The post-pandemic age has heightened the importance of digitalizing organizational practices and fostering innovation for SMEs to ensure resilient business operations in a volatile work environment. This research paper examines the impact of digital transformation leadership on the digitalization of business practices and the development of innovative business models while considering the roles of organizational agility and knowledge transfer. A survey of 270 employees from SMEs in Lebanon was conducted using the convenience sampling technique. Data analysis was performed quantitatively through Partial Least Squares—Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The results reveal that adopting digital transformation leadership fosters organizational agility, enabling effective digital transformation and business model innovation with a robust knowledge transfer system. This study contributes to the fields of digital transformation and innovation, and offers practical insights for SME managers navigating uncertainties and market volatility in the post-pandemic period.

A rapid pace of change presents an unforeseen and perpetual competitive challenge for organizations. Despite the existence of numerous change management models, organizational change leaders often encounter obstacles during the implementation phase that limit change effectiveness. This paper seeks to make a difference in managerial actions, specifically when implementing planned change, by directing them to use specific leadership actions during the change stage. While previous research has acknowledged the potential linkage between leadership and change effectiveness, a comprehensive exploration of this relationship within the realm of strategic change management remains lacking. This study aims to address this gap by comparing transactional and transformational leadership styles through the lens of the leadership-as-practice perspective. Specifically, this paper analyzes the alignment of these leadership styles with the Kotter model for implementing organizational change and investigates which leadership components or behaviors positively impact predetermined stages of change. Using the MLQ and a developed Kotter questionnaire, data was collected from 385 Lebanese employees working in SMEs experiencing change across the five provinces of Lebanon. PLS structural equation modeling was utilized to analyze the results, and the GoF value indicated that the study model is valid to be considered as a PLS global model. Our findings shed light on the dynamic interplay between leadership efficacy and distinct change stages. Rooted in the leadership-as-practice perspective, this study contributes a nuanced understanding of effective leadership’s crucial role in navigating the multifaceted challenges of organizational change, offering insights for practitioners and scholars alike.

The concept of Green Human Resource Management (GHRM) is regarded as a major turning point in managing human capital among firms. Sustainable practices, ecofriendly initiatives, and adequate management of employees (i.e., recruitment, training, performance, rewards, and involvement) are fundamental aspects of GHRM, which enable improvements in the performance of firms and enhanced competitiveness among their rivals. In this regard, the current study takes a quantitative approach towards analyzing GHRM practices and their effects on employee retention among hotels in the UAE. Furthermore, the indirect effect of green innovation is analyzed as a potential mediating variable that can better explain the GHRM–employee retention relationship. A total of 207 employees from five 5-star hotels were selected as participants to provide information regarding the factors under examination in this research. The collected data were analyzed using Smart-PLS v.3 and a partial least squares–structural equation modeling technique, which is a fitting technique for causal models. The perspective of employees on the outcome of GHRM initiatives and their willingness to remain in their firms can greatly contribute to the current understanding of GHRM and its effectiveness on employee retention in the context of the hotel industry of the UAE, and thus, aid practitioners and scholars alike.

Individuals working in different industries were forced to change their work environments to their homes and quickly cope with technical and social changes not experienced before the occurrence of COVID-19 pandemic. This led to blurred boundaries between work and family roles, diminishing performance and wellbeing. Within the scope of the Research Topic “Workplace effects of COVID-19 on employees,” this research emphasizes on the positive impact of job autonomy provided by employers in reducing work-family conflicts. Moreover, the effect of work-family conflict on employees’ performance and wellbeing is analyzed. Furthermore, informational support is examined regarding its moderating effect to mitigate work-family conflicts and enhance wellbeing. A survey was administered among employees of small-medium enterprises in Lebanon, through purposive and convenience sampling with 198 participants. The data was analyzed using PLS-SEM, and the results show that job autonomy reduces work-family conflict. This in turn improves performance and wellbeing as individuals have more control on their tasks. Furthermore, informational support provided to the employees serves as a buffer between work-family conflict and wellbeing. These results can be beneficial for managers of small and medium enterprises, seeking to enhance the performance and wellbeing of their employees in the era of the pandemic. Similarly, scholars can benefit from theoretical premises of current study and the potential pathways for future analyses.

Objective: Although the importance of emotional intelligence is noted by several authors, its significance should be emphasized in jobs where crises occur, such as Lebanese banking positions. The significance of the study lies in its main aim, which is to address this gap and examine how the emotional intelligence of Lebanese bank employees affects their performance during a crisis. The aim of the study is to examine the positive impact of emotional intelligence on the performance of employees working in the Lebanese banking sector during a crisis. Methodology: To verify this aim, a questionnaire was distributed to employees working in the Lebanese banking sector during the crisis that has been affecting Lebanon. A sample of 201 respondents was obtained, and the data obtained were analyzed using SPSS. Findings: It was found that employees working in the banking industry during the crisis performed better when they possessed high emotional intelligence. Implications/Value: It is highly recommended that bank managers become aware of the importance of their own emotional intelligence and that of their employees, as it will directly and positively affect their performance during a crisis, thus influencing the overall performance of the sector.

In light of the escalating necessity for sustainability within Lebanese small to medium-sized enterprises, these organizations are considered contributors to ecological damage. As a consequence, many of these enterprises adopted green human resource management practices encouraging employees toward sustainable behaviors. This is in conformity with the principles of the circular economy that aim to shun resource depletion and resonate with the country’s currency devaluation, political instability, and lack of access to resources. Given this background, this study aims to examine the influence of green human resource management practices on organizational pride, brand citizenship behavior, and turnover intention, moderated by individual green values. This study adopted a mixed-methods approach, collecting quantitative data from 202 employees working for small to medium-sized enterprises through a questionnaire, and qualitative insights through semi-structured interviews from eight managers; these were then analyzed using PLS-SEM and thematic analysis. The results showed that green human resource management practices lead to an increase in organizational pride, which positively influences brand citizenship behavior and negatively affects turnover intention. Individual green values positively moderate the aforementioned relationships. Understanding such detailed interrelationships adds insights into the literature of green practices. Moreover, this is the initial empirical investigation that integrates these concepts within the small to medium-sized enterprise context and provides comprehensive insights to stakeholders to enhance sustainability through appropriate human resource management strategies.