Perceived employee status and proactivity: roles of CEO proactiveness and hierarchical climate

Purpose This study aims to explore the circumstances in which perceived individual status relates to proactivity. By incorporating insights from social information processing theory, we propose that CEO proactiveness and organizational hierarchical climate function as organizational-level moderators, influencing the positive relationship between employee status and proactivity. Design/methodology/approach We tested our three-way interaction model on a sample of 120 production managers and 845 employees from 120 companies in the manufacturing industry of South Korea. Findings The findings indicate that the positive relationship between status and their proactivity was strengthened when CEO proactiveness was low. Moreover, when the CEO’s proactiveness is low and the hierarchical climate is low, the perceived individual status and proactivity exhibit the strongest positive relationship. Practical implications Our research provides valuable insights into how to boost employees’ proactivity in small- and medium-sized businesses. Originality/value This study makes a substantial contribution to the existing literature by identifying the specific boundary conditions that promote proactivity.