Top management team cognition and strategic decision performance: The mediating role of team conflict

Abstract

This study assessed the influence of top team conflict on top management team (TMT) cognition (ability and need), strategic decision-making (quality and satisfaction), and differentiating between task conflict and emotional conflict. Participants were from 63 Chinese enterprises (n = 226; female= 45.58%; mean age = 33.5 years, SD = 2.70 years). They completed surveys on TMT cognition, strategic decision-making, and team conflict (task conflict and emotional conflict). Following structural equation modelling, results showed a significant positive correlation between TMT cognition and strategic decision-making performance, not only directly, but also indirectly through a sequential mediation of task and emotional conflicts. However, the indirect pathway is stronger among TMTs with task conflicts than those with emotional conflicts. These findings suggest that when organisations leverage their resource on TMT task conflicts, they will be more likely to be involved in engaging in mutual influence behaviours in their work, and lead the team to achieve a higher level of strategic decision-making performance.