Exploring the Mechanisms Linking Perceived Organizational Support, Autonomy, Risk Taking, Competitive Aggressiveness and Corporate Sustainability: The Mediating Role of Innovativeness

To achieve organizational performance excellence, modern organizations have not only the option but the necessity to adapt and implement corporate sustainability (CS) practices. CS changes previous business models, taking into account environmental and social aspects, thereby determining the success of the organization. The implementation of CS is, however, reinforced or limited by a number of internal and environmental factors. The main research goal was therefore to identify and evaluate the mechanisms linking perceived organizational support (POS) and entrepreneurial orientation dimensions such as autonomy (AU), risk taking (RT), competitive aggressiveness (CA) and innovativeness (IN) with CS. In order to verify the research hypotheses, a survey was conducted on a group of 200 small and medium-sized enterprises in 2022. A managerial approach was used in the study. The respondents used a 5-point Likert scale for the assessment of their attitudes and opinions. The relationships have been examined using structural equation modeling. The findings reveal that the type of enterprise moderates the relation between perceived organizational support and corporate sustainability, and innovativeness mediate this relation.