Inclusive leadership and innovative work behaviour: the mediating role of job autonomy

The aim of this study is to investigate the role of inclusive leadership as a predictor of job autonomy and innovative work behaviour (IWB). The study also examines the mediating role of job autonomy between the inclusive leadership and IWB. The sample consisted of employees from 15 private healthcare institutions operating in Bangladesh. Two questionnaire surveys were carried out using a three-month time lag strategy. A total of 226 samples were used for the analysis of the final data. The Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling, using SmartPLS 3.0, was performed to test the hypothesized relationships. The results suggest a causal relationship between inclusive leadership, job autonomy and IWB. In brief, inclusive leadership turned out to be a predictor of job autonomy and IWB, and job autonomy had a positive impact on employees’ IWB. In addition, job autonomy proved to be a mediator between inclusive leadership and employees’ IWB. To date, limited efforts have been undertaken to investigate the links between inclusive leadership, job autonomy and IWB. Specifically, the mediating role of job autonomy between inclusive leadership and the IWB remained unexplored. The present research fills this gap. Additionally, the findings provide pragmatic insights for healthcare practitioners to consider inclusive leadership in order to increase employee job autonomy and IWB in healthcare organizations. © 2021, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature B.V. part of Springer Nature.