Conference Agenda

This study aims to investigate the links between Environmental Sustainability practices (ES), Digital Transformation (DT), innovation, and performance in MSMEs in Peru. The research underlines the crucial role of ES and DT in driving innovation and enhancing the performance of companies. The study focuses on the challenges MSMEs face. Despite their efforts to invest in innovation and ES, many lack a clear strategy for effective alignment. The research employs structural equation modelling to understand the impact of ES, DT, and innovation on performance. The study proposes several hypotheses, including the positive impact of ES practices on firm performance, mutually reinforcing relationship between ES practices and digitalization, and the influence of digitalization on ES adoption. It also suggests positive relationships between ES practices and innovation, DT and firm performance, and digitalization and innovation.

The study highlights that innovation positively affects firm performance. The study employs sampling methods and surveys of MSME general, analyzing indicators such as product quality, customer satisfaction, and profitability. The results, analyzed using PLS methods, indicate that while sustainable environmental practices alone have limited impact, their combination with DT and innovation significantly enhances performance. The research recognizes the need for future studies to conduct industry-specific and country-specific analyses.

There is a widespread belief that some organizations use certifications to solve information asymmetry problems, such as the management of quality and corporate social responsibility. Previous studies have put forward different motivations for the use of certifications. We thus observe, how some organizations obtain similar certifications in a process known as over-certification, an issue which has yet to be investigated in depth. Using structural equation modeling and signaling theory, our results confirm an isomorphic effect on stakeholder pressures that generates different motivations for using certifications, depending on where the pressure is coming from. This decoupling in the interest in certifications is the main antecedent of organizational over-certification. Our results also show that the popularity of over-certification is based on its supposed impact on financial performance. However, its profitability results the signaling value of the different certifications obtained rather than being derived from their organizational and operative opportunities.

Within the discussion on how to reduce the problems related with the climate change, carbon neutrality is emerging as important strategies firms are paying more attention to reduce their environmental footprint. Beyond the focus on individual contribution for sustainability, research is highlighting the need to move collectively to overcome the complexity of such challenges. This paper aims at analysing the relationship between the pro-active participation in business collective actions towards carbon neutrality and the impact of such participation on the firm sustainable performances. Based on an analysis of Net Zero collective actions of 1,395 B Corps in Europe the study offers an original insight on the strategic approaches and relations with performances of B Corps. Our analyses show that Net Zero 2030 initiative positively affect sustainable performances captured through the BIA assessment and this magnitude depends on the size of the firm. Such results are confirmed also checking for other business collective action oriented towards climate change initiatives.