IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/wly/mgtdec/v45y2024i4p2373-2392.html

Can the green experience of CEO improve ESG performance in heavy polluting companies? Evidence from China

Author

Listed:
  • Mingjun Deng
  • Hao Tang
  • Wenbing Luo

Abstract

This paper focuses on Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) with green experience, using data from listed companies in China's heavy pollution industry spanning from 2011 to 2021, the study explores the impact of CEO green experience on the Environmental, Social, and Corporate Governance (ESG) performance of companies. The study reveals that CEO green experiences contribute to enhancing firms' ESG performance. The research further unveils that management's green perceptions and corporate green innovations play a partial mediating role in the relationship between CEO green experiences and corporate ESG performance. Heterogeneity analysis indicates that the influence of CEO green experiences on corporate ESG performance is more pronounced in samples characterized by high environmental regulation, capital‐intensive operations, and non‐state ownership. The findings of this study enrich the theory of corporate ESG performance power mechanisms and provide theoretical references for enhancing the ESG performance of heavily polluting firms.

Suggested Citation

  • Mingjun Deng & Hao Tang & Wenbing Luo, 2024. "Can the green experience of CEO improve ESG performance in heavy polluting companies? Evidence from China," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 45(4), pages 2373-2392, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:mgtdec:v:45:y:2024:i:4:p:2373-2392
    DOI: 10.1002/mde.4149
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1002/mde.4149
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1002/mde.4149?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. Muhammad Azeem Qureshi & Sina Kirkerud & Kim Theresa & Tanveer Ahsan, 2020. "The impact of sustainability (environmental, social, and governance) disclosure and board diversity on firm value: The moderating role of industry sensitivity," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(3), pages 1199-1214, March.
    2. Abagail McWilliams & Donald S. Siegel & Patrick M. Wright, 2006. "Corporate Social Responsibility: Strategic Implications," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 43(1), pages 1-18, January.
    3. Husted, Bryan W. & Sousa-Filho, José Milton de, 2019. "Board structure and environmental, social, and governance disclosure in Latin America," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 102(C), pages 220-227.
    4. Charles H. Cho & Jay Heon Jung & Byungjin Kwak & Jaywon Lee & Choong-Yuel Yoo, 2017. "Professors on the Board: Do They Contribute to Society Outside the Classroom?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 141(2), pages 393-409, March.
    5. Jiang, Yahan & Wang, Cai & Li, Sha & Wan, Jing, 2022. "Do institutional investors' corporate site visits improve ESG performance? Evidence from China," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    6. Simone Terzani & Teresa Turzo, 2021. "Religious social norms and corporate sustainability: The effect of religiosity on environmental, social, and governance disclosure," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(1), pages 485-496, January.
    7. Mu, Weiwei & Liu, Kefu & Tao, Yunqing & Ye, Yongwei, 2023. "Digital finance and corporate ESG," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 51(C).
    8. Stephen Brammer & Chris Brooks & Stephen Pavelin, 2006. "Corporate Social Performance and Stock Returns: UK Evidence from Disaggregate Measures," Financial Management, Financial Management Association International, vol. 35(3), pages 97-116, September.
    9. William Lazonick, 2006. "Corporate Governance, Innovative Enterprise, and Economic Development," WIDER Working Paper Series RP2006-71, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    10. Yu, Ellen Pei-yi & Luu, Bac Van, 2021. "International variations in ESG disclosure – Do cross-listed companies care more?," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    11. Olaf Weber, 2014. "Environmental, Social and Governance Reporting in China," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 23(5), pages 303-317, July.
    12. Borghesi, Richard & Houston, Joel F. & Naranjo, Andy, 2014. "Corporate socially responsible investments: CEO altruism, reputation, and shareholder interests," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 26(C), pages 164-181.
    13. Cheng, Xin & (Helen) Wang, He & Wang, Xianjue, 2022. "Common institutional ownership and corporate social responsibility," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 136(C).
    14. Jeremy Galbreath, 2019. "Drivers of Green Innovations: The Impact of Export Intensity, Women Leaders, and Absorptive Capacity," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 158(1), pages 47-61, August.
    15. Nicola Raimo & Alessandra Caragnano & Marianna Zito & Filippo Vitolla & Massimo Mariani, 2021. "Extending the benefits of ESG disclosure: The effect on the cost of debt financing," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(4), pages 1412-1421, July.
    16. DasGupta, Ranjan, 2022. "Financial performance shortfall, ESG controversies, and ESG performance: Evidence from firms around the world," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 46(PB).
    17. Requate, Till & Unold, Wolfram, 2003. "Environmental policy incentives to adopt advanced abatement technology:: Will the true ranking please stand up?," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 47(1), pages 125-146, February.
    18. David Gadenne & Jessica Kennedy & Catherine McKeiver, 2009. "An Empirical Study of Environmental Awareness and Practices in SMEs," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 84(1), pages 45-63, January.
    19. Aabo, Tom & Giorici, Iasmina Cristina, 2023. "Do female CEOs matter for ESG scores?," Global Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 56(C).
    20. Sara De Masi & Agnieszka Słomka‐Gołębiowska & Claudio Becagli & Andrea Paci, 2021. "Toward sustainable corporate behavior: The effect of the critical mass of female directors on environmental, social, and governance disclosure," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(4), pages 1865-1878, May.
    21. Ron Adner & Constance E. Helfat, 2003. "Corporate effects and dynamic managerial capabilities," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 24(10), pages 1011-1025, October.
    22. Yu-Shan Chen & Shyh-Bao Lai & Chao-Tung Wen, 2006. "The Influence of Green Innovation Performance on Corporate Advantage in Taiwan," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 67(4), pages 331-339, September.
    23. Ching-Hsun Chang, 2011. "The Influence of Corporate Environmental Ethics on Competitive Advantage: The Mediation Role of Green Innovation," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 104(3), pages 361-370, December.
    24. Aluchna, Maria & Roszkowska-Menkes, Maria & Kamiński, Bogumił & Bosek-Rak, Dominika, 2022. "Do institutional investors encourage firm to social disclosure? The stakeholder salience perspective," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 142(C), pages 674-682.
    25. Francesco Campanella & Luana Serino & Anna Crisci & Antonello D'Ambra, 2021. "The role of corporate governance in environmental policy disclosure and sustainable development. Generalized estimating equations in longitudinal count data analysis," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 28(1), pages 474-484, January.
    26. Garrett A. McBrayer, 2018. "Does persistence explain ESG disclosure decisions?," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 25(6), pages 1074-1086, November.
    27. Muhammad Atif & Searat Ali, 2021. "Environmental, social and governance disclosure and default risk," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(8), pages 3937-3959, December.
    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. Yongjiao Du & Shi Chen, 2026. "Going for sustainability: how digital transformation affects corporate radical green innovation in China," Economic Change and Restructuring, Springer, vol. 59(1), pages 1-44, February.
    2. Li, Houjian & Cheng, Quanfeixue & Su, Mengying & Zhang, Kuan, 2025. "Empowering ESG: The pivotal influence of directors' and officers' liability insurance on corporate sustainability," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).
    3. Wang, Jianling & Ma, Jia & Li, Xiuling & Wang, Chen, 2025. "Nonlinear impact of economic policy uncertainty on corporate ESG performance: Regional, industrial and managerial perspectives," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 97(C).
    4. Li Meiyi & Gan Yufei, 2025. "More Philanthropy, More Consistency? Examining the Impact of Corporate Charitable Donations on ESG Rating Uncertainty," Economics - The Open-Access, Open-Assessment Journal, De Gruyter, vol. 19(1), pages 1-21.
    5. Wu, Lang & Hu, Shan & Zhao, Ziwei, 2024. "Environmental regulation and renewable energy technology innovation: Firm-level evidence from China," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 312(C).
    6. Zhang, Ping & Ma, Binbin & Chi, Chuenyu, 2025. "Institutional investors and ESG performance: Evidence from China," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 86(C), pages 1159-1181.
    7. Jinhao Liu & Zhifang Zhou & Tao Zhang & Hua Zhang, 2025. "Investigating How Geographic Proximity to Tourist Destinations Triggers Corporate ESG Behavior," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 46(7), pages 3849-3874, October.
    8. Dan Zhang & Bingxiang Li & Qiang Fu & Wei Tang & Taqdees Fatima, 2025. "Impact of CEOs' Environmental Experience on Corporate Green Innovation," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 32(3), pages 3290-3312, May.
    9. Fu, Tong & Qiu, Zhaoxuan & Yang, Xiangyang & Li, Zijun, 2024. "The impact of artificial intelligence on green technology cycles in China," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 209(C).
    10. Menghan Wang & Qi Zhao & Xiaoxiao Gong, 2025. "Does banking relationships promote environmental, social, and governance performance? Empirical evidence from A‐share listed firms in China," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 46(1), pages 425-437, January.
    11. Wang, Yanuo & Xie, Zhengying & Geng, Haipeng & Croce, Jorry, 2024. "The impact of CEO hedging on corporate ESG performance: Evidence from the United States," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 69(PA).
    12. Zhang, Xiaoyu & Huang, Qinghua & Shi, Peihao, 2025. "The comprehensive welfare effects of energy transition: Evidence from corporate ESG performance," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 339(C).
    13. Peng, Shengnan & Liu, Chan & Wang, Ze & Ye, Zihan & Sun, Xialing & Tan, Zhanglu, 2024. "The impact of the carbon reduction policy effectiveness on energy companies' ESG performance," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 96(PB).
    14. Tao Yin & Yiyun He & Han Gao & George Xianzhi Yuan, 2025. "The Effect of ESG on Stock Mispricing: Empirical Evidence From China's A‐Share Listed Companies," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 46(6), pages 3638-3656, September.
    15. Lin, Xian & Shen, Weitao & Song, Linjia & Yang, Xin, 2025. "From greenwashing to genuine action: Impact of a CEO's green experience," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 80(C).

    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. Richard Yeaw Chong Seow, 2024. "Determinants of environmental, social, and governance disclosure: A systematic literature review," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(3), pages 2314-2330, March.
    2. Wang, Zhiwen, 2025. "The impact of common ownership between banks and firms on corporate ESG performance: Evidence from China," Emerging Markets Review, Elsevier, vol. 69(C).
    3. Huang, Jun & Han, Feifei & Li, Yun, 2025. "The impact of institutional investors’ ESG concerns on corporate ESG disclosure: Evidence from site visits," Finance Research Letters, Elsevier, vol. 76(C).
    4. Buchetti, Bruno & Arduino, Francesca Romana & Perdichizzi, Salvatore, 2025. "A literature review on corporate governance and ESG research: Emerging trends and future directions," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 97(C).
    5. Chen, Lifeng & Khurram, Muhammad Usman & Gao, Yuying & Abedin, Mohammad Zoynul & Lucey, Brian, 2023. "ESG disclosure and technological innovation capabilities of the Chinese listed companies," Research in International Business and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    6. Sun, Yanmei & Zhao, Zhuowei, 2024. "Responsible investment: Institutional shareholders and ESG performance," Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, Elsevier, vol. 85(C).
    7. Jin Wang & Zihan Hong & Hai Long, 2023. "Digital Transformation Empowers ESG Performance in the Manufacturing Industry: From ESG to DESG," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(4), pages 21582440231, October.
    8. Juzhang Feng & Sha Tang & Junhao Zhong, 2024. "Can corporate environmental, social, and governance performance influence foreign institutional investors to hold shares? Evidence from China," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(5), pages 4310-4330, July.
    9. Chang Liu & Zihao Xin, 2024. "Does environmental, social, and governance practice boost corporate human capital inflow in China? From the perspective of stakeholder response," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(4), pages 3251-3273, July.
    10. Ann Susan Thomas & Ambili Jayachandran & Ajithakumari Vijayappan Nair Biju, 2024. "Strategic mapping of the environmental social governance landscape in finance – A bibliometric exploration through concepts and themes," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(5), pages 4428-4453, September.
    11. Rodrigo Zeidan, 2022. "Why don't asset managers accelerate ESG investing? A sentiment analysis based on 13,000 messages from finance professionals," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 31(7), pages 3028-3039, November.
    12. Barbosa, Anrafel de Souza & Crispim, Maria Cristina & da Silva, Luiz Bueno & da Silva, Jonhatan Magno Norte & Barbosa, Aglaucibelly Maciel & Correia, Lucas Miguel Alencar de Morais & Morioka, Sandra N, 2025. "Empirical analysis of workers' perceptions of ESG impacts on corporate sustainability performance: A methodological innovation combining the PLS-SEM, PROMETHEE-ROC and FIMIX-PLS methods," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 215(C).
    13. Massimiliano Cerciello & Francesco Busato & Simone Taddeo, 2023. "The effect of sustainable business practices on profitability. Accounting for strategic disclosure," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 30(2), pages 802-819, March.
    14. Wei Zhang & Xiuli Zhong & Xue Li, 2024. "The impact of degree of internationalization of MNEs on green innovation performance: The moderating role of absorptive capacity and global dynamic management capability," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(1), pages 659-675, January.
    15. Saeidi, Sayedeh Parastoo & Sofian, Saudah & Saeidi, Parvaneh & Saeidi, Sayyedeh Parisa & Saaeidi, Seyyed Alireza, 2015. "How does corporate social responsibility contribute to firm financial performance? The mediating role of competitive advantage, reputation, and customer satisfaction," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 68(2), pages 341-350.
    16. Mônica Cavalcanti Sá de Abreu & Romulo Alves Soares & Victor Daniel‐Vasconcelos & Vicente Lima Crisóstomo, 2023. "Does board diversity encourage an environmental policy focused on resource use, emission reduction and innovation? The case of companies in Latin America," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 30(3), pages 1161-1176, May.
    17. Chuyao Deng & Wenliang Peng & Zhenjiang Dou & Qidi Zhang, 2024. "Environmental Background Directors and ESG Performance: A Perspective on Green Governance," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(23), pages 1-22, December.
    18. Yuan Wu & Jin Zhang & Shoulin Liu & Lianrui Ma, 2022. "Does Government-Led Publicity Enhance Corporate Green Behavior? Empirical Evidence from Green Xuanguan in China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(6), pages 1-32, March.
    19. Mariasole Bannò & Emilia Filippi & Sandro Trento, 2023. "Women in top echelon positions and their effects on sustainability: a review, synthesis and future research agenda," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 27(1), pages 181-251, March.
    20. Pinget, Amandine, 2016. "Spécificités des déterminants des innovations environnementales : une approche appliquée aux PME [Specificities of determinants for environmental innovation : an approach applied to SMEs]," MPRA Paper 80108, University Library of Munich, Germany.

    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:wly:mgtdec:v:45:y:2024:i:4:p:2373-2392. 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://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/jhome/7976 .

    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.