affecting organisational culture of Research Council is the rigid
organisational structure which is typically quite hierarchical and at sometimes
creating some blockages for innovation which constrains information flow.”

Participant five indicated that:

“I view challenges affecting organisational culture in this organisation as a lack
of management support for the change and lack of commitment to change which
in my opinion are key for the transformation of the Research Council. Another
 pertinent challenge is communication, more especially the direction in which the
organisation is heading as a research institute and the organisational structure
that will be supporting the strategy of the Research Council.”

When analysing the responses of all the participants the following generical
challenges affecting organisational culture of Research Council were identified.

o Resistance to organisational culture shift: The lack of management

support for the change, lack of commitment to change, past experience of
failed change initiatives within the Research Council. This was supported by
the statements made on the fine which was issued by the Department of
Employment and Labour for the issues of senior management employment
equity.
o Attitudes: This also include the mentalities, interests, perception and even
the thought process of the employees affect the organisation culture. As an
example, this may include the process of the organisation used to hire
individuals from research background tend to follow a strict culture where all
the employees abide by the set guidelines and policies.
o Communicating the purpose: Communication is important with a purpose.
If there is no direction. It is important that employees people know why
change is inevitable in the organisation. The responsibility to communicate
serve the purpose of renewal in order to survive as an organisation. It is
leadership responsibility to communicate what needs to be changed as well
as what each individual should do for making this change happen.
o Rigid organisational structures: Research Council organisational structure
is typically quite hierarchical and considering that it is a large organisation.
Having some form of hierarchy is necessary, but it might also create some
blockages for innovation if it constrains information flow.

Uncertainty, inadequate communication and inconsistency are example of common

organisational culture issues. These can contribute to a hostile and unpleasant work
environment, which can reduce employee loyalty and may be a factor in problems
such as high turnover in the organisation (Chandy, 2018; Eliyana, Ma’arif and
Muzakki, 2019).
4.4 Discussion

The research study finding revealed that the leadership styles have influence on the
organisational culture within the Research Council. Leadership is seen as one of the
essential drivers of the organisational success. The results also shows that specific
leadership styles have direct and positive impacts on the organisational performance
and direct influences through an organisational culture.

The empirical finds expression and evidence in supporting the indication that specific
leadership styles play important roles in influencing processes and outcomes within
organisations. The leadership style of the leader is important in maintaining the
organisational success through the willingness and active participation of employees
promoting an integrated work culture supported by organisations beliefs and
strategies.

Furthermore, the study has revealed that the perceived challenges posed by the
current leadership styles on organisational culture are lack of management support
for the change, lack of commitment to change, past experience of failed change
initiatives within the organisation. The challenges with the current leadership style
were perceived to be able to keep communication frequent and open so that all
employees so that they must be abreast with what is going on in the organisation, or
even in the team. Competency challenge such as issues relating to marking hard
decisions, managing resources, delegating without micromanaging where some of
the issues identified by the participants and lack of 360-degree feedback in the
Research Council has been identified as a challenge as it is key to the organisational
success.

The recommendations discussed in this chapter suggest some changes that could
possibly be considered by the leadership to increase the impact of organisational
culture for the employees within the Research Council. This research study will
assist leaders to better understand leadership qualities that act as drivers to enhance
organisational culture engagement of employees, eventually leading to
organisational success.
4.5 Conclusion
In conclusion, this chapter provided the analysis of data obtained from the interviews
conducted. The interpretation and analysis were undertaken in accordance with the
research objectives. The study establishes the perceived effect of leadership styles
on organisational culture within Research Council which identified the current
leadership styles, determine the perceived effect of the current leadership styles on
organisational culture and identify the perceived challenges posed by the current
leadership styles on organisational culture, furthermore provide recommendations to
the management on ways in which the current leadership styles can be improved in
order to optimize organisational culture.

The next chapter will provide the conclusions and recommendations of the research
study.
 CHAPTER FIVE: CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

5.1 Introduction
This chapter focuses on delivering a synopsis of the main findings and conclusions
of the research study. The key aim of this research study was to explore the
perceived effect of the leadership styles on organisational culture within Research
Council. This chapter provide conclusions and recommendations based on data
collected. The objectives of the study was to identify the current leadership styles at
the Research Council, to identify the perceived challenges posed by the current
leadership styles on organisational culture at the Research Council; and to provide
recommendations to the management at the Research Council on ways in which the
current leadership styles can be improved in order to optimize organisational culture.

5.2 Key Finding from the Research Study

The section provides the summary of the findings of the research study. The two
headings which is the findings from the literature review and finding from primary
research are discussed below.

5.2.1 Findings from the Literature Review

The literature review conducted allows the researcher to define leadership as a
process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a
common goal (Northouse, 2020). It is generally simply defined as the process of
influencing people to direct their efforts towards achievement of some particular goal
or goals. It is art of influencing people so that they will strive willingly towards the
achievement of group goals. This concept can be enlarged to include not only
willingness to work but with zeal and confidence.

5.2.1.1 Organisational Culture

Kilmann (2020) argues that leadership is important because, as organisational
cultures progress and change, they also need to be managed and controlled. The
existence of any organisation depends upon the shaping of culture initiated by
effective leaders rather than considering organisational culture as a function of
leadership and management. Organisational culture has been reflected as a result of
industry and environmental demands, and leadership is a function of organisational
culture. Supported by Schein (2018) to distinguish leadership from management or
administration, one can argue that leadership creates and changes cultures, while
management and administration act within a culture. Culture is the outcome of a
complex group learning process that is only partly influenced by leader behaviour.
But if the group’s survival is threatened because elements of its culture have become
maladapted, it is ultimately the function of leadership at all levels of the organisation
to recognize and change the situation. It is in this sense that leadership and culture
are theoretically interconnected.

Various theoretical and empirical works, indicated in the published journals, were
studied in order to observe effect of leadership styles on organisational culture.
Subsequently, it was clear that further research studies need to be conducted on the
subjects of leadership and organisational culture. Although extensively studied, it is
clear that further studies are still necessary to focus on the leadership styles and
organisational culture as the culture is influence by leadership differently in different
organisation as it depends on the style of leadership and the culture of the
organisation.

5.2.1.2 Leadership Styles

Leadership styles are like personality types, they do not fit into well-ordered
characteristics. Instead, they can be generally classified based on a set of
characteristics, including factors like autonomy and flexibility. Leadership styles will
include features from each of these different categories and will change to suit the
business environment. Although there are many types of leadership style, this
research study only focused on the basic 6 types which included Authoritarian,
Democratic, Participative, Delegative, Transactional, Transformational leadership
styles. Various researchers have focused on more than these 6 basic types.

Various studies have shown that to become an effective leader, a leader need to
know which qualities to develop as they lead their team. The leadership qualities
include several personal and professional traits that can assist a leader to
communicate more effectively, develop and reach goals, and relate to other team
members (Harvard Business Review, 2019).
5.2.1.3 Leadership Styles Influencing Organisational Culture
Leadership style strongly influences organisation culture. Many authors have
postulated that leaders can strengthen organisational values by assisting their
employees grow and develop through goal setting, opportunities, and recognition.
Improving employees through frequent one-on-ones and regular two-way feedback.
It has been argued that when employees have open and ongoing dialogue about
their work, their trust in their leader strengthens. Authors such as Schein (2018) have
argued in support of recommendations provided in this research that leaders should
appreciate their role in determining an organisation’s culture, and organisations must
make deliberate efforts to assist in developing their employees and leaders.

Furthermore, given empirical support for Schein (2018) fundamental assumptions,

additional research could take a longitudinal approach to investigate the process of
culture creation with the organisation including the ways in which cultures develop
and change, and various key strategies for managing culture. The additional
empirical research studies should be conducted on the research institutions to
determine how the influence by all leaderships style on the organisational culture.

5.2.1.4 Role of Leadership on Organisational Culture

Employees influences an organisation's direction, however leadership has by far the
major and most direct result on organisation’s culture, which focuses on employee
engagement, environment, atmosphere and the success of the organisation and its
customers. The role leadership has on organisational culture affects the confidence
of the employees. Leadership cultivates the foundation of culture to empower
employees to achieve the organisation mission and realise how important each of
their contributions is to further those goals (Craig, 2018).

Leadership influences the changing work culture, which can easily go from good to
bad. When employees feel engaged in a dynamic and caring work culture, their
performance, pride and loyalty rise steeply the organisation and its customers to
success.
5.2.1.5 Organisational Culture Improved through effective Leadership
Leadership style and skills are crucial to assist creating a positive culture in an
organisation. Leaders can help investors feel that the organisation is good and
trustworthy. Customers are more likely to feel loyal when they see effective leaders
in an organisation. Improving organisational culture through effective leadership is a
long-term investment as culture is fluid and changes frequently. Schein (2018)
demonstrated that organisational culture reinforces accountability. Accountability in
the workplace environment is a foremost influencer of organisational structure.

An important and often overlooked aspect of culture is that despite its nature, people
are effectively hardwired to recognize and respond to it instinctively. Leaders’ role is
to also help employee to fully understand their role as strong culture brings better
retention in an organisation. Organisational culture could also be improved through
effective leadership by fostering effective communications.

Numerous researchers have demonstrated that effective leadership promotes a

learning culture which can come in a form of habit of sharing information and
knowledge that can promote the growth of their employees. Fostering a culture of
recognition and appreciation is particularly important. Establish a culture of
appreciation and recognition by telling employees the significance of their
contributions and promote job satisfaction. (Khuong & Nhu, 2015 as cited in
Debebe, 2020; Meng & Berger, 2019).

5.2.2 Key Findings from the Primary Study

The following key findings from the primary research study are supporting the
recommendations of this study and are presented in detail below:

5.2.2.1 Current Leadership Styles in the Organisation

The findings indicate that the employees are of the opinion that the current
leadership style within the Research Council should determine how they strategize
and implement plans while accounting for the expectations of the stakeholders and
as well as the wellbeing of their teams. Furthermore, it was identified amongst others
by the participants that leadership style plays a very important role in the job they
have and the way they communicate. It has been expressed that leadership styles
have the way leaders communicate, motivate, support staff to ensure that
organisational goals are met.

In terms of how the participant perceived the dominant leadership styles practised in
the Research Council, it was established that the dominant leadership style identified
is the Democratic leadership style as it is believed that the people in leadership roles
create space for employees to voice their opinions. Although there were some who
have also indicated that there are still pockets of leaders who uses autocratic
leadership style within the Council. It was also noted that leadership dictates policies
and procedures, decides what goals are to be achieved, and directs and controls all
activities without any meaningful participation by the subordinates. Leadership has
full control of the team, leaving low autonomy within the group.

The findings also in terms of how effective the current leadership styles in managing
and retaining are indicates that the current management is not effective in managing
and retaining employees and identified that the Research Council have Retention
and Talent Management Policy in place but not effectively enforced and is not
provided a priority. The employees have low confidence in the leadership and as a
result there is high staff turnover and majority of employees were placed on
contracts and as a result do not stay long in the organisation because of uncertainty
of the contract extension, financial stability and work security.

Stoyanov (2022) supports finding by indicating that the various leadership styles
have a direct impact on organisational culture, employee engagement, workforce
motivation and inspiration. All of these have a significant impact on how employees
feel about an organisation, which has a strong influence in attracting the right people
and retaining the existing employees longer in the organisation.

Diverse opinions were deducted from the findings in terms of how the leadership
style affect the organisation's working environment as it was established that
leadership style can affects the organisation’s working environment both in a
negative and positive way depending on the style being displayed by management.
The findings indicates that leadership style can affect the organisational working
environment through treating all employees the same, helping the employees grow
and develop through goal setting, opportunities and recognition, through having
realistic expectations from employees, supporting their work and career growth
opportunities and ensuring the mental health of employees is addressed and well
taken care of. Having performance-based incentives can also create healthy
competition amongst employees.

The findings also indicated that leadership style is important to building

organisational culture as it is a collaborative process and has a greater impact on the
culture than the culture of leadership does. The relationship will improve the
organisational performance. It was further established that leadership style and
culture are aligned with each other, a positive and inclusive organisational culture
can only exist if the leadership style of a leader who believes in including their
employees in the existence of the organisation/unit.

This finding is supported by Schein (1996) cited in Mitrovic et al., (2019: 85) stating
that the relationship between leadership and organisational culture is an interactive
process, according to which a leader, with his leadership style, creates an
organisation that, with its beliefs, behaviours, and values, creates a future
organisational culture.

5.2.2.2 Effect of the Current Leadership Styles on Organisational Culture

The study also focussed on determining the perceived effect of the current
leadership styles on organisational culture at the Research Council. Study revealed
that the role of leadership should be responsible for the shaping the organisation
culture and set the agenda for the organisation, prioritize, manage, lead and
delegate what must be done in the organisation. Leadership should provide a sense
on purpose, vision in the organisation, mentorship, and aspiration to the employees.
Most importantly is that leadership style should influence and ensure the prosperity
and the economic growth of both the organisation and employees.

The study further revealed that the effect of the leadership style on the organisational
culture is to promote a healthy working environment and encourages employee to
exceed their expected performance. Study has also determined that effective
leadership can improve the individual employee performance through appropriate
leadership style and retaining high performance and talented employee within the
Research Council. Appropriate leadership style can influence job satisfaction and
well-being among employees and have positive impact on organisational
commitment which will be able to reduce the employee’s turnover.

With regards to the most beneficial approaches to managerial leadership style in the
organisation the study revealed that Research Council should align its organisational
culture with its values and purpose or mission to ensure that the organisation is able
to improve organisational culture. Understanding their strengths and weaknesses,
practice inclusivity, openness and transparency and have improve on
communication.

Quaian (2019), in line with the finding state that leadership style organisation
chooses to implement can have a profound impact on the success or failure
business. It is also about the kind of organisation culture create in the workplace,
the structure of the organisation and how the problems are handled and issues that
can destabilize organisation. Akparep et al., (2019) also indicate that perceived
leadership is an employee’s cognitive feeling of management style of controlling,
directing, and motivating employees toward organisational goals. Leadership style
assist the organisation to achieve its current objectives more efficiently by linking job
performance to valued rewards and by ensuring that employees have the resources
needed to get the job done.

5.2.2.3 Challenges of Leadership Styles on Organisational Culture

The study findings on the perceived challenges posed by the current leadership
styles on organisational culture at the Research Council revealed that there are
communications challenges within the organisation which include keeping the
employees abreast with what is happening in the organisation considering that the
research environment is changing and feedback within the organisation.
Competency challenges was also identified as an issue which relate to the decision
making, managing resources and delegating without micro-managing. Feedback was
also raised as a challenge. There is lack of 360-degree in the organisation as it was
implied that leadership should implement as it is key to the success of the
organisation.

It was further established by the study that organisational culture and leadership
style affect employee performance and should have having clear guidelines for new
employees, as there are some things that employee struggled with when joining the
organisation, that had to do with the culture, such as time-billing, how to participate
in projects and other things that new employee learn through asking questions and
believed that a negative work culture, in contrast, can affect productivity levels,
increase turnover rate, and lead to employees feeling disengaged from their work
and workplace. Furthermore, leadership trust was single out as a critical factor in
employee performance, irrespective of which style leaders adopt.

The challenges in leadership style practices in the Research Council was identified
as, firstly, lack of aspiration by the research teams and other employees which
create challenging work environment if employees are not feeling motivated and lack
of critical employee engagement. Secondly, the development of employees was also
identified as a key issue which is a key role of a leader to harness talent and
employee development. The leaders need to understand employee aspirations for
the future and come up with ways to assist, challenge and stretch employee. Thirdly,
leading change. employees look to leadership for guidance and reassurance. It is
important to validate the feelings of the team and help them to feel their fears are
heard. Helping employees to find the positives of the change can lower resistance
towards change. Furthermore, the challenges of high turnover, low morale of
employees, dissatisfaction of employees. lack of transformation in senior
management was an issue as stated that Research Council was also fined by the
Department of Labour for non-compliance to employment equity.

Findings that were also raised as challenges that affect organisational culture of
Research Council includes; resistance to organisational culture shift which directly
posed by lack of management support and commitment to change. Attitudes which
include the mentalities, interests, perceptions and the thought process of the
employees affecting the organisational culture. Communicating the purpose to
change which must be done by leadership and the employees will follow. The rigid
organisational structure which is typical hierarchical as a result creates some
blockages for innovation and constraining information flow is also a challenge
affecting culture of the organisation.

The relationship between organisational culture and leadership styles are critical,
and it is supported by a number of studies, the challenges have an impact on
organisational performance. Prominent researchers in leadership and culture have
opined that leader behaviour helps culture evolve and change (Schein, 2018; Kotter
et al., 2021). The single biggest challenge teams and organisations face at large is to
adapt fast enough to match the increasing uncertainty and complexity. And since all
indications are that increasing volatility, complexity, and rapid change is the new
normal, organisations will need to find new ways to mobilize their employees to
actively participate in gathering insights, creating solutions, and providing leadership
(Kotter et al., 2021).

5.3 Conclusions from the Findings

This section highlights the conclusions obtained from the study and elaborates on
how the research objectives, questions and aim were satisfied.

5.3.1 Current Leadership Styles in the Organisation

Research objective 1: To identify the current leadership styles at the Research
Council.

It was established that the dominant leadership style identified is the democratic
leadership style as it is believed that the people in leadership roles create space for
employees to voice their opinions. Although there were some who have also
indicated that there are still pockets of leaders who uses autocratic leadership style
within the Research Council. Furthermore, diverse opinions were deducted from the
findings in terms of how the leadership style affect the organisation's working
environment as it was established that leadership style can affects the organisation’s
working environment both in a negative and positive way depending on the style
being displayed by management.

5.3.2 Current Leadership Styles in the Organisation

Research objective 1: To identify the current leadership styles at the Research
Council.

Study has also determined that effective leadership can improve the individual
employee performance through appropriate leadership style and retaining high
performance and talented employee within the Research Council. Appropriate
leadership style can influence job satisfaction and well-being among employees and
have positive impact on organisational commitment which will be able to reduce the
employee’s turnover.

5.3.3 Challenges of Leadership Styles on Organisational Culture

Research objective 3: To identify the perceived challenges posed by the current
leadership styles on organisational culture at the Research Council.

Study revealed that there are communications challenges within the organisation
which include keeping the employees abreast with what is happening in the
organisation considering that the research environment is changing and feedback
within the organisation. Competency challenges was also identified as an issue
which relate to the decision making, managing resources and delegating without
micro-managing. Feedback was also raised as a challenge. There is lack of 360-
degree in the organisation as it was implied that leadership should implement as it is
key to the success of the organisation.

5.4 Recommendations
Recommendations that would add value to the research study and which were
suggested by the participants and the researcher to improve the organisational
culture within the Research Council. The recommendations from this research study
are discussed below.

The research study firstly recommends that Research Council should enhance their
communication and feedback. Open communication plays an important role in
retaining the status quo in the workplace. Workplaces are typically staffed with
people of different races, cultures, beliefs, and personalities. Having an open
communication platform to employees can improve organisational culture of
organisation. Employees at any level should have access to participate in Question-
and-Answer sessions with leaders, answers can be provided immediately on the
spot. This could assist employees voice to be heard, but it is also a respectable way
to strengthen the organisation’s goals and values. By taking meaningful action on
feedback can only be useful to employees.

Communication from a leader to an employee is very important. As much as

employees need space and want to be free, they also require feedback and want to
know how their performance is and how they can improve. Pollock (2018) postulate
that frequent feedback can benefit and transform teams as whole in the organisation,
as a result, employees want to know how their performance is and how they can
improve. This can only be achieved through a leader who provide regular feedback
to employees.

The benefit from the recommendation is that communication in the workplace is

important because it boosts employee morale, engagement, productivity, and
satisfaction. Communication is also key for better team collaboration and
cooperation. Eventually, effective workplace communication helps drive better
results for individuals, teams, and organisations. With so many differences it is
normal that conflict will arise from time to time. However, if there is a culture of
openness this can assist to mitigate conflict: people are more willing to listen to and
voice opinions and this type of fluid dialogue can help to correct any issues. Amongst
other benefits is that open communication can boost productivity. Productivity can
increase in organisations where employees are connected, or in other words, where
internal communications are working effectively.

Open communication encourages innovation. When employees are encouraged to

be open with their opinions and ideas a perfect environment prevails for innovation to
thrive and providing feedback ensures that employees feel acceptable and can be
innovative.

Helps manage a diverse workplace. Open communication is the best way to ensure
that everyone is on the same page in a diverse workplace. To avoid conflict, effective
communication will ensure that all employees understand organisational policies on
performance reviews and promotion. This will assist that other employees or minority
worker do not feel like they have been overlooked or treated differently.

Enhances team building. To work effectively together team members needs to trust
each other. Therefore, strong communication ground rules will assist to build trust
and bring team together. Clear guidelines on what is and what is not an acceptable
way to communicate will assist to know how behave in a blended team.
Furthermore, increases interdepartmental/unit cooperation. Keeping employees
informed and updated on work being done across the organisation can make it
easier for the departments/units to collaborate or corporate together on projects.
Excellent internal communication where projects and achievement are recognized
and highlighted will mean that all departments/units will have a better understanding
of what the other departments are doing and how they could possibly work together
on future projects.

Another benefit is that it creates better client relationship. Organisations that

communicate well with their clients from the beginning of the relationship are in an
excellent position to retain that client in the future. Client value and open and
transparent relationship where they are kept informed on any changes to their
contract or relationship and where they feel their business is mostly valued. To
effectively deal with concerns or issues client have relate to having the right
communication strategy in place.

Lastly, it generates a good public impression for the organisation. Organisation that
has a reputation for being excellent at communicating internally and with clients
portrays a good public impression and transparent in all aspects of their business. As
a result, this will create a positive knock-on effect on recruitment, investment and
organisations’ growth.

The suggested implementation plan for the recommendation is that Research

Council should come up with a communications strategy, that is a plan detailing the
entirety of the organisation’s internal and external communication efforts that must
be developed. That includes the ways the organisation will interacts with investors,
leadership, employees, customers, the press, and competitors. The following can be
implemented by the Research Council as part of their Implementation plan: -
 Having regular, informal get-togethers with employees on all levels to share
ideas, initiatives and raise concerns.
 Discouraging anonymous feedback.
 Having an open-door policy for meetings.
 Sharing the organisation's financial information and performance.

The research study secondly recommends that Research Council should empower
employees. Employee empowerment refers to the way in which organisation provide
their employees with necessary tools they need to succeed and achieve their goals.
An organisation with a culture of autonomy allows for more problem solving and
greater innovation. When employees are trusted to contribute with accountability, the
employees will outperform everyone’s expectations. Empowering employees is a
culture. It takes an increase in trust, clear communication, and strategic delegation.

The Research Council should provide opportunities for employees to grow through
more autonomy, additional responsibilities, or even an entirely new role. Recognize
employees frequently to increase their engagement and confidence in their own
abilities. Employees should be provided with the tools, training, and authority they
need to excel.

The benefits of the recommendation is that employee empowerment can instil

greater trust in leadership, encourage employee motivation, lead to greater creativity,
and improve employee retention, all of which ultimately results in a better bottom
line.
Empowering employees through greater autonomy has been directly linked to
increase employee motivation. Employees who have more control over how, when,
and where they do their job will work harder and find their work more engaging. And
given the chance to show off what they can do, employees will put their best foot
forward and feel more satisfied at the end of the day.

Leaders who empower their employees are more likely to be trusted by their
subordinates compared to leaders who do not empower their employees. Leaders
who empower their employees act as coaches, pushing their employees to do their
best work and supporting them along the way. Empowered employees felt that their
leaders would not take advantage of their hard work, instead, they would recognize
and celebrate their achievements.
Another benefit is improved creativity, according to meta-analysis published in
Harvard Business Review (2020) leaders who are perceived as empowering had
direct reports who are more likely to be rated by their colleagues as being as being
highly creative. Unsurprisingly, subordinates who allowed their employees to think
for themselves and collaborate across teams generated more novel ideas. Not only
that, but direct reports also who felt empowered were more likely to volunteer for
extra assignments and support their organisations outside of their day-to-day job
function. Empowered individuals are more committed to meaningful goals and used
their creativity to achieve them.

Furthermore, organisations that promote employee empowerment are simply

performing better than those that do not. Organisations with highly motivated
workers are more profitable. On the other hand, disengaged employees are costing
organisations lots of money.

The suggested implementation plan for the recommendation is that Research

Council should build a culture of trust, it is crucial to lead by example as leader and
keep promises, tell the truth, and encourage open dialogue and debate to solve
conflicts. The following is recommended implementation plan that Research Council
can undertake:
 Provide the right skill set for the job: Employees cannot effectively
complete assigned tasks if they do not have the necessary skills. It is vital for
an organisation to assess the gaps between the current and required skills.
Training must be provided to employees to improve and increase their skills.
Therefore, if the organisation wants an empowered workforce, employees
need to be offered appropriate training.
 Grant sufficient autonomy: The second means for empowerment of
employees is to provide them with adequate authority to decide on how to
complete their tasks. Employees need to be given allowed to complete their
 tasks in any manner they choose; as long as it complies with the parameters
and timelines set by the organisation.
 Clearly articulate the scope of individual’s job : It is paramount that
employees have a clear idea of how their role fits into the overall scheme of
the organisation. When this is shared in a meaningful manner, it empowers
them with the broader perspective of the organisation’s overall mission, vision,
goals and strategic plans.
 Provide sufficient information and resources: Employees must have
access to all the information they require in order to make informed and
appropriate decisions and be able to problem solve issues. Supplying
information and allocating the necessary resources empowers the employees
to perform their responsibilities to the best of their abilities.
 Build employee’s confidence: When employees have been given autonomy
and offered the opportunity to improve and increase their skills; they will feel
valued, supported, and appreciated. When one feels this way, it increases
their confidence which will in turn increase their performance levels because
they now believe they have the ability to achieve success.
 Guide with positive feedback: Providing positive feedback for tasks done
well and guiding employees about best practices, gives encouragement to the
employees. When employees feel appreciated, performance improves, and
creativity is enhanced.

The third recommendation to the Research Council is that the organisation should
build a culture of employee recognition. Recognize a job well done. Employees who
are openly shown appreciation at work are happier and more productive. When
employees know their contribution matters, that what they do is meaningful, and that
their superiors take the time to express thanks, employees are more loyal to their
team and the company as a whole. When employees feel valued, they are more
engaged, motivated, and likely to go the extra mile for their organisation.
Organisations with formal recognition programs have less voluntary turnover than
organisations that do not have any program at all. And they are more likely to have
strong business outcomes. If leaders want to drive employee, team, and business
success, they need to prioritise employee recognition.
The benefits from the recommendation implies that employee appreciation is a
fundamental human need. When employees feel appreciated and recognized for
their individual contributions, they will be more connected to their work, their team,
and your organisation as a whole. The following are benefits of employee
recognition:

 Increased productivity and engagement;

 Decreased employee turnover;
 Greater employee satisfaction and enjoyment of work;
 Improved team culture;
 Higher loyalty and satisfaction scores from customers;
 Increased retention of quality employees; and
 Decreased stress and absenteeism (Wickham, 2022).

The suggested Implementation Plan for the third recommendation is that Research
Council can improve and create a successful employee recognition program. A
successful employee recognition program can look different based on employees’
needs. Leaders in the Research Council can consider some of the best practices to
keep in mind to shape an effective retention program.
 Recognition Program should be detailed and specific. Recognition
resonates better when it is tied to a particular accomplishment. When it is
detailed and specific, employees understand exactly what they did well and
are likely to continue those behaviours in the future.
 Recognition Program should be prompt. Recognition should happen at an
appropriate time, not months after the fact. If leader recognize an employee
for a contribution made months ago, they may believe leader is simply going
through the motions. Their words will be more meaningful when they come
right after an achievement.
 Tie to company values. When employees demonstrate behaviour that aligns
with organisation values, they should not go unnoticed. When leaders
recognize these behaviours, employees are likely to continue them and
inspire others to do the same. This actively fosters ideal organisational
culture.
  Elevate across the organisation. When leader spread recognition across
the organisation, employees often feel a greater sense of pride knowing that
others are aware of their achievements. Plus, employee’s organisation-wide
can see how each individual and team contribution fits into the big picture.
 Recognize both big and small things. While it is great to recognize the big
accomplishments, employees need to feel appreciated for smaller
contributions too. Daily appreciations go a long way and reduce the risk of
employee burnout.
 Leveraging a successful employee recognition platform. It is important
that recognition is practiced across the organisation. Recognition should be a
part of overarching organisation culture. But getting started with an employee
recognition program and getting everyone on board and can be difficult
without the right tools. Research Council should look for in employee
recognition software to maximize your program’s success.

The fourth recommendation of the research study recommends that Research

Council should have an effective Employee Retention Strategies. To retain
performing employees, Research Council must implement effective employee
retention strategies that support crucial areas like providing respectful treatment of
all employees at all levels, provide a competitive compensation to employees,
develop trust between employees and leadership, provide job security by addressing
the employees being continuously place on contracts and take opportunity to take
opportunities to use employees’ skills and abilities at work. Instead of doing the bare
minimum to retain employees Research Council can offer competitive compensation
opportunities with tenure, successful employee retention strategies should focus on
multiple areas of the work experience that are proven to fight high turnover rates and
keep employees longer.

The benefits of the fourth recommendation for implementing effective employee

retention is have outcome of strategies and processes an organisation creates to
keep its top talent engaged, happy, and remaining with the organisation. The
following are some of the benefits: -
 Reduce costs and create efficiencies. The cost to replace an employee can
be up to twice the cost of the employee’s annual salary. Some of these costs
 are incurred from advertising the job opening, interviewing and screening
candidates, and onboarding and training new hires. Other costs are incurred
from lost productivity, effects on team morale, and customer service or sales
issues. Investing in employee retention and developing better management
strategies is a better approach. Organisations can reduce costly attrition by
rerouting the Human Resources budget from recruitment initiatives to people
and leadership development and employee satisfaction.
 Boost employee morale and motivation. Aside from the obvious costs of
attrition, hidden costs like the impact on morale are hard to equate, but no
less important. The departure of good people places an unnecessary burden
on remaining employees who acquire the extra workload. Often, employee
attrition causes a ripple effect where remaining employees question if they,
too, should leave, further exacerbating the problem. By focusing on retention
and engagement strategies, employers can lift employee morale, enable
greater connectedness and engagement, and create more positive
atmospheres in the workplace. Employees are looking outside the traditional
factors of pay and title when evaluating whether to remain in their roles.
 Improve customer experience and drive revenue. One of the lesser-known
benefits of employee retention is that it directly impacts revenue. Engaged
employees are more likely to improve customer relationships, with a resulting
increase in productivity. Retaining good employees in customer-facing roles
will result in better customer relations. Over time, customers or clients will
develop trust and even friendship with their main contacts in an organisation.
Hiring new employees to fill their place takes time and rebuilding the trust with
customers takes even longer. Further, new employees may take longer to get
things done or be more prone to customer service mistakes as they ramp up
in their roles, which can damage the customer experience.

Employee retention strategies, like offering meaningful employee

development, show employees they have a solid career path ahead of them.
Engaged, satisfied employees will be more inclined to provide great service to
customers knowing it will also benefit their long-term goals.
 Strengthen organisation culture. Organisation culture comes about in one
of two ways, it is defined, nurtured, and protected by leadership from the
 beginning of an organisation and it is created by a collective sum of the
behaviours, beliefs, and experiences of people. Culture plays a vital role in
hiring and retaining valuable employees. By creating good employee retention
strategies, organisations can build a more wholesome organisation culture,
ultimately improving the business’s value. Engaged employees who are
aligned with an organisation’s culture have longer tenures and strengthen the
organisational culture, fostering positivity across the organisation.

The suggested implementation plan for the fourth recommendation for Research
Council is that as part of implementing effective employee retention strategies to
help boost employees’ job satisfaction and increase your ability to hold onto valued
workers can do the following: -
 Onboarding and orientation: Every new hire should be set up for success
from the start. Onboarding process should teach new employees not only
about the job but also about the company culture and how they can contribute
to and thrive in it. The training and support organisation provide from day one,
whether in person or virtually, can set the tone for the employee’s entire
tenure at your Research Council.
 Mentorship Programs: Pairing a new employee with a mentor is a great
component to add to your extended onboarding process, especially in a
remote work environment. Mentors can welcome newcomers into the
organisation, offer guidance and be a sounding board. And it is a win-win:
new team members learn the ropes from experienced employees, and, in
return, they offer a fresh viewpoint to their mentors.
 Employee compensation: It is important for organisations to pay their
employees competitive compensation, which means employers need to
evaluate and adjust salaries regularly. Even if the organisation cannot
increase pay right now, should consider providing other forms of
compensation, such as bonuses. Improved health care benefits and
retirement plans can help raise employees’ job satisfaction.
 Perks: Perks can make your workplace stand out to potential new hires and
re-engage current staff while boosting employee morale. Many researchers
 have indicated that, flexible schedules and remote work options are the perks
many professionals value most.
 Wellness offerings: Keeping employees fit mentally, physically and
financially is simply good business. Many leading employers expanded and
improved their wellness offerings during the pandemic to help employees feel
supported and prioritise their well-being. Stress management programs,
retirement planning services and reimbursement for fitness classes are just
some examples of what Research Council might consider providing to
employees.
 Training and Development: As part of providing continuous feedback on
performance, Leaders can help employees identify areas for professional
growth, such as the need to learn new skills. Upskilling employees is
especially important today as technology continues to change how we work.
When people upskill, they gain new abilities and competencies as business
requirements evolve. Leadership should make it a priority to invest in
employees’ professional development. Employees time to attend virtual
conferences, provide tuition reimbursement or pay for continuing
education. Also, prioritize succession planning which can be a highly effective
method for advancing professional development and building leadership skills.
 Work-life balance. A healthy work-life balance is essential to job satisfaction.
People need to know their managers understand they have lives outside of
work and recognize that maintaining balance can be even more challenging
when working from home. Encourage employees to set boundaries and take
their vacation time. And if late nights are necessary to finalise a project,
leaders should consider giving them extra time off to compensate.
 An emphasis on teamwork: Leaders should encourage all your employees,
not just star players, to contribute ideas and solutions. Promote teamwork by
creating opportunities for collaboration, accommodating individuals’ work
styles and giving everyone the latitude to make decisions and course
corrections if needed.

The fifth recommendation is to build strong employee relationships. Leaders play a

significant role in shaping organisational culture and are the foundation for a
meaningful employee experience. it is evident that if the link between leaders and
employees is weak or negative, employees will be disconnected from other aspects
of culture as well. Therefore, leaders should act as mentors, advocate for employee
development, and actively link their employees with meaningful opportunities,
employees and leaders feels more successful, become deeply connected to one
another, and contribute to a stronger workplace culture.

The benefits from the fifth recommendation was that there are several reasons
should propel leaders to keep workplace relationships positive, optimistic, and
cheerful. Building a strong employee relationship with workmates have benefit in the
following ways: -
 Building trust: When leaders focus on building relationships with employees,
they gain more trust from them. And good rapport will help leaders to achieve
astonishing results.
 Knowing each other: By promoting friendliness and goodwill with
colleagues, will assists to get to know more about their strengths,
weaknesses, and the tasks that they love working on. This will assist when a
leader wants to delegate tasks.
 Avoiding conflicts: Workplace conflicts are usually caused by
misinterpretations and misunderstandings. And these two aspects can be
avoided when employees know each other properly. Keeping in mind that it is
easy to build positive relationships in the workplace than undoing the damage
caused by work fights.
 Boosts motivation: Several research studies have shown that money does
not promote happiness. A good-willed and productive workplace is extremely
important. When all workmates get along together, deadlines get met and
workflows flourish and results in satisfaction.
 Promotes listening: Most of the time, workmates tend to be talkative.
Leaders should not think of this as something awful but as a chance to know
and understand them. Everyone has specific things that they enjoy talking or
complaining about. Empathy is essential here.
 Talk efficiently: Those who foster excellent work relationships know when it
is time to talk or stop and listen. When employees become an excellent talker,
will understand when to advise your workmates and when to keep quiet and
listen.
The suggested implementation plan is to have one-on-one sessions that allow
managers and leaders to get into in-depth conversations with their team members.
The sessions provide great insights to the managers about how the employees feel
about the team, workplace, and other factors that affect them daily. In addition to
exchanging feedback, it can create a safe space where the team and managers
engage in defining comfort.
Sometimes unconventional ways can be great tools for getting teams together.
There are standard engagement-boosting techniques, managers can use for
innovative relationship-building activities that bring teams together. It can include
ideas such as potluck meals, board games, or using idea boards during
brainstorming sessions.

Relationships at work are essential for a successful stint with a team. By

understanding the importance of building relationships, leadership can develop
strong working relationships with team members and achieve success.

5.5 Areas for Further Research

This study was primarily focused on the Research Council and provide the basis for
further research. The researcher is of the opinion that this study has shown that
there are other topics for further research are not part of this research investigation.
There are research opportunities that should receive further attention in future. For
more a generalized conclusion to be possible on the impact of leadership styles on
organisational performance in research organisations in South Africa, other
organisations with the mandate of research should be studied in order to have the
best practice or to see if the results cand be replicated on other research
organisations.
However, this study can be used in its current form, to contribute to the body of
knowledge and provide valuable insight into organisations regarding leadership
styles and organisational culture.

5.6 Conclusion
This chapter discussed the study's major contributions to theory and practice,
summarized the study's recommendations and provided some leadership guidelines,
and suggested future research directions. The objectives of this research have been
identified and the findings of the data collected discussed, conclusion provided and
findings revealed that the leadership styles have influence on the organisational
culture within the Research Council. This study not only provides new knowledge in
leadership and organisational culture but also serves, as a foundation upon which
future studies in these areas is possible.