The present study investigates how knowledge leadership affects project performance and quality practices in information technology (IT) projects. A questionnaire-based survey was designed to collect responses from 198 mid-level employees of five big Indian IT firms. The data was analysed using PLS-based SEM technique. The findings revealed that knowledge leadership skills, cooperation and trust, and knowledge integration positively influence project performance and project quality practices. The risk-mitigation efforts of a knowledge leader moderate the relationship between knowledge leadership, project performance, and quality practices. The current research has contributed to limited leadership and project management literature available. Knowledge-oriented leadership is a mixture of transformational and transactional leadership and has significant implications on the innovation performance of technology-intensive organizations