Facilitative leadership in public organizations: A study of federal agency supervisors.

Abstract

Using secondary analysis of raw data from two federal government employee surveys, this study examines the concept of facilitative leadership by supervisors within federal agencies. Results from bivariate and multivariate analysis reveal ten factors of organizational leadership that are facilitated through supervisors in federal agencies. These factors are: developing a spirit of teamwork, recognizing good performance, involving employees in the decisions that affect their work, allowing job flexibility, defining good performance, communicating vision, correcting poor performance, providing electronic access to information and promoting innovation. Two of these factors, providing electronic access to information and promoting innovation were found to be negatively correlated with supervisors' ratings from their subordinates. These findings were surprising and not predictive by the literature review. When supervisors facilitate the organizational leadership factors teamwork, recognizing good performance, involving employees in the decisions that affect their work, allowing job flexibility, defining good performance, communicating vision, and correcting poor performance, they are viewed more favorably by their subordinates. However, providing electronic access to information and promoting innovation had a negative impact on supervisor ratings from subordinates. The concept of leadership is significant, theoretically and instrumentally, in public administration. Despite the extensive literature on organizational leadership, there have been few empirical assessments of leadership's pervasiveness within a public organization.