The role of leadership style in influencing innovation and organisational performance

: A mixed-methods study of the Abu Dhabi government sector (public sector)

Abstract

The main purpose of the study is to contribute to the field of leadership and innovation by conceptualising the concept of innovation capacity and investigating the role of transformational and transactional leadership in supporting innovation and organisational performance using top-down and bottom-up approaches in Abu Dhabi’s public sector. To accomplish this, a sequential mixed method approach was employed to collect and analyse data from 371 survey responses, followed by 15 semi structured interviews with the public sector employees (executives, directors, section heads, advisors and employees). The data gathered was analysed using SPSS and thematic analysis. The findings indicate that corporate innovation, transactional leadership style, and transformational leadership style can all significantly predict organisational performance after controlling for demographic factors (gender, position, years of experience and qualifications). Furthermore, the research demonstrates that innovation strongly mediates the association between transformational leadership style, transactional leadership style, and organisational performance. The study culminates in the creation of two models that outlines a conceptual implementation plan and the innovation-based leadership models. It proposes that Abu Dhabi public sector organisations, while applying blended leadership styles, can find the right practices of corporate
innovation factor to enhance organisational performance.

Date of Award	2022
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	Aberystwyth University
Supervisor	Hugh Preston (Supervisor)