Dynamic changes of corporate environmental strategy

Abstract

Dramatic increase of social concerns on the environment has lead companies to take into account environmental issues in strategic decision-making. Some doubts about corporate environmental strategy, however, still remain unsolved. A question ‘does it pay to be green?’ is one thing. Another apprehension is that forerunners’ optimistic views too go ahead of practices of real business. More systematic research efforts on the theme of dynamic change of environmental strategy, both theoretical and empirical are just beginning to emerge. Especially, few studies attempted to investigate rhetorical and real aspects of corporate environmental strategy. This study was initiated with a research purpose to explain the dynamic change of corporate environmental strategy with the perspective of rhetoric and reality distinction. It approached this question by means of a two-tiered analysis: corporate environmentalism at an industry level and environmental strategy at a corporate level. This thesis probes 1) the change of corporate environmentalism in Korea 2) environmental strategic type and its changes 3) rhetoric and reality in changes of corporate environmental strategy and 4) antecedents and consequences of the change of corporate environmental strategy. Various research methods such as a longitudinal contents analysis as well as surveys and case studies. The first study of this thesis investigates the change of corporate environmentalism in Korea. A longitudinal content analysis of an industry journal show that corporate environmentalism in Korea has progressed through three distinctive environmental strategic eras: the ignorance era, the compliance era and the strategic compliance era. There was an environmental transition periods during 1990s. Three drivers opened the strategic compliance era are enforced regulations, local community pressures over environmental response and the advent of new advanced environmental management approaches. Interviews with 27 companies ful...