Leading Proactivity in Innovative Startups: A Moderated Mediation Model

Mario Martínez-Córcoles and Xi Zhu
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Mario Martínez-Córcoles: Department of Psychology, University of Valladolid, 34004 Palencia, Spain
Xi Zhu: Department of Business Administration, Tallinn University of Technology, 12616 Tallinn, Estonia

Sustainability, 2020, vol. 12, issue 23, 1-17

Abstract: Despite the growing research interest in proactivity, little is known about the relational mechanisms that cultivate individuals’ proactivity in the workplace. This research aims to explore the leader–follower relational mechanisms leading to employee proactive performance in innovative startups. The sample consisted of 83 employees from eleven startups. Conditional process modeling was conducted to explore the background relational mechanisms of employee proactive performance. Employees with upward psychological safety (who felt safe to speak up and contribute in front of their leaders) were willing to go beyond their formal roles and job descriptions for the sake of the firm (challenging role orientation). In turn, this orientation predicted self-directed efforts and initiated better ways of doing their job (proactive performance). Under high levels of perceived uncertainty, upward psychological safety was a stronger predictor of proactive performance through a challenging role orientation. This study reveals that upward psychological safety is critical for enhancing employee proactivity at work, particularly under high uncertainty.

Keywords: proactive performance; proactivity; innovation; psychological safety; uncertainty; work attitudes; sustainable management; startups (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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