IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/bstrat/v32y2023i8p5252-5272.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The influence of firm digitalization on sustainable innovation performance and the moderating role of corporate sustainability practices: An empirical investigation

Author

Listed:
  • Lorenzo Ardito

Abstract

This paper seeks to shed light on the relationship between firm digitalization and the likelihood of launching sustainable innovations (social and environmental, social only, and environmental only), for which the extant research has provided a paucity of evidence. In detail, the role of digitalization is considered in terms of (i) the specific effect of a given digital technology (DT)—among artificial intelligence, cloud computing, robotics, smart devices, big data analytics, high speed infrastructure, and blockchain—and (ii) the effect of the concurrent adoption of multiple DTs (degree of digitalization). Furthermore, the paper assesses if and how the effect of the degree of digitalization is moderated by the implementation of sustainability practices, as the two issues are often treated independently. Research questions are proposed instead of hypotheses. Econometric analysis to answer proposed questions is based on a sample of 14,125 firms, whose information is gathered from the survey Flash Eurobarometer 486. Results reveal that each DT differently affects the likelihood of launching sustainable innovations, while the degree of digitalization is always beneficial. Moreover, it appears that firm digitalization and the adoption of sustainability practices are not complementary. All in all, this paper helps to illuminate current representations of the interplay between digitalization, sustainability practices, and sustainable innovations at the firm level, with implications for research, managerial practice, and policymaking.

Suggested Citation

  • Lorenzo Ardito, 2023. "The influence of firm digitalization on sustainable innovation performance and the moderating role of corporate sustainability practices: An empirical investigation," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(8), pages 5252-5272, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:bstrat:v:32:y:2023:i:8:p:5252-5272
    DOI: 10.1002/bse.3415
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1002/bse.3415
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1002/bse.3415?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Peter Howson, 2019. "Tackling climate change with blockchain," Nature Climate Change, Nature, vol. 9(9), pages 644-645, September.
    2. Guandalini, Ilaria, 2022. "Sustainability through digital transformation: A systematic literature review for research guidance," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 148(C), pages 456-471.
    3. Grimpe, Christoph & Sofka, Wolfgang, 2009. "Search patterns and absorptive capacity: Low- and high-technology sectors in European countries," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 38(3), pages 495-506, April.
    4. Inigo, Edurne A. & Albareda, Laura, 2019. "Sustainability oriented innovation dynamics: Levels of dynamic capabilities and their path-dependent and self-reinforcing logics," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 139(C), pages 334-351.
    5. Kenneth Roeck & Nathalie Delobbe, 2012. "Do Environmental CSR Initiatives Serve Organizations’ Legitimacy in the Oil Industry? Exploring Employees’ Reactions Through Organizational Identification Theory," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 110(4), pages 397-412, November.
    6. Brigitte Hoogendoorn & Peter Zwan & Roy Thurik, 2019. "Sustainable Entrepreneurship: The Role of Perceived Barriers and Risk," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 157(4), pages 1133-1154, July.
    7. Adeoluwa Akande & Pedro Cabral & Sven Casteleyn, 2019. "Assessing the Gap between Technology and the Environmental Sustainability of European Cities," Information Systems Frontiers, Springer, vol. 21(3), pages 581-604, June.
    8. Gerard George & Ryan K. Merrill & Simon J. D. Schillebeeckx, 2021. "Digital Sustainability and Entrepreneurship: How Digital Innovations Are Helping Tackle Climate Change and Sustainable Development," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 45(5), pages 999-1027, September.
    9. Glenn Hoetker, 2007. "The use of logit and probit models in strategic management research: Critical issues," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(4), pages 331-343, April.
    10. Aija Leiponen & Constance E. Helfat, 2011. "Location, Decentralization, and Knowledge Sources for Innovation," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 22(3), pages 641-658, June.
    11. Ardito, Lorenzo & Raby, Simon & Albino, Vito & Bertoldi, Bernardo, 2021. "The duality of digital and environmental orientations in the context of SMEs: Implications for innovation performance," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 44-56.
    12. Hasbi, Maude, 2020. "Impact of very high-speed broadband on company creation and entrepreneurship: Empirical Evidence," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 44(3).
    13. William Ocasio, 1997. "Towards An Attention‐Based View Of The Firm," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 18(S1), pages 187-206, July.
    14. Jennifer Clapp & Sarah-Louise Ruder, 2020. "Precision Technologies for Agriculture: Digital Farming, Gene-EditedCrops, and the Politics of Sustainability," Global Environmental Politics, MIT Press, vol. 20(3), pages 49-69, August.
    15. Lange, Steffen & Pohl, Johanna & Santarius, Tilman, 2020. "Digitalization and energy consumption. Does ICT reduce energy demand?," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 176(C).
    16. Antonia Madrid‐guijarro & Domingo Garcia & Howard Van auken, 2009. "Barriers to Innovation among Spanish Manufacturing SMEs," Journal of Small Business Management, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 47(4), pages 465-488, October.
    17. Francisco Javier Forcadell & Elisa Aracil & Fernando Úbeda, 2020. "The Impact of Corporate Sustainability and Digitalization on International Banks’ Performance," Global Policy, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 11(S1), pages 18-27, January.
    18. Gideon D. Markman & Michael Russo & G. T. Lumpkin & P. Devereaux (Dev) Jennings & Johanna Mair, 2016. "Entrepreneurship as a Platform for Pursuing Multiple Goals: A Special Issue on Sustainability, Ethics, and Entrepreneurship," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 53(5), pages 673-694, July.
    19. Nambisan, Satish & Wright, Mike & Feldman, Maryann, 2019. "The digital transformation of innovation and entrepreneurship: Progress, challenges and key themes," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(8), pages 1-1.
    20. Lenny Koh & Alexandre Dolgui & Joseph Sarkis, 2020. "Blockchain in transport and logistics – paradigms and transitions," International Journal of Production Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 58(7), pages 2054-2062, April.
    21. Yao-Jen Fan & Shuo-Fang Liu & Ding-Bang Luh & Pei-Shan Teng, 2021. "Corporate Sustainability: Impact Factors on Organizational Innovation in the Industrial Area," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-24, February.
    22. Annick Castiaux, 2012. "Developing Dynamic Capabilities To Meet Sustainable Development Challenges," International Journal of Innovation Management (ijim), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 16(06), pages 1-16.
    23. K. Parboteeah & Sascha Walter & Jörn Block, 2015. "When Does Christian Religion Matter for Entrepreneurial Activity? The Contingent Effect of a Country’s Investments into Knowledge," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 130(2), pages 447-465, August.
    24. Lorenzo Ardito & Javier Carrillo‐Hermosilla & Pablo del Río & Pierpaolo Pontrandolfo, 2019. "Sustainable innovation: Processes, strategies, and outcomes," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 26(5), pages 1009-1011, September.
    25. Francesco Perrini & Antonio Tencati, 2006. "Sustainability and stakeholder management: the need for new corporate performance evaluation and reporting systems," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 15(5), pages 296-308, September.
    26. Zoltan J. Acs & Luc Anselin & Attila Varga, 2008. "Patents and Innovation Counts as Measures of Regional Production of New Knowledge," Chapters, in: Entrepreneurship, Growth and Public Policy, chapter 11, pages 135-151, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    27. Usai, A. & Fiano, F. & Messeni Petruzzelli, A. & Paoloni, P. & Farina Briamonte, M. & Orlando, B., 2021. "Unveiling the impact of the adoption of digital technologies on firms’ innovation performance," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 133(C), pages 327-336.
    28. Ketan Reddy & Radeef Chundakkadan & Subash Sasidharan, 2021. "Firm innovation and global value chain participation," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 57(4), pages 1995-2015, December.
    29. Unwin, Tim, 2017. "Reclaiming Information and Communication Technologies for Development," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780198795292.
    30. Annachiara Longoni & Raffaella Cagliano, 2018. "Sustainable Innovativeness and the Triple Bottom Line: The Role of Organizational Time Perspective," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 151(4), pages 1097-1120, September.
    31. Andreas Hoepner & Ioannis Oikonomou & Bert Scholtens & Michael Schröder, 2016. "The Effects of Corporate and Country Sustainability Characteristics on The Cost of Debt: An International Investigation," Journal of Business Finance & Accounting, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 43(1-2), pages 158-190, January.
    32. Robin Stevens & Nathalie Moray & Johan Bruneel & Bart Clarysse, 2015. "Attention allocation to multiple goals: The case of for-profit social enterprises," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 36(7), pages 1006-1016, July.
    33. Michele Loi & Christian Hauser & Markus Christen, 2022. "Highway to (Digital) Surveillance: When Are Clients Coerced to Share Their Data with Insurers?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 175(1), pages 7-19, January.
    34. R. Daniel Wadhwani, 2011. "Organisational form and industry emergence: Nonprofit and mutual firms in the development of the US personal finance industry," Business History, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 53(7), pages 1152-1177, December.
    35. Michele Loi & Christian Hauser & Markus Christen, 2022. "Correction to: Highway to (Digital) Surveillance: When Are Clients Coerced to Share Their Data with Insurers?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 175(1), pages 21-21, January.
    36. Fini, Riccardo & Grimaldi, Rosa & Meoli, Azzurra, 2020. "The effectiveness of university regulations to foster science-based entrepreneurship," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 49(10).
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Sascha Fuerst & Odille Sanchez-Dominguez & Miguel Angel Rodriguez-Montes, 2023. "The Role of Digital Technology within the Business Model of Sustainable Entrepreneurship," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(14), pages 1-17, July.
    2. Ardito, Lorenzo & Raby, Simon & Albino, Vito & Bertoldi, Bernardo, 2021. "The duality of digital and environmental orientations in the context of SMEs: Implications for innovation performance," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 44-56.
    3. Guandalini, Ilaria, 2022. "Sustainability through digital transformation: A systematic literature review for research guidance," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 148(C), pages 456-471.
    4. Ardito, Lorenzo & Messeni Petruzzelli, Antonio, 2017. "Breadth of external knowledge sourcing and product innovation: The moderating role of strategic human resource practices," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 35(2), pages 261-272.
    5. Allal-Chérif, Oihab & Costa Climent, Juan & Ulrich Berenguer, Klaus Jurgen, 2023. "Born to be sustainable: How to combine strategic disruption, open innovation, and process digitization to create a sustainable business," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 154(C).
    6. Assunta Di Vaio & Anum Zaffar & Daniel Balsalobre-Lorente & Antonio Garofalo, 2023. "Decarbonization technology responsibility to gender equality in the shipping industry: a systematic literature review and new avenues ahead," Journal of Shipping and Trade, Springer, vol. 8(1), pages 1-20, December.
    7. Arranz, Carlos F.A. & Arroyabe, Marta F. & Arranz, Nieves & de Arroyabe, Juan Carlos Fernandez, 2023. "Digitalisation dynamics in SMEs: An approach from systems dynamics and artificial intelligence," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 196(C).
    8. Srivastava, Smita & Sahaym, Arvin & Allison, Thomas H., 2021. "Alert and Awake: Role of alertness and attention on rate of new product introductions," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 36(4).
    9. Wang, Xincheng & Li, Yuan & Tian, Longwei & Hou, Ye, 2023. "Government digital initiatives and firm digital innovation: Evidence from China," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 119(C).
    10. Peiyan Zhou & Shuya Zhou & Ming Zhang & Shujuan Miao, 2022. "Executive Overconfidence, Digital Transformation and Environmental Innovation: The Role of Moderated Mediator," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(10), pages 1-28, May.
    11. Charfeddine, Lanouar & Umlai, Mohamed, 2023. "ICT sector, digitization and environmental sustainability: A systematic review of the literature from 2000 to 2022," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 184(C).
    12. Kun Wang & Bing Chen & Yuhong Li, 2024. "Technological, process or managerial innovation? How does digital transformation affect green innovation in industrial enterprises?," Economic Change and Restructuring, Springer, vol. 57(1), pages 1-32, February.
    13. Li, Ganglei & Shao, Yunfei, 2023. "How do top management team characteristics affect digital orientation? Exploring the internal driving forces of firm digitalization," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    14. Bai, Xiaoou & Tsang, Eric W.K. & Xia, Wei, 2020. "Domestic versus foreign listing: Does a CEO's educational experience matter?," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 35(1).
    15. Julien Gosse & Chris CM Forman & Nicolas van Zeebroeck, 2023. "Adoption of ICT and Environmental Management Practices: Empirical Evidence from European Firms," Working Papers TIMES² 2023-070, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles.
    16. Nieto, María Jesús & Santamaria, Luis & Bammens, Yannick, 2023. "Digitalization as a facilitator of open innovation: Are family firms different?," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 128(C).
    17. Grimpe, Christoph & Sofka, Wolfgang, 2016. "Complementarities in the search for innovation—Managing markets and relationships," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 45(10), pages 2036-2053.
    18. Zhe Zhang & Xin Wang & Ming Jia, 2021. "Echoes of CEO Entrepreneurial Orientation: How and When CEO Entrepreneurial Orientation Influences Dual CSR Activities," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 169(4), pages 609-629, April.
    19. Bencsik, Barbara & Palmié, Maximilian & Parida, Vinit & Wincent, Joakim & Gassmann, Oliver, 2023. "Business models for digital sustainability: Framework, microfoundations of value capture, and empirical evidence from 130 smart city services," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 160(C).
    20. Lihua Chen & Yilang Chen, 2023. "A Metaorganizations Perspective on Digital Innovation and Corporate Social Responsibility: Evidence from China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(14), pages 1-19, July.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:bstrat:v:32:y:2023:i:8:p:5252-5272. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/(ISSN)1099-0836 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.