Innovative Work Behavior in Singapore Evoked by Transformational Leaders Through Innovation Support and Readiness

The current global economic landscape is forcing all organizational sectors to remain relevant by innovating services, products, and work processes. Therefore, more than before, organizational leaders must enable innovative behavior of their employees. While the literature shows that transformational leadership induces innovative employee behavior, the mediating mechanisms between Asian organizational leaders and their followers have rarely been empirically examined. We conducted a survey study among 406 employees from six public and private sector service organizations in Singapore to test two mediating effects between transformational leadership and employee innovative work behavior. The results supported the hypothesized three-path mediation model, with perceived support for innovation and innovation readiness as mediators in a series. These findings can be used to design and implement effective human resource and organizational development interventions within Asian service organizations. Our study also extends the literature on the effects of transformational leadership in collectivistic cultures.