Confucian ethical leadership as a moral strategist: driving corporate innovation through social-environmental and customer-oriented CSR

Purpose This paper aims to address a gap in ethical leadership research by examining the culturally specific mechanism through which Confucian ethical leadership (CEL) influences corporate innovation – a domain where Western-dominated studies have underexplored the unique contributions of Eastern ethical traditions. Design/methodology/approach The study constructs a conceptual framework for CEL that bridges Western paradigms while highlighting its distinctiveness. It proposes a moderated mediation model in which social-environmental corporate social responsibility (CSR) mediates the CEL–innovation relationship and customer-oriented CSR moderates the direct effect of CEL on innovation. Data were collected from 151 case samples of Confucian-oriented firms in China using a case survey method, and PROCESS Model 5 with 5,000 bootstrap samples was employed for hypothesis testing. Findings The results demonstrate a significant positive effect of CEL on corporate innovation. Social-environmental CSR functions as a partial mediator, channeling CEL's influence into outcomes, while customer-oriented CSR acts as a positive moderator, strengthening the direct effect of CEL on innovation. This establishes a culturally distinct model for innovation that diverges from established Western frameworks. Originality/value This study proposes the concept of CEL as a “moral strategist,” embedding Confucian ethics into strategic decision-making to drive innovation through CSR. Unlike Western ethical leadership, which often emphasizes psychological processes or organizational climates, CEL fosters innovation through culturally rooted mechanisms centered on relational harmony and societal welfare. By contrasting these approaches, the study offers theoretical understanding of the ethical leadership-innovation nexus and contributes to cross-cultural ethical leadership research, offering insights for culturally adaptive innovation governance in global business contexts.