Abstract

Transformational leadership has recently received much attention due to its ability to inspire

extraordinary performance, nurture personal growth, and create excellent organizational

outcomes. In this study, I explore the perceptions of Iranian graduate students regarding

transformational leadership in their professional experience in Iran. I aim to understand how

these students view transformational leadership and its impact on their professional growth and

development. I hypothesized students should have almost a negative experience in the Iranian

workplace. Using the action research design, I drew participants from Iranian graduate students

with relevant professional experience at a small private university in Canada. Data was collected

from emailed qualitative questionnaires, allowing for convenient and detailed responses. Out of

fifty-three questionnaires, I received ten responses. However, upon evaluation, only ten were

found to be credible: three males and seven females. Surprisingly, the findings indicate various

experiences among them. Except for three, the rest of the Iranian graduate students had relatively

positive perceptions of transformational leadership adopted by their managers at their workplace.

They also believed the country's situation was a barrier to successfully applying transformational

leaders' features. However, employers could act better by acting innovatively, and some gaps still

need to be filled. They agreed there is a direct relationship between transformational leadership

features—commitments, vision, risk-taking, growth, innovation, sympathy, and keeping up-to-

date—and professional experiences. I urge more studies focused on devising ways to aid Iranian

leaders' continual professional development and foster up-to-date methods and technologies.