Maneuvering through the stormy seas of digital transformation: the impact of empowering leadership on the AI readiness of enterprises

Figures & data

Figure 1. Constructs and hypotheses

Table 1. Pearson correlations for empowering leadership on AI readiness

	Autonomy support	Development support
Emotional readiness	.015	.046
Intentional readiness	.034	−.056
Cognitive readiness	−.054	−.046

Table 2. Pearson correlations for empowering leadership on resistance to change

	Autonomy support	Development support
Routine seeking	.005	−.054
Emotional reaction	−.204	−.152
Short-term focus	.129	.271
Cognitive rigidity	.271	.154

Table 3. Pearson correlations of resistance to change on AI readiness

	Emotional readiness	Intentional readiness	Cognitive readiness
Routine seeking	−.197*	−.242**	.055
Emotional reaction	−.079	−.205*	.103
Short-term focus	−.054	−.163	.125
Cognitive rigidity	.123	.092	−.004

**. Correlation is significant at 0.01 level (2-tailed); *: Correlation is significant at 0.05 level (2-tailed).

Table 4. Regression results for the hypothesised moderation

Variable	B	SD	$\beta$	t	p
AI readiness	26.464	.687	-	38.531	.000
Moderation	−.003	.003	−.148	−1.215	.229
Empowering leadership	−.027	.068	−.071	−.399	.692
Resistance to change	.023	.052	.078	.435	.665

Table A1. Interview guideline

Phase	Research goal	Questions
Introduction	Welcoming the interviewee and providing general information about the research and brief introduction to the topic.	-
Demographic data	Getting to know the expert.	a) Could you please introduce yourself? b) What is your current position in your organisation and what are your responsibilities? c) What is your professional background? d) What is your work experience? e) How many employees to you guide as manager? (managers only)
Definition and potential of artificial intelligence	Getting an understanding of the expert’s experience with AI and related changes.	a) What do you associate with the term ‘artificial intelligence’? Application areas b) What applications are you already using in you company? c) What applications are used by other companies that? d) How was your first contact with AI? e) Have you been involved in the development/decision making process to introduce AI? f) What changes or adaptations did the implementation of artificial intelligence entail? g) What are further applications of artificial intelligence (in the future)? Requirements h) Which tasks are likely to be executed by AI in your job? i) What requirements do AI applications have? j) Which organisational processes annoy you or are insufficient? k) Have you considered using AI in those areas? l) What are possible legal or ethical concerns?
Attributes of favourable leadership for AI-induced change	Identifying suitable leadership attributes for AI-induced change processes simultaneously contributing to AI readiness.	a) What do you associate with the term ‘leadership’? Requirements b) What expectations do you have of your leadership? c) What defines favourable leadership? d) Which attributes are relevant? e) Please select the most important attributes for a favourable leader (from the DISC Model). Experience f) What were your experiences with leadership in the past? g) Who is your current leader? h) Have you already gained your own experience as a leader? If so, can you explain them? If no, do you have ambitions to become a leader. i) How would you rate your current leader? j) How would you describe the personality of your leader? (e.g., extraverted (extroverted), sympatric (likeable), dependable (trustworthy), calm (calm), open to new experiences) k) What constitutes bad leadership? l) What is important to you when implementing new innovations?
Leadership and digital transformation	Identifying further leadership attributes that are relevant in the context of digital transformation.	How did the digital transformation change leadership? What leadership attributes are more preferable? Present and verify conceptual model
Finish	Debriefing of the interviewee and explanation of the research background. Possibility to give closing remarks.	-

Table A2. Descriptive and duration of the expert interviews

Id	Profession	Position	Gender	Age	Industry	Duration (min)
1	Senior Manager	Leader A	m	33	Financial services	60
2	Consultant	Employee A	m	25	Financial services	62
3	Director	Leader B	m	43	Capital projects & infrastructure	50
4	Manager	Employee B1	m	33	Capital projects & infrastructure	53
5	Consultant	Employee B2	m	28	Capital projects & infrastructure	50
6	Board member	Leader C	m	50	Tattoo & body	70
7	Head of department	Employee C	f	27	Tattoo & body	61
8	Partner	Leader D	f	40	Capital projects & infrastructure	57
9	Manager	Employee D	f	32	Capital projects & infrastructure	43

Table A3. Sequence of the online study

Group	Question	Type
Briefing
Demographic data	How old are you?	Numeric input
	What is your gender?	List selection
	What is your highest degree?	List selection
	What is your current working position?	List selection
	In which industry are you currently working?	List selection
	Size of your current company: (*Number of employees)	List selection
	Where is your current working location (country)?	List selection
Leadership experience	Are you currently in a managerial position?	Yes/No
	What management tasks do you mainly deal with?	List selection
Supervisor rating	What age group would you classify your current manager in?	List selection
	Please indicate the role that the manager you have selected is currently taking on in your work environment:	List selection
	In your opinion, would you describe your current manager as a favourable leader?	List selection
Empowering leadership style (adapted from Amundsen & Martinsen, 2014)	Please indicate to what extent these statements apply to you.	5-point Likert Scale (from “not at all” to “very much”).
Resistance to change (adapted from Oreg, 2003)	Please indicate to what extent these statements apply to you.	5-point Likert Scale (from “not at all” to “very much”).
Experience with AI	Have you already experienced an AI-induced change within your working environment?	Yes/No
	Please briefly describe your experienced AI-induced change.	Text input
AI Readiness (adapted from Bouckenooghe et al., 2009)	Please indicate to what extent these statements apply to you.	5-point Likert Scale (from “not at all” to “very much”).
Debriefing

Amundsen, S., & Martinsen, Ø.L. (2014). Empowering leadership: Construct clarification, conceptualization, and validation of a new scale. Leadership Quarterly, 25(3), 487–511. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.leaqua.2013.11.009

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Oreg, S. (2003). Resistance to change: Developing an individual differences measure. Journal of Applied Psychology, 88(4), 680–693. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.88.4.680

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Bouckenooghe, D., Devos, G., & Van Den Broeck, H. (2009). Organizational change questionnaire-climate of change, processes, and readiness: Development of a new instrument. Journal of Psychology: Interdisciplinary and Applied, 143(6), 559–599. https://doi.org/10.1080/00223980903218216

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