Leadership, Motivation, and Work Ethic Effects on Employee Performance in the Automotive Industry

Authors

  • Joonner Rambe Universitas Borobudur, Indonesia
  • Mohamad Razab Iryadana Universitas Pasundan, Indonesia
  • Mohammad Sidik Priadana Universitas Pasundan, Indonesia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.37641/jimkes.v14i1.4695

Keywords:

Competence, Employee Performance, Entrepreneurial Spirit, Motivation, Transformational Leadership, Work Ethic

Abstract

The automotive industry is facing increasingly intense competition, requiring companies to improve employee performance to remain competitive. This study aims to analyze the influence of transformational leadership, competence, motivation, and entrepreneurial spirit on work ethic and employee performance in large automotive companies in the region. The method used in this study is a quantitative approach with path analysis to examine the direct and indirect relationships between variables. All statistical analyses were performed using SPSS version 27 to ensure accuracy and consistency. The results show that motivation has the greatest impact on work ethic, followed by transformational leadership, competence, and entrepreneurial spirit. In addition, work ethic has a significant positive influence on employee performance. These findings indicate that strengthening motivation, inspirational leadership, enhancing competence, and fostering entrepreneurial spirit can improve work ethic, which in turn contributes to improving employee performance. In conclusion, companies need to strengthen leadership programs, training, and human resource development to enhance work ethic and performance in the competitive automotive industry.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Abbas, A., Ekowati, D., Suhariadi, F., & Anwar, A. (2024). Human capital creation: a collective psychological, social, organizational and religious perspective. Journal of Religion and Health, 63(3), 2168–2200.

Aguilera, R. V., De Massis, A., Fini, R., & Vismara, S. (2024). Organizational goals, outcomes, and the assessment of performance: Reconceptualizing success in management studies. Journal of Management Studies, 61(1), 1–36.

Aini, N., Nasution, A. P., & Siregar, N. A. (2022). The effect of work environment, work ethic, work culture, and work motivation on performance of environmental services in Labuhanbatu Regency. Quantitative Economics and Management Studies, 3(5), 714–720.

Aravik, H., Hamzani, A. I., Khasanah, N., & Tohir, A. (2024). Fundamental concepts of work ethic in Islamic perspective and its implementation in Islamic bank marketing. Islamic Banking: Jurnal Pemikiran dan Pengembangan Perbankan Syariah, 10(1), 63–80.

Bashori, B., Yusup, M., & Khan, R. (2022). From vision to reality: a holistic examination of transformational leadership as a catalyst for cultivating organizational culture in Pesantren. Development: Studies in Educational Management and Leadership, 1(2), 133–152.

Basiru, J. O., Ejiofor, C. L., Onukwulu, E. C., & Attah, R. U. (2023). Optimizing administrative operations: A conceptual framework for strategic resource management in corporate settings. International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Growth Evaluation, 4(1), 760–773.

Beckmann, J., & Heckhausen, H. (2025). Motivation as a function of expectancy and incentive. In Motivation and action (pp. 165–225). Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland.

Bristol-Alagbariya, B., Ayanponle, O. L., & Ogedengbe, D. E. (2022). Developing and implementing advanced performance management systems for enhanced organizational productivity. World Journal of Advanced Science and Technology, 2(1), 39–46.

Caniago, A. (2024). Analysis of Organizational Structure and Integrated Coordination on Organizational Growth. Asian Journal of Management, Entrepreneurship and Social Science, 4(03), 1387–1400.

Choi, M., & Yang, J. S. (2024). How allocation of resources and attention aids in pursuing multiple organizational goals. Computational and Mathematical Organization Theory, 30(1), 101–125.

Corrêa, V. S., Queiroz, M. M., Cruz, M. A., & Shigaki, H. B. (2022). Entrepreneurial orientation far beyond opportunity: the influence of the necessity for innovativeness, proactiveness and risk-taking. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, 28(4), 952–979.

Diawati, P., Gadzali, S. S., Abd Aziz, M. K. N., Ausat, A. M. A., & Suherlan, S. (2023). The role of information technology in improving the efficiency and productivity of human resources in the workplace. Jurnal Teknologi Dan Sistem Informasi Bisnis, 5(3), 296–302.

Fakhrizni, O., Yudhyani, E., & Kurniasari, E. (2024). Impact of transformational leadership and work motivation on performance with work ethic mediation. Journal La Bisecoman, 5(4), 611–631.

Furman, D., Shchokin, R., Kubitskyi, S., Chaplinskyi, V., Strochenko, N., & Dorosh, I. (2023). Motivation and incentives for employees of domestic enterprises. Journal of Law and Sustainable Development, 11(3), 815-825.

Gladden, M., Fortuna, P., & Modliński, A. (2022). The empowerment of artificial intelligence in post-digital organizations: exploring human interactions with supervisory AI. Human Technology, 18(2), 98–121.

Hajiali, I., Kessi, A. M. F., Budiandriani, B., Prihatin, E., & Sufri, M. M. (2022). Determination of work motivation, leadership style, employee competence on job satisfaction and employee performance. Golden Ratio of Human Resource Management, 2(1), 57–69.

Heckhausen, J., & Heckhausen, H. (2025). Motivation and action: Introduction and overview. In Motivation and action (pp. 1–14). Cham: Springer Nature Switzerland.

Herwina, Y. (2022). The influence of competence on employee performance: investigation of automotive companies. International Journal of Management and Business Applied, 1(1), 1–8.

Iddrisu, I., & Adam, A. (2025). Nexuses between induction training and on-the-job training on employee job performance: the mediating role of organizational culture. International Journal of Organizational Analysis, 33(4), 879–895.

Kayago, K. R., Ondari, J., Omari, S., & Akuku, C. (2023). Influence of individualized consideration dimension on organizational performance of the South Eastern Kenya Economic Bloc (SEKEB) counties. International Academic Journal of Human Resource and Business Administration, 4(2), 418–441.

Khan, I. U., Amin, R. U., & Saif, N. (2025). Individualized consideration and idealized influence of transformational leadership: Mediating role of inspirational motivation and intellectual stimulation. International Journal of Leadership in Education, 28(6), 1322–1332.

Klebaner, S., & Pérez, S. R. (2022). The European automotive industry: a strategic sector in search of a new industrial policy. In EU industrial policy in the multipolar economy (pp. 304-331). New York: Edward Elgar Publishing.

Mardianty, D., & Sari, A. J. (2025). The effect of career development and work motivation on employee performance transportation agency. Jurnal Ilmiah Manajemen Kesatuan, 13(4), 2245-2256.

Michielsen, L., Bischoff, E. W., Schermer, T., & Laurant, M. (2023). Primary healthcare competencies needed in the management of person-centred integrated care for chronic illness and multimorbidity. BMC Primary Care, 24(1), 98–110.

Mubaraq, A. F., Kamaluddin, M., & Ruslan, R. (2024). The effect of human resource development, work capability on work ethic and employee performance. Jurnal Ilmiah Manajemen Kesatuan, 12(6), 234-244.

Muttaqiean, F., Cahyaningati, R., & Meilan, R. (2023). Implementation of management strategies to improve employee performance at Rural Banks in East Java. Wiga: Jurnal Penelitian Ilmu Ekonomi, 13(2), 257–271.

Muzam, J. (2023). The challenges of modern economy on the competencies of knowledge workers. Journal of the Knowledge Economy, 14(2), 1635–1671.

Mwamba, J. (2023). Effective leadership in change management. Journal of Policy Options, 6(1), 28–38.

Natsir, I., Ode, H., Irfana, T. B., Pulungan, D. R., & Sihite, M. (2024). An analysis of the role of human resource management in enhancing organizational efficiency and effectiveness. International Journal of Economics (IJEC), 3(2), 56-76.

Ned, A. E., & Umesi, C. D. (2023). Effective leadership and employee motivation for sustainable development. Journal of Education in Developing Areas, 31(2), 310–321.

Nogueira, C., Marques, J. F., & Pinto, H. (2024). Intentional sustainable communities and sustainable development goals. Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, 67(1), 175–196.

Oladimeji, K. A., & Abdulkareem, A. K. (2023). Ethical leadership and employee performance in the public sector. Jurnal Studi Pemerintahan 2(1), 133–148.

Pincus, J. D. (2023). Employee engagement as human motivation. Integrative Psychological and Behavioral Science, 57(4), 1223–1255.

Putra, R., & Kudri, W. M. (2024). Fueling success. Luxury: Landscape of Business Administration, 2(1), 71–84.

Ramachandran, K. K. (2023). Optimizing IT performance. International Journal of Marketing and Human Resource Management, 14(3), 12–29.

Satriawan, D. G., Brahmasari, I. A., & Ratih, I. A. B. (2022). The influence of competence, work ethic and anxiety on employee performance. Journal of Asian Multicultural Research for Economy and Management Study, 3(1), 81–92.

Sidik, M. S. N., Desywan, E., Raharjo, S. T., & Pradana, M. S. (2024). The effect of transformational leadership values on worker performance. Research Horizon, 4(6), 239–246.

Sun, T., & Abdullah, M. A. B. (2025). Impact of industrial agglomeration on the upgrading of china’s automobile industry: the threshold effect of human capital and moderating effect of government. Sustainability, 17(7), 30-40.

Syarifuddin, S. (2023). Can transformative leadership, work discipline, and work motivation improve employee performance?. Advances: Jurnal Ekonomi & Bisnis, 1(3), 158–170.

Taghavi, S., & Segalla, M. (2023). Is work an act of worship?. Journal of Business Ethic, 188(3), 509–531.

Udin, U. (2024). Ethical leadership and employee performance. Human Systems Management, 43(1), 51–63.

Umesi, C. D. (2024). Effective leadership and employee motivation in Nigeria. Journal of Education in Developing Areas, 32(2), 64–74.

Word, D., Fredolin, J. P., & Ballesteros, J. V. A. (2022). The effect of work ethic of employees on their work performance. Research in Management and Humanities DWIJMH, 1(1), 58–82.

Yusi, S. (2022). The relationship between entrepreneurial spirits and entrepreneurial value. Jurnal Riset Bisnis dan Investasi, 8(1), 1–13.

Zulkarnain, Z., Pitriyani, P., & Halim, A. (2022). Work ethic, progressive discipline, and work engagement. Indonesian Interdisciplinary Journal of Sharia Economics, 5(2), 919–935.

Downloads

Published

2026-01-29

How to Cite

Rambe, J., Iryadana, M. R., & Priadana, M. S. (2026). Leadership, Motivation, and Work Ethic Effects on Employee Performance in the Automotive Industry. Jurnal Ilmiah Manajemen Kesatuan, 14(1), 523–536. https://doi.org/10.37641/jimkes.v14i1.4695