When and how ESM affects creativity: The role of communication visibility and employee agility in a cross-cultural setting

Drawing on insights from communication visibility theory, the primary objective of this research was to evaluate the associations between ESM usage and employee creativity through employee agility. Furthermore, we explore the moderating role of communication visibility on our theorized relationships. Our results are based on two cross-cultural and multi-wave studies. Study 1 (N = 233) was conducted in the collectivistic culture of the Peoples' Republic of China, where three-wave data were obtained from workers employed by a range of organizations utilizing ESM technology at work. We replicated our findings in Study 2 (N = 215), using two-wave data from employees in the United States (an individualistic culture). The findings reveal positive correlations between ESM usage and employee agility, and ESM usage and employee creativity while employee agility was found as an important underlying psychological process in the association between ESM usage and employee creativity. In addition, communication visibility has shown significant moderating effects on some of our hypothesized relationships. We discuss how our findings can help organizations and managers better understand ESM usage and the implications for both employee agility and creativity.