Investigating the Impact of Servant Leadership on Knowledge Management in the IT Sector: A mediating Role of Intellectual Capital.
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.62270/jirms.v6i1.126Keywords:
Servant leadership, Knowledge management, Intellectual capital, IT sectorAbstract
Purpose—This research aims to investigate the relationship between servant leadership and knowledge management in the organization, with a mediating role of intellectual capital, i.e., human, structural, and relational.
Study Design/methodology/approach—Data were gathered primarily via the use of a questionnaire that had been carefully crafted to elicit responses pertinent to the study's aims and hypotheses. The researchers used Google Forms to create, organize, and disseminate the survey. PLS-SEM has been applied using the software Smart PLS for the analysis and testing of hypotheses.
Findings—The findings revealed a significant positive relationship between servant leadership and knowledge management. The three components of intellectual capital were considered in the study, namely Human, Structural, and Relational intellectual capital. In the process of hypothesis testing, servant leadership was found to be significant with knowledge management; similarly, it also showed significance with all three dimensions of intellectual capital. In the next attempt at testing direct hypotheses, human, structural, and relational intellectual capital is regressed with knowledge management. Human intellectual capital remained unable to show its significance in knowledge management. In the next step, the indirect effects were estimated where structural and relational intellectual capital partially mediated the relationship between servant leadership and knowledge management. However, human intellectual capital does not mediate the relation.
Research Practical Implications—The results have significant real-world implications, underscoring the need for IT organizations to cultivate and boost the culture of servant leadership and effective knowledge management.
Originality/value—This study shapes an integrated model related to servant leadership, intellectual capital, and knowledge management, offering its directions to IT practitioners, developers, and designers. To secure the current IT practices and other intellectual evidence, the robust findings of this study encourage the upper management to adopt the practices of servant leadership and take the best initiatives for the preservation of knowledge.
References
Abeysekera, I. (2021). Intellectual capital and knowledge management research towards value creation. From the past to the future. Journal of Risk and Financial Management, 14(6), 238. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/jrfm14060238
Abualoush, S., Masa'deh, R. e., Bataineh, K., & Alrowwad, A. a. (2018). The role of knowledge management process and intellectual capital as intermediary variables between knowledge management infrastructure and organization performance. Interdisciplinary journal of information, knowledge, and management, 13, 279-309. DOI: https://doi.org/10.28945/4088
Albats, E., Bogers, M., & Podmetina, D. (2020). Companies’ human capital for university partnerships: A micro-foundational perspective. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 157, 120085. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2020.120085
Alblooshi, M., Shamsuzzaman, M., & Haridy, S. (2021). The relationship between leadership styles and organisational innovation: A systematic literature review and narrative synthesis. European Journal of Innovation Management, 24(2), 338-370. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/EJIM-11-2019-0339
Arnold, M. J., & Reynolds, K. E. (2003). Hedonic shopping motivations. Journal of Retailing, 79(2), 77-95. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0022-4359(03)00007-1 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-4359(03)00007-1
Asna Ashari, P., Blind, K., & Koch, C. (2023). Knowledge and technology transfer via publications, patents, standards: Exploring the hydrogen technological innovation system. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 187. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2022.122201 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2022.122201
Bagozzi, R. P., Fornell, C., & Larcker, D. F. (1981). Canonical correlation analysis as a special case of a structural relations model. Multivariate Behavioral Research, 16(4), 437-454. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327906mbr1604_2
Barney, J. B. (2001). Resource-based theories of competitive advantage: A ten-year retrospective on the resource-based view. Journal of management, 27(6), 643-650. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/014920630102700602
Beltramino, N. S., Garcıa-Perez-de-Lema, D., & Valdez-Juarez, L. E. (2019). The structural capital, the innovation and performance of industrial SMEs. Journal of Intellectual Capital
Beltramino, N. S., García-Perez-de-Lema, D., & Valdez-Juárez, L. E. (2020). The structural capital, the innovation and the performance of the industrial SMES. Journal of Intellectual Capital, 21(6), 913-945. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/JIC-01-2019-0020
Biasutti, M., & Heba, E.-D. (2012). Using Wiki in teacher education: Impact on knowledge management processes and student satisfaction. Computers & Education, 59(3), 861-872. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2012.04.009
Boddy, C. R. (2023). Enron scandal. In Encyclopedia of business and professional ethics (pp. 648-651). Springer. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-22767-8_2
Bou Reslan, F. Y., Garanti, Z., & Emeagwali, O. L. (2021). The effect of servant leadership on innovative work behavior and employee knowledge sharing in the Latvian ICT sector. Baltic Journal of Management, 16(5), 729-744. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/BJM-09-2020-0321
Castaneda, D. I., & Cuellar, S. (2020). Knowledge sharing and innovation: A systematic review. Knowledge and process management, 27(3), 159-173. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/kpm.1637
Chin, W. W., & Newsted, P. R. (1999). Structural equation modeling analysis with small samples using partial least squares. In R. H. Hoyle (Ed.), Statistical Strategies for Small Sample Research 307-341. (Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc.)
Ekinci, A. (2015). Development of the school principals’ servant leadership behaviors scale and evaluation of servant leadership behaviors according to teachers’ views. Education and Science, 40(179). DOI: https://doi.org/10.15390/EB.2015.2152
Fornell, C., & Larcker, D. F. (1981). Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error. Journal of marketing research, 18(1), 39-50. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/002224378101800104
Galgotia, D., & Lakshmi, N. (2022). Implementation of knowledge management in higher education: A comparative study of private and government universities in India and abroad. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 944153. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.944153
Gamble, J. R. (2020). Tacit vs explicit knowledge as antecedents for organizational change. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 33(6), 1123-1141. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/JOCM-04-2020-0121
Ganguly, A., Talukdar, A., & Chatterjee, D. (2019). Evaluating the role of social capital, tacit knowledge sharing, knowledge quality and reciprocity in determining innovation capability of an organization. Journal of knowledge management, 23(6), 1105-1135. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/JKM-03-2018-0190
Gold, A. H., Malhotra, A., & Segars, A. H. . (2001). Knowledge management: an organizational capabilities perspective. Journal of Management Information Systems. 18(1), 185–214. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/07421222.2001.11045669
Greenleaf, R. K. (2013). Servant leadership: A journey into the nature of legitimate power and greatness. Paulist press.
Gu, S. (2022). Servant leadership and knowledge management; what leads to frugal innovation? Asian Journal of Economics, Business and Accounting, 22(23), 436-454. DOI: https://doi.org/10.9734/ajeba/2022/v22i23885
Gutierrez-Broncano, S., Linuesa-Langreo, J., Ruiz-Palomino, P., & Yánez-Araque, B. (2024). General manager servant leadership and firm adaptive capacity: The heterogeneous effect of social capital in family versus non-family firms. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 118, 103690. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2024.103690
Hair, J. F., Hult, G. T. M., Ringle, C. M., Sarstedt, M., & Thiele, K. O. . (2017). Mirror, mirror on the wall: a comparative evaluation of composite-based structural equation modeling methods. Journal of the academy of marketing science, 45, 616-632. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-017-0517-x
Hair Jr, J. F., Hult, G. T. M., Ringle, C. M., Sarstedt, M., Danks, N. P., & Ray, S. (2021). Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) using R: A workbook. Springer Nature. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-80519-7
Hamza, M. A., Rehman, S., Sarwar, A., & Choudhary, K. N. (2023). Is knowledge a tenement? The mediating role of team member exchange over the relationship of big five personality traits and knowledge-hiding behavior. VINE Journal of Information and Knowledge Management Systems, 53(1), 166-186. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/VJIKMS-05-2020-0084
Henseler, J., Ringle, C. M., and Sarstedt, M. (2015). A new criterion for assessing discriminant validity in variance based structural equation modeling. . J. Acad. Mark. Sci, 43(1), 115–135. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-014-0403-8 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-014-0403-8
Hu, L. t., & Bentler, P. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural equation modeling: a multidisciplinary journal, 6(1), 1-55. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/10705519909540118
Huang, X., Xu, E., Chiu, W., Lam, C., & Farh, J.-L. (2015). When authoritarian leaders outperform transformational leaders: Firm performance in a harsh economic environment. Academy of Management Discoveries, 1(2), 180-200. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5465/amd.2014.0132
Hubbart, J. A. (2024). Understanding and mitigating leadership fear-based behaviors on employee and organizational success. Administrative Sciences, 14(9), 225. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/admsci14090225
Jordão, R. V. D., Novas, J., & Gupta, V. (2020). The role of knowledge-based networks in the intellectual capital and organizational performance of small and medium-sized enterprises. Kybernetes, 49(1), 116-140. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/K-04-2019-0301
Jordão, R. V. D., & Novas, J. C. (2017). Knowledge management and intellectual capital in networks of small-and medium-sized enterprises. Journal of Intellectual Capital, 18(3), 667-692. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/JIC-11-2016-0120
Joseph Jeyaraj, J., & Gandolfi, F. (2022). The servant leader as a critical pedagogue: drawing lessons from critical pedagogy. International Journal of Leadership in Education, 25(1), 88-105. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13603124.2019.1690702
Kamis, A., Saibon, R. A., Yunus, F., Rahim, M. B., Herrera, L. M., & Montenegro, P. (2020). The SmartPLS analyzes approach in validity and reliability of graduate marketability instrument. Social Psychology of Education, 57(8), 987-1001.
Karadag, H., Sahin, F., & Bulut, C. (2025). When does intellectual capital enhance innovation capability? A three-way interaction test. International Journal of Entrepreneurial Behavior & Research, 31(2/3), 563-586. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJEBR-12-2021-0976
Karatepe, O. M., Aboramadan, M., & Dahleez, K. A. (2020). Does climate for creativity mediate the impact of servant leadership on management innovation and innovative behavior in the hotel industry? International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 32(8), 2497-2517. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJCHM-03-2020-0219
Khatri, P., Dutta, S., Kumari, P., Duggal, H. K., Thomas, A., Cristillo, I., & Nobis, S. (2023). Modeling intellectual capital-based intrapreneurial ability of working professionals through servant leadership and self-efficacy. Journal of Intellectual Capital, 24(6), 1485-1505. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/JIC-10-2022-0208
Kianto, A., Cabrilo, S., & Hussinki, H. (2023). Futurizing intellectual capital theory to uncover pertinent and unexplored horizons. In The future of knowledge management: Reflections from the 10th anniversary of the International Association of Knowledge Management (IAKM) (pp. 67-90). Springer. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-38696-1_4
Kline, R. (2011). Principles and Practice of Structural Equation Modeling, 3rd Edn. Guilford Press.
Lumpkin, A., & Achen, R. M. (2018). Explicating the synergies of self‐determination theory, ethical leadership, servant leadership, and emotional intelligence. Journal of leadership studies, 12(1), 6-20. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/jls.21554
Lv, W. Q., Shen, L. C., Tsai, C.-H. K., Su, C.-H. J., Kim, H. J., & Chen, M.-H. (2022). Servant leadership elevates supervisor-subordinate guanxi: An investigation of psychological safety and organizational identification. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 101, 103114. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2021.103114
Malibari, M. A., & Bajaba, S. (2022). Entrepreneurial leadership and employees’ innovative behavior: A sequential mediation analysis of innovation climate and employees’ intellectual agility. Journal of Innovation & Knowledge, 7(4), 100255. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jik.2022.100255
Marr, B., Schiuma, G., & Neely, A. (2004). Intellectual capital–defining key performance indicators for organizational knowledge assets. Business Process Management Journal, 10(5), 551-569. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/14637150410559225
Martin, S. L., & Javalgi, R. G. (2019). Explaining performance determinants: A knowledge based view of international new ventures. Journal of Business Research, 101, 615-626. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.02.041 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2019.02.041
Moreno-Domínguez, M.-J., Escobar-Rodríguez, T., Pelayo-Díaz, Y.-M., & Tovar-García, I. (2024). Organizational culture and leadership style in Spanish Hospitals: Effects on knowledge management and efficiency. Heliyon, 10(20).
Moreno-Dominguez, M. J., Escobar-Rodriguez, T., Pelayo-Diaz, Y. M., & Tovar-Garcia, I. (2024). Organizational culture and leadership style in Spanish Hospitals: Effects on knowledge management and efficiency. Heliyon, 10(20), e39216. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e39216 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e39216
Oliveira, M., Curado, C., Balle, A. R., & Kianto, A. (2020). Knowledge sharing, intellectual capital and organizational results in SMES: are they related? Journal of Intellectual Capital, 21(6), 893-911. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/JIC-04-2019-0077
Onofrei, G., Nguyen, H. M., Zhang, M., & Fynes, B. (2020). Building supply chain relational capital: The impact of supplier and customer leveraging on innovation performance. Business Strategy and the Environment, 29(8), 3422-3434. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.2586
Pellegrini, M. M., Ciampi, F., Marzi, G., & Orlando, B. (2020). The relationship between knowledge management and leadership: mapping the field and providing future research avenues. Journal of knowledge management, 24(6), 1445-1492. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/JKM-01-2020-0034
Putu Gede, S. (2024). PLS-SEM for Multivariate Analysis: A Practical Guide to Educational Research using SmartPLS. EduLine: Journal of Education and Learning Innovation, 4(3), 353-365. https://doi.org/10.35877/454RI.eduline2861 DOI: https://doi.org/10.35877/454RI.eduline2861
Qiu, S., & Dooley, L. (2022). How servant leadership affects organizational citizenship behavior: the mediating roles of perceived procedural justice and trust. Leadership & Organization Development Journal, 43(3), 350-369. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/LODJ-04-2021-0146
Rehman, S. U., Bresciani, S., Ashfaq, K., & Alam, G. M. (2022). Intellectual capital, knowledge management and competitive advantage: a resource orchestration perspective. Journal of knowledge management, 26(7), 1705-1731. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/JKM-06-2021-0453
Rezaei, F., Khalilzadeh, M., & Soleimani, P. (2021). Factors affecting knowledge management and its effect on organizational performance: Mediating the role of human capital. Advances in Human‐Computer Interaction, 2021(1), 8857572. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1155/2021/8857572
S.E. Embretson and S. Reise, L. E. A., Mahwah. (2004). Item Response Theory for Psychologists. Qualilty of Life Research, 13(1), 715-716. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/B:QURE.0000021503.45367.f2
Sayyadi, M. (2019). How effective leadership of knowledge management impacts organizational performance. Business Information Review, 36(1), 30-38. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0266382119829643
Seleim, A. A. S., & Khalil, O. E. M. (2011). Understanding the knowledge management‐intellectual capital relationship: a two‐way analysis. Journal of Intellectual Capital, 12(4), 586-614. https://doi.org/10.1108/14691931111181742 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/14691931111181742
Serenko, A., & Bontis, N. (2022). Global ranking of knowledge management and intellectual capital academic journals: a 2021 update. Journal of knowledge management, 26(1), 126-145. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/JKM-11-2020-0814
Shahwan, T. M., & Fathalla, M. M. (2020). The mediating role of intellectual capital in corporate governance and the corporate performance relationship. International Journal of Ethics and Systems, 36(4), 531-561. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJOES-03-2020-0022
Streukens, S., & Leroi-Werelds, S. (2016). Bootstrapping and PLS-SEM: A step-by-step guide to get more out of your bootstrap results. European management journal, 34(6), 618-632. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.emj.2016.06.003
Tehseen, S., Ramayah, T., & Sajilan, S. (2017). Testing and controlling for common method variance: A review of available methods. Journal of management sciences, 4(2), 142-168. DOI: https://doi.org/10.20547/jms.2014.1704202
Tran, Y. T., Chau, T. H. P., & Pham, Q. T. (2025). Transformational leadership and Firm Performance: The Mediating Roles of Innovation Capacity and Management Accounting Systems Usage. Sustainable Futures, 100988. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sftr.2025.100988
Trong Tuan, L. (2017). Knowledge sharing in public organizations: The roles of servant leadership and organizational citizenship behavior. International Journal of Public Administration, 40(4), 361-373. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/01900692.2015.1113550
Urbach, N., & Ahlemann, F. (2010). Structural equation modeling in information systems research using partial least squares. Journal of Information Technology Theory Application, 11(2), 2.
Zada, S., Khan, J., Saeed, I., Jun, Z. Y., Vega-Muñoz, A., & Contreras-Barraza, N. (2022). Servant leadership behavior at workplace and knowledge hoarding: a moderation mediation examination. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 888761. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.888761
Zahoor, N., & Gerged, A. M. (2021). Relational capital, environmental knowledge integration, and environmental performance of small and medium enterprises in emerging markets. Business Strategy and the Environment, 30(8), 3789-3803. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.2840
Zoghbi-Manrique-de-Lara, P., & Ruiz-Palomino, P. (2019). How servant leadership creates and accumulates social capital personally owned in hotel firms. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 31(8), 3192-3211. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJCHM-09-2018-0748
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Saqib Rehman, Tahreem Tahir, Rabia Asif, Adeel Nasir, Nabeela Arshad
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) 4.0 License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work’s authorship and initial publication in this journal.
How to Cite
