Board-TMT task conflict: The impact on shared strategic vision and moderating effect of shared leadership

Abstract

In this article, we study the top management team (TMT) and board of directors as a strategic-oriented multiteam system, termed the strategic leadership system (SLS), responsible for the firm's strategic decision-making. This SLS must collaborate effectively to enhance strategic decision-making quality. However, boards are designed to challenge TMT decisions, often leading to diverging viewpoints among these decision-making groups. Utilizing factional faultlines and information-processing perspectives, we argue that the extent of board-TMT task conflict negatively affects a shared strategic vision within the SLS. Additionally, we explore the moderating role of the extent of shared leadership within the SLS, which we define as the varying perceptions among all SLS members regarding who is recognized as the leader of the SLS. Analysis of multiple-respondent data from 387 SLS members in 41 Belgian private family firms shows that task conflict negatively impacts the shared strategic vision, particularly when leadership is perceived to be shared.