| This research seeks to find the Ideal and Perceived Characteristics of Leaders as Identified by Employees and Leaders in Small and Medium Commercial Enterprises (SMEs) in Taipei, Taiwan; and to understand the differences between the self-perception of leaders and perceptions of employees. Using two sample groups for this research, General SMEs included 255 international trading companies with 255 leaders and 699 employees who participated in Taipei, and the Efficient SMEs included 11 international trading companies with 11 leaders and 59 employees who participated in Taipei, Taiwan. The seven most often selected Leadership Characteristics, as identified by employees, were “forward-looking,” “broad-minded,” “caring,” “fair-minded,” “honest,” “intelligent,” and “inspiring,” and were defined as the seven Leadership Characteristics. The seven most often selected Ideal Leadership Characteristics, as identified by Employees and Leaders, showed two differences “Intelligent and inspiring,” selected by employees, and “determined and ambitious” selected by leaders. The statistical results revealed significant differences in “honest” based on the seven Leadership Characteristics that employees expect ideal leaders to have between General and Efficient SMEs. There were significant differences in “caring,” “fair-minded,” “inspiring” and “intelligent” based on the seven Leadership Characteristics that employees and leaders expect ideal leaders to have in General SMEs. There were significant differences in ‘intelligent’ based on the seven Leadership Characteristics that employees and leaders expect ideal leaders to have in Efficient SMEs. There were significant differences in “ambitious,” “loyal,” “supportive,” “broad-minded,” “dependable,” “cooperative,” “imaginative,” “caring,” “honest,” “forward-looking,” “inspiring,” “competent,” and “fair-minded” based on the self-perception of Leaders and perceptions of Employees in General SMEs. There were significant differences in “self-controlled,” “independent,” “intelligent,” and “courageous” based on the self-perception of Leaders and perceptions of Employees in Efficient SMEs. There were significant differences in three factors (Interpersonal Relationship, Personal Quality and Professional Quality) and five factors (Interpersonal Relationship, Professional Attitudes, Personal Ethics, Creativity and Personal Desire) based on mean scores of Leadership Characteristics of leaders perceived by General SMEs' and Efficient SMEs' employees. Cooperation and human relationships can be improved depending on whether and how the leaders display their characteristics in their life and working environment. |
