The contribution of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) to economic prosperity and expansion is widely acknowledged worldwide. However, the empirical evidence in the literature on enhancing sustainable performance in manufacturing industries, specifically SMEs in developing countries living under constant unstable economic and political environments such as Palestine, is still insufficient. Referring to the theory of Triple Bottom Line (TBL), Contingency Theory (CT), Natural Resource Based View (NRBV) and the relevant literature on sustainable performance in business firms, this study aims to explore the effect of competent human capital (CHC), strategic flexibility (SF) and turbulent environment (TE) on the sustainable performance (SP) of SMEs industries in the context of Palestine. Based on 380 random samples in manufacturing SME industries in the country, 245 useful questionnaires were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling for analysis by the Smart PLS 4.0 software. The findings indicate that several enablers could improve the performance of SMEs in Palestinian industries in terms of sustainability. One of these aspects is adopting a supportive governmental policy to strengthen the sustainability concept in the industrial sector and encouraging industries to move toward circularity and greening their operations. Nevertheless, SMEs need to implement proper managerial tools at the firm’s level that enhance sustainable performance, including investment in competent human capital, developing flexible strategies and proper analysis of the surrounding turbulent environment, since all of these will positively impact and improve the sustainable performance of those SMEs. The contribution of this study to the literature develops current knowledge of sustainable performance in SMEs in manufacturing industries, specifically in countries that suffer from political and economic turbulence, by providing a conceptual framework focusing on managerial and business aspects that contributes to achieving desired sustainable performance. Consequently, the study’s findings also show how CHC, SF and TE are essential managerial tools for organizations and SMEs operating in an extremely competitive and turbulent market.

Small and Medium Enterprises’ (SMEs) impact on economic growth is widely acknowledged. Nevertheless, the literature lacks empirical evidence as to how the sustainable performance of manufacturing SMEs in developing countries with unstable and turbulent business environments, such as Palestine, could be enhanced. Relying on the Triple Bottom Line (TBL), Resource-based View (RBV) theory, and sustainable performance literature, this study explores the influence of systematic strategic planning (SSP) and strategic business innovation (SBI) on the sustainable performance (SP) of Palestinian manufacturing SMEs. Based on a sample of 377 manufacturing SMEs in Palestine, 245 valid surveys have been subjected to Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling for analysis using Smart PLS 3.0 software. The results show that various factors can enhance manufacturing SMEs’ sustainability performance, such as adopting a supporting national policy to enhance the concept of sustainability at the policy level. However, implementing proper systematic strategic planning (SSP) and strategic business innovation (SBI) in a collaborative culture and a participatory management style at the firm level in manufacturing SMEs positively influences and enhances the sustainable performance of those firms. This study’s contribution to the literature expands the knowledge on sustainable performance in manufacturing SMEs in developing countries experiencing political and economic uncertainty. Hence, the research findings demonstrate how (SSP) and (SBI) are crucial management tools for businesses operating in a highly competitive and turbulent environment.

Purpose: Social media is a popular communication tool for college students in many countries including Malaysia. Even though the literature indicates that the use of social media in a higher learning environment is likely to enhance academic performance of college students, the mechanism that explains such association is yet to be explored. Based on the claims that the integration of social media use is purposeful to enhance student engagement, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of student engagement as a potential mediator between social media use and academic performance of college students in Malaysia.Design/methodology/approach: A total number of 227 business students in one of the public universities in Malaysia were randomly chosen to participate in this study. Questionnaire was used as the main data collection technique, which was personally administered during class sessions. Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling-partial least square (SEM-PLS).Findings: The result showed the multidimensionality of student engagement. It also indicated that cognitive engagement mediated the relationship between social media and academic performance, but not behavioral, emotional, or agentic engagement. The result suggests that social media has the potential to be used in a learning environment as it promotes cognitive engagement of students in class and subsequently their academic performance and success.Research limitations/implications: One of the limitations of the present study is that the generalizability of the finding to a much larger population of students may be limited as the sampled students were recruited from business students in one of the public universities in Malaysia only. Students of different academic programs in different universities may have a different pattern of using the social media.Practical implications: This study will help higher learning institutions and educators think of ways to integrate the use of social media in learning activities to help students achieve better academic performance. As shown by the findings, such use can encourage students to be cognitively engagedt in class in which the students can be more active learners.Originality/value: The present study adds to the literature in social media use by addressing the issue of how it helps enhance academic performance of college students in a single model. Past studies tended to examine the role of social media and student engagement and the effect of student engagement on academic performance separately. Furthermore, this study took into consideration various types of social media used by college students who tend to have multiple accounts.

It is devastating to people’s mental and emotional health to be exposed to the COVID-19 pandemic and the multifaceted response strategies are required to curb it. As a result of social distancing and self-isolation, people have faced many challenges in their lives. The suffering is even greater at the workplace where the employees are working with the fear of getting exposed to the virus and its new variants which is adversely affecting their wellbeing. This study explores and tests a model that extends the wellbeing research across organizational settings and targets the crucial factors that lead to job performance improvement even in the post pandemic COVID-19 situation. To improve both in-role performance and extra-role performance behaviors in the Pakistan banking sector, organizational virtue (also known as organizational virtuousness) and internal virtue (also known as emotional intelligence) are examined. Data were collected from the 416 bank employees using disproportionate stratified sampling technique. In the bank sector of Pakistan, wellbeing was identified as the key psychological factor that relates the in-role performance and extra-role performance to internal and organizational factors. Research findings also determined that conceptualizing subjective wellbeing in the context of work is more meaningful in understanding its relationship with the workplace variables than the general or global subjective wellbeing.

This research aims to investigate the antecedents of employee eco-initiatives toconcerning public service motivation, green work climate, employee environmental concern and supervisor environmental priority in Malaysia's healthcare sector. Based on the structural equation modeling (SEM) analysis with the help of SMART-PLS, it was found that public service motivation positively influences eco-initiatives in a direct and indirect manner through green work climate and employee environmental concern. The results stress the role of intrinsic motivation and organizational culture in changing people's behaviors sustainably. Healthcare organizations should encourage public service motivation, develop a supportive green work climate, and integrate environmental leadership to support sustainability. This research advances the field by proposing a holistic framework that captures both the organizational and personal antecedents of eco-initiatives in an environment where service demands are high.