Sustainable Leadership Research Articles

Unlocking the potential: Sustainability finance as the catalyst for ESG innovations in Nigeria

This article explores the critical role that sustainable finance has to play in furthering Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) innovations within Nigeria, a regional leader in sustainability across West Africa. Over the last decades, Nigeria has made reasonable strides in the development of renewable energy, waste management, sustainable agriculture, and eco-friendly infrastructure. However, significant financial barriers exist that make scaling such initiatives difficult: a general lack of access to green financing, high costs of borrowing, and weak institutional support. It also, through the use of both global and local data, discusses the interaction of financial mechanisms with ESG innovation in successful projects such as the Solar Power Naija initiative, the issuance of Nigeria's first green bond. The analysis also looks at systemic challenges and proposes some actionable solutions, including policy reforms, private sector interventions, and innovative financing models such as blended finance and digital platforms. With emphasis on the need for collaborative efforts among stakeholders, this article underlines the transformative potential of sustainability finance in driving Nigeria's ESG growth, fostering environmental resilience, and promoting social equity.

Sustainability as a business opportunity: a corpus-assisted discourse analysis of sustainable finance discourse

Abstract As sustainability becomes increasingly embedded in the practices of financial institutions worldwide, financial discourse is also adapting to reflect the new related societal values. This study aims to identify the discursive strategies employed by banks to frame their leadership in sustainability, present their sustainable products and services as business opportunities, and explore the development of dialogic relationships between banks and clients. Employing a corpus-assisted discourse analytical approach, a dataset of 2 million words comprised of sustainability-related reports publicly available on banks’ websites was analysed. The findings indicate a growing recognition of the significance of diversity and inclusion in senior leadership positions, with an observed increase in the representation of women. Moreover, banks position themselves as service providers and catalysts for transforming associated risks into business opportunities, leveraging various factors such as financial success, positive culture, and strong support for customers and employees. In terms of the bank-client relationship, the findings reveal a shift towards empowering clients and acknowledging their agency, encouraging them to make informed decisions and take charge of their financial well-being. This research sheds light on the evolving discursive practices within the realm of sustainable finance and provides valuable insights for both academia and the business sector.

Digital Strategy, Digital Leadership, Organizational Agility, and Digital Transformation for Agricultural Business Sustainability: A Human Resource Management Review

Digitalization has brought a transformation approach from all aspects. Various literatures state that agricultural digitalization is a necessity followed by aspects of human resource management for business sustainability. Various empirical evidence states that business continuity in the digital era is greatly influenced by various factors, including digital strategy, digital leadership, organizational agility, and digital transformation. The study aims to present empirical evidence regarding the practice and/or factors of digital strategy, digital leadership, organizational agility, and digital transformation by comparing the case of agricultural business sustainability and business sustainability in the context of human resource management practices. Using a systematic literature review approach involving 59 journals, consisting of 19 journals concerning the topic of agricultural business sustainability, and 40 journals in the context of human resource management. The journals as secondary sources are limited to the latest international research journals, namely publications between 2020-2024. The results of the analysis found that discussions on digital strategy, digital leadership, organizational agility, and digital transformation for agricultural business sustainability began to be carried out in 2023, and there is a possibility of increasing in the coming years. The future study agenda to produce theoretical building is an investigation into the role of digital leadership in creating scenarios for the development and sustainability of agricultural businesses. The second finding is that from the perspective of human resource management, the reconstruction of theoretical evidence of digital strategy, digital leadership, organizational agility, and digital transformation for business sustainability still needs to be explored further. The theoretical contribution is that for the sustainability of agricultural businesses, the role of digital leadership needs further proof of business transformation and sustainability. A review of human resource management practices is also needed because organizational agility with digital strategies is not enough to explain digital transformation. As a practical contribution, companies must adapt early on to transform their businesses with a digital approach, because the era of digital technology requires digitalization. There is already a lot of evidence of a company failing and experiencing severe decline due to ignoring digital transformation. Keywords: Agricultural business, business sustainability, digital strategy, digital leadership, organizational agility, digital transformation, human resource management.

Challenges facing emergency departments in public hospitals

The management of hospitals are facing increasing challenges in managing the service and quality of the emergency department. This study identifies the challenges faced by healthcare professionals who work in the emergency department and identifies practical solutions to enhance the sustainable management and leadership of the emergency department. A qualitative study was conducted with health professionals who work in the emergency department in three public hospitals in Saudi Arabia, including six managers, five physicians and seven nurses. Data were collected through one-on-one interviews from purposively selected the emergency department at public hospitals in Saudi Arabia. Three themes emerged from interviews that described the challenges and experiences of health professionals: ethical dimensions, management dimensions, and health system dimensions. The results of the current study indicate that patient overcrowding, long waiting hours in emergency departments, having to make decisions concerning which patients to treat first and the quality of services, leadership and team effectiveness were major contributors to the struggles faced by health professionals inside the emergency department. This study provides the most comprehensive information available to date about the challenges faced by the emergency department managers and leadership and provides suggestions to develop short and long-term strategies to reduce overcrowding in hospitals.

Organizational commitment, procedural justice climate, and organizational citizenship behavior towards sustainability: a multilevel study

Purpose This study aims to examine the direct and indirect effects of team-level sustainable leadership on employees’ organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) towards sustainability through team-level procedural justice and employees’ organizational commitment. Design/methodology/approach The study adopted a time-lagged approach, and data from 267 employees and 53 supervisors from 21 large manufacturing firms in Pakistan were collected. Furthermore, a multilevel modeling analysis was conducted to test the proposed hypotheses. Findings Sustainable leadership significantly and positively influences employees’ OCB towards sustainability. Empirical evidence confirmed that a procedural justice climate (PJC) and employees’ organizational commitment significantly mediate the relationship between sustainable leadership practices and employees’ OCB towards sustainability. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to explore the multilevel role of sustainable leadership concerning OCB towards sustainability, PJC and organizational commitment.

Balancing Tourism Development and Sustainability: A Multi-Stakeholder Approach in Tofino over 15 Years

The narrow conceptualization of capitalism is increasingly challenged as destinations recognize the need to integrate equity and resilience into tourism development. Increasingly, destinations have been using tourism to move away from extractive industries and there is no shortage of literature outlining the need for a more inclusive, multi-stakeholder approach to ensure that sustainability is at the forefront of tourism development considerations. Whether destinations are actually moving towards the more sustainable development of tourism is not always evident and rarely are studies of destinations undertaken over time. Therefore, the purpose of this research was to examine qualitative research spanning 15 years using a multi-stakeholder approach to understand impacts, issues, and solutions relating to tourism development in Tofino, Canada. Tofino has achieved notable advancements in financial, natural, and social capital but continues to face gaps in addressing other dimensions of the Community Capitals Framework (CCF). Insights from this research to focus on social, human, and built capital earlier on in tourism planning and development may help other destinations who partially or fully depend on tourism for their livelihood. This paper addresses real-world tourism development challenges and encompasses multiple stakeholder views on sustainable development, socio-political responsibilities, governance, leadership, destination management, policies, and other practices.

Facilitating collaboration with collaborative technology: Prerequisites and evidence from an explanatory mixed-methods study

Collaboration is widely recognized as essential for mitigating resource dependency and effectively fulfilling public responsibilities. Meanwhile, the use of information technology is expected to enhance communication and strengthen interactions among collaboration participants. Given the substantial annual investments in IT and collaboration initiatives, public managers need to understand how technology, particularly collaborative tools, can be leveraged to achieve better collaboration outcomes. This case study examines the use of collaborative technology in an intraorganizational collaboration context, employing a mixed-methods approach that begins with an experiment followed by semi-structured interviews. The findings reveal that the use of collaborative technology alone does not guarantee improvements in the collaboration process or performance. Achieving desired outcomes requires a supportive organizational and technological environment characterized by sustained leadership, thorough planning, active stakeholder engagement, robust communication mechanisms, and a commitment to continuous learning. Most importantly, genuine collaboration and engagement from all parties involved are key to success.

The Impact of Sustainability Leadership on Job Performance in Nigeria University

The Impact of Sustainability Leadership on Job Performance in Nigeria University

Sustainable Leadership and Employee Performance: The Role of Organizational Culture in Malaysia’s Information Science Sector

Sustainable Leadership and Employee Performance: The Role of Organizational Culture in Malaysia’s Information Science Sector

Developing and validating a scale for measuring sustainable leadership development among teachers in Chinese higher education institutions

Developing and validating a scale for measuring sustainable leadership development among teachers in Chinese higher education institutions

Andy Hargreaves의 지속가능한 리더십이 교육현장에 주는 함의

This study aims to explore the educational implications of sustainable leadership for school sites. This study analyzes the Korean education scene based on the seven principles of sustainable leadership and five principles of action proposed by A. Hargreaves and D. Fink(2006, 2022) based on years of research on the education scene and explores the implications for establishing a plan for the successful sustainable development of Korean education. To this end, this study first examines previous studies on sustainable development at home and abroad, analyzes and diagnoses the current Korean education scene in terms of the principles of sustainable leadership and explores the educational implications of sustainable leadership on the Korean education scene. In terms of the implications of sustainable leadership for school sites derived from this study, the ‘Depth’ dimension suggests avoiding narrow and superficial standardization policies and strengthening policies for holistic education that can foster multiple intelligences; the ‘Length’ dimension suggests establishing a long-term, strategic, and systematic succession program; the ‘Breadth’ dimension suggests distributed leadership among members and strengthening teachers’ leadership competencies; the ‘Justice’ dimension suggests sharing resources and joint growth through solidarity; and the ‘Diversity’ dimension suggests building learning networks and strengthening cohesion among members. In addition, the ‘Resourcefulness’ dimension suggests adjusting education policies through on-site communication and establishing systematic regeneration programs, and the ‘Conservation’ dimension suggests systematic evaluation of past policies and inheritance of excellent ones.

Sustainable leadership and work behavior in hotel businesses: The influence of perceived environmental corporate social responsibility

Despite the growing emphasis on sustainability in the hospitality industry, there is a notable gap in understanding how sustainable leadership influences employee work behavior, particularly through the lens of perceived environmental corporate social responsibility (PECSR), an area that has yet to be fully explored in the context of hotel businesses. Therefore, this study aims to examine the impact of sustainable leadership on sustainable work behavior among employees in hotel businesses with a particular focus on perceived environmental corporate social responsibility as a mediator. This study focuses on full-time employees working in five-star hotels in Egypt, with a total of 352 valid responses collected. The data were analyzed using WarpPLS software, a user-friendly tool for the PLS-SEM approach adopted. The findings indicate that sustainable leadership has a positive impact on employees' sustainable work behavior and their perceptions of environmental corporate social responsibility. Additionally, the study shows that PECSR not only positively influences employees' sustainable work behavior but also serves as a mediator in the relationship between sustainable leadership and sustainable work behavior. This study contributes to sustainability and leadership literature in the hospitality industry. It demonstrates that sustainable leadership’s impact on employee behavior is partially mediated by employees’ perceptions of their organization’s environmental responsibility, enriching leadership theories with insights from corporate social responsibility and organizational behavior. Practically, the research offers hotel managers actionable insights on integrating sustainability into leadership practices, emphasizing the importance of transparent communication about CSR initiatives, leadership training, and aligning sustainability with organizational strategies to enhance employee engagement and foster sustainable work behavior.

Sustainability and Public Management: Focusing on Leadership and on the Development of Competences

Objective: The objective of this study was to investigate the competences associated to the practice of Sustainable Leadership in the city management, having the purpose of identifying pitfalls and proposing strategies for the development of competences that are aligned with the pillars of sustainability. Theoretical Framework: The current research is grounded on Sachs’s (1993) pillars of sustainability, which integrate economic, social and environmental aspects, as well as on competence-based management and sustainable leadership. These theoretical bases guide the analysis and the development of competences associated to the exercise of sustainable leadership by city managers. Method: This is an exploratory and qualitative study, containing semi-structured interviews that have been conducted with eleven city managers, as well as an analysis of institutional norms. The goal was to identify the current situation regarding competences, in order to assess how they are related to sustainability practices and to propose a strategy for the development of such competences. Results and Discussion: The reports demonstrated a lack of competences associated to the practice of sustainable leadership in public city management, and the official documents confirm that there is a need for training that is focused on the development of these strategies, which are essential to promote collective well-being and sustainable practices at the local level. Implications of the study: The study adds to the field when it proposes a practical strategy for training public leaders, influencing in the adoption of sustainable policies and practices. Academically, the study adds to the debate on public city management and sustainability. Originality/Value: This study relates management competences to sustainability in the public sector, providing resources for the development of competences related to sustainable leadership as a key point for the improvement of administrative practices and for guidance on sustainable public policies.

An Applied Approach to Transformational Leadership for Whole School Communities: Perspectives of Primary School and System Leaders

This paper examines the vision, strategy and leadership support structures for Irish primary schools where leadership is specifically referenced, with focus on links to transformational and distributed school leadership. Of particular interest is how transformational and distributed leadership models could aid effective and sustainable leadership enactment in times of exceptional change. This article offers new insights into primary school and system leaders’ perceptions of transformational school leadership and the factors that facilitate and/or inhibit transformational school leadership for the whole school community with a qualitative study. The overarching research question comprised: what are the perceptions of primary school and system leaders relating to the facilitating and inhibiting factors affecting the implementation of transformational school leadership, and is this model perceived to build relations with parents and the wider school community? The data highlight several factors that transcend both transformational and distributed leadership and, with previous research by these authors, inform the construction of a synthesised model of transformational and distributed school leadership for the whole school community aligned with the most recent Irish primary school policy document—‘Looking at Our School 2022: A Quality Framework for Primary Schools and Special Schools (LAOS)’. The authors also accompany this model with a roadmap that may support approaches to school leadership practice for the whole school community, at the primary and post-primary levels, in Ireland.

Analysis of sustainable development goals in university foundational documents

Purpose Higher education institutions play a pivotal role in addressing global challenges and cultivating responsible, sustainable practices among future leaders and professionals. However, some institutions emphasize actions without fully integrating the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into their foundational documents. This study aims to actively examine the extent to which universities in both developed and developing countries incorporate SDGs into their foundational documents. The investigation assesses the presence and articulation of SDGs, representing a crucial step toward fostering a culture of sustainability within universities. This is essential for promoting environmentally responsible behavior, ethical leadership and social awareness among students and young scientists, benefiting both society and the planet. Design/methodology/approach The authors employed a descriptive-comparative research design, conducting content analysis to ascertain the integration of SDGs within foundational documents of universities in both developed and developing countries. The authors selected academic documents from 12 countries and established keywords for each SDG to identify references. Statistical analyses, which included frequency tables, along with qualitative analysis, highlighted the similarities and differences among the documents. Findings The analysis of universities’ foundational documents revealed significant insights into the integration of the SDGs. Notably, SDG 4 (Quality Education) emerged as the most frequently mentioned goal, appearing in a substantial 66.7% of the documents, while SDG 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions) followed closely at 50.8%. In contrast, SDG 14 (Life Below Water) and SDG 2 (Zero Hunger) received minimal attention and were notably missing in the documents. Furthermore, the research highlighted varying degrees of SDG integration in different types of documents, with strategic plans exhibiting a presence rate of 28%, while codes of ethics lagged behind at 11.3%. Qualitative analysis further revealed an intriguing dichotomy: universities in developed countries provided detailed insights into their SDG initiatives, while those in developing countries mentioned the goals without delving into specific actions. Originality/value These findings underscore the imperative for a more consistent and robust commitment to sustainability and ethical leadership within higher education institutions. This is particularly crucial for universities in developing nations, as it fosters environmentally responsible behavior and social awareness among students, faculty, staff and university leaders, benefiting both society and the planet.

Empowering Nonprofits: The Role of Sustainable Spiritual Leadership in Driving Performance

This study investigates the impact of sustainable spiritual leadership on the performance of nonprofit organizations, specifically focusing on 64 churches within the East Java Christian Church (GKJW) Synod from 2021 to 2023. The research uses quantitative data and a multiple regression model to assess spiritual leadership across three dimensions: Pastoral Ministry, Church Ministry, and Leadership. The findings reveal that Church Ministry has a positive and significant effect on organizational performance, while Pastoral Ministry and Leadership have negative yet significant impacts. These results suggest that improving Pastoral Ministry and Leadership may temporarily reduce performance but is essential for fostering long-term sustainable spiritual leadership. On the other hand, Church Ministry produces immediate performance benefits. The study emphasizes the complexity of promoting sustainable spiritual leadership, as all three dimensions need to be harmonized for long-term organizational success and societal impact. The research offers empirical evidence, highlighting the need for balancing short-term performance outcomes with the development of sustainable leadership practices in nonprofit organizations.

EXAMINING THE CHARACTERISTICS OF EFFECTIVE CO-OPERATIVE LEADERSHIP: INSIGHTS FROM COMMITMENT, VISION, AND BUSINESS ACUMEN IN MALAYSIA

This paper investigates valuable and relevant factors that will improve co-operative leadership in Malaysia with a focus on a collective drive, social responsibility, and sound business judgment. A qualitative research design was employed, and the data was collected from Malaysian co-operative leaders. The participants are chosen from among co-operative leaders in Malaysia, such as board members and executive officers. The objective of the study is to identify practical strategies that can boost the resiliency of co-operative societies and enhance their community engagements. The concept of a shared vision is understood as a unifying factor, community commitment is important in ensuring that social value is created, while business savvy is seen as critical for competition in the marketplace. It is anticipated that this research will identify the interaction among the three attributes, and how they together are conducive to the achievement of sustainable co-operative leadership, from the viewpoint s of the stakeholders who wish to see the development of Malaysian co-operatives’ sector.

An Application of The Sustainable Transformational Leadership Dimensions on Teacher’s Performance: A Social Network Analysis

يعد أداء المعلم أحد القضايا المثيرة للجدل في المنظمة. تلعب القيادة التحويلية المستدامة وأبعادها دورا كبيرا في تغيير طبيعة أداء المعلم في المنظمة. في هذه الدراسة تمت مناقشة ودراسة أبعاد القيادة التحويلية المستدامة من خلال تحليل شبكات التواصل الاجتماعي كأداة لتحليل وفهم النتائج. تم جمع البيانات وشارك 30 شخصا في الاستبيان. المنظمات هي قطاعات تعليمية وهي 3 منظمات وذكرت كرموز في الدراسة. توضح هذه الدراسة أن كلا من التدريب المهني المستدام والتدريب الاجتماعي المستدام كأبعاد لنهج القيادة التحويلية المستدامة قادرة على تعزيز وإشراك المعلمين إذا كانت طريقة تطبيق الأبعاد صحيحة لمواصلة التحسن بشكل مستدام. المنظمات إيجابية فيما يتعلق بـالتدريب المهني المستدام ومع ذلك، فإن المنظمة C سلبية فيما يتعلق بـالتدريب الاجتماعي المستدام.

Oral pre-exposure prophylaxis implementation in South Africa: a case study of USAID-supported programs

Since the introduction of oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in 2016, countries have successfully scaled-up PrEP to populations at risk of HIV acquisition, including key populations, serodiscordant couples and pregnant women. Between 2016 and 2023, there were over 5.6 million oral PrEP initiations globally. Of these, over 1.2 million occurred in South Africa, with nearly 700,000 implemented through USAID/South Africa's PEPFAR program. This case study uses WHO's Building Blocks for Health Systems Strengthening to describe USAID's oral PrEP program in South Africa, reporting experiences and lessons learned in 14 districts across 7 provinces. Key lessons include: (i) Substantial donor financial investment was critical for expanding oral PrEP in South Africa, but sustained leadership and investment from government stakeholders, such as the Department of Health and the National Treasury, have been essential for sustainability. Despite fluctuations in USAID funding, annual PrEP initiations have continued to increase in USAID-supported districts largely due to local leadership. (ii) Health information and supply chain systems required agility to monitor oral PrEP introduction and scale-up. When systems lacked agility, temporary solutions like the development of interim reporting tools were necessary. (iii) Integrating community-based and facility-based service delivery supported client-centered care. Nurses and lay health workers contributed to over 80% of the full-time equivalents supporting PrEP under USAID's human resources for health portfolio. (iv) Integrating sexual and reproductive health services with oral PrEP service delivery provided clients with comprehensive, client-centered care. (v) Other client-centered care included differentiated service delivery options, such as mobile and gazebo modalities, and expanded PrEP choice through implementation science activities for new PrEP products. (vi) USAID-supported PrEP initiations have been highest among females of reproductive age in the general population and men who have sex with men among key populations, priority populations in South Africa. As done in this case study, sharing best practices and lessons learned from USAID/South Africa's oral PrEP program can strengthen the implementation evidence base and inform more efficient PrEP service delivery, particularly as new PrEP products become available.

Toward a circular economy in Italian agri-food: upstream partners in insect biorefineries

The insect biorefinery (IB) is central to recycling nutrients from food losses and waste (FLW) in an emerging circular bioeconomy approach. The sustainable leadership of the European insect industry and its integration into the bioeconomy depend on implementing symbiotic production models through site selection and partnerships. Only 8 studies, including 3 in the EU, have examined stakeholder acceptance. This pilot study is the first to focus on potential upstream symbiosis partners (USPs) in the EU, examining the factors that influence the willingness of potential USPs in suitable Italian locations to adopt IB. Preliminary analyses identified a final sample of 31 respondents who completed an online-survey divided into four sections. After data elaboration, a principal component analysis was conducted, considering 27 questions and their correlations with the first two principal components. The analysis revealed that the presence of internal research and development within the company, along with the company’s role in the supply chain and the seasonality of production, had a minor influence on explaining the variance of the data. Interestingly, company size was negatively correlated with the willingness to become part of the insect-rearing supply chain or receive information about this technology. On the contrary, interest in innovative production and self-management of by-products were strongly related. Finally, funding opportunities could positively influence both the Italian and EU contexts, encouraging innovative practices among small and medium-sized enterprises. In contrast, barriers to implementing insect farming include misinformation, anticipated negative media impacts on branding, and resistance to changing by-product management practices. This pilot study serves as a foundational exploration, providing insights into the acceptability of insect farming among potential USPs and offers valuable insights for future studies, thereby shaping the discourse on the acceptability and integration of insect farming within the circular bioeconomy.