Mediating Role of Switch Leadership Between Dynamic Work Environment and Project Success

Introduction

Countering the effects of complexities and uncertainties can be a key issue for projects. The rapid change and advancement in the field of project management helps to overcome project complexities in order to achieve project objectives (Cleveland & Cleveland, 2020). In today’s world, there is a growing concern that business as usual is not a viable option anymore in organizations and continuing with failing models of leadership is no longer suitable for projects in such organizations (Bierwolf & Kemenade, 2017). Indeed, trends for doing business are changing as high-performers are operating differently (Horth & Vehar, 2014) with adaptation of new strategies (Smith & Cockburn, 2014). Uncertainties and complexities of the project environment are not well taken into account in information technology (IT) projects (Poveda Bautista, Diego-Mas, & Medina, 2018), which has prompted a plethora of research and publications elaborating and creating an opportunity for investigating project complexity within the realm of project management (Rezende, Blackwell, & Gonçalves, 2018).

In the dynamic work environment, motivated and creative leaders are required who involve team members through effective communication in complex tasks to the increase likelihood of project success (Rezvani, Khosravi, & Ashkanasy, 2018). The changing dynamics of the working environment with evolving technology (Winter, 2012) during the last decade has not only effected the daily activities of individuals (Berman, 2014) but also the organizations operating in high-tech sectors (Mathias, 2017). These changes have a significant impact on traditional leadership styles (Jakubik & Berazhny, 2017). Despite the availability of skilled human resource, funds, latest equipment and project management standards, IT projects are failing to achieve the required standards. The on-time delivery, trust issues, frequent employee turn-over, uncertain government policies (Ebad, 2018; Ko & Kirsch, 2017) and fierce competition call for an investigation of why IT projects continue to fail.

Leadership skills of effective project managers can be developed to improve project performance (Doan, Nguyen, & Nguyen, 2020). Effective leaders understand and adapt behavior according to the situation that they face (Laufer, 2012). Whether, a situation demands conflict resolution, or exploiting opportunities by expanding the range of choices, the impression on subordinates about their competence and expertise is determined by the style of leadership for a given situation (Yukl, 2013). In some cases leaders use different leadership styles in different situations to enhance project performance and challenge the status quo of relying on a single leadership style (Blaskovics, 2016a; Maner, 2016). Leaders evaluate subordinates and their degree of compatibility to the required project task or their degree of readiness (Flynn, Blackman, & Ugyel, 2013). Moreover, these degrees of willingness vary significantly, urging a leader to continuously adapt a suitable leadership style in order to influence the subordinates and maximize overall effectiveness (Silverstone, 2001).