When Innovation and Commitment Don’t Pay: Evidence from Moroccan State Owned Enterprises

Purpose: Innovation capability and organizational commitment are widely assumed to enhance organizational performance, yet evidence from state‑owned enterprises (SOEs), especially in developing countries, remains limited. This study examines how innovation capability and two forms of organizational commitment—affective and calculative—relate to financial and social performance in Moroccan public commercial offices (MPCO). Design/methodology/approach: A conceptual model was developed and tested using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS‑SEM) based on survey data from 140 managers in five major Moroccan SOEs (ONCF, ONDA, ONP, ONEE and ONHYM). Organizational performance was operationalized as a multidimensional construct, distinguishing financial and social performance. Findings: Contrary to prevailing assumptions, the three hypothesized positive relationships between innovation capability, affective commitment, calculative commitment and overall organizational performance are not supported. At the disaggregated level, innovation capability is positively associated with financial performance but has no significant effect on social performance. Affective organizational commitment shows a paradoxical pattern: it significantly enhances social performance while simultaneously exerting a significant negative influence on financial performance. Calculative commitment does not display any significant effect on either performance dimension. These results highlight the complex and sometimes conflicting pathways through which internal organizational drivers affect different aspects of SOE performance. Research limitations/implications: The study focuses on Moroccan SOEs and relies on cross‑sectional, self‑reported data from managers, which may limit generalizability and does not allow for causal inference. Future research should employ longitudinal and mixed‑methods designs and extend the analysis to other national and sectoral contexts. Practical implications: For policymakers and SOE leaders, the findings underscore that innovation and commitment are not uniformly performance‑enhancing. Strategies should explicitly balance financial and social objectives and be tailored to the specific institutional and bureaucratic constraints of SOEs. Affective commitment can be leveraged to strengthen social outcomes, but without appropriate governance and performance systems it may undermine financial sustainability. Originality/value: This study challenges the widespread assumption that innovation capability and organizational commitment are universally beneficial. By disentangling financial and social performance in a sample of SOEs in a developing country, it provides novel empirical evidence on the contingent and multidimensional nature of performance drivers in the public enterprise context.