Effects of crisis management leadership, perceived self-efficacy, and job performance on facility management professionals' job satisfaction in a crisis

In a crisis, drastic changes in the working environment require strong leadership to supervise the team of facility management professionals (FMPs) managing facilities to improve their job performance and job satisfaction, as well as reduce the turnover rate. The critical period of the COVID-19 pandemic, which was characterized by lockdowns and a largely unvaccinated population, was used as the context to study a crisis. This research investigated the forms of crisis management leadership (CML) that engender job satisfaction in FMPs during a crisis and explored the effects on FMPs' perceived self-efficacy, job performance, and job satisfaction in a crisis context. Using an online survey, 102 sets of completed questionnaires were received from FMPs who managed facilities in Singapore during the critical period of the COVID-19 pandemic. partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was conducted to explore the relationship between CML, FMPs' perceived self-efficacy, job performance, and job satisfaction. The study identified 10 leadership competencies that are essential for CML and demonstrated CML's positive impact on FMPs' perceived self-efficacy, job performance, and job satisfaction during crises. Notably, FMPs' perceived self-efficacy was found to mediate the relationship between CML and job satisfaction in crisis situations. The primary contributions that this research makes to the body of knowledge include identifying specific leadership competencies applicable in crises and enriching the literature on the interplay between CML and job satisfaction by examining the mediating effect of perceived self-efficacy. Furthermore, the study offers criteria for selecting suitable crisis leaders and suggests strategies to enhance FMPs' job outcomes in crisis contexts.