A Practitioner’s Definition of Corporate Environmental Responsibility

Abstract

Organizations are partly responsible for the pollution in the world and are expected to contribute towards curbing climate change. Despite the growing importance of the environmental aspect of CSR, i.e., corporate environmental responsibility (CER), current literature focuses more on its antecedents and outcomes rather than drilling deeper into the essential elements of the concept. This has resulted in conceptual confusion as researchers use different aspects to define, understand and measure CER. Hence, this study aims to identify the key dimensions of CER from a practitioners’ point of view. Twenty-eight interviews with senior sustainability professionals reveal encompassing environmental responsibility mindset, optimized resource consumption, neutral water, energy, and air status, multi-level environmental responsibility approach and targets, compliance, disclosure and reporting and policy formation, and green supply chain as the key dimensions of CER. This study builds on the extensive practical knowledge and foresight of experts in the field to provide conceptual clarity on CER, thereby bridging the gap between research and practice.