Leadership, Innovation Strategy, and Strategic Flexibility Toward Sustainable Competitive Advantage: The Mediating Role of Organizational Agility in Private Universities in Aceh Province

Abstract

This study examines the influence of leadership, innovation strategy, and strategic flexibility on sustainable competitive advantage through organizational agility in private universities in Aceh Province, Indonesia. The research is motivated by the increasing challenges faced by higher education institutions in responding to digital transformation, institutional competition, and rapidly changing environmental conditions. Drawing upon the Resource-Based View (RBV) and Dynamic Capability Theory, this study proposes that organizational agility plays a critical role in translating strategic organizational capabilities into long-term competitive advantage.

A quantitative explanatory research design was employed using a cross-sectional survey approach. Data were collected from 300 managerial-level respondents representing private universities in Aceh Province, including rectors, deans, heads of study programs, and institutional managers. The data were analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling–Partial Least Squares (SEM-PLS) with SmartPLS 4.

The findings reveal that leadership, innovation strategy, and strategic flexibility positively and significantly influence organizational agility. In addition, leadership, innovation strategy, strategic flexibility, and organizational agility significantly affect sustainable competitive advantage. Among the antecedent variables, strategic flexibility demonstrates the strongest influence on organizational agility, while organizational agility significantly contributes to institutional competitiveness and sustainability. These findings confirm that adaptive organizational capability is essential for maintaining competitiveness in higher education institutions operating in dynamic and digitally disrupted environments.

This study contributes to the strategic management literature by integrating leadership, innovation strategy, strategic flexibility, and organizational agility into a unified framework within the higher education context. Practically, the findings provide important implications for private university leaders in strengthening institutional adaptability, innovation capability, and sustainable competitiveness.