This study was carried out in order to find out
the leader prototypes of private and public bank
employees and reveal possible similarities between the
prototypical qualities and current manager
characteristics. Research data was collected from 208
participants working as branch managers, assistant
managers, assistant directors, portfolio managers,
customer relations officers and teller clerks in a total of
20 bank branches, 7 public and 13 private in Aksaray
province, Türkiye. Study results demonstrated that the
top prototypical qualities that the participants seek in a
leader were justice, fairness, knowledge and strong
character. It was also found that the average score of
private bank employees in the overall leader prototype
scale and in the skill sub-dimension was higher than that
of public bank employees. Lastly, the study findings
showed that the current managers of both private and
public bank employees scored lower for all prototypical
qualities. On the other hand, the top qualities of current
managers were found out as generosity, compassion and
respectability. Based on the study findings,
recommendations were developed concerning how to
approach the leader prototypes and utilize prototypical
qualities for effective leadership in the organizational
environment.
Keywords : Leader Prototypes, Prototypical Qualities, Implicit Leadership.