Authentic leadership and innovation in sports and education: promoting social inclusion for people with disabilities

Purpose This paper aims to examine the role of authentic leadership and innovation in public sports and educational organizations serving people with disabilities in Greece. It investigates how these leadership practices and innovation efforts contribute to social inclusion and equal participation in education and sports. Design/methodology/approach The study involved 126 managers from public special schools and sports organizations for people with disabilities in Greece. Data were collected electronically using the Authentic Leadership Questionnaire (ALQ) and adapted innovation scales. Statistical methods included descriptive analysis, reliability testing (Cronbach’s alpha), correlation (Spearman), ANOVA and simple linear regression. Findings Leaders reported high levels of authentic leadership, particularly in transparency, which supports open communication and inclusive decision-making. Experience and training were associated with stronger leadership traits. A positive but modest relationship was observed between leadership dimensions and innovation, suggesting that although leadership contributes to promoting innovation, additional organizational and contextual factors are also influential. Notably, these findings emphasize the need to support leadership and innovation as mechanisms for advancing social inclusion in organizations for people with disabilities. Practical implications The results support the development of targeted leadership training programs and strategic innovation initiatives tailored to the unique challenges faced by Greek public organizations, aiming to enhance inclusion and service quality for people with disabilities. Social implications A deeper understanding of how authentic leadership can enhance innovation in disability organizations can help promote social inclusion and equal participation of people with disabilities in education and sport. Research can offer strategies for improving the quality of education and sports programs for people with disabilities and for developing innovative approaches that are more flexible and adaptable to their needs. Originality/value This research addresses a clear gap in the literature by integrating authentic leadership and innovation in the context of organizations for people with disabilities and explicitly linking them to social inclusion outcomes.