Abstracts
Abstract
Today, firms face joint pressures to increase the representation of women at the highest levels of their organizations, and to be more environmentally responsible. Still, the impact of these movements on firm performance is less clear. Through the lens of the Attraction-Selection-Attrition (ASA) Cycle, this study looks at the impact of Board Gender Diversity (BGD) and Environmental Responsibility on Innovative Output as measured by patents. Using a longitudinal sample of the top-patenting firms at the United States Patent and Trademark Office, we find that both BGD and Environmental Responsibility lead to higher levels of Innovative Output, and BGD positively moderates the relationship between Environmental Responsibility and Innovative Output. This paper contributes to existing literature by highlighting the need to consider BGD and Environmental Responsibility at the same time when considering their implications on firm performance. We also expand the scope of the ASA Cycle to include overall firm performance with respect to innovation.
Keywords:
- Board gender diversity,
- Corporate Social Responsibility,
- Innovation,
- Patenting,
- ESG,
- Environmental Responsibility,
- top-patenting Firms
Download the article in PDF to read it.
Download
Appendices
Bibliography
- Abadi, H. H. N., & Pecht, M (2020). “Artificial intelligence trends based on the patents granted by the united states patent and trademark office”, IEEE Access, 8, 81633-81643.
- Arts, S., Hou, J., & Gomez, J. C (2021). “Natural language processing to identify the creation and impact of new technologies in patent text: Code, data, and new measures”, Research Policy, 50(2), 104144.
- Antoncic, D. M (2021). “Is ESG investing contributing to transitioning to a sustainable economy or to the greatest misallocations of capital and a missed opportunity?”, Journal of Risk Management in Financial Institutions, 15(1), 6–12.
- Benn S, Kramar R (2011). “Editorial: Introduction and interviews. Educating for sustainability and CSR: What is the role of business schools?”, Journal of Management & Organization, 17(5), 574–582.
- Burke L, Logsdon JM (1996). “How corporate social responsibility pays off.”, Long Range Planning, 29(4), 495–502.
- Croson, R. and Gneezy, U (2009). “Gender differences in preferences”, Journal of Economic Literature, 47, 448–474
- Dobrzański, P., Bobowski, S., Chrysostome, E., Velinov, E., & Strouhal, J (2021). “Toward Innovation-Driven Competitiveness Across African Countries: An Analysis of Efficiency of R&D Expenditures”, Journal of Competitiveness, 13(1).
- Duygu, A., & Gor, A (2014). “Analyzing the effects of corporate social responsibility level on the financial of companies: An application on BIST corporate governance index included companies”, International Journal of Management Economics and Business, 10(23), 227– 242.
- Eduardo, D. G., & Aguilera-Caracuel, J (2021). “Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Scores and Financial Performance of Multilatinas: Moderating Effects of Geographic International Diversification and Financial Slack”, Journal of Business Ethics, 168(2), 315-334.
- Freeman RE (1984). “Strategic Management: A Stakeholder Approach”, Pitman: Boston.
- Goyal, P., Rahman, Z., & Kazmi, A. A (2013). “Corporate sustainability performance and firm performance research: Literature review and future research agenda”, Management Decision, 51(2), 361-379.
- Griffin, D., Li, K., & Xu, T (2021). “Board gender diversity and corporate innovation: International evidence”, Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis, 56(1), 123-154.
- He, X., & Jiang, S (2019). “Does gender diversity matter for green innovation?”, Business Strategy and the Environment, 28(7), 1341-1356.
- Hernández-Lara, A. B., & Gonzales-Bustos, J. P. (2020). “The influence of family businesses and women directors on innovation”, Applied Economics, 52(1), 36–51. https://doi.org/10.1080/00036846.2019.1638496
- Huang, J.-W., & Li, Y.-H (2017). “Green Innovation and Performance: The View of Organizational Capability and Social Reciprocity”, Journal of Business Ethics, 145(2), 309–324.
- Kong, Y., Antwi, A. A., & Bawuah, J (2020). “A systematic review of the business case for corporate social responsibility and firm performance”, Corporate Social Responsibility & Environmental Management, 27(2), 444–454.
- Laroche M, Bergeron J, Barbaro-Forleo G (2001). “Targeting consumers who are willing to pay more for environmentally friendly products”, Journal of Consumer Marketing , 18(6), 503–521.
- Lee, J., & Roh, J (2012). “Revisiting corporate reputation and firm performance link. Benchmarking:”, An International Journal, 19(4/5), 649–664.
- Li, Z., Liao, G., & Albitar, K (2020). “Does corporate environmental responsibility engagement affect firm value? The mediating role of corporate innovation”, Business Strategy & the Environment, 29(3), 1045–1055.
- Liu, C (2018). “Are women greener? Corporate gender diversity and environmental violations”, Journal of Corporate Finance, 52, 118–142.
- Lu, W. M., Kweh, Q. L., & Huang, C. L (2014). “Intellectual capital and national innovation systems performance”, Knowledge-based systems, 71, 201-210.
- MacDonald WL, Hara N (1994). “Gender differences in environmental concern among college students”, Sex Roles, 33(5/6), 369–74.
- Murugaboopathy, P. & Jessop, S., (2021). “Global sustainable fund assets hit record $2.3 tln in Q2, says Morningstar”, available at https://www.reuters.com/business/sustainable-business/global-sustainable-fund-assets-hit-record-23-tlnq2-says-morningstar-2021-07-27/
- Nadeem, M., Bahadar, S., Gull, A. A., & Iqbal, U (2020). “Are women eco‐friendly? Board gender diversity and environmental innovation”, Business Strategy & the Environment, 29(8), 3146–3161.
- Nelson, R. R (1995). “Recent evolutionary theorizing about economic change”, Journal of Economic Literature, 33(1), 48–90.
- Park, S.-J., Choi, S., & Kim, E.-J (2012). “The relationships between socio-demographic variables and concerns about environmental sustainability”, Corporate Social Responsibility & Environmental Management, 19(6), 343–354.
- Perrini, F., Russo, A., Tencati, A., & Vurro, C (2011). “Deconstructing the relationship between corporate social and financial performance”, Journal of Business Ethics, 102(1), 59–76.
- Richard, P. J., Devinney, T. M., Yip, G. S., & Johnson, G (2009). “Measuring organizational performance: Towards methodological best practice”, Journal of Management, 35(3), 718–804.
- Rosenkopf, L., & Nerkar, A (2001). “Beyond local search: Boundary-spanning, exploration, and impact in the optical disk industry”, Strategic Management Journal, 22(4), 287–306.
- Ryu, Y., & Sueyoshi, T. (2021). “Examining the Relationship between the Economic Performance of Technology-Based Small Suppliers and Socially Sustainable Procurement”, Sustainability, 13(13), 7220.
- Schneider, B (1987). “The People Make the Place”, Personnel Psychology, 40(3), 437–453.
- Schneider, B., Goldstein, H. W., & Smith, D. B (1995). “The Asa Framework: An Update”, Personnel Psychology, 48(4), 747–773.
- Setó, P. D, (2015). “The relationship between women directors and corporate social responsibility”, Corporate Social Responsibility & Environmental Management, 22(6), 334–345.
- Shauki E (2011). “Perceptions on corporate social responsibility: A study in capturing public confidence”, Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 18(3), 200–208.
- Sila, V., Gonzalez, A., & Hagendorff, J (2016). “Women on board: Does boardroom gender diversity affect firm risk?”, Journal of Corporate Finance, 36(Supplement C), 26-53.
- Silverman, I. W (2003). “Gender differences in delay of gratification: A meta-analysis”, Sex Roles, 49, 451–463.
- Simar, L., & Wilson, P. W (2007). “Estimation and inference in two-stage, semi-parametric models of production processes”. Journal of econometrics, 136(1), 31-64.
- Squires, B. and Elnahla, N., 2020. The roles played by boards of directors: an integration of the agency and stakeholder theories. Transnational Corporations Review, 12(2), pp.126-139.
- Sui, S., Baum, M. and Malhotra, S (2019). “How home-peers affect the export market exit of small firms: Evidence from Canadian exporters”, Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 43(5), 1018-1045.
- Sui, S., Morgan, H. M., & Baum, M. (2022). “Differences between women-and men-owned export businesses: are women-owned export businesses more financially successful when they adopt an intensive export strategy?”, Journal of Small Business & Entrepreneurship, 1-18.
- Stahl, G. K., Maznevski, M. L., Voigt, A., & Jonsen, K (2009). “Unraveling the effects of cultural diversity in teams: A meta-analysis of research on multicultural work groups”, Journal of International Business Studies, 20, 1–20.
- Teece, D. J., Pisano, G., & Shuen, A (1997). “Dynamic capabilities and strategic management”, Strategic Vafaei, A., Henry, D., Ahmed, K., & Alipour, M (2021). “Board diversity: female director participation and corporate innovation”, International Journal of Accounting & Information Management, 29(2), 247–279.
- Thomson Reuters. (2017). “Thomson Reuters ESG scores”. (March.) Available at: https://www.esade.edu/itemsweb/biblioteca/bbdd/inbbdd/ archivos/Thomson_Reuters_ESG_Scores.pdf
- Wang, Y., Wilson, C., & Li, Y (2021). “Gender attitudes and the effect of board gender diversity on corporate environmental responsibility”, Emerging Markets Review, 47, June (no page numbers).
- World Bank Group. (2015). “Women, Business, and the Law 2016: Getting to Equal”, World Bank. available at https://thedocs.worldbank.org/en/doc/810421519921949813-0050022015/original/WomenBusinessandtheLaw2016.pdf
- Zhang JQ, Zhu H, Ding H (2012). “Board composition and corporate social responsibility: an empirical investigation in the Post Sarbanes–Oxley Era”, Journal of Business Ethics, 114(3), 381-392.