The effect of strategic leadership and organizational culture on business performance: A study on Malatya apricot processing enterprises

This study aims to examine the performance levels of enterprises operating in the fruit processing sector in Malatya, the apricot production hub of Turkey. The main objective of the research is to analyze the organizational culture and strategic leadership structures of these enterprises and determine the impact of these factors on business performance. The primary tools used in the research are Cameron and Quinn's (2011: 5-45) OCAI model to assess organizational culture structures, and Pisapia et al.'s (2005: 41-68) Strategic Leadership Questionnaire (SLQ) to examine leadership styles. Additionally, the performance levels of the enterprises are compared using Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA). This method analyzes the inputs (amount of purchased raw materials, quantity of products sold, capital) and outputs (cost of goods sold, revenue, net profit) of the enterprises. As a result of the analysis, four enterprises were classified as efficient (high performance), while eight were classified as inefficient (low performance). It was observed that the deficiencies in the cultural and leadership structures of inefficient enterprises contributed to their lower performance. The findings indicate that in efficient (high performance) enterprises, innovative and competitive structures such as innovation (adhocracy) and market culture, along with transformational leadership styles, are dominant. In inefficient (low performance) enterprises, on the other hand, clan and hierarchy cultures were found to be lacking, and managerial leadership practices were weaker. The study reveals that in efficient (high performance) enterprises, more flexible and innovative cultures prevail, whereas in inefficient (low performance) enterprises, hierarchy culture is more dominant. The data obtained from this study highlight the importance of giving special attention to organizational culture and strategic leadership structures in achieving performance in the fruit processing sector. Keywords: Organizational culture, Strategic leadership, Data envelopment analysis, Performance, Fruit processing sector, Agricultural enterprises, Innovation, Competitive advantage, Transformational leadership.