Effective leadership behaviours and information culture in the higher education institution Sirje Virkus and Anmar Salman School of Digital Technologies, Tallinn University, Tallinn, Estonia Abstract Purpose – This study aims to increase the understanding of the connection between effective leadership behaviours and information culture in the higher education institution (HEI). Design/methodology/approach – A qualitative case study was conducted at one department of an HEI in Estonia. This study used semi-structured interviews and document analysis for data collection. The hypothesis-generating technique applying grounded theory analysis was used for data analysis. Findings – The information culture of the department was a multiple culture with mixed attributes from the relationship-based culture and the risk-taking culture. Six main effective leadership behaviours within the department were identified, namely, communicating well about the direction the department is going, having a clear sense of direction and strategic vision, providing resources for and adjusting workloads to stimulate scholarship and research, making academic appointments that enhance department’s reputation, allowing the opportunity to participate in key decisions and encouraging open communication and creating a positive and collegial work atmosphere. The main hypotheses that illustrate the influence of effective leadership behaviours on information culture were generated. Practical implications – The findings of this study can inform the training of future leaders in HEIs. Originality/value – There is a lack of research in higher education that focuses on the relationship between leadership and information culture, and this research fills this gap. Keywords Leadership behaviours, Information culture, Higher education, University, Academic staff, Grounded theory, Managers, Case study Paper type Research paper 1. Introduction Leadership is an important factor that can significantly influence organizational performance and success (Bass, 1990; Valdiserri and Wilson, 2010). Therefore, numerous studies exist investigating the nature of effective leadership. Leadership has been studied from a number of different perspectives; for example, trait, situational, behavioural, contingency, path-goal, power and influence (transactional and transformational leadership), cultural and symbolic, which have resulted in a large number of theories and models of leadership. These theories and models offer a broad array of explanations regarding how leadership impacts the follower motivation, thinking, behaviours and performance (Avolio et al., 2009, p. 764). Although leadership has been mostly explored in the business context, it is also an important factor in the educational sector (Wolverton et al., 2001). Leadership in education has been subject to research for decades. A large amount of research has been conducted in primary, secondary or special schools and in colleges and universities (Daniëls et al., 2019). However, there is a lack of research focusing on the connections between leadership and information culture. Although several researchers have included leadership as one of the Higher education institution Received 3 August 2020 Revised 10 September 2020 Accepted 5 October 2020 Global Knowledge, Memory and Communication © Emerald Publishing Limited 2514-9342 DOI 10.1108/GKMC-08-2020-0106 The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at: https://www.emerald.com/insight/2514-9342.htm