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“When we consider digitisation, we are inclined to talk about technology, but besides that it really does lead to a turnaround in the type of leadership we need” - Nobis

(2019)

 

The above quote illustrates that the digitalisation of organizations not only concerns technology, but also concerns leaders. The omnipresence of information and communication technologies (ICTS) in the modern workplace has a strong impact on employees and their work (Cascio & Montealegre, 2016; Korunka & Kubicek, 2017. Recent reports from the European Agency for Safety and Health at work (EU-OSHA, 2018) warn that the intense use of ICTS in the workplace, despite its advantages, presents important challenges to employees’ well-being and performances. To resolve such challenges, scholars have started to look beyond technology, towards leaders (Schwarzmüller et al., 2018). Leaders play an important role in shaping employees’ experiences with ICTS, and hence in how such experiences affect employees’ well-being and performance (Schaufeli, 2015). However, past research on leadership and ICTS is scattered over different disciplines (e.g., information systems, work and organizational psychology, human resource management, leadership research) and has provided little coherent evidence of whether and to what extent leaders can alleviate the negative effects of ICTS on employees or strengthen their positive effects (Harris et al., 2015; Turel & Gaudioso, 2018). In response, scholars question whether traditional leadership approaches are still sufficient and need to be complemented – or even replaced - with other leadership styles to deal with the challenges arising from ICTS (North et al., 2018). Therefore, this research project (DIGILEAD) deals with the following research question: How does leadership affect the relation between employees’ experiences with ICTS and their well-being and performances? Moreover, how does digital leadership, as a newly identified leadership style, affect these relations? Answering these questions is relevant to help businesses in Europe overcome the challenges of digitalisation and ensure both organizations and their employees benefit from the digital economy.