Digital disruption has changed organizations in an unprecedented way. The thriving field of digital leadership is expanding fast and few retrospective studies on this evolution have been made so far. This study presents a bibliometric and network analysis combining both Scopus and Web of Science databases to provide fresh insights into the evolution of the digital leadership research field. This study is based on a review of 79 publications from 57 journals, published between 2000 and 2020. The newness of the topic and the range of journals in which it is published confirms that digital leadership has gained interest from several different areas. Bibliometric analysis provides a description of the research field identifying the leading publishing journals, affiliation statistics, and most influential authors and expressive publications in the research field. Network analyses identify keyword evolution over time, co-citation relationships, and research clusters. Content analysis is used to identify key topics in the field with attention paid to interrelations among them. A brief description of each paper in the dataset and its methodological approach is provided. The results suggest that the topic will continue to attract more research, as it has not yet entered its maturity stage. This paper contributes to the literature by analyzing the relationship between digital leadership and e-leadership. This study also identifies the most leading digital leadership capabilities for a fast-changing world. Limitations and future avenues are also discussed.

This study presents new insights into the capabilities that a leader needs to thrive in the digital scenario. These insights come from a systematic literature review of 21-years of publications on leadership in the digital environment that supports a four-round Delphi study with a panel of 24 experts from diverse geographical backgrounds (six countries across 3 continents). The e-leadership concept has evolved to digital leadership by transitioning from an electronic way of communication to a broader context of how to lead effectively in a digital environment. Digital leadership is a way of thinking and behaving in a complex time. The findings show that digital leadership has two main aspects within four dimensions: the first aspect is related to business, and it is strategy focused and delivery related; the second one involves personal attributes, and it is interpersonal oriented. Moreover, we identify the associated leadership capabilities for each of these aspects.

Individuals’ environmental values, attitudes, and behavior are influenced by both personal and professional experiences. This interplay between individuals’ environmental mindset and work and private life is known as the green work-life balance, a concept that is part of the broader field of green HRM (Human Resource Management). The objective of this study is to examine how this interaction influences the relationship between green HRM and organizational environmental performance. To this end, we suggest a serial mediation analysis that, to the best of our knowledge, is a route not previously explored in the literature. Our data comes from 237 employees of a Portuguese consultancy firm that is certified for its pro-environmental practices and initiatives. The findings underscore the vital role of green HRM practices – specifically recruitment and selection, performance appraisal, and rewards – in promoting organizational environmental performance. Furthermore, they also highlight the importance of the serial mediation model as a novel framework for monitoring behavioral changes in employees exposed to green HRM practices, thus boosting long-term environmental performance. While adopting green behavior both at work and in personal life is advantageous, it has a lesser influence on organizational environmental performance compared to the strategic implementation of green HRM practices.

Innovation is crucial for achieving and maintaining a competitive edge, especially evident in the digital business landscape, where the fourth and fifth industrial revolutions are occurring concurrently. Leadership behavior significantly influences the direction of organizations toward innovation. This study investigated whether a propensity for risk taking, along with a commitment to diversity and agility, promotes or impedes leaders’ innovative behavior. Fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis was employed to assess the data gathered from an online survey of 119 global leaders. The results exposed four distinct routes to fostering innovative behavior and three paths leading to noninnovative behavior that should be evaded. All conditions play a vital role in triggering innovative behavior. Conversely, the lack of these conditions can result in noninnovative leadership. This study’s novelty rests on the empirical evidence it provides about the paths guiding leaders toward innovative behavior and avoiding the danger of noninnovative leadership. These findings can assist managers and HR departments in pursuing certain paths for hiring and training managers to boost innovative behavior and preclude paths leading to noninnovative conduct.