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Is Strategic Proactivity a Driver of an Environmental Strategy? Effects of Innovation and Internationalization Leadership

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  • Ines Suarez-Perales

    (Department of Management, University of Zaragoza, 50005 Zaragoza, Spain)

  • Concepción Garces-Ayerbe

    (Department of Management, University of Zaragoza, 50005 Zaragoza, Spain)

  • Pilar Rivera-Torres

    (Department of Marketing, University of Zaragoza, 50005 Zaragoza, Spain)

  • Cristina Suarez-Galvez

    (Department of Economy, University of Alcalá, 28802 Alcala de Henares, Spain)

Abstract

This study analyses strategic proactivity as a driving factor in the implementation of an advanced environmental strategy in a firm. Strategic proactivity is defined as a firm’s tendency to initiate voluntary changes instead of reacting to events in the environment and according to previous literature, can be interpreted as a combination of internal factors that characterise a firm’s business strategy as that of a prospector firm. In this study, we measured this through innovation, with two variables related to the firm’s entire production cycle: R&D expenditure and patents. However, we also considered two more strategic proactivity indicators: innovation proactivity and internationalisation proactivity. These two proactivity variables take into account the innovative and international actions of the firms, going beyond the actions usually taken by firms in the same sector. Using panel data methodology, we obtained results that show that firms who invest in R&D and patent their innovations achieve more advanced positions in their environmental strategies. Empirical evidence also shows that firms with a greater innovation effort throughout the production cycle (product, process, organisation and marketing) than their competitors also attain more advanced positions (proactivity) in environmental matters. In other words, innovation proactivity is a driver of environmental strategy. In relation to internationalization, the results also showed that firms that operate in a larger geographical area than their competitors adapt to the most demanding environmental legislation, placing them in a position of environmental leadership in their respective sectors. The inclusion of internationalization as an indicator of strategic proactivity, the measurement of proactivity variables and the correction of firms’ specific unobserved aspects are some of this paper’s contributions.

Suggested Citation

  • Ines Suarez-Perales & Concepción Garces-Ayerbe & Pilar Rivera-Torres & Cristina Suarez-Galvez, 2017. "Is Strategic Proactivity a Driver of an Environmental Strategy? Effects of Innovation and Internationalization Leadership," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(10), pages 1-13, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:9:y:2017:i:10:p:1870-:d:115533
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    1. Beatriz Forés, 2019. "Beyond Gathering the ‘Low-Hanging Fruit’ of Green Technology for Improved Environmental Performance: an Empirical Examination of the Moderating Effects of Proactive Environmental Management and Busine," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(22), pages 1-34, November.
    2. Lartey, Theophilus A. & Amankwah-Amoah, Joseph & Danso, Albert & Adomako, Samuel & Khan, Zaheer & Tarba, Shlomo Y., 2021. "Environmental sustainability practices and offshoring activities of multinational corporations across emerging and developed markets," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 30(5).
    3. Sibele Recco Rosso Comim, 2020. "Relationship between Chinese firms’ Internationalization and Environmental performance: An empirical evidence," International Journal of Science and Business, IJSAB International, vol. 4(11), pages 111-118.
    4. Francesco Calza & Adele Parmentola & Ilaria Tutore, 2021. "For green or not for green? The effect of cooperation goals and type on environmental performance," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(1), pages 267-281, January.
    5. Oksana Seroka‐Stolka & Kamil Fijorek, 2020. "Enhancing corporate sustainable development: Proactive environmental strategy, stakeholder pressure and the moderating effect of firm size," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(6), pages 2338-2354, September.
    6. Marco-Lajara, B. & Úbeda-García, M. & Zaragoza-Sáez, P. & Manresa-Marhuenda, E., 2023. "The impact of international experience on firm economic performance. The double mediating effect of green knowledge acquisition & eco-innovation," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 157(C).
    7. Sara Walton & Annie Zhang & Conor O'Kane, 2020. "Energy eco‐innovations for sustainable development: Exploring organizational strategic capabilities through an energy cultures framework," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(3), pages 812-826, March.
    8. JS Keshminder & Pablo del Río, 2019. "The missing links? The indirect impacts of drivers on eco‐innovation," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 26(5), pages 1100-1118, September.
    9. Enrique Loredo & Nuria Lopez-Mielgo & Gustavo Pineiro-Villaverde & María Teresa García-Álvarez, 2019. "Utilities: Innovation and Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(4), pages 1-13, February.
    10. Dhekra Ben Amara & Hong Chen, 2021. "The impact of participative decision-making on eco-innovation capability: the mediating role of motivational eco-innovation factors," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 23(5), pages 6966-6986, May.
    11. Milena N. Rajić & Rado M. Maksimović & Pedja Milosavljević & Dragan Pavlović, 2019. "Energy Management System Application for Sustainable Development in Wood Industry Enterprises," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(1), pages 1-16, December.
    12. Efrén Gómez‐Bolaños & Nuria Esther Hurtado‐Torres & Blanca Luisa Delgado‐Márquez, 2020. "Disentangling the influence of internationalization on sustainability development: Evidence from the energy sector," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(1), pages 229-239, January.
    13. Fahad Khalid & Juncheng Sun & Guanhua Huang & Chih-Yi Su, 2021. "Environmental, Social and Governance Performance of Chinese Multinationals: A Comparison of State- and Non-State-Owned Enterprises," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(7), pages 1-21, April.
    14. Oksana Seroka‐Stolka, 2023. "Towards sustainability: An environmental strategy choice, environmental performance, and the moderating role of stakeholder pressure," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 32(8), pages 5992-6007, December.
    15. Yali Zhang & Jun Sun & Zhaojun Yang & Shurong Li, 2018. "Organizational Learning and Green Innovation: Does Environmental Proactivity Matter?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-14, October.

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