ABSTRACT
Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of a pharmaceutical sales representative's experience with new product launches influences a preference for leadership style, a need for independence, and organizational satisfaction. New product launches are standard throughout the pharmaceutical industry, often creating stressful and tense work environments for employees. Lofty corporate goals, pressure, and expectations have led managers to lead through an authoritarian leadership approach, which may negatively impact employee performance, motivation, confidence, and organizational commitment. Relational and authentic leadership styles will be considered an alternative to generate positive and influential working environments among pharmaceutical sales representatives. Design/methodology/approach: The participants of this study included active pharmaceutical sales representatives that have participated in a recent new product launch within the pharmaceutical industry within the past 2 years. Each participant completed an anonymous survey to evaluate their preference for leadership style. Data was evaluated through a quantitative analysis utilizing a Pearson's correlation coefficient and multiple linear regression to determine the significance and correlation between the surveyed variables. Findings: The findings of this research indicate that pharmaceutical sales representatives have a preference for leaders that allow for representatives to have the autonomy and independence to make decisions within their roles. Authoritative leadership was found to have an unfavorable impact that decrease individual creativity. Representatives prefer a less hands-on approach. A micromanagement leadership style may not be an effective approach during a new product launch. Representatives prefer to utilize their experience, creativity, and have trust from their leadership team to perform at an optimal level. Originality: The originality of this research provides leaders with a reasonable approach to empowering employees through their work. While this study focuses on the pharmaceutical industry, the findings can be applicable across various industries. Employees strive to feel trusted and supported in their roles, which can be best aligned through an authentic or relational leadership style.
ABSTRACT
The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to explore the perceptions and experiences of social workers balancing work and life. A qualitative phenomenological research design allowed for the focus of the participating social workers to be on their lived experiences balancing work and life. Seven social workers from Ohio and California participated in semi-structured digitally recorded interview sessions. Manually transcribing and coding initial raw data and then imported the raw data into the computer assisted qualitative data analysis software (CAQDAS) NVivo, three critical themes emerged from the collected data: words demands, allocation of time and blurring lines between work and home. The universal impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on all seven participants proved to create more stress on the social workers but also revealed some new professional and personal traits that will need to be fostered in the future. The results of this study could provide assistance to social worker organizations to construct a blended remote and traditional working environment that is conducive to operating in a harmony state of work and life. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)