Leadership styles and employee performance among staff at the Cape Coast Technical University: The mediating role of organisational politics

Abstract

This study was conducted to investigate leadership styles, employee performance at Cape Coast Technical University, and the mediating role of organizational politics. This study used a causal research design, supported by a quantitative research approach. A total of 256 staff members were sampled from their population using a simple random sampling procedure, of which 215 (83.98%) were the response rate. A structured questionnaire was used for primary data collection. The SMART PLS 3 statistical tool was used to analyze specific research hypotheses. The study found that leadership style was positively related to employee performance. Organizational politics also positively and significantly relates to employee performance. Therefore, it was concluded that the mediating effect of organizational politics in the context of this study was complementary or partial. The study recommends that leaders in tertiary institutions in general and those working at Cape Coast Technical University adopt transactional and transformational leadership styles to lead the workforce in their respective organizations. It is also recommended that organizing leadership programs for corporate leaders in tertiary institutions is a step in the right direction. Such leadership training programs have the capacity to improve leadership skills to foster efficiency in technical university operations.