IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v13y2021i21p12299-d674085.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The Relationship between CFO Compensation and Corporate Sustainability: An Empirical Examination of German Listed Firms

Author

Listed:
  • Mirko Profitlich

    (Institute of Management, Accounting and Finance, Leuphana University Lüneburg, Universitätsallee 1, 21335 Lüneburg, Germany)

  • Yassin Denis Bouzzine

    (Institute of Management, Accounting and Finance, Leuphana University Lüneburg, Universitätsallee 1, 21335 Lüneburg, Germany)

  • Rainer Lueg

    (Institute of Management, Accounting and Finance, Leuphana University Lüneburg, Universitätsallee 1, 21335 Lüneburg, Germany
    Department of Business and Economics, University of Southern Denmark, Universitetsparken 1, 6000 Kolding, Denmark)

Abstract

In this paper, we analyze the relationship between Chief Financial Officer (CFO) compensation and Corporate Sustainability (CS) by relying on stakeholder-agent theory and institutional theory. Taking a closer look at the German DAX30 and MDAX firms for the business years 2014–2018 (313 firm-year observations), we perform regression and correlation analyses to determine if the different CFO compensation components are related to CS. Our analyses use the environmental, social, governance (ESG) performance as a proxy for CS, determined by the Asset Four database of Thomson Reuters and the CFO compensation data from the Beck et al. (2020) database, and reveal a positive relationship between CS and CFO compensation for pension and stock compensation. Based on our knowledge, this study is the first empirical study that takes a closer look at the relationship between the different CFO compensation components and CS for the German DAX30 and MDAX firms. This result comes with important implications concerning the design of CFO compensation and for future research.

Suggested Citation

  • Mirko Profitlich & Yassin Denis Bouzzine & Rainer Lueg, 2021. "The Relationship between CFO Compensation and Corporate Sustainability: An Empirical Examination of German Listed Firms," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(21), pages 1-17, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:21:p:12299-:d:674085
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/21/12299/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/21/12299/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Chava, Sudheer & Purnanandam, Amiyatosh, 2010. "CEOs versus CFOs: Incentives and corporate policies," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 97(2), pages 263-278, August.
    2. Peter A. Stanwick & Sarah D. Stanwick, 2001. "CEO compensation: does it pay to be green?," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 10(3), pages 176-182, May.
    3. Paul Shrivastava & Stuart Hart, 1995. "Creating sustainable corporations," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 4(3), pages 154-165, July.
    4. Scott J. Callan & Janet M. Thomas, 2011. "Executive compensation, corporate social responsibility, and corporate financial performance: a multi‐equation framework," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 18(6), pages 332-351, November.
    5. Carl J. Kock & Juan Santaló & Luis Diestre, 2012. "Corporate Governance and the Environment: What Type of Governance Creates Greener Companies?," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 49(3), pages 492-514, May.
    6. Saurabh Mishra & Sachin Modi, 2013. "Positive and Negative Corporate Social Responsibility, Financial Leverage, and Idiosyncratic Risk," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 117(2), pages 431-448, October.
    7. Jannika Kutzschbach & Parvina Tanikulova & Rainer Lueg, 2021. "The Role of Top Managers in Implementing Corporate Sustainability—A Systematic Literature Review on Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 11(2), pages 1-19, April.
    8. Caglio, Ariela & Dossi, Andrea & Van der Stede, Wim, 2018. "CFO role and CFO compensation: an empirical analysis of their implications," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 88296, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    9. Lois Mahoney & Linda Thorn, 2006. "An Examination of the Structure of Executive Compensation and Corporate Social Responsibility: A Canadian Investigation," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 69(2), pages 149-162, December.
    10. Jaepil Choi & Heli Wang, 2009. "Stakeholder relations and the persistence of corporate financial performance," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(8), pages 895-907, August.
    11. Mehran, Hamid, 1995. "Executive compensation structure, ownership, and firm performance," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 38(2), pages 163-184, June.
    12. Foo Ho & Hui-Ming Wang & Scott Vitell, 2012. "A Global Analysis of Corporate Social Performance: The Effects of Cultural and Geographic Environments," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 107(4), pages 423-433, June.
    13. Joseph E. Coombs & K. Matthew Gilley, 2005. "Stakeholder management as a predictor of CEO compensation: main effects and interactions with financial performance," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(9), pages 827-840, September.
    14. (Xuefeng) Jiang, John & Petroni, Kathy R. & Yanyan Wang, Isabel, 2010. "CFOs and CEOs: Who have the most influence on earnings management?," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 96(3), pages 513-526, June.
    15. Sarowar Hossain & Gary S. Monroe, 2015. "Chief Financial Officers’ Short- and Long-term Incentive-based Compensation and Earnings Management," Australian Accounting Review, CPA Australia, vol. 25(3), pages 279-291, September.
    16. Jensen, Michael C & Murphy, Kevin J, 1990. "Performance Pay and Top-Management Incentives," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 98(2), pages 225-264, April.
    17. Brian Cadman & Linda Vincent, 2015. "The Role of Defined Benefit Pension Plans in Executive Compensation," European Accounting Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 24(4), pages 779-800, December.
    18. Daniel Beck & Gunther Friedl & Peter Schäfer, 2020. "Executive compensation in Germany," Journal of Business Economics, Springer, vol. 90(5), pages 787-824, June.
    19. Raffi Indjejikian & Michal Matějka, 2009. "CFO Fiduciary Responsibilities and Annual Bonus Incentives," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 47(4), pages 1061-1093, September.
    20. Lueg, Rainer & Radlach, Ronny, 2016. "Managing sustainable development with management control systems: A literature review," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 34(2), pages 158-171.
    21. Habiba Al-Shaer & Mahbub Zaman, 2019. "CEO Compensation and Sustainability Reporting Assurance: Evidence from the UK," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 158(1), pages 233-252, August.
    22. Thomas Dyllick & Kai Hockerts, 2002. "Beyond the business case for corporate sustainability," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 11(2), pages 130-141, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Rainer Lueg, 2022. "Constructs for Assessing Integrated Reports—Testing the Predictive Validity of a Taxonomy for Organization Size, Industry, and Performance," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(12), pages 1-13, June.
    2. Fabio Korinth & Rainer Lueg, 2022. "Corporate Sustainability and Risk Management—The U-Shaped Relationships of Disaggregated ESG Rating Scores and Risk in the German Capital Market," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(9), pages 1-15, May.
    3. Mengyao Xia & Bangzhu Zhu & Helen Huifen Cai, 2023. "Does duration of team governance decrease corporate carbon emission intensity," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 30(3), pages 1363-1388, May.
    4. Andrzej Piosik, 2021. "Revenue Identification in Attaining Consensus Estimates on Income Predictions: The Function of Ownership Concentration and Managerial Ownership Confirmation from Poland," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(23), pages 1-16, December.

    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. Julija Winschel & Martin Stawinoga, 2019. "Determinants and effects of sustainable CEO compensation: a structured literature review of empirical evidence," Management Review Quarterly, Springer, vol. 69(3), pages 265-328, September.
    2. Giovanni-Battista Derchi & Laura Zoni & Andrea Dossi, 2021. "Corporate Social Responsibility Performance, Incentives, and Learning Effects," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 173(3), pages 617-641, October.
    3. Claude Francoeur & Andrea Melis & Silvia Gaia & Simone Aresu, 2017. "Green or Greed? An Alternative Look at CEO Compensation and Corporate Environmental Commitment," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 140(3), pages 439-453, February.
    4. Karen Maas, 2018. "Do Corporate Social Performance Targets in Executive Compensation Contribute to Corporate Social Performance?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 148(3), pages 573-585, March.
    5. Karen Maas & Sanne Rosendaal, 2016. "Sustainability Targets in Executive Remuneration: Targets, Time Frame, Country and Sector Specification," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 25(6), pages 390-401, September.
    6. Junqin Huang & Youliang Liao & Bin Lin & Lawrence Loh, 2022. "Supporter or Supervisor? The Role of Chief Financial Officers in Corporate Innovation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(15), pages 1-18, August.
    7. Robert Huber & Bernhard Hirsch, 2017. "Behavioral Effects of Sustainability‐Oriented Incentive Systems," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 26(2), pages 163-181, February.
    8. Habiba Al-Shaer & Mahbub Zaman, 2019. "CEO Compensation and Sustainability Reporting Assurance: Evidence from the UK," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 158(1), pages 233-252, August.
    9. Kim, Jeong-Bon & Li, Yinghua & Zhang, Liandong, 2011. "CFOs versus CEOs: Equity incentives and crashes," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 101(3), pages 713-730, September.
    10. Chun-An Li & Tse-Mao Lin & Yu-Wen Huang, 2018. "Managerial Overconfidence, Compensation Induced Risk Taking, And Earnings Management," The International Journal of Business and Finance Research, The Institute for Business and Finance Research, vol. 12(2), pages 1-26.
    11. Duong, Lien & Evans, John, 2015. "CFO compensation: Evidence from Australia," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 35(PA), pages 425-443.
    12. Wang, Fangjun & Zhang, Zhichao & Ho, L.C. Jennifer & Usman, Muhammad, 2023. "CFO gender and financial statement comparability," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).
    13. Kamalesh Kumar & Giacomo Boesso & Rishtee Batra & Jun Yao, 2019. "Explicit and implicit corporate social responsibility: Differences in the approach to stakeholder engagement activities of U.S. and Japanese companies," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(6), pages 1121-1130, September.
    14. Douglas A. Adu & Antoinette Flynn & Colette Grey, 2022. "Executive compensation and sustainable business practices: The moderating role of sustainability‐based compensation," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(3), pages 698-736, March.
    15. Kang, Chang-Mo & Kim, Donghyun, 2022. "Risk management transparency and compensation," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    16. Jean McGuire & Jana Oehmichen & Michael Wolff & Roman Hilgers, 2019. "Do Contracts Make Them Care? The Impact of CEO Compensation Design on Corporate Social Performance," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 157(2), pages 375-390, June.
    17. Abernethy, Margaret A. & Bouwens, Jan & Kroos, Peter, 2017. "Organization identity and earnings manipulation," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 1-14.
    18. Dai, Yunhao & Chao, Yang & Wang, Li, 2021. "The brain gain of CFOs in China: The case of analyst forecasts," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    19. Peng, Qiyuan & Yin, Sirui, 2021. "Does the executive labor market discipline? Labor market incentives and earnings management," Journal of Empirical Finance, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 62-86.
    20. Scott J. Callan & Janet M. Thomas, 2014. "Relating CEO Compensation to Social Performance and Financial Performance: Does the Measure of Compensation Matter?," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 21(4), pages 202-227, July.

    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:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:21:p:12299-:d:674085. 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: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    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.