Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the factors affecting profitability in Malaysian-listed companies. It has been argued that profitability is the main pillar for any company to survive in the long run. Although profitability is the primary goal of all business ventures, scant attention has been paid to the factors that affect profitability in developing countries. This study investigates the factors affecting profitability in Malaysian-listed companies.Design/methodology/approach: This research is based on five independent variables that were empirically examined for their relationship with profitability. These variables are: firm size (as measured by total sales), working capital (WC), company efficiency (assets turnover ratio), liquidity (current ratio) and leverage (debt equity ratio and leverage ratio). Data of 120 companies listed on Bursa Malaysia covering the period from 2012 to 2014 were extracted from companies’ annual reports. Pooled ordinary least squares regression and fixed-effects were used to analyze the data.Findings: The findings show a strong positive relationship between firm size (total sales), WC, company efficiency (assets turnover ratio) and profitability. The results also show a negative relationship between both debt equity ratio and leverage ratio and profitability. Liquidity (current ratio) has no significant relationship with profitability.Research limitations/implications: Due to the time limitation, the data includes only 120 companies listed in bursa Malaysia and covers the period from 2012 to 2014.Practical implications: These results benefit internal users (such as mangers, shareholders and employees). They can realize the determinants of enhancing the profitability of their company after the depreciation of the Malaysian currency and therefore concentrate more on the factors that enhance their companies’ profitability. On the other side, other external users (such as investors, creditors, new established companies, tax authority) also may get advantages of these results. It is clear that those users concern about the profitability of companies and the determinants of their profitability after the currency’s depreciation.Originality/value: This study differs than previous studies in many ways: first, it focuses on non-financial listed companies in Malaysia. Previous studies have concentrated on companies in the financial sector, such as banking and financial institutions or on industrial organizations. Second, this study analyzes the data in companies’ annual reports for a three-year period from 2012 to 2014. During this period, the economy in Malaysia was fluctuating due to currency depreciation. Third, the study used both return on equity and earnings per share as indicators of profitability. Fourth, the results of the study provide empirical evidence that large size firms with efficiently managed assets can improve operating income and ultimately enhance profitability. Last but not least, this study applies the resource-based theory and the trade-off theory.

This study explores the impact of supply chain diversification strategies (SCDS) on supply chain sustainability performance (SCSP), with focus on the mediating role of supply chain resilience (SCR) and the moderating effect of digital supply chain capabilities (DSC). The research objectives are (1) to assess whether SCR enables diversified supply bases to deliver sustainability outcomes and (2) to examine whether DSC strengthens the effectiveness of diversification in achieving environmental, social, and economic performance. A quantitative, cross-sectional survey was administered to 329 supply chain managers from medium-to-large manufacturing and retail firms in Saudi Arabia. Data were collected using multi-item 5-point Likert scale. Validity and reliability were ensured through EFA, Cronbach’s alpha, and composite reliability. Mediation and moderation effects were tested using PROCESS Macro in SPSS version 27. Findings revealed that 52% of the variance in supply chain sustainability performance (SCSP) was explained. (SCDS) had a strong positive effect on (SCR) (B = 0.612, p < 0.001), which in turn significantly predicted SCSP (B = 0.431, p < 0.001). The total effect of SCDS on SCSP was significant (B = 0.572, p < 0.001), while the direct effect remained strong (B = 0.308, p < 0.001). The indirect effect (a × b = 0.264, 95% CI [0.194, 0.343]) confirmed that SCR partially mediates the relationship, showing that diversification enhances sustainability both directly and indirectly through resilience. Theoretically, this study extends RBV and DC theory, while practically offering managers actionable insights on integrating diversification, resilience, and digitalization to balance supply continuity with long-term sustainability goals.

Rapid technological changes and evolving labor market demands have increased the importance of identifying the competencies required for successful workforce participation. This study examines how digital competencies (DC) contribute to job market readiness (JMR) among university students and recent graduates in Saudi Arabia by investigating the mediating role of employability competencies (EC) and the moderating role of labor market dynamism (LMD). Drawing on Human Capital Theory and Career Construction Theory, the study develops an integrated framework explaining how individual competencies and labor market conditions jointly shape workforce preparedness. Data were collected using a stratified random sampling approach from 400 participants (248 final-year university students and 152 recent graduates) recruited from universities in Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam, Medina, and Yanbu using a structured questionnaire. The hypotheses were tested using regression analysis and Hayes’ PROCESS macro, while confirmatory factor analysis was conducted using AMOS 27. The results indicate that DC positively influences both EC and JMR. EC also positively affected JMR and partially mediated the relationship between DC and JMR. Furthermore, LMD significantly strengthened the positive effect of DC on JMR, suggesting that digital competencies are becoming increasingly valuable in dynamic employment environments. This study contributes to the workforce preparedness literature by providing a more comprehensive explanation of how digital competencies are associated with job market readiness through employability competencies and identifying labor market dynamism as a contextual condition associated with the strength of this relationship. The findings offer implications for universities, policymakers, and students seeking to enhance employability outcomes and align workforce development initiatives with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030.

Preparing graduates to navigate increasingly uncertain labor markets is an important challenge for higher education and the broader pursuit of sustainable graduate employability. Although higher education institutions invest substantially in developing Career Competencies (CC), comparatively less is known about how these competencies are associated with graduates’ Job Market Readiness (JMR), the role of Career Self-Management (CSM) in this relationship, and whether perceived Labor Market Uncertainty (LMU) conditions the strength of this association. Drawing on Human Capital Theory, Career Construction Theory, and Conservation of Resources Theory, this study develops and empirically examines an integrated framework linking developmental resources, self-regulatory career behavior, employment readiness, and perceived labor market conditions. Data were collected from 398 final-year university students and recent graduates in Saudi Arabia using a non-probability, multi-institutional purposive sampling approach and analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics 27, AMOS 27, and Hayes’ PROCESS macro. The findings show that CC was positively associated with both CSM and JMR, while CSM was also positively associated with JMR. The analysis further identified a significant indirect statistical association between CC and JMR through CSM, along with a remaining significant direct association. In addition, perceived LMU significantly moderated the CC–JMR relationship, such that the positive association was stronger at higher levels of perceived uncertainty. These findings contribute to graduate employability research by showing that the employment relevance of Career Competencies is associated not only with the resources graduates possess but also with their Career Self-Management and the labor market conditions they perceive. Therefore, sustainable graduate employability is treated as a broader theoretical implication of these relationships rather than an outcome directly measured by this study. These findings provide a basis for future longitudinal research examining whether these associations contribute to more sustainable education-to-work transitions over time.