Halal Competencies and Their Role in Improving Organizational Efficiency in the Halal Industry

The halal industry, as a value-based business system, has become one of the most dynamic segments of the global economy, with increasing significance for Southeast Europe. This paper provides a theoretical foundation and empirically tests an originally conceived framework for halal competencies based on KSAH approach. The authors develop it as an integration of employees' knowledge, skills, attitudes, and habits, operationalize it within halal context into composite measures, and examine its impact on organizational efficiency through process management, internal halal audit, nonconformity management, and customer satisfaction. The research was conducted on a sample of 225 respondents from 79 halal-certified companies in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, and Serbia. Empirical analysis shows that the reliability of the scales is high, intercorrelations among competency dimensions are pronounced, while associations with efficiency outcomes are low but stable. All four regression models are globally significant with determination coefficients. Partial effects are differentiated: skills reliably predict internal halal audit, while habits significantly contribute to customer satisfaction. For process management and nonconformity management, no significant individual predictors stand out, although the effects are in the expected direction. The contribution of the paper is twofold: first, in the original conceptualization and measurement validation of the KSAH framework adapted to the halal context, and second, in the empirical explanation of the mechanisms that translate competencies into measurable domains of efficiency, offering clear guidelines for workforce development and integration with quality management systems.