Abstract:

Remote and hybrid work have fundamentally reshaped leadership roles, yet limited attention has been paid to how these contexts affect leaders’ own wellbeing. This developmental paper argues that remote and hybrid work reconfigure the demand–resource architecture of leadership roles in ways that intensify the energetic costs of enacting leadership. Drawing on a structured literature review, we synthesise five existing reviews on leadership behaviour and leader wellbeing and 25 empirical studies (2020 onwards) on leaders in remote and hybrid white‑collar settings. Using Conservation of Resources theory and the Job Demands–Resources model as guiding lenses, we conceptualise leadership behaviour as energetic investment rather than solely a resource for followers. We identify three structural features of remote and hybrid work—digital intensification, boundary permeability and responsibility centralisation—as key amplifiers of behavioural demands for leaders. These features increase the cognitive, emotional and relational effort required to guide, support and coordinate others, while simultaneously constraining opportunities for recovery. We propose that this contextual amplification heightens risks of strain, burnout and impaired wellbeing among leaders. The paper develops a context-sensitive framework of “energetic leadership demands” in digital work and outlines a research agenda for studying sustainable remote leadership, including dynamic designs and attention to structural recovery mechanisms.

Please choose your submission type: Developmental Paper

Primary Track: Human Resource Management

Keywords: Organizational behaviour and psychological state;Stress and well-being;Leadership;Future of work, technology & Innovation

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Ms. Isabeau Schmidt