Interpersonal Dynamics Between Job- vs. Calling-Oriented Leader and Followers: Implications for Team Performance

Abstract: Research on the meaning of work suggests that individuals hold different work orientations: some see work mainly as a way to attain personal fulfilment and make societal contributions (i.e., calling orientation), while others view work primarily as a way to earn financial rewards that support themselves and family (i.e., job orientation). In this paper, we move beyond the predominant focus on the individual-level outcomes of these work orientations to examine how employees’ job versus calling orientation relates to team performance. Building on two key behavioral tendencies of calling-oriented individuals—high proactivity and low receptivity, we propose that followers’ calling orientation relates positively to team performance when the leader holds a job orientation. We further propose that this relationship is attributed to a calling-oriented leader’s tendency to treat job-oriented followers with lower receptivity and calling-oriented followers’ tendency to persist with high proactivity regardless of their leader’s receptivity. Data from a field study comprising 181 branches within a chain restaurant (Study 1) and two vignette experiments (Study 2 and Study 3) largely support our hypotheses. This research sheds light upon the team-level implications of the individual-level meaning of work and suggests that having calling-oriented employees may not always benefit teams or organizations.

Keywords: Team Performance; Work Orientation; Leadership