How and when CEO servant leaders fuel firm innovation: the role of social capital and knowledge absorptive capacity

IF 6.2 3区管理学 Q1 BUSINESS

International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal Pub Date : 2024-04-26 DOI:10.1007/s11365-024-00966-6

Santiago Gutiérrez-Broncano, Jorge Linuesa-Langreo, Pablo Ruiz-Palomino, Graça Miranda Silva

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Abstract

Firm innovation is a characteristic of firms with a robust entrepreneurial orientation that wish to have a strong competitive position in their sector. Drawing on the theories of servant leadership and upper echelons, this study aims to highlight the mechanisms through which CEO servant leadership enhances firm innovation. This paper examines (1) knowledge absorptive capacity as a mediator in the CEO servant leadership–firm innovation relationship, and (2) the moderating role of social capital (internal and external) in this relationship. Original data from 176 large and medium-sized hotels in the Canary and Balearic Islands (Spain) were used to test the hypotheses, and a partial least squares (PLS) analysis using Smart PLS 4 revealed that CEO servant leadership was positive for firm innovation, which was, in turn, mediated by firm knowledge absorptive capacity. Furthermore, the relationship between CEO servant leadership and firm knowledge absorptive capacity was found to grow stronger as internal social capital increased, while external social capital strengthened the positive link between firm knowledge absorptive capacity and firm innovation. New light is therefore shed on how and when CEO servant leadership is most effective in fostering firm innovation. Additionally, our firm-level findings contribute to the servant leadership literature, which is dominated by individual and group-level research, and expand the mounting evidence for the positive impact of CEO servant leadership on firm-level outcomes.

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首席执行官仆人式领导者如何以及何时推动企业创新：社会资本和知识吸收能力的作用

企业创新是具有强大创业导向的企业的一个特征，这些企业希望在其行业中拥有强有力的竞争地位。本研究借鉴仆人式领导和上层领导理论，旨在强调首席执行官仆人式领导增强企业创新的机制。本文探讨了（1）知识吸收能力在CEO仆人式领导与企业创新关系中的中介作用，以及（2）社会资本（内部和外部）在这一关系中的调节作用。研究使用了加那利群岛和巴利阿里群岛（西班牙）176 家大中型酒店的原始数据来检验假设，并使用 Smart PLS 4 进行偏最小二乘法（PLS）分析，结果表明首席执行官仆人式领导对企业创新具有正向促进作用，而企业的知识吸收能力反过来又是这种正向促进作用的中介。此外，随着内部社会资本的增加，首席执行官仆人式领导力与企业知识吸收能力之间的关系也越来越紧密，而外部社会资本则加强了企业知识吸收能力与企业创新之间的正向联系。因此，我们对首席执行官仆人式领导如何以及何时最有效地促进企业创新有了新的认识。此外，我们在企业层面的研究结果也为以个人和团体层面研究为主的仆人式领导文献做出了贡献，并扩大了 CEO 仆人式领导对企业层面结果产生积极影响的越来越多的证据。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal Multiple-

CiteScore

12.50

自引率

3.60%

发文量

期刊介绍： The International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal (IEMJ) publishes high quality manuscripts dealing with entrepreneurship, broadly defined, and the management of entrepreneurial organizations. The journal will expand the study of entrepreneurship and management by publishing innovative articles based on different perspectives using a variety of methodological approaches and showing the practical implications of the research for its readership. IEMJ is unique; providing a multi-disciplinary forum for researchers, scholars, consultants, entrepreneurs, businessmen, managers and practitioners in the field of entrepreneurship. The journal covers the relationship between management and entrepreneurship including both conceptual and empirical papers, leading to an improvement in the understanding of international entrepreneurial perspectives of the organisations concerned. Entrepreneurial studies are important in creating new economic activity that in turn increases innovation, employment, economic wealth and growth. The journal focuses on the diverse and complex characteristics of entrepreneurship in SMEs and large companies in local, regional, national or international markets that lead to competitiveness in the face of the effects of globalization. Though preference will be given to manuscripts that are international in scope, papers focused on domestic contexts and issues are welcome also, in order to facilitate the sharing of knowledge and potential generalizability of findings worldwide. IEMJ will publish original papers which contribute to the advancement of the field of entrepreneurship and the interface between management and entrepreneurship, as well as articles on business corporate strategy and government economic policy. On occasions, the journal will also feature case studies of successful firms or other cases having important practical implications. The journal places great emphasis on the quality of the papers it publishes. Submission of a paper will imply that it contains original unpublished work and is not being submitted for publication elsewhere. Officially cited as: Int Entrep Manag J