Muhammad Anwar

The worldwide banking industry is currently undergoing a digital transformation. The innovative behavior of bank employees is a significant aspect of commercial banks’ future survival and development. One of the most significant resources for cultivating good employee behavior is leadership. As a response, this study examined how authentic leadership affects employees’ innovative behavior. The mediating role of cognitive crafting and hope between authentic leadership and innovative employee behavior was also investigated. Using a quantitative approach, data were collected from 610 Thai bank employees. The structural equation modeling (SEM) analysis findings revealed an association between authentic leadership and innovative employee behavior. According to the mediation analysis results, hope and cognitive crafting appeared to mediate the relationship between authentic leadership and innovative employee behavior. These findings may help develop leadership research in the field of innovation management. Thus, organizations should identify, cultivate, and support authentic leaders who can inspire innovative behavior among employees through cognitive crafting and hope.

This study delves into the significant role of innovative work behavior among bankers in achieving competitive superiority and addressing contemporary business needs. It uncovers a research gap in understanding the influence of bankers’ innovative work behaviors and the factors driving these behaviors. This study proposes to examine ethical leadership’s direct and indirect effects on innovative work behavior through the mediating role of bankers’ resilience and the moderating role of a manager’s gender. The study collected perceptual cross-sectional data from employees across Thailand’s ten largest commercial banks via self-administered questionnaires, analyzing 960 responses using structural equation modeling. Anchored in social learning theory, the study’s regression analysis found significant positive effects of ethical leadership on bankers’ innovative work behavior (B = 0.197, p < 0.001), ethical leadership on bankers’ resilience (B = 0.388, p < 0.001), and bankers’ resilience on their innovative work behavior (B = 0.649, p < 0.001). Furthermore, it identified that bankers’ resilience mediates the relationship between ethical leadership and innovative work behavior (B = 0.240, p < 0.05), with the gender of leaders moderating the impact of ethical leadership on innovation. These findings suggest that banks can enhance their competitive edge by fostering ethical leadership and resilience, highlighting the strategic importance of these factors in promoting innovation within the banking sector.