The relationship between transformational leadership, employee work engagement and turnover intention in a call centre in the western cape

Abstract

Call centre organizations constantly face high employee turnover due to the nature of the job and several other factors. The objective of the current study was to answer the research question: “What is the influence of transformational leadership and employee work engagement on call centre employees’ turnover intention?” The study collected data from 800 call centre employees within the financial industry using closed-ended questionnaires. The final sample size of the study was 184 participants. These were sample using convenience sampling given the nature of the job of call centre agents. The participants completed the Turnover Intention scale, Work Engagement Scale (UWES), and the MLQ used for measuring transformational leadership. Item and dimensional analyses were performed to determine the quality of the items before conducting confirmatory factor analysis on each of the scales. Item and dimensional analyses were performed using the SPSS statistical package. The confirmatory factor analyses on the scales were followed by the running of the overall measurement model using the LISREL 8.80 software. The study used structural equation modelling for testing the hypothesised relationships in the study. Structural equation modelling was performed using the LISREL version 8.80. The study confirmed that its measurement scales were reliable using item analysis. Most of the subscales were found to be uni-dimensional. The goodness-of-fit indices relating to the underlying factor structure of the instruments used in the study ranged from good to reasonable model fit. Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) was used to test the conceptual model. SEM results, presented in chapter four, showed a significant positive relationship between transformational leadership and work engagement, and negative relationships between transformational leadership and turnover intentions, and between work engagement and turnover intentions. These findings suggest that for call centre leaders, transformational leadership positively impacts work engagement and reduces turnover intentions This study examined key factors influencing employee turnover intention within the call centre industry, revealing several expected outcomes where the relationships between transformational leadership, work engagement and turnover intention proved to be statistically significant. Therefore, the overall structural model developed by the research is recommended as a practical tool for management to actively reduce employee turnover. The research suggests that management can still utilize the comprehensive structural model as a framework for strategies aimed at mitigating employee turnover in the call centre industry sector. The study's limitations and suggestions are available for future researchers to explore new insights and potentially investigate these relationships further using different methodologies or contexts.