“Can’t direct the wind? Adjust the sails”: a mediation model of intellectual capital, adaptive capability and project performance

Purpose The IT services industry faces ongoing disruptions due to rapid technological changes and corresponding shifts in customer expectations and competitor actions. Successfully addressing these disruptions entails IT firms to channelize their intellectual capital toward enhancing their ability to adapt. In this study, we propose a mediation model to examine the influence of a project team’s intellectual capital on project performance. Design/methodology/approach Data were collected from 215 project leaders across different business units within an Indian IT services organization with large operational teams. Mediation analysis was conducted to test the model. Findings Our findings provide evidence for enhanced team performance through the indirect benefits of adaptive capability accruing from the teams’ intellectual capital. Superior performance is achieved when the intellectual capital steers the adaptive capability of the firm. Practical implications Project leaders within IT organizations should constantly enhance their knowledge base and intellectual capital, enabling them to exploit the available knowledge to gain a competitive advantage. This intellectual capital created within the project team can be tapped to foster an adaptive capability, eventually leading to better performance. Originality/value Our findings provide unique insights regarding the importance of investing in the intellectual capital of the teams, which results in the enhancement of adaptive capability and thereby the project performance. Data collected from a non-western setting also add to the existing body of knowledge on intellectual capital.