scholarly journals Managing Corporate Sustainability and Responsibility Efficiently: A Review of Existing Literature on Business Groups and Networks

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (18) ◽  
pp. 7722 ◽  
Author(s):  
Olena Liakh ◽  
Francesca Spigarelli

Given the global relevance of business groups (BG) and networks as efficient organizational forms for corporate sustainability and responsibility systems (CSR), and seeing that management control systems (MCS) play a pivotal role in transmitting authority to CSR and formalizing a sustainability organizational culture, this paper aims to review the available literature in order to investigate efficient adoptions of CSR by BGs or networks. Both organizational forms have positive effects on CSR development, on three levels: (a) setting industry standards (macro—external environment); (b) stimulating sustainability-oriented innovations (mezzo—member firms); (c) reputational gains, CSR expenses mitigation, and optimization of organizational capabilities (micro—individual SMEs). The studies on SMEs were useful in identifying current sustainability practices: both partial (social, environmental) and complete sustainability systems were susceptible to being integrated with management accounting, making them an almost implicit tool for proper CSR. Finally, by gathering the empirical literature on sustainability transitions of networks and groups, it was possible to trace a comprehensive introductory plan that operators could resort to for initial guidance. The six steps of this process are (1) project initiation, (2) preliminary actions, (3) change management decision, (4) firm-level activities, (5) auditing, (6) transition to territorial social responsibility (optional).

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 521 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fotis Kitsios ◽  
Maria Kamariotou ◽  
Michael A. Talias

Sustainability is becoming an increasing issue for decision-makers and scholars worldwide and many managers understand the significance of the strategic approach of corporate sustainability. However, they face difficulties in aligning sustainable development and strategic management as well as to implement it in practice. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to conduct a bibliometric analysis exploring the integration of strategic management, decision-making and corporate sustainability, providing a framework of interrelated issues according to the current literature in this area. 72 peer-reviewed papers were analyzed based on Webster’s and Watson’s (2002) methodology. The results of this review revealed that the number of publications in this domain has increased in the last decade, and there is a need to foster research (especially empirical) in this field because managers should find out ways to implement, in action, corporate sustainability strategies and integrate their action plans with their business strategy. This review concludes with a framework that includes the most commonly addressed issues of this topic and provides opportunities and challenges for further research.


2017 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 379-394 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raheel Safdar ◽  
Chen Yan

Purpose This study aims to investigate information risk in relation to stock returns of a firm and whether information risk is priced in China. Design/methodology/approach The authors used accruals quality (AQ) as their measure of information risk and performed Fama-Macbeth regressions to investigate association of AQ with future realized stock returns. Moreover, two-stage cross-sectional regression analysis was performed, both at firm level and at portfolio level, to test if the AQ factor is priced in China in addition to existing factors in the Fama French three-factor model. Findings The authors found poor AQ being associated with higher future realized stock returns. Moreover, they found evidence of market pricing of AQ in addition to existing factors in the Fama French three-factor model. Further, subsample analysis revealed that investors value AQ more in non-state owned enterprises than in state owned enterprises. Research limitations/implications The study sample comprises A-shares only and the generalization of the findings is limited by the peculiar institutional and economic setup in China. Originality/value This study contributes to market-based accounting literature by providing further insight into how and if investors value information risk, and it seeks to fill gap in empirical literature by providing evidence from the Chinese capital market.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Megumi Suto ◽  
Hitoshi Takehara

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate investors’ perception of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and its risk-mitigating effects on firm-level innovation in Japan from 2006 to 2017. The authors examine the influence of CSR intensity on firm-specific risks, focusing on the risk-moderating effect of CSR on innovation. Design/methodology/approach The authors conducted a simple slope analysis and panel data regressions with input and output innovation measures and idiosyncratic risk based on an asset-pricing model. Findings The results demonstrate that CSR intensity not only reduces firm-specific risk directly but also indirectly by negatively moderating the relationship between firm-level innovation and idiosyncratic risk. Research limitations/implications Signaling trust to capital markets, CSR engagements in the manufacturing industry are clearly important for innovative firms with active research and development undertakings. Practical implications Corporate managers should further expand their efforts to make non-financial disclosures available, considering the interactions between CSR intensity and research and development financial risk. Originality/value In the context of Japanese firms, this study demonstrates the interaction between CSR practices and innovation activities from the perspective of long-term management of corporate sustainability.


2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hiroyuki Yamada ◽  
Tien Manh Vu

Abstract In literature, there is limited direct evidence regarding the effect of health insurance coverage on firm performance and worker productivity. We study the impacts of health insurance on medium- and large-scale domestic private firms’ performance and productivity in Vietnam, using a large firm level census dataset. We find statistically, but suggestive, positive health insurance effects on both aggregate profit and profit per worker for both complying and non-complying firms when using the full sample. We further restrict the sample to specific industries. The positive health insurance effects could exist for both complying and non-complying firms in the heavy manufacturing and construction sector, while such positive effects could be only significant for complying firms in the wholesale/retail sectors. We could not find any evidence of positive health insurance effects in the light manufacturing sector. These results imply that the impacts of health insurance could be industry specific.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Afework Getachew Kassa ◽  
Geremew Teklu Tsigu

Purpose Synthesizing theoretical and empirical literature, this study aims to build a theoretical model linking the constructs; corporate entrepreneurship, employee engagement and innovation. Design/methodology/approach Using an integrative review method the current study conducted an examination of related literature on the areas of corporate entrepreneurship, employee engagement, as well as innovation and developed an integrated model which combines the three constructs. The study bases itself on the resource-based view (RBV) for looking into corporate entrepreneurial ecosystems as organizational capabilities and employee engagement as a human resource. The social exchange theory (SET) was also used to analyse the interrelationships. Findings An RBV synthesis made on corporate entrepreneurship, employee engagement, as well as innovation literature shows that while corporate entrepreneurship has been recognized as beneficial to bring positive organizational outcomes, attempts to tie it in the core resource, capability and competence input-output linkage are scanty. The study shows that the RBV can be a good way to see human resources as a source of organizational competitive advantage and corporate entrepreneurship as the capability to product innovation as a competence. The study also shows that by combining the RBV with the SET corporate entrepreneurship, employee engagement and innovation can be integrated as a basis for developing organizational competitiveness. Practical implications The implication of this paper to future empirical studies is that corporate entrepreneurship can be integrated with the RBV to relate it to the core competitive advantage development endeavour. The implication for policymakers and management practitioners on the other hand is that managers can consider corporate entrepreneurship as a major capability to bring the employee resource on board the innovation process. The study further implies that management practitioners need to provide time, freedom, boundary, reward and support to get their employees engaged in innovation. Hence, managers can integrate the SET into their motivation principles. Originality/value The study is original in its attempt to integrate the SET and RBV for studies in the area of corporate entrepreneurship, employee engagement and innovation.


2012 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 14-25 ◽  
Author(s):  
Inés González-González ◽  
Enric Serradell-López ◽  
David Castillo-Merino

People cannot deny the plausible evidence; globalization and internationalization has meant that the world is in an era of continuous changes in the companies that are unable to adapt rapidly to them, are evoked to extinction. Today, this has a significant impact in Western societies that has led companies to focus their attention not only in technological but also in finding new management tools capable of providing the company with: information about what happens in the organization to achieve customer satisfaction and increased results. For this reason it is vital to the management control and, in particular, as the authors will expose, process management. This work study is an empirical study about the positive effects of the implementation of process management to companies in Spain, specifically in efficiency.


2019 ◽  
Vol 109 (3) ◽  
pp. 1032-1079 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonas Hjort ◽  
Jonas Poulsen

To show how fast Internet affects employment in Africa, we exploit the gradual arrival of submarine Internet cables on the coast and maps of the terrestrial cable network. Robust difference-in-differences estimates from 3 datasets, covering 12 countries, show large positive effects on employment rates—also for less educated worker groups—with little or no job displacement across space. The sample-wide impact is driven by increased employment in higher-skill occupations, but less-educated workers’ employment gain less so. Firm-level data available for some countries indicate that increased firm entry, productivity, and exporting contribute to higher net job creation. Average incomes rise. (JEL F14, J23, J24, J63, L86, O15, O33)


2019 ◽  
Vol 134 ◽  
pp. 03011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuliia Lazarenko ◽  
Olga Garafonova ◽  
Vyktoriia Marhasova ◽  
Svetlana Grigashkina ◽  
Olena Kozureva

In order to successfully achieve sustainable development objectives, modern enterprises have to establish a framework and implement appropriate managerial tools for the effective integration of sustainability into business operations. The paper aims to clarify the concept of sustainable development in the mine management context, highlight the main principles of sustainable mining and devise appropriate tools and mechanisms from a managerial viewpoint to implement the strategic sustainability priorities into business practice. Based on a literature review of research on sustainable mine management issues, the main dimensions of the sustainability concept are highlighted and the specific goals corresponding to each of the priority focus areas are identified in the paper. As a result of the study, the key organizational aspects and firm-level mechanisms that should be primarily taken into account from a management decision-making viewpoint to embed the strategic sustainability principles into business practices and corporate activities of mining operators are pointed out. From a practical perspective, the findings can be used by mining operators for defining strategic sustainability priorities and setting related corporate objectives, as well as devising guidelines for the effective implementation of the integrated sustainable mine management system.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Shafique Ur Rehman ◽  
Anam Bhatti ◽  
Sascha Kraus ◽  
João J. M. Ferreira

PurposeThe purpose of this study determines how environmental management control system (MCS) packages influence ecological sustainability and sustainable performance through the mediating role of environmental strategies. Furthermore, this applies organizational capabilities as moderating variables between environmental strategies, ecological sustainability and sustainable performance in a sample of 373 construction firms.Design/methodology/approachThe authors apply quantitative questionnaire data from construction firm representatives (from project, sales and construction managers and contract managers, executive directors and engineers) to structural equation modeling and SmartPLS for our analysis.FindingsThe results demonstrate that recourse to environmental MCS packages significantly influence ecological sustainability, sustainable performance and environmental strategies. Additionally, environmental strategies and organizational capabilities significantly influence ecological sustainability and sustainable performance. Moreover, environmental strategies mediate between environmental MCS packages, ecological sustainability and sustainable performance. Organizational capabilities significantly moderate the relationship between ecological sustainability and sustainable performance.Practical implicationsThis research highlights the issue of how the management of construction organizations deploy environmental MCS packages, organizational capabilities and business strategies to measure ecological sustainability and improve their sustainable performance. This study fills a gap in the literature and facilitates the management of construction organizations in strengthening their internal resources in terms of environmental MCS packages, environmental strategies and organizational capabilities able to help improve their ecological sustainability and sustainable performance.Originality/valueThere are few studies building theoretical frameworks for incorporating environmental MCS packages, organizational capabilities, environmental strategies, ecological sustainability and sustainable performance into a single study. Although the influence of various types of intangible resources on ecological sustainability and sustainable performance receive considerable examination in the literature, there is a dearth of attention paid to understanding the role of environmental MCS packages, environmental strategies and organizational capabilities in determining the ecological sustainability and sustainable performance of construction organizations.


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