SUSTAINABLE INNOVATION AND ORGANISATIONAL PERFORMANCE IN THE UAE PUBLIC SECTOR: A CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK ON THE MEDIATING ROLE OF ORGANISATIONAL EXCELLENCE AND THE ROLE OF DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION MATURITY MODERATION

Abstract

Organizations in the public sector are now under constant pressure to transform sustainability commitments and digital investments into measurable performance improvements. However, the mechanism of sustainable innovation translated into organizational performance is still poorly understood. This conceptual paper builds on a simplified mediation model in which sustainable innovation (environmental, social, and economic) is theorized as a strategic organizational resource that influences organizational performance directly and indirectly through organizational excellence, with the maturity of digital transformation as a boundary condition that reinforces this path. The framework builds on the integration of Resource-Based Insights and Dynamic, resource-based Capability Theory by establishing organizational excellence as an observable capability building mechanism rather than a restatement of performance itself. Six hypotheses are proposed that include direct effects, mediation, moderation, and moderated mediation. This paper introduces a model in the UAE's public sector, where high levels of digital preparedness and sustainability investments coexist with uneven service and sustainability outcomes, making this environment informative both theoretically and practically. A cross-sectional quantitative survey design using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling and multigroup analysis is proposed as an empirical pathway to test the model. This paper provides a theoretical, testable explanation of how sustainable innovation translates into public sector performance, as well as outlines practical implications for managers and policymakers looking to align the sustainability, excellence, and digital transformation agenda.