Ivan Montiel

Corporate Social Responsibility and Corporate Sustainability: Separate Pasts, Common Futures

This article reviews the different definitions of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and corporate sustainability (CS) used over time to reveal points of difference and congruence between the two terms. Management literature uses both CSR and CS to refer to social and environmental management issues, but there is no clear distinction between the two terms. First, the author quantifies the articles published about CSR and CS in both general management and specialized journals. Second, the author summarizes the different CSR- and CS-related definitions to identify the definitional differences between CSR and CS. Finally, the author identifies opportunities to reshape a rapidly changing field by enhancing collaboration among scholars devoted to studying CSR and CS issues.

When are corporate environmental policies a form of greenwashing

Do environmental policy statements accurately represent corporate commitment to environmental sustainability? Because companies are not required by law to publish environmental policy statements or to verify that these statements are true using independent third parties, external stakeholders often wonder when a published commitment to a policy translates into actual policy implementation. The authors analyzed two independent databases to predict the circumstances under which large, leading-edge corporations in industry sectors will commit to and/or implement proactive corporate environmental policies and when it is unlikely they will do so. The authors found that commitment to specific environmental policies does not vary greatly between industry sectors; however, policy implementation does.

Defining and Measuring Corporate Sustainability: Are We There Yet?

This literature review article aims to bring a better understanding to the field of corporate sustainability (CS) as studied by management scholars. The first part of this review quantifies the amount of research devoted to CS and related topics such as corporate social responsibility, corporate social performance, environmental strategies and environmental performance from 1995 through 2013. The authors then summarize the different definitions, organizational theories, and measures that have been adopted by management scholars working in the CS field in both academic and practitioner management journals. The results show that the CS field is still evolving and different approaches to define, theorize, and measure CS have been used. Differences are also found between the literature that targets scholars versus the one targeting practitioners. The authors also provide a set of recommendations on how to advance the CS field.

The fit of the social responsibility standard ISO 26000 within other CSR instruments

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to discuss how ISO 26000 fits within two predominant corporate social responsibility (CSR) instruments, GRI and UNGC. The past two decades have witnessed considerable changes in the CSR field with the introduction of new voluntary CSR instruments. Organizations adopting such tools may perceive some of the existing and emerging CSR instruments as redundant or complementary. Design/methodology/approach – The relationships between the CSR instruments analysed are treated through the lenses of institutional entrepreneurship and coopetition theories. The analysis presented is based on secondary data such as literature reviews, publications and online resources and databases from the UNGC, GRI and ISO as well as personal communications with representatives of ISO, GRI and UNGC. Findings – The paper shows that from the users’ perspective, CSR instruments should not be treated as separate alternatives, but rather as complementary to each other. At the same time, organizations th...

A Conceptualization of How Firms Engage in Corporate Responsibility Based on Country Risk

This conceptual article looks at corporate responsibility (CR) and country risk claiming that there is a relationship, and then positing the directionality of the relationship. An understanding of this relationship can help firms respond to a variety of pressures from organizations and this knowledge may help firms prevent negative media coverage with the need to “bolt” CR strategies on to existing corporate strategies. When firms have an understanding of how country risk affects them, they can plan entire clusters of CR initiatives to fulfill needs within the operating community. To understand the CR–country risk relationship, the authors build on Matten and Moon’s (2008) distinction between implicit and explicit CR. The first argument is that firms engage in no explicit CR (explicit CR that is voluntary and goes beyond legal requirement) when country risk is very high. As country risk lowers to high, firms engage in explicit CR, which creates little impact to the firm if CR must be withdrawn. The second argument is that as country risk shifts to moderate, firms commence to engage in high levels of explicit CR and low levels of implicit CR. The third argument concludes that when country risk shifts to low or very low, firms will engage in the least amount of explicit CR and the most amount of implicit CR. A set of three propositions develops these arguments.

Supplier relations and sustainable operations: the roles of codes of conduct and human resource development

Although significant research has been undertaken on sustainable and green supply chain management, the investigation of the roles of two important sustainable supply chain management (SSCM) practices - codes of conduct and human resource management practices - in improving a buyers and a suppliers sustainability performance is almost absent in the sustainability literature. Using multiple theories and drawing from the literature on sustainability, corporate social responsibility, supply chain management, operations management, and human resource management, this study offers a research model and relevant propositions that show how the implementation of these practices can result in sustainability performance for both suppliers and buyers. The paper concludes with further research implications of the study.

Global Perspectives on the Use of Technology to Enhance Ethics, CSR and Sustainability Pedagogy

Recent years have witnessed how technologies such as mobile phones have not only revolutionized our daily habits but also completely changed the ways we receive information, process knowledge and c...