Abstract
The Southern Indian IT sector thrives on innovation but promoting employee creativity requires specific leadership approaches. This study aims to explore the influence of inclusive leadership on employee creative behavior, considering the mediating factor of autonomous motivation in southern Indian IT. The study situates the relationship between these variables within the framework of the self-determination theory. The survey, conducted with convenience sampling, involved 354 participants employed in the southern region of Indian IT sectors. The suggested simple mediation model was scrutinized by employing PLS-SEM. The findings indicated a favorable influence of inclusive leadership on the promotion of employee creative behavior, and autonomous motivation. Inclusive leadership practices cultivate an environment that fosters intrinsic motivation increasing employee creativity. The reliability of the outcomes may be impaired because of the limited sample size and the utilization of a cross-sectional study design. Also, these results imply that organizations and managers who want to see more employee creative behavior from their employees could do so by implementing inclusive leadership practices. This research contributes to the understanding of leadership style and employee creativity in the southern Indian IT sector. By highlighting the mediating role of autonomous motivation, the study encourages IT organizations to adopt inclusive leadership practices that develop intrinsic motivation and liberate employee creative potential. This promotes competitive advantages in the dynamic IT sector.
Keywords: Autonomous Motivation, Employee Creative Behavior, Inclusive Leadership, Self-Determination Theory