Integrating Spiritual Leadership and Trust to Enhance Organisational Commitment

This study examines the perceived relationship between Spiritual Leadership and organisational commitment, exploring the potential connections between the practice of Spiritual Leadership and the level of commitment within an organisation. Extant research indicates a robust correlation between organisational commitment and the leadership style adopted within an organisation. Leadership style, as an intrinsic personal characteristic, plays a crucial role in fostering commitment, empowerment, and motivation among individuals, thereby facilitating the attainment of both personal and organisational objectives. The incorporation of spiritual values within an organisational context significantly enhances employees' affiliation with the organization, thereby exerting a profound impact on organisational commitment. The researchers applied a qualitative, exploratory, interpretative phenomenological research approach. Primary data was collected via in-depth semi-structured interviews. The target group consisted of nine senior management employees from a South African Mining and Infrastructure Equipment Organisation. The themes that emerged from this study include Value-Centric Leadership, the connection between Ethical Leadership and Commitment, Commitment, Trust, and Goal Setting in Spiritual Leadership, Spirituality and Workplace Integration and Empathy, Organisational Support and well-being. The main finding of the study is that Spiritual Leadership can foster organisational commitment when the leader demonstrates belief, authenticity, and trust. A proposed theoretical model of Spiritual Leadership, Trust, and Organisational Commitment is presented, integrating findings from existing literature and participant data. This model reflects the insights gained from the study. Although the research indicates that spiritual values and practices can be incorporated into the workplace, workplace spirituality is still a novel concept. Further research is needed to understand how leaders can effectively integrate, adopt, and promote spiritual values and practices in organisations. Keywords: Spiritual Leadership; Organisational Commitment; Trust in Leadership; Workplace Spirituality; Leadership Authenticity.