Driving innovation in the third millennium: A measurement tool for assessing innovative leader

Leadership is essential in building and fostering innovation and creativity within today’s ever-changing organizations. Thus, the need for innovative leaders capable of driving innovation and innovative behaviour has become paramount. The study presents a new self-report tool, namely the Innovative Leader Test (ILT) that consists of 28 items and is aimed to measure the core set of characteristics and competencies that are distinctive in determining leader’s both innovative behavior and capacity to lead organization toward innovation. To assess the factorial validity of the seven ILT scales covering personal traits (Openness to change), capabilities (Anticipation, Self-reflection and Self-regulation) and competencies (Problem solving, Knowledge sharing and Change involvement), an exploratory factor analysis, reliability analyses and confirmatory factor analyses were performed (N = 660). Alpha values and confirmatory factor analysis provided good reliability of the scales and model fit indices (CFI = .96, SRMR = .04) for the seven factors structure. Concurrent validity was examined by analyzing the relationships between ILT dimensions, transformational leadership, and work engagement and found positive significant correlations. Finally, the extent to which ILT factors predict specific innovation outcomes, namely innovative work behavior and reputation as an innovator, was demonstrated through correlation and regression analyses. Overall, results indicate that the Innovative Leader Test is a valid and reliably self-report measures assessing the key dimensions of innovative leader. Both theoretical and practical implications discussed, as well as limitations and indications for future research.