How leadership competences foster innovation and high performance: evidence from tourism industry in Vietnam

Abstract

PurposeThis study investigates how to foster innovation and high performance through leadership competences (result-oriented, cognitive, interpersonal) in the context of tourism firms in Vietnam during COVID-19 pandemic.Design/methodology/approachQuantitative approach and survey questionnaire were applied to collect data from managerial executives working at different tourism establishments in Vietnam. A total of 638 responses were analyzed using partial least square-structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) technique.FindingsThe findings revealed that all three leadership competencies affected almost all factors of business innovation. However, leaders' interpersonal competence was not related to process innovation and leaders' result-oriented competence was not associated with organizational innovation. Furthermore, leaders' result-oriented competence, product innovation, and process innovation were found to directly enhance organizational performance.Practical implicationsThis study proposed some suggestions for tourism leaders in exhibiting appropriate leadership competences and fostering business innovation to drive their firms towards superior performance.Originality/valueAchieving high performance is always a priority goal of many firms; therefore, several attempted have been made to address several factors affecting organizational performance. This study provides a more nuanced picture of the relationships between the leadership competences, business innovation, and high performance of tourism firms.