IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/wly/corsem/v31y2024i5p3902-3915.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Aligning multinational corporate strategies with Sustainable Development Goals: A case study of an Italian energy firm's initiatives in developing markets

Author

Listed:
  • Luigi Nasta
  • Veronica Cundari

Abstract

This paper investigates the strategic role of multinational corporations (MNCs) in realizing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through the lens of creating shared value (CSV) strategies. It presents a comprehensive case study of a prominent Italian multinational energy corporation, demonstrating its application in the energy sector. The paper explores the nuances of CSV implementation, particularly in developing markets like Chile, Brazil, and Colombia, guided by Institutional and Stakeholder theories. It examines the corporation's responsive adaptation to local needs and challenges, and its alignment of business operations with sustainable development objectives. The findings underscore the significance of local stakeholder engagement and the critical role of leadership in fostering a culture of sustainability within the organization. This study expands on previous literature by offering insights into the practical implementation of CSV strategies by MNCs in developing markets. It sheds light on the complexities of integrating global sustainability standards with local institutional dynamics and stakeholder collaboration, enriching the understanding of how MNCs can contribute meaningfully to the SDGs.

Suggested Citation

  • Luigi Nasta & Veronica Cundari, 2024. "Aligning multinational corporate strategies with Sustainable Development Goals: A case study of an Italian energy firm's initiatives in developing markets," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(5), pages 3902-3915, September.
  • Handle: RePEc:wly:corsem:v:31:y:2024:i:5:p:3902-3915
    DOI: 10.1002/csr.2779
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1002/csr.2779
    Download Restriction: no

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1002/csr.2779?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Fuenfschilling, Lea & Truffer, Bernhard, 2014. "The structuration of socio-technical regimes—Conceptual foundations from institutional theory," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 43(4), pages 772-791.
    2. Ulrich Lichtenthaler, 2017. "Shared Value Innovation: Linking Competitiveness and Societal Goals in the Context of Digital Transformation," International Journal of Innovation and Technology Management (IJITM), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 14(04), pages 1-14, August.
    3. Robert G. Eccles & Ioannis Ioannou & George Serafeim, 2014. "The Impact of Corporate Sustainability on Organizational Processes and Performance," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 60(11), pages 2835-2857, November.
    4. Benjamin Saunders & Julius Sim & Tom Kingstone & Shula Baker & Jackie Waterfield & Bernadette Bartlam & Heather Burroughs & Clare Jinks, 2018. "Saturation in qualitative research: exploring its conceptualization and operationalization," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 52(4), pages 1893-1907, July.
    5. Wilhelm, Miriam & Blome, Constantin & Wieck, Ellen & Xiao, Cheng Yong, 2016. "Implementing sustainability in multi-tier supply chains: Strategies and contingencies in managing sub-suppliers," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 182(C), pages 196-212.
    6. Clarysse, Bart & Wright, Mike & Bruneel, Johan & Mahajan, Aarti, 2014. "Creating value in ecosystems: Crossing the chasm between knowledge and business ecosystems," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 43(7), pages 1164-1176.
    7. Wettstein, Florian & Giuliani, Elisa & Santangelo, Grazia D. & Stahl, Günter K., 2019. "International business and human rights: A research agenda," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 54(1), pages 54-65.
    8. Rebecca Chunghee Kim, 2018. "Can Creating Shared Value (CSV) and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs) Collaborate for a Better World? Insights from East Asia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(11), pages 1-26, November.
    9. Bryan W Husted & David B Allen, 2006. "Corporate social responsibility in the multinational enterprise: strategic and institutional approaches," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 37(6), pages 838-849, November.
    10. Robert Strand & R. Freeman, 2015. "Scandinavian Cooperative Advantage: The Theory and Practice of Stakeholder Engagement in Scandinavia," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 127(1), pages 65-85, March.
    11. Peter Lund-Thomsen & Adam Lindgreen, 2014. "Corporate Social Responsibility in Global Value Chains: Where Are We Now and Where Are We Going?," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 123(1), pages 11-22, August.
    12. David Ollivier de Leth & Mirjam A. F. Ros-Tonen, 2022. "Creating Shared Value Through an Inclusive Development Lens: A Case Study of a CSV Strategy in Ghana’s Cocoa Sector," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 178(2), pages 339-354, June.
    13. John Ruggie, 2008. "Protect, Respect and Remedy: A Framework for Business and Human Rights," Innovations: Technology, Governance, Globalization, MIT Press, vol. 3(2), pages 189-212, April.
    14. Ans Kolk & François Lenfant, 2013. "Multinationals, CSR and Partnerships in Central African Conflict Countries," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 20(1), pages 43-54, January.
    15. Khurshid, Hamid & Snell, Robin Stanley, 2021. "Examining mechanisms for creating shared value by Asian firms," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 129(C), pages 122-133.
    16. Lyon Salia Awuah & Kwame Oduro Amoako & Stephen Yeboah & Emmanuel Opoku Marfo & Peter Ansu-Mensah, 2021. "Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR): motivations and challenges of a Multinational Enterprise (MNE) subsidiary’s engagement with host communities in Ghana," International Journal of Corporate Social Responsibility, Springer, vol. 6(1), pages 1-13, December.
    17. Robert Strand & R. Freeman, 2015. "Erratum to: Scandinavian Cooperative Advantage: The Theory and Practice of Stakeholder Engagement in Scandinavia," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 127(1), pages 87-87, March.
    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. Rebecca Chunghee Kim & Akira Saito & V. Mohan Avvari, 0. "Interpretation and integration of “creating shared value” in Asia: implications for strategy research and practice," Asian Business & Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 0, pages 1-28.
    2. Turhan Kaymak & Eralp Bektas, 2017. "Corporate Social Responsibility and Governance: Information Disclosure in Multinational Corporations," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 24(6), pages 555-569, November.
    3. Rekha Rao-Nicholson & Htwe Htwe Thein & Yifan Zhong, 2024. "A thematic analysis of the links between multinational enterprises’ corporate social responsibility and the Sustainable Development Goals in Myanmar," Journal of International Business Policy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 7(2), pages 203-223, June.
    4. Alipranti, Maria & Manasakis, Constantine & Petrakis, Emmanuel, 2024. "Corporate social responsibility and bargaining in unionized markets," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 224(C), pages 949-965.
    5. Rebecca Chunghee Kim & Akira Saito & V. Mohan Avvari, 2020. "Interpretation and integration of “creating shared value” in Asia: implications for strategy research and practice," Asian Business & Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 19(4), pages 379-406, September.
    6. Pei Sun & Jonathan P. Doh & Tazeeb Rajwani & Donald Siegel, 2021. "Navigating cross-border institutional complexity: A review and assessment of multinational nonmarket strategy research," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 52(9), pages 1818-1853, December.
    7. Stefan Gold & Thomas Chesney & Tim Gruchmann & Alexander Trautrims, 2020. "Diffusion of labor standards through supplier–subcontractor networks: An agent‐based model," Journal of Industrial Ecology, Yale University, vol. 24(6), pages 1274-1286, December.
    8. Hong, Paul & Jagani, Sandeep & Kim, Jinhwan & Youn, Sun Hee, 2019. "Managing sustainability orientation: An empirical investigation of manufacturing firms," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 211(C), pages 71-81.
    9. Attila Havas & Doris Schartinger & K. Matthias Weber, 2022. "Innovation Studies, Social Innovation, and Sustainability Transitions Research: From mutual ignorance towards an integrative perspective?," CERS-IE WORKING PAPERS 2227, Institute of Economics, Centre for Economic and Regional Studies.
    10. Juliane Peters & Ana Simaens, 2020. "Integrating Sustainability into Corporate Strategy: A Case Study of the Textile and Clothing Industry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(15), pages 1-35, July.
    11. Erick Auma Omondi, 2024. "Enviropreneurial Marketing Strategies on Sustainability of Cement Industry in Kenya," International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS), vol. 8(3s), pages 1945-1968, March.
    12. Mähönen Jukka, 2020. "Integrated Reporting and Sustainable Corporate Governance from European Perspective," Accounting, Economics, and Law: A Convivium, De Gruyter, vol. 10(2), pages 1-40, July.
    13. Pisani, Niccolò & Kourula, Arno & Kolk, Ans & Meijer, Renske, 2017. "How global is international CSR research? Insights and recommendations from a systematic review," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 52(5), pages 591-614.
    14. Stephanie Lu Wang & Yejee Lee & Dan Li, 2024. "Smart disclosure: an enabler for multinationals to reduce human rights violations in global supply chains," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 55(4), pages 450-469, June.
    15. Wendy Phillips & Elizabeth A. Alexander & Hazel Lee, 2019. "Going It Alone Won’t Work! The Relational Imperative for Social Innovation in Social Enterprises," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 156(2), pages 315-331, May.
    16. Gong, Mengfeng & Gao, Yuan & Koh, Lenny & Sutcliffe, Charles & Cullen, John, 2019. "The role of customer awareness in promoting firm sustainability and sustainable supply chain management," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 217(C), pages 88-96.
    17. Robert C. Bird & Vivek Soundararajan, 2020. "The Role of Precontractual Signals in Creating Sustainable Global Supply Chains," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 164(1), pages 81-94, June.
    18. Tracy Van Holt & Martin Delaroche & Ulrich Atz & Kevin Eckerle, 2021. "Financial benefits of reimagined, sustainable, agrifood supply networks," Journal of International Business Policy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 4(1), pages 102-118, March.
    19. Diego F. Uribe & Isabel Ortiz-Marcos & Ángel Uruburu, 2018. "What Is Going on with Stakeholder Theory in Project Management Literature? A Symbiotic Relationship for Sustainability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(4), pages 1-23, April.
    20. Claudia Bitencourt & Gabriela Zanandrea & Cristiane Froehlich & Manuela Rösing Agostini & Roselei Haag, 2024. "Rethinking the company's role: Creating shared value from corporate social innovation," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(4), pages 2865-2877, July.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    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:wly:corsem:v:31:y:2024:i:5:p:3902-3915. 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: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://doi.org/10.1002/(ISSN)1535-3966 .

    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.