The influence of enterprisers' green management awareness on green management strategy and organizational performance

Abstract

Purpose – This study applied the theory of planned behavior (TPB) to examine the awareness of green management among executives in the Top 5000 corporations (as listed in the China Credit Information Service (CCIS)). Perceived risk, perceived benefit, justice, moral obligation, control force, and control beliefs were considered antecedents to the three components of the TPB (attitude, subjective norms and perceived behavior control, PBC). The correlation between intention and implementation of green management strategies was examined, as was the combined influence of these two factors on organizational performance. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – 333 valid questionnaires were returned from a sample of the Top 5000 corporations listed in the CCIS. Structural equation modelling was used to verify the causal relationship amongst the green management variables and performance perspectives. Findings – The results indicate that perceived risk and perceived benefit have a strong correspondence to the expressed attitudes related to green management strategies; justice and moral obligation are correlated with the subjective norm; control force and control belief are correlated with perceived behavior control (PBC). Working in conjunction, the three components of the TPB exert a strong influence on the intentions of managers and their likelihood of implementing green management strategies. These factors further affect organizational performance. Practical implications – When corporations in the service industry are compared with those in the manufacturing industry, the following five paths show significant differences: control force to PBC, control belief to PBC, attitude to strategic intention, subjective norm to strategic intention, and PBC to strategic intention. These results demonstrate that different industry clusters may lead to different path strengths as a corporation adopts green management strategies. Originality/value – This study used the TPB to explore green management adoption and was able to clarify the relationship between green management strategies and organizational performance. It is hoped that this study might provide academic as well as practical value.