Orchestrating Innovation: How Leaders Affect Creativity and Innovation

The purpose of this dissertation was to investigate how and when leaders stimulate creativity and innovation. In three empirical chapters, our results demonstrated that leaders, by communicating a compelling vision of the future, switching between opening and closing leader behaviors, and creating meaningful relationships with their subordinates, can significantly affect creativity and innovation. As such, in the present dissertation we sought to further uncover specific facets of leadership, and provide empirical evidence for the role of leadership in fostering creativity and innovation. These findings are particularly relevant in the current dynamic and competitive environment in which the rate of change is accelerating. We hope that this thesis will inspire future research expanding the role of leadership on creativity and innovation. In sum, we revealed specific aspects of leadership that can positively impact creativity and innovation, and provided information on how and when this is the case.