The importance of dynamic capabilities to effectively manage different paradoxical values and respond appropriately to various situations has also been emphasized as the organization's environment is rapidly changing, uncertainty is increasing, and or...
The importance of dynamic capabilities to effectively manage different paradoxical values and respond appropriately to various situations has also been emphasized as the organization's environment is rapidly changing, uncertainty is increasing, and organizational innovation is required to secure competitiveness. Through prior research, it has been emphasized that the leader's ability to effectively deal with paradoxical attributes as part of dynamic capabilities and cope with various situations is also a very important factor for organizational innovation. Furthermore, since the coexistence of paradoxical attributes is required to drive innovation within the organization based on the ambidexterity theory, this paper examined the effectiveness of the leader's paradoxical behavior as a trigger to drive innovation within the organization.
Paradoxical leader behavior appears to be mutually contradictory superficially, but it is a leader behavior that seeks to effectively solve various tasks required in the work environment while satisfying the needs of both the organization and its members. Paradoxical leader behavior effectively manages tensions arising from various contradictory elements that exist in a general work environment and enables dynamic and balanced decision making. In addition, it stimulates various thoughts of members, causing changes in fixed behavior. However, in order for the leader's paradoxical behavior to lead to the innovative performance of the members of the organization, a process that can adjust the confusion occurring in the process is required. For this reason, this study further examined the role of cognitive flexibility and knowledge sharing as process factors at the cognitive and behavioral levels of organizational members, as shown in the research model below.
An empirical analysis was conducted based on survey data from a total of 661 respondents from domestic institutions and companies, and as a result, it was confirmed that paradoxical leader behavior had a positive effect on the innovative work behavior, and the mediating effect of cognitive flexibility and knowledge sharing was also positively significant.
In conclusion, this study is meaningful in that it identified the positive effect of paradoxical leader behavior on the innovative work behavior of members of the organization and the role of cognitive flexibility and knowledge sharing as a mechanism in the process. Moreover, this research is significant in that it has applied the concept of paradoxical properties and ambidexterity theory, which have been mainly conducted in macro research, to the micro domain and in terms of expanding the leadership domain. Based on this, theoretical and practical implications and future research directions were presented.