The Impact of Transformational Leadership Style on Organizational Commitment in the Education Sector

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FORMOSA NEWS - Sumatera Utara - Transformational Leadership Style Boosts Staff Loyalty in Indonesian Private Universities, Study Reveals. Transformational leadership directly strengthens staff loyalty and institutional commitment across higher education institutions in Indonesia, according to a peer-reviewed study published in September 2026 in the Formosa Journal of Applied Sciences. The research was conducted by lead author Kartini Harahap, M.Si., from Universitas Sumatera Utara, alongside co-researchers Syahril Ramadhan from Universitas Dayanu Ikhsanuddin and Suarni Norawati from Sekolah Tinggi Ilmu Ekonomi Bangkinang. Analyzing empirical survey data collected between February and April 2025 across private universities in East Java, the research team demonstrated that inspirational, participatory, and supportive leadership significantly reduces lecturer turnover and strengthens institutional performance. These findings offer a crucial operational blueprint for university administrators seeking to stabilize workforce governance amidst mounting competitive pressures and post-pandemic retention challenges.

Background: Higher Education’s Workforce Retention Crisis

Indonesia’s education sector represents a vital pillar of national human resource development, employing over 7 million workers or approximately 6.3% of the total national workforce. However, private higher education institutions (Perguruan Tinggi Swasta or PTS) across the country face persistent challenges with faculty turnover, which severely destabilize academic continuity and service quality. Globally, workforce engagement in academia remains strikingly low; Gallup reports indicate that only 34% of higher education lecturers and academic staff feel genuinely connected to their institutions. The disruption brought by the COVID-19 pandemic further intensified these operational strain factors. World Bank reports highlight that over 80% of educational institutions in developing nations experienced noticeable declines in service quality due to teaching staff fatigue and low institutional engagement. In Indonesia, high rates of academic burnout directly weakened long-term commitment among faculty members. Although East Java contains the second-largest concentration of private universities in Indonesia, institutional leaders in the region regularly confront elevated turnover risks, making evidence-based leadership reform an urgent priority.

Methodology: Quantifying Leadership Impact via SEM-PLS
To examine how leadership behaviors influence employee retention, the research team implemented a quantitative explanatory survey design. The study targeted academic lecturers and administrative personnel across 12 private universities in East Java. Using a proportional stratified random sampling method based on Cochran’s sample size formula, the researchers surveyed 400 verified respondents, comprising 260 faculty members (65%) and 140 administrative staff members (35%). Data collection combined direct paper distributions and standardized digital questionnaires administered between February and April 2025. The investigation measured transformational leadership using the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ) framework, assessing four core behavior dimensions: idealized influence (ethical role modeling), inspirational motivation (visionary communication), intellectual stimulation (encouraging innovative problem-solving), and individualized consideration (providing personal mentoring). Organizational commitment was evaluated across three distinct dimensions: affective (emotional connection), continuance (perceived economic retention benefit), and normative (moral duty to remain) commitment. The authors analyzed the structural relationships using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (SEM-PLS) executed on SmartPLS 4 software.

Key Findings: Visionary Leadership Directly Drives Organizational Attachment
The statistical analysis established a powerful positive link between transformational leadership behaviors and employee commitment in higher education.

• Strong Direct Effect: Transformational leadership demonstrated a statistically significant positive effect on organizational commitment, recording a path coefficient ($\beta$) of 0.75 ($t = 15.32$, $p < 0.001$).
  
• High Explanatory Power: The structural model achieved an $R^2$ value of 0.56, demonstrating that transformational leadership accounts for 56% of the variance in organizational commitment among private university staff.
  
• Substantial Effect Size and Predictive Relevance: The analysis yielded an effect size ($f^2$) of 0.36 and a predictive relevance score ($Q^2$) of 0.41, confirming that transformational leadership plays a primary role in employee retention.
  
• Key Leadership Drivers: Inspirational motivation recorded the highest indicator loading (0.88), followed by idealized influence (0.82), intellectual stimulation (0.76), and individualized consideration (0.72).
  
• Dominance of Emotional Loyalty: Affective commitment emerged as the strongest commitment dimension among participants, registering an outer loading of 0.89.
  

Real-World Impact and Institutional Implications
The empirical findings provide actionable solutions for university trustees, institutional leaders, and educational policymakers. Private university administrators can directly decrease faculty turnover by transitioning away from rigid, top-down governance toward participatory, human-resource-oriented leadership models. For university rectors, deans, and program heads, the study highlights the practical necessity of institutionalizing structured leadership development. Campus leaders must clearly articulate institutional goals, create safe spaces for creative experimentation, and offer direct career mentorship to faculty members. At a national policy level, the Indonesian Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology (Kemendikbudristek) can utilize these findings to integrate transformational leadership competencies into official capacity-building initiatives for private higher education governance.

Author Profiles
Kartini Harahap, M.Si.: Master of Science (M.Si.) and academic researcher affiliated with Universitas Sumatera Utara (USU). Her research expertise focuses on educational management, human resource development, and organizational behavior.
Syahril Ramadhan: Academic researcher and faculty member at Universitas Dayanu Ikhsanuddin (Unidayan). His work covers educational administration, leadership strategies, and workforce engagement.
Suarni Norawati: Senior academic researcher and faculty member at Sekolah Tinggi Ilmu Ekonomi (STIE) Bangkinang. Her research interests include organizational commitment, strategic management, and higher education governance.

Source
Kartini Harahap, Syahril Ramadhan, Suarni Norawati. The Impact of Transformational Leadership Style on Organizational Commitment in the Education Sector. Formosa Journal of Applied Sciences (FJAS). Volume 5, Nomor 9, Halaman 1919–1930)
DOI : https://doi.org/10.55927/fjas.v5i9.120
URL : https://journalfjas.my.id/index.php/fjas