Sustainable Leadership and Sustainable Business Performance: A Bibliometric Analysis Using VOSviewer

2.1 Concept of sustainable leadership

Sustainable leadership has emerged as a pivotal concept in management literature over the past two decades. It refers to leadership practices that ensure the long-term health of an organization while simultaneously delivering value to multiple stakeholders, including shareholders, employees, customers, communities, and the environment [14, 19]. Unlike traditional leadership models that focus predominantly on financial performance and short-term gains, sustainable leadership adopts a holistic, future-oriented perspective [4, 20]. It encompasses: (1) Long-term orientation: Prioritizing enduring value creation over immediate returns; (2) Triple bottom line (TBL) commitment: Balancing economic, environmental, and social outcomes; (3) Stakeholder engagement: Actively involving internal and external stakeholders in decision-making; and (4) Ethical and responsible behavior: Upholding integrity, transparency, and fairness in all operations.

Scholars have linked sustainable leadership to other leadership styles, such as transformational leadership [21], ethical leadership [22], and servant leadership [23, 24], but with a distinct emphasis on sustainability principles and systemic thinking. For example, transformational leaders inspire followers to achieve beyond expectations [25, 26], but sustainable leaders extend this inspiration toward achieving environmental stewardship and social equity [27].

2.2 Dimensions and models of sustainable leadership

Avery and Bergsteiner’s [28] “Sustainable Leadership Model” is among the most cited frameworks. It consists of 23 elements grouped into three categories: (1) Systemic elements (e.g., long-term perspective, innovation, staff retention, stakeholder focus); (2) People elements (e.g., staff development, trust, self-management); and (3) Organizational culture elements (e.g., ethical behavior, high-quality relationships, decentralized decision-making).

Other scholars, such as Hargreaves and Fink [29], McInerney and Ractliffe [30], have conceptualized sustainable leadership as leadership that preserves and develops human and material resources in educational and corporate settings, ensuring continuity and capacity building. Similarly, Lambert [31] emphasizes the interdependence between leadership practices and ecological, social, and economic sustainability. These frameworks collectively underline that sustainable leadership is multi-dimensional, requiring leaders to integrate strategic foresight, ethical responsibility, innovation capacity, and a stakeholder-centered mindset.

2.3 Sustainable business performance

Sustainable business performance extends traditional performance metrics by incorporating environmental and social dimensions alongside economic outcomes. It is often assessed through: (1) Environmental performance: Reductions in waste, energy use, carbon emissions, and improvements in resource efficiency [32]; (2) Social performance: Employee well-being, diversity and inclusion, community contributions, and stakeholder satisfaction [33]; and (3) Economic performance: Long-term profitability, cost efficiency, and market competitiveness.

Scholars have proposed various measurement tools, including Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) indicators [34], Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) scores [35], and sustainability balanced scorecards [36]. These multidimensional frameworks allow organizations to track progress toward sustainability goals while balancing trade-offs among performance dimensions.

2.4 Linking sustainable leadership to sustainable business performance

A growing body of research explores the link between sustainable leadership and sustainable business performance. For instance, Ahsan and Khawaja [5] found that sustainable leadership exerts a positive influence on corporate environmental performance by fostering strategic green innovation, which integrates environmentally friendly technologies, processes, and practices into the firm’s overall strategy, thereby enhancing resource efficiency, reducing environmental impact, and strengthening competitive advantage. Cheruiyot and Venter [37] argue that leaders who adopt a complexity mindset are better positioned to navigate sustainability challenges, fostering greater organizational adaptability and improving overall performance. Moreover, Ren et al. [38] demonstrated that leadership commitment to environmental goals fosters employee pro-environmental behaviors, which collectively enhance organizational environmental performance.

Based on the publication year distribution of the 260 documents analyzed (Figure 2), the dataset comprises 3 documents (1.15%) in 2010, 10 (3.85%) in 2011, 8 (3.08%) in 2012, 7 (2.69%) in 2013, 11 (4.23%) in 2014, 6 (2.31%) in 2015, 6 (2.31%) in 2016, 7 (2.69%) in 2017, 8 (3.08%) in 2018, 14 (5.38%) in 2019, 15 (5.77%) in 2020, 20 (7.69%) in 2021, 17 (6.54%) in 2022, 33 (12.69%) in 2023, 42 (16.15%) in 2024, and 53 (20.38%) in 2025. This distribution reveals a generally upward trend over the years, with a particularly sharp increase from 2023 onwards. Such growth indicates a rising scholarly interest in the intersection of sustainable leadership and sustainable business performance, suggesting that the topic has gained substantial traction in recent academic discourse.

Figure 2. Publication year distribution

Based on subject area distribution (Figure 3), the dataset comprises 120 documents in Business, Management and Accounting (46.15%), 103 in Social Sciences (39.62%), 89 in Environmental Science (34.23%), 72 in Energy (27.69%), 61 in Computer Science (23.46%), 30 in Economics, Econometrics and Finance (11.54%), 29 in Engineering (11.15%), 26 in Decision Sciences (10.00%), 12 in Medicine (4.62%), 10 in Multidisciplinary (3.85%), 10 in Psychology (3.85%), 6 in Agricultural and Biological Sciences (2.31%), 6 in Earth and Planetary Sciences (2.31%), 4 in Arts and Humanities (1.54%), 3 in Chemical Engineering (1.15%), 3 in Mathematics (1.15%), 2 in Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology (0.77%), 2 in Health Professions (0.77%), 2 in Materials Science (0.77%), 2 in Nursing (0.77%), 1 in Chemistry (0.38%), and 1 in Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics (0.38%).

Figure 3. Subject area distribution

Table 1 highlights the seminal contribution of Iqbal et al. [40], published in the Journal of Cleaner Production, which stands out as the most influential work in the field with 195 citations. This study employs a moderated-mediation framework to investigate the role of psychological empowerment, establishing sustainable leadership as a critical antecedent of sustainable business performance. Its high citation count can be attributed to both the methodological robustness of the research design and its publication in a reputable, high-impact journal, which enhances its visibility and academic credibility. The second most cited article, Suriyankietkaew and Avery [41] in Sustainability Switzerland (89 citations), provides compelling empirical evidence from Thai SMEs, underscoring the financial performance implications of sustainable leadership practices in emerging economies. Study of Kantabutra and Avery [42], with 44 citations in the Journal of Business Strategy, is an early and influential case study on the Siam Cement Group, highlighting the strategic longevity of sustainable leadership. Their later work, Kantabutra and Avery [43], introducing the “Honeybee practices” framework (36 citations), enriches the discourse through a values-driven, stakeholder-centric lens. Finally, Suriyankietkaew [44], though more recent and with 22 citations, extends the discussion to small enterprises, integrating sustainable leadership with entrepreneurial strategies for corporate sustainability. Collectively, these highly cited works reveal dominant themes in the literature, while also highlighting the strong representation of Asian case studies and the recurring scholarly influence of Avery and Kantabutra. The prominence of these authors and the rapid citation growth of recent works suggest a field in dynamic expansion, with Asia emerging as a significant context for advancing sustainable leadership theory and practice.

Table 1. The top 5 most cited articles in the field

The country-level analysis in Table 5 shows that the United States leads research on sustainable leadership and sustainable business performance with 32 publications, followed closely by the United Kingdom (27), reflecting the strong research infrastructure and established academic traditions of these developed economies. Among emerging economies, Thailand ranks third with 23 publications, a remarkable achievement largely driven by the concentrated output of scholars at Mahidol University. China (22) and India (20) complete the top five, underscoring their growing engagement with sustainability and leadership scholarship. The mix of Global North and Global South representation highlights both the maturity of research in advanced economies and the increasing contributions from rapidly developing nations, creating fertile ground for cross-country collaborations that integrate established theoretical frameworks with context-specific innovations.

Table 5. The top 5 countries in the field

In the co-authorship network, Ahmed, A. of King Khalid University, Saudi Arabia, and Amin, M. B. of the University of Debrecen, Hungary, emerge as central figures in collaborative research on sustainable leadership and sustainable business performance (see Figure 4). Their partnerships span multiple countries, including collaborations with Dhali, S. (University of Barishal, Bangladesh), Gazi, M. A. I. (Jiujiang University, China), Senathirajah, A. R. B. S. (INTI International University, Malaysia), and Al-Kahtani, S. M. (Albaydha University, Yemen). This geographically diverse network underscores the field’s increasingly international scope and the role of cross-border collaboration in advancing sustainability-focused leadership scholarship.

Figure 4. Co-authorship networks

Figure 5 illustrates that prior to 2020, research on sustainable leadership predominantly concentrated on laying the theoretical and managerial foundations of the field. Key themes included CSR and organizational culture, both commonly explored as mechanisms to enhance employee performance and secure competitive advantage. During this period, sustainability was primarily associated with corporate ethics and human resource outcomes, reflecting an emphasis on internal organizational practices. Moreover, strategic decision-making began to emerge as an essential dimension of sustainable leadership, highlighting the growing recognition of leaders' roles in shaping long-term sustainability goals.

Figure 5. Overlay visualization

During the 2020-2022 period, the field demonstrated a clear maturation, evolving beyond CSR-centric approaches toward achieving measurable sustainability outcomes. Scholars increasingly established explicit linkages between sustainable leadership and key organizational metrics such as business performance, innovation, and growth. Green innovation and sustainable growth emerged as prominent themes, reflecting a paradigm shift wherein sustainability transitioned from a compliance-driven obligation to a core element of competitive strategy.

From 2022 to 2024, research on sustainable leadership increasingly emphasized its alignment with environmental responsibility and global policy agendas, particularly the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Scholars began to examine environmental performance and knowledge management not as peripheral concerns, but as integral components of strategic business planning. Climate change emerged as a prominent external force, prompting organizations to re-evaluate and transform their operational models.

Up to 2024, the latest literature underscores key enablers of sustainable transformation, particularly the green economy and strategic adaptability. These developments indicate a shift in corporate priorities toward strengthening internal capabilities that enable firms to respond effectively to environmental and societal pressures. Throughout this evolution, sustainable leadership has remained a consistent and dynamic focus, reaffirming its vital role in guiding organizations through complex sustainability challenges.

The co-occurrence analysis of keywords using VOSviewer identified four prominent thematic clusters (see Figure 6). These clusters represent interconnected yet distinct streams of research that shape the evolving landscape of sustainable leadership and its relationship with sustainable business performance.

Figure 6. Result of co-occurrence analysis

4.1 Cluster 1: Organizational foundations of sustainability

Cluster 1 emphasizes the role of internal organizational dynamics in shaping how sustainability is integrated into the core operations of a firm. At the heart of this integration is sustainable leadership, which acts as a critical driver by embedding values of responsibility, ethical behavior, and long-term strategic vision into everyday organizational practices [45, 46]. Leaders who adopt a sustainability-oriented mindset influence decision-making processes, resource allocation, and strategic priorities, ensuring environmental and social considerations remain central to organizational objectives.

In this context, corporate social responsibility (CSR) serves as a strategic mechanism that aligns organizational actions with stakeholder expectations and ethical imperatives [47]. CSR initiatives, including community engagement, employee welfare programs, and environmental stewardship, provide tangible evidence of a firm’s ethical commitment, enhancing reputation, customer loyalty, and overall competitive advantage. By integrating CSR into a broader sustainability strategy rather than treating it as a separate activity, organizations can generate both social impact and economic value.

Organizational culture plays a complementary role in this process. When culture is shaped by ethical, visionary, and sustainability-focused leadership, it promotes employee behaviors that align with ecological and social objectives [48]. Employees are more likely to internalize sustainability values, take initiative in environmentally friendly practices, and engage in socially responsible programs [49], which strengthens overall organizational performance.

This combination of sustainable leadership, CSR, and supportive organizational culture reinforces a holistic sustainable business model. Such a model views profitability and social or environmental responsibility as interconnected goals. By embedding sustainability into cultural norms and strategic initiatives, organizations can achieve higher employee engagement, stronger stakeholder trust, and differentiated competitive positioning, contributing to long-term societal and environmental well-being.

4.2 Cluster 2: Green innovation and economic sustainability

Cluster 2 emphasizes the economic and innovative dimensions of sustainable leadership. Scholars argue that sustainability-oriented leadership not only ensures regulatory compliance and enhances corporate reputation but also acts as a driver of green innovation [50]. Leaders who embrace sustainability foster a culture of creativity, invest in research and development, and integrate environmental considerations into both product and process innovation [51]. These actions enable organizations to develop new technologies, improve operational efficiency, and create environmentally friendly products that address evolving market and societal demands.

In the context of the green economy, such strategic leadership enables environmental performance to serve as a measurable outcome, strengthening stakeholder trust and contributing to financial success [5]. By prioritizing sustainable practices alongside economic goals, leaders demonstrate that environmental responsibility can complement profitability rather than hinder it. Sustainable growth, in this perspective, is not seen as a limitation on business expansion but rather as a catalyst for innovation, competitive advantage, and organizational resilience.

4.3 Cluster 3: Strategic alignment with global goals

Cluster 3 examines the strategic and institutional alignment of leadership with global sustainability frameworks, particularly emphasizing the United Nations (UN) SDGs. This research stream demonstrates how sustainability is systematically embedded into organizational decision-making through multi-stakeholder engagement, ethical deliberation, and systems thinking [52]. Leaders operating within this paradigm are not only focused on immediate organizational outcomes but also on broader societal and ecological impacts, ensuring decisions account for complex social, environmental, and economic interdependencies.

The concept of environmental sustainability is expanded to encompass global ecosystem stewardship and the long-term well-being of humanity. Sustainable leaders are expected to make choices that respect planetary boundaries, promote intergenerational equity, and protect natural resources and ecosystems [53]. By aligning organizational strategies with the SDGs, firms institutionalize sustainability in leadership practices, positioning themselves as active contributors to solving global environmental and social challenges. This alignment transforms sustainability from a voluntary or symbolic initiative into a core principle of strategic governance, embedding ethical considerations and accountability across all levels of decision-making.

Ultimately, this cluster frames sustainable leadership as a form of ethical governance oriented toward planetary-scale objectives, extending beyond narrow internal performance metrics. Leaders who embrace this approach not only enhance their organization’s legitimacy and credibility but also foster a culture of responsibility and long-term vision that addresses sustainability imperatives at both local and global levels.

4.4 Cluster 4: External drivers and knowledge integration

Cluster 4 emphasizes the intersection between external environmental challenges and internal knowledge capabilities within the sustainable leadership paradigm. Climate change, as one of the most urgent global risks, increasingly shapes business strategies and redefines leadership responsibilities. In this context, sustainable leaders are expected to demonstrate adaptive capacity, implement proactive risk management, and foster climate-resilient innovation [54]. Such leadership requires the ability to anticipate environmental disruptions, make strategic decisions under uncertainty, and guide organizations toward long-term sustainability.

At the same time, knowledge management emerges as a crucial enabler for sustainable leadership. By facilitating knowledge sharing, promoting organizational learning, and integrating sustainability expertise across operations, organizations can build internal capabilities that complement their external responsiveness. This approach aligns closely with dynamic capabilities theory, which emphasizes the importance of continuously reconfiguring organizational competencies to respond effectively to rapidly evolving environmental and market conditions [55, 56].

This research project was financially supported by Mahasarakham University.