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Sustainable Business Practices and Theories in Leadership, Innovation and Organizational Behaviour

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A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Management".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 May 2023) | Viewed by 44652

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Makhmoor Bashir

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Guest Editor

Department of Business Administration, College of Business & Economics, Qassim University, P.O. Box 6640, Buraidah 51452, Qassim, Saudi Arabia
Interests: business model innovation; sustainable business model innovation; SME performance; competitive advantage; knowledge management

Dr. M. Muzamil Naqshbandi

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Guest Editor

UBD School of Business & Economics, University of Brunei Darussalam, Jalan Tungku Link BE1410, Brunei
Interests: open innovation; strategy; business models; innovation appropriability; leadership, absorptive capacity; organizational culture

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Companies are facing immense pressure to pay increasing attention to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues while creating value. According to the most recent McKinsey Global Survey, 83% of C-suite executives and investment experts think that five years from now, ESG projects will produce greater shareholder value than they currently do. Therefore, businesses are incorporating sustainable business practices into their business models as more consumers seek goods and services that are less harmful to the environment. To counter these challenges, organizations are on a quest for new and improved sustainable practices to become competitive.

This Special Issue calls for original research on the crossroad of sustainability, leadership, innovation, and organizational behavior. It intends to provide new avenues to reflect and reimagine the challenges, opportunities, and long-term outcomes of sustainable business practices in the organizational arena. Theoretical and empirical contributions, either qualitative or quantitative, are therefore welcome.

Potential topics include but are not limited to the following:

Sustainable business practices;
Sustainable leadership;
Sustainable business model innovation;
Barriers to adoption of sustainable business practices;
Drivers of sustainable business practices;
Sustainable business practices and firm performance;
Sustainable business practices and competitive advantage.

Dr. Makhmoor Bashir
Dr. M. Muzamil Naqshbandi
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

sustainable business practices
innovation
sustainable business model innovation
leadership
organizational behaviour

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Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

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19 pages, 592 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Impact of Family Supportive Supervisor Behavior on Employees’ Proactive Behavior: A Cognitive and Affective Integration Perspective

by Chuanhao Fan, Chunlan Ye, Long Zhang and Yao Gong

Sustainability 2023, 15(17), 12739; https://doi.org/10.3390/su151712739 - 23 Aug 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1344

Abstract

With the increasing complexity of the external organizational environment, employees’ proactive behavior has become a critical factor for organizational success. However, there is limited research exploring the mechanisms behind employees’ proactive behavior from the perspective of family supportive supervisor behavior, which satisfies employees’ work–family balance. Based on the Cognitive–Affective Personality System theory and in the context of escalating work–family conflict and the Chinese cultural context, which emphasizes reciprocity, this study collected survey data from 535 employees in two stages. The study aimed to investigate the relationship between family supportive supervisor behavior and employees’ proactive behavior. The results show that family supportive supervisor behavior has a positive impact on employees’ proactive behavior; perceived insider status and affective commitment partially mediate the impact of family supportive supervisor behavior on employees’ proactive behavior; and perceived insider status and affective commitment play chain-mediating roles in the influence of family supportive supervisor behavior on employees’ proactive behavior. This study innovatively reveals the “black box” of the relationship between family supportive supervisor behavior and employees’ proactive behavior from the internal perspective of individual cognition–emotion. This expands the research on the consequences of family supportive supervisor behavior in the work field and provides inspiration for enterprises on how to motivate employees’ proactive behavior. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Business Practices and Theories in Leadership, Innovation and Organizational Behaviour)

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23 pages, 1465 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Role of Governance in Achieving Sustainability in Family-Owned Business: Do Responsible Innovation and Entrepreneurial Culture Matter?

by Razan Abdullah Al Rawaf and Abdulaziz Abdulmohsen Alfalih

Sustainability 2023, 15(7), 5647; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15075647 - 23 Mar 2023

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3123

Abstract

Research on family business sustainability has seen a surge over the last decade. Despite this, very little research has been performed to investigate the impact of governance on family business sustainability. Building on this gap, this paper empirically examines the impacts from organizational governance and responsible innovation on the sustainability of family-owned businesses. It also evaluates entrepreneurial culture’s contribution as a moderator of the nexus of organizational governance, responsible innovation, and business sustainability in Saudi Arabia. A sample of 396 responses were collected from 87 family enterprises; respondents were generally principal managers and/or main business owners. The relationships in the conceptual model were tested with structural equation modelling using SmartPLS. The results show that organizational governance and responsible innovation positively and statistically significantly impact business sustainability among family-owned businesses in Saudi Arabia. Furthermore, entrepreneurial culture significantly and positively moderates the organizational governance, responsible innovation and business sustainability of family-owned businesses in Saudi Arabia. The results guide regulators in regulation formulation related to the achievement of business sustainability through good governance and effective entrepreneurial culture. Government and regulatory authorities must therefore encourage family-owned businesses in their predominantly economic functions in society, while also engaging in sustainability-oriented policy making and programs. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Business Practices and Theories in Leadership, Innovation and Organizational Behaviour)

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21 pages, 997 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Role of Transformational Leadership in Developing Innovative Work Behaviors: The Mediating Role of Employees’ Psychological Capital

by Saeid Karimi, Farzaneh Ahmadi Malek, Ahmad Yaghoubi Farani and Genovaitė Liobikienė

Sustainability 2023, 15(2), 1267; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15021267 - 9 Jan 2023

Cited by 27 | Viewed by 16495

Abstract

Despite growing research on the significance of transformational leadership as a key contextual factor that determines innovative behavior, recent studies have not investigated the psychological mechanisms that link transformational leadership to employees’ innovative behavior thoroughly. Thus, the main purpose of this study was to examine the mediating role the four dimensions of psychological capital—self-efficacy, hope, resilience, and optimism—play in the relationship between transformational leadership and employees’ innovative work behavior. Data from 178 Iranian agriculture experts were collected and analyzed using structural equation modeling. The results indicated that transformational leadership was related to employees’ innovative work behavior directly and positively. Furthermore, the results showed that hope and self-efficacy partially mediated the relationship. This study fills a gap in the literature by clarifying the way the dimensions of psychological capital influence transformational leadership’s positive relationship to employees’ innovative work behavior in the public sector of developing countries. The results imply that to be innovatively effective, organizations need to manage both employees’ contextual (transformational leadership) and psychological (psychological capital) resources to enhance their innovative work behavior. The theoretical and practical implications were further discussed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Business Practices and Theories in Leadership, Innovation and Organizational Behaviour)

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14 pages, 874 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Impact of Shared Leadership on Team Creativity in Innovation Teams—A Chain Mediating Effect Model

by Muyun Sun, Kaiyuan He and Ting Wen

Sustainability 2023, 15(2), 1212; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15021212 - 9 Jan 2023

Viewed by 4203

Abstract

As an important outcome of team innovation, team creativity has become an important issue in academia and industry. Meanwhile, the horizontal leadership model has been preliminarily proven to be effective in improving the output of innovation performance. Multiple chain mediating effects of team psychological safety climate, cognitive motivation and social motivation on shared leadership and team creativity in innovative teams were proposed on the basis of social network theory and group dynamics theory. In this study, 178 innovation teams and 2011 innovation team members were given questionnaires, and the obtained data were empirically analyzed. The results show that shared leadership has a significant positive effect on team creativity in innovative teams; team psychological safety climates, cognitive motivation and social motivation play a partial mediating role between shared leadership and team creativity, and play a chain mediating role together. At the team level, the study verifies the positive effect of shared leadership on team creativity and reveals the complex team process. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Business Practices and Theories in Leadership, Innovation and Organizational Behaviour)

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13 pages, 455 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Corporate Social Responsibility as a Sustainable Business Practice: A Study among Generation Z Customers of Indian Luxury Hotels

by George Thomas

Sustainability 2022, 14(24), 16813; https://doi.org/10.3390/su142416813 - 14 Dec 2022

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3915

Abstract

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) has attained great interest among academicians and practitioners alike. However, the underlying mechanisms and theoretical boundaries that amplify customers’ willingness to pay a higher price towards environmentally conscious hotel brands is under researched. Thus, to accelerate this discourse, the current study explores the relationship between perceived CSR, green image of a hotel brand, and customers’ willingness to pay a higher price. Drawing insights from the stakeholder theory, this study proposes a model and empirically validates how a positive CSR perception helps Generation Z customers perceive a green image of the company and drive positive responses like willingness to pay higher price towards socially responsible luxury hotels. The study further examines the moderating role of gender on the proposed relationships. Data collected from 302 Gen Z customers from 4 and 5 star (luxury) hotels in the capital city of India were analyzed through structural equation modelling. The results of this study confirm the significant direct impacts of perceived CSR on green image of a hotel brand as well as customers’ willingness to pay higher price. Moreover, the study also demonstrates the significant positive effect of perceived CSR on customers’ willingness to pay higher price. The results also confirm the moderating influence of gender on the proposed relationships. This study has important implication for managers of luxury hotels. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Business Practices and Theories in Leadership, Innovation and Organizational Behaviour)

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19 pages, 1159 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Link between Ambidextrous Leadership and Innovative Work Behavior in a Military Organization: The Moderating Role of Climate for Innovation

by Gökhan Akıncı, Lutfihak Alpkan, Bora Yıldız and Gaye Karacay

Sustainability 2022, 14(22), 15315; https://doi.org/10.3390/su142215315 - 18 Nov 2022

Cited by 14 | Viewed by 3829

Abstract

Innovative work behavior is a vital necessity that enables sustainable public sector organizations, particularly the highly centralized military ones, to successfully adapt to complex and rising challenges. This empirical study, drawing on the social exchange theory, investigates the separate and combined effects of ambidextrous leadership dimensions (i.e., opening and closing leader behaviors) on innovative work behavior and the moderating role of climate for innovation on these relationships. The data were collected from 425 participants working at Allied Command Transformation (ACT), the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s (NATO) Warfare Development Command, and analyzed using AMOS and SPSS Process Macro. We found that while opening leader behavior of ambidextrous leadership was positively related to innovative work behavior, closing leader behavior had no significant effect on it. Findings also confirmed that the interaction of both (i.e., the combined effect of ambidextrous leadership) was positively related to innovative work behavior, and climate for innovation moderated the relations of both closing leader behavior and ambidextrous leadership to innovative work behavior. Based on these results, we discuss the managerial and theoretical implications. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Business Practices and Theories in Leadership, Innovation and Organizational Behaviour)

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18 pages, 687 KiB

Open AccessReview

Leadership towards Sustainability: A Review of Sustainable, Sustainability, and Environmental Leadership

by Jane Boeske

Sustainability 2023, 15(16), 12626; https://doi.org/10.3390/su151612626 - 21 Aug 2023

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 10078

Abstract

Leadership and sustainability have been researched and examined concurrently. There is considerable knowledge regarding sustainable, sustainability, and environmental leadership as separate areas of research and as effective leadership styles that facilitate the achievement of sustainability outcomes. While these research streams have developed alongside each other, there is limited knowledge about the similarities and differences between each of these three leadership approaches. To resolve this problem, the purpose of this paper is to review and compare key leadership themes from each sustainable, sustainability, and environmental leadership approach by: (a) identifying key leadership findings, (b) highlighting areas of similarity and difference, and (c) developing an integrated framework of leadership behaviors used to influence and direct organizations towards improved organizational performance with a view to understanding leadership towards sustainability. This comprehensive review is structured around a framework of three theoretical approaches: sustainable, sustainability, and environmental leadership, due to their currency in the literature and relationship to achieving sustainability goals. This review is needed to integrate the fragmented literature, build on and organize current knowledge, and develop a unified framework that combines findings on leadership practices and behaviors in terms of the types of leadership required for achieving sustainability performance. As such, this paper seeks to make a significant contribution to the scholarly literature by unifying existing frameworks and clarifying points of similarity and differentiation under the umbrella of ‘leadership towards sustainability’. Hence, this paper seeks to be among the first to appraise and connect these three leadership approaches, thus filling a gap in the literature. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Business Practices and Theories in Leadership, Innovation and Organizational Behaviour)

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