Creating the right climate: how servant leadership can drive employee creativity

Purpose This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies. Design/methodology/approach This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings The authors of the study find that servant leadership encourages employee creativity by supporting the development of a climate of creativity, which sets the right conditions for employees to engage in creative behaviors. Originality/value The briefing saves busy executives, strategists and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

Mediating-moderating effect of employee creativity and team potency on expatriate innovative work behaviour

Purpose This study aims to investigate how learning goal orientation (LGO), participative decision-making (PDM) and leadership member exchange (LMX) influence innovative work behaviour (IWB) through expatriate employee creativity (EC). This research study further contributes to the extant literature by investigating team potency’s (TP) potential interaction effect on the expatriate EC–IWB relationship. Design/methodology/approach Data were gathered via survey from 175 expatriate employees in non-managerial positions in the United Arab Emirates. Partial least square structural equation modelling was used for analysing the collected data. Findings The statistical results show that PDM, LGO and LMX have a direct positive impact on IWB. The statistical findings also reveal that EC mediates the LGO and IWB relationship. Furthermore, TP has a significant positive moderating effect on the EC and IWB relationship. Originality/value This work adds to the literature in the field on innovation work behaviour and its antecedents by analysing data within the expatriate employee context, where empirical examinations are limited.

The Impact of Transformational Leadership Style and Employee Creativity on Organizational Innovation in Universities During the Covid-19 Pandemic

Organizational innovation is one of the important issues for organizations in every country to adapt to changing operating environments, scientific and technological progress, and crisis issues. This study aims to evaluate the impact of transformational leadership style and employee creativity on organizational innovation in universities in Vietnam. We employed Bayesian exploratory factor analysis and Bayesian regression analysis with primary data of leader–employee pairs to explore the abovementioned effects. The findings show that the components of transformational leadership style, including idealized influence (II), inspirational motivation (IM), intellectual stimulation (IS), and individual consideration (IC), have positive impacts on organizational innovation (OI) and employee creativity (EC). The findings also imply that employee creativity (EC) is a mediating factor in the impact of transformational leadership style (TLS) on organizational innovation (OI). Finally, increasing intrinsic motivation (INM) can increase the positive impact of transformational leadership style (TLS) on employee creativity (EC). Based on the results, we propose policy implications to promote organizational innovation in Vietnamese universities in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Influence of Ethical and Transformational Leadership on Employee Creativity in Malaysia's Private Higher Education Institutions: The Mediating Role of Organizational Citizenship Behaviour

Aim/Purpose: This paper aimed to examine the influence of ethical and transformational leadership on employee creativity in Malaysia’s private higher education institutions (PHEIs) and the mediating role of organizational citizenship behavior. Background: To ensure their survival and success in today’s market, organizations need people who are creative and driven. Previous studies have demonstrated the importance of ethical leadership in fostering employee innovation and good corporate responsibility. Research on ethical leadership and transformational leadership, in particular, has played a significant role in elucidating the role of leadership in relation to organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). In this study, we have focused on ethical and transformational leadership as an antecedent for enhancing employee creativity. Despite an increase in leadership research, little is known about the underlying mechanisms that link ethical leadership and transformational leadership to OCB. Because it sheds light on factors other than ethical leadership and transformational leadership that influence employees’ extra-role activity, this research is relevant theoretically. OCB may have a mediating function between ethical leadership and transformational leadership style and employee creativity because it is associated with the greatest outcomes, but empirical research has yet to prove this. So, one of the study’s goals is to add to the hypotheses about how ethical leadership style and transformational leadership affect employee creativity by using an important mediating variable – OCB. Methodology: This study adopted a quantitative approach based on a cross-sectional survey and descriptive design to gather the data in a specific period. A convenient sampling approach was used to gauge 275 employees from Malaysia’s PHEIs. To test the hypotheses and obtain a conclusion, the acquired data was analyzed using the partial least square technique (PLS-SEM). Contribution: The study contributes to leadership literature by advancing OCB as a mediating factor that accounts for the link between ethical and transformational leadership and employee creativity in the higher education sector. Findings: According to the research, OCB has a substantial influence on the creativity of employees. Furthermore, ethical leadership boosted OCB and boosted employee creativity, according to the research. OCB and employee creativity have both been demonstrated to benefit greatly from transformational leadership. Further research revealed that OCB is a mediating factor in the link between leadership styles and creative thinking among employees. Recommendations for Practitioners: Higher education institutions should focus on developing leaders who value transparency and self-awareness in their interactions with followers and who demonstrate an inner moral perspective in addition to balanced information processing to ensure positive outcomes at the individual and organizational levels. Higher education institutions should place a priority on hiring leaders that exhibit ethical and transformational traits to raise awareness of these leadership styles among employees. Recommendation for Researchers: The new study also adds significantly to the body of knowledge by examining the relationship between ethical and transformational leadership and the creativity of the workforce. It aimed to identify the relationship between transformational leadership style and individual creativity in higher education by examining the mediating influence of OCB. Impact on Society: Higher education institutions should devise strategies for developing ethical and transformative leaders who will assist boost OCB and creativity within their workforce. Students and faculty in higher education can benefit from these leadership methods by learning to think in more diverse ways and by developing thought processes that lead to a larger pool of innovative ideas and solutions. As a consequence, employees who show creative behavior may be effectively managed by leaders who utilize ethical and transformational leadership styles and motivate them to show OCB that allow them to solve creative problems creatively. Future Research: A mixed-methods approach should be used in future research, and this should be done in public institutions in developing and developed nations to put the findings to use and generalize them even further. Future research will be able to examine other mediators to learn more about how and why ethical and transformational leadership styles affect PHEI employees’ creativity.

Knowledge based human resource management and employee creativity: the dual mediation of knowledge sharing and knowledge hiding

Introduction. Employee creativity is an essential element that is required for the dynamic work environments. Companies able to foster employee creativity through knowledge based human resource management practices enhance their competitive advantage over companies who stifle employee creativity. The conceptual model in this paper aims to demonstrate that knowledge sharing and knowledge hiding mediate the relationship between knowledge based human resource management practices and employee creativity. The implementation of knowledge based human resource management practices can lead to increased knowledge sharing and decreased knowledge hiding both of which will result in increased employee creativity. Aim and tasks. The aim of this paper is to build on social exchange theory as the foundational theory for understanding how knowledge based human resource management practices impact employee creativity through the mediators of knowledge sharing and knowledge hiding. Results. In previous research have studied the relationship between knowledge behaviors and employee creativity while accounting for motivational climate, transformational leadership, goal orientation, and various human resource management practices. Many of these factors have traditionally been exogenous variables to the individual employees working in organizations. While social exchange theory implies a dyadic exchange, it would be relevant to examine the endogenous variants within employees that might contribute to differential reactions to reciprocation. It is substantiated that individuals that have different exchange ideologies react differently to organizational support. The first section includes a literature review of the constructs - knowledge based human resource management, knowledge sharing, knowledge hiding, and employee creativity. The second section provides a model focusing on the impact social exchange theory has on the constructs, including theory-based propositions. In reviewing this model, the paper makes theoretical contributions to the constructs and social exchange theory. The final section provides direction for future research and discussion. Conclusions. Creativity is the fuel for the 21st century’s competitive organizations. Researchers and practitioners alike rely on creativity to solve problems and improve products and services around the globe. It is important to deeply understand the antecedents necessary for creativity so that organizations employ systems and process that are conducive for creative production. From the theoretical foundations laid out in this paper, knowledge based human resource management practices will increase employee creativity through increased knowledge sharing and decreased knowledge hiding.

How Job Creativity Requirements Affects Employee Creativity: Evidence From a Across-Level Analysis

The present study adopted the Pygmalion perspective and a multilevel theoretical framework to investigate whether creative process engagement mediates the linkage of job creativity requirement with employee creativity. We examined whether team knowledge sharing moderates the aforementioned relationship. We obtained data from 71 supervisors and their 453 employees from three companies in China and applied Hierarchical Linear Modeling (HLM) version 6.08 to test the cross-level hypotheses. The results revealed that creative process engagement mediates the positive linkage of job creativity requirement with employee creativity. In addition, we observed that team knowledge sharing moderates the relationship among job creativity requirement, employee creativity, and creative process engagement. The practical and theoretical implications of the findings are discussed.

Employee creativity and organizational innovation

Purpose This paper aims to review the latest management developments across the globe and pinpoint practical implications from cutting-edge research and case studies. Design/methodology/approach This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context. 10; 10; Findings Companies rating high in employee creativity and organizational innovation become better equipped to compete effectively in today’s demanding business environment. Strong emphasis on key personal and organizational drivers can help optimize these critical capabilities. Originality/value The briefing saves busy executives and researchers hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.