Leveraging digital leadership and organizational agility to improve ESG performance through digital transformation

Purpose With ESG performance increasingly influencing corporate competitiveness and stakeholder trust, especially in emerging economies, there is limited empirical understanding of how organizational agility, digital transformation and leadership interact to enhance ESG outcomes. Guided by dynamic capabilities theory, this study examines how organizational agility and digital transformation influence ESG performance among multinational firms in Ghana, tests the mediating role of digital transformation and explores the moderating role of digital leadership. Design/methodology/approach A purposive sampling approach was used to survey 340 senior executives, middle managers and professionals from Asian and American multinational firms in Ghana. Data were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling with SmartPLS 4 software. Findings Organizational agility positively influences ESG performance. Digital transformation also significantly impacts ESG performance and mediates the relationship between organizational agility and ESG performance. However, digital leadership did not moderate these relationships. Research limitations/implications The study is limited to multinational firms in Ghana and uses cross-sectional data, suggesting the need for further research across different contexts and over time. Practical implications Firms should focus on fostering organizational agility and adopting digital transformation strategies to improve ESG performance, while considering that digital leadership may play a more indirect role. Originality/value This study applies dynamic capabilities theory to integrate organizational agility, digital transformation and digital leadership in the ESG context of an emerging economy, offering insights for multinational firms in Ghana and similar markets to enhance sustainability while addressing local challenges.