Abstract

Leadership styles will have different effects on company performance, so many literatures in China study the relationship between leadership styles and company performance in manufacturing. The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between leadership styles and company performance in Chinese manufacturing. As a result of ineffective management in leading employees, China is currently experiencing poor financial and marketing performance, which has resulted in poor business operations and lower productivity, both of which have a direct impact on the company’s performance in China’s manufacturing industry.

This study adopts quantitative research method to collect data of factors affecting company performance through questionnaires, the sampling technique is snowball sampling. A total of 450 questionnaires were sent out to the respondents, and a total of 384 questionnaires were returned. Among them, 290 questionnaires were usable. A preliminary study was conducted to ensure that the adjusted questionnaire items were appropriate and valid for the study. In actual data collection, 290 responses were successfully collected in this study, with a response rate of 65%. The SPSS software was utilized to analyze the data in this study.

Based on the quantitative data analysis, the findings found that dictatorial leadership style paternalistic leadership style, autocratic leadership style, and laissezfaire leadership style insignificantly correlated with company performance in China. Democratic leadership style significantly correlated with company performance in China. Further, research findings have been discussed in the discus.

These findings may provide the purpose of this study that characterize company performance, confirm leadership style in the Chinese manufacturing sector, and apply performance theory to further analyze the effect of leadership style. The Tannenbaum and Schmidt leadership styles should suggest that leadership behaviour varies along a continuum, with a level of follower participation and involvement in decision-making growing as leaders move away from the authoritarian extreme.