Managers' leadership competencies and sustainable development goals in turbulent markets: the enabling role of resource commitment

Research on the sustainable development goals (SDGs) has brought attention to the significance of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) due to their substantial contributions to economic growth. However, SMEs still need to develop integrated frameworks to assess the implications of sustainable operations while managing scarce resources. In this study, we investigate how top managers of SMEs utilize leadership competencies to balance and allocate resources for SDGs in a turbulent environment. To test the model, the analysis was conducted on 254 SMEs operating in an emerging market. The findings indicate that resource commitment plays a partially mediating role between leadership competencies and SDGs, while environmental uncertainty does not moderate the relationship between leadership competencies and resource commitment. These insights suggest that SMEs with competent leaders commit resources to SDGs regardless of environmental conditions. This research recommends that SMEs focus on cultivating competent leaders to navigate resource constraints and contribute to the SDGs in a turbulent environment. Further implications are discussed.