Responsible leadership and salespeople’s creativity : the mediating effects of CSR perceptions

Abstract

Although sales tasks require creative thinking, salespeople’s creativity has been identified as one of the most under-researched topics in the sales literature. This study contributes to filling this gap by understanding how responsible leadership and corporate social responsibility (CSR) perceptions can contribute to fostering salespeople’s creativity. This study’s empirical analysis is based on information provided by 176 supervisor–salesperson dyads from 96 companies, and the results indicate that responsible leadership is positively related to salespeople’s creativity. Furthermore, our findings confirm that the relationship between responsible leadership and salespeople’s creativity is mediated by salespeople’s CSR perception, their job satisfaction, and their identification with the organization. Sales leaders should recognize that by practicing responsible leadership behavior, they can create this type of work environment for their subordinates.