Behavioural determinants of perceived managerial and leadership effectiveness in Argentina

Abstract

The purpose of this empirical study was to explore the perceptions of Argentinean employees about managerial and leadership effectiveness, and was guided by the following research question: How do people employed in Argentinean companies behaviorally differentiate effective managers from ineffective managers? A total of 42 employees from private and public sector organizations in Cordoba, Argentina, were interviewed using Flanagan’s (1954) critical incident technique. The interviews generated 302 critical incidents of which 155 were examples of positive (effective) managerial behavior, and 147 of negative (least effective/ineffective) managerial behavior. The findings suggest that Argentineans perceive as effective those managers who are supportive, considerate, motivating, caring, good decision makers, approachable, participative, fair-minded, communicative, actively involved, and who act as role models; and this challenges the widely held belief that Argentineans prefer authoritarian managers over democratic ones.