Hayder Adil Abdul Raheem
The main goals of higher educational institutions in modern times are to maintain a competitive advantage and reach the excellence of institutions. Information systems (IS) can be used by universities to improve their operational performance (OP). But implementation of information systems (IS) is not achieved in a vacuum, it is rather dependent on the evolution of supportive innovations. The extant literature has been more so concerned with the possible antecedents of IS with no knowledge about how IS mediates the relationship between the OP and the types of innovations in the higher education sector. Hence, the current paper examines the mediation role of information systems (IS) in the Iraqi context of universities in the framework of operational performance (OP), technological innovation (TEI), and managerial innovation (MEI). The quantitative cross-sectional research design was used. The sample size presented in the study was 420 academic and administrative employees, due to the convenience sampling technique, in 15 publicly owned Iraqi universities. The data was analyzed with the help of Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) by using Smart PLS. The findings indicate that both TEI and MEI positively influence OP and IS in a significant direct way. For the same reason, IS affects OP positively and significantly. The indirect mediation analysis proves that the role of an IS as a mediator is substantial in the relationships between TEI, MEI, and OP. The conclusion also has relevancy to the body of literature in higher education management and has practical implications for the university administrators and policymakers.