Impact of big data analytics capabilities on sustainable performance of Vietnamese retail companies: The mediating role of innovation

Abstract

While big data analytics capabilities (BDAC) have been pivotal to retail companies, their effects on innovation capabilities and sustainable performance have not been investigated systematically thus far. Therefore, this study explores the influence of BDAC on the innovation capabilities and sustainable performance of retail companies, with a focus on the mediating role of innovation capabilities. By utilizing the partial least squares method on survey data from 315 Vietnamese retail managers, the findings reveal that the three BDAC dimensions have markedly positive impacts on innovation capabilities. Moreover, innovation capabilities significantly drive improvements across three key dimensions of sustainable performance, including economics, environment, and society. In addition, innovation capabilities constructively mediate the relationship between BDAC and firm sustainable performance. Capitalizing on such findings, our study suggests that retail enterprises should advance the big data infrastructure and personnel to increase firm performance while achieving sustainability. A limitation of this study remains in the representativeness of the data due to the geographic focus of survey participants. Future avenues should explore further innovation capabilities in terms of products and business models, and investigate the role of BDAC in other industries.