Exploring the role of green organizational culture in enhancing sustainable logistics performance among manufacturing SMEs in a developing economy

According to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) report, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are responsible for approximately 64 percent of the total industrial environmental pollution worldwide. This is mainly a dangerous concern for developing countries. This study aims to determine the impact of green organizational culture on the sustainable logistics performance of SME manufacturing in Pakistan, with the mediating role of a big data-driven supply chain and green transformational leadership. Furthermore, employee age and work experience are control variables to measure sustainable logistics performance. The hypotheses were formulated using the resource-based view (RBV) and the theory of transformational leadership. To test the proposed hypothesis, primary data were gathered from 370 employees of SME manufacturing in Pakistan. A survey method was adopted, and the concerned firm’s HR department requested data collection. Data was collected and analyzed with the help of confirmatory analysis and structural equation modeling in SmartPLS version 3. The findings revealed the direct effect of green organizational culture (GOC), big data-driven supply chain (BDDSC), green transformational leadership (GTL), and work experience on sustainable logistics performance (SLP). However, the direct effect of employee age does not impact the sustainable logistics performance of SME manufacturing in Pakistan. Moreover, a partial mediation effect was confirmed, indicating a BDDSC and GTL between GOC and SLP in SME manufacturing in Pakistan. Furthermore, the study extends the current theoretical framework by integrating transformational leadership theory into the process of integration from the resource-based view (RBV) perspective. In this light, the current research is relevant to green transformational leadership, as the mediating link appeals to the leadership behaviour that determines the association between GOC and SLP. A theoretical resource-based view incorporating leadership theories provides a broader framework to explain organizational resources, leadership, and sustainable outcomes that are likely to occur in organizations.