Top Management Leadership and Influence on Innovation: The Role of Sociocultural Context

Abstract

This study proposes and tests a model for top-management influence on innovations. Three research questions are addressed: Is top managers’ influence on innovation a function of their leadership? Does socio-cultural context directly affect leadership? and, Does sociocultural context moderate the relationship of leadership with top-management influence on innovation? These questions are investigated with data from 12 European countries. The results show that leadership factors have strong effects on top-management innovation influence. In support of the culture-specific view of leadership, sociocultural context directly influences leadership and moderates its relationship with organizational innovation.

Does Workforce Innovation Mediate the Relationship between Internal Factors and Performance in Malaysian Entrepreneurial SMEs?

“…The relationships between transformational leadership and workforce innovation (Elenkov & Manev, 2005;Gumusluog˘lu & Ilsev, 2009;Jung, et al, 2003;Morales, et al, 2006;Sarros, et al, 2008;Shin & Zhou, 2003;Sosik, et al, 2004), rewards and workforce innovation (Jong & Hartog, 2007;Walton, 2003;Yukl, 2002) and autonomy and empowerment and workforce innovation (Amabile, et al, 1996;George & Jones, 2008;Zhao, 2005) are consistent with previous studies. The lack of correlation between innovative supportive climate and workforce innovation is consistent with that of Gumusluog˘lu and Ilsev (2009) who found a negative www.ccsenet.org/ass Asian Social Science Vol.…”

“…After testing the theoretical model, they concluded that the linkage is positive and transformational leadership has a significant contribute to innovative climate in the organization. The findings of Sarros et al (2008) was consistent with findings of Shin et al (2003), García-Morales, Montes & Verdú-Jover (2006), Elenkov et al (2005) and Gumusluog˘lu and Ilsev (2009). Based on the prominent role of the leader in the development of innovative workforces, Hypothesis 1 is one of the important hypotheses:…”

“…Jung et al (2003) pointed out that there is a positive relationship between transformational leadership and organizational innovation. This view is reinforced by empirical studies conducted by several researchers (Shin et al 2003;Sosik et al, 2004;Elenkov et al 2005;Morales et al, 2006). In another recent study, Sarros et al (2008) focused on the relationship between transformational leadership and climate for innovation in organization.…”

“…Innovation is often performed by low and middle levels of management or employees directly. It is rarely done by leaders or top managers directly (Elenkov & Manev, 2005).…”

Development of timber framed firms in the construction sector — Is EU policy one source of their innovation?

“…However, firms' socio-cultural environment, which includes norms, customs and institutions, can also influence industry, business and organisational culture. Since innovation requires learning new ways of doing things, which also necessarily involves a continuous process of unlearning and forgetting old ways of doing thing (Senge 1990), culture can therefore significantly affect firms' propensity to innovate as well as their innovation success (Elenkov and Manev, 2005;Simmie, 2004;Ansoff, 1979;Drucker, 1998, Senge, 1990. In this respect, the construction industry is viewed as particularly conservative, with low innovation rates (Winch, 1998;Bregulla et al, 2003;Taylor and Lewitt, 2004;Widén, 2006;Visscher & Meijer, 2007).…”