From Capabilities to Sustainability: How Resource Bricolage and Industrial Orientation Drive Business Model Innovation and ESG Outcomes

Scholars have widely studied the impact of organizational capabilities on corporate operational performance. However, little attention has been paid to how digital and operational capabilities in resource-constrained environments shape firms’ business models and environmental performance. This study investigates how business analytics, resource bricolage, and industrial orientation capabilities relate to business model innovation (BMI) and ESG performance. To ensure sectoral and regional consistency, this research specifically focuses on Chinese companies operating within the digital economy. Furthermore, the study explores how BMI intervenes in the relationship between BAC, resource bricolage, industrial orientation, and ESG performance. A core descriptive focus of this investigation is the inclusion and role of underrepresented groups, such as women and immigrants, in driving these innovation-led sustainability outcomes. Grounded on the resource-based theory (RBT) and utilizing a sample of 223 respondents and analyzed via PLS-SEM (SmartPLS v4), the findings show that BAC, resource bricolage, and industrial orientation are strongly and positively linked to BMI and ESG performance. Furthermore, BMI is found to play a significant mediating role in the relationship between industrial orientation and ESG performance. The study contributes to the RBV theory from the context of firm capabilities and BMI and concludes by offering valuable insights for Chinese companies aiming to improve their ESG performance in the digital era.