Publication date: Available online 21 May 2014
Source:Journal of World Business

Author(s): Byung Il Park , Pervez N. Ghauri

This research attempts to investigate key drivers motivating corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices by small and medium sized foreign subsidiaries. By using stakeholder theory and regression analysis, we integrate international business and CSR literature to suggest a research model and identify the factors functioning as catalysts in influencing CSR in local markets. We find that consumers, ‘internal managers and employees’, competitors and non-governmental organizations are primary determinants considerably influencing corporate citizenship behavior particularly in emerging markets. We also believe that our model contributes to current knowledge by filling several research gaps, and our findings offer useful and practical implications not only for local governments but also for multinational enterprises.

Publication date: Available online 2 June 2014
Source:Journal of World Business

Author(s): Qinqin Zheng , Yadong Luo , Vladislav Maksimov

To manage stakeholder CSR pressures, firms from emerging economies can employ two legitimation strategies simultaneously – compliance and strategic adaptation. Compliance is useful in responding to explicitly expressed demands for CSR, while strategic adaptation is useful when a specific form of CSR is seen as most instrumental in drawing positive responses from a particular stakeholder group. We analyze the adoption of two extreme CSR forms – philanthropy and sustainability. In a sample of 288 firms from China, we demonstrate that firms adopt both CSR forms, but emphasize philanthropy when seeking legitimacy with outsider stakeholders and sustainability with insider stakeholders.

This study explores the multidimensional construct of brand authenticity and the effect of each component on brand attachment, brand commitment, and brand loyalty by focusing on fashion brands in sporting goods. For this study, two global sports brands, Nike and Adidas, were selected, and brand stimuli (cartoons with scenarios) were designed based on a qualitative analysis of brand cases. A total of 207 usable responses were obtained from Korean consumers who had purchased the selected brands. The findings show that fashion brand authenticity consisted of seven factors: authority, fashionability, consistency, innovativeness, sustainability, origin, and heritage. Of these factors, authority, fashionability, innovativeness, and sustainability were significant predictors of brand attachment, and authority, consistency, and innovativeness were significant predictors of brand loyalty. There were differences in the effects of brand authenticity on brand attachment and brand commitment between Nike and Adidas. From a managerial and holistic marketing perspective, implications are suggested regarding the importance of managing brand authenticity in product innovation and management approaches.

Insurgent sustainability managers have to understand the goals of their colleagues and help them see the benefits of implementing sustainability initiatives in their functional areas. The insurgent sustainability director’s goal is to empower allies to link social intelligence with their job responsibilities and the company’s overall sustainability strategy. This begins by encouraging functional managers to […]