EXPLORING THE ROLE OF STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP IN MANAGING BUSINESS SUSTAINABILITY

Authors

  • Dr. Abhishek Kumar Pandey Assistant Professor, Department of Management, IILM Academy of Higher Learning, Lucknow
  • Dr. Pankaj Mishra Assistant Professor; Department of Commerce, University of Lucknow, Lucknow, India
  • Ms. Sonam Yadav Subject Expert, Department of commerce, University of Lucknow, Lucknow
  • Dr. Shubhangi Tripathi Subject Expert, Faculty of Commerce, University of Lucknow
  • Mr. Indrakesh Yadav Research Scholar, University of Lucknow

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.69980/q18r2c26

Keywords:

Executive Leader, Business Sustainability, Strategic Leadership, Qualitative , Leadership

Abstract

In Business, if, the role of human resources and key leadership will not be considered then it is not possible to measure or find out the driving living force behind any initiatives of business enterprise. This qualitative investigation is an effort to explore such factors and dimensions which are related to mapping out the role of executive leaders (Top – management leadership) in managing & ensuring business sustainability to their respective organisation as well as in shaping the corporate and business level strategies which are mainly related to promoting sustainable business practices.  In this ,05 executive statements have been analysed and who are having affiliation with NSE -500 firms. Such firms cater to almost 90% of Indian stock market in terms of market capitalisation. Statements and publicly available dialogues of executives were considered for this research investigation for the time period January, 2020 to December,2025. This study suggests that to a great extent leadership role is influencing the Indian corporation’s sustainability efforts and initiatives. This work is noble in the sense that many startups can learn lessons from those leaders who have sustainability mindsets in promoting the greener future of Indian industries and their respective corporations.

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Published

2026-04-30