Influence of female managers' emotional display on frontline employees' job satisfaction: a cross-level investigation in an emerging economy

Purpose: Emotions and emotional labor play a crucial role in professional interactions. Due to the increasing participation share of women managers in the workforce, especially in the customer-oriented service context, this study adopts a multilevel approach and mobilizes person–job fit theory to investigate whether the emotional labor of female managers influences the association between customer orientation and job satisfaction in frontline employees in a services setting. Design/methodology/approach: The participants were 124 immediate female managers working in bank branches and their 896 customer-facing employees in China. Findings: The results show that the positive relationship between customer orientation and job satisfaction in frontline employees is strengthened by increases in female managers' deep acting, but it is weakened with the increase in their surface acting. Research limitations/implications: The study findings provide support for scholars and financial service organizations as they seek to better understanding the dynamics behind the mobilization of women's emotions and their extent. In term of limitations, the data were taken from a single type of organization located in the northern cities of China, so it can be expected that the findings of this study will not generalize to all contexts. Originality/value: This paper is the first to investigate female managers' emotional labor employing a cross-level analysis in financial services setting.