Leading Through Change: How Leaders Develop in the Process of Digital Transformation

Abstract

With the rise of technological advancements entire industries and sectors have been reshaped, creating a new type of business landscape. Since digital transformation (DT) is redefining the structures and process of traditional work, understanding how leaders develop within ongoing digital change is critical. However, previous literature has only focused on what competencies leaders should have to navigate DT, whilst displaying the challenges that are involved. Instead, this research paper explores how leaders navigate uncertainties, respond to challenges and adapt their approach over time. By not treating leaders as the main driver of DT, it unveils the social and contextual mean-making processes that contribute to development. Hence, the research inquiry is How leaders develop in the process of digital transformation. Adopting a qualitative approach in the research, 18 leaders from multiple industries were interviewed. This study draws on theories of collective leadership development and sensemaking, and applies them in the context of digital transformation. The findings reveal four key dimensions that highlight how leaders develop in a social context, through contextual embeddedness, by navigating tensions and through re-interpretation during the process of DT. The four presented dimensions culminated in a conceptual model of leader development during DT, showing the intricacies that shape leaders. As emerged from this study, leader development is a recursive cycle of continuous re-adjustments. It is an ongoing process with no knowledgeable end, involving continuous adaptation to changing demands in the environment. Hence, there is no right approach, but it is dependent on how the intricacies of the contextual and social domains change. It is not just the introduction of new technologies that leads to change in these domains, but also the own leaders’ response to change.