Leadership styles, knowledge sharing (attitudes and behaviors) and project success: insights from theory of reasoned action and social exchange theory

Purpose This paper proposes a mechanism explaining how transformational leadership and transactional leadership influence project success. Drawing on the theory of reasoned action and social exchange theory, we argue that transactional leadership positively influences project teams' knowledge-sharing behaviors and project success. Furthermore, transformational leadership (in a sequence) positively influences knowledge-sharing attitudes, knowledge-sharing behaviors and then the project success. Design/methodology/approach We draw on survey data from 129 individuals working on projects in the telecomm sector firms. Data were analyzed structural equation modeling. Findings Results show that transformational leadership has an indirect (positive) effect on project success through (1) knowledge-sharing attitudes as well as (2) a sequential process, where it influences knowledge-sharing attitudes, which subsequently influences knowledge-sharing behaviors and then project success. Furthermore, knowledge-sharing behaviors positively mediate the relationship between transactional leadership and project success. Originality/value Research predominantly conceptualizes knowledge sharing as knowledge-sharing behaviors, overlapping at times knowledge-sharing attitudes with knowledge-sharing behaviors, while the two can arguably be seen as different constructs, and they may or may not be associated with each other. We show how the two aspects of knowledge-sharing are influenced by particular leadership styles. Secondly, research mainly looks at the outcomes of knowledge sharing and leadership in permanent organizations and not the project environment, while projects are constrained by fixed cost, time and scope rather than undertaken in ways routine organizational processes take place. Lastly, the differentiated role of transformational leadership and transactional leadership for knowledge sharing and project success is not highlighted in existing research. By drawing on these, we make some key contributions to research.