Impact of Servant Leadership on Team Innovation Performance in Digital Transformation Context: The Mediating Role of Team Knowledge Dynamic Capabilities

Nana Liu; Siti Rohaida Mohamed Zainal

doi:10.47297/wspchrmWSP2040-800510.20261702

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Impact of Servant Leadership on Team Innovation Performance in Digital Transformation Context: The Mediating Role of Team Knowledge Dynamic Capabilities

Volume 17, Issue 2

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Impact of Servant Leadership on Team Innovation Performance in Digital Transformation Context: The Mediating Role of Team Knowledge Dynamic Capabilities
Impact of Servant Leadership on Team Innovation Performance in Digital Transformation Context: The Mediating Role of Team Knowledge Dynamic Capabilities
School of Management, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia
Vol. 17, Issue 2, Pages: 167-188(2026)
Online First：21 August 2026，

Published：30 June 2026
DOI：10.47297/wspchrmWSP2040-800510.20261702
Accepted：

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Liu Nana,Zainal Siti Rohaida Mohamed.Impact of Servant Leadership on Team Innovation Performance in Digital Transformation Context: The Mediating Role of Team Knowledge Dynamic Capabilities[J].Journal of Chinese Human Resources Management,2026,17(02):167-188.
DOI：

Liu Nana,Zainal Siti Rohaida Mohamed.Impact of Servant Leadership on Team Innovation Performance in Digital Transformation Context: The Mediating Role of Team Knowledge Dynamic Capabilities[J].Journal of Chinese Human Resources Management,2026,17(02):167-188. DOI： 10.47297/wspchrmWSP2040-800510.20261702.

摘要

Abstract

Digital transformation has intensified the need for organizations to cultivate team-level innovation capabilities

yet traditional leadership approaches demonstrate limited effectiveness in fostering collective innovation within technology-rich environments. This research examines how Servant Leadership (SL)

characterized by leader prioritization of follower development and empowerment

influences team innovation performance through Team Knowledge Dynamic Capability (KDC) mechanisms in digitalized organizational contexts. Adopting a multilevel time-lagged research design

this study collected data from 78 knowledge-intensive teams comprising 426 employees across three waves spanning six months in major Chinese economic regions. Multilevel structural equation modeling revealed that SL exerted both direct and indirect effects on team innovation performance

with the indirect effect through team KDC reaching β=0.23 (95% CI [0.15

0.31]

p<0.001). The validated model accounted for 52% of variance in team innovation performance and 38% of variance in team KDC. Organizational digital transformation level significantly moderated the SL-team KDC relationship

with the effect substantially stronger in high digitalization contexts (simple slope=0.62

p<0.001) compared to low digitalization environments (simple slope=0.28

p<0.05). Robustness tests including bootstrap analyses

alternative model comparisons

and multi-group analyses confirmed result stability across industry sectors and organizational sizes. These findings advance theoretical understanding by integrating servant leadership with dynamic capability perspectives and demonstrating that service-oriented leadership constitutes a microfoundation for collective innovation capabilities. Practically

organizations navigating digital transformation should prioritize servant leadership development and align leadership practices with digital affordances to enhance team knowledge processes and innovation outcomes.

关键词

Keywords

references

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