The effect of developmental electronic performance monitoring on employee innovative behavior

In the context of the digital era, many enterprises have invested in the wave of digital transformation. Electronic performance monitoring (EPM), as an effective digital management tool for enterprise digital transformation, profoundly influences the innovative behavior of employees while improving enterprise management efficiency. Nowadays, an increasing number of organizations are actively adopting employee performance management systems to motivate employees and achieve organizational performance goals, fostering high-quality development. However, the influencing mechanism on how electronic performance monitoring affects organizational employee innovation is unclear. Based on the social exchange theory, this study conducted empirical analyses on 265 questionnaire surveys collected online from employees of Chinese enterprises in the financial, Internet, and manufacturing industries using SPSS 27.0 and MPLUS 8.3 software. Hierarchical regression analysis and the Bootstrap method were employed to verify the mechanisms through which developmental electronic performance monitoring influences employee innovative behavior. The study finds that: developmental electronic performance monitoring positively impacts employee innovative behavior. Leader-member exchange partially mediates the relationship between developmental electronic performance monitoring and employee innovative behavior. Power distance positively moderates the relationship between leader-member exchange and employee innovative behavior. The findings of this study expand the existing research on the influence mechanism of developmental electronic performance monitoring on employee innovative behavior and offer practical implications for enterprises aiming to effectively utilize electronic performance monitoring to foster employee innovation.