Intuition and analytical judgment in leadership: an interpretative phenomenological analysis of academic leaders with business experience

Purpose This research examines how academic leaders with business backgrounds develop and apply intuitive judgment under conditions of uncertainty. Their dual background, tacit knowledge from business exercised under academic evidentiary expectations, forms the study's boundary condition. The study explores how intuitive cues emerge, how leaders balance intuitive impressions with analytical reasoning and how organizational culture shapes the expression and legitimacy of intuitive judgment. Design/methodology/approach Interpretative phenomenological analysis explored the lived experiences of seven senior academic leaders in Canadian higher education. Semi-structured video interviews captured embodied cues, emotional signals, and reflective processes. Transcripts and non-verbal cues were analyzed through idiographic case analysis, followed by cross-case synthesis. Findings Intuition often appeared first as a physical or emotional signal that guided attention before data were reviewed. Leaders used reflective questioning to evaluate initial impressions. Intuition and data functioned as complementary forms of judgment, with data serving as reassurance rather than replacement. Experience strengthened intuitive confidence, and organizational culture shaped whether intuition was voiced or reframed as professional judgment. Practical implications Organizations can strengthen leadership development through structured reflection, guided debriefs, and practice interpreting intuitive cues responsibly. Cultures that build psychological safety and open dialog enable intuitive insight to be voiced and integrated with evidence-based reasoning. Originality/value The study extends scholarship on intuition, leadership judgment, and leadership development by showing that intuition and analysis operate as a sequenced practice, that intuitive judgment is a developmental capability and that its expression is a legitimacy strategy shaped by organizational culture.