Katja Grekova | Wageningen University and Research Centre (original) (raw)
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Papers by Katja Grekova
Searching for sustainable growth opportunities, manufacturing firms are increasingly embedding su... more Searching for sustainable growth opportunities, manufacturing firms are increasingly embedding sustainability concerns into their relationships with supply chain partners. In the present paper, we explore the potential of environmental collaboration with suppliers and customers to induce environmentally sustainable improvements to internal processes to address external sustainability pressures and to contribute to business performance. Grounded in resource based view spin-offs, this study claims that environmental collaboration can enhance the performance of the focal firm not only directly, but also indirectly – by stimulating the focal firm to implement more environmentally sustainable processes that in turn contribute to firm's performance. Providing manufacturing managers with a better understanding of the direct and indirect relationships between environmental collaboration and firm performance can gain them more control over the outcomes of environmental collaboration. Proposed relationships were tested in a sample of 139 Dutch food and beverage processors using structural equation modelling. The results indicate that environmental collaboration with suppliers can improve the performance of Dutch food and beverage processors directly as it induces cost savings. Nevertheless, such collaboration is not likely to assist firms seeking to improve environmental sustainability of their internal processes as one of the outcomes of environmental collaboration. On the contrary, environmental collaboration with customers induces performance indirectly, by stimulating food and beverage processors to implement sustainable process improvements that subsequently bring about cost savings and market gains.
Consumer demand for environmental sustainability and for affordable prices calls for cooperation ... more Consumer demand for environmental sustainability and for affordable prices calls for cooperation and information exchange in food chains to reduce joint environmental impact, known as externally-oriented environmental management (E-EM). E-EM is increasingly regarded as a management tool to simultaneously improve environmental, operational, and business performance. Understanding the factors that influence managers to develop E-EM helps to design environmentally and economically sustainable food chains. The prior research regarding these factors is not exhaustive and demanded a multi-period approach. This study expands the understanding of the factors that influence managers to develop E-EM with a multi-period empirical research. We address the effects of external institutional pressures (regulative, normative, and culturally-cognitive) and the level of in-company environmental management (I-EM) on E-EM, which involves information exchange in the chain, cooperation with suppliers and customers. The analysis relies on survey data of 255 and 96 Dutch food and beverage (F&B) processors from 2002 and 2010 respectively. The findings indicate that respondents have considerably improved I-EM over time. I-EM requires in-company pzrocedures ranging from environmental strategy formulation to the managerial review of achieved results to assure continuous improvement of environmental performance. F&B processors that had already achieved a high level of I-EM are more likely to develop E-EM. Also growing normative and culturally-cognitive pressures from supply chain partners and increasingly from long-term public–private environmental covenants significantly influenced E-EM implementation. However, regulative pressure from public authorities had no impact. It appeared that E-EM is influenced mostly by institutional pressures when the firms are less experienced with I-EM.
Nowadays, firms are increasingly challenged to bridge potentially conflicting economic interests ... more Nowadays, firms are increasingly challenged to bridge potentially conflicting economic interests of primary commercial
stakeholders and sustainability demands from secondary non-commercial stakeholder groups. While a number of
firms view investments in environmental management as disconnected from their value-creating activities, others have
reported achieved cost efficiency and differentiation advantages. Prior research suggests that environmental innovation
might be the missing link between environmental management and firm performance. However, the mediating effect of
environmental innovation in the relationship between environmental management and a firm’s performance had not been
empirically tested so far. Our paper provides a contribution by conducting an empirical investigation into this possible
mediating effect. Although the presumed mediating role of environmental innovation suggests that it is influenced by
internal environmental management, environmental innovation literature is especially concerned with the role of external
stakeholders in environmental innovation. This study investigates the role of the engagement of stakeholders such as supply
chain partners, industry, and public authorities in environmental impact reduction. We hypothesise that environmental
innovation positively mediates the relationship between environmental management and firm performance, and that the
engagement of stakeholders has a positive impact on environmental innovation. The research model was tested with a
variance-based structural equation model using data from 90 Dutch food and beverage firms. The results confirm the positive
mediating effect of environmental process innovation on the relationship between environmental management and cost
efficiency advantage. Environmental product innovation contributes to a differentiation advantage but it is not significantly
influenced by environmental management. So we could not support a positive mediating effect of environmental product
innovation on the relationship between environmental management and differentiation advantage. Instead, environmental
collaboration with supply chain partners has a strong positive impact on environmental product innovation. It also positively
influences environmental process innovation but this influence is much weaker than the influence of internal environmental
management. Our findings can assist managers in their decision making regarding the implementation of environmental
innovations and environmental collaboration with external parties. The study is also relevant to policy makers as a tool to
assess the appropriateness of their policy.
Searching for sustainable growth opportunities, manufacturing firms are increasingly embedding su... more Searching for sustainable growth opportunities, manufacturing firms are increasingly embedding sustainability concerns into their relationships with supply chain partners. In the present paper, we explore the potential of environmental collaboration with suppliers and customers to induce environmentally sustainable improvements to internal processes to address external sustainability pressures and to contribute to business performance. Grounded in resource based view spin-offs, this study claims that environmental collaboration can enhance the performance of the focal firm not only directly, but also indirectly – by stimulating the focal firm to implement more environmentally sustainable processes that in turn contribute to firm's performance. Providing manufacturing managers with a better understanding of the direct and indirect relationships between environmental collaboration and firm performance can gain them more control over the outcomes of environmental collaboration. Proposed relationships were tested in a sample of 139 Dutch food and beverage processors using structural equation modelling. The results indicate that environmental collaboration with suppliers can improve the performance of Dutch food and beverage processors directly as it induces cost savings. Nevertheless, such collaboration is not likely to assist firms seeking to improve environmental sustainability of their internal processes as one of the outcomes of environmental collaboration. On the contrary, environmental collaboration with customers induces performance indirectly, by stimulating food and beverage processors to implement sustainable process improvements that subsequently bring about cost savings and market gains.
Consumer demand for environmental sustainability and for affordable prices calls for cooperation ... more Consumer demand for environmental sustainability and for affordable prices calls for cooperation and information exchange in food chains to reduce joint environmental impact, known as externally-oriented environmental management (E-EM). E-EM is increasingly regarded as a management tool to simultaneously improve environmental, operational, and business performance. Understanding the factors that influence managers to develop E-EM helps to design environmentally and economically sustainable food chains. The prior research regarding these factors is not exhaustive and demanded a multi-period approach. This study expands the understanding of the factors that influence managers to develop E-EM with a multi-period empirical research. We address the effects of external institutional pressures (regulative, normative, and culturally-cognitive) and the level of in-company environmental management (I-EM) on E-EM, which involves information exchange in the chain, cooperation with suppliers and customers. The analysis relies on survey data of 255 and 96 Dutch food and beverage (F&B) processors from 2002 and 2010 respectively. The findings indicate that respondents have considerably improved I-EM over time. I-EM requires in-company pzrocedures ranging from environmental strategy formulation to the managerial review of achieved results to assure continuous improvement of environmental performance. F&B processors that had already achieved a high level of I-EM are more likely to develop E-EM. Also growing normative and culturally-cognitive pressures from supply chain partners and increasingly from long-term public–private environmental covenants significantly influenced E-EM implementation. However, regulative pressure from public authorities had no impact. It appeared that E-EM is influenced mostly by institutional pressures when the firms are less experienced with I-EM.
Nowadays, firms are increasingly challenged to bridge potentially conflicting economic interests ... more Nowadays, firms are increasingly challenged to bridge potentially conflicting economic interests of primary commercial
stakeholders and sustainability demands from secondary non-commercial stakeholder groups. While a number of
firms view investments in environmental management as disconnected from their value-creating activities, others have
reported achieved cost efficiency and differentiation advantages. Prior research suggests that environmental innovation
might be the missing link between environmental management and firm performance. However, the mediating effect of
environmental innovation in the relationship between environmental management and a firm’s performance had not been
empirically tested so far. Our paper provides a contribution by conducting an empirical investigation into this possible
mediating effect. Although the presumed mediating role of environmental innovation suggests that it is influenced by
internal environmental management, environmental innovation literature is especially concerned with the role of external
stakeholders in environmental innovation. This study investigates the role of the engagement of stakeholders such as supply
chain partners, industry, and public authorities in environmental impact reduction. We hypothesise that environmental
innovation positively mediates the relationship between environmental management and firm performance, and that the
engagement of stakeholders has a positive impact on environmental innovation. The research model was tested with a
variance-based structural equation model using data from 90 Dutch food and beverage firms. The results confirm the positive
mediating effect of environmental process innovation on the relationship between environmental management and cost
efficiency advantage. Environmental product innovation contributes to a differentiation advantage but it is not significantly
influenced by environmental management. So we could not support a positive mediating effect of environmental product
innovation on the relationship between environmental management and differentiation advantage. Instead, environmental
collaboration with supply chain partners has a strong positive impact on environmental product innovation. It also positively
influences environmental process innovation but this influence is much weaker than the influence of internal environmental
management. Our findings can assist managers in their decision making regarding the implementation of environmental
innovations and environmental collaboration with external parties. The study is also relevant to policy makers as a tool to
assess the appropriateness of their policy.