Industrial Innovations

Industrial Innovations

Comprehensive Quality as the Mediating Mechanism in the Relationship Between Technological Opportunism and Sustainable Productivity in Entrepreneurial Companies

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Yasser Emamian
Seyed Moslem Mousavi Dorcheh
Department of Technology Development Studies, Iranian Research Organization for Science and Technology (IROST), Tehran, Iran.
10.66224/jii.4.2.38
Abstract
In the contemporary dynamic and hyper-competitive landscape, the transition from conventional productivity paradigms towards sustainable models has emerged as a strategic imperative, intricately weaving organizational resilience with competitive agility. This transition necessitates a profound examination of the intrinsic mechanisms through which dynamic capabilities are transmuted into enduring organizational outcomes. Grounded in this premise, this study elucidates the role of comprehensive quality (Total Quality Management - TQM) as a pivotal mediating mechanism in the nexus between technological opportunism and sustainable productivity within entrepreneurial companies in Ilam Province, Iran. Employing a descriptive-correlational design, field data were gathered from a population encompassing 62 entrepreneurial companies, utilizing a sample of 234 participants. The reliability of the questionnaires was affirmed by a Cronbach's alpha coefficient of 0.99, and data analysis was conducted using SPSS and Lisrel software, alongside the Variance Accounted For (VAF) index. The findings substantiated the direct, positive, and significant impact of technological opportunism on both comprehensive quality and sustainable productivity, as well as the definitive influence of comprehensive quality on sustainable productivity. Calculation of the VAF index yielded a value of 0.44, revealing that 44% of the total effect of technological opportunism on sustainable productivity is realized indirectly through the mediating variable of comprehensive quality. Consequently, comprehensive quality functions not as a passive byproduct, but as a strategic mediating construct that catalyzes the transformation of organizational technological capacities into sustainable achievements within the productivity domain.
Keywords
Technological Opportunism
Sustainable Productivity
Comprehensive Quality
Entrepreneurial Companies
Ilam Province
[1] Restuputri D P, Febriana D S T, Masudin I. Enhancing corporate sustainability through TQM and technology management in manufacturing. Production. 2025; 35: e20250006.
[2] Teece D J. Towards a capability theory of (innovating) firms: Implications for management and policy. Cambridge Journal of Economics. 2016; 40(5): 1245-1265.
[3] Shayesteh E, Azizi A, Ershadi M J. Modeling the relationship of age and salary on the productivity of specialized human resources in project-based engineering companies. System Engineering and Productivity. 2024; 15(4): 15-39. [In Persian]
[4] Khaledi R, Heydariyeh S A, Hematian H. Analysis and design of a human resource productivity improvement model in the public sector (A study in the Ministry of Health, Treatment, and Medical Education). System Engineering and Productivity. 2025; 12(3): 119-147. [In Persian]
[5] Azizinezhad H, Tavakoli G, Ehsanifar M, Najafi A. Explaining the factors affecting intellectual capital to facilitate productivity in knowledge-based businesses. System Engineering and Productivity. 2025; 12(4): 149-174. [In Persian]
[6] Ershadi M J, Kianmehr N, Nabatchian M R, Dinmohammadi L. Designing a productivity evaluation model to identify and prioritize influencing factors and examine barriers facing Iranian research organizations. System Engineering and Productivity. 2024; 15(5): 31-46. [In Persian]
[7] Hoskisson R E, Hitt M A, Wan W P, Yiu D W. Theory and research in strategic management: Swings of a pendulum. Strategic Management Journal. 1999; 20(10): 1025-1046.
[8] Su J, Su K, Wang S. Does the digital economy promote industrial structural upgrading?—A test of mediating effects based on heterogeneous technological innovation. Sustainability. 2021; 13(18): 10105.
[9] Kiavanshahri F S, Kaveh D, Karimi M, Zendedel A. Identifying the dimensions and components of entrepreneurship with a social responsibility approach in the General Department of Education. System Engineering and Productivity. 2024; 15(6): 75-92. [In Persian]
[10] Navarro G, Naranjo G. Quality culture, quality management, and organizational performance: A structural model for the manufacturing sector. Sustainability. 2025; 17(9): 3934.
[11] Joshang E, Azimi Hosseini S S, Ebrahimian M R. Investigating the impact of safety concerns, safety measures and health concerns on workforce productivity (Case study: Firefighters in Qazvin City). System Engineering and Productivity. 2025; 12(2): 57-71. [In Persian]
[12] Masoudi E, Shahin A. The influence of TQM on sustainability performance: The mediating role of green technology innovation in manufacturing firms. Technological Sustainability. 2025; 4(4): 353-379.
[13] Khalfallah M, Lakhal L, Pasin F, Zaidi A. The impact of TQM on organizational performance: The mediating role of entrepreneurial orientation. The TQM Journal. 2025; 37(4): 1125-1145.
[14] Homayoun Aria S, Goldasteh A, Davousti S. The effect of motivational factors on the productivity and academic performance of students with the moderating role of the year of university entry (Case study: School of Dentistry, Tehran University of Medical Sciences). System Engineering and Productivity. 2025; 12(5): 67-86. [In Persian]

  • Receive Date 06 January 2026
  • Revise Date 31 May 2026
  • Accept Date 01 June 2026