Transactional Leadership

The study's results point to the existence of a significant relationship between the CR facet of the TLS and employees' affective, normative and continuance commitment. This result means that the use of incentives by Black top-managers' is associated with employees' choice to continue working for the SOE. It may, therefore, be that employees' interest in the rewards offered by Black top-managers in SOEs relates to their continued stay within the SOEs. Lending credence to this position, Arnold et al., contend that CR is the most favourable and effective behavioural facet of a TLS, owing to the connection of reciprocal exchanges between employees and their managers.

In the context of this study, it would appear that the respondents acknowledge and appreciate the rewards offered by Black top-managers, which may be related to personal development and career progression, among others. It would seem, therefore, that Black top-managers have the opportunity to use rewards as leverage to keep employees committed and to retain talent within SOEs. However, it is imperative to recognise that the effects of using the TLS's CR facet are largely temporary, because such effects crystallise only insofar as the rewards are appealing and continue to be offered to employees.

The findings of this study further showed that a negative statistically significant relationship exists between MbE_P and the affective and normative commitment of employees. Indeed, Skogstad et al. as well as Aasland et al. conclude that MbE_P has a negative effect on employees' attitudes and performance. This finding can be appreciated against the backdrop of the fact that the use of the MbE_P facet of TLS equates to the absence of interference by a manager in the work of employees and this behaviour inevitably means that hardly any guidance is provided by the manager to support employee efforts. This practice may be feasible because the distinctive context of the South African SOEs is such that the hierarchical structure and function is heavily characterised by strict rules and regulations, which are often documented as part of the SOEs' policies and standard operating procedures.

The implication of working in a setting of this nature is that employees confront automatic restrictions that foist an air of autonomous operations. This results in fewer interactions between Black top-managers and their employees, while the usual recourse to documented procedures reduces the likelihood of employee commitment being associated with a manager's display of MbE_P behaviour. In the context of this study, it may be that although employees have a preference for autonomy, they still expect some interaction with Black topmanagers who should provide structure and direction. The study's revelation that no significant relationship exists between MbE_P and continuance commitment is understandable given that continuance commitment depends on the accessibility of external opportunities.

In addition, when the MbE_A facet of the TLS was considered, no statistically significant relationship could be found with affective, normative and continuance commitment. A plausible explanation, in the context of this study, could be that given the study respondents' levels of qualification and comparatively senior positions, it would not be necessary for the Black topmanagers to constantly be involved in their employees' work. These employees, therefore, may prefer autonomy over close monitoring or micromanagement.