Impact of entrepreneurial leadership on forming agile work teams: Mediating role of strategic engagement

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the mediating role of strategic engagement in elucidating the relationship between entrepreneurial leadership and the establishment of agile work teams in the Iraqi investment sector. To do so, a custom-designed questionnaire was administered using a five-point Likert scale to collect responses from employees at local companies operating in the investment sector within the Iraqi Middle Euphrates region, resulting in 329 middle managers. Data analysis was conducted utilizing SPSS version 25 and AMOS. The study reveals a direct and substantial impact of entrepreneurial leadership on both strategic engagement and agile work teams, with coefficients of 0.66 and 0.44, respectively. Additionally, a direct and significant influence of strategic engagement on forming agile work teams is observed, with a coefficient of 0.47. Furthermore, the paper highlights an indirect effect of entrepreneurial leadership on establishing agile work teams within these companies, mediated through strategic engagement, with a coefficient of 0.096. Therefore, the adoption of the entrepreneurial leadership paradigm by Iraqi investment companies has the potential to enhance the creation of agile work teams by promoting strategic engagement among the managerial ranks of these organizations. These findings contribute to the relevant literature and offer actionable insights that can facilitate improving leadership practices, strategic engagement initiatives, responsiveness to change, competitive advantage, and knowledge sharing.