Showing papers on "Corporate sustainability published in 2015"
TL;DR: In this article, the authors propose a systematic framework for the analysis of tensions in corporate sustainability, which is based on the emerging integrative view on corporate sustainability and stresses the need for a simultaneous integration of economic, environmental and social dimensions without, a priori, emphasising one over any other.
Abstract: This paper proposes a systematic framework for the analysis of tensions in corporate sustainability. The framework is based on the emerging integrative view on corporate sustainability, which stresses the need for a simultaneous integration of economic, environmental and social dimensions without, a priori, emphasising one over any other. The integrative view presupposes that firms need to accept tensions in corporate sustainability and pursue different sustainability aspects simultaneously even if they seem to contradict each other. The framework proposed in this paper goes beyond the traditional triad of economic, environmental and social dimensions and argues that tensions in corporate sustainability occur between different levels, in change processes and within a temporal and spatial context. The framework provides vital groundwork for managing tensions in corporate sustainability based on paradox strategies. The paper then applies the framework to identify and characterise four selected tensions and illustrates how key approaches from the literature on strategic contradictions, tensions and paradoxes—i.e., acceptance and resolution strategies—can be used to manage these tensions. Thereby, it refines the emerging literature on the integrative view for the management of tensions in corporate sustainability. The framework also provides managers with a better understanding of tensions in corporate sustainability and enables them to embrace these tensions in their decision making.
603 citations
TL;DR: The authors argue that contradictory societal and institutional pressures, in essence, require organizations to engage in hypocrisy and develop facades, thereby severely limiting the prospects that sustainability reports will ever evolve into substantive disclosures.
Abstract: Sustainability discourse is becoming ubiquitous. Still, a significant gap persists between corporate sustainability talk and practice. Prior research on corporate sustainability reporting has relied primarily on two competing theoretical framings, signaling theory and legitimacy theory, which often produce contradictory results regarding the significance and effects of such disclosures. Thus, despite this substantial body of research, the role that sustainability disclosures can play in any transition toward a less unsustainable society remains unclear. In an effort to advance our collective understanding of voluntary corporate sustainability reporting, we propose a richer and more nuanced theoretical lens by drawing on prior work in organized hypocrisy (Brunsson, 1989) and organizational facades (Abrahamson & Baumard, 2008; Nystrom & Strabuck, 1984). We argue that contradictory societal and institutional pressures, in essence, require organizations to engage in hypocrisy and develop facades, thereby severely limiting the prospects that sustainability reports will ever evolve into substantive disclosures. To illustrate the use of these theoretical concepts, we employ them to examine the talk, decisions, and actions of two highly visible U.S.-based multinational oil and gas corporations during the time period of significant national debate over oil exploration in the Alaskan National Wildlife Refuge. We conclude that the concepts of organizational facade and organized hypocrisy are beneficial to the sustainability disclosure literature because they provide theoretical space to more formally acknowledge and incorporate how the prevailing economic system and conflicting stakeholder demands constrain the action choices of individual corporations.
530 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors proposed a corporate sustainability driver model, which considers both internal and external drivers, and complements these with drivers that connect them, to better catalyse change from the unsustainable status quo to a more sustainable-oriented state.
Abstract: Since company boards are increasingly discussing 'sustainability', it becomes necessary to examine the nature of sustainability drivers. Most approaches to corporate sustainability drivers have focused either on internal or external drivers. This paper is aimed at providing a more holistic perspective on the different corporate sustainability drivers in order to better catalyse change from the unsustainable status quo to a more sustainable-oriented state. Empirical data was collected from experts and company leaders. The findings show that, internally, leadership and the business case are the most important drivers, whilst the most important external drivers are reputation, customer demands and expectations, and regulation and legislation. The paper proposes a corporate sustainability driver model, which considers both internal and external drivers, and complements these with drivers that connect them. This offers a holistic perspective on how companies can be more proactive in their journey to becoming more sustainability orientated.
505 citations
TL;DR: Corporate sustainability is rife with tensions as firms seek to balance often divergent economic, social, and environmental goals as discussed by the authors, and the authors of this paper assess how tensions have been addressed in past research and to assess how tension have been handled in past studies.
Abstract: Corporate sustainability is rife with tensions as firms seek to balance often divergent economic, social, and environmental goals. To assess how tensions have been addressed in past research and to...
297 citations
TL;DR: Results reveal that corporate output growth, deregulation, and low profits under deregulation significantly affect the choice between greenwashing and brownwashing.
Abstract: Corporate greenwashing has accelerated in recent years, bringing in its wake growing skepticism about corporate green claims. Although a theory of the drivers and deterrents of greenwashing has begun to emerge, it is static in nature and does not incorporate the full range of ways in which firms can misrepresent their environmental performance. Our contribution is threefold. First, we extend the theory of organizational information disclosure to incorporate the possibility of undue modesty about a firm's environmental, social, and governance practices. Second, we hypothesize about the drivers of exaggeration and undue modesty based on which of a firm's stakeholders are salient at a given point in time; to do so, we place the firm within a dynamic context that has largely been missing in the prior literature. Third, we test our hypotheses using a data set that allows us to directly compare corporate green claims against actual performance. Results reveal that corporate output growth, deregulation, and low profits under deregulation significantly affect the choice between greenwashing and brownwashing. The effects of growth and profits are mitigated by external scrutiny.
270 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present an overview of the most widely used theories of the firm (such as the Stockholder Theory, Aggregate Theory, Contractual Theory, Resource Based View, and Stakeholder Theory) and analyze their contributions to Corporate Sustainability from an interpretative perspective.
236 citations
TL;DR: A review of some of the major tools used in corporate sustainability reporting, spanning across a wide spectrum - framework, standards, ratings and indices, are provided.
206 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors provide evidence on whether sustainability-oriented corporate governance mechanisms impact the voluntary assurance of corporate sustainability reports, and they provide evidence that such mechanisms can impact the quality of sustainability reports.
Abstract: SUMMARY: This study provides evidence on whether sustainability-oriented corporate governance mechanisms impact the voluntary assurance of corporate sustainability reports. Specifically, we consid...
205 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors used an event study to capture the investor reaction to the first Newsweek Green Rankings in September 2009, a notable, multi-dimensional recent development in the rating of corporate environmental CSR performance.
Abstract: We use an event study to capture the investor reaction to the first Newsweek Green Rankings in September 2009, a notable, multi-dimensional recent development in the rating of corporate environmental CSR performance. Drawing on stakeholder theory, we develop hypotheses about (a) market investor reaction to the disclosure of new, relevant corporate environmental performance in both the short and longer (6–12-month) term, (b) whether market investors’ reaction reflects industry context, and (c) whether firm-level contextual variables representing firm size, and market legitimacy significantly impacts the investor reaction. We find that, for the sample of the largest 500 US firms ranked by Newsweek, investors react positively both to the raw and within-industry rankings of green performance in terms of both short-term and longer-term (up to 12 months) returns. Moreover, the investor reaction is significantly influenced by contextual variables such as firm size and firm market legitimacy. Our results are compatible with the inference that rating agencies like Newsweek serve a valuable information dissemination function such that investors in better ranked firms anticipate larger future cash flows due to more positive reactions from key stakeholders such as environmentally-conscious customers, employees, NGOs, regulators, and thus reward these firms with stock price increases. Finally, larger, more visible firms benefit more, while firms which have more market legitimacy (represented by past financial performance) benefit less. We believe these findings will be of considerable interest to scholars of environmental corporate social responsibility.
177 citations
29 Jul 2015
TL;DR: The authors found that employees from a subculture with a stronger emphasis on hierarchical and bureaucratic values emphasize an economic understanding of corporate sustainability and that these differences can be partially explained by the presence of organizational subcultures and by differences in employee awareness of the organization's sustainability practices.
Abstract: In this paper we present findings of how employees from a single organization understand corporate sustainability. Responses from 255 survey participants indicate (1) that differences exist in how employees understand corporate sustainability and (2) that these differences can be partially explained by the presence of organizational subcultures and by differences in employee awareness of the organization's sustainability practices. In particular, findings reveal that employees from a subculture with a stronger emphasis on hierarchical and bureaucratic values emphasize an economic understanding of corporate sustainability. Implications for research and practice are discussed. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.
175 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigate how managers at various levels are making the trade-offs and simultaneously managing social, environmental and financial performance in large, complex, for-profit organizations.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine whether corporate environmental responsibility plays a role in enhancing operating performance in the financial services sector and find that reducing environmental costs has a more immediate and substantial effect on the performance of financial services firms in well-developed financial markets than in less developed financial markets.
Abstract: In this study, we examine whether corporate environmental responsibility (CER) plays a role in enhancing operating performance in the financial services sector. Because achieving success with CER investing is often a long-term process, we maintain that by effectively investing in CER, executives can decrease their firms’ environmental costs, thereby enhancing operating performance. By employing a unique environmental dataset covering 29 countries, we find that the reducing of environmental costs takes at least 1 or 2 years before enhancing return on assets. We also find that reducing environmental costs has a more immediate and substantial effect on the performance of financial services firms in well-developed financial markets than in less-developed financial markets. These results are economically and statistically significant and robust even after alleviating endogeneity and using an additional performance measure. We interpret our empirical results as supporting the social impact and reputation-building hypothesis. Our findings also suggest that policy makers dealing with corporate sustainability management should pursue an environment-centered industry policy not only at the manufacturing sector but also at the financial services sector, as firms in both sectors with lower environmental costs perform better.
TL;DR: In this article, the role of knowledge as a mediating factor has been investigated using the knowledge-based view as a theoretical underpinning, using empirical survey data from SMEs and large companies in Germany.
Abstract: Implementing corporate sustainability strategies requires knowledge and application of sustainability management tools. While much progress has been made in developing such tools in both small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and large companies, the literature claims company size positively affects application. However, the role of knowledge as a mediating factor has not yet been investigated. Using the knowledge-based view as a theoretical underpinning, this paper draws on empirical survey data from SMEs and large companies in Germany. It analyzes how company size affects the degree of knowledge and application of sustainability management tools. Even though the results reaffirm that SMEs know and apply significantly less tools, company size does not influence the share of tools applied once they are known. Thus, knowledge is identified as a key difference between SMEs and large companies as well as an important mediator to promote sustainability management. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explore how respondents from 12 firms make sense of their firm's investments in corporate sustainability activities by analyzing the mental models evoked, and propose that a cognitive perspective on corporate sustainability and competitiveness might allow new insights into the question of the business case.
Abstract: This paper proposes that a cognitive perspective on corporate sustainability and competitiveness might allow new insights into the question of the business case. The paper explores how respondents from 12 firms make sense of their firm's investments in corporate sustainability activities by analyzing the mental models evoked. The interviews showed that a business case perspective emerged as the dominant logic. A subsequent analysis of the content of the knowledge schemas that were elicited surfaced four dimensions of corporate sustainability induced competitive advantages: risk reduction, efficiency gains, brand building and new market creation. An analysis of the structure of these knowledge schemas revealed that respondents from firms with lower perceived sustainability performance drew on less differentiated and less integrated cognitive frameworks (focusing on risk and efficiency). Respondents from firms with higher perceived performance drew on more complex mental models to represent the links between corporate sustainability and competitiveness. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment
TL;DR: In this paper, a content analysis of the corporate sustainability reports, other documents and web sites of 14 apparel brands belonging to the Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC) was conducted to identify indicators related to sustainability.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify the reported indicators in corporate sustainability reports, other documents and the web sites of 14 apparel brands belonging to the Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC). Design/methodology/approach – A content analysis of the corporate sustainability reports, other documents and web sites of the 14 SAC apparel brands was conducted to identify indicators related to sustainability. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected on all reported sustainability initiatives, actions, and indicators. A normative business model was developed for the categorization of the indicators and a cross-case analysis of the apparel brand’s sustainability reporting was conducted. Findings – In total, 87 reported corporate sustainability indicators were identified. The study finds that there is a lack of consistency among them. The majority of the indicators dealt with performance in supply-chain sustainability while the least frequently reported indicators addressed busin...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue that sustainability reporting with its use of Triple Bottom Line (TBL), Global Reporting Initiative and the emerging Integrated Reporting protocol is not fit for purpose; because t...
Abstract: The paper argues that sustainability reporting with its use of Triple Bottom Line (TBL), Global Reporting Initiative and the emerging Integrated Reporting protocol is not fit for purpose; because t...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present the process of designing and delivering a new course on organisational change management for sustainability for the BA Environment and Business degree at the University of Leeds, which was developed based on holism and a constructivist position to help deal with the complexities of sustainability and organizational change management.
TL;DR: In this paper, a multidimensional definition of supply chain transparency and a case study of the Swedish garment retailer Nudie Jeans' attempt to become the most transparent company in the world are presented.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors define corporate sustainability as an approach that creates long-term value with minimum environmental damage, but there is still little understanding of the time horizon over which imp...
Abstract: While corporate sustainability has been defined as an approach that creates long-term value with minimum environmental damage, there is still little understanding of the time horizon over which imp...
TL;DR: In this article, the influence of companies' financial factors on the extent of corporate environmental sustainability reporting (CESR) was revisited in an impressive sample of 3931 companies operating in 51 industries and 59 countries.
Abstract: This paper revisits the influence of companies’ financial factors on the extent of corporate environmental sustainability reporting (CESR) in an impressive sample of 3931 companies operating in 51 industries and 59 countries. A CESR composite index is constructed for each company that focuses on the G3 core environmental indicators from the Global Reporting Initiative because they are material for most organizations. In a methodological innovation, this study employs a quantile regression that unfolds certain interesting effects of financial drivers on the intensity of CESR that have not previously been revealed. Considering a combination of the main underlying theories of corporate sustainability reporting – legitimacy theory, agency theory, political costs theory, and signal theory – offers a better understanding of the complex structure of the dependencies found among factors such as company size, leverage, return on assets, research and development spending, market return and market capitalization, and commitment to environmental reporting. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment
TL;DR: A major challenge remains in mainstreaming ecosystem service information into core public and private use contexts, such as agricultural and energy subsidy design, national income accounts, and corporate accounts.
Abstract: Progress in ecosystem service science has been rapid, and there is now a healthy appetite among key public and private sector decision makers for this science. However, changing policy and management is a long-term project, one that raises a number of specific practical challenges. One impediment to broad adoption of ecosystem service information is the lack of standards that define terminology, acceptable data and methods, and reporting requirements. Ecosystem service standards should be tailored to specific use contexts, such as national income and wealth accounts, corporate sustainability reporting, land-use planning, and environmental impact assessments. Many standard-setting organizations already exist, and the research community will make the most headway toward rapid uptake of ecosystem service science by working directly with these organizations. Progress has been made in aligning with existing organizations in areas such as product certification and sustainability reporting, but a major challenge remains in mainstreaming ecosystem service information into core public and private use contexts, such as agricultural and energy subsidy design, national income accounts, and corporate accounts.
TL;DR: In this article, the adoption of green supply chain management (GSCM) practices, including green sources, affects environmental and operational performance indicators, and the results of the study indicate that the GSCM practice of "internal environmental management" has the greatest positive effect on environmental performance indicators.
Abstract: This study examines how the adoption of green supply chain management (GSCM) practices, including green sources, affects environmental and operational performance indicators. A multiple-case study was conducted using large Brazilian firms that have achieved particular success in their sectors and that occupy high positions in important rankings of corporate sustainability. The results of the study indicate that the GSCM practice of “internal environmental management” has the greatest positive effect on environmental performance indicators, and that the GSCM practice of “cooperation with customers” has the greatest positive effect on operational performance indicators. Thus, if a company aims to improve environmental performance (EP), it may create procedures and programs based on the environmental management system and adopt cleaner production initiatives. If a company intends to improve its operational performance (OP), it may respond to audits, improve information exchange between companies and clients and build research and development (R&D) areas to promote environmental innovation.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explore the possible relationships between organizational ethical climates, ability-enhancing practices and motivation-enhancement practices in human resource management and investigate the possible moderating role played by their employees' perception of corporate sustainability.
Abstract: The increasing challenges faced by organizations have led to numerous studies examining human resource management (HRM) practices, organizational ethical climates and sustainability. Despite this, little has been done to explore the possible relationships between these three topics. This study, based on a probabilistic sample of 6,000 employees from six European countries, analyses how HRM practices with the aim of developing organizational ethics influence the benevolent, principled and egoistic ethical climates that exist within organizations, while also investigating the possible moderating role played by their employees’ perception of corporate sustainability. Findings demonstrate that ability-enhancing practices (i.e. recruiting, selection and training) and opportunity-enhancing practices (i.e. job design, industrial relationships and employee involvement) improve benevolent and principled organizational ethical climates, while motivation-enhancing practices (i.e. performance management, compensation and incentives) rather than being related to these organizational ethical climates, are linked to the egoistic climate. In addition, the perceptions of the company’s employees in terms of corporate sustainability moderate these relationships, by reinforcing the positive relationships of ability-enhancing and motivation-enhancing HRM practices in terms of benevolent and principled ethical climates and by reducing the positive relationships between motivation-enhancing practices and egoistic climate. Specific implications for HRM research, teaching and practice are then advanced and discussed.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined the link between a firm's organization environmental management capability, represented by the development of green teams made up of employees, and its performance, and found that the creation of employee green teams positively affects both environmental performance and environmental reputation.
Abstract: This paper examines the link between a firm's organization environmental management capability, represented by the development of green teams made up of employees, and its performance. In particular, two categories of firm performance will be analysed: environmental performance and environmental reputation.
This link has been investigated in a sample made of the largest publicly traded US companies. Data about green teams have been collected through the content analysis of firm environmental/sustainability/corporate social responsibility reports and/or their websites, whereas data about environmental performance and reputation are those reported in the US 500 Newsweek's 2010 Green Ranking.
Regression analysis results show that the creation of employee green teams positively affects both environmental performance and environmental reputation. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment
TL;DR: A unified theoretical framework was developed for CSD in China to clarify the relationships between the drivers, the corporation’s characteristics, CSD practices, and corporation performance and will prove useful for future research development and investigation.
Abstract: – The purpose of this paper is to threefold. The first purpose is to review and critically analyze corporate sustainability development (CSD) research in China. Second, the paper extracts a unified theoretical framework among CSD drivers, CSD practices, and corporate performance in China. Finally, it seeks to identify links between CSD and industrial management and data systems (IMDS) topics. , – A comprehensive and structured review of the research literature investigating CSD in China was completed. Categorizations and classifications of the literature were summarized. A critical analysis of the literature resulted in a generic theoretical framework that can be used for evaluation of the literature and further investigation. , – The literature review found over 189 papers on CSD in China published from 1997 to 2013. The framework developed focussed on relationships among drivers, practices, and performance within a CSD in China context. The framework provides useful insights into the implementation of CSD practices. The integration of the three dimensions of sustainability and decision-making methodology are still rare. Specific features of CSD are also reviewed with a linkage to IMDS research around information technology, business process modeling, and supply chain management. , – This is one of the first works to provide a comprehensive focus on CSD in China. The theoretical framework was developed for CSD in China to clarify the relationships between the drivers, the corporation’s characteristics, CSD practices, and corporation performance and will prove useful for future research development and investigation. The linkage to IMDS topics is novel and will help further research related to CSD in China for this journal.
TL;DR: In this paper, a multi-level case study illustrates how corporate sustainability contributes to the low-cost business model of a Scandinavian fashion company by creating implicit contracts that reach beyond traditional "shareholder value", transferring risk to suppliers, improving leadership by motivating management and employees and directing their attention to critical issues.
Abstract: This multi-level case study illustrates how corporate sustainability contributes to the low-cost business model of a Scandinavian fashion company.
Contrary to parts of the extant literature, we do not find that corporate sustainability directly adds measurable value (e.g. a better brand image); neither does it exert coercive control over critical supplier relationships. However, corporate sustainability minimizes the downside risk of the business model. It does so by (1) creating implicit contracts that reach beyond traditional ‘shareholder value’, (2) transferring risk to suppliers and (3) improving leadership by motivating management and employees, and by directing their attention to critical issues.
For companies, we offer the insight that corporate sustainability is a necessary complement to shareholder value, even if the relationship is not obvious at first sight. We also suggest that concerted actions of companies or a positive connotation of certification create effective control over suppliers. As to public policy, we conclude that regulators could introduce mandatory disclosure of suppliers to facilitate controls through stakeholders, or alternatively an industry-wide comply-or-explain code of conduct. We also address how regulators can take direct actions against countries with unsustainable labor policies. Last, we suggest future research topics, e.g. expanding the notion of a business model by interpreting ‘adding value’ as prevention of losses. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors show that reflexivity has the potential to initiate processes of collective learning and could eventually bring about the realization of business models that integrate economic, ecological, and social considerations.
Abstract: In order to enable firms to successfully deal with issues of corporate sustainability, the firms' stakeholders would need to participate in sustainability accounting and management. In practice, however, participative sustainability accounting and management are often unfeasible. The resulting consequence is the risk of misbalancing single aspects of sustainability. The purpose of this article is to show that reflexivity in sustainability accounting and management, that is, an ongoing reflection on the relationship between the goals of corporate sustainability and the overarching objective of sustainable development can, at least, mitigate this problem. Reflexivity has the potential to initiate processes of collective learning and could eventually bring about the realization of business models that integrate economic, ecological, and social considerations.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigate the effectiveness of one transnational governance regime, corporate sustainability reporting according to the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), and find that the GRI has been successful in terms of output effectiveness by promoting the dissemination of sustainability reporting, in particular among Asian and South American companies.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examine whether capital market rewards firms with good corporate sustainability practices in an international setting by using the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI hereafter) as an integrated measure of firm sustainability performance.
Abstract: Purpose – This paper aims to examine whether capital market rewards firms with good corporate sustainability practices in an international setting by using the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI hereafter) as an integrated measure of firm sustainability performance. Design/methodology/approach – There are two alternative theories regarding the impact of sustainability on firm value. The value-creating theory predicts that integration of environmental and social responsibility into corporate strategies and practices reduces firm risk and promotes long-term value creation. The value-destroying theory on sustainability suggests that managers may engage in socially responsible activities at the expense of shareholders. To perform empirical tests, we use a large international sample for a period of 13 years between 1999 (the first year when DJSI became available) and 2011. To control for self-selection bias and simultaneity, the authors use lagged values of sustainability performance in a robustness check. F...