Foreign versus local firms: implications for environmental sustainability

PurposeManaging environmental consequences while sustaining economic development necessitate strong commitment and participation of all firms across sectors. However, the environment-related role of foreign and local firms is unclear from previous research. With increasing trade liberalization and e...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Benchmarking : an international journal Vol. 27; no. 5; pp. 1739 - 1768
Main Authors: Balasubramanian, Sreejith, Shukla, Vinaya
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Bradford Emerald Publishing Limited 01.06.2020
Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Subjects:
Attorneys
Construction industry
Economic development
Energy consumption
Environmental accounting
Environmental management
Environmental regulations
Hypotheses
ISO standards
R&D
Research & development
Sustainability
Sustainable development
Trade liberalization
Firm ownership
Environmental practices
Drivers
Performance
Barriers
ISSN:1463-5771, 1758-4094
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:PurposeManaging environmental consequences while sustaining economic development necessitate strong commitment and participation of all firms across sectors. However, the environment-related role of foreign and local firms is unclear from previous research. With increasing trade liberalization and entry of foreign firms, this question has become particularly relevant. The purpose of this paper is to contrast the roles and contributions of foreign and local firms from an environmental sustainability perspective.Design/methodology/approachUsing data collected through a structured survey (395 responses) and semi-structured interviews (19 numbers) from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) construction sector (research setting), the study analyses and understands the hypothesized differences between foreign and local firms on three key environmental sustainability aspects: the extent of environmental practices implementation, the strengths/influences of drivers and barriers affecting the implementation, and the environmental, cost-related, and organizational performance benefits derived.FindingsForeign firms were found to implement environmental practices to a greater extent, have a greater internal drive to implement these practices, and face lower barriers to implementation than local ones. Local firms though were found to be not far behind foreign ones with regards to the environmental, cost-related, and organizational performance benefits derived.Practical implicationsFindings from the study are expected to help policymakers and practitioners develop policies/interventions that ensure all firms irrespective of their nature of ownership contribute equitably to environmental sustainability.Originality/valueThis study is arguably the first comprehensive attempt to understand how various environmental sustainability aspects are perceived and performed by local and foreign firms.
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ISSN:1463-5771
1758-4094
DOI:10.1108/BIJ-12-2019-0526