IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v13y2021i4p2192-d501396.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Is Environment a Strategic Priority of the Leading Energy Companies? Evidence from Mission Statements

Author

Listed:
  • Dmitry A. Ruban

    (K.G. Razumovsky Moscow State University of Technologies and Management (The First Cossack University), Zemlyanoy Val Street 73, 109004 Moscow, Russia
    Department of Management, Higher School of Business, Southern Federal University, 23-ja Linija Street 43, 344019 Rostov-on-Don, Russia)

  • Natalia N. Yashalova

    (Department of Economics and Management, Business School, Cherepovets State University, Sovetskiy Avenue 10, 162600 Cherepovets, Vologda Region, Russia)

  • Vladimir A. Ermolaev

    (Department of Commodity Science and Expertise, Plekhanov Russian University of Economics, Stremyanny Lane 36, 117997 Moscow, Russia)

Abstract

Hydrocarbon production, electricity transmission, and other energy-related activities affect the environment. It is expected that environmental issues can be among strategic priorities summarized in mission statements of energy companies. The present analysis of the mission statements of 43 leading energy companies implies that these issues are considered by 36% of the top energy companies and 37% of the fastest-growing energy companies. These considerations often co-occur with attention to a company’s higher tasks and image. Most often, production ecologization is posed as a priority. The fastest-growing companies pay insufficient attention to climate changes. Conceptually, reflection of environmental issues in mission statements depends on the managerial awareness of these issues; additionally, the development of separate sustainability strategies may make environmental priorities somewhat marginal. The ‘greening’ of mission statements of energy companies is recommended.

Suggested Citation

  • Dmitry A. Ruban & Natalia N. Yashalova & Vladimir A. Ermolaev, 2021. "Is Environment a Strategic Priority of the Leading Energy Companies? Evidence from Mission Statements," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(4), pages 1-18, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:4:p:2192-:d:501396
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/4/2192/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/4/2192/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Rodrigo Lozano, 2015. "A Holistic Perspective on Corporate Sustainability Drivers," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 22(1), pages 32-44, January.
    2. Mei Peng Low & Donald Siegel, 2019. "A bibliometric analysis of employee-centred corporate social responsibility research in the 2000s," Social Responsibility Journal, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 16(5), pages 691-717, July.
    3. Morrow, David & Rondinelli, Dennis, 2002. "Adopting Corporate Environmental Management Systems:: Motivations and Results of ISO 14001 and EMAS Certification," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 20(2), pages 159-171, April.
    4. Serdar Çop & Victor Oluwafemi Olorunsola & Uju Violet Alola, 2021. "Achieving environmental sustainability through green transformational leadership policy: Can green team resilience help?," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(1), pages 671-682, January.
    5. Ivan Potravnyy & Andrey Novoselov & Igor Gengut, 2016. "Formalization of the General Model of the Green Economy at the Regional Level," Economy of region, Centre for Economic Security, Institute of Economics of Ural Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, vol. 1(2), pages 438-450.
    6. Ioanna Zerinou & Evangelia Karasmanaki & Konstantinos Ioannou & Veronika Andrea & Georgios Tsantopoulos, 2020. "Energy Saving: Views and Attitudes among Primary School Students and Their Parents," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(15), pages 1-23, August.
    7. Best, Bernadette & Miller, Kristel & McAdam, Rodney & Moffett, Sandra, 2021. "Mission or margin? Using dynamic capabilities to manage tensions in social purpose organisations’ business model innovation," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 125(C), pages 643-657.
    8. Piyapong Janmaimool & Samattaphong Khajohnmanee, 2019. "Roles of Environmental System Knowledge in Promoting University Students’ Environmental Attitudes and Pro-Environmental Behaviors," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(16), pages 1-18, August.
    9. Joshua Linn & Kristen McCormack, 2019. "The roles of energy markets and environmental regulation in reducing coal‐fired plant profits and electricity sector emissions," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 50(4), pages 733-767, December.
    10. Jaime Sánchez-Ortiz & Teresa García-Valderrama & Vanessa Rodríguez-Cornejo & Yolanda Giner-Manso, 2020. "The effects of environmental regulation on the efficiency of distribution electricity companies in Spain," Energy & Environment, , vol. 31(1), pages 3-20, February.
    11. Dmitry A. Ruban & Natalia N. Yashalova, 2021. "Lost in Missions? Employees as a Top Strategic Priority of the World’s Biggest Banks," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 14(2), pages 1-11, January.
    12. Mersland, Roy & Nyarko, Samuel Anokye & Szafarz, Ariane, 2019. "Do social enterprises walk the talk? Assessing microfinance performances with mission statements," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 11(C), pages 1-1.
    13. Bartkus, Barbara R. & Glassman, Myron & McAfee, R. Bruce, 2004. "A Comparison of the Quality of European, Japanese and U.S. Mission Statements:: A Content Analysis," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 22(4), pages 393-401, August.
    14. Fethi, Sami & Rahuma, Abdulhamid, 2020. "The impact of eco-innovation on CO2 emission reductions: Evidence from selected petroleum companies," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 108-115.
    15. Bartkus, Barbara & Glassman, Myron & McAfee, Bruce, 2002. "Do Large European, US and Japanese Firms Use Their Web Sites To Communicate Their Mission?," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 20(4), pages 423-429, August.
    16. Christopher Kenneth, Mark C. Bart Baetz, 1998. "The Relationship Between Mission Statements and Firm Performance: An Exploratory Study," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 35(6), pages 823-853, November.
    17. Lin, YiHsin & Ryan, Chris, 2016. "From mission statement to airline branding," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 150-160.
    18. Marco Raugei & Mashael Kamran & Allan Hutchinson, 2020. "A Prospective Net Energy and Environmental Life-Cycle Assessment of the UK Electricity Grid," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(9), pages 1-28, May.
    19. Ilian Minkov, 2009. "Organizational Culture – A Key Factor for the Creation and Implementation of the Company Strategy," Economic Studies journal, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences - Economic Research Institute, issue 2, pages 91-123.
    20. Syed Asim Ali Bukhari & Fathyah Hashim & Azlan Amran, 2020. "Green Banking: a road map for adoption," International Journal of Ethics and Systems, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 36(3), pages 371-385, June.
    21. Potravnyy, I. M. & Novoselov, A. L. & Gengut, I. B., 2016. "Formalization of the General Model of the Green Economy at the Regional Level," R-Economy, Ural Federal University, Graduate School of Economics and Management, vol. 2(2), pages 225-235.
    22. Alegre, Inés & Berbegal-Mirabent, Jasmina & Guerrero, Adrián & Mas-Machuca, Marta, 2018. "The real mission of the mission statement: A systematic review of the literature," Journal of Management & Organization, Cambridge University Press, vol. 24(4), pages 456-473, July.
    23. M. Hashmi & Amal Damanhouri & Divya Rana, 2015. "Evaluation of Sustainability Practices in the United States and Large Corporations," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 127(3), pages 673-681, March.
    24. Evangelia Karasmanaki & Spyridon Galatsidas & Georgios Tsantopoulos, 2019. "An Investigation of Factors Affecting the Willingness to Invest in Renewables among Environmental Students: A Logistic Regression Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(18), pages 1-18, September.
    25. Steensen, Elmer Fly, 2014. "Five types of organizational strategy," Scandinavian Journal of Management, Elsevier, vol. 30(3), pages 266-281.
    26. Michaela Wrede & Tobias Dauth, 2020. "A temporal perspective on the relationship between top management team internationalization and firms' innovativeness," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 41(4), pages 542-561, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Jongdo Jeon & Keun Tae Cho, 2021. "Differences in Readability, Keywords, and Orientation of Mission Statements of the Top 100 Korean and Top 100 US Traditional and Innovative Companies," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(18), pages 1-24, September.
    2. Dmitry A. Ruban & Natalia N. Yashalova, 2021. "Lost in Missions? Employees as a Top Strategic Priority of the World’s Biggest Banks," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 14(2), pages 1-11, January.
    3. Dmitry A. Ruban & Natalia N. Yashalova, 2022. "Corporate Web Positioning as a Strategic Communication Tool in Agriculture," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 12(8), pages 1-16, July.
    4. Sheikh Shamim Hasnain, 2020. "A Critical Comparison between Manufacturing and Service Firms’ Mission Statements: Manage Your Firms’ Mission Statements with Care Using Readability and Lexical Techniques," Business Management and Strategy, Macrothink Institute, vol. 11(1), pages 216-231, June.
    5. Julian D. Cortes & Diego Tellez & Jesus Godoy, 2021. "Mission Statement Effect on Research and Innovation Performance," Papers 2104.07476, arXiv.org.
    6. Dmitry A. Ruban & Natalia N. Yashalova, 2022. "Pro-environmental behavior prescribed by top companies of the world," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 24(6), pages 7918-7935, June.
    7. Feiran Dong & Yongzhen Xie & Linjun Cao, 2019. "Board Power Hierarchy, Corporate Mission, and Green Performance," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(18), pages 1-27, September.
    8. Bayrak, Tuncay, 2020. "A content analysis of top-ranked universities’ mission statements from five global regions," International Journal of Educational Development, Elsevier, vol. 72(C).
    9. Seo Gang-Hoon & Itoh Munehiko, 2019. "Trends of Corporate Mission Statements: From pursuing profit to distinctive and social value," HOLISTICA – Journal of Business and Public Administration, Sciendo, vol. 10(3), pages 27-36, December.
    10. Odile Paulus, 2008. "La déclaration de mission, une revue de la littérature," Working Papers of LaRGE Research Center 2008-13, Laboratoire de Recherche en Gestion et Economie (LaRGE), Université de Strasbourg.
    11. Barbara Bartkus & Myron Glassman, 2008. "Do Firms Practice What They Preach? The Relationship Between Mission Statements and Stakeholder Management," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 83(2), pages 207-216, December.
    12. S. Desmidt & A. Heene, 2006. "Mission Statement Perception: Are We All on the Same Wavelength? A Case Study in a Flemish Hospital," Working Papers of Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, Ghent University, Belgium 06/423, Ghent University, Faculty of Economics and Business Administration.
    13. Lara Penco & Giorgia Profumo & Roberta Scarsi, 2017. "Stakeholder Orientation in Cruise Lines’ Mission Statements," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(11), pages 1-24, November.
    14. Bortnowska Hanna & Seiler Bartosz, 2022. "CSR in mission statements of Polish chemical industry companies (content analysis results)," Management, Sciendo, vol. 26(2), pages 1-23, December.
    15. Eleni Altikolatsi & Evangelia Karasmanaki & Androniki Parissi & Georgios Tsantopoulos, 2021. "Exploring the Factors Affecting the Recycling Behavior of Primary School Students," World, MDPI, vol. 2(3), pages 1-17, June.
    16. Jasmina Berbegal-Mirabent & Marta Mas-Machuca & Patricia Guix, 2021. "Impact of mission statement components on social enterprises’ performance," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 15(3), pages 705-724, April.
    17. Ethem Duygulu & Emir Ozeren & Pınar Işıldar & Andrea Appolloni, 2016. "The Sustainable Strategy for Small and Medium Sized Enterprises: The Relationship between Mission Statements and Performance," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(7), pages 1-16, July.
    18. Fahad Alolayan & Wided Ragmoun & Hanene Saidi, 2018. "An Exploratory Approach of the Mission Statement: Case of Saudi Arabia Business Schools," International Journal of Business and Management, Canadian Center of Science and Education, vol. 13(3), pages 200-200, February.
    19. David, Forest, 2020. "Analysis Of Vision And Mission Statements Characteristics And Their Association With Organizational Performance: A Guide To Writing Effective Vision And Mission Statements," APSTRACT: Applied Studies in Agribusiness and Commerce, AGRIMBA, vol. 14(1-2), June.
    20. Law, Kris M.Y. & Breznik, Kristijan, 2018. "What do airline mission statements reveal about value and strategy?," Journal of Air Transport Management, Elsevier, vol. 70(C), pages 36-44.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:4:p:2192-:d:501396. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.