Project Manager Leadership Behaviors for Successful Digital Transformation Implementation: Contingency Theory Approach

Leaders of large industrial companies (LICs) are concerned about the leadership behaviors (LB) of digital transformation (DT) project managers (PMs), as over 75% of DT projects in LICs fail to be completed successfully. Grounded in contingency theory of leadership (CTL), the purpose of this quantitative correlational study was to examine the relationship between LB (task-oriented [TO] vs. relationship-oriented [RO]) of DT PMs and the successful completion of DT projects in three contingency situations: favorable, moderately favorable, and unfavorable. These situations were defined based on three independent variables: (a) PM's leader-member relationship, (b) PM's task structure, and (c) PM's position power. Data were collected from 214 PMs from U.S. LICs via online surveys and analyzed through binary logistic regression (BLR) and cluster analysis. BLR results indicated that PMs LB and situation interactively significantly predicted the DT project completion status in favorable (β = -.99, p = .025) and unfavorable (β = -90.73, p = .040) situations. Data well-separated into three clusters (mean Silhouette score = .54). Some PMs (47.20%) with RO LB completed DT projects successfully in favorable situations, and others did not. Key recommendations are PMs with TO LB to manage DT projects in LICs and improve situations through open communication among team members, excellent recognition and rewards and mentorship programs for DT employees, and clear articulation of the DT project's goals and objectives. The implications for positive social change include the potential for business leaders in LICs to increase employment opportunities and improve the quality of life for the populace in underserved communities through delivering advanced digital products and services.