Abstract

This study examines the role of gamification elements in engaging suppliers of sharing economy platforms in corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities. We expected that engaging business owners in CSR would improve the brand equity of these platforms by leveraging the business owners’ brand loyalty and brand association. The statistical population of the study is owners of Iranian accommodation who use sharing economy platforms. The size of the sample was 323 accommodation owners. The hypotheses of this study were tested using Smart PLS-3. The study confirmed all the research hypotheses and showed that engaging business owners in social responsibility activities using gamification elements on sharing economy platforms can lead to an increase in the brand equity of the sharing economy platforms. These results will reinforce the synergy between the platforms and their users by making both parties aware of it.

Introduction

The sharing economy (SE) is where customers and business owners (suppliers) are brought together by an online platform. It is a means by which individuals may leverage their assets, such as their cars, their property and, of course, their time so that these assets may be utilized more thoroughly. This increases the efficiency of society as a whole while either increasing the wealth of participating business owners, or increasing their work flexibility, or both (Kuhzady et al., 2021). Advocatesof the SE have often painted a picture of a utopia where business owners will be set free from the shackles of employment while their customers would be able to take advantage of the lower prices (Belk, 2007). Well known examples of SE platforms are Uber in the ride sharing (taxi substitute) field and Airbnb in the accommodation sharing (hotel substitute) field, though there are also imitators of these platforms which have different degrees of market presence in different parts of the world.

However, the vision presented by SE tends to place its emphasis on the freedom of individuals, whether customers or business owners, while ignoring the fact that one of the reasons for the lower costs and prices of the SE compared with traditional businesses is the lack of regulation designed to counteract some negative consequences. Criticisms of the SE approach (Kuhzady et al., 2021) have included negative social and environmental impacts (Ma et al., 2018), limited safety and security (Birinci et al., 2018) and lack of certainty caused by unknown parties (Hossain, 2020) that contradict the vision of SE platforms of being sustainable and socially responsible. Consumers demand social responsibility from SE platforms and therefore business owners must also adopt sustainability and corporate social responsibility (CSR) principles in their businesses (Mi and Coffman, 2019). Consequently, sustaining the SE requires the engagement of all stakeholders where platforms, consumers and business owners are stakeholders in making a sustainable and responsible SE.

Discussion and conclusion

The study examined the role of gamification elements in engaging accommodation owners in CSR activities and enhancing their experience on SE platforms and how it leads to enriching brand equity through mediating effects of accommodation owners’ satisfaction and trust that leads to brand loyalty and brand association.

ads to brand loyalty and brand association. The gamification elements have a significant effect on engaging accommodation owners in CSR activities on SE platforms based on selfdetermination theory. Analysis of the collected data showed that gamification can have a significant and strong effect on engaging accommodation owners in CSR activities on accommodation sharing platforms. This is consistent with previous research on the power of gamification. Researchers have shown that gamification can be used to transfer complex information and promote green behaviour among users (Souza et al., 2020). In this study, it was shown that gamification elements can be used, not only for customers, but also for the accommodation owners and can engage them in behaving sustainably and responsibly. Analysing the collected data indicates a significant effect of gamification elements on the experience of accommodation owners on SE platforms. This also is consistent with previous studies which indicate that gamification can activate hedonic emotions and ultimately enhance the user experience (Hsu and Chen, 2018). It was also concluded that this hedonic experience is not limited to customers but also includes the business owners.

Abstract

This study aims to analyze the role of green transformational leadership and human resource management in organizational performance with the mediating effect of green innovation. The study also proposes the moderating role of commitment to management change. The study used a quantitative research method with a random sampling technique and surveyed 235 managers from the Cement industry across Pakistan. The statistical techniques used to assess the study’s hypotheses were partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) and SPSS. The findings show that green transformational leadership and HRM positively impact organizational performance, with green innovation partially mediating effect. Furthermore, affective commitment to management change strongly moderates the relationship between green innovation and organizational performance. In addition, the proposed relationship is based on the resource-based view (RBV) theory. Therefore, Managers and executives should adopt green principles and practices and build an environmentally friendly culture that encourages employees to engage in green behaviors and activities to improve organizational performance. To successfully implement green practices in a developing country like Pakistan, the Cement sector must understand how the cement industry improves its performance and whether employees demonstrate green innovation.

Introduction

In recent decades, scholars have recognized the significance of Green HRM and green leadership in shaping the operational practices in modern firms [1]. In this regard, and for the efficient and effective management of operations, technology advancements, and rising stakeholder pressure have motivated firms to discover and implement cost-effective and long-term methods to improve organizational performance [2,3]. Enhancing performance has emerged as a primary problem for businesses, requiring the effective utilization of organizational resources and adopting environmentally sustainable practices in Green HRM and eco-friendly activities [4]. The significant rise in globalization and social responsibilities demands justifications for adopting optimal Green HRM practices and integrating data analytics to enhance decision-making [5,6]. To ensure the sustainability and advancement of green business activities, dominant policies encompassing Green HRM, innovation, leadership, environmental quality, and social well-being are essential. Businesses can mitigate their adverse environmental and societal impacts by implementing GHRM, green leadership, and innovative practices [7]. Green HRM comprises three crucial components: motivating employees to enhance their engagement, providing them with green opportunities, and assisting in developing their green skills, which are essential abilities [8]. The underlined components of Green HRM address staff recruitment, selection, development, and training with an environmentally conscious focus; the potential for adopting green practices encompasses employee involvement and green leadership [9].

Discussion

Our empirical work has examined the interactions among variables such as green transformational leadership, HRM, innovation, affective commitment to management change, and organizational performance of the cement industry in Pakistan using theoretical insights from RBV theory. Our study has thoroughly explained all three hypotheses and their sub-hypotheses, showing that the performance of an organization can be improved through green transformational leadership and HRM. This improvement is achieved through the mediating role of green innovation and the moderating role of affective commitment to management change. There is a strong and positive association between all three hypotheses.

Our study found that green transformational leadership influences firm performance by establishing a clear environmental vision, motivating individuals to adopt green practices, increasing employee commitment to achieving environmental goals, and encouraging staff to create and disseminate new green practices; these results are similar to past findings [41]. The results demonstrate that transformational leaders who foster their employees’ green practices to motivate them have excellent potential to execute green prospects effectively.

Abstract

This letter investigates the association between social trust and corporate social responsibility. Using a sample comprising firms operating in 32 countries during the period from 2004 to 2019, we provide evidence highlighting social trust as a factor that can explain cross-country variations in corporate social responsibility activities. Our results extend the research examining the determinants of CSR by showing that informal institutions such as trust play a crucial role in shaping corporate CSR practices. Our findings are robust to controlling for a set of firm-level and country-level control variables, to employing alternative econometric methodologies, and to using various CSR proxies.

Introduction

Social Trust refers to the degree to which individuals in a society believe that others will act in a reliable, honest, and cooperative manner, based on commonly shared norms and values. It involves the expectation that others will not exploit vulnerabilities or engage in behavior that is harmful to the common good (Bradach and Eccles, 1989). Sapienza and Zingales (2012, p. 124) consider trust as “the expectation that another person (or institution) will perform actions that are beneficial, or at least not detrimental, to us regardless of our capacity to monitor those actions…so that we will consider cooperating with him [the institution]”. Aggregated up to the country-level, trust constitutes an important dimension of a country’s political culture. Prior research has demonstrated the importance of trust from a macroeconomic perspective including, higher economic growth (Putnam, 1993; Fukuyama, 1995; La Porta et al., 1997), increased capital market participation (Guisoet al., 2008), and more bilateral foreign direct investments (Bottazzi et al., 2016). At the firm level, Pevzner et al. (2015) state that investors in high-trust countries assign a lower probability to the likelihood that managers will behave in an opportunistic way. Consistently, a growing amount of research documents that trust mitigates agency and information asymmetry problems, leading to better corporate decisions related to investments (Fonseka et al., 2021; Knetsch and Salzmann, 2022), financing (Wu et al., 2014), financial reporting (Pevzner et al., 2015), and tax planning (Xia et al., 2017), among other.

Conclusion

This study examines the association between social trust and firms’ CSR performance. Our primary intuition is that social trust, as an important cultural dimension, could affect a firm’s decision to engage in socially responsible activities. Using a large sample of firms from 32 countries spanning the 2004–2019 period, we find a positive and significant relationship between TRUST and CSR, suggesting that social trust encourages firms to improve their CSR practices and performance. Our results reflect the importance of a trustworthiness relationship between firms and their stakeholders and how it could affect the investment decision. For policymakers, our findings indicate that strengthening an environment with a high level of trust and promoting the culture of trustworthiness among a country or a company may lead to higher engagement in CSR practices.

Abstract

Purpose

     The study reviews the recent conceptualizations and theorizing of green human resource management (GHRM) and explores GHRM’s interconnections with the sustainability literature. The research findings have implications affecting GHRM measurement and design of future studies in the sparsely investigated human resource management (HRM)-environment-sustainability-responsibility spectrum.

Design/methodology/approach

The study uses a narrative style based on a review of quantitative field evidence from 38 recent empirical papers to provide an analytical framework on how the GHRM research agenda has broadened to include aspects of corporate sustainability (CS) and corporate social responsibility (CSR).

Findings

The study finds support from the literature on the impact of environment-related HR initiatives on building long-term capabilities and enhancing firm-specific social outcomes. Further, the study finds that different perspectives used in the conceptualization of GHRM reveal GHRM’s differential impact on organization and environmental sustainability underlying GHRM’s growing recognition as an important tool for organizations to demonstrate their commitment to being a responsible stakeholder of the socio-economic system.

Originality/value

GHRM scholars would find the review useful as the review provides a detailed explanation of how GHRM problems are defined and measured. The understanding of the process of conceptualization has been identified as a research gap in previous reviews; thus, one of the aims of this paper is to aid further knowledge development by understanding how research has progressed previously. The other benefit of the review is that management practitioners would find the insights useful to align HRM initiatives with organization CS/CSR objectives.

Introduction

     Environmental responsibility has gained significant attention over the past few decades in response to the increase in incidents of environmental harm caused by adverse organizational actions (Paulet et al., 2021). There is growing pressure on businesses to demonstrate transparency on their impact on the environment prompting many to adopt sophisticated environmental management systems (Jabbour and Santos, 2008) or pursue other green strategies to minimize any environmental risks that may arise from their operations. However, there is still a lack of consensus on environmental performance being considered a legitimate indicator of organizational performance (Jackson et al., 2011). Despite concerns, larger companies around the world feel the need to share strong signals about their commitment to act socially responsible on account of rising regulatory and legal requirements, shareholder and customer pressures, UN initiatives, etc. requiring greater disclosures on their governance and decision making (Paulet et al., 2021, p. 161; Ehnert et al., 2016). Organizations are making gradual progress with the emergence of clean technologies; however, the “soft and human” side of organizations remains the main challenge while implementing environment-sustainability initiatives (Jabbour and Renwick, 2018, p. 623).

Conclusion

     Based on this review, it can be concluded that while the focus so far has been on theory application, theory development will likely occur as more data emerges from the field. Therefore, it can be inferred that conceptualizing different relations would play an important role in generating more insights about the phenomenon unfolding in the field offering researchers an opportunity to discover newer explanations. Thus, this research paper offers scholars not only a comprehensive list of existing theories and variables but also explanations of their applications.

     Additionally, the review provides a categorical basis by identifying different conceptualization perspectives to enable future researchers to develop or adopt more comprehensible measures for GHRM assessment (Pham et al., 2020a; Umrani et al., 2020).

     The necessity to update GHRM conceptualization on an ongoing basis has also been recognized as an academic need (Ren et al., 2018). The evidence shows the broadening of the GHRM school of thought from the function and behavioral perspectives to include perceptions and capabilities (Jackson and Seo, 2010; Kramar, 2014). An advantage of this Green human resource management 875 review is that it describes how in-depth GHRM theorizing has been done in recent research. Previously, this was only briefly covered, and it was acknowledged that more scholarly effort would be required to understand the same (Ren et al., 2018). Previous reviews as listed earlier in the methodology section also identified themes and trends of GHRM research, leaving the process of theorizing an unexplored area. Future studies can explore the different configurations of how GHRM has been implemented to conceptualize multiple pathways for achieving organizations’ environmental and sustainability goals.

Abstract

     In response to labour and human rights violations onboard fishing vessels, the private sector is increasingly relying on market-based solutions in the form of voluntary, non-governmental social governance tools to improve working conditions for fishers. While the proliferation of these tools is relatively recent in fishing, there is substantial evidence from other sectors that these voluntary standards fail to transform working conditions. Yet, there remains an insistence on using market-based solutions to mitigate labour abuses in fishing despite the problem being a market failure. Using a human and labour-rights based analytical paradigm that underpins worker-centric processes, we constructed objective criteria to assess several voluntary standards against. Failing to include workers and commit to meaningful remedy, findings from the analysis suggests these voluntary non-governmental social governance tools are not able to ensure that human and labour rights are respected in a way that is consistent with state and international regulation or rigorous human rights due diligence. As a result, there is an urgent need for a transformational shift in the sector away from a worker-less reactive and adaptive corporate social responsibility strategy of doing less harm toward a fundamental commitment to redistributing power through a worker-driven social responsibility paradigm.

Introduction

     In response to governance gaps and continued reports of pervasive labour abuses on fishing vessels (e.g., [1], [2], [3], [4], [5]), there has been a relatively recent proliferation of voluntary, non-governmental social governance tools in the fishing sector, purportedly setting and enforcing norms and standards for working conditions and labour performance. This profusion of tools includes ethical standards, labeling systems, commitments, certification schemes, and codes of conduct, with performance evaluated through a plethora of social auditing strategies running the gamut from self, to private, regulation. While the genesis of these tools varies between private sector actors, NGO coalitions, and multi-stakeholder initiatives (MSIs), they share four key commonalities in that: they are typically transnational, market-based (i.e., they rely on market sanctions driven by private sector actors), voluntary, and independent of government oversight or regulation that should underpin human rights due diligence (HRDD) [6], [7], [8], [9], [10], [11], [12], [13]. We term this proliferation of ‘tools’ a ‘hydra’ as akin to the Lernean Hydra, in Greek legend, which could grow new heads as quickly as Hercules cut them off.

Conclusion

     The hydra of non-governmental social governance tools being produced will be an ineffective means for increasing respect for and improving human and labour rights within seafood supply chains in the absence of transformations in the following areas: 1) the business models of seafood businesses; 2) the long supply chains within the seafood industry; 3) worker participation in the governance of seafood supply chains; and 4) the widespread adoption of ILO C188 and similar laws and conventions by fishing nations. The tools assessed in this research have been developed by bodies that have vested interests in the continuation of a social responsibility culture that does not ensure accountability, nor create real liability for those exploiting fishers. These bodies avoid measures that would make seafood supply chains transparent and traceable and keep failing to give workers or their representatives a seat at the decision-making table or in the verification processes. While for those operators who already respect their workers, these tools can provide a benchmark to maintain good practice, unfortunately, for those who do not, these tools are a minor and easily circumvented (and voluntary) inconvenience, which can provide public relations and financial benefits to the companies, with no benefits ‘trickling down’ to workers. For criminal operations, these tools pose no significant threat at all.

Abstract

Purpose

     This study aims to examine the mediating role played by corporate governance (CG) in the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and analyst forecast quality.

Design/methodology/approach

     The authors raise three specific questions: Does CG play a mediating role in the relationship between CSR and analyst forecast quality? If so, is such mediation effect of CG reduced for firms with weak governance? Do firms with superior CSR performance experience higher analyst forecast quality through the mediation effect of CG?

Findings

     The present results suggest that CG serves as a partial mediator that facilitates CSR’s positive influence on analyst forecast quality. However, further analyses show that in firms with a low governance score, CG does not have a mediation effect. Conversely, the authors find that firms with superior CSR performance have higher forecast quality through the mediation effect of CG. The authors also find that the mediation effect of CG is more pronounced for the environmental component than for the social component of CSR

Originality/value

     To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to investigate the role of CG as a mediator between CSR and analyst forecast quality and to reveal that the strength of this effect varies depending on firms’ CG level and CSR commitment.

Introduction

     Informative stock price in financial markets is essential to efficient resource allocation in an economy, and the analyst report is an important avenue to producing a more informed stock price that also leads to better stock performance in the long term (Brav and Lehavy, 2003; Fernandez et al., 2011; Asquith et al., 2005; Lennox and Park, 2006). Although corporate social responsibility (CSR) is becoming a significant part of corporate activity, the literature about the influence of CSR on analyst forecast quality offers largely mixed findings. Some studies find that socially responsible firms experience lower levels of conflict among stakeholders, which may reduce information asymmetry in prices and thus result in more accurate analyst forecasts (Al-Hadi et al., 2019; Becchetti et al., 2015). Other studies suggest that CSR can be used by management as a greenwashing strategy to manipulate legitimacy for obtaining societal acceptance (Jo and Harjoto, 2012; Orlitzky, 2013), which can lead to price distortion and potentially mislead analyst forecasts. In an attempt to reconcile these inconclusive findings, we incorporate the unique role of corporate governance (CG) as a mediator, aiming to investigate the mediation effect of firms’ CG on the relationship between CSR and analyst forecast quality

Conclusion

     This study explored the relationship between CSR and analyst forecast quality and examined the mediation effect of CG. Our results reveal that CG acts as a partial mediator affecting the relationship between CSR and analyst forecast quality, and the mediating role of CG is muted in firms with low level of CG mechanism. Further, our results show that for firms committing to excess CSR, CG also plays a partial mediating role in facilitating CSR’s positive influence on forecast quality.

     This study offers two incremental contributions. First, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to explicitly investigate the role of CG as a mediator between CSR and analyst quality. Second, after splitting CSR into expected CSR and excess CSR, we obtain results that support the signaling hypothesis, indicating that excess CSR engagement by some firms enhances analyst forecast quality through CG as a mediator. Overall, our findings add to extant literature on the nexus of CSR, CG and information asymmetry by providing strong evidence that CG complements CSR to enhance analyst forecast quality.

Abstract

     This research is intended to study the impact of corporate governance, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), and technology on ethics with the objectives that are to be achieved in the discussions. For the research, the discussion will be based on the literature review from articles and journals that are related to the topic that is going to be analyzed, and it will help to compare and identify gaps in the research.

Introduction

     Ethics deals with understanding, evaluating, and separating issues as right and wrong or good and evil or admirable and deplorable when they are applied to the wellbeing and its relationship with human beings using a methodical approach[1]. Ethics can be simply the study of human behavior and generally ideal ways of living, which have led to several ethical studies in various areas, such as corporate ethics, a collection of guidelines or laws that an organization should practice. Moreover, it refers to a code of conduct that corporations are supposed to follow that allows the organization to differentiate between right and wrong and pass moral judgment on issues connected with the organization. Ethics has been influenced by place, time, religion, social law, and cultural background. Moreover, ethics is not only for the corporate sector but also for the general public’s personal, social, and professional aspects.

Conclusion

     Ethical value is essential in every aspect of businesses or organizations. To achieve superior performance and run it for the long term, everyone needs to act ethically. Corporate governance is the system of rules, practices, and processes by which an organization is directed and controlled. It is essential that the organization needs to treat the interest of stakeholders equally, such as shareholders, management, customers, government and community. Corporate governance is there in an organization because it was established to manage and ethically run the organization. Organizations need to make sure that any confidential information that is made within should not be publicly exposed or used for any personal benefits. Benefits received from business ethics are due to the goals of corporate governance. Based on the present study, it can be said that ethics have a substantial impact on corporate governance, and business ethics implementation can ensure good governance. As emphasized earlier, implementation of CG may not be as simple as it seems, particularly when it comes to the corporate domain, but researchers have agreed on the value of CG to enforce CSR and ethical standards in an organization.

Abstract

     Despite the growing attention which green human resource management (GHRM) has been gaining, the field is still remarkably young, and conceptual clarity is yet to be attained. A bibliometric review of GHRM from 2010 to 2020 was conducted on the Web of Science and analyzed using the VOSviewer software package, version 1.6.16 developed by Van Eck and Waltman (Leiden, The Netherlands). The results show the exponential growth of this topic, although there seems to be no consensus regarding its definition, conceptualization and measurement. Concerning its conceptual development, GHRM seems to currently fit the second stage of development (evaluation and augmentation) of Reichers and Schneider’s three-stage model of the evolution of constructs. Future research seems to point in the direction of establishing the barriers separating GHRM from other human resource management topics, defining green practices and determining the antecedents and consequences of GHRM.

Introduction

     The economic growth of the last two centuries has represented prosperity and longevity for humanity. However, the impact of various industrial practices, reflected in pollution and the accumulation of waste and residues, is increasingly evident (IPCC 2018; Jackson et al. 2011). Climate change represents a new set of challenges, altering competitive and regulatory spheres, indirectly through global policy efforts to curb carbon emissions, and directly as a means of combating the unravelling consequences of extreme weather events (IPCC 2018). By invoking unprecedented changes in socio-economic systems, climate change makes it urgent for society to prepare and adapt in the face of new contingencies (Winn et al. 2011). With increasing regulatory and public pressure, more and more business entities are proactively implementing practices and strategic changes, such as investing in low-CO2 technologies and renewable energy, in order to transition to environmental sustainability (González-Benito and González-Benito 2006; IPCC 2018).

     The multidisciplinarity required to reduce organizational environmental footprints challenges the vision that this theme is restricted to environmental sciences, causing new fields of study to emerge in the areas of social research and management (Shrivastava and Berger 2010). In this sense, several related topics have been increasingly emphasized: corporate social responsibility (CSR), environmental management (EM), business ethics, socially responsible consumption and sustainability strategies, among others (Schuler et al. 2017; Shrivastava and Berger 2010).

Conclusions and Future Directions

     The bibliometric analysis of the literature produced between 2010 and 2020 highlights the importance of GHRM today as an expanding field, particularly from the second half of the decade. The purpose of GHRM is to actively participate in the creation of greener societal paths and respond to environmental and ecological issues from the organizational context. This HRM specialty refers to one of the most important challenges faced by humanity

     By mapping the existing literature streams—implementation of GHRM as a strand of EM, consequences at the organizational level and consequences at the employee level— tracing their contributions and development in the last decade, and identifying the construct development stage, this paper has met its objectives. In short, the results obtained suggest that the implementation of green practices in organizations will be reflected in lower levels of environmental pollution and contamination. Despite the emphasis on the repercussions of GHRM at work, it goes beyond the labor sphere, since green environmental values are transferable from context to context, i.e., green behaviors applied at work are reflected in personal life and vice versa. The fact that the evolution of the construct has been going beyond a concept focused only on EM demonstrates the consideration of employees endowed with unique strategic value and their decisive role in organizational sustainability. The resource-based view (Barney 1991) is a theoretical contribution that points in this direction (Yusliza et al. 2017).

Abstract

     Sustainable development has gained the attention of researchers worldwide and is becoming an important topic, especially in relation to corporate governance principles. This study investigates the influence of corporate governance on sustainable development in a sample of 185 countries over 2005–2020 using a panel linear regression model. Separate analyses are also conducted on subsamples of high- and low-income countries. Our findings highlight the positive influence of corporate governance, as measured by board efficacy, the strength of audits and reports, and digitalisation, on sustainable development, as measured by the Human Development Index, Human Capital Index, and Environmental Performance Index. Moreover, we find a higher positive and marginal effect of the influence of corporate governance on sustainable development for low-income countries than for high-income countries. The robustness checks performed using variables related to the happiness index, women in top management positions, and technology adoption verify our results. Our findings are important for managers and policymakers to consolidate sustainable development through the incentive brought about by high-quality corporate governance.

Introduction

     The well-being of a company should be a common interest of all engaged parties. Although researchers have long emphasised the importance of corporate governance principles (Nedelchev, 2013), Howell and Sorour (2016) raised the importance of implementing good practices to ensure organizational well-being. Hashanah and Mazlina (2005) also underlined the corporate governance elements that directly hamper the healthy development of society. Thus, implementing good corporate governance principles ensures the positive and therefore sustainable development of the business.

     Various studies have analyzed the relationships between corporate governance and corporate social responsibility (CSR) (Achim et al., 2017; Crane & Matten, 2007; Kolk & Pinkse, 2010) as well as between CSR and sustainable development (Kahraman Akdogu, 2017; Truant et al., 2017). However, few studies (e.g., De Luca, 2020; Dienes et al., 2016) have investigated the direct relationship between corporate governance and sustainable development. To bridge this gap in the literature, we analyze the impact of corporate governance on social and environmental performance as well as compare the influence of corporate governance in high- and low-income countries. We use a sample of 185 countries over 2005–2020 and panel linear regressions. To validate our main results, we also check their robustness using variables such as the happiness index, women in top management positions, and technology adoption. The results show that the level of sustainable development increases when the use of corporate governance best practices increases. Moreover, we find that corporate governance has a higher impact on the low-income countries than in the high-income countries than

Conclusions

     This study investigated the influence of corporate governance on sustainable development using a panel linear regression model applied to a sample of 185 countries over 2005–2020. Separate analyses were also conducted for high- and low-income countries. Our findings highlight the positive influence of corporate governance on sustainable development measured by the HDI, HCI, and EPI. In addition, we find a higher positive and marginal effect of the influence of corporate governance on sustainable development for low-income countries than for high-income countries.

     Further, we find that high-quality public governance, a high level of urbanisation, and low unemployment increase sustainable development. Culture impacts the sustainable development of a society markedly for both high- and low-income countries, but this effect is particularly high in the latter. The robustness checks performed using the supplementary variables of the happiness index, women in top management positions, and technology adoption verify our results.

Abstract

INTRODUCTION

METHOD

RESULTS

DISCUSSION

ENDNOTE

REFERENCES

Abstract

     In the age of accountability, companies are asked to communicate the social impact of their operations. Assessed by a nonprofit organization, B Lab, the B Impact Assessment (BIA) score is a rapidly growing third-party evaluation for for-profit companies. Using the publicly available 4061 company data provided by B Lab that spans across from 2007 to early 2020, this study provides the current state of the certified and decertified B Corps. The results show that the majority of the companies revisited the BIA every 2 years to recertify. Companies were likely to recertify especially after the third recertification, suggesting that earning the B Corp status can become routinized. The current study shows that the average attrition rate over the entire history of B Corps is 23.7% and the majority of the decertified operate with less than 10 employees. The currently certified companies had a higher overall BIA score than the decertified companies. However, other differences were not apparent.

Introduction

     Companies often make investments to meet various stakeholders’ expectations regarding social and ethical responsibilities that go beyond fulfilling their economic and legal responsibilities (Carroll, 1979). The literature points to two different types of company motives when it comes to engaging in corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities. From a public-serving view, firms act as good corporate citizens for philanthropic reasons (Forehand & Grier, 2003). From a self-serving perspective, engaging in CSR activities and communicating it to the public can be used as a competitive advantage that differentiates one company from another (Du et al., 2010). Firms engage in CSR activities because if the two motives are balanced well, a win–win situation is established: the companies can fulfill their social and ethical responsibilities and the public can form favorable perceptions about companies that support social value and solidify loyalty (Lacey & Kennett-Hensel, 2010; Lichtenstein et al., 2004). Furthermore, the resultant financial return for the companies increases confidence in investing in environmentally friendly companies, resulting in so-called “impact investing” (Höchstädter & Scheck, 2015). Therefore, paying close attention to the social and environmental ramifications of a firm’s operations is an important business strategic move made by current companies.

Results

The state of the certified B Corps

     Over the years, companies recertify or be decertified. Among the companies that have gone through the BIA at least once, 3100 companies are currently certified and 961 have been decertified (see Table 1). The number of companies has rapidly grown between 2009 and 2016, but at the same time, the number of companies that chose to decertify have increased as well, especially up until around 2013. Interestingly, 69.6% of the companies that were in the first cohort of certified B Corps in 2007 still maintain their certified status, which is quite high compared to later cohorts. Those companies have been recertified 4 to 5 times over the past decade or so.

Demonstrating the global expansion of the certified B Corps, the names of 136 countries were listed in the data. Among them, companies from 72 countries maintain the current status of certified B Corp. To make the analysis manageable, the countries were recoded into continents (Africa, Asia, Australia/Oceania, Europe, South America) and the United States and Canada were kept separate as both countries had a sizable number of certified B Corps—close to 50% of the companies are from the United States and Canada.

The data was further examined to see whether certain regions of the world were more likely to opt to decertify. The vertical percentage is calculated by dividing n by the total number of companies certified or decertified to examine the composition of the regions among the certified and decertified companies. The horizontal percentage is calculated by dividing n by the total number of companies from the region to examine what percentage of the companies in a particular region are certified and decertified.

Abstract

Keywords

JEL classification

1. Introduction

2. Theoretical framework

3. Research methodology

4. Results and discussion

5. Conclusion and implications

Appendix A. Supplementary data

Conflict of interest

References

Abstract

This paper examines the effect of corporate social responsibility on firm performance by accounting for the role of Intellectual capital efficiency as a mechanism underlying Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)– firm performance association. In this study, we consider 2132 US companies and develop a structural model for CSR, Intellectual Capital (IC), and firm performance while contemplating endogeneity issues in analyses over the period of 2009–2018. The value-added intellectual capital co-efficient is employed as a proxy measure for IC performance, taking into consideration corporate performance and governance measures. The findings suggest that CSR has a significant effect on firm performance. In particular, the findings reveal that CSR has a link with IC, indirectly affecting a firm performance, and the association between CSR and firm performance is partially mediated by Intellectual capital efficiency.

1. Introduction

Increased globalization and the emergence of knowledge-based economies revolutionized the meaning of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) via altering the basic philosophy of society and businesses. CSR practices drive contemporary businesses to contemplate social along with the economic aspects. Thus, a modern enterprise deems both economic and social aspects imperative during decision-making (Sarkar, 2005). Enterprises participate in CSR activities to overcome agency problems thus generating relatitnal assets and moral capital consequently boosting a firm’s performance. When firms engage in CSR activities, several benefits are achieved which include reduced employees’ turnover rates, increased employees’ commitment, increased satisfaction level of customers and enhanced customer loyalty consequently, all of which improve a firm’s reputation (Rehman, Baloch, & Sethi, 2015).

This new route for an enterprise is guided by CSR-forced modern corporate entities to implement practices that are in line with stakeholders’ perceptions and expectations. Consequently, the nexus between enterprises and society transformed the roles and responsibilities of businesses in society. The inclusion of societal aspects in enterprise decision-making is not without challenges and is imperiled by a trade-off between the cost and benefits for a business. On the contrary, Porter and Kramer (2006) view CSR facets as a competitive advantage rather than a cost or constraint if they are incorporated into the strategic framework of an enterprise.

1- Introduction

2- Theoretical foundation

3- Literature and hypothesis development

4- Research design

5- Empirical results and analysis

6- Additional analyses

7- Conclusion and implications

References

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to examine whether firms’ embrace of an integrity culture will affect the performance of corporate social responsibility (CSR). Employing manually collected data on corporate culture and 5,149 firm-year observations in China from 2008 to 2016, our empirical study finds that corporate integrity culture has a strong positive effect on CSR performance, suggesting that an integrity-oriented corporate culture helps companies to bear CSR on their own initiative. We further find CEO duality leadership strengthens and analyst coverage attenuates the above relationship. This article is the first to explore the effect of corporate integrity culture on CSR behavior and validates the role of corporate culture as a crucial informal institution in guiding companies to uphold CSR. The empirical results also confirm the role of corporate culture in enhancing the social value of corporations. Our paper is helpful to broaden our understanding of the factors influencing CSR and provides a possible solution to the problem of CSR fulfillment.

Introduction

Modern global business determines corporations to become more aware than in the past of the importance of socially responsible business. Since enterprises are the basic economic units and play a central role in economic growth and social development, it is very meaningful and necessary for companies to be more socially responsible through the behaviors of giving back to society in different ways such as charitable donations, safety production, employment promotion, employee rights protections, product quality, environmental protection, resource conservation, etc. However, these responsible activities cannot be accomplished without the supports of honesty and integrity awareness embedded in the minds of firms’ management and employees, as well as ethical corporate cultures. As an important dimension of corporate culture, the significance of integrity to enterprises is self-evident. Prior studies show that integrity is vital to the survival and development of enterprises (e.g., Koehn, 2005; Erhard and Jensen, 2017; Jiang et al., 2019). For instance, a corporate culture of integrity can help companies attract investment (Denison and Mishra, 1995), reduce transaction costs (Gosling and Huang, 2009), enhance operating efficiency (Hsu, 2007), and thus improve corporate profitability and performance (Reichheld and Teal, 1996; Simons, 2002; Erhard and Jensen, 2017).