Digital green innovation and sustainable project performance: roles of green HRM and digital leadership in manufacturing firms

Purpose This study aims to investigate how digital green innovation (DGI) influences sustainable project performance (SPP) in manufacturing firms, while examining the mediating role of green human resource management (GHRM) and the moderating role of digital leadership (DL). Although digital transformation and sustainability have received increasing scholarly attention, limited research examines how digital green initiatives translate into project-level sustainability outcomes, particularly in developing-economy contexts. Design/methodology/approach A quantitative research design was adopted. Data were collected from 203 managers, supervisors and project team members in Ghanaian manufacturing firms using a structured questionnaire. The proposed hypotheses were tested using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM), enabling simultaneous examination of direct, mediating and moderating effects within a unified framework. Findings The results indicate that digital green innovation has a significant positive effect on both green human resource management and sustainable project performance. Green human resource management significantly enhances sustainable project performance and partially mediates the relationship between digital green innovation and sustainable project performance, suggesting that digital technologies require aligned HR systems to generate sustainability outcomes. Furthermore, digital leadership positively moderates the relationship between green human resource management and sustainable project performance, strengthening the impact of green human resources practices on project sustainability performance. Originality/value This study advances a project-level perspective on digital green innovation by integrating technological capability, human resource systems and leadership mechanisms within a single explanatory model. Grounded in the resource-based view and ability–motivation–opportunity theory, this study provides empirical evidence from a developing economy and offers practical guidance on digitally enabled, sustainability-driven transformation strategies for manufacturing firms.