Angeloantonio Russo

Unintended consequences of CSR: protectionism and collateral damage in global supply chains: the case of Vietnam

Purpose – This paper seeks to investigate the influence of the increasingly sustainable sourcing policies of many multinational companies on suppliers located in developing countries such as Vietnam. The focus is the process through which corporate social responsibility (CSR) is reaching this Southeast Asian country.Design/methodology/approach – The research was conducted in Vietnam through the support of the United Nations Industrial Development Organizations (UNIDO) regional office. The survey was based on a questionnaire used during direct interviews or sent out electronically when onsite visits were not possible. The research involved 25 Vietnamese enterprises.Findings – The results reveal, on the one hand, how CSR makes business sense even in a developing country such as Vietnam and, on the other hand, the difficulties of maintaining sustainability as products move from northern consumers to Vietnamese suppliers. This process calls for more collaborative models of governance among the companies alon...

Sustainability along the global supply chain: the case of Vietnam

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact that more sustainable sourcing policies by many multinational companies are having on the suppliers located in developing countries such as Vietnam. Questions are raised about the process through which CSR is reaching the country. Design/methodology/approach - The research was conducted in Vietnam thanks to the support of the United Nations Industrial Development Organizations (UNIDO) Regional Office. The survey was carried out on the basis of a questionnaire that was used as a support during the direct interviews and was sent electronically when the preferred method of on-site visits was not possible. A total of 25 Vietnamese enterprises were involved in the research. Findings - The results achieved highlight, on the one hand, how CSR does make business sense even in a developing country such as Vietnam and, on the other, the difficulties related to the way requirements of sustainability are moving from Northern consumers to suppliers in Vietnam. Practical implications - This process calls for new forms of collaboration involving firms along the supply chain, local authorities, international players, and civil society. Originality/value - The paper points out the unsustainability of the process through which corporate responsibility is being imposed on Vietnamese suppliers and how CSR, having become a mandatory requirement for access to international markets, might transform itself into a new type of technical barrier to trade. Therefore, CSR needs to be fostered rather than imposed, through the creation of innovative partnerships and locally-rooted solutions.

Eco‐Efficiency vs Eco‐Effectiveness: Exploring the Link between GHG Emissions and Firm Performance

Climate change has increasingly attracted business attention over the last decade, and it will probably be so in the next years. The goal of this paper is twofold. First we contribute to the ongoing debate on the effects of environmental strategies on firm performance. We investigate this relationship considering the greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) as an independent variable. GHG emissions are a direct indicator of the environmental performance and effectively measure the firm’s efforts in mitigating the impacts related to its processes and products. Second, we investigate the drivers that lead to an increase in the firm’s environmental impact empirically exploring the link between market performance and GHG emissions. To test our hypotheses, we use a sample of worldwide listed companies derived from the Global Fortune 500 index. A longitudinal analysis is run through a two-stage least square regression over the period 2002-2005. The findings have significant implications on the way we conceptualize corporate environmental sustainability and environmental strategies, opening a debate on the relations between eco-efficiency and eco-effectiveness.

Untangling the antecedents of code of ethics quality: does corporate governance matter?

Purpose – This study aims to investigate the antecedents of code of ethics’ quality with specific regard to the peculiarities of corporate governance, which include the role of the primary shareholders within the firm, the role and influence of independent directors on the board, the effect of board size on the strategic decision-making process and the influence of the chief executive officer’s (CEO) age and gender diversity. Design/methodology/approach – A sample of 248 Italian public companies publishing a code of ethics as of 2011 is used to test the hypotheses through Tobit regression models. Findings – A positive or negative impact is derived from the implementation of a high-quality code of ethics. Codes of ethics are strongly influenced by the ownership structure of the company given the critical role played by primary shareholders with larger stakes in influencing the quality of a code. Moreover, the lower the number of independent directors, the higher the firm’s propensity to invest in code of e...

Special Issue: Sport management and stakeholders.

To date, the overwhelming majority of the corporate social responsibility (CSR), sustainability, stakeholder management and stakeholder theory literature has been from a business/managerial context, thus the frequent references to ‘‘the firm.’’ In their review of 127 studies dating between 1972 and 2002, Margolis and Walsh (2003) found none that applied stakeholder theory to sport. Only recently has this gap begun to be addressed with the works of Wolfe and Putler (2002) and Friedman, Parent, and Mason (2004). Wolfe and Putler (2002) used stakeholder theory to examine how different stakeholder groups of an American intercollegiate sports program prioritized their interests. The goal of the study was to determine if stakeholder groups indeed have homogenous interests. They concluded that although stakeholders may be homogenous in regards to a specific issue such as sport-related fees, their priorities may not be. Friedman et al.’s (2004) study provided a framework for sport managers from various sectors of professional sport to improve their relationships with their respective stakeholders and address issues pertinent to each group. The framework outlined important considerations to the focal organization and stakeholders. Developing a framework to identify how sports can contribute to social development initiatives through the engagement and commitment of several stakeholders requires consideration of stakeholder management and stakeholder theory. Within this context, we refer to the notion of ‘‘stakeholder’’ developed in the relevant literature in the field (Donaldson & Preston, 1995; Freeman, 1984; Post, Preston & Sachs, 2002a; Post, Preston & Sachs, 2002b). Although very closely aligned, stakeholder management and stakeholder theory are two different concepts. Whereas stakeholder management primarily focuses on examining issues surrounding an organization’s societal responsibilities, stakeholder theory aims to provide the theoretical framework for such an examination (Mitchell, Agle & Wood, 1997). In light of the above theoretical context, this special issue seeks to expand our knowledge about the relationship that exists between sport management and stakeholders. By integrating a stakeholders’ vision into sport organizational practices, a systematic approach is provided to conceptualize, comprehend and analyze external environment to facilitate our understanding of, and thereby our ability to manage within, increasingly unpredictable external environments. Sport management is related to several European Sport Management Quarterly, Vol. 11, No. 4, 327 335, October 2011

The Roots of Corporate Sustainability: the Art of Managing Innovation and Relationships by illycaffè

The crisis that hit the coffee market after the International Coffee Organization (ICO) agreement collapsed in 1989 led Italian company illycaffe to look beyond the typical business model that had characterized the coffee industry to date. illycaffe decided to embrace a new strategic challenge and focus on a direct-purchasing model. They would bypass the intermediaries and reward their chosen growers by paying them a premium over the market price.