Striving for the bottom line: the impact of supervisor bottom-line mentality on employees' work effort and helping behavior

Purpose This study aims to advance the bottom-line mentality (BLM) literature by drawing on goal-setting theory to examine the positive effects of supervisor BLM on employees' behavior. Design/methodology/approach The authors collected survey data from 291 full-time employees from various Chinese organizations at three different points in time. Findings The authors found that supervisor BLM and employees' collectivism orientation interacted to influence employees' bottom-line goal commitment such that the positive relationship between supervisor BLM and employees' bottom-line goal commitment was stronger when employees' collectivism orientation was high rather than low. Furthermore, they found that employees' collectivism orientation moderated the positive indirect effects of supervisor BLM on employees' work effort and helping behavior via bottom-line goal commitment such that the indirect effects were stronger when employees had a high rather than a low collectivism orientation. Originality/value The authors explored the “bridge side” of supervisor BLM on employees' behavior, especially after being moderated by collectivism orientation. Our results can help managers develop a comprehensive understanding of BLM.