EXECUTIVE TEAM FAULT LINES AND GREEN INNOVATION PERFORMANCE OF ENTERPRISES - A PERSPECTIVE OF RISK UNDERTAKING

Abstract

Environmental pollution and ecological degradation are increasingly becoming urgent global issues, drawing widespread attention. Against this backdrop, how businesses can balance economic benefits with environmental protection to ensure sustainable development has become a pressing issue to address. Green innovation, representing a synergistic blend of "innovation-driven" and "green development," can simultaneously meet the requirements for economic growth and ecological environmental protection. In the process of driving green innovation, the executive team plays a crucial role. As the heart of corporate decision-making and execution, the internal differentiation within the executive team, including physiological fault lines based on gender and age as well as task-related fault lines based on education, function, and tenure, affects the team's collaboration and decision-making efficiency, thereby influencing the implementation and outcomes of green innovation. Green innovation projects often entail high risk, difficulty, and long return cycles. 
 When making green innovation decisions, a company's insufficient risk-taking capacity may limit its investment and attempts at green innovation. This study, grounded in upper echelon theory and other theoretical frameworks, selects Chinese manufacturing companies listed from 2015 to 2022 as research subjects. From the perspective of corporate risk-taking, it delves into how physiological and task-related fault lines within the executive team affect green innovation performance by influencing the company's capacity for risk-taking. The research findings indicate that rational configuration and effective risk management by the executive team are crucial for promoting green innovation within a company, offering theoretical and practical guidance for achieving sustainable development.