How does ambidextrous leadership promote innovation in project-based construction companies? Through mediating role of knowledge-sharing and moderating role of innovativeness

Abstract

PurposeResearch on adopting leadership style like ambidextrous leadership to enhance employees' innovative work behavior (IWB) is in an initial stage. Moreover, employees need a high knowledge sharing attitude to show more IWB. The purpose of this study is to empirically test the impact of ambidextrous leadership on IWB with the mediating role of knowledge sharing and the moderating role of innovativeness as a project requirement (IAPR).Design/methodology/approachThe simple random sampling technique was used to collect data from 542 employees of project-based construction companies operating in Pakistan. Smart partial least squares-structural equation modeling (Smart PLS SEM v.3.2.8) was used to test the hypotheses.FindingsThe result revealed that ambidextrous leadership has a significant and positive effect on knowledge sharing but negative effect on IWB at the workplace. Additionally, the mediating role of knowledge sharing has been tested and proved to be a potential mediator between ambidextrous leadership and IWB. Also, IAPR as moderator has a significant and positive effect on knowledge sharing and IWB.Practical implicationsThe managers need to develop an ambidexterity-oriented strategy and communicate this strategy across the members of the whole organization. These processes can be facilitated by ambidextrous leaders with complex behavioral repertoires and specific constellations and characteristics of top management teams.Originality/valueThe relationship between ambidextrous leadership and IWB is the new contribution through the mediating of knowledge sharing between AL and IWB also moderation role IWB between knowledge sharing and IWB.

Corporate Governance and Humble Leadership as Antecedents of Corporate Financial Performance: Monetary Incentive as a Moderator

“…The humility of a team leader is crucial for team innovation, and businesses can encourage this characteristic during training, recruitment, and assessment. For example, leaders may be educated to demonstrate greater humility through performance evaluation and training programs leaders may be educated to demonstrate greater humility through performance evaluation and training programs (Haider et al, 2021 ). As crucial selection criteria, a company may also add characteristics such as admitting mistakes, complimenting subordinates' abilities, and learning from others.…”

Ambidextrous Leadership and Employee Voice Behavior: The Role of Work Motivation and Ambidextrous Culture

“…In addition, ambidextrous leadership emphasizes that contradictory leadership behaviors should be integrated into a larger behavior system and that a good match between management behaviors and complex situations can be achieved by taking on multiple tasks; 26 , 27 the paradoxical leadership behaviors that change with the situation may raise employees’ doubt and confusion about organizational management style. This provided us with a rare opportunity to assess how the associations identified between leadership and employee motivations as well as behaviors would be moderated by characteristics of the larger organizational context.…”

“…[23][24][25] An ambidextrous leader is capable of switching between transformational and transactional leadership, as per the need and situation at hand. 27 The use of various styles of leadership can meet the different psychological needs of employees, thus motivating them to generate both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. Since decision-making and motivation are intertwined and influence each other, 46 the ultimate phrasing of the voice choice is influenced by motivation.…”

Innovation ambidexterity and knowledge redundancy: The moderating effects of transactional leadership

“…Different leadership styles have different impacts on knowledge management and innovation decision-making in enterprises ( Trung et al, 2014 ; Zhang et al, 2015 ), and further affect the effect and efficiency of organizational activities ( Alrowwad et al, 2020 ). Similarly, extant studies provided substantial evidence on that varied leadership styles will influence knowledge management activities such as knowledge sharing ( Srivastava et al, 2006 ; Haider et al, 2021 ), knowledge transfer ( Goh, 1994 ), knowledge hiding ( Kim, 2021 ) and knowledge integration ( Ghazali et al, 2015 ). In addition, scholars have reached a consensus that different leadership styles play a significant role in organizational innovation performance.…”

“…In particular, transactional leadership is a typical leadership style in China. Transactional leadership means that the enterprise’s managers set up organizational goals based on the role clarification and job requirements, thereby leveraging differential rewards and punishments to motivate subordinates to complete the proposed job goals ( Bass, 1999 ; Mackenzie et al, 2001 ), The focus of transactional leadership is to maintain and ensure the efficient operation of the organization’s daily work ( Haider et al, 2021 ), which will have a certain impact on enterprises’ innovation performance ( Makri and Scandura, 2010 ; Vargas, 2015 ; Jia et al, 2018 ). At the same time, scholars have provided empirical support that leadership style is significantly associated with knowledge management in enterprises ( Bryant, 2003 ; Connelly and Kelloway, 2003 ; Yang and Chen, 2007 ; Hai and Mohamed, 2011 ), such as transformational leadership promotes knowledge sharing ( Liu and Li, 2018 ).…”