Attitudes toward corporate sustainability : a multi-item scale and a multi-country empirical analysis

Magdeburg, Univ., Fak. f��r Wirtschaftswiss., Diss., 2013

Management Control for Corporate Sustainability Execution: The Role of Employee Compensation

The research described in this thesis examines the characteristics, the benefits and the challenges associated with the implementation of management accounting systems in the field of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). Applied to the CSR context, management accounting relates to the identification, elaboration and communication of information about an organization's interactions with the society and the environment. Based on this information, firms are able to make decisions to achieve social and environmental objectives and provide evidence justifying the benefits and the costs of such actions. The study begins by focusing on green management and exploring the characteristics of Environmental Management Accounting (EMA) systems within firms. The first chapter informs the reader about the growing body of EMA research and reveals unexplored relevant aspects that need to be further investigated. The work also emphasizes the importance of developing new theoretical hypotheses and appropriate research designs to empirically tackle new aspects of EMA and gain understanding on the use of these practices. Subsequently, given the acknowledged importance of control systems in influencing the behaviour of individuals within organizations, the remaining two chapters of the dissertation focus on the functioning of CSR-linked incentives assigned to employees in the form of compensation plans. The second chapter examines the determinants influencing corporate provision of incentives for the attainment of environmental targets. Empirical analysis of a sample of international firms reveals that companies are likely to use green incentives as mechanisms to increase the efficacy in contracting with their employees as well as to respond to social influences. Finally, the third chapter investigates the effectiveness of contracting associated with the use of CSR-linked executive compensation. Empirical analysis of a sample of US-based companies shows that corporate choice to tie senior executives' pay to CSR targets promotes the firm's CSR performance. Cette th��se examine les caract��ristiques, avantages et d��fis associ��s �� l'utilisation des syst��mes de contr��le de gestion dans le domaine de la Responsabilit�� Sociale des Entreprises (RSE). Dans le contexte de la RSE, les activit��s du contr��le de gestion impliquent l'identification, l'��laboration et la communication d'informations qui concernent les interactions des organisations avec la soci��t�� et l'environnement. Avec ces informations les entreprises sont en mesure de prendre des d��cisions visant �� atteindre les objectifs sociaux et environnementaux de l'organisation et de documenter les b��n��fices et co��ts de ces actions. D��s le d��but, la th��se se concentre sur les caract��ristiques des syst��mes de contr��le de gestion environnementale au sein des entreprises. Le premier chapitre passe en revue la litt��rature existante et r��v��le des aspects inexplor��s. Pour ce faire, le travail sugg��re le d��veloppement de nouvelles th��ories ainsi que l'utilisation de m��thodes appropri��es. Ces derni��res doivent permettre d'aborder empiriquement de nouveaux aspects des syst��mes de contr��le environnemental et faciliter la compr��hension sur l'utilisation de ces pratiques. Consid��rant l'importance des syst��mes de contr��le pour influencer le comportement des individus au sein des organisations, la suite du travail se concentre sur le fonctionnement des contrats de r��mun��ration des employ��es li��es aux r��sultats de la RSE. Plus particuli��rement, le deuxi��me chapitre examine les facteurs qui influencent la d��cision des entreprises d'assigner des objectifs environnementaux aux employ��es. L'analyse empirique d'un ��chantillon d'entreprises internationales montre que les entreprises sont susceptibles d'utiliser des m��canismes incitatifs ��cologiques pour augmenter l'efficacit�� des contrats ainsi que pour r��pondre aux influences sociales. Finalement, le troisi��me chapitre analyse l'efficacit�� des contrats de r��mun��ration des dirigeants li��s aux r��sultats de la RSE. L'analyse empirique d'un ��chantillon de soci��t��s am��ricaines indique que le choix de l'entreprise de lier la r��mun��ration des dirigeants �� des objectifs de la RSE favorise la performance RSE de l'organisation.

Creating Value for Corporate Sustainability: Stakeholder Engagement

The thesis aims to build a coherent view and understanding of stakeholder engagement���s contribution to corporate sustainability value creation. Theory suggests that corporate sustainability relies on sustainable relationships between the firm and its multiple stakeholders. This study is qualitative and evidence is derived from integrative analysis of literature, secondary data and case study analysis. The findings from the interviews analysis supplement the framework developed as the results of the literature review. The results obtained throughout the thesis research imply that stakeholder engagement helps develop more thorough understandings of issues and alternative perspectives, which in turn facilitates the decision-making processes improvement. The improvement is also achieved through ethical analysis, by weighing the impact of firm���s decisions on all relevant groups. Therefore, clear communication and exchange of information also improve the acceptance of sustainability initiatives amongst stakeholders both in terms of building trust and managing expectations. As practical implications, this thesis presents organizational practices that can be employed by companies to support effective engagement with stakeholders. The described practices could enhance processes such as partnership and co-creation resulting in greater sustainable development.

Insights on corporate sustainability and share value: an event study for Brazilian market

Em meio ao crescente volume de publica����es sobre sustentabilidade e finan��as, diversas pesquisas internacionais e brasileiras t��m abordado a rela����o entre empresas classificadas como sustent��veis e o retorno de suas a����es. Nesta mesma linha, este trabalho utilizou o m��todo de estudos de eventos para verificar se entre 2005 e 2013 houve retornos anormais quando as empresas entraram e sa��ram do ��ndice de Sustentabilidade Empresarial (ISE). Al��m de contemplar um per��odo mais atualizado do que seus precedentes, este estudo difere-se dos demais ao analisar o as observa����es individualmente e ao buscar estabelecer uma rela����o dos retornos anormais acumulados com as vari��veis governan��a corporativa, tamanho, rentabilidade e alavancagem. Os resultados mostraram que embora n��o haja evid��ncias conclusivas quando os casos s��o tomados individualmente, em conjunto eles indicam que a inclus��o e a exclus��o do ISE geram retornos anormais significativos, positivos e negativos respectivamente, em linha com a teoria dos stakeholders. Quanto ��s vari��veis de controle, nenhuma apresentou rela����o com os retornos anormais acumulados.

Sustainability indexes: why join in? A study of the Corporate Sustainability Index (ISE) in Brazil

In the past decade, indicators have been created to assess the sustainability performance of companies listed in stock exchange markets. Academics and practitioners expect companies to benefit from being listed in such indexes, but evidence of value creation is still scarce. Since virtually all studies about the Corporate Sustainability Index (ISE) of the S~ ao Paulo Stock Exchange (Brazil) e the object of the present study e focused on the value of shares, we initially looked for answers in the finance theory. We collected secondary data about the financial and economic performance of companies forming the ISE's ���theoretical portfolio���, as these kinds of indexes are also known. In a second stage, we sought additional motivations for companies to make efforts to be listed in the index. We collected additional data and interviewed representatives of key companies listed in the ISE, as well as industry leaders who chose not to participate in the selection process. The results support the main propositions of the institutional theory, as well as the ���pays to be green��� literature e that the intangible value created by voluntary environmental initiatives, such as access to knowledge, new capabilities and reputational gain, better explain the efforts companies make to be listed in the ISE index

Enabling change for corporate sustainability: An integrated perspective

This article explores the processes of change that enable corporations to move towards sustainable practices, focusing on the human resource and business strategies that support rather than diminish global ecology and human/social capabilities. We argue that this unified approach is necessary to bring about a change in the interpretation of corporate sustainability and to support the activities of change agents (managers, consultants, and community activists) in managing the massive corporate change needed to move corporations toward sustainable practices in a systematic way. We propose a schema in the form of an integrated phase model for understanding how corporations move from compliance modes to the attainment of strategic sustainability and beyond to the ���ideal��� or sustaining corporation. We discuss the leadership of change and the roles and strategies that corporate change agents can employ to bring about both incremental and transformational change for sustainability.