Business model innovation: A study of empowering leadership

Abstract

We investigate how empowering leadership correlates with team creativity, manager creativity and exploratory orientation, and how they relate to business model innovation. Structural equation model results from a survey of 1149 respondents supported most of our hypotheses. Exploratory orientation is significantly related to business model innovation, and empowering leadership is related to business model innovation through creativity and exploratory orientation. Surprisingly, neither empowering leadership nor team creativity was related with business model innovation. Empowering leadership and team creativity might be necessary but insufficient factors in explaining business model innovation. We discuss leadership implications for encouraging an organizational climate of creativity, exploration and innovation.