Adoption Of Environmental Management Practices Research Articles

Unveiling greenwashing in Colombian manufacturing: A machine learning approach

Greenwashing is the misleading use of environmental claims to market non-eco-friendly products, a growing concern as environmentally conscious consumers seek eco-friendly options. This study aims to identify factors that allow the detection of “greenwashing” practices in Colombian companies across various industrial sectors holding certifications such as ISO14001, the Colombian environmental seal, the district environmental excellence program, or international/regional environmental certifications. We employed a quantitative, cross-sectional methodology using three machine learning algorithms (Decision Tree Classification, Random Forest, Logistic Regression) and the double machine learning technique to identify causal effects and significant variables. Additionally, a greenwashing indicator was formulated, considering two variables: (a) Presence of a comprehensive solid waste management plan, and (b) Presence of a water usage and conservation program. Our findings reveal substantial variations in the adoption of environmental management practices across diverse industrial sectors and regions in Colombia. It is noteworthy that our research emphasizes that: (i) companies with an environmental contingency plan and a monitoring program are less likely to engage in greenwashing; (ii) expenses for personnel dedicated to environmental protection activities and the investment and expenses related to air and climate protection also reduce the likelihood of greenwashing; (iii) companies in the manufacturing of non-metallic mineral products sector are more likely to engage in greenwashing. It was also found that a significant proportion of Colombian industrial companies with environmental certifications do not fully embrace sustainable practices, implying limited effectiveness of environmental certifications in the country (56,09%). This research contributes to the taxonomy of greenwashing by delving into various types identified in the literature. It sheds light on selective disclosure, emphasizing that mere certification without tangible actions can constitute greenwashing. The broadened concept of decoupling now includes not only meeting shareholder expectations but also failing to meet those set by certifications. Attention deflection involves diverting focus toward certifications rather than real investments in environmental practices. Deceptive manipulation occurs when certifications create a misleading perception without concrete actions. Additionally, dubious authorizations and labels are revealed, showcasing the vulnerability of eco-labels to fraud. The study enriches existing categories, viewing certifications as potential instruments for greenwashing, reinforcing the need for substantial, measurable actions to validate sustainability claims.

The Effects of Operational Efficiency and Environmental Risk on the Adoption of Environmental Management Practices

Given that prior research has provided inconsistent findings on the relationship between financial performance and the adoption of environmental management practices (EMPs), we aim to resolve the inconsistency by positing that the firm may consider different components of financial performance when making decisions. Specifically, we maintain that operational efficiency, measured based on net profit margin, is a key determinant of a firm’s decision to adopt EMPs. Additionally, we aim to examine environmental risk as one contingency that moderates the relationship between operational efficiency and EMP adoption. Employing a firm-fixed effect model to examine the effects of various measures of financial performance, including the net profit margin, return on asset (ROA), return on equity (ROE), and asset turnover, on the adoption rates of EMPs by firms, we find that firms with higher operational efficiency measured based on net profit margin are more inclined to adopt EMPs, while measures such as ROA, ROE, and asset turnover do not demonstrate any substantial effect. This study also finds that while environmental risk increases the possibility of adopting EMPs, it weakens the impact of operational efficiency on the adoption rates of EMPs.

Do environmental management practices mediate institutional pressures-environmental performance relationship? Evidence from Vietnamese SMEs

Although SMEs contribute much to Vietnamese economic growth, they cause significant negative impacts on the environment. In environmental literature, the institutional theory is suggested to be used as a theoretical lens to examine the pressure driving an organization to improve environmental performance and indirectly through strategic response. Despite that, this theory needs more application to predict SMEs' environmentally friendly outcomes. Hence, this study draws upon institutional theory to examine that three institutional pressures, coercive, normative, and mimetic pressures have a direct impact on environmental performance as well as an indirect impact through the adoption of environmental management practices. Data were collected by surveying 253 manufacturing SMEs operating in Vietnam. Partial least-squared structural equation modeling was executed to assess data. The results suggest that three institutional pressures, coercive, mimetic, and normative pressure, indirectly improve environmental performance by adopting environmental management practices. At the same time, there is no direct effect of these pressures on environmental performance. These findings shed light on how institutional pressures affect environmental management practice adoption and environmental performance in the SME context. These findings also contribute the theoretical development of institutional theory by showing that adopting environmental management practices is a strategic response to institutional pressures to gain environmental performance. Lastly, due to mixed results on the relationship between institutional pressures and its outcomes (e.g., environmental management practice adoption, environmental performance), this study cast light on those relationships in Vietnam.

The Impact of Firm Characteristics on Adoption of Environmental Management Practices in Russian SMEs

To resolve and mitigate the ecological crisis, proactive approaches from businesses across all sectors and sizes are an imperative, with governments encouraging and pressuring them to move toward environmental sustainability. However, not all enterprises are ready to adopt EMPs, and those that do, differ substantially in the extent of their implementation. Based on the data from 984 Russian SMEs, the paper investigates how firm-specific characteristics impact the comprehensiveness of environmental management practices in Russian SMEs and confirms that a firm size, foreign ownership, and innovativeness all positively and significantly influence the extent of SMEs’ engagement in environmental practices.

Stakeholder salience and environmental stewardship among hotels in Malaysia

PurposeThis study aims to investigate the influence and impacts of stakeholders on the awareness and attitudes towards environmental management practices (EMPs) among hotel managers in Malaysia.Design/methodology/approachA total of 159 hotel managers participated in the survey. Structural equation modelling using the partial least squares (PLS) technique was used to test the hypotheses.FindingsOwners and regulators influence hotel managers' environmental awareness and attitudes and their adoption of EMPs. Managers with a greater environmental awareness are more likely to adopt basic EMPs, while those with a greater environmental attitude are more likely to adopt advanced EMPs. In addition, stakeholder influence on managers' awareness and attitudes differs for hotels with and without an environmental policy.Research limitations/implicationsOther types of accommodation and stakeholders, demographic variations of hotels and different data collection methods could provide additional insights into the hotel sustainability issue.Practical implicationsCoercion may be needed to translate hotel managers' environmental awareness and attitudes into practices. Therefore, regulators should provide rules and penalties to enforce mandatory requirements and incentives to encourage environmental sustainability initiatives.Social implicationsThe joint effort among stakeholders could create a societal norm that appreciates and maintains a sustainable environment and tourism industry.Originality/valueThis study emphasises the importance of stakeholder salience theory to understand the association between stakeholder influence on managers' awareness and attitudes and the adoption of EMPs by hotels in Malaysia. It is one of only a handful of studies that focuses on stakeholders' influence on environmental stewardship from managers' perspectives.

Triggers for and barriers to the adoption of environmental management practices by small and medium‐sized enterprises: A critical review

AbstractThe current literature lacks an integrated and holistic understanding of what drives and inhibits the environmental management practices (EMPs) of small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs), despite the large number of studies carried out in the area. In order to offer a nuanced understanding of the existing inventory of reported works on SMEs, this study provides a systematic literature review. Based on three theories (i.e., institutional isomorphism, the resource‐based view and contingency), the study uses descriptive and thematic content analytical tools to find triggers for (i.e., external and internal) and barriers to the adoption of EMPs by SMEs. The analysis shows that both coercive pressures (especially legislation and customers' demands) and internal resource capabilities serve as significant triggers for the adoption of EMPs by SMEs. This study also finds internal organisational barriers, including lack of resources, acting as the main barriers. Both descriptive and thematic content analysis suggests several avenues for future research in this area.

Political embeddedness and the adoption of environmental management practices: The mediating effects of institutional pressures

AbstractWe examine the effect of political embeddedness on environmental management practices and identify different channels for this relationship. We find that politically embedded firms are less exposed to coercive pressure, but have higher normative and mimetic pressures to engage in environmental management. Additionally, normative and mimetic pressures are higher for firms operating in a more competitive market, whereas oligopolistic firms are subject to higher coercive pressure. Our findings support both legitimacy theory which argues that political embeddedness shields firms from environmental regulations, as well as control‐based theories arguing that politically embedded firms should perform better in environmental management. We also demonstrate that market‐based incentives are especially important to induce politically embedded firms to adopt environmental practices when regulatory pressure does not work well.

The Impact of a Spill or Pollution Accident on Firm Environmental Activity: An Empirical Investigation

Spill and pollution (SP) accidents cause significant damage to the natural environment. They also result in financial costs and reputational losses for the offending firm. As such, understanding how firms respond to such crises is of significant interest to firm stakeholders, such as investors, customers, regulators, NGOs, employees, and local communities. In this study, we examine whether publicly disclosed SP accidents cause firms to alter their approach to environmental management, as expressed by the adoption of environmental management practices (EMPs). Using a unique panel data from 2002 to 2013, representing over 400 publicly traded US manufacturing firms, we find that in the absence of a SP accident, firms adopt more EMPs each year. However, when firms experience a SP accident they respond in surprising ways: while sustainability leading firms do not alter their existing approach to EMP adoption, regardless of the severity of the accident, all other firms do. Firms which are not sustainability leaders escalate the number of EMPs they adopt after low severity accidents and de‐escalate the number of EMPs they adopt after high severity accidents. We also find that de‐escalation can last for up to 3 years and firms do not seem to recover from de‐escalation in future years. Finally, incurring more accidents or more severe accidents leads to greater de‐escalation. Given that the number of EMPs firms adopt determines a firm's environmental performance, de‐escalation can have significant negative consequences for both the natural environment and firms themselves.

Overcoming obstacles to innovation: can environmental management practices help?

ABSTRACT Whereas the previous research on environmental management practices explores their relationship with innovation performance, this paper investigates whether those practices can help firms to overcome obstacles to innovation. More precisely, the purpose of this article is to empirically investigate the relationship between environmental management practices and three types of innovation obstacles: cost, knowledge and market obstacles. By using three databases on a sample of French manufacturing firms, our findings demonstrate that the adoption of environmental management practices significantly reduces cost and knowledge obstacles to innovation but has no significant effect on market obstacles. Therefore, this study advances research on innovation performance improvement by unveiling that the adoption of environmental management practices can serve as a mechanism for breaking through innovation obstacles.

Simplistic understandings of farmer motivations could undermine the environmental potential of the common agricultural policy

The European Union Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) has failed to achieve its aim of preserving European farmland biodiversity, despite massive investment in subsidies to incentivise environmentally-beneficial farming practices. This failure calls into question the design of the subsidy schemes, which are intended to either function as a safety net and make farming profitable or compensate farmers for costs and loss of income while undertaking environmental management. In this study, we assess whether the design of environmental payments in the CAP reflects current knowledge about farmers’ decision-making as found in the research literature. We do so on the basis of a comprehensive literature review on farmers’ uptake of agri-environmental management practices over the past 10 years and interviews specifically focused on Ecological Focus Areas with policy-makers, advisors and farmers in seven European countries. We find that economic and structural factors are the most commonly-identified determinants of farmers’ adoption of environmental management practices in the literature and in interviews. However, the literature suggests that these are complemented by – and partially dependent on – a broad range of social, attitudinal and other contextual factors that are not recognised in interview responses or, potentially, in policy design. The relatively simplistic conceptualisation of farmer behaviour that underlies some aspects of policy design may hamper the effectiveness of environmental payments in the CAP by over-emphasising economic considerations, potentially corroding farmer attitudes to policy and environmental objectives. We conclude that an urgent redesign of agricultural subsidies is needed to better align them with the economic, social and environmental factors affecting farmer decision-making in a complex production climate, and therefore to maximise potential environmental benefits.

ÇEVRE YÖNETİMİ UYGULAMALARININ ÖRGÜTSEL PERFORMANSLA İLİŞKİSİ ÜZERİNE BİR ARAŞTIRMA: ÇEVRESEL PROAKTİFLİĞİN ARACILIK ETKİSİ

Çevre yönetimi uygulamalarının temel boyutlarının ve öncülerinin araştırılması, artan bir araştırma ilgisini hak etmektedir. Kuramsal açıdan dinamik yetenekler kuramının argümanlarını değerlendiren bu çalışmanın inceleme alanlarından biri çevre yönetimi uygulamalarının çevresel proaktiflik üzerindeki etkisinin değerlendirilmesidir. Buna ek olarak, araştırma, çevre yönetimi uygulamalarının benimsenmesi ile örgütsel performans arasındaki ilişkide çevresel proaktifliğin aracılık rolünü araştırmaktadır. Örneklemini çeşitli sektörlerden 208 Türk firmasının oluşturduğu araştırmanın sonuçları, çevre yönetimi uygulamalarının çevresel proaktifliği olumlu yönde etkilediğini göstermektedir. Çevre yönetimi uygulamalarının örgütsel performans üzerindeki etkisinin çevresel proaktiflik ile anlam ve önem kazandığı görülmektedir. Bununla birlikte çevresel proaktiflik ve örgütsel performans arasında da olumlu bir ilişki olduğu görülmektedir. Başka bir deyişle, çevresel proaktifliğin çevre yönetimi uygulamaları ile örgütsel performans arasındaki ilişkide tam aracılık etkisi gözlemlenmiştir.

Environmental management practices in hotels at world heritage sites

Heritage tourism is booming in emerging destinations, creating considerable sustainability challenges. The accommodation sector is an important area of action, yet taxonomies and empirical investigations of environmental management practices (EMPs) have not been tailored to the context of World Heritage Sites (WHSs). This study fills this gap by proposing a new taxonomy and framework featuring items of tangible and intangible heritage. Twenty-five interviews and a survey of 124 hotels across two sites were employed to examine EMPs and their determinants and to explore possible synergies between environmental performance and heritage. Results show that budget hotels, which use significantly less EMPs, prevail within both heritage sites’ boundaries. Guesthouses and boutique hotels, however, adopt a range of EMPs that blends technology and traditional knowledge and they are more likely to try to engage customers. The determinants for adoption are often individual values or exchanges of information with actors that include traditional heritage businesses. Customers instead exert a negative influence over the adoption of EMPs. The study advances the conceptualization of EMPs and their adoption in WHSs and provides insights for heritage managers and policymakers by showing that in the context of heritage, EMPs can include both technological and traditional approaches.

Corporate Environmental Management for the Textile Industry: Toward an Empirical Typology

The increasing attention of stakeholders regarding environmental issues is pushing companies to question their own environmental strategies and to consequently adopt coherent practices. The textile industry appears to be particularly affected because of its heavy impact on the environment. Despite many companies in this industry having developed integrated environmental management systems to make their environmental strategies more effective, the alignment of environmental practices with these strategies is not yet completely evident. This paper aims to fill this gap through a three-step research process. First of all, a reference model built upon an in-depth analysis of the literature provides a summary of the main strategies and practices for corporate environmental management. The model is then used to support an online survey aimed at understanding the level of adoption of environmental management practices in the textile industry. Subsequently, a cluster analysis identifies three different types of companies characterized by three strategic configurations: “committed”, “prone”, and “subjected” to environmental sustainability. Then, each type of company is characterized in terms of practices. Finally, the achieved results are used to derive some considerations (e.g., engaging with stakeholders, looking back to align practice with strategy, looking forward to become environmental leaders) that companies can consider to move forward in their environmental sustainability journey.

Scelte strategiche e pratiche ambientali nelle Pmi alberghiere. Verso un nuovo modello di business sostenibile

Purpose of the paper: Analysis of the environmental sustainability strategies of small and medium hotel enterprises (SMHEs) in community destinations. The goal is to investigate whether and how the adoption of environmental management practices (EMPs) have changed, and whether and how local key stakeholders have influenced eco-friendly behaviour. Methodology: The research carried out in 2015 in joint with the Statistical Office of Province of Trento involved all the hotels of Trentino (N=1,514) though a CAWI survey (redemption rate 88.9%). The data analysis followed two steps: 1) frequencies analysis addressed to identify the EMPs adopted and to compare the data with the survey conducted in 2005; 2) Multiple Correspondence Analysis and hierarchical ascendant cluster analysis to identify hotel profiles with different environmental commitment. Findings: Increase of EMPs investments. The adoption of EMPs depends on the “proactive” and “reactive” clusters sustainability awareness, on the acknowledged ethical value and on the stakeholders’ power and pressure on the DMO. Research limits: Focus on a single community destination. Practical implications: Small hotels can also adopt EMPs but that would require in primis a change in the traditional business model adding environmental sustainability aims. Stakeholder pressure supports the enterprise strategies. Originality of the paper: The research contributes to the scientific debate on EMPs adoption and stakeholder power and pressure on environmental sustainability strategies of SMHEs.

The impact of national culture on corporate adoption of environmental management practices and their effectiveness

National culture matters in business as it affects managerial attitudes, values, behaviors, and efficacy in organizations. It contributes to our understanding of environmental management issues as well. Previous studies investigating the link between national culture and environmental performance had mixed findings as they overlooked the intervening mechanism between the two—firm environmental management practice (EMP) adoption. This paper considers the missing link, lays out a complete theoretical framework, and empirically tests the effects of national culture on firm EMP adoption and EMP effectiveness. The analysis uses data collected during the 5th round of the Global Manufacturing Research Group (GMRG) survey, Hofstede cultural dimensions, and World Bank Database. Hierarchical linear models (HLMs) using the Bayesian Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) approach are employed to examine the cross-level relationships in the framework. The study finds out that certain cultural traits are significantly related to corporate EMP adoption and how effectively EMPs are implemented after adoption. The study provides meanings insights into the role of national culture in the context of environmental management.

Modeling the criteria for selection of suppliers towards green aspect: a case in Indian automobile industry

Adoption of environmental management practices is essential in every industry to satisfy the customers, and environmental regulation policies along with improvement of environmental performance. Environmental practices are not only based on the industry alone, supplier is also one of the partners to improve industries environmental image through supplying environmental friendly products. Selection of a suitable supplier based on environmental criteria is a challenging and difficult task for industries because there are many criteria available for selection of suitable environment friendly suppliers to improve industry environmental image. Industries should know which criterion is the most important for the selection of green supplier. This study investigates and ranks the environmental criteria for the green supplier selection based on expert’s judgment in an Indian automobile sector perspective. The analytical hierarchy process is used to rank the criteria.

Environmental management strategy and organizational citizenship behaviors in the hotel industry

PurposeRecently, the hotel industry has increased its adoption of environmental management practices. Because the research on hotel environmental management often overlooks organizational factors, this study aims to investigate the effects of an environmental management strategy (EMS) on organizational citizenship behavior and tested the mediating roles of organizational trust and commitment in explaining those effects.Design/methodology/approachAn online survey of US hotel employees yielded 373 complete responses. Data were analyzed with structural equation modeling.FindingsEMS positively affected organizational trust and commitment, which ultimately influenced organizational citizenship behavior. Furthermore, organizational trust and commitment fully mediated the relationship between EMS and organizational citizenship behavior.Practical implicationsThe results establish the foundation for applying EMS in organizational operations. The findings can benefit managers, as they show how hotel firms’ prosocial practices can enhance employees’ positive behaviors.Originality/valueDespite the importance of employee attitudes and behaviors, little is known about the mechanism by which employees perceive the influence of an EMS on organizational citizenship behaviors. Therefore, the study examined organizational trust and commitment as mediators of the relationship between EMS and organizational citizenship behavior.

Customer orientation and organizational innovation: the case of environmental management practices

PurposeThis study aims to investigates the effect of three customer orientation components – customer information-processing, responsiveness and values and norms – on a firm’s decision to adopt environmental management practices. Consistent with the literature on strategy and industrial marketing, the authors also examine the moderating effect of marketplace characteristics.Design/methodology/approachThe authors use a linear model on a sample of 4,324 French firms with ten or more employees.FindingsBased on a large-scale survey of firms across industries, the results indicate that customer information-processing and values and norms directly contribute to the adoption of environmental management practices. Furthermore, the effect of customer information-processing is shown to be contingent on market competition.Practical implicationsThe findings have direct practical implications. When managers recognize the importance and usefulness of customer orientation, they understand the need to formulate organizational strategies in terms of environmental management practices that reflect customer expectations. In addition, following the strategic fit approach, customer orientation should fit with the specific market environment to stimulate the adoption of environmental management practices. In other words, the findings are useful for managers, who can assess the specific environmental characteristics they are facing and align these with customer orientation to build competitive advantage.Originality/valueThe findings indicate that the different dimensions of customer orientation distinctly affect a firm’s decision to adopt environmental management practices. In this sense, the authors argue that they capture different facets of the customer orientation measure, which points to the importance of analyzing the dimensions of customer orientation separately. Furthermore, rather than analyzing aggregate measures of corporate social responsibility, the authors selected environmental orientation as a specific dimension, which has received less attention in the industrial marketing literature. Finally, the main findings mark an important contribution to the literature because they provide deeper insights into the conditions under which customer orientation dimensions drive the adoption of environmental management practices.

Environmental benchmarking practices in Indian industries

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to understand whether the adoption of environmental management practices and firm characteristics influence the environmental benchmarking in Indian firms. It further looks into the impact of environmental benchmarking practices on firms’ environmental performance. Design/methodology/approach – The study conducts a research survey to obtain the practitioner’s responses on the different aspects of environmental benchmarking. The survey data of 104 firms provide an empirical basis to investigate different research hypotheses using statistical techniques. Findings – The results indicate that the firms which implement environmental management practices are more likely to adopt environmental benchmarking in one or more areas of their operations. The findings signify that firms which benchmarks for environmental purposes are more likely to have better environmental performance. The study confirms that large firms have significant chances of having environmental benchmarking compared to small and medium sized firms. The firms in different sectors have different relative preference to eight different areas of environmental benchmarking. However, all these preferences are not significant at 95 per cent confidence level. Research limitations/implications – The research use only qualitative responses on environment management aspects and could be further extended by incorporating the quantitative (emission) data of different industries. Practical implications – The study provides an insight into the environmental benchmarking practices of Indian firms for better management of environmental performance of the firms. Originality/value – The study investigates the experience and attitude of Indian firms to environmental benchmarking based on an empirical research. It adds to the knowledge in the field of environmental benchmarking in developing countries with specific focus on India.

Assessing the Correlation Between Environmental Awareness and Variability of Employees' Positions in Aviation and Aerospace Industries

The purpose of this study is to assess the awareness and attitudes of employees in Aviation and aerospace industries. This paper belongs to a wider research project, on environmental management in aviation and aerospace industries. The main scope of this research is to evaluate the level of environmental awareness and the adoption of environmental management practices. The present descriptive study was carried-out at Greece, collecting a sample in a global level. The opinion of people employed in aviation industry is considered, based on the versatility of their working positions. Up to this stage, 330 respondents have participated globally in the current research. This study uses a questionnaire survey to gain an understanding of the views and attitudes of aerospace staff toward environmental management. The results demonstrate that the level of environmental awareness is immediately linked with the employees' positions.