Enhancing Organizational Social Sustainability: Exploring the Effect of Sustainable Leadership and the Moderating Role of Micro-Level CSR

Abstract

Managers face challenges in leveraging people as a source of competitive advantage due to advancements in technology and the widespread availability of information, which have rendered other sources of competitive advantage less effective. In this context, social sustainability within an organization refers to the enduring relationships between employees and the organization, as well as their collective contribution to organizational goals. Strengthening social sustainability provides opportunities to achieve desired objectives through the efforts of employees. This study presents empirical findings that support the assumptions that sustainable leadership enhances social sustainability, and that micro-level corporate social responsibility (CSR) moderates this relationship. The data were gathered from a randomly selected sample of 516 employees in the healthcare industry, and regression analysis using structural equation modeling (SEM) was employed to test the hypotheses. The results demonstrate a significant role of sustainable leadership on the establishment and development of social sustainability, with micro-level CSR positively influencing this relationship as a moderator. These findings hold both theoretical and practical implications. Given the labor-intensive nature of the healthcare industry and the interconnectedness of the three variables examined in this study, no prior research investigating these connections was found in the literature. Therefore, the research model proposed in this study and its subsequent findings represent a valuable contribution to the existing body of knowledge. The findings offer guidance to hospital administrators, emphasizing the importance of focusing on sustainable leadership and micro-level CSR to reduce turnover rates and cultivate long-term relationships with employees, thereby enhancing organizational effectiveness.