Information Technology and Management

https://doi.org/10.1007/s10799-022-00369-5

Employee mindfulness, innovative work behaviour, and IT project

success: the role of inclusive leadership
Jabran Khan1 · Mastura Jaafar1 · Namra Mubarak2 · Abdul Karim Khan3

Accepted: 10 June 2022

© The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2022

Abstract
This study investigates the relationship between project employee mindfulness and project success using innovative work
behaviour as a mediator and the project manager’s inclusive leadership style as a moderator. Project Manager with high
inclusive behaviour will strengthen the relationship of employee’s mindfulness and innovative work behaviour. The data
were collected in three-time intervals from a total of 347 information technology project employees. The study findings
validated the proposed model wherein employee personality traits, such as mindfulness, have a key impact on the initiation
of project employees’ innovative work behaviour. Information Technology projects require innovation due to rapid techni-
cal improvements. The study confirms that innovative work behaviour adds to the project’s success. Furthermore, inclusive
leadership helps mindful employees become innovative. Thus, the leadership roles should also be emphasised in IT projects.

Keywords Information technology project success · Employee mindfulness · Project-based organization · Innovative work
behavior · Inclusive leadership

1 Introduction get abandoned, and the majority of the projects face cost
and time overruns. Failure of IT projects is very common
Information Technology projects have been regarded as dif- in Pakistan [14], making it pertinent to investigate the fac-
ficult undertakings because they exhibit traits that distin- tors that can contribute to IT project success [119]. Geraldi,
guish them from other projects and increase the likelihood Söderlund and Marrewijk [45] and Mughal, Bahaudin and
of failure [7, 58]. Such project failures are common across Salleh [88] highlighted behavioural factors that contribute
the globe [66]. The cost of IT project failure is huge and to the success of IT projects such as extravagant personali-
causes billion-dollar losses [2]. According to the Standish ties. According to [26] these personalities are needed to suc-
Group Report (2021) only 16.2% of projects complete cessfully understand and accomplish the tasks. Van Dalen
within the allocated budget and tiFigme, 31% of projects et al. [128] strongly supported this statement and argued
that personality factors greatly impact innovation technol-
* Jabran Khan ogy. Therefore, the current study investigated the role of
Jabranbmk@gmail.com employee mindfulness’ effect on project success directly and
Mastura Jaafar indirectly via innovative work behaviour and on the way
masturaj@usm.my inclusive leadership moderates this relationship.
Namra Mubarak Employee mindfulness is defined as ‘paying attention in
Namra_Mubarakk@yahoo.com a particular way: on purpose, in the present moment, and
Abdul Karim Khan without judgement’ ([64], p. 4). Licorish, Philpott and Mac-
Abdul.karim@uaeu.ac.ae Donell [82] and Rook [108] claimed that increased attention
is required from individuals to complete IT tasks. This atten-
1
School of Housing Building and Planning, Universiti Sains tion involves practicing a non-judgmental state of complete
Malaysia, George Town, Malaysia
or heightened awareness about employees’ thoughts, expe-
2
Management Science, Capital University of Science riences, or emotions on a moment-to-moment basis—i.e.
and Technology, Islamabad, Pakistan
maintaining a state of awareness—required in IT projects.
3
College of Business and Economics, United Arab Emirates Khedhaouria, Montani and Thurik [69] determined that IT
University, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates

13
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projects are constrained with limited time, tight budgets, and
uncertain outcomes that require more attention, presence
and awareness. In such circumstances having mindfulness
directs more attention toward project complexities by coping
with the stressful situations required to complete tasks effi-
ciently and to reduce negative emotional reactivity (Liang,
Shi, Yang & Liu, 2022).
Information technology projects require special atten-
tion and adoption, integration of small tasks and innovative
characteristics [39]. Mindful employees focus on completing
their tasks and pay more attention to details [57, 94]. They
help in the generation, promotion and implementation of
unique ideas in IT projects. Innovative work behaviour not
only improves the individual’s work performance, but it can
also be a key driver in achieving the success of an organisa-
tion [5]. Innovative work behaviour is important in benefit-
ting the IT initiatives [110, 115]. Thus, it can encourage and
maintain the sustainability of organisations in complex situ-
ations [71, 114]. Every project is unique, and it often starts
with limited information and a high level of uncertainty,
which will progressively diminish with the project’s progress
[132]. Therefore, moving the project along and tackling new
processes and tasks through innovative behaviour enhances
project performance [30].
Along with the individual’s personality traits, the lead-
ership style of the project manager also plays a key role
in shaping the behaviour of project employees [1]. It influ-
ences the way employees think, feel and behave in the work-
place. The positive project manager’s leadership style makes
employees feel that they can participate in decision-making
and that they have the authority to perform their tasks [40],
which can be beneficial toward IT project success. Every IT
project is different and requires individuals with the abil-
ity to initiate and carry them out. In such cases, a leader
is required who listens, includes and appreciates (such as
an inclusive leader) [137]. An inclusive leader remains
available by showing a norm of inclusion [66]. A mindful
individual with an inclusive leader can play a very positive
innovative role due to acknowledgement, admiration and
receptiveness [61]. Inclusive leadership appreciates ideas
from subordinates, increases trustworthiness and provides
emotional support [92], in terms of beneficial resources like
time, innovation-related information, materials and space
[129]. Employees will feel more comfortable sharing their
ideas and improving their innovative work behaviour [62].
Only a few studies have examined the project manager’s
leadership style and its role in achieving successful projects
[53, 66, 66], Latif, Afzal, Saqib, Sahibzada, & Alam [79].
However, leadership’s interaction with the individual’s
mindful personality and the resulting beneficial outcomes
must be emphasised. Each stage of the project is affected
by the individual’s personality (Masood, Khan & Shaikh
2018), e.g., the role a mindful employee can play during the
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Information Technology and Management
IT project’s initiation, planning, execution and monitoring
and control. Moreover, because innovation is the key con-
tributor to project success (Sarwar, Imran & Zahid, 2020),
the role of an inclusive leader as a predictor of innovative
work behaviour in the case of a mindful employee needs to
be determined. Despite the importance of individual traits
in IT initiatives [128], project management literature has not
examined the interactive effect of project employee mind-
fulness and the project managers’ specific leadership styles.
Thus, this study investigates the influence of individual char-
acteristics that can contribute to IT project success (that is,
the role of employee mindfulness directly and indirectly via
innovative work behaviour to project success) and the role
of inclusive leadership as a moderator between mindfulness
and innovative work behaviour.
2 Literature review and hypotheses
development
2.1 Trait activation theory
Trait activation theory (TAT) was employed to postulate
this study’s hypotheses [125]. Personality traits (mindful-
ness) can be conveyed in the form of behavioural responses
(innovative work behaviour) in response to state-relevant
contextual factors (complexities of the project) [126]. The
state-relevant elements exist in broader social and organi-
sational environments. According to previous studies, per-
sonality traits go hand in hand with situations. Eysenck and
Eysenck [41] maintained that both trait and situation form
two sides of the same coin. Therefore, a mindful trait of
an individual will help deal with the complexities of an IT
project. A trait influences performance if there is a match
between the trait’s characteristics and the cues of a situation
[124]. Mindfulness is an individual trait which translates
into innovative behaviour in the presence of a situation—
inclusive leadership, for example. Thus, this study adds to
the TAT by highlighting a favourable situational aspect of
inclusive leadership that will encourage tendencies associ-
ated with the trait (mindfulness). This will translate into
effective individual performance. This ultimately leads to
achieve project success [63]. Other researchers have used
TAT in similar contexts also [99, 100] (Fig. 1).
2.2 Employee mindfulness and project success
Mindfulness is defined by [64], p. 4) as purposefully pay-
ing attention in the present moment in a particular way.
Therefore, it involves metacognitive awareness [52], which
refers to ‘one’s explicit knowledge of the current contents
of thought [111, p. 321]. Mindfulness has previously been
linked to emotional intelligence [130], wellbeing [98],
Information Technology and Management
Fig. 1  A conceptual model
examining innovative work
behaviour as a mediator Inclusive
between employees mindful-
Leadership
ness and project success; and
inclusive leadership as modera-
tor of the effect of employees
mindfulness on innovative work
behaviour
Employees
Mindfulness
understanding complexities [35] and pressure handling [95].
Living mindfully means constantly and consciously develop-
ing self-awareness, which enables clarity [18]. Task clarity is
essential for IT projects (Mehta, Jack, Bradley & Chauhan,
2022). Information Technology tasks are broken down to
make them clearer, therefore, having a mindful personal-
ity will help achieve goals by being present and focused on
the project tasks. The mindful individual is conscious [16,
19]. A focused and conscious mind is, therefore, required to
fulfil complex technological projects. In difficult situations,
mindfulness is a helpful state of mind because it empowers
individuals to understand their surroundings, their underly-
ing psychological processes, and the nature of the mind [66].
[138] investigated the influence of mindfulness on task
complexity. Mindfulness is required in IT projects because
they are becoming more and more complex. Information
Technology project employees experience extended work-
related stress, fatigue, burnout, and health-related illness (
[105]. Mindfulness has been successfully related to reduced
stress [135], and reduced stress for IT project employees will
contribute to project success.
Likewise, mindfulness involves directing one’s atten-
tion to the current moment which would enable individuals
to focus on the tasks that are just around the corner. They
do not lose focus due to the surrounding distractions and,
therefore, avoid making mistakes [47]. The different dimen-
sions of project success also include the timely completion
of a project by solving problems [116], and mindfulness
has been linked to solving problems through understand-
ing them. According to De Bakker, Boonstra and Wortmann
[31], mindfulness includes awareness and attention,actors
become sensitive to what is happening around them. They
can decide when and how to act in case there are problems.
Accordingly, employee mindfulness improves performance
and wellbeing, thereby enhancing organisational productiv-
ity and maintaining long-term success (i.e., project success)
[48]. More significantly, mindful individuals respond to situ-
ations collectively (such as risks faced in projects). Some-
times, when individuals have less expertise, they can learn
Innovative Work Project Success
Behaviour
from others who perform better [75]. Collective mindful-
ness, therefore, leads to more successful IT projects by aid-
ing in managing the project risks (Lichtnerab & Westbrook
[81]. Based on these arguments and several findings from
previous studies, this Hypothesis 1 is postulated:
H1 Project employee mindfulness is positively associated
with project success in PBOs.
2.2.1 Employee mindfulness and innovative work
behaviour
Information technology project-based organisations (PBOs)
should strive to amplify flexibility, alertness and competence
due to unstable business environments [38]. Employees
with superior mindfulness are more attentive, imaginative,
focused and creative [74, 83]. Mindful persons are open to
innovation, and they are more thoughtful and alert to their
surroundings at the same time [120]. Accordingly, such
people respond positively to changes in their environment
and create new and improved processes that are reflected
in the form of innovative work behaviour [78]. Innovative
work behaviour is characterised by generating, promoting
and implementing novel ideas [60]. Therefore, it can help
an organisation meet new challenges [114].
Previous researchers found that personality, particu-
larly proactive personality, has a positive relationship with
employees’ innovative work behaviour [122, 139]. Employee
mindfulness influences innovative work behaviour in the
IT industry [120]. According to Leroy, Anseel, Dimitrova
and Sels [80], mindfulness makes employees more focused,
attentive and engaged with their tasks. It leads them to
explore novel procedures. Besides, mindful qualities spe-
cifically include ‘openness to novelty’ [77], which is crucial
for innovative work behaviour. Individuals who are mindful
when planning, organising and controlling can produce reli-
able and accurate work outcomes [22]. The findings of previ-
ous studies revealed a positive association between mindful-
ness and creativity [37, 96]. Likewise, [28] suggested that
13

mindfulness contributes to enhanced physical and mental
health, as well as behavioural regulation. Hypothesis 2 pos-
tulates a positive relationship between employee mindful-
ness and innovative work behaviour.
H2 Employee mindfulness is positively associated with
innovative work behaviour.
2.2.2 Employees’ innovative work behaviour and project
success
Successful IT projects depend on individual employees’ cre-
ativity and innovation. Innovative employees help the organ-
isation sustain and achieve organisational goals [29, 65, 73],
whereby the desired goal of PBOs involves achieving project
success. PBOs must be more responsive, efficient, flexible
and quick in dealing with ever-changing global systems and
challenges because of emerging trends and varying customer
demands [38, 107]. Innovation empowers organisations to
augment expansion and endurance in a competitive environ-
ment set [44].
Projects, in nature, are multitasked activities in which
every activity is assigned to specific employees. In this
regard, employee innovative work behaviour is crucial
to performing tasks effectively and efficiently. Informa-
tion Technology projects are often sensitive and complex.
Therefore, they need innovative behaviour for successful
completion. According to Project Management Institute a
completed project should be unique, and uniqueness is possi-
ble through employees’ innovative work behaviour. Previous
scholars emphasised employees’ innovative work behaviour
and provided evidence that it is a crucial element for the
success of the organisation (i.e., IT project success) [15,
33]. According to Diliello and Houghton [36], employee
innovative behaviour is a critical factor for organisational
innovation and long-term survival in a competitive environ-
ment [34], Bos-Nehles, Renkema & Janssen [17]. Therefore,
employees innovative work behaviour is av key factor for IT
project success. Accordingly, Hypothesis 3 is postulated:
H3 Project employees’ innovative work behaviour is posi-
tively associated with project success
2.2.3 Mediating role of innovative work behaviour
between employee mindfulness and project success
This study suggests that employee mindfulness contrib-
utes to the innovative work behaviour of project employ-
ees. Innovative work behaviour is initiated through active
engagement [113] and being mindful enhances engage-
ment [84]. A mindfulness will result in project success
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Information Technology and Management
because innovation is the key to achieving success in PBOs
[27]. Mindfulness is directly related to the development
of a useful generation of new ideas (Baas, Nevicka & Ten
Velden [10]. According to Nasiopoulos, Sakas, Vlachos,
and Mavrogianni, [91], employees’ innovative and useful
ideas for the project are proven to be beneficial toward
achieving organisational goals (i.e., project success).
Moreover, mindfulness authorises an individual to ignore
the negative aspects of a certain event because mindful-
ness supports employees and unlocks their counterproduc-
tivity and ruminative attention [131]. When individuals are
optimistic in the workplace, they are freed from internal
and external stress and negative thoughts. Thus, they tend
to show innovative work behaviour and focus on finding
solutions and generating ideas that improve the project
goals (i.e., project success).
A highly unstable business environment and the con-
stant need to tackle challenges faced by the organisation
require innovation [38]. Project employees should strive
to amplify their flexibility, alertness and competence (all
triggered through mindfulness). Technical and organisa-
tional innovations are critical for enterprise and national
competitive success, as well as for long-term growth. Inno-
vative work behaviour’s first step is recognition of a prob-
lem [68]. This is only possible if the employee is attentive
enough to recognise the problem. Thus, employees’ inno-
vative work behaviour will be created through mindfulness
and will result in sustenance and better company perfor-
mance. Thus, mindfulness will result in sustenance and
better performance in the market.
Innovation is a critical factor for organisations to be
productive and sustainable [118]. This behaviour is influ-
enced by the mindfulness of individual employees. Based
on TAT, many researchers propose that individuals dif-
fer in their innovative potential (Hammond Neff, Farr,
Schwall, & Zhao [50] based on their traits (mindfulness
in this case) and they act differently in various scenarios
(such as dealing with the complexities of the project). Pre-
vious research has shown that individual personality traits,
such as openness and conscientiousness, are key predic-
tors of innovative work behaviour [11], Woods, Mustafa,
Anderson & Sayer [133]. These traits can be fruitful in
achieving project success. Mindful employees are con-
scientious [16], [19], and thus display innovative work
behaviour that results in project success. Thus, based on
the above arguments we propose Hypothesis 4:
H4 Employees’ innovative work behaviour mediates the
relationship between employee mindfulness and project
success.
Information Technology and Management
2.2.4 Moderating role of inclusive leadership
between employee mindfulness and innovative work
behaviour
According to TAT, it has been theorised that personality
traits, such as ‘intraindividual consistencies and inter-indi-
vidual uniqueness’s in propensities to behave in identifi-
able ways in light of situational demands’ [125], p. 398).
The literature is abundant concerning how cues embedded
in situations moderate the relationship between personality
traits (mindfulness) and subsequent behaviour (innovative
work behaviour) [32, 42]. Therefore, inclusive leadership
has been introduced as a situational factor that contributes to
TAT, in strengthening the mindfulness and innovative work
behaviour relationship. The inclusive leadership concept
was first introduced by Nembhard and Edmondson [92] in
Organisational Science, and they defined it as ‘words and
deeds by a leader or leaders that indicate an invitation and
appreciation from subordinates’ contributions’. According to
Hollander [55], employees and leaders are interdependent,
therefore, when both support each other, a win–win situa-
tion is created.
Thus, based on Hollander's concept of interdepend-
ency, inclusive leadership can be understood through the
leader-employee relationship, which is open, interactive
and effective. It is measured by how comfortably employ-
ees communicate their ideas with their leaders [24]. A posi-
tive connection with employees is a hallmark of inclusive
leadership. This claim has been supported by three traits:
openness, accessibility and availability [24]. Inclusive lead-
ership can motivate and direct the attention of subordinates
to perform organisational tasks [62]. Under the umbrella
of an inclusive leader, mindful employees will feel free to
share their ideas.
Mindful employees need a supportive work environ-
ment, where managers appreciate their innovative ideas and
involve them in the decision-making process, realise their
efforts and appreciate them (as an inclusive leader does)
[46, 112]. A mindful employee and inclusive leader will
contribute positively toward innovative work behaviour.
Understanding this, employees can always consult with an
inclusive leader about the project’s shortcomings so that they
can put forward innovative plans. For example, [24] argue
that during the execution phase inclusive leadership involves
effective reactions to employees regarding project problems
[24]. This leadership style engages employees in the pro-
cess by making them realise that they are part of decision-
making [117]. Therefore, an inclusive leadership style plays
a vital role in innovation. Inclusive leadership emphasises
the notion that every team member is important and should
be given respect and appreciation [56, 76, 89, 106, 109].
The team members work efficiently by exploring better
ways, thereby exhibiting innovative work behaviour. Thus,
inclusive leaders generate a diverse, innovative and sup-
portive workplace [66]. Inclusive leadership seeks to tackle
what a mindful employee needs and, therefore, this study
proposes that the relationship between employee mindful-
ness and innovative work behaviour becomes more robust in
the presence of an inclusive leadership style. Accordingly,
Hypothesis 5 is postulated.
H5 Inclusive leadership moderators the relationship between
employee mindfulness and innovative work behaviour as this
relationship can be stronger when inclusive leadership is
employed.
3 Methodology
The population of this study included the employees of the
IT industry of Pakistan, where various IT hubs have been
established recently [127]. The rationale for this context is
to alleviate and address Pakistan’s constant struggles and
challenges in the development of its IT sector [8]. Pakistan’s
IT industry has made measurable progress and contributes
significantly to the country’s GDP over recent years [51].
Information Technology projects can be expensive and risky
to build,hence, the project team is usually entrusted to care-
fully propose their innovative ideas. Pakistan’s IT sector has
been chosen because new technological innovations tend to
stay in the market for a short time due to the ongoing com-
petition and changing innovations. Information Technology
organisations must compete with new rivals and introduce
disruptive technology because rapid technological innova-
tions are being steadily introduced into society [49]. Con-
sumers try to find new innovative technologies that can make
their lives easier. To accomplish success in IT projects is,
therefore, challenging [103].
The top management of the selected IT organisations
clarified the purpose of the study. After management granted
permission, several meetings were scheduled with the
employees. The respondents selected had worked on active
IT projects in these organisations. The researchers assured
the respondents of data confidentiality and that it would be
used for educational purposes only. The participants were
briefed on the details, and questionnaires were distributed
after they all agreed to participate in this study.
Purposive sampling technique was used for data collec-
tion. Data were collected from the project managers and
employees. In line with the recommendations of [102], the
current study collected data in a three-time lag with a gap of
four weeks between each to minimise common method bias.
A three-time-lagged design has been used in previous stud-
ies in similar contexts [13, 87]. The respondents completed
the questionnaire in time one (T1) about demographics and
independent variables (e.g., employee mindfulness). In time
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 Information Technology and Management

two (T2), surveys were distributed among employees and questionnaires and did not experience any language-related
their respective project managers. Employees filled out the issues (see [67]). Demographic variables like gender, age,
questionnaire about inclusive leadership, and the project education and project experience were included in the ques-
manager filled out the questionnaire about the employees’ tionnaire. The studied variables were measured by employ-
innovative work behaviour. Finally, in time three (T3), the ing the established five-point Likert scale.
respondents filled out the questionnaire, which is related
to project success. The method chosen is adopted from the 3.1.1 Employee mindfulness
project literature. According to [121], multiple sources can
be used to collect data, including project customers, project To measure employee mindfulness, [20] developed a
employees, and other associated team members. During the scale termed as the Mindful Attention & Awareness Scale
final visit (T3), project managers were requested to com- (MAAS). The sample items included ‘I find it difficult
plete the survey about project success. Codes were assigned to stay focused on what’s happening in the present’. The
to respondents to match the completed surveys with their responses were scaled on a five-point Likert scale, from 1
organisations (e.g., initials of the respondent). Five-hundred (almost always) to 5 (almost never). A Cronbach’s alpha of
fifty questionnaires were distributed among IT employees, 8.8 found the study reliable.
but only 477 were returned one month later. Additionally,
another questionnaire was administered to project clients, 3.1.2 Innovative work behaviour
project managers, and top management to measure project
success. A total of 400 respondents were approached, but To measure the project employees’ innovative work behav-
361 questionnaires were returned and 347 were considered iour, the study employed the 9-item scale from Janssen’s
for final analysis after discarding the incomplete question- study (2000) based on Scott and Bruce’s study (1994). The
naires. The respondents’ demographic characteristics are three items which were used referred to ‘idea generation’,
presented in Table 1. three items to ‘idea promotion’, and three items to ‘idea
realisation’. The sample items were ‘acquiring approval for
3.1 Measurements innovative ideas’ (idea promotion), ‘creating new ideas for
difficult issues’ (idea generation), and ‘transforming innova-
This study’s data was collected by using well-established tive ideas into useful applications’ (idea realisation). Cron-
scales based on previous studies. Because English is the bach’s alpha was found reliable with a value of 0.82.
official language of Pakistan; therefore, respondents were
asked to provide data in the English version of the ques- 3.1.3 Project success
tionnaire. Previous studies have also used English-language
To measure project success, the 14-item scale has been
employed in this study. This scale was previously adapted
Table 1  Respondents’ demographic characteristics by [3] based on previous studies. Khan used the same scale
et al. (2020) in Pakistan’s IT industry. The sample items
Demographic characteristics Frequency Cumu-
lative included ‘The project was completed according to the budget
percent allocated’, and ‘The outcomes of the project are used by its
intended end users’. Cronbach’s alpha was found reliable
Age
at 0.92.
20–31 153 44.1
31–40 177 95.1
3.1.4 Inclusive leadership
40 & above 7 100
Gander
This study used the 9-item scale proposed by [24]. This scale
Male 253 72.9
was adopted by [67] in a similar context. The scale was com-
Female 94 100
prised of the following items: ‘The manager is ready to listen
Education
to my requests’. Cronbach’s alpha was found reliable at 0.92.
Undergraduate 6 3.5
Bachelor’s 78 48.8
3.2 Data analysis
Masters or above 88 100
Project experience
Previous researchers stated that the demographic variables
Less than 1 year 62 17.9
might affect the outcome variables [70]. Therefore, one-
1–2 years 89 40.9
way ANOVA was used in this study to assess the effect of
More than 2 years 205 100
demographic variables on project success. The results were

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Information Technology and Management
significant for age and education,therefore, we used these as
control variables in the subsequent analyses.
3.3 Confirmatory factor analysis
Confirmatory factor analysis was performed using AMOS 26
based on [9] guideline to verify model fitness. The proposed
model consists of four latent variables: employee mindful-
ness, innovative work behaviour, IT project success, and
inclusive leadership. The initial four-factor model results
were satisfactory, including CFI 0.91, IFI 0.91, TLI 0.90, χ2/
df 1.61, and RMSEA 0.04. Furthermore, alternative mod-
els were run with three factors, two factors, and one factor.
Based on the three-factor model that combined employee
mindfulness and innovative work behaviour into one fac-
tor, the result was unsatisfactory compared to the four-factor
model—i.e. CFI 0.61, IFI 0.61 TLI 0.59, χ2/df 3.90 and
RMSEA 0.09. Moreover, in the two factor model, by com-
bining employee mindfulness, IWB, and inclusive leadership
into one factor, the result was unsatisfactory compared to
the four- and three-factor-models, CFI 0.55, IFI 0.55, TLI
0.53, χ2/df 4.31 and RMSEA 0.09. Finally, in combining all
items into the one factor model, the results were unsatisfac-
tory compared to the previous models, CFI 42, IFI 0.43,
TLI 0.40, χ2/df 5.27, and RMSEA 0.11. All the results are
presented in Table 2. Furthermore, common method bias
was also assessed using Harman’s single factor test in SPSS.
The results showed that the first factor accounts for 32.5%
of the total variance, which is less than the suggested 50%
cut-off value [101].
3.4 Convergent and discriminate validity
Convergent and discriminant validities were assessed using
composite reliability (CR) and average variance extracted
(AVE) [43]. Table 3 presents the factor loadings, CR, and
AVE. The values were well-above the threshold values with
CR values ranging from 0.91 to 0.94. The values for AVE
ranged between 0.52 and 0.54, which exceeded the thresh-
old value. This suggested that the constructs of the study
achieved convergent validity. When the constructs AVE’s
square root is more than collective correlation with other
models’ constructs, [43] asserted sufficient discriminant
Table 2  Results of the confirmatory factor analysis
Model χ2
Hypothesised measurement model (4 Factor Model) 1680.57
Alternate model 1: EM and IL (3 Factor Model) 4025.25
Alternate model 2: Combined ‘EM, IL and IWB’ (2 Factor Model) 4455.94
Alternate model 3: ‘All items Combined’ (1 Factor Model) 5456.70
EM Employees mindfulness, IL Inclusive leadership, IWB Innovative work behaviour, PS Project success
validity. Table 4 illustrates that different constructs AVE’s
square root is more than the shared correlation with other
constructs of the model, which achieved discriminant
validity.
3.5 Descriptive statistics
Table 5 provides descriptive statistics, reliability and cor-
relations among the variables of the study. Employee mind-
fulness was positively correlated with innovative work
behaviour (r = 0.41, p < 0.01), IT project success (r = 0.39,
p < 0.01), and inclusive leadership(r = 0.19, p < 0.01). Inno-
vative work behaviour was significantly correlated with IT
project success (r = 0.38, p < 0.01) and inclusive leadership
(r = 0.32, p < 0.01). Besides, project success was correlated
with inclusive leadership (r = 0.28 p < 0.01).
3.6 Hypotheses testing
The hypotheses testing results are displayed in Table 6.
Preacher and Hayes’s Model 7 in the PROCESS macro was
used for this test [54]. In line with Hypothesis 1, employee
mindfulness was positively associated with project success
(β = 0.27, p < 0.01). Hypothesis 1 is, therefore, accepted.
Employee mindfulness was positively associated with inno-
vative work behaviour (β = 0.46, p < 0.01), and the employ-
ees’ innovative work behaviour was significantly associated
with project success (β = 0.24, p < 0.01), Therefore, H2 and
H3 were accepted. The results of the indirect effect con-
firmed the mediating role of innovative work behaviour in
the relationship between employee mindfulness and project
success (indirect effect = 0.11, 95% CI with LL = 0.09, and
UL = 0.23), supporting the acceptance of H1. Before testing
H5, independent (employee mindfulness) and moderating
(inclusive leadership) variables were mean-centred based on
Aiken et al. [4]. The interaction effect of inclusive leadership
and employee mindfulness on innovative work behaviour
was positive and significant (β = 0.23, p < 0.01). Figure 2
shows a positive relationship between employee mindfulness
and innovative work behaviour when inclusive leadership is
high. Therefore, H5 was accepted.
The researchers did not hypothesise the conditional indi-
rect effect of employee mindfulness on project success.
df χ2/Df CFI IFI TLI RMSEA
1021 1.64 0.91 0.91 0.90 0.04
1031 3.90 0.61 0.61 0.59 0.09
1033 4.31 0.55 0.55 0.53 0.09
1034 5.27 0.42 0.43 0.40 0.11
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Table 3  Factor loading and validity

Loading Alpha CR AVE

Employees mindfulness 0.88 0.94 0.53

I could be experiencing some emotion and not be conscious of it until sometime later 0.78
I break or spill things because of carelessness, not paying attention, or thinking of something else 0.73
I find it difficult to stay focused on what is happening in the present 0.81
I tend to walk quickly to get where I am going without paying attention to what I experience along the way 0.71
I tend not to notice feelings of physical tension or discomfort until they really grab my attention 0.69
I forget a person’s name almost as soon as I have been told it for the first time 0.70
It seems I am ‘running on automatic’ without much awareness of what I am doing 0.67
I rush through activities without being really attentive to them 0.72
I get so focused on the goal I want to achieve that I lose touch with what I am doing right now to get there 0.74
I do jobs or tasks automatically, without being aware of what I am doing 0.69
I find myself listening to someone with one ear, doing something else at the same time 0.71
I drive places on ‘automatic pilot’ and then wonder why I went there 0.79
I find myself preoccupied with the future or the past 0.74
I find myself doing things without paying attention 0.72
I snack without being aware that I am eating 0.70
IWB 0.82 0.90 0.52
Creating new ideas for difficult issues 0.73
Searching out new working methods, techniques, or instruments 0.69
Generating original solutions for problems 0.70
Mobilising support for innovative ideas 0.77
Acquiring approval for innovative ideas 0.73
Making important organisational members enthusiastic for innovative ideas 0.64
Transforming innovative ideas into useful applications 0.74
Introducing innovative ideas into the work environment in a systematic way 0.77
Evaluating the utility of innovative ideas 0.72
Project success 0.92 0.94 0.54
The project was completed according to the budget allocated 0.72
The outcomes of the project are used by its intended end users 0.75
The outcomes of the project are likely to be sustained 0.77
The outcomes of the project have directly benefited the intended end users, either through increasing effi- 0.73
ciency or effectiveness
Given the problem for which it was developed, the project seems to do the best job of solving that problem 0.77
I was satisfied with the process by which the project was implemented 0.72
Project team members were satisfied with the process by which the project was implemented 0.71
The project had no or minimal start-up problems because it was readily accepted by its end users 0.78
The project has directly led to improved performance for the end users/target beneficiaries 0.76
The project has made a visible positive impact on the target beneficiaries 0.73
Project specifications were met by the time of handover to the target beneficiaries 0.71
The target beneficiaries were satisfied with the outcomes of the project 0.79
Our principal donors were satisfied with the outcomes of the project implementation 0.72
The project was completed according to the budget allocated 0.71
Inclusive leadership 0.91 0.91 0.54
The project manager is open to hearing new ideas 0.73
The project manager is attentive to new opportunities to improve work processes 0.77
The project manager is open to discuss the desired goals and new ways to achieve them 0.74
The project manager is available for consultation on problems 0.69
The project manager is an ongoing ‘presence’ in this team-someone who is readily available 0.78
The project manager is available for professional questions I would like to confirm with him/her 0.79
The project manager is ready to listen to my requests 0.72

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Information Technology and Management

Table 3  (continued)
Loading Alpha CR AVE

The project manager encourages me to access him/her on emerging issues 0.69

The project manager is accessible for discussing emerging problems 0.71

Table 4  Correlation between constructs and the square root of AVE
Variables 1 2 3 4
1 Employees mindfulness 0.73
2 IWB 0.41 0.72
3 Inclusive leadership 0.32 0.32 0.73
4 Project success 0.39 0.47 0.29
AVE Average variance extracted, Bold represents the square root of
AVE
However, a post hoc analysis of this effect was conducted as
illustrated in Table 6. The results suggested that the indirect
effect of employee mindfulness on project success through
employee innovative work behaviour is stronger at a high
level of inclusive leadership (+ 1 SD from the mean value;
β = 0.15, LL 95% CI = 0.08, UL 95% CI = 0.26) and weaker
at a low level of inclusive leadership (− 1 SD from the mean
value; β = 0.06, LL 95% CI = 0.02, UL 95% CI = 0.10). Addi-
tionally, the positive and significant moderated mediation
index values (Index =  − 0.05, LL 95% CI = 0.01, UL 95%
CI = 0.10) indicated that inclusive leadership moderates the
indirect effect of employee mindfulness on project success
via innovative work behaviour.
4 Discussion
The relationship between project employee mindfulness
and project success was examined in this study. The essen-
tial mechanism of innovative work behaviour has also been
investigated between employees’ mindfulness and project
success. Moreover, the interactive effect of project employee
mindfulness and project manager inclusive leadership style
was investigated to predict employees’ innovative work
behaviour and project success. The TAT was used to con-
struct the hypotheses of this study.
The findings suggest that employee mindfulness posi-
0.73 tively influences project success. The results supported
previous findings and revealed that employee mindfulness
is essential for a PBO organisation’s long-term perfor-
mance (e.g., project success) [59, 93]. Mindful individu-
als respond to changes in their surroundings and develop
novel or enhanced processes [78]. Information Technology
projects are unique and complex,therefore, employee mind-
fulness plays a vital role in achieving the assigned targets.
Similarly, in PBOs, project success necessitates employees’
full attention because the nature of the project is sensitive,
and everything is pre-defined (cost, time, and scope). It is
quite challenging for employees in a project organisation to
achieve the expected targets,therefore, employee mindful-
ness is a critical success factor for project success in the
PBOs to achieve the desired objectives.
The results support the proposition that employee mind-
fulness boosts project employees’ innovative work behav-
iour. Employees with superior mindfulness play a key role in
enhancing innovation performance by recognising situations
that demand innovation [123]. Previous studies investigated
the effect of mindfulness on innovative work behaviour in
traditional organisations in various contexts [85, 86, 90].
This study, however, investigated the effect of employee
mindfulness on project success in IT PBOs.
A positive relationship was found between employees’
innovative work behaviour and project success. This finding

Table 5  Mean, standard deviation, reliability analysis and correlation analysis

S. N0 Variables Mean SD 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

1 Gender 1.27 0.45 –

2 Age 1.60 0.58 − 0.22* –
3 Education 2.62 0.53 0.05 0.26** –
4 Experience 2.42 0.79 − 0.12* 0.37** 0.22** –
5 Employees mindfulness 3.66 0.64 − 0.05 0.18* 0.08 0.11* 0.88
6 IWB 3.40 0.70 0.01 0.05 0.04 0.08 0.41** 0.82
7 Project success 3.61 0.62 0.02* 0.02 0.04 0.09 0.39** 0.38** 0.92
8 Inclusive leadership 3.27 0.76 0.13* 0.05 0.09 0.07 0.19** 0.32** 0.28** 0.92

N = 347, *p < .05, **p < .01

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 Information Technology and Management

Table 6  Conditional process analysis

Model Coefficient SE t LLCI ULCI

Mediator variable model

Constant 3.37
Employees mindfulness (EM) → Innovative work behaviour 0.46*** 0.05 8.59 .35 .56
Inclusive leadership (IL) → Innovative work behaviour 0.25*** 0.04 5.81 .16 .33
IL x EM → Innovative work behaviour 0.23*** 0.05 4.02 .12 .35
Dependent variable model
Constant 3.31
Employees mindfulness → Project Success 0.27** 0.04 5.38 .17 .37
Innovative work behaviour → Project success 0.24*** 0.05 5.20 .15 .35
Indirect effect model
Employees mindfulness → Innovative work .11** 0.04 4.25 .09 .23
Behaviour → Project success
Conditional indirect effects of employees mindfulness and project success through innovative work behaviour at values of inclusive leadership
mean ± 1 SD
Inclusive leadership (IL) Effect Boot SE Boot LLCI Boot ULCI
IL Low − 0.7682 0.06 0.02 0.02 0.12
IL Mean 0.000 0.11 0.03 0.06 0.18
IL High 0.7682 0.15 0.04 0.08 0.26
Index of moderated mediation 0.05 0.02 0.01 0.12

N = 347, Model 7 results, Bootstrap = 5000, 95% confidence interval, *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01, LL Lower limit, UL Upper limit, SE Standard error.
Boot Bootstrapsize = 5000

is consistent with previous studies which provided evidence
that innovative work behaviour is an essential factor for
organisational survival [62]. However, employee innova-
tion is crucial to sustaining a competitive advantage, and if
organisations fail to innovative their businesses, they may
lose their market share to their competitors [25, 97]. In
PBOs, the project is a multitasked activity, and every activ-
ity is assigned to specific employees,in this situation, every
employee’s innovative work behaviour is crucial.
Fig. 2  The interactive effect of inclusive leadership and employee
mindfulness on innovative work behaviour
Moreover, this study theorised and provided empiri-
cal evidence that innovative work behaviour served as an
underlying mechanism between employee mindfulness and
project success. This suggests that mindfulness is involved
in the generation of innovative ideas [96]. The influence of
individual innovative behaviour is reflected in the form of
project success. The findings of the study are consistent with
the results suggested by Ngo et al. [93], that provided evi-
dence regarding the role of employee creativity as a media-
tor between employee mindfulness and performance (e.g.,
project success). Therefore, this study established the cumu-
lative effect of employee mindfulness on outcomes, i.e., pro-
ject success indirectly through innovative work behaviour
(as a mediator).
Furthermore, the study found that mindful employees
nurture and flourish in the form of innovative work behav-
iour depending on the project managers’ inclusive leadership
style. The results showed that in PBOs, mindful employees
become more creative in the presence of the project man-
ager’s inclusive leadership style. Previous studies examined
employees’ personality and leadership styles and various
outcomes were provided, including work engagement,
organisational identification [23], 21, performance [12],
close monitoring behaviour [72] and task performance
(Yang, Chen, Zhao, & Hua [136]. However, this study exam-
ined) the interactive effect of personality traits (e.g., mind-
fulness) and leadership style (e.g., inclusive leadership) on
project employees’ innovative work behaviour. The results of

13
Information Technology and Management

this study, therefore, provided key contributions, especially
in the field of IT project management.
4.1 Theoretical implications
This study has several theoretical implications, particularly
in the field of IT and project management. First, we extended
the understanding how employee mindfulness translates into
project success. Undeniably, the mindfulness was studied
in organisation behaviour and psychology research, but it
remained unexplored in the project management literature.
Based on TAT, this study specifically contributes to the
project management literature on how the employees’ dis-
positional factor—i.e., mindfulness—positively influences
IT project success. Also, the study contributes the ways
that mindfulness can help shape project employee behav-
iour, e.g., innovative work behaviour, and project success.
Academicians should focus on the need to identify other
personality factors that directly contribute to IT initiatives.
Finally, previous studies were conducted in traditional
organisations and explored the personality and leadership
style that influences different types of employee behaviour
[136]. However, studies which identify the importance of
personality traits are very limited in the context of PBOs
(Xia, Lo, Bao, Sharma & Li, [134], especially IT PBOs.
Therefore, the results of this study distinctively contribute to
project management literature by exploring the employee’s
personality—i.e., mindfulness—and leadership style’s inter-
active effect on employee behaviour—i.e., innovative work
behaviour—and its influence on project success.
4.2 Practical implications
This study provided significant implications for IT PBOs.
The study proposed and empirically validated that the indi-
vidual employee’s mindfulness affect the success of a pro-
ject. Therefore, PBOs should pay more attention to the rele-
vance of employee mindfulness in achieving project success.
PBOs need to hire highly mindful employees and find ways
to improve the levels of mindfulness among employees. For
example, PBOs may introduce mindfulness training, such
as the mindfulness-based stress reduction programme. This
would be a useful tool for dealing with stress and enhancing
work motivation and performance to achieve project success.
There is good reason to believe that mindful employees are
more engaged, productive, and practical [28]. Furthermore,
employee mindfulness increases project success via innova-
tive work behaviour, and the study showed that employee
mindfulness plays a key role in shaping innovative work
behaviour.
Finally, PBOs should direct more attention to the pro-
ject manager’s behaviour because the project manager with
inclusive leadership behaviour plays a vital role in shaping
the employees’ innovative work behaviour. The PBOs should
prefer managers with inclusive behaviour. Such leaders can
be selected by judging their attributes during the selection
process: directness, obtainability and accessibility. The
project manager should adopt inclusive behaviour with
subordinates for a productive workplace. Inclusive leaders
invite subordinates to generate ideas and open discussions
that share their constructive solutions in problem resolution.
Information Technology projects, therefore, need to adopt
an inclusive leadership style to finish projects on time with
defined features and planned costs.
4.3 Future directions and limitations of the study
This study has several limitations which can be addressed
in future research. The literature revealed that behavioural
study involves many variables that can possibly be extracted
from TAT. This study is limited to employee mindfulness,
but other personality traits such as resilience, efficacy and
assertiveness of project employees may also be included in
future studies. Furthermore, TAT argues that goal-focused
leadership helps subordinates behave in a certain way [104].
Thus, it is recommended that future research could include
the mediating role of employee voice behaviour and other
behaviours between mindfulness and projects success.
It would also be interesting to study different leadership
styles such an adverse leadership style (e.g., despotic, pas-
sive, and abusive, etc.). Moreover, according to TAT, pos-
sible behavioural, situational and personality traits motivate
individuals to achieve goals (project success) [6]. Thus, it
will interest IT practitioners to explore the personality char-
acteristics of future employees. The current study was con-
ducted with IT industries in Pakistan with different external
and internal contexts. Thus, studies in different industries
and countries may contribute interesting findings for the
specific environment.
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