Inclusive leadership, symbolic capital and employee retention: social recognition beyond managerial authority

Purpose Labour-constrained workplaces face growing challenges in sustaining employment relationships amid workforce mobility and labour shortages. While inclusive leadership is associated with positive employee outcomes, less is known about how inclusive practices acquire influence beyond formal managerial authority. Drawing on Bourdieu's concept of symbolic capital, this study examines how inclusive leadership becomes socially recognised as legitimate authority and how this recognised standing enters employees' retention considerations. Design/methodology/approach The study adopts an interpretive qualitative case study design. Data were generated through fourteen semi-structured interviews with managers and executives in a large Sri Lankan apparel manufacturing organisation and analysed using the Gioia methodology. Findings Inclusive practices such as accessibility, fairness, recognition, developmental support and consistency became influential when employees experienced them as credible and dependable. Through social recognition, managers could acquire legitimate leadership standing beyond formal position, strengthening trust, belonging and relational attachment. These relationships became part of retention considerations alongside salary, career and structural conditions. Conversely, favouritism, inconsistency and limited recognition weakened recognised leadership standing and increased attention to external opportunities. Originality/value The study shifts inclusive leadership research from behavioural outcomes to the social recognition through which managerial practices acquire authoritative significance. It conceptualises symbolic capital as socially recognised standing through which managerial authority gains legitimate significance beyond positional power and shows how trusted leadership relationships become relational considerations in continued organisational membership.