Date

10-14-2026

Department

Graduate School of Business

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy in Organization and Management (PhD)

Chair

Richard Peters

Keywords

workplace visibility, employee performance, leadership, hierarchical organizations, organizational trust

Disciplines

Business

Abstract

The purpose of this qualitative multiple-case study was to examine how leaders and employees interpreted workplace visibility and presence within hierarchical organizations. The researcher conducted semistructured interviews with 30 participants, including 15 leaders and 15 employees, across nongovernmental, civilian government, and military cases. The researcher organized 43 codes into seven themes. Participants described workplace visibility as selective access to employee activity rather than complete evidence of performance, commitment, reliability, motivation, or engagement. They described attendance, responsiveness, communication, and visible output as more perceptible aspects of work, while preparation, technical reasoning, informal coordination, and internal experience were less apparent. Participants depicted situations in which leaders appeared to give visible activity evaluative attention without sufficient consideration of work evidence, role requirements, or less-visible contribution. Participants’ accounts also described physical presence as relevant when role or mission requirements involved on-site work. Leaders reported using multiple forms of performance information rather than relying on visible presence alone. The researcher interpreted workplace visibility as a contextual evaluative tension rather than a uniform leadership practice. The researcher also applied symbolic interactionism and self-determination theory as interpretive lenses for participant perceptions of visibility, workplace relationships, and organizational context.

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