INFLUENCE OF SUPERVISORS’ SELF-AWARENESS ON THE INNOVATIVE WORK BEHAVIOR OF PHARMACY SUPERINTENDENTS IN RETAIL PHARMACIES IN KENYA

In Kenya’s competitive pharmaceutical retail landscape, there is growing concern over the limited adoption of innovative practices, despite mounting pressures for sustainability and improved patient care. This is compounded by concerns of increased workload, burnout and work disengagement in the backdrop of a leadership skills gap that does not provide the needed motivation for employees to engage in innovative work behavior. This study investigated the influence of leaders’ self-awareness on the innovative work behavior of pharmacy superintendents in retail pharmacies across Kenya. Drawing on authentic leadership theory, self-awareness was conceptualized through the dimensions of self-efficacy, humility, and empathy. The study was guided by the post -positivism research philosophy and applied a descriptive correlational research design. The study targeted 1129 pharmacy superintendents from retail pharmacies across Kenya based on the 2023 Pharmacy and Poison’s Board listing of registered pharmacies. A sample of 326 was obtained using a random sampling technique. Structured questionnaires were used to collect data and 309 responses were obtained translating to a 95% response rate. Data analysis was done using both descriptive and inferential statistics. The ordinal logistic regression indicated that self-awareness accounted for 30.3% of the variance in innovative behavior (Nagelkerke R² = .303) and was a strong predictor (β = 1.46, p < .05), with a one-unit increase associated with a 4.32-fold increase in the odds of the pharmacy superintendents being in higher levels of innovative work behavior. The findings contribute to authentic leadership literature by empirically demonstrating that leaders’ self-awareness significantly influences innovative work behavior in retail pharmacy settings. These findings underscore the importance of integrating self-awareness into leadership development programs for pharmacy owner-managers in Kenya’s pharmaceutical retail sector.