IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v9y2017i12p2336-d122936.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Ambidextrous Leadership and Sustainability-Based Project Performance: The Role of Project Culture

Author

Listed:
  • Junwei Zheng

    (Faculty of Civil Engineering and Mechanics, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650500, China)

  • Guangdong Wu

    (Department of Construction Management, Jiangxi University of Finance and Economics, Nanchang 330013, China)

  • Hongtao Xie

    (Faculty of Civil Engineering and Mechanics, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650500, China)

  • Hui Xu

    (School of Economics and Management, Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications, Chongqing 400065, China)

Abstract

Most studies in the project management field emphasized the effects of leaders or managers, but these effects have rarely been examined at the project level. To cover this research gap, this study applies organizational ambidexterity theory to examine the effects among ambidextrous leadership, ambidextrous culture and sustainability-based project performance. Using a valid sample of 217 project leaders and members from Chinese construction projects, the method of multiple linear regression was adopted to assess the direct relationship among ambidextrous leadership, ambidextrous culture and project performance. Moreover, the bootstrapping technique through structural equation modeling, has been used to analyze the mediating effect of ambidextrous culture. Additionally, the sample data was divided into different groups according to the median value of the variables to conduct the ANOVA and to assess the within-group differences. The results indicated a positive and direct relationship that ambidextrous leadership has on project performance and ambidextrous culture. In addition, there was also a mediating impact of ambidextrous leadership on project performance via ambidextrous culture. Thus, ambidextrous leadership combined with transformational leadership as well as transactional leadership likely has a stronger positive impact on project performance through fostering the adaptive culture and consistent culture. Our findings contribute to an in-depth understanding of the role of the leader and culture for project outcomes. The project-based organization in construction projects could train project leaders’ ambidextrous leadership behavior to facilitate the formation of an ambidextrous culture and to increase project performance. Moreover, this study enriches the existing literature on leadership and project management by highlighting the important path of ambidextrous leadership and ambidextrous culture on the performance at the project level and going beyond the single leadership behavior or single culture.

Suggested Citation

  • Junwei Zheng & Guangdong Wu & Hongtao Xie & Hui Xu, 2017. "Ambidextrous Leadership and Sustainability-Based Project Performance: The Role of Project Culture," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(12), pages 1-24, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:9:y:2017:i:12:p:2336-:d:122936
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/9/12/2336/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/9/12/2336/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Diether Gebert & Sabine Boerner & Eric Kearney, 2010. "Fostering Team Innovation: Why Is It Important to Combine Opposing Action Strategies?," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 21(3), pages 593-608, June.
    2. Marcin W. Staniewski & Robert Nowacki & Katarzyna Awruk, 2016. "Entrepreneurship and innovativeness of small and medium-sized construction enterprises," International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, Springer, vol. 12(3), pages 861-877, September.
    3. Wendy K. Smith & Michael L. Tushman, 2005. "Managing Strategic Contradictions: A Top Management Model for Managing Innovation Streams," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 16(5), pages 522-536, October.
    4. Anita Liu & Zhaoyang Fang, 2006. "A power-based leadership approach to project management," Construction Management and Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 24(5), pages 497-507.
    5. Michael Lubatkin & Zeki Simsek & Yan Ling & John F. Veiga, 2006. "Ambidexterity and Performance in Small-to Medium-Sized Firms : The Pivotal Role of Top Management Team Behavioral Integration," Post-Print hal-02311781, HAL.
    6. Luu Trong Tuan, 2017. "Reform in public organizations: the roles of ambidextrous leadership and moderating mechanisms," Public Management Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(4), pages 518-541, April.
    7. Qing Cao & Eric Gedajlovic & Hongping Zhang, 2009. "Unpacking Organizational Ambidexterity: Dimensions, Contingencies, and Synergistic Effects," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 20(4), pages 781-796, August.
    8. Anthony Ferner & Phil Almond & Trevor Colling, 2005. "Institutional theory and the cross-national transfer of employment policy: the case of ‘workforce diversity’ in US multinationals," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 36(3), pages 304-321, May.
    9. Zi-Lin He & Poh-Kam Wong, 2004. "Exploration vs. Exploitation: An Empirical Test of the Ambidexterity Hypothesis," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 15(4), pages 481-494, August.
    10. H. Giritli & G. Topcu Oraz, 2004. "Leadership styles: some evidence from the Turkish construction industry," Construction Management and Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 22(3), pages 253-262.
    11. Naresh K. Malhotra & Sung S. Kim & Ashutosh Patil, 2006. "Common Method Variance in IS Research: A Comparison of Alternative Approaches and a Reanalysis of Past Research," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 52(12), pages 1865-1883, December.
    12. Jody Hoffer Gittell, 2002. "Coordinating Mechanisms in Care Provider Groups: Relational Coordination as a Mediator and Input Uncertainty as a Moderator of Performance Effects," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 48(11), pages 1408-1426, November.
    13. Junwei Zheng & Guangdong Wu & Hongtao Xie, 2017. "Impacts of Leadership on Project-Based Organizational Innovation Performance: The Mediator of Knowledge Sharing and Moderator of Social Capital," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(10), pages 1-22, October.
    14. Nicolaj Siggelkow & Daniel A. Levinthal, 2003. "Temporarily Divide to Conquer: Centralized, Decentralized, and Reintegrated Organizational Approaches to Exploration and Adaptation," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 14(6), pages 650-669, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Anastasia A. Katou & Dimitrios Kafetzopoulos & Anastasia Vayona, 2023. "Investigating the Serially Mediating Mechanisms of Organizational Ambidexterity and the Circular Economy in the Relationship between Ambidextrous Leadership and Sustainability Performance," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(10), pages 1-18, May.
    2. Hazem Ahmed Khairy & Asier Baquero & Bassam Samir Al-Romeedy, 2023. "The Effect of Transactional Leadership on Organizational Agility in Tourism and Hospitality Businesses: The Mediating Roles of Organizational Trust and Ambidexterity," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(19), pages 1-21, September.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Sahi, Gurjeet Kaur & Gupta, Mahesh C. & Cheng, T.C.E. & Mantok, Stanzin, 2021. "Mitigating the tension in pursuit of operational ambidexterity: The roles of knowledge development and bricolage," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 239(C).
    2. Venugopal, Aparna & Krishnan, T.N. & Upadhyayula, Rajesh Srinivas & Kumar, Manish, 2020. "Finding the microfoundations of organizational ambidexterity - Demystifying the role of top management behavioural integration," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 1-11.
    3. Jürgen Weibler & Tobias Keller, 2011. "Ambidextrie in Abhängigkeit von Führungsverantwortung und Marktwahrnehmung: Eine empirische Analyse des individuellen Arbeitsverhaltens in Unternehmen," Schmalenbach Journal of Business Research, Springer, vol. 63(2), pages 155-188, March.
    4. Sebastian Raisch & Julian Birkinshaw & Gilbert Probst & Michael L. Tushman, 2009. "Organizational Ambidexterity: Balancing Exploitation and Exploration for Sustained Performance," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 20(4), pages 685-695, August.
    5. Jeoung Yul Lee & Vasyl Taras & Alfredo Jiménez & Byungchul Choi & Chinmay Pattnaik, 2020. "Ambidextrous Knowledge Sharing within R&D Teams and Multinational Enterprise Performance: The Moderating Effects of Cultural Distance in Uncertainty Avoidance," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 60(3), pages 387-425, June.
    6. Olga Kassotaki, 2022. "Review of Organizational Ambidexterity Research," SAGE Open, , vol. 12(1), pages 21582440221, March.
    7. Sabyasachi Sinha, 2015. "The Exploration–Exploitation Dilemma: A Review in the Context of Managing Growth of New Ventures," Vikalpa: The Journal for Decision Makers, , vol. 40(3), pages 313-323, September.
    8. Partanen, Jukka & Kohtamäki, Marko & Patel, Pankaj C. & Parida, Vinit, 2020. "Supply chain ambidexterity and manufacturing SME performance: The moderating roles of network capability and strategic information flow," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 221(C).
    9. Jan Ossenbrink & Joern Hoppmann & Volker H. Hoffmann, 2019. "Hybrid Ambidexterity: How the Environment Shapes Incumbents’ Use of Structural and Contextual Approaches," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 30(6), pages 1319-1348, November.
    10. Koryak, Oksana & Lockett, Andy & Hayton, James & Nicolaou, Nicos & Mole, Kevin, 2018. "Disentangling the antecedents of ambidexterity: Exploration and exploitation," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(2), pages 413-427.
    11. Oana Buliga & Christian W. Scheiner & Kai-Ingo Voigt, 2016. "Business model innovation and organizational resilience: towards an integrated conceptual framework," Journal of Business Economics, Springer, vol. 86(6), pages 647-670, August.
    12. Úbeda-García, Mercedes & Claver-Cortés, Enrique & Marco-Lajara, Bartolomé & Zaragoza-Sáez, Patrocinio, 2020. "Toward a dynamic construction of organizational ambidexterity: Exploring the synergies between structural differentiation, organizational context, and interorganizational relations," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 112(C), pages 363-372.
    13. Andreea N. Kiss & Dirk Libaers & Pamela S. Barr & Tang Wang & Miles A. Zachary, 2020. "CEO cognitive flexibility, information search, and organizational ambidexterity," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(12), pages 2200-2233, December.
    14. Michael Yao-Ping Peng & Ku-Ho Lin & Dennis Liute Peng & Peihua Chen, 2019. "Linking Organizational Ambidexterity and Performance: The Drivers of Sustainability in High-Tech Firms," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(14), pages 1-17, July.
    15. Jan Ossenbrink & Joern Hoppmann, 2019. "Polytope Conditioning and Linear Convergence of the Frank–Wolfe Algorithm," Mathematics of Operations Research, INFORMS, vol. 44(1), pages 1319-1348, February.
    16. Eric Christian Brun, 2016. "Ambidexterity and Ambiguity: The Link Between Ambiguity Management and Contextual Ambidexterity in Innovation," International Journal of Innovation and Technology Management (IJITM), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 13(04), pages 1-29, August.
    17. Bedford, David S. & Bisbe, Josep & Sweeney, Breda, 2019. "Performance measurement systems as generators of cognitive conflict in ambidextrous firms," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 21-37.
    18. Michael Yao-Ping Peng & Ku-Ho Lin, 2019. "Impact of Ambidexterity and Environmental Dynamism on Dynamic Capability Development Trade-Offs," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(8), pages 1-18, April.
    19. Christine Chou & Steven O. Kimbrough, 2016. "An agent-based model of organizational ambidexterity decisions and strategies in new product development," Computational and Mathematical Organization Theory, Springer, vol. 22(1), pages 4-46, March.
    20. Wenke, Kathrin & Zapkau, Florian B. & Schwens, Christian, 2021. "Too small to do it all? A meta-analysis on the relative relationships of exploration, exploitation, and ambidexterity with SME performance," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 132(C), pages 653-665.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:9:y:2017:i:12:p:2336-:d:122936. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.