Digital Technology as a Strategic Mediator in Enhancing Employee Competitive Advantage: Evidence from Indonesia's Nickel Mining Industry

Employee competitive advantage has become a critical factor in enhancing organizational performance and sustainability, particularly in technology-driven industries such as nickel mining. However, the mechanisms through which human resource factors contribute to employee competitive advantage remain insufficiently understood, especially in the context of digital transformation. This study aims to examine the effects of Employee Satisfaction, Quality of Work Life, Transformational Leadership, Compensation, and Employee Engagement on Employee Competitive Advantage, with Digital Technology as a mediating variable and Work Motivation as a moderating variable. A quantitative research design was employed using a survey method. Data were collected from employees working in nickel mining companies in Central Sulawesi, Indonesia. The collected data were analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling–Partial Least Squares (SEM-PLS) with SmartPLS software. The results indicate that Quality of Work Life, Transformational Leadership, Compensation, and Employee Engagement have significant positive effects on Employee Competitive Advantage, whereas Employee Satisfaction does not directly influence Employee Competitive Advantage. Furthermore, all human resource factors significantly affect Digital Technology utilization, with Transformational Leadership emerging as the strongest predictor. Digital Technology was found to have the strongest direct effect on Employee Competitive Advantage and significantly mediates the relationships between all human resource factors and employee competitiveness. In addition, Work Motivation significantly strengthens the relationships among human resource factors, Digital Technology, and Employee Competitive Advantage. These findings highlight the strategic role of Digital Technology in transforming organizational resources into competitive capabilities and demonstrate that digital transformation serves as a critical mechanism linking human resource practices to employee competitiveness. This study contributes to the literature by integrating human resource management, digital transformation, and competitive advantage perspectives within a single framework and provides empirical evidence from Indonesia’s nickel mining industry. The findings offer practical implications for organizations seeking to strengthen workforce competitiveness through the integration of human resource development, digital technology adoption, and employee motivation initiatives.