This study examines how overinvestment in philanthropy impacts green innovation, two important social responsibility activities. Drawing on social capital theory, we explain social responsibility activities as a form of insurance that provides protective benefits for a firm's reputation, political connections, and public relations. Additionally, we investigate how ex-military executives affects the management of philanthropy and green innovation. Based on the Chinese listed firms from 2006 to 2017, our analysis reveals a substitutive effect between the social responsibility activities, which provide similar 'insurance' benefits. Our findings further suggest that executives with military experiences actively promote green innovation even in the context of overinvestment in philanthropy. By integrating social capital and imprinting theory, this study provides new insights into the complex interplay between social responsibility activities and the role of executive backgrounds in influencing the activities.

Drawing on the resource-based view theory and the new stakeholder theory, this study investigates the effect of (in)congruent internal–external CSR strategies on market performance. We classify a sample of 38,056 firm-year observations from 86 countries, covering the period 2010 to 2019, into four quadrants based on the level of internal and external CSR activities: forerunners (both high), laggards (both low), walkers (high internal, low external), and talkers (high external, low internal). Through polynomial regression and three-dimensional response surface, our findings reveal that the positive effect of congruent internal–external CSR activities on market performance is stronger for forerunners compared to laggards. That is, investors reward the CSR actions of forerunners to a greater extent compared to laggards. Additionally, for firms with aggregated internal and external CSR activities in the mediocre range, the market value is higher for walkers compared to talkers. Contrary to the traditional perspective that emphasizes the significance of external stakeholder satisfaction for firms, our study demonstrates that investors prefer firms that prioritize workforce well-being. This study offers valuable insights for international businesses navigating CSR intricacies in a global landscape.

We investigate the financial impacts of green buildings on firm performance, filling a gap in existing literature that primarily focuses on environmental outcomes. Based on dynamic capability theory, we explore how green buildings contribute to a firm's capacity to efficiently utilize resources, thereby enhancing performance. Analysis of U.S. listed firms and LEED data reveals that green buildings positively influence financial performance, with higher-rated buildings providing greater dynamic capabilities. However, financial slack resources can disrupt routines established by green buildings, diminishing their effectiveness in boosting performance. Our findings extend dynamic capability theory by incorporating the physical environment's role and elucidate the nuanced impacts of financial slack resources.