Organisational Commitment and Leadership between two Generations.

ΠΑΝΤΕΙΟΝ ΠΑΝΕΠΙΣΤΗΜΙΟ ΚΟΙΝΩΝΙΚΩΝ ΚΑΙ ΠΟΛΙΤΙΚΩΝ ΕΠΙΣΤΗΜΩΝ
PANTEION UNIVERSITY OF SOCIAL AND POLITICAL SCIENCES
SCHOOL OF INTERNATIONAL STUDIES, COMMUNICATION & CULTURE
DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNICATION, MEDIA AND CULTURE
Organisational Commitment and Leadership: A comparative analysis between
Generation X and Millennial Generation.
UNDERGRADUATE INDIVIDUAL RESEARCH PROJECT
Maria Ioanna Brousti
41150502
Athens, 2020

This report is submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the BSc Degree in
Communication, Media and Culture.
Copyright © Maria Ioanna Brousti 2020. All rights reserved. No part of this publication
may be reproduced without the written permission of the copyright owner.

MARIA IOANNA BROUSTI
3
Περίληψη
Στο σύγχρονο εργασιακό περιβάλλον, το ανθρώπινο δυναμικό ενός οργανισμού
αποτελείται από διαφορετικές γενιές, οι οποίες αποτελούν το θεμέλιο κάθε εταιρικής
πυραμίδας. Δύο από αυτές τις γενιές είναι η Generation X και η Millennial Generation.
Σκοπός της παρούσας εργασίας είναι να αξιολογηθούν οι πιθανές ομοιότητες ή
διαφορές μεταξύ των δύο γενεών, της Generation X (που γεννήθηκε μεταξύ 1961 και
1981) και της Millennial Generation (που γεννήθηκε μεταξύ 1982 και 2003), σχετικά
με τις μορφές της οργανωσιακής δέσμευσης και των ηγετικών στυλ, στο σύγχρονο
εργασιακό περιβάλλον.
Στην παρούσα εργασία θα καθοριστεί η έννοια της γενεσιακής θεωρίας, και θα
παρατεθούν οι γενιές ανθρώπων, από το 1883 έως το 2020. Επιπλέον, θα αναλυθεί η
έννοια της οργανωσιακής δέσμευσης και οι τύποι που τη διακρίνουν. Ιδιαίτερη
ανάλυση θα δοθεί στις προσδοκίες που έχει η γενιά των Millennials ως προς το
εργασιακό περιβάλλον, καθώς η συγκεκριμένη γενιά έχει αποτελέσει μεγάλο
αντικείμενο μελέτης ερευνητών, εξαιτίας των ιδιαίτερων πολιτικοκοινωνικών
χαρακτηριστικών της.
Στη συνέχεια, θα παρατεθούν οι θεωρίες σχετικά με την ηγεσία στο σύγχρονο
κόσμο, και κατόπιν θα πραγματοποιηθεί ανάλυση ως προς τα ηγετικά στυλ αλλά και
το ρόλο που διαδραματίζει η συναισθηματική νοημοσύνη σε αυτά. Ταυτόχρονα, θα
γίνει η διάκριση ανάμεσα στην διοίκηση και την ηγεσία, με σκοπό να κατανοηθούν οι
διαφορές των δύο αυτών συχνά συγκείμενων τίτλων.
Τέλος, με το πέρας της βιβλιογραφικής ανάλυσης, θα διεξαχθεί μια συγκριτική
έρευνα ανάμεσα στις δύο γενιές, ως προς τις απόψεις τους σχετικά με την οργανωσιακή
δέσμευση και τα στυλ ηγεσίας στο εργασιακό περιβάλλον.
Λέξεις - κλειδιά
Millennials, Generation X, Οργανωσιακή Δέσμευση, Ηγεσία, Ηγετικά στυλ.

4
Abstract
In the contemporary workplace, human resources are made up of different
generational cohorts working side by side and thus forming the foundation of every
corporate pyramid. Two of these generational cohorts are the Generation X and the
Millennial Generation.
The purpose of this thesis is to assess the possible similarities or differences
between these two different generations, Generation X (born between 1961 and 1981)
and the Millennials (born between 1982 and 2003), regarding Organisational
Commitment and Leadership styles, within the contemporary workplace.
In this thesis the generational theory and the various generational cohorts, from
1883 to 2020, will be defined and analysed. In addition, the definitions and the types of
Organisational Commitment will be analysed. Particular focus will be given to the
workforce expectations of the Millennial Generation, as for this generation, a variety
of researches has taken place, due to its unique socio-political characteristics.
Furthermore, theories of leadership, leadership styles and the role of Emotional
Intelligence in them, will be examined. At the same time, a distinction will be made
between management and leadership, in order to understand the differences between
these two frequently contiguous titles.
Lastly, after the bibliographic analysis, a comparative research will be
conducted between the two generations, on their views on Organisational Commitment
and Leadership styles in the workplace.
Keywords
Millennials, Generation X, Organisational Commitment, Leadership, Leadership
styles.

5
Dedication
This Thesis is dedicated to all those who believe in their dreams and define
themselves endlessly.

6
Acknowledgments
After four years of studying at Panteion University of Social and Political
Sciences in Athens, including an Erasmus semester at Eotvos Lorand University in
Budapest, my BSc Degree in Communication, Media and Culture, does end with this
undergraduate thesis.
This work is the result of a lot of time, a lot of effort and many alternating
emotions.
Firstly, I would like to thank my parents, Michael and Stella, who played such
a major role in my development throughout my whole life, both in the hard and happy
times; and my sister, Zeta, who even though is six years younger than me, she taught
me so many life lessons, she wouldn’t even imagine.
Secondly, I would like to thank my supervisor, Mrs. Dimitra Iordanoglou for
her valuable contribution and advices during the months I was writing my thesis. She
provided me with very helpful feedback for my research and thus, I am grateful to have
her both as my professor and as my thesis supervisor.
Foremost I would like to thank George, who played the most important role in
the fulfilment of my thesis. Thank you for being there, thank you for your understanding
and support during all those years that I know you and thank you for the valuable time
you devoted in trying to make me realise that anything is possible if you work hard.
Lastly, some special words of gratitude go to my friends, who have been a major
source of support, even if they may not know it.

7
Table of Contents
Περίληψη.......................................................................................................................... 3
Abstract............................................................................................................................. 4
Dedication......................................................................................................................... 5
Acknowledgments ............................................................................................................ 6
List of Figures................................................................................................................... 9
List of Tables.................................................................................................................. 10
1 Introduction.................................................................................................................. 11
1.1 Purpose and Research Questions.......................................................................... 11
1.2 Structure................................................................................................................ 12
2 Generations – Generational Theory............................................................................. 12
2.1 Generations 1883-2020......................................................................................... 13
2.2 Generational Theory ............................................................................................. 15
2.2.1 The Silent Generation.................................................................................... 17
2.2.2 Baby Boomers ............................................................................................... 18
2.2.3 Generation X.................................................................................................. 19
2.2.4 Millennial Generation.................................................................................... 21
3 Organisational Commitment........................................................................................ 22
3.1 Definitions of Organisational Commitment ......................................................... 22
3.2 Types of Organisational Commitment ................................................................. 23
3.3 Workforce Commitment within the Millennial Generation ................................. 25
3.4 Workforce expectations of the Millennial Generation ......................................... 26
4 Leadership ................................................................................................................... 28
4.1 Definitions of Leadership..................................................................................... 28
4.2 Leadership Theories ............................................................................................. 30
4.3 The role of Emotional Intelligence in Leadership................................................ 32
4.4 Leadership Styles.................................................................................................. 35
4.5 Leadership versus Management ........................................................................... 38
5 Research Methodology................................................................................................ 40
5.1 Participants and Procedure ................................................................................... 40
5.2 Questionnaire Design ........................................................................................... 41
5.3 Reliability of the questionnaire............................................................................. 42
5.4 Results’ Analysis .................................................................................................. 42
6 Thesis Outcomes.......................................................................................................... 43
6.1 Demographic Analysis ......................................................................................... 43
6.2 Organisational Commitment Analysis.................................................................. 47
6.2.1 Affective Commitment.................................................................................. 47
6.2.2 Continuance Commitment............................................................................. 49
6.2.3 Normative Commitment................................................................................ 51
6.3 Leadership Styles Analysis................................................................................... 52
7 Discussion and Conclusion.......................................................................................... 58
7.1 Discussion............................................................................................................. 58

8
7.1.1 Theoretical Part ............................................................................................. 58
7.1.2 Empirical l Part.............................................................................................. 60
7.2 Recommendations for further research................................................................. 62
7.3 Conclusion............................................................................................................ 62
REFERENCES............................................................................................................... 64
APPENDIX .................................................................................................................... 68

9
List of Figures
Figure 1. Survey findings related to the age of the participants..................................... 43
Figure 2. Survey findings related to the gender of the participants................................ 44
Figure 3. Survey findings related to the educational level of the participants. .............. 44
Figure 4. Survey findings related to the working experience of the participants........... 45
Figure 5. Survey findings related to the business sector in which the participants work.
................................................................................................................................ 46
Figure 6. Survey findings related to the Affective Commitment between the Millennial
Generation and Generation X................................................................................. 47
Figure 7. Survey findings related to the Continuance Commitment between the Millennial
Figure 8. Survey findings related to the Normative Commitment between the Millennial
Figure 9. Survey findings related to Millennials’ and Generation X’s answers about the
Leadership styles applied in their organisation. ..................................................... 52
Figure 10. Survey findings related to Millennials’ and Generation X’s answers about the
ideal Leadership styles to be applied in an organisation. ....................................... 54
Figure 11. Survey findings related to whether Millennials would quit working in an
organisation because of their manager’s behaviour. .............................................. 56
Figure 12. Survey findings related to whether Generation X would quit working in an
organisation because of their manager’s behaviour. .............................................. 56

10
List of Tables
Table 1. Generations....................................................................................................... 13
Table 2. The four domains and 18 competencies in Leadership .................................... 33
Table 3. Differences between Leadership and Management.......................................... 39

INTRODUCTION MARIA IOANNA BROUSTI
11
Introduction
Never before had so many different generations of people and different cultures,
co-existed in a workplace.
Nowadays, in the Greek workplace, at least three different generations of people
work together; the so called Baby Boomers, Generation X and Millennial Generation,
while the latest generation, Generation Z, is about to join the labour market in the next
couple of years.
Each generation is unique, as its members were born and raised at different eras
and therefore they formed different views of the world they live in. These generations
have been growing and evolving, each one having its own values, its own beliefs and
certainly its own expectations. These differences affect both the way people live and
work, reflect their perceptions of hierarchy and their commitment in the organisation they
work for (Glass, 2007).
Since the human resources of an organisation are the most important determinants
of its viability and development, contemporary leaders must develop deep knowledge of
human behaviour and try to find ways to understand the characteristics of each generation,
so that to provide employees with incentives to become even more efficient.
Organisations should therefore, focus on the way leadership is applied, so that it
can be effective in such a multigenerational work environment. However, most of all,
what the leaders of the contemporary world need to understand, is that there is no
particular way of applying leadership, as the human resources themselves are neither
static nor the same. As Armstrong (2006) stated, “the management of people would be
much easier if everyone were the same”, but this is by all means impossible, as each
person has different emotions, different experiences and different influences, all of which
affect evidently his performance in the work environment.
For that reason, through effective leadership, employees will be more
organisationally committed to their organisation and their turnover and absenteeism will
be reduced.
Purpose and Research Questions
The purpose of this thesis is to explore whether employees of Generation X differ
from employees of the Millennial Generation regarding Organisational Commitment and
whether they prefer different leadership styles. Thus, a comparative analysis between
these two generations will be conducted.

GENERATIONS – GENERATIONAL THEORY MARIA IOANNA BROUSTI
12
The main research questions that will be answered in this thesis are as follows:
(1) Are there any statistical significant differences regarding Organisational
Commitment between employees of these two generations?
(2) Which leadership styles are applied in the Greek workforce and which are
the most preferred by each generation?
(3) Is a manager’s behaviour capable of forcing an employee leaving the
organisation he works for? If so, do both generations share the same view?
Structure
This thesis is structured into seven chapters, beginning with the introduction.
The introduction familiarises the reader to the purpose and the objective of the thesis.
Following, the second, third and fourth chapters, contain the bibliographic research which
provides the reader with an in-depth analysis into the three main topics of this thesis:
Generations, Organisational Commitment and Leadership. The fifth chapter presents the
methodology of the comparative analysis and the data collection. In the sixth chapter, the
thesis outcomes are presented and analysed. Finally, in the seventh chapter the major
findings of the theoretical and empirical part are discussed and some recommendations
on further research opportunities are provided.
Generations – Generational Theory
Not every individual is alike, nor should be treated in the same way. All
individuals belong in a generation and are shaped by different characteristics, lifestyles,
and attitudes based on the period in which they grew up, as well as by the influence of
historical events at each phase of their life. According to Strauss and Howe (1991), in
each generation has been given a unique name whose main objective is to classify a large
group of people that grew up, experienced and lived same historical, social, political, and
economical vast events such as assassinations, moon landing, terrorist attacks, economic
stability and instability, wars, and population growth.
Generations are no different from people in groups, besides they include all the
subgroups forming a society, such as social, racial, political, cultural, etc. Generations are
not only characterised by their names, but mainly by how history is interpreted. Their
influence should not be considered insignificant because once the power of each
generation will be socially understood, a multitude of behavioural patterns in human lives
will be interpreted as well.

13
This chapter focuses on the analysis of the Generational Theory in order to
comprehend the uniqueness of each generation based on the lifetime events that shaped
them. Additionally, it outlines the characteristics of each generation, with particular
emphasis on the four generations after World War II: Silent Generation, Baby Boomer
Generation, Generation X and Millennial Generation. (See Table 1 below).
Generations 1883-2020
The time period of each generation is not fixed and unchangeable for all the
sociologists, but for this thesis the time period that will be utilised for each of the four
generations to be analysed, goes as follows: Silent Generation (1925-1942), Baby
Boomer Generation (1943-1960), Generation X (1961-1981) and Millennial Generation
(1982-2003). Additional generations will be mentioned as well, but this chapter will focus
on the above four, with an extended analysis of the Millennial Generation.
1
("The Greatest Generation", 2019)
Table 1. Generations
GENERATION
NAME
BIRTH YEARS AGE (IN 2020) MAJOR LIFE EVENTS
Lost Generation 1883-1900 120-137
(None of them
still alive)
Sinking of Titanic,
World War I
Greatest Generation1
1901-1924 96-119
(Oldest alive
117)
World War I,
First Transatlantic Flight
Beginning of Great
Depression and
World War II
Silent Generation 1925-1942 78-95 End of Great Depression,
World War II Crisis,
Korean War

14
The formation of the period in which each generation lived, is related not only to
historical events, but also to the average period, -approximately twenty to thirty years-
during which children are born and grown up, become adults, and give birth to children
of their own. Therefore, the new-borns of every generation, form the following
generation.
The Silent Generation started in 1925, as a consequence of a large boom of babies
after World War I and ended in 1942, close to the end of World War II. Its end coincided
with the beginning of the Baby Boomer Generation in 1943.
Baby Boomers were the largest living generation in the United States, due to the
massive increase in birth rates that witnessed the post-war decades. This generation came
to its end in 1960, for Generation X to be introduced.
Generation X, which started in 1961, has been defined as an "in-between"
generation, a microgeneration, combining characteristics of two generations and
Baby Boomer
Generation
1943-1960 60-77 End of World War II,
Vietnam War,
Apollo Moon landing,
Hippie Movement
Generation X 1961-1981 39-59 Public sale of Birth Control
Pill,
1973 Oil Embargo,
End of Vietnam War,
"MTV Generation"
Millennial
Generation
1982-2003 17-38 September 11th
Terrorist
Attack,
Hurricane Katrina,
Internet Explosion
Generation Z 2004-Present <17 Boom In Technology,
2008 Economic Recession

15
sandwiched between the Baby Boomers, who came of the age during Vietnam era and
the Millennials of the Obama era. Its end came in 1981, when the Millennial Generation
presented itself.
Millennials were the first generation to be referred to as ‘digital natives’ since
they were born in a boom of technology and they had not met a world without Internet.
In the meantime, they appeared to be the most studied generation compared to the
previous ones, as there was a need for the impact of technology in shaping their
characteristics, to be understood. Millennial Generation ended in 2003, to be succeeded
by the post-Millennial Generation, also known as Generation Z or Nexters, in 2004.
To summarise, there are no fixed and concrete dates for the time period in which
each generation lived, but outlining their timelines is crucial when referring to them in
this thesis.
Generational Theory
The Generational Theory was posed to examine the reason why the time period
in which individuals are born, affects their perspective on the world they live in. It is
commonly accepted that our character and our values system are shaped during the first
decade of our lives, mostly by our family, our friends, our teachers, the community we
live in and last but not least the time period and the location in which we were born.
So why do people tend to think in generations instead of focusing on each
individual’s unique personal characteristics? Probably because each new generation has
a particular opinion as to the way previous generations approached their life stages. It is
very often that new generations judge the mistakes of their previous, either because they
fear to repeat them, or because they believe that if they were in their shoes, they would
have handled each situation differently and more correctly.
In particular, the purpose of classifying people in generations is less to learn about
their sense of identity or their psychological profile and more to divide history into
sections, so to understand the cultural differences of each generation and predict the
trends and characteristics of future generations.
The first sociologist to analyse the Generational Theory, was Karl Mannheim,
back in 1928, through a couple of essays which were published in 1952. According to
Manheim (1952, p.276-322), a social generation or cohort, consists of people who are
similar in age and have experienced the same historical events in the same time period.
Consequently, social generations are different from familial generations (e.g. children,

16
parents, grandparents) as according to Oxford Learner's Dictionaries, they refer to a large
group of people sharing common characteristics and experiences and not to a group of
people related by blood or marriage.
The generational theory was further developed by William Strauss and Neil Howe
in 1991, in their book called “Generations”. Their theory was developed to identify and
analyse different generations of people. The strongest point of the theory was that people
who belong in the same generation can relate and connect more easily with each other, as
they share common experiences and they encounter the same hardships and triumphs.
The authors Kowske, Rasch & Wiley (2010) focusing their analysis on the
generational differences in the contemporary workplace, stated that “Shared experiences
at key developmental points contribute to unique characteristics (e.g., values, attitudes,
personality) which define and differentiate one generation from another”. Therefore,
generations are unique in all aspects, as they experience society and events around them
in a different way than previous generations, resulting in a social change.
Furthermore, Ryder, in his essay The cohort as concept in the study of social
change (1965), pointed out that there are three groups of criteria that form each
generation. These are age, location and history, and common beliefs and behaviours.
The first criteria, indicates that people experience common social and historical
events because “they are entitled to participate in only one slice of life- their unique
location in the stream of history” (Ryder, 1965). Hence, individuals are shaped in a flow
of years in which their prime developmental years affect their outlook on life and work.
The second criteria, location and history, explains how people, raised in same
regions, often share common values and beliefs. This could be easily understood by taking
as an example, the Silent Generation, whose people regardless of being too young to work
during the Great Depression era, they definitely felt the impact it made to their families,
the economy and the society. By the same token, the youngest Millennials didn’t
comprehend the September 11th Terrorist Attack when it occurred, however, their world
was undeniably changed by what happened that day.
The third criteria shows that each generation’s members share common beliefs
and behaviours. Although all individuals are unique, when experiencing common events
with one another, they tend to bond more easily and endorse their views of the world in
which they live in.

17
To conclude, predicting and influencing the behaviour of an individual is not
something achievable. However, by using the Generational Theory, one can actually
predict how each generation is likely to respond in its life-stage events. To support this
argument, Strauss and Howe (1997) defined the importance of Generational Theory in
society’s history as follows:
“A generation feels the same historical urgency that individuals feel in their own lives.
This dynamic of generational aging and dying enables a society to replenish its memory and
evolve over time. Each time younger generations replace older ones in each phase of life, the
composite life cycle becomes something altogether new, fundamentally changing the entire
society’s mood and behaviour.”
The Silent Generation
Individuals of the Silent Generation -also known as Traditionalists and Veterans-
were born between 1925 and 1942 (Strauss & Howe, 1991). Because of their age today,
they appear to be the smallest generation in the workplace considering that they average
in age from 78 to 95 years old in 2020. Subsequently, many of them have retired from the
workforce, and those who remain, usually tend to work fewer hours just to keep
themselves busy after retirement.
During the Great Depression and the World War II, they grew up seeing the
devastating impact of the World War II on their families. The Silent Generation’s youth,
was constantly being told that the previous generations made huge sacrifices so that they
could grow up and raise their own families in peace and prosperity (Strauss & Howe,
1991). Although they describe their parents as overprotective, especially during their
depression era-youth, they seemed to understand the nobility of sacrifice for the common
good and the importance of having a united family.
By the time Traditionalists entered adulthood, they were more monetarily
successful than their parents, due to the booming post-war economy. Therefore, they had
both money and resources to raise big families and to take advantage of the “Golden Age”
economy (Troksa, 2016).
They were the earliest marrying and the earliest babying generation in American
history, assuming that men were married at an average age of 23 and women at an average
age of 20 (Strauss & Howe, 1991). Regardless of that, both men and women did not seem
to acquire the same educational background. To demonstrate, men thrived in educational
achievements, whereas women showed no gain. Overall, the usual pattern for

18
Traditionalists’ families, was that of men typically working, while women were staying
at home to raise the children.
Entering the workforce, many of the Silent Generation members had to toughen
up to earn a living to simply survive. Even though they were often taking jobs that didn't
necessarily appeal to them, they were always grateful for them (Kane, 2019). They
acknowledged work as a privilege and they argued that promotions should be the result
of hard work and productivity. As for loyalty, Traditionalists used to stay within the same
organisation throughout their entire working lives and expected the same loyalty in return.
Work ethic and reliability were important to them.
However, as much as they were exceptional at interpersonal communication, since
they were more accustomed to dealing with people eye-to-eye, they struggled to keep up
with new technologies and that often resulted in being the slowest to adapt to new work
habits (Kane, 2019).
In 2016, the U.S. general population of this generation made up 24.4 million, who
represented less than the 2% of the American workforce (Pew Research Center, 2018).
This can be easily explained, by the fact that although the majority of them have
technically retired, there is still a small percentage that retain a close relationship with the
organisation they used to work for and they can be called upon for their expertise on a
case-by-case basis (Kane, 2019).
Baby Boomers
Individuals of the Baby Boomer Generation (also known as Baby Boomers) were
born between 1943 and 1960 (Strauss & Howe, 1991). Their birth coincided with the end
of World War II and straightaway the Americans started settling down and creating
families again. This generation is named as Baby Boomers, in view of the extra 17 million
babies born during that period. (O' Bannon, 2001). Baby Boomers had the largest impact
on the American society, due to the size of their population – roughly 75 million – and
the period during which they were born and grown up. Along with that, they peaked at
78.8 million in 1999 and have remained the largest living adult generation until 2019
(Pew Research Center, 2018). The Baby Boomer Generation had the largest working
population of all generations until March 2015, when the Millennial Generation overtook
them (Pew Research Center, 2018).
As adults, Baby Boomers had no specific plans for their life. They wanted to start
living their everyday life instead of just waiting for life to happen. They were the carefree

19
backpackers, admired by people from all ages, as they were actively designing a new
concept of self-religion and values. They were the supporters of the ‘’New Age’’ and the
well-known ‘’Manifesto of the Person’’ (Strauss & Howe, 1991).
By the time they approached midlife, they looked upon themselves as “growing
up” to responsibilities and duties. Their strongest belief was that through hard work and
personal sacrifices they would be successful in the workplace (Zemke, R., Raines, C., &
Filipczak, B., 2013). Baby Boomers’ work ethic made them known as workaholics. They
valued the chain of command and they fought for what they considered unfair, even if it
was against all odds. People of their generation were strong admirers of teamwork and
counted on collaboration in order to get a job done. They grew up with the belief of
working for one organisation for their entire careers and they remained to that particular
organisation until their retirement (Espinoza, C., Ukleja, M., & Rusch, C., 2010).
According to Pew Research Center (2018), in 2016, the U.S. general population
of this generation made up 41 million who represented the 25% of the American
workforce and by 2020, Baby Boomers’ workforce population is estimated to make up
the 6% of the global workforce (Statista, 2019).
Besides being technologically challenged when working with computers and
digital technologies, they are the leaders, supervisors, and managers in today’s
workplaces and thus they are in charge to communicate with and lead the upcoming
generations.
This generation lived in the times of the 1950’s and 1960’s Civil Rights
Movement and the 1960’s Free Love Hippie Movement (Zemke, et al, 2013). When Baby
Boomers compared themselves with their parents at the same phase of life, they
considered their careers better, their personal freedoms larger and their lives more
meaningful (Strauss & Howe, 1991). However, they were also the generation of
worsening trends, as they experimented with drugs and the rates of drunk driving, suicides
and illegitimate births, doubled or tripled (Strauss & Howe, 1991).
Generation X
The people of Generation X -also known as Gen Xers- were born between 1961
and 1981 (Strauss & Howe, 1991). Generation X appeared in the early years of
technology age. Gen Xers were often described as the “middle child” of generations –
caught between two larger generations, the Baby Boomers and the Millennials. Another
characterisation for this generation is the term ‘’Generation 13’’ as they were the 13th
age-

20
band since American Independence (Jackson & Hogg, 2010). Along with that, this
generation was the most aborted generation in American history, due to the public sale of
Birth Control Pill during 1965 (Strauss & Howe, 1991).
Unlike their Baby Boomer parents, as children and adolescents they were raised
with fewer restraints and were repeatedly left home alone because of their parents’ full-
or part- time job. By all means, they were children at a time when society was less focused
on children and more focused on adults (Howe & Strauss, 1993). As such, they also
became known as ‘’latch-key kids’’ leaving and returning home alone, without adult
supervision, until their parents returned home from work. Due to their absence, their
parents would try to, at times, ‘’buy’’ them love and care with gifts or extra pocket money
(Zemke et al, 2013).
As Gen Xers were approaching adulthood, the U.S economy was drained from the
recession and many of them had to start working form a very young age, for many hours
and at dangerous working environments in order to make a living. (Strauss & Howe,
1991). In the meantime, a rising number of them was labelled the ‘’Boomerang
Generation’’ due to their return home to live with their parents until the economy
recovered (Strauss & Howe, 1991).
This generation witnessed many world-changing events, such as the Vietnam
War; and were caught between the fall of the Berlin Wall and the September 11th
Terrorist Attack, while humankind was still trying to figure out how to use the Internet
(Wilson, 2011). According to Lipton (1991) and Wilson (2011), the evolution of the
Internet and other media such as television, created the ‘’MTV Generation’’-none other
than Generation X- the members of which seemed to be attracted by punk rock, alternative
rock, hip hop and other music videos that the MTV channel played at that time. Back
then, Gen Xers were often described as immature and cynical, but still independent,
proficient with technology and well-educated (MetLife Study, 2013).
Entering the workforce, Gen Xers quickly became the greatest entrepreneurial
generation in U.S. history as their high-tech savvy and marketplace resilience have helped
America prosper in the era of globalisation (Howe, 2007). As individuals, they were not
intimidated by titles or authoritative figures. Instead, they strived for the work-life balance
lacking in their workaholic Baby Boomer parents (White & White, 2014). They desired
to build a more successful career than their parents’, they valued family time over work,
they focused on getting results and they were more likely to work with as little supervision

21
as possible (Hobbs, 2017). By 2020, Gen Xers’ workforce population is estimated to
make up the 35% of the global workforce (Statista, 2019).
Millennial Generation
Members of the Millennial Generation -also known as Generation Y- were born
between 1982 and 2003.They appeared to be the largest generation in American history,
as in 2019 they surpassed Baby Boomers (America’s largest living adult generation). To
enumerate, Pew Research Center (2018) showed that their numbers increased to 73
million while Boomers’ numbers declined to 72 million. Another characterisation for this
generation is the term ‘’Echo Boomers’’, due to their being the offspring of the Baby
Boomers parents and due to the significant increase in birth rates from the early 1980s to
mid-1990s, mirroring that of their parents (Kroft, 2004).
As children, they are the first digitally native generation, growing up entirely
immersed in the digital age. They have grown from infants to college graduates with
endless sources of technology-enabled distraction, making their teachers hard to find the
right balance between using computer, tablet, or phone screens effectively in the
classroom and teaching in a more traditional way (Caraher, 2014).
Approaching adulthood, Millennials showed every sign of belonging in the
generation of advanced education care, more adult affection and protection and social
liberal views. Millennial Generation was the first to include sex education at schools, the
first to have longer school days and more homework, and the first to get tougher
graduation requirements and greater parental involvement in classrooms (Strauss &
Howe, 1991). Therefore, it should not be strange that they were raised to ace the test
rather than master the substantial. Even though they might like to know a little about
everything, in many cases they end up knowing nothing, due to their lack in depth of
knowledge (Caraher, 2014).
As to parental involvement, Baby Boomers raised their Millennial kids by
consistently validating their existence with awards and trophies for participation, -not
necessarily for excellence. As a result of their encouraging them “not to settle”, and
“make an impact”, they built their self-confidence based on input instead of achievement.
And that was when the term ‘’Trophy Kids’’ was born (Caraher, 2014).
Millennials entered the workforce in a financially tough period, when economic
prospects have declined due to the Great Recession in the late 2000s. In the U.S., the
financial crisis led to a dramatic increase both in the numbers of youth poverty and

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22
unemployment or underemployment. As a result, student loans and the numbers of young
people still living with their parents increased as well (Thompson, 2011). Meanwhile in
Europe, a variety of names have emerged to describe the Millennials hit by the financial
crisis of 2007-2018. One of those were “The Generation of €600”, a term popularised by
the Greek mass media, referring to educated Greek Millennials, who received the
minimum allowable base salary of €600 per month and struggled, or even failed to
establish a career in Greece, causing many of them to leave their country of origin to look
for better options (Deutsche Welle, 2011).
Despite their entrance in the labour market under difficult circumstances,
Millennials have responded to the challenging economic situation in many different ways.
For instance, many have become active social protesters, while others have moved back
in with their parents with the intent of saving money for starting their own businesses
(Burstein, 2013).
In the workforce, they have been characterised by previous generations as entitled,
optimistic, civic minded, cynical, demanding work-life balance, impatient, change
makers, multitasking, and team oriented (Alsop, 2008).
As mentioned above, Millennials already are the largest segment in the workplace,
making up 50% of the U.S. workforce population. In fact, their population is expected to
be 75% by 2030 (Mitchell, n.d.). Given this point, it is not unreasonable to be the most
studied generation in history.
Organisational Commitment
This chapter primary focuses on defining Organisational Commitment.
Furthermore, the three different types of Organisational Commitment will be presented
and analysed. Last but not least, in order to fully comprehend the uniqueness of the
Millennial Generation, a special mention will be given to their commitment in a job and
to their workforce expectations.
Definitions of Organisational Commitment
Each organisation should take into consideration that the most important success
factor for any business is its human resources. The more enjoyable and interesting the
work they do is, and the more employees are involved in decision making, the more they
will substantially contribute to the effectiveness of the business. In order for employees
to become more committed to the organisation they work for, leadership needs to create

23
strong and effective motivational strategies, so to awake their feelings about their jobs,
resulting in them remaining loyal to their organisation.
At a time when the technological and working environment is constantly
changing, it is more important than ever for businesses to truly understand their human
resources needs and link them to their business goals. Based on this bond, they will be
able to design strategies that will help them not only to attract but also to retain talented
people whose contribution will be crucial to their success.
Organisational Commitment refers to the employees’ emotional attachment to,
and identification with the organisation they work for. Organisational Commitment
measures employees’ willingness to make an extra effort for the benefit of their
organisation (Suprivanto, 2013). Commitment to work, is defined as the level of
enthusiasm employees have towards their assigned tasks at a workplace. It is the positive
desire to continue their membership in the organisation, for purposes of self-identification
and loyalty (Aydin, Sarier & Uysal, 2011).
Organisational Commitment is regarded as key component in human resource
management, as it is related with vital aspects of work behaviour, such as employees’
performance, job satisfaction and turnover (McKenna, 2000). Employees’ turnover has a
high potential to impact negatively an organisation, since the loss of employees results in
a significant reduction in a company’s productivity (Taormina, 1999). According to
multiple studies, personal characteristics of the employee, job satisfaction and various
policies and practices followed by the leadership, appear to be some of the key “drivers”
of Organisational Commitment.
Types of Organisational Commitment
One of the most-cited models of Organisational Commitment was developed by
Allen and Meyer in 1990. Their model consists of three types of commitment; affective,
continuance and normative. Each type is based on the psychological state of individuals,
such as desire, need, and obligation to the organisation respectively. According to Allen
and Meyer, employees with affective commitment remain in an organisation because they
want to; employees with strong continuance commitment remain because they need to
and finally, employees with normative commitment remain because they ought to.
Affective Commitment reflects employees’ emotional attachment to an
organisation. Individuals with a high level of affective commitment, enjoy their
relationship with the organisation they work for and are likely to stay because they want

24
to. Employees tend to be affectively committed if they feel respected and supported by
their organisation. As a result, employees with affective commitment are high performers,
as they enjoy the work they do and they appear to be less absent from their daily work
schedule. These employees are willing to put extra effort on helping both their
organisation achieve its goals and their co-workers when in need. They share common
values with their organisation and they are always its strongest advocates.
Continuance Commitment mirrors individuals’ belief that leaving the organisation
they work for, would be costly. For instance, they may feel that quitting their job may
lead to an unpredictable length of unemployment or that they will lose a certain degree of
status by leaving a well-respected organisation. Individuals with a high level of
continuance commitment, stay within an organisation because they need to stay.
Continuance commitment is often linked to employees’ perceived lack of alternatives,
which increases the costs associated with them leaving the organisation they work for
(Meyer et al., 1990). Unlike affectively committed employees, those who have strong
continuance commitment, feel no tendency to put an extra effort for their organisation
beyond what is needed be done, so as to keep their jobs.
Normative Commitment reflects employees’ feelings of obligation towards the
organisation they work for. According to Wiener (1982), normatively committed
employees stay loyal to their organisation, because “they believe that it is the right and
moral thing to do”. Individuals’ normative commitment to the organisation might have
been developed due to pressures that they might have felt during the stages of their early
socialisation from their family and cultural background and during their socialisation as
newcomers to an organisation (Wiener & Gechman, 1977). Moreover, normatively
committed employees feel that they “ought” to make a positive contribution to their
organisation, instead of “wanting” to, as obligation is not associated with the same
feelings of enthusiasm and involvement as affection is and their positive feelings are
weaker (Allen and Meyer, 2000).
These three types of commitment reflect the relationship between an organisation
and an employee and highlight whether commitment is based on a desire to stay, a need
to stay, or a moral obligation to stay within an organisation. According to Allen and
Meyer (1990) affective, continuance and normative commitment should be considered as
components, rather than types of commitment, as they are not mutually exclusive. For
instance, an employee may work at a prestigious law firm company that provides him

25
with a good salary and makes him feel important. That particular employee will have
affective commitment as he enjoys his work and wants to stay in the company, but he will
also have continuance commitment as he does not want to lose his good salary and
prestige associated with the work. Finally, given the nature of the work, he might feel an
obligation to stay within the company in order to provide his legal assistance, meaning
that he will have normative commitment as well. Given these points, an employee can
simultaneously be committed to an organisation in an affective, continuance, and
normative sense.
Workforce Commitment within the Millennial Generation
The Millennial Generation is also known as the Job Hopping Generation, due to
their moving from company to company, having no hesitation, more than any other
generation. According to a 2016 Gallup poll, 71% of the Millennial Generation are not
engaged with their work and at least 60% are open to new job opportunities.
Riley (2019), states that Millennials spent an average of two years within a
company, meaning that leadership fails to engage them with the culture of the
organisation they work for. For businesses, this suggests that the generation that is now
the largest part of the corporate workforce, does not have perspective to work perennially
for them.
Α 2018 Deloitte Survey on Millennials’ disappointment in business, highlighted
the reasons why today’s largest part of the workforce shows less willingness to stay in
their current jobs. Millennials seem to believe that their priorities are not aligned with the
priorities of the organisation they work for. In fact, they argue that today’s businesses
focus more on their own agendas than the society’s needs. People from other generations
may consider this reason unrelated to engagement, but for Millennials it is not. They are
the generation who desire to use the workplace as a mean for change. Feeling uncertain
about the future, they are concerned about social equality and when they realise that their
employers are not prioritising the needs of their workers or the society, they feel frustrated
and disappointed. They eager for organisations’ significant contribution to society and
responsiveness to employees’ needs.
Millennials desire flexibility in their workplace. As simple as it may sounds, it is
one of the most important reasons to make them feel happy to work. Flexibility for them
is not about working less hours. On the contrary, it is about making the most of their
working schedule. Millennials do not want to be stacked in an office for eight hours when

26
they believe they can get the job done in five, or without even showing up at the office a
random day. Thus, in order to attract Millennials and keep them engaged, leaders have to
understand that their needs are different from those of previous generations.
Millennials want to communicate with their leaders, and not just being another
“employee”. They are hardworking and if they feel that their input matters, their creativity
will increase and they will be loyal to the company they work for. On the contrary, if they
feel micromanaged and they understand that they are not trusted to complete the
assignments that have been given to them, they end up being unsatisfied and that often
leads to their turnover. If leaders want to meet the Millennials’ needs, all they have to do
is trust them and involve them in the decision making. Not only this promotes an engaging
environment, but it cultivates respect and increases employees’ productivity, resulting in
satisfaction and harmony within the workplace.
Besides their lack of engagement, Millennials sometimes feel unprepared to work
for today’s industries. That is because they believe that obtaining a degree is not enough.
They feel that mentorship and continuous training are crucial for making them be the best
version of themselves at their work. Thus, they seek for training programs and mentorship
opportunities so they can be up to date with every new feed that occurs. And if their needs
are met, both they and the organisation will benefit.
For the purpose of attracting and keeping engaged the Millennial Generation,
organisations simply need to commit to understand their needs and most importantly
recognise the differences between each generation of employees. In fact, their task has a
dual nature: Firstly, they need to understand how to attract the Millennial workers who
are looking to leave their current organisation and secondly, they need to find out how to
retain the existing ones.
Workforce expectations of the Millennial Generation
Millennials have been entering the workforce in vast numbers since 2000 and are
about to define the culture of the 21st century’s workplace. The reason why addressing
the workforce expectations of the Millennial Generation is important, is because not only
they are different, but they are more numerous than any previous generation. Moreover,
they are the first generation that grew up in the digital age and as a consequence of that,
Millennial people are extremely different from previous generations in the labour market.
Being technologically connected since their childhood, they are given a
competitive advantage in the workplace as nowadays, most of the job tasks depend on

27
computers and other electronic devices, which Millennials handle better than any other
generation. And even though their technological qualifications would have made them
the ideal candidates for a job position, it is widely observed that confusion is often linked
to the majority of the conversations regarding millennials’ attributes in the workplace.
While leaders seem to start recognising the importance and the uniqueness of the
Millennial cohort, they are yet confused as to how to connect with this group. So, what
are the workforce expectations the Millennial Generation have? What do they value in
their work and what forces them to be productive?
Millennials do not work for a paycheck- they need a purpose. They are willing to
work for companies with a mission and a vision. They want to be part of a company that
they admire for its impact in the society; not just working for a company. They want to
be proud of their employer. Unlike Baby Boomers and Gen Xers, Millennials need to find
a meaning in their jobs. Undeniably compensation is important, and must be, -otherwise
they would have been volunteers- but it is no longer their only motive. They prioritise
purpose above all the rest employment attributes.
Millennials are looking for work/life balance; not life/work balance. They need
freedom and a flexible work schedule. That does not mean that they will not be good at
what they do. Ideally, they desire a healthy mix of achieving professional goals and time
to pursue personal goals. In this way, they will be much more productive and effective in
less time, which satisfies both the organisation and themselves. An example of work/life
balance, might be traveling for work and then staying an extra day to explore the area, or
working from home in order to be close to their family, especially if they are new parents
and want to spend quality time with their kids (while still remaining available to be
reached for work-related issues that come up).
They want to have mentors; not bosses. Millennials care about having managers
who pursue their development and value them both as personalities and employees. They
are loyal to the managers who help them understand and build their strengths while
challenging them to achieve their goals.
Millennials want to pursue global careers. Being citizens of the world, they value
more their experiences than any materialistic stuff. They have a strong appetite for
working overseas and they believe that an international experience is vital to their career.
Unlike Baby Boomers, they grew up in multicultural societies, which led them to
eliminate racist stereotypes and respect all different cultures. They feel the need to

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28
broaden their horizons, challenge themselves by working abroad and see different
workplaces. Thus they are not committed to work for a single organisation their entire
life. They are willing to explore many job opportunities so to grab as many experiences
as possible.
Last but not least, Millennials desire to keep learning and spend a large quantity
of their time, absorbing new information that will make them thrive in their area of
expertise. They have a passion for innovation and their engagement at work can be
increased by being responsible for their own projects and feeling free to make their own
decisions. They want to specialise in as many areas as possible and thus, they demand for
job rotation and continuous feedback from their managers.
Leadership
This chapter primary focuses on presenting the different definitions about
leadership. Furthermore, leadership theories and styles will be analysed. Following, the
role of Emotional Intelligence in Leadership will be discussed and lastly, the differences
between Leadership and Management will be examined.
Definitions of Leadership
Throughout history, humankind attempted to examine the concept of leadership,
and the attributes of an effective leader. The truth is that “there are almost as many
definitions of leadership, as there are persons who have attempted to define the concept”
(Stogdill 1974, p. 259)
According to Kevin Kruse (2013), “leadership is a process of social influence
which maximises efforts of others towards the achievement of a goal”. In order to
examine the multiple aspects of this term, he decided to describe what leadership is not
and he concluded that leadership:
 has nothing to do with seniority – position.
 Has nothing to do with titles.
 Has nothing to do with personal attributes.
 Is not management.
Business dictionary provides the following definition for leadership: “The activity
of leading a group of people or an organisation or the ability to do this.” According to
dictionary’s definition, leadership involves (a) establishing a clear vision, (b) sharing that
vision with others so that they will follow willingly, (c) providing the information,
knowledge and methods to realise that vision, and (d) coordinating and balancing the

29
conflicting interests of all members and stakeholders. A leader steps up in times of crisis,
and is able to think and act creatively in difficult situations. Unlike management,
leadership cannot be taught, although it may be learned and enhanced through coaching
or mentoring.
Robbins & Judge (2013, p.368) define leadership as “the ability to influence a
group toward the achievement of a vision or set of goals”. Leaders are present in every
aspect of our everyday life. They exist in families, politics, business, in the academic
community, in the military, sports teams, artistic communities. What they all have in
common is their influence on a group of people. Thus, when a group of people voluntarily
do their best to achieve the goals set by the leader, leadership exists. (Burandas, 2005).
The Chinese philosopher Lao-Tzu (500 BC), wrote about leadership in his work
Tao Te Ching. He stated that “a leader is best when people barely know he exists; when
his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves”. Leaders do not seek
credit for every successful tactic they apply. Their purpose is to inspire, support and
motivate the people next to them, to continually evolve, learn and create. A leader can be
a father or a mother. They are simple people, without any superpower, but worthy of
admiration, both for their morals and for their ability to communicate and positively
influence the people around them.
The great leaders of humanity have undoubtedly won people’s admiration mainly
because their leadership style emotionally attracted them. A leader of any group of people,
at any time in history, was the one that people turned to for safety, security and
confirmation, as he acted as the emotional guide of the group. (Goleman, Boyatzis,
McKEE, 2002). When people wonder and try to explain why leaders have such an effect
on them, they most likely refer to their vision, powerful ideas and strategy.
When it comes to the business sector, an area that is perceived as a field of
rationalism, rather than a field of emotions, leadership is defined as the ability of a person
to influence his subordinates within a way that serves the purposes of an organisation or
business. In the past, managerial science valued rationality in the workplace, more than
emotion. However, in the contemporary world, it is obvious that such an argument is
incorrect. Each organisation consists of people, different from each other, whose
emotions affect its effectiveness and efficiency. Thus, leaders came to the understanding
that not only intellect, but emotional intelligence is playing a major role in job
performance.

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Leadership Theories
Throughout the 20th Century, many researchers have attempted to identify the
traits of a good leader. Thus, a variety of theories have emerged from the study of
leadership. In this section the main leadership theories will be presented in chronological
order, for the reader to comprehend the evolution of the term during the past decades and
identify potential differences and similarities.
The key six leadership theories are as follows:
The Great Man Theory. Much of the work on this theory evolved in the 1840s. Its
focal claim is that leaders are born with the necessary attributes that set them apart from
others and differentiate them from a simple man. Back then, leadership was considered
primarily as a male quality and therefore it was named as the great man theory. Leaders
are naturally equipped with special characteristics such as charisma, sociability,
intelligence and integrity, which make them natural-born leaders. According to the work
of the historian Thomas Carlyle in his book On Heroes, Hero-Worship, and the Heroic
in History (2013), people cannot really learn how to lead. It is something that they are
either born with, or they are not.
The Trait Theory. The Trait Theory introduced in the 1930s-1940s, stated that
great leaders can either be born or made with certain characteristics and attributes that
help them step into a leadership role. Although the Trait Theory is similar in some ways
with the Great Man Theory, it differs in the point where it argues that leaders cannot only
be born with specific attributes that make them rise to leadership, but they can also be
shaped throughout their lives. Thus, this theory focused on the behavioural characteristics
as well, such as self-confidence, courage and resolution, trustworthiness, action-oriented
judgment.
Behavioural Theories. The Behavioural Theories emerged in the 1940s-1950s,
offering a totally different perspective regarding the traits of a leader. According to these
theories, people should excel in leadership roles based on their behaviours and
conditioning; not their social, mental or physical characteristics. This can be easily
explained due to the fact that even the simplest behaviour of a leader could have a major
impact on others. And as it is widely accepted, people’s behaviour is shaped during their
life and is not an inherent characteristic. That is to say that leaders are made, not born.
Thus, researches divided leaders in two categories based on their orientation: those that
were concerned with the tasks and those that were concerned with people. In the first

31
case, leaders emphasise on the technical aspects of the work, while in the second case
their emphasis is on interpersonal relationships (Robbins & Judge, 2013).
Contingency Theories. Contingency Theories were developed in the 1960s. Their
argument was that there is not only one particular way to lead and that leadership styles,
depended on the situation, should be adjusted and modified accordingly. In brief, there
are numerous factors affecting each leadership style, such as the nature of the task,
leaders’ personality, responsiveness of the followers an so on. Both Behavioural and
Contingency theories, argued that a leader's style is focused either on human relationships
or on performance. The effectiveness of a team is influenced firstly by the leaders’ style
and secondly by the favourability of the situation.
Transformational Theories. The Transformational Theories emerged in the 1970s
and focused on the connections formed between leaders and followers. Their key
argument was that leaders transform their followers by inspiring them. Followers go after
their leaders because of the trustworthy and friendly environment they create, their
honesty and the flexible rules and regulations they provide. Leaders appear to be role
models to their followers and through the way they interact with them, they increase their
motivation and thus, strong bonds of trust are created.
Transactional Theories. Transactional Theories, -also known as Exchange
Theories- came up in the 1970s as well, focusing on the relationship between leaders and
their followers, which is characterised by a transaction made between these two parts.
This transaction is actually an “emotional exchange” which assists both the leader and
the followers to obtain and maintain a positive and mutually beneficial relationship.
According to these theories, an effective leader has a duty to create an environment, in
which the individual and the organisational goals are in sync. Thus, leaders must find an
effective way to reward or punish their followers for performing a leader-assigned task,
by taking into account that people are always trying to maximise pleasurable experiences
and to diminish the un-pleasurable ones.
Like most things, leadership is a multi-faceted subject, composed of a mixture of
factors. By putting all the factors together, one can understand the differences between
leaders and ordinary men, that result in them exceling on leadership positions. Although
all the theories mentioned are different, it cannot be denied that they all focus on humans’
emotions and reactions. It is therefore understood, that Emotional Intelligence plays a

32
significant role in the formation of a leader and his ability to interact with the people that
follow him.
The role of Emotional Intelligence in Leadership
Emotional Intelligence is part of all our actions as human beings and involves our
capability for identifying and comprehending not only our own feelings, but those of
others. Emotional Intelligent people motivate themselves and the people surrounding
them and manage emotions well both in themselves and their relationships. Relationship
management provides inspiration, potential to influence, emotional stability and appears
to help leaders grow in managing conflict and emotional competency (Goleman, 1998).
Great leadership occurs where feelings and thoughts are met. These are the two
components that make a leader grow. Even though leadership requires enough intellect
for the tasks to be handled, intellect alone will not make a leader. To put it in other words,
it is not what leaders do, but how they do it, that is the key to leadership. Leaders have to
be role models; inspire people, motivate them, support them, guide them. They will not
always be sympathetic to their subordinates, especially when focusing on the tasks that
have to be done, but they will always force them to be the best version of themselves.
Therefore, Emotional Intelligence is the key to effective leadership.
For the study of leadership, the Goleman’s model of Emotional Intelligence will
be presented. In his Primal Leadership theory, Goleman argues that here are four domains
to Emotional Intelligence: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness and
relationships management. Within those domains exist 18 competencies which according
to him, highlight the role that Emotional Intelligence plays in Leadership (Goleman et al.,
2002). All the 18 competencies cannot be found in all leaders. In fact, even those who
considered to be among the best, exhibit at least one competency from each of the
domains (Goleman et al., 2002).

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Table 2. The four domains and 18 competencies in Leadership
Self-awareness
Emotional self-awareness
The ability to read
someone’s own emotions
and recognise their impact
using “gut sense” to guide
decisions.
Accurate self-assessment
The ability to know
someone’s strengths and
limits.
Self-confidence
Believing in someone’s self-
worth and capabilities.
Self-management
Emotional self-control
The ability to control
disruptive emotions and
impulses.
Transparency Being honest, integrate and
trustworthy.
Adaptability
The ability to adapt in
changing situations or
overcoming obstacles.
Achievement
Willingness to improve
performance to meet inner
standards of excellence.
Initiative Willingness to act and seize
opportunities.
Optimism
The ability to expect the best
possible outcome from any
given situation.
Social Awareness
Empathy
The ability to sense and
understand others’ emotions,
perspectives and concerns.
Organisational awareness
The ability to comprehend
the currents, the decision
networks and politics within
an organisation.

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Service
The ability to not only
recognise, but meet the needs
of followers, clients, or
customers of an
organisation.
Relationship
Management
Inspirational leadership
Guiding and motivating with
a compelling vision.
Influence
The ability to use multiple
tactics and methods to
persuade.
Developing others
The ability to boost
someone’s abilities by
constantly providing
feedback and guidance.
Change catalyst
Initiating, managing and
leading towards a new
direction.
Building bonds
The ability to resolve
disagreements.
Teamwork and collaboration
Being a role model, creating
a friendly atmosphere and
enhancing cooperation and
team building.
Emotional Intelligent leaders are assets at their job. Not only are they capable of
understanding their own emotions, weaknesses and strengths, but also the emotions,
talents, and weak points of their team and the people in general.
Leaders’ emotional skills could result in them coordinating and harmonising a
group of people, guiding, motivating and inspiring them. Moreover, effective leaders
create shared value for their organisation, build strong relationships between the
employees and force them to be the best version of themselves. Correspondingly, a
leader’s lack of emotional skills can lead to dissonance and disharmony within an
organisation. (Goleman, Βoyatzis & McKee, 2002).

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Leadership Styles
In order for leaders to be successful, they have to understand the type of leadership
that works best both for them and for the people who make up the team they manage. The
term “leadership style” refers to a leader’s characteristics when managing and motivating
a team. Each leader has a different personality and thus, follows a different leadership
style depending on the situation and the team that has to be leaded. Each style serves
different purposes and needs. Leaders often find over time which style suits them best,
considering their personal beliefs and the best positive outcome for their organisation and
the team they lead.
In this section the various ways to exercise leadership are presented and briefly
analysed.
Autocratic Leadership Style. This leadership style focuses on a results-oriented
approach. Autocratic leaders make decisions alone without asking their team. That is
because they do not trust them easily and they tend to believe that their way of acting is
more effective. Even though they make very clear the division between a leader and a
follower, they expect that their subordinates will be as much passionate about work as
they are, regardless their non-involvement in the decision making. This style may be
necessary in an organisation where policies are strict, or when it comes to quick decisions
that do not require the approval of the team, but its frequent use may result in team
dissatisfaction and increase the turnover rate.
Servant Leadership Style. Servant leaders’ primary goal is to serve the people they
lead. They put their company’s and employees’ needs ahead of their personal agendas
and thus, they are much respected by their team. This style of leadership does not focus
on results, but on the needs of each individual. Servant leaders are connected to their
employees and believe that if the members of the team feel personally and professionally
fulfilled, they are more likely to be effective at work. Even though servant leaders are
excellent in helping people be engaged with their work, their style of leadership is more
appropriate for non-profit organisations and not for corporate environments with high
competition, focused entirely on results and efficiency.
Laissez – faire Leadership Style. Laissez-faire leaders trust their employees to
complete the tasks and projects delegated to them. This leadership style is the exact
opposite of the Autocratic style, where employees are micromanaged in the majority of
the tasks they have to complete. In the Laissez – faire leadership style, employees are free

36
to choose their working hours,-even the place they prefer to work from sometimes- the
way they will solve a problem and the means to achieve the goal, as long as they are
completing their tasks in the desired time. While this leadership style may sound ideal for
the employees, sometimes it can lower their motivation and lead to confusion about
leaders’ expectations.
At this point, having already analysed the above three basic leadership styles, the
following six leadership styles that are directly associated with the dimensions of
Emotional Intelligence, will be analysed. These leadership styles are introduced by
Goleman, Boyatzis and Annie McKee (2002) in the Primal Leadership Theory.
According to them, no style alone can result in effective leadership. Leaders will need to
apply a mixture of the styles to understand which one is appropriate for every occasion.
Of the six styles -visionary, coaching, affiliative, democratic, pacesetting and
commanding- the first four contribute to employee empowerment and resonance, while
the last two must be applied by the leader sparingly and with caution, when the occasion
requires so, as they are likely to cause disharmony (Goleman et al., 2002).
Visionary Leadership Style. Visionary leaders move together with their team
towards achieving the same goals. They make each member of their team feel important
and irreplaceable. The Emotional Intelligence competencies found in this leadership style
are transparency and empathy. There is a clear vision and the leader not only inspires the
teammates, but also shows them how to contribute to this vision. Visionary leaders are
transparent enough, so that their employees trust and support them. Most importantly,
they empathise with their co-workers, so to sense, feel and understand their perspectives,
emotions and concerns. This leadership style suits best leaders that try to reset their
company’s vision and want their team to work towards a new direction.
Coaching Leadership Style. This leadership style is used when leaders want to
develop the skills and abilities of the members of their team. Coaching leaders try to help
their teammates identify their strengths and weaknesses and provide them with regular
feedback to endorse in their growth. They encourage them to always set new goals and
take calculated risks. The Emotional Intelligence competencies that a Coaching leader
needs to have, are emotional awareness, the competency of developing others and
empathy. Additionally, Coaching leaders guide their team, use their sense to “read” their
employees’ emotions and understand their concerns. However, this style may not succeed
if the teammates are not willing to learn new things, or if the leader lacks expertise.

37
Affiliative Leadership Style. Leaders applying the Affiliative leadership style,
have a strong sense of belonging to their organisation. Along with that, they care about
promoting harmony and friendly interactions in their workplace. Affiliative leaders have
the Emotional Intelligence competencies of teamwork and collaboration, empathy and
inspiration. They are models of respect, as they enhance helpfulness and they focus on a
caring approach. Be that as it may, the extensive use of this leadership style, can lead to
lack of direction for the team, or even to the danger of missing goals.
Democratic Leadership Style. Democratic leadership style, also known as
Participative leadership style, focuses on the essence of evolving team members in the
decision making. Democratic leadership increases job satisfaction and productivity,
creates a collaborative work environment and makes employees more engaged, as they
see themselves taking initiatives and they feel that their contribution matters. This
leadership style is grounded on a triad of Emotional Intelligence competencies, such as
teamwork and collaboration, influence and conflict management. Undoubtedly, empathy
is essential in the Democratic leadership as well. Leaders should take into account
everyone’s views, create harmony and stability and use a variety of methods to persuade
their co-workers. Although this leadership style may seem ideal, it should not be applied
in case that the leader has to take a quick decision.
Pacesetting Leadership Style. This leadership style focuses on performance and
is suitable when fast results are needed. Pacesetting leaders set high standards and aim
for excellence. They are obsessed with completing tasks faster and better and they do not
hesitate to pinpoint poor performances. The Emotional Intelligence competencies found
in this leadership style are achievement and initiative. Leaders work towards meeting
inner standards of excellence and seizing all the presented opportunities. Pacesetting
leadership style must be applied sparingly, so to prevent workers from thinking that they
are being pushed too hard or that their leader does not trust them to get their job done.
Commanding Leadership Style. Commanding leaders demand the immediate
compliance of their teammates. Focusing predominantly on performance, if their
subordinates fail to accomplish a task or follow their orders, they may resort to threats.
For this reason, of all leadership styles, this is the less effective, as it creates a highly
negative climate in an organisation. This style must be applied in periods of crisis, when
quick action is required and thus, should be used wisely. The Commanding leadership
style is based on three Emotional Intelligence competencies: initiative, achievement,

38
influence. Leaders must seize all the presented opportunities, work towards meeting
standards of excellence and have the ability to use a variety of methods to persuade their
co-workers. Additionally, they need to empathise with their team and have emotional
self-control, so to prevent their dissatisfaction, intimidation and reduction of collaboration
that may lead to an increase of the turnover rate.
Effective and successful leaders do not rely on a single style of leadership. Instead,
being flexible enough, they have the ability to alternate ways of practicing leadership
based on the needs of the business or the organisation they work for. According to Daniel
Goleman (2006), Emotional Intelligence in Leadership is two times more important than
IQ, given that Emotional Intelligent leaders, when faced with a dilemma, not only will
they choose to do the right thing, but also do it in the right way.
Nowadays, leaders have to satisfy a large number of different requirements and
expectations. On the one hand they must fulfil the needs of an organisation for sustained
positive results and on the other hand, the accomplishment of each goal should be
achieved within a moral framework that promotes well-being and a sense of
understanding among employees. Therefore, the need of an Emotional Intelligent leader
who is qualified enough to meet these needs, is crucial.
Leadership versus Management
In the business sector, the terms “leadership” and “management” are almost
always considered to be the same thing, but in essence, they differ a lot. Their main
difference is that leaders have people that follow them because they have earned their
loyalty and respect, while managers have people who simply work for them.
Zaleznik (2004) argues that leaders are creative and strategic thinkers, while
managers are operational thinkers. According to him, both managers and leaders are
essential for the success of an organisation, as the first ones plan, organise and coordinate
their staff, while the second ones inspire and motivate them to perform to the best of their
ability. In the following table the main differences between managers and leaders are
presented.

39
Table 3. Differences between Leadership and Management.
Leadership Management
Leaders focus on vision and strategy. Managers focus on policies and procedures.
Leaders influence and inspire. Managers communicate and control.
Leaders are focused on their team. Managers are focused on work.
Leaders have followers. Managers have employees.
Leaders take responsibility. Managers take credit.
Leaders belong to the team; not to the
organisation.
Managers belong to the organisation.
Leaders are proactive. Managers are reactive.
Leaders set direction. Managers plan details.
Leaders raise expectations. Managers maintain the status quo.
Leaders ask questions. Managers give directions.
Leaders implement new ideas. Managers have good ideas.
Managers are responsible for carrying out the four important functions of
management: planning, organising, leading, and controlling. They emphasise in
rationality and focus on solving any problems that may occur. Their job is to keep the
organisation functioning smoothly. A manager's employees are the vital parts of an
organisation, who work towards meeting the goals and the standards that have been set.
For a manager, the organisation itself is more important and more powerful than those
who help running it.
On the contrary, a leader does not necessarily hold a managerial position. A leader
can be anyone. Leaders are not followed because of their ability to achieve the goals of
the organisation they work for. They are followed because of their personality, passion
and beliefs. They personally invest in the projects they handle and they demonstrate a
high level of passion, not only for their work, but also for their team. They are accountable
for creating strong bonds within their teams, promoting creativity and collaboration, and
maintaining the sustainability of their organisation.
Overall, as Zaleznik (2004) stated, “organisations need both managers and leaders
to succeed, but developing both, requires a reduced focus on logic and strategic exercises
in favour of an environment where creativity and imagination are permitted to flourish”.
Both managers and leaders are vital parts of an organisation, as they are responsible for
handling and accomplishing different kinds of problems and tasks. Therefore, it is crucial
to learn to co-exist and collaborate with each other, so to enhance the sustainability of

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY MARIA IOANNA BROUSTI
40
their organisation and to motivate their employees without dealing with arguments and
disharmony.
Research Methodology
After analysing the theoretical framework and the bibliography, the integration of
the theoretical framework into the field of research, will be presented. Moreover, the
methodology applied for this research will be briefly discussed.
The research that will be carried out, will incorporate all the pieces of the
theoretical background. Therefore, a questionnaire with key pillars on Organisational
Commitment and Leadership has been created. The questionnaire focuses on comparing
views on these areas between two generations, Millennials and Generation X. In this way,
the views of different generations existing in the workforce, as well as the leadership
styles applied by management, will be compared.
The first objective of the survey is to highlight whether there are statistically
significant differences regarding Organisational Commitment between two generations
of employees. The second objective is to highlight which leadership styles are most likely
to be applied in an organisation and which of them are desired by each generation. Last
but not least, the third objective is to identify whether a manager’s behaviour plays an
important role in employees’ turnover.
Participants and Procedure
A specific procedure was followed in order to conduct the research among the two
generations. The study of previous researches and the necessity of finding the appropriate
people, were essential to form a proper questionnaire which would lead to the desirable
result. For the purpose of this survey, the key requirement was to have the questionnaire
answered from people of both generations (Generation X and Millennials).
By the time the questionnaire was formed, it was sent to the participants either via
email, or via social media. The questionnaire remained open for approximately 20 days,
so that everyone could have the right amount of time to complete it.
Finally, 100 people (58 Millennials and 42 Generation Xers) participated in the
survey. Everyone’s participation was voluntary. The participants were Greek or Greek-
speaking, residents of Greece. The majority of them were invited to participate either due
to personal acquaintance, either through common acquaintances, or through common
research teams.

41
Each individual participated in the survey by completing the questionnaire
electronically, through the Survey Monkey Platform. The completion of the questionnaire
and the participation of each person, were completely anonymous.
Questionnaire Design
The most important part of the research was the construction of the questionnaire.
It was crucial to find the most appropriate questions regarding the purpose and the
outcome of this survey. The questionnaire was designed with reference to the main
purpose of this thesis. Its form was a selection and combination of various questionnaires
from previous studies and researches.
The questionnaire presented in the Appendix of this thesis, is consisted of 9
questions regarding Demographic Information, Organisational Commitment and
Leadership styles. The questions are written in English. Its size is five pages and consists
of three sections.
The first section includes five questions regarding personal information and
demographics of the respondents, such as:
1. Their age.
2. Their sex.
3. Their educational level.
4. Their years of working experience.
5. The business sector in which they work.
Following, the questionnaire contains two more sections, each one of which has a
different purpose:
The second section consists of one question which incorporates a series of
statements that represent feelings and career intentions the participants may have about
the organisation they work for. Participants should indicate the extent to which they agree
or disagree with each statement. This section was mostly based on Meyer and Allen’s
three-component model of Organisational Commitment (1990), as it includes measures
regarding affective, continuance and normative commitment. Thus, the sixth question of
the questionnaire, consists of fifteen statements from which the first five are used to
measure affective commitment, the next five are used to measure continuance
commitment and the last five are used to measure normative commitment.
The third and last section, consists of three questions regarding leadership styles
in the workplace. Thus, the seventh question incorporates a series of leadership styles that

42
are possibly applied by the management of each organisation. Participants should indicate
which of the styles are most likely applied by the management of their organisation. In
the eighth question, participants are asked to choose the most ideal leadership style to be
applied in an organisation, according to their opinion. Finally, in the ninth question, the
participants are asked whether their manager's behaviour would be a reason for them to
leave the company they work for. This section was mostly based on the work of Goleman
D., Boyatzis R. & McKee A., in their Primal Leadership book (2002).
The questionnaire is structured with closed-ended questions and the respondents
had to choose among predefined answers. Each question was stated as clear as possible,
and the definitions were briefly analysed (e.g. leadership styles). Close ended and scaled
questions were used in order to be easier and less time consuming for the respondents to
answer. Scaled questions included options like “strongly disagree”, “disagree”, “neither
agree nor disagree”, “agree”, “strongly agree” and “very unlikely”, “unlikely”, “neither
unlikely nor likely”, “likely” and “very likely”, so for the respondents to understand the
exact meaning of each choice and for more representative results to be provided.
Reliability of the questionnaire
In order to secure the reliability of the questionnaire, some necessary actions were
taken. Firstly, the questions were ensured to be strongly related to the objective of the
thesis. Moreover, the questionnaire was designed in a digital form in order to enhance a
larger number of participants, but also guarantee the security of the data collected. By the
time participants were sent the questionnaire, they were ensured that no personal data
were going to be published, in order to be honest with their answers. Lastly, it was
guaranteed that after submitting the questionnaire, no changes in the original answers
were possible to be made.
Results’ Analysis
After the sample collection, the data obtained from the survey results were
analysed. The results’ analysis was based on data presented in detailed diagrams in the
next chapter.
The research, as mentioned above focused on the comparison of Millennials’ and
Generation X’s views regarding their working life. In the beginning, the participants' age,
gender, educational level, years of working experience and the sector in which they work,
will be presented.

THESIS OUTCOMES MARIA IOANNA BROUSTI
43
To continue with, the first research question that will be analysed, is linked to
whether there are statistically significant differences in Organisational Commitment
between these different generations of employees. The second research question to be
analysed, is linked to the Leadership styles that are most likely applied by an
organisation’s management and to whether they are preferred by each generation. The
last question to be analysed, is linked to whether a manager’s behaviour is capable of
forcing an employee to leave the organisation he works for.
Thesis Outcomes
In this chapter the outcomes of the survey are presented and analysed in the form
of diagrams. The research questionnaire is presented in the Appendix A of this thesis.
The total number of one hundred questionnaires answered, resulted in interesting
outcomes, which are analysed in this chapter. Both the analysis of the results and the
conclusions, are based entirely on the statistical processing of the participants' responses.
The statistical, as well as the theoretical outcomes of the answers, are analysed in this
chapter.
Demographic Analysis
Figure 1. Survey findings related to the age of the participants.
According to the survey, 58% of the participants that completed the questionnaire,
belong to the Millennial Generation, which consists of people aged 18 to 35 and 42%
belong to Generation X, which consists of people aged 36 to 56. The assumption that has
to be made is that the number of the participants of this questionnaire represent the general
population of the Greek workforce.
58%
42%
Generations
Millennials Generartion X

44
Figure 2. Survey findings related to the gender of the participants.
The findings regarding the gender of the participants, showed that the majority of
the people who took part in the questionnaire, were female. Out of a hundred participants,
the 62 were women and the 38 were men. In particular, with regard to the Millennial
Generation, out of 58 Millennials, the 69% were women and the 31% were men. From
the 42 participants that belong to Generation X, the 52% were women and the 48% were
men.
Figure 3. Survey findings related to the educational level of the participants.
38%
62%
Participants' Gender
MALE FEMALE
31%
69%
Millennials' Gender
MALE FEMALE
48%
52%
Generation Xs' Gender
MALE FEMALE
1%
19%
51%
26%
3%
Participants' Educational Level
SECONDARY SCHOOL HIGH SCHOOL
BACHELOR'S DEGREE MASTER'S DEGREE
PHD

45
Regarding the educational level of the participants, only 1 out of all the
respondents has finished secondary school and did not proceed to higher educational
levels. The 19% of the respondents stated that they have a high school diploma. The
majority of the respondents have a Bachelor’s Degree (51%), followed by those who
obtain a Master’s Degree (26%). A small percentage of the respondents (3%) have a PhD
as their highest educational level. To specify, out of the 58 Millennials, 21% have a high
school diploma, 69% have a Bachelor’s Degree and a 10% of them have obtained a
Master’s Degree. When it comes to Generation X, out of the 42 participants, only the 2%
has stopped its education in the secondary school. The 17% has a high school diploma
and the 26% has Bachelor’s Degree. The majority of Gen Xers (48%) possess a Master’s
Degree while 7% of them have proceed to a PhD.
Figure 4. Survey findings related to the working experience of the participants.
21%
69%
10%
Millennials' Educational
Level
PHD
2% 17%
26%48%
7%
Generation Xs' Educational
Level
PHD
50%
9%
41%
Participants' Working
Experience
0-5 6-15 15+

46
As of length of service, the majority of the respondents (50%), have worked from
0 to 5 years, followed by a 9% who has worked from 6 to 15 years. A significant
percentage of the participants, the 41%, has working experience of more than 15 years.
In detail, out of 58 Millennial participants, the 84% have working experience from 0 to 5
years and the 16% from 6 to 15 years. When referring to Gen Xers, the 98% have worked
for more than 15 years during their life, while only a 2% has worked from 0 to 5 years.
Figure 5. Survey findings related to the business sector in which the participants work.
In terms of the participants’ business sector, the 17% of them work in the public
sector, the 74% of them work in the private sector, the 1% works in a Start-up and the 8%
84%
16%
Millennials' Working
Experience
0-5 6-15 15+
2%
98%
Generation Xs' Working
Experience
0-5 6-15 15+
17%
74%
1%
8%
Participants' Business Sector
PUBLIC PRIVATE
STARTUP I RUN MY OWN BUSINESS
7%
81%
2%
10%
Millennials' Business Sector
PUBLIC
PRIVATE
STARTUP
I RUN MY OWN BUSINESS
31%
64%
5%
Generation Xs' Business Sector
PUBLIC
PRIVATE
STARTUP
I RUN MY OWN BUSINESS

47
run their own businesses. To specify, as for the Millennial Generation, out of 58
participants, only 7% work in the public sector. The majority of the Millennials (81%),
work in the private sector, the 2% work in a start-up and a 10% are entrepreneurs who
run their own businesses. By the same token, the 31% of the Gen Xers work in the public
sector, the 64% in the private sector and the 5% in the entrepreneurial stage of their own
businesses.
Organisational Commitment Analysis
After analysing the demographic information of the two generations, the research
focuses on the perception of each generation, regarding Organisational Commitment.
Both the Millennial Generation and Generation X, have grown up at different times and
have been shaped by different characteristics, lifestyles and attitudes. Their influences
and the sources of information available from time to time were so different, that each
generation appears to be poles apart from its predecessor or the following one.
Thus, by analysing the responses of the two generations regarding Organisational
Commitment, one will have a deeper understanding of each generation’s relationship with
the organisation they work for. At the same time, one will comprehend the reasons why
each generation remains, or does not remain in an organisation for a long time.
Affective Commitment
Figure 6. Survey findings related to Affective Commitment between the Millennial
Generation and Generation X.

Organisational Commitment and Leadership between two Generations.

Organisational Commitment and Leadership between two Generations.

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