Horses for Courses: Examining the Aptness of Leadership and Structures for Enhanced Performance in Liberal Governmentality

Variations in human styles at the governance and project levels are under-explored in project governance literature despite the impact of their compatibility on effective governance. This study develops and validates a model of a specific governor’s style (liberal governmentality) on project performance through differentiated project manager styles (transformational and transactional). Considering the inseparable nature of structural aspects of governance, the centralization of structure is selected to expound their cohesive influence on project performance. Results: show that liberal governmentality differently impacts project performance through both studied project manager leadership styles, while centralization distinctly moderates their relationships on project performance.