Impression management strategies and performance in information technology consulting: The Role of Self-Other Rating Agreement on Charismatic Leadership

This study examined the extent to which subordinates’ and superiors’ perceptions of the five basic impression-management strategies of ingratiation, self-promotion, intimidation, exemplification, and supplication were associated with the self-awareness and performance of 83 information technology consulting managers. Self-awareness was operationalized by categorizing managers as over-estimators, underestimators, in-agreement/poor, or in-agreement/good based on the difference between the manager’s and his or her subordinates’ rating of the manager’s charismatic leadership. Results of multivariate analysis of covariance indicated that according to subordinates, overestimators used less ingratiation and exemplification and more intimidation than underestimators or those in-agreement. According to superiors, overestimators used more intimidation than underestimators and in-agreement/poor managers, whereas in-agree-ment/poor managers used more supplication and less exemplification than underestimators and in-agreement/good managers. In-agreement/good managers outperformed overestimators and in-agreement/poor managers.