Peter A. Stanwick and Larry P. Pleshko
An area that so far has been neglected within organizational theory research is the examination of the relationship of characteristics of the environment, formalized planning, and…
Abstract
An area that so far has been neglected within organizational theory research is the examination of the relationship of characteristics of the environment, formalized planning, and organizational structure, along with their resultant effects on firm performance. This paper examines these relationships based on three environmental dimensions, four design dimensions, and two dimensions of formalized planning used by decision makers within an organization. The results of an empirical investigation suggest that environmental characteristics and organizational design do have an impact on both performance efficiency and performance effectiveness. In addition, interactions of environmental characteristics and organizational design on performance effectiveness were significant.
Sarah D. Stanwick and Peter A. Stanwick
The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between corporate social responsiveness and organizational characteristics. Using a ratio comparing the number of…
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between corporate social responsiveness and organizational characteristics. Using a ratio comparing the number of environmental disclosures that are made internally by the firm with external environmental disclosures (Environmental Disclosure Index), an empirical analysis was done using data from 24 chemical companies. The study's results showed that there was an inverse relationship between the firm's social responsiveness and the firm's size and a positive relationship with the firm's financial performance. The study's results did not indicate a significant relationship between the level of corporate social responsiveness and the capital expenditures and pollution emissions released by the firms.
Peter A. Stanwick and Sarah D. Stanwick
This study examines the relationship between ethical reputation, CEO compensation and firm performance for the top corporate citizens as rated by Business Ethics magazine. The…
Abstract
This study examines the relationship between ethical reputation, CEO compensation and firm performance for the top corporate citizens as rated by Business Ethics magazine. The results show that there was not a direct relationship between CEO compensation and firm performance, that a high level of CEO compensation combined with a high ethical reputation did not impact the financial performance of the firm, and firms with a high ethical reputation had only average financial results, while firms with low ethical reputations displayed both high and low financial performance. Furthermore, CEOs of unfirms had, on average, higher compensation levels than firms that were profitable. These findings bring useful inputs for CEO on how they can justify high levels of compensation even during periods when the firm is not profitable or has a low level of profitability. An interesting sidelight of the study is that three CEOs in the sample whose firms were profitable did not accept any compensation during 2002, probably because the financial performance was below expectations.
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The role of managerial cognitive processes has so far been largely neglected within strategy research which examines organizational decline and recovery. Proposes that heuristics…
Abstract
The role of managerial cognitive processes has so far been largely neglected within strategy research which examines organizational decline and recovery. Proposes that heuristics used by managers such as: availability, representativeness, adjustment and anchoring may contribute to the declining performance of the organization. Suggests that mental imagery could be used to adjust these heuristics and change the cognitive processes of the existing managers instead of replacing the top management team in declining organizations. This change in cognitive processes could help increase the ability of a declining firm to improve its performance.
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This paper aims to verify whether the integration of sustainability in executive compensation positively affects firms’ non-financial performance and whether corporate governance…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to verify whether the integration of sustainability in executive compensation positively affects firms’ non-financial performance and whether corporate governance characteristics enhance the relationship between sustainability compensation and firms’ non-financial performance and to expand the domain of the impact of sustainability on non-financial performance.
Design/methodology/approach
This analysis is based on a sample of companies listed on the Milan Italian Stock Exchange from the Financial Times Milan Stock Exchange Index over the 2016–2020 period. Regression analysis was used by using data retrieved from the Refinitiv Eikon database and the sample firms’ remuneration reports.
Findings
The findings of this paper show that embedding sustainability in executive compensation positively affects firms’ non-financial performance. The results of this paper also reveal that specific corporate governance features can improve the impact of sustainability on non-financial performance.
Research limitations/implications
This analysis is limited to Italian firms included in the Financial Times Milan Stock Exchange Index; however, the findings are highly significant.
Practical implications
The findings provide regulators with useful insights for considering the integration of sustainability goals into executive remuneration. Another implication is that policymakers should require – at least – listed firms to fulfil specific corporate governance structural requirements. Finally, the findings can provide investors and financial analysts with a greater awareness of the role played by executive remuneration in the long-term value-creation process.
Originality/value
This paper contributes to addressing the relationship among sustainability, remuneration and non-financial disclosure, drawing on the stakeholder–agency theoretical framework and focusing on Italian firms. This issue has received limited attention with controversial results in the literature.
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Peter Hockey, Alexandra Tobin, Juliette Kemp, Janet Kerrigan, Fleur Kitsell, Penny Green, Amanda Sewell, Christopher Smith, Stephanie Stanwick and Peter Lees
The purpose of this paper is to describe a novel approach to leadership development for UK healthcare workers, while contributing to health service improvement in a developing…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to describe a novel approach to leadership development for UK healthcare workers, while contributing to health service improvement in a developing country.
Design/methodology/approach
A quality improvement faculty are used to teach and mentor National Health Service (NHS) International Development Clinical Fellows in quality improvement (QI) methods. Using accepted QI methods, sensitive and practical improvement projects are selected in partnership with local people in Cambodia in order to start achieving United Nations Millennium Development Goals related to child and maternal health. Simultaneously, NHS International Fellows gain an unparalleled opportunity to develop their leadership skills, which should benefit the NHS on their return to the UK.
Findings
Healthcare quality improvement methods, developed in First World countries, are transferable to the developing world and also function as a vehicle for developing leadership skills in experienced healthcare workers.
Practical implications
This leadership development programme fits with the stated aims of the Global Health Partnerships report, which encourages the NHS to play a global role in healthcare development in the developing world. Other First World healthcare systems could adopt this leadership development method to both improve the leadership capability of their own staff while also making a significant contribution to less well‐developed healthcare systems.
Originality/value
The combination of leadership development through quality improvement is novel – promising to benefit both providers and recipients.
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Raida Chakroun, Hamadi Matoussi and Sarra Mbirki
This study aims to investigate the extent and trends of voluntary corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure and to analyze the determinants of the listed banks’ annual…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to investigate the extent and trends of voluntary corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure and to analyze the determinants of the listed banks’ annual reports and websites in an emergent capital market, namely, Tunisia.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors examine the level of CSR disclosure by means of a manual content analysis where the sentence is used as the unit of the analysis. They use Branco and Rodrigues’ (2006 and 2008) index which includes 23 items. They focus on the annual reports of 11 Tunisian listed banks during the period from 2007 to 2012 and the information presented on their websites in December 2013. They use, also, regression analysis to identify the determinants of CSR disclosure used by Tunisian listed banks.
Findings
The results of the investigation show that Tunisian listed banks disclose CSR information primarily in a narrative form. Human resources are the main focus in the annual reports, whereas, on the websites, community involvement is the most widespread theme. With regard to the determinants, it appears that bank age, financial performance and state shareholding are the main factors that impact CSR disclosure in the Tunisian listed banks’ annual reports. Furthermore, this study finds a positive (negative) relationship between leverage (financial performance) and CSR disclosure in the banks’ websites. In this regard, the results show different determinants of CSR disclosure for the two supports. Moreover, bank size, foreign shareholding and the type of auditor are unrelated to the listed banks’ CSR disclosure either in their annual reports or on their websites.
Research limitations/implications
The sample size is small; however, it consists of all the relevant Tunisian banks. Also, this study is subject to the limitations of using manual content analysis.
Practical implications
This study enables highlights the importance of CSR disclosure and its determinants for the Tunisian banks’ stakeholders (such as regulators, investors and managers).
Originality/value
The authors contribute to the scarce literature on CSR disclosure in financial institutions. It is the first study to investigate Tunisian listed banks’ CSR disclosure. It is a first attempt to show, also, how banks’ characteristics and banks’ ownership structures impact on their CSR disclosure in their annual reports and on their websites.
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Sebastian Arendt and Malte Brettel
The aim of this paper is to examine the effects of corporate social responsibility (CSR) on corporate identity, image and firm performance in a multi‐industry setting, in order to…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this paper is to examine the effects of corporate social responsibility (CSR) on corporate identity, image and firm performance in a multi‐industry setting, in order to support evidence that the effects of CSR differ in different industry settings.
Design/methodology/approach
The study, based on pre‐existing CSR scales, was tested using data collected from a sample of 389 European companies. Hypotheses are based on the examination of the moderating effects of CSR using a group comparison method.
Findings
Contingency models show that CSR triggers the corporate‐image‐building process and that its relationship to company success varies significantly based on company size, industry and marketing budget.
Research limitations/implications
This research was conducted within a specific region in the EU and as such these findings may or may not be generalized to other regions like Asia or the USA. In addition, the secondary data of the study did not include stakeholders other than customers and suppliers, suggesting that further analysis of the model should be made using data from additional stakeholders.
Practical implications
Previous research has shown mixed results from companies' efforts in the field of CSR. This paper triggers practitioners' discussion about the ability to pursue CSR, depending on their size, industry, and marketing budget, and helps them to set the right focus for their CSR efforts.
Originality/value
The study enriches the body of empirical research on CSR and provides support for research investigating under which conditions CSR is most effective. It is the first to analyze samples from different industries in this context.
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Amritjot Kaur Sekhon and Lalit Mohan Kathuria
Despite continuous research efforts, the literature is still inconclusive about the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and financial performance. With an…
Abstract
Purpose
Despite continuous research efforts, the literature is still inconclusive about the relationship between corporate social responsibility (CSR) and financial performance. With an aim to address this problem, this study aims to analyze the impact of CSR on financial performance in the Indian context.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a panel of top 137 companies from CNX-500 for 10 years (2008-2017), the impact of CSR on three indicators of financial performance, namely, Return on Assets (ROA), Return on Equity (ROE) and Net Profit Margin (NPM), is evaluated using the panel data regression analysis. The technique of content analysis is used to collect data on CSR from the annual reports of selected companies.
Findings
The study finds that the impact of CSR on financial performance may be neutral (with ROA and NPM) or negative (with ROE). The negative influence of CSR on ROE of firms supports the theory by Friedman (1970) that the only responsibility of business is to maximize profits and returns for its shareholders.
Originality/value
After amendments in Companies Act, 2013, there is limited literature addressing this scientific inquiry in the Indian context. The study period (2008-2017) includes CSR disclosures from both periods, before reforms and after reforms, which adds to the uniqueness of this research study. In addition, this study uses a research instrument consisting of a total of 178 CSR activities divided across 46 themes for collecting data from annual reports of the companies. The utilization of such a comprehensive research instrument, for the study, also adds to its peculiarity.