Green Transformational Leadership and Employees’ Taking Charge Behavior: The Mediating Role of Personal Initiative and the Moderating Role of Green Organizational Identity

The green transformation of organizations requires employees not only to achieve environmentally friendly workflows within their duties, but also to go beyond their own current work and take personal initiative to realize the organizational goals. Employees’ taking charge behavior is a type of extra-role behavior that influences organizational change through constructive efforts. How can leaders increase employees’ environmental responsibility and efficiently promote their taking charge behaviors to help organizations make green changes? Based on self-determination theory and related research on green transformational leadership, this study explores the mechanisms and boundary conditions of how green transformational leadership influences employees’ taking charge behavior. Data were obtained through two-stage questionnaire surveys from 429 employees in Chinese manufacturing enterprises. The results show that green transformational leadership has a significantly positive impact on employees’ taking charge behavior and that personal initiative plays a mediating role. Furthermore, green organizational identity moderates the positive influence of green transformational leadership on employees’ personal initiative, and consequently, their taking charge behavior. These findings have theoretical implications for the green transformational leadership literature and managerial implications for practitioners.