HIRING TRANSFORMATIONAL LEADERS IN EDUCATION: LESSONS LEARNED FROM STRUCTURED EMPLOYMENT INTERVIEWS

• Main Authors: Denver Jade Fowler, Richard A. Posthuma, Wei-Chi Tsai
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Informascope 2016-10-01
• Series: International Online Journal of Education and Teaching
• Online Access: http://www.iojet.org/index.php/IOJET/article/view/136

Abstract In the educational setting, hiring transformational leaders is essential to a schools’ success or failure.  According to Burgess (2002), “transformational leadership is vital to school improvement initiatives” (p. 20).  In this study, we examine Confucianism and country influence on structured employment interviews from both Western (United States) and Eastern cultures (Taiwan).  Eastern cultures have certain values not prevalent in Western cultures that may reduce the use of transformational leadership questions in job interviews.  Eastern cultures have higher levels of uncertainty avoidance, collectivism, and power distance.  We examined questions asked in actual job interviews in Taiwan and the United States (N = 178).  Additionally, we examined the three dimensions of interview structure including evaluation standardization, question sophistication, and questioning consistency.  We found that the number of questions about transformational leadership were less common in Taiwan, with its lower selection ratios, and when question sophistication and consistency were higher.  In the United States, we found that the number of questions about transformational leadership increased with selection ratio, question sophistication, and question consistency, but not in Taiwan.  The results of this study have important implications to all workplace settings around the globe where it may be argued that it is advantageous to hire transformational leaders to improve any organization.  However, the results of this study may have particular importance to the educational setting, in both China and the United States, and globally, where the need to attract and hire transformational leaders can be vital to a schools’ success (or failure).  Key Words Leadership, Employment Interviews, Transformational Leadership, Education