Enabling and inhibiting leadership behaviors in continuous improvement

Leaders play a key role in continuous improvement (CI) implementations. However, the research on CI-enabling versus CI-inhibiting leadership behaviors remains fragmented. Our research reviews empirically validate and extend the understanding of CI leadership behaviors by examining low versus high maturity and capability building versus value maximization CI implementations. After providing a literature review focused on leadership behaviors that affect CI implementation processes, we did expert interviews to see whether informants recognized these behaviors. Then, we did a survey among 144 key informants to empirically validate the relative importance of CI leadership behaviors and the moderating effect of CI implementation archetype and maturity level. Robustness analyses comprised instrument variable-based endogeneity treatment and secondary data-based common method bias assessment. No overall direct relationship was found between “command-and-control” behaviors and CI implementation success, although these behaviors did have positive effects depending on the type of CI implementation. Also, “inspirational role modeling, coaching, and empowering” behaviors relate positively to implementation success, especially in low-maturity CI implementations, regardless of their archetype. Unexpectedly, “serving” behaviors were found to relate negatively to implementation success and were mostly relevant for low maturity and economically driven CI implementation archetypes. The results provide a prioritization of significant CI leadership behaviors and a novel measurement tool. We show how these leadership behaviors are contextually contingent upon different CI implementation situations. This mixed-methods study answers calls for more systematic scientific attention to the social components of CI implementation.